WWE Survivor Series 2016 Review 11/20/2016

Hello Misfits! It’s the Wrestling Classic here with my Survivor Series 2016 review. Survivor Series is one of WWE’s big four PPV’s and this is its 30th edition. Survivors Series has been known to be one of the most memorable PPV’s of the year either the home of big debuts or controversial moments. This Survivor Series was also significant because it was said to be the only event of the year where Raw and Smackdown would go head to head for brand supremacy during this new brand extension era. The main event was the return of the icon Goldberg after 12 years to face off against the “Beast Incarnate” Brock Lesnar. I ended up having the worst prediction score I’ve had yet. I was 2-4 in my predictions, but I’m not disappointed that I was. The show was unpredictable, and I knew that going into it. Therefore, thats why even in my predictions I foreshadowed that most of my predictions were most likely going to be wrong. I never caught the pre-show because I had work but I made it home for Survivor Series, so I won’t be reviewing the kick off matches. Anyway, here is my review for this years Survivor Series.

WWE Survivor Series comes to us from the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

– The show opened a video package hyping up tonights show.

Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown
Traditional Survivor Series Match
Team Raw Women (Charlotte, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Nia Jax & Alicia Fox)  w/ Dana Brooke def. Team Smackdown (Becky Lynch, Natalya, Carmella, Alexa Bliss & Naomi)
in 17:20 by pinfall
Nikki Bella was attacked backstage before the match and was replaced by Natalya instead. This was great because it will lead to a great angle on Smackdown Live where they try to figure out who attacked Nikki Bella before the match. I mean it could have been Team Raw members but it could also have been someone on her own team. Anyway, this match was good but it also its flaws. It never seemed to switch to second gear but went in first gear and stayed there. It was not a bad match but it wasn’t spectacular or very memorable either. They all worked really well and had their moments. A few things that really stood out to me were some of the eliminations and how they went down. I mean Carmella being eliminated so early was pretty upsetting since she’s really grown as a heel on the blue brand these past few months. Sasha Banks being eliminated by a roll up and kind of early was shocking too. It made me wonder what was next for the Boss after coming off two short Women’s Title reigns and the first ever Women’s hell in a cell? I did however enjoy that it was Natalya, a home country favourite, who eliminated the popular Sasha Banks. I loved how dominate they made Nia Jax seem last night, but I was thrown off from her tapping out for elimination. I get that she tapped out to the champion but she didn’t even tap out to the champion of her own show. Personally, I would have liked Nia to be taken out by disqualification or after a series of offence from multiple Smackdown Live team members but she just tapped out to Becky Lynch. Also, I loved how they kept the tension between Alexa and Becky alive but I wish Alexa had more offence instead of just being taking out my boot by Charlotte. Now when it came down to Becky Lynch against Charlotte and Bayley, we all know what really happened. Becky Lynch couldn’t overcome Charlotte and Bayley and took the final fall with a Bayley to Belly. Following the match Charlotte attacked Bayley. In my opinion, I think it would have been more entertaining if Becky was able to overcome Charlotte by eliminating her but unable to overcome Bayley in the end. I would have had Charlotte who was still outside the ring being consoled by Dana to get in the ring and attack Bayley after. It would have made Becky look strong and also give more of a purpose to Charlotte’s attack after the match. The match was great but I think it could have been better. However it was a fun watch and everything did work well.
Survivors – Charlotte & Bayley
Rating – ***

Raw vs. Smackdown
Intercontinental Championship
The Miz w/ Maryse (C)  def. Sami Zayn
in 14:05 via pinfall
This crowd was hot for Zayn and hated the Miz. The match was very back and forth. The Miz worked Sami Zayns legs and Sami had to fend off not only the Miz but anyway Maryse found a way to get involved. This match was better than I expected. I still Zayn and Ziggler could have stolen the show, but this match wasn’t bad at all. I was not a fan of revisiting the screw job with the bell being rang when Miz had Zayn in the figure four even thought Zayn didn’t tap out. I dislike the fact that if there is an event in Canada that 90% of the time we’re bout to revisit the Montreal Screwjob. It wasn’t that long that it took place on a PPV between Charlotte and Natalya, correct? Anyway, Sami was confused by this and Miz rolled him up anyway for the victory. I’m all good with shenanigans. I mean who is the Miz if he’s not trying to find the easy way out of a match? It’s wha he does, but I wish they went a different route. I was also surprised there wasn’t any run in’s or involvement of Dolph Ziggler. I think that would have added a little extra drama. Will Ziggler stop The Miz from cheating, thus losing the IC Title for Smackdown? Or would Ziggler make the tough decision of helping The Miz this one time, so he can keep the title on Smackdown and get his rematch? That would have been a better finish then the screw job angle in my mind. The match mechanically was good, with Zayn doing most of his favourable sequences and Miz being the Miz. The finish kind of ruined it for me. This was a win for Smackdown Live though. Yay.
Rating – ***

Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown
Traditional Survivor Series Match
Team Raw Tag Teams (The New Day, The Club, Enzo & Cass, Cesaro & Sheamus & The Shining Stars) def. Team Smackdown (Heath Slater & Rhyno, American Alpha, The Usos, The Hype Bros & Breezango)
in 18:55 by pinfall
Enzo and Cass cut a killer promo for the Toronto crowd. I love how Enzo outfit’s for big PPV shows always represent the city they’re in. He was decked out in Weeknd overalls and even had a little bit of Drake incorporated into it. Enzo may not be the greatest wrestlers, but he’s charismatic as hell. He knows his schtick and he portrays it very well.
Well, when you have 5 teams face another 5 teams that gives you twenty guys involved in one match. It’s bound to break down into complete chaos, as it did right off the bat and throughout the match. However, for the most part it was a really fun match with a lot of great interactions. It was also fun trying to see these heel and babyface tag teams work together. Breezdango was pretty much non-existent in the match since Fandango got eliminated almost right off the bat when trying to giving out fashion violations. Tyler Breeze didn’t even make it into the match. The most shocking elimination came early, when the dubya dubya eeee tag team champions The New Day got eliminated by the Usos. The Hype bros were next to be eliminated by Gallows and Anderson with a magic killer after some offence by Ryder. The match went back and forth from this point forward without an elimination for a little bit. Chad Gable worked the heat when Raw was in control. American Alpha’s Jason Jordan was able to get rid of the Shining Stars. It was when we were down to 12 guys we got the big team vs team stare down which of course broke down into a giant brawl. Let the bodies hit the floor…let the bodies hit floor. Enzo and Cass ended up standing tall after the big brawl. Slater gets his spot in with a dive off the top rope. I forgot to mention at one point the Toronto crowd was chanting “he’s got kids” when Slater was getting a beat down. I loved it. We get a nice exchange between American Alpha and Cesaro & Sheamus, a match I’d really enjoy seeing with the two teams against each other. The Club is back in and hit the magic killer on American Alpha, leading to their elimination. Now with Raw in the lead by numbers they work on Slater again. There was some sort of mishap where Gallows knocked Enzo off the apron which lead to Team Raw arguing and Gallows turning around into a gore from Rhyno. The Club is eliminated. If anyone else but Rhyno eliminated The Club, I don’t think I’d be okay with it. Well I guess a double team by the Uso’s would have been fine too. Enzo and Cass eliminate the Smackdown tag team champions after a Rocket Launcher. The Usos’ eliminate Enzo and Cass after a big splash from the top. We’re down to the Usos’ and Cesaro and Sheamus. I swear the Usos rejuvenated their careers when they turned heel. If this was the old neon wearing happy Usos’, I’d be heavily disappointed they were the final team in this match. Although, in this case I was happy because I dig their new heel characters and I was rooting for them. As much as I love Cesaro, I was rooting for Team Smackdown. I don’t want to do play by-play on every move of any of these matches, but the finish of this match was beautiful.
Finlay roll by Sheamus and then the brogue kick misses.  The Usos’ hit an enziguri and super kicks then Cesaro makes a save. Sheamus and Jimmy battle in the corner. Hey tagged in discreetly as Sheamus hit White Noise off the ropes. Jey followed White Noise with a splash on Sheamus but Cesaro made the save again. Cesaro then hit the uppercut train, set Jimmy up top and then dropkicked him to the floor. 619 by Cesaro, and then the high cross followed for a near fall. Cesaro then hit the big swing, where the crowd just chanted ten. Thanks Dillinger, I wonder if this will become a thing back in America too. This was followed by a sharpshooter attempt which was broken up as one of the Usos’ super kicked the knee and applied the tequila sunrise on Cesaro. Cesaro countered the submission into a sharpshooter. Sheamus then cut off a super kick with the Brogue and Raw wins. I sure as hell wanted Smackdown to win here, but this was a great finish to really enjoyable match. Cesaro won the match in Canada with a sharpshooter. That must have have been a hell of a moment. Watch this match if you enjoy these traditional Survivor Series matches. This was a really good one.
Survivors – Cesaro & Sheamus
Rating – ***1/2

Raw vs. Smackdown
Cruiserweight Championship
The Brian Kendrick (C) def. Kalisto
in 12:25 by DQ
Is it just me but have the Cruiserweight’s been lacking whatever they had during the CWC tournament. Since being on the main roster, they just haven’t had that match where you’re just like “fuck yeah! the cruiserweight division is lit.” Hopefully with the addition of the new Cruiserweight division show “205” on the WWE Network, we’ll get that feeling we got from the CWC tourney. On that note, this match was really good. I mean it wasn’t the best match ever or match of the night but good. I’m a Brian Kendrick mark. I’ve been a Brian Kendrick mark for years now. I always thought he had this unique way of thinking and personality and it was never fully exposed during his WWE tenures previously. I mean “The Brian Kendrick” gimmick was the beginning of showing it, but it seemed as soon as it started to take off, he was gone. I finally feel like now we get to see that side of Brian Kendrick fully during this run. The match was very back and forth. Both guys teased finishers and had a bunch of near falls in quick pin attempts. Kalisto was wrestling a competitive match to win and bring the Cruiserweight division to Smackdown. Kendrick was wrestling a smart match to keep his title and it showed. Anytime Kalisto picked up the pace, Kendrick found a way to slow it down. A lot of the match was them trying to avoid each others finishers. Finally, Kalisto was able to hit the Salaida Del Sol on Kendrick. Before Kalisto could pick up the victory for Smackdown, Baron Corbin made his way to the ring and attacked Kalisto and hit him with End of Days. This gave Kendrick the victory via DQ. I understand that Corbin would want revenge on Kalisto, but I wish it came after Survivor Series. These two were putting on a pretty good match. I think if Kendrick was to kick out there somehow, and the match went on for another few minutes, it could have been something memorable for the division that hasn’t really been that impressive thus far. Hopefully, Kendrick somehow swings it that he pre planned this with Corbin on Raw. Let Kendrick look like the smart bad guy that he is. Corbin later explained his actions to Daniel Bryan, claiming he doesn’t care about brand loyalty and he hates small guys. What a douche bag.
Rating – **3/4

Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown
Traditional Survivor Series Match
Team Smackdown (AJ Styles, Dean Ambrose, Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt & Shane McMahon) w/ James Ellsworth def. Team Raw (Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns & Braun Strowman)
in 52:05 by submission
This is the match everyone has been waiting for. Smackdown is 1-3 down in the battle for supremacy against Raw already, and no one wanted to see Raw get the clean sweep since they won the last two Survivor Series Traditional Tag Matches. We knew going into this match, there were many layers and possibilities of what could happen. I mean all the Shield members were involved, we had this Randy Orton in the Wyatt family storyline, JeriKO in the match, James Ellsworth as the mascot, Styles in there with his opponent in two weeks in Ambrose and Bray Wyatt facing off with his former cohort Braun Strowman. I mean we also got to see old rivalries cross paths again in the likes of Orton/Rollins, Wyatt/Reigns  and Jericho/Ambrose. Styles and Owens’ kick off the match and go back and forth. There was a tease for a second when Rollins got tagged in that we were going to get a Styles/Rollins face off which I think deserved a larger reaction from the Toronto crowd. Instead we got a Ambrose/Rollins exchange, which was great because those two work wonderfully against each other. The teasing of finishers seem to be the biggest thing in each exchange thus far. Jericho being the constant professional he is tags in and yells at Ambrose about owing him money for the jacket he wrecked earlier this year. Jericho never forgets anything you stupid idiot. Eventually Shane came in and threw some pretty weak punches that Jericho sold as if they were fists of steel. Moving forward we got more exchanges like these, including Shane/Roman, Rollins/Shane and Ambrose/Owens. Everyone is selling for Shane like he’s a threat which is really helping the match. Ambrose countered the pop up power bomb and got a near fall which was broken up by Jericho. This lead to the mid ring stare down involving both teams. Of course it leads to a big giant chaotic brawl. Styles saved Ambrose from Strowman. Owens hit a dive off the top rope onto all his opponents. When Shane was looking for a dive Strowman kicked his ass. Team Smackdown fought off Strowman.
Styles and Ambrose worked together against Rollins and Reigns. They started to argue at some point which caused Ambrose to be eliminated. Strowman came back and basically started tossing bodies around. This lead to the Wyatt/Strowman confrontation. The crowd was feeling it. It almost felt as is Braun was going to listen to his old cult leader, however he began pummelling Wyatt. They fought to the outside where it looked like Braun was going to put Bray through a table but Orton saved Wyatt but hitting Braun with an RKO outta nowhere onto the table. They held Braun down on the table as Shane regained enough energy to turn into daredevil McMahon. Shane O’ Mac takes the big bump with a flying elbow crashing onto Braun, officially sending him through the announcer’s table. The two teams brawled again, as Styles rolled Shane McMahon back in the ring to avoid a count out. James Ellsworth grabbed Braun’s leg from under the ring to make sure he didn’t make the ten count. Braun Strowman was eliminated. Ellsworth’s career comes full circle as he gets revenge on the guy who murdered him in the match that made Ellsworth famous. Maybe not, because Braun slowly ran Ellsworth up the ramp, where he ended up throwing him off the stage sending him through a couple of tables. Don’t worry, the Pizza boxes survived. Ellsworth managed to land without harming the Pizza.
Shane took a beating from Jericho and Rollins again which also involved a few near falls. They’re making Shane look strong for sure, which shows Shane leading by example. Styles then went wild on Jericho. As Styles was setting up Jericho for the Styles Clash, Kevin Owens attacked him with the List of Jericho. The papers went flying everywhere. Owens hit Styles with the pop up power bomb but Jericho was so concerned about his list that he got caught with a RKO and was eliminated. It came down to Rollins and Roman Reigns against Shane McMahon, AJ Styles and the New Wyatt Family. There were two nice series of sequences between Orton/Rollins and Styles/Reigns with some near fall. Shane tries going Coast to Coast on Reigns but Reigns spears him while he’s in mid-air. This knocked Shane out cold and he looked like he legitimately got hurt. Shane landed badly from that and we got trainers and stuff out there checking on him. We later learned that Orton off camera even when to Shane’s family, broke character and let them know their dad was okay. Shane is out of the match. Finally, after some more near falls and  back and forth wrasslin, we get Styles and Rollins in there together. This was some great stuff and something I’d love to see more of in the future. Styles vs. Rollins has to happen in the WWE eventually. The superplex into a falcon arrow was a thing of beauty. Roman and Seth start gaining the advantage and look to Shield bomb Orton through a table but Styles stops them. An angry lunatic Ambrose comes back out attacking Styles. A shitload of security is out there to escort Ambrose from ringside. Then we have the moment that had Shield fanboys and fangirls worldwide catching feelings. Rollins, Reigns and Ambrose beat up the security guards and the three of them together Shield bomb AJ Styles through a table. The crowd went nuts and so did social media. That mini reunion of THE SHIELD was fucking awesome and very well done. Rollins pinned Styles in the ring following that and we’re down to 2-on-2.
Luke Harper appears out of nowhere and attacks Reigns but Rollins takes him out with a dive. Rollins is in control dominating both Wyatt and Orton. Orton catches Rollins with an RKO outta nowhere in mid-air as Rollins was going for a splash on Wyatt, and Reigns is left alone. Reigns fights off everybody for a bit and even counters a sister abigail. Bray gets hit with a superman punch but avoids the spear when Orton shoves Wyatt out-of-the-way and takes the spear instead. Bray quickly comes back with a sister abigail for the victory. TEAM FN SMACKDOWN WINS.
This match was fucking awesome. Both teams looked strong. All the eliminations had purpose behind them and either progressed ongoing storylines or sparked new ones. For Raw, I loved Braun’s dominance and how Ellsworth got to play a part in the match against the guy he first jobbed out to on Raw. Shane McMahon did a great job for a guy who shouldn’t have been in there. He courageously lead by example. I loved how their was still tension between Styles and Ambrose, since they’ll be facing each other in two weeks at TLC. It also played well into the mini Shield reunion. I loved the tension that brewed between Jericho and Owens when the List of Jericho was involved in the match. I’m looking forward to seeing how that plays off moving forward. Rollins and Reigns proved how dominate they can be working together even though they didn’t get the job done. Wyatt picked up a much-needed victory in a big match, which he desperately needed. Overall, I thought Orton was the MVP of this match and the glue that held Team Smackdown together. He was always in the right place at the right time with an RKO to help Smackdown regain the advantage. Hell, he even took that spear for Bray at the end. I knew either Cena or Orton had to be on Team Smackdown to be the teams veteran. Orton filled the role and got the job done. This match made me remember how much of a legend Randy Orton has become. He’s the fucking man. Mr. Survivor Series. This match may have felt overbooked but it worked in this scenario. It was the best out of the three traditional Survivor Series matches, and quite frankly the best match of the night. Dig It?
Survivors – Randy Orton & Bray Wyatt
Rating – ****

Bill Goldberg def. Brock Lesnar
in 1:24 by pinfall
All the anticipation and hype in the world and it ended just like that. I guess I’m happy they didn’t have a long gruelling match, because if their first one was taken into consideration than this one had very high potential to be a bummer. This match was literally two great entrances, Lesnar shoving Goldberg, spear, spear, jack hammer and in 1:24 it was all said and done. Goldberg not only defeated the undefinable beast that the WWE has been building for nearly 3 years but he did it in under 2 minutes. If they were trying to be shocking and unpredictable they accomplished that. However, it makes you wonder what the last three years were about. It doesn’t take away anything that Brock has done in the past three years at all. He was dominant as fuck, but I just don’t get why out of all people, they chose Goldberg to be the one to conquer him. Look, I love Goldberg as much as any other person who grew up in the 90’s like myself. He’s the fucking man and it felt like 1998 again the way he went over in this match. Goldberg’s entrance gives me chills every time. I was worried about him wrestling  full on match because I didn’t want him to tarnish the memories of Goldberg I had from growing up. Although, I don’t think he needed to win here or be the one to slay the beast. It should have been a newer or younger talent who could really use the rub to make them a super babyface. I know, I know. At least now we know Brock Lesnar is beatable, but it’ll just mean a little bit less when the next person does because Goldberg already did it. A 49-year-old man did what Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, John Cena, The Undertaker, Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and many others couldn’t do. It’s a scripted show, Brock wasn’t having an off day. The fight wasn’t real even though it was given that real fight feel ending so quickly. Therefore, I think it was a poor decision. I’m glad we didn’t have to sit through 20 suplex’s or another brutal beat down like Orton suffered. In the end, yeah the match needed to be short to not be a disaster and it really will make Survivor Series memorable. It was a feel good moment and for me very nostalgic of the Goldberg we once knew. It just could have made a new star. It’s the same feeling I had when Lesnar ended the Undertaker’s Wrestlemania undefeated streak. Yeah, sure it led to 3 dominant years of Lesnar but look how it ended? A part timer ended that too, and in the end no new star was made from either streak. Imagine a young guy like Bray Wyatt having the ability to say he ended Undertakers streak or Lesnar’s reign of terror rattan than relying on a part-timer. I mean at least we could credit Lesnar for showing up a bunch of times a year. This originally was supposed to be a one-off deal with Goldberg. Unless he’s staying for longer, what was the point other than shock value? I definitely don’t want to see Lesnar vs. Goldberg again, but that might actually be the case. I’ll never know exactly how this match made me feel. I get it but at the same time I don’t fully agree with it. I don’t think I ever will…but I get it. It was cool, unexpected and 100% memorable. I dig that part.
Rating – ***

Final Thoughts
The show had its ups and it had its downs. Although all other storylines on each brand were forgotten coming into this match, a lot of them progressed during this show. This show felt important and it was. The finishes to the IC and CW title matches were lame and could have been handled better. The Women’s match had potential to tell more stories similar to how the mens match did but it was still good for what it was. There are some things I’ll always disagree with about that match but it was still good. The women did good. The tag team traditional survivor series match was fun to watch. The final stretch between Cesaro & Sheamus and the Usos’ had me on the edge of my seat. The mens traditional tag match I watched twice and wouldn’t be surprised if I watched again before the end of 2016 because it was chaotic roller coaster ride. All the awesome spots and unexpected eliminations had you sitting there in suspense. Then there was the main event, the fantasy warfare that had become real. Goldberg beat Brock in under two minutes. People will watch again and again for years. It’ll have everyone talking about for months until we get to see at least both of them once. I know Goldberg is expected for tomorrows Raw, but no word of when we’ll see Lesnar again. Whether I liked the main event or not, it was shocking and unexpected. I mean nobody expected it. If you say you did expect it you’re a fucking liar. I won’t say people didn’t expect Goldberg to win, they did. However, nobody expected him to win in that fashion and that fast. If you didn’t watch Survivor Series, watch it. I’m not saying the entire show was awesome but there is something to enjoy for every fan. Whether you’re an old fan, new fan, hardcore fan or casual fan, Survivor Series has something for you. Dig It?!
Final Rating – 8/10

What were your final thoughts on Survivor Series? What final grade would you give the event? Where would you rate it on a scale of ten? Do you agree with my review? Leave your comments, opinions and thoughts below in the comments section.