In what could have and should have been a great PPV, we come out of Survivor Series no better off than when we went into it. Personally, I come out questioning why I still watch the product, and it’s been a long time coming.
The problem stems from predictability. I have said this before, from what good old JR has said, a predictable storyline is better than shock value if the surprise itself does not fit the story. I talk of course about the finish and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship situation.
Let’s ignore the Sheamus finish for now. From the start, we knew Roman Reigns would win, we knew Dean Ambrose would win, and we knew that Reigns would go over Ambrose and win the title. Nothing was really that exciting in its finish, which can be fine if the match itself is off the charts. Which they weren’t. A few good spots but nothing really memorable.
So the finish. Roman Reigns wins and gets booed out the arena (still don’t understand why, he’s improved a lot and is a bit of a badass in the ring). He holds the title for 5 minutes and then Sheamus cashes in and wins – a quick shout out to the spear on Triple H by Reigns as that was probably the best part of the night. Personally I’m fine with Sheamus being the champ. He’s a heel and there needs to be a new top heel with Rollins our injured. The problem is that there has been no build to Sheamus. It feels like WWE were banking on the surprise of the cash in to be the draw. No. Rollins had a long time of bragging about the briefcase. When he cashed in, it felt special and meaningful. With Sheamus, it feels like he is just a placeholder until a big name comes back to take it into WrestleMania.
It would have been better to have Reigns turn heel. He is in desperate need of a turn. His character suits a heel persona as an ass kicker and if he is getting booed anyway, then it may as well be for the right reasons. He needs to show he is not another John Cena, and if anything he is more like The Rock during his full time days. A heel turn is just as predictable yes, but it makes more sense to the story and has more meaning with its someone like Reigns who has been pushed so much.
All of this ended a dreary night. As a big Undertaker fan, I was not really impressed with his 25th Anniversary match. The length was short, he spots were okay, but nothing really made it feel special. Other than his entrance as always. This boils down to again, WWE feeling like the name is the draw. But names are built from great booking. You can’t get fans excited about 25 years of Taker and then give him a lame match.
As I write this, I struggle to think of anything I really liked and enjoyed about Survivor Series. Or even Raw for that matter. Yes there are many injuries to top names which is never a good situation. That doesn’t take anything away from what feels like lazy booking.
I hope all of this is wrong. As a lifelong fan of WWE, I just want to see the product get better and a bit more effort into the creative side.
Til next week.
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