Roundtable: History Of Survivor Series

How do you feel about Raw vs. SmackDown becoming a tradition in recent years?

Chad Gelfand: I like the concept of Raw vs. SmackDown, but not the execution. I want the Raw vs. SmackDown rivalry to be more heated throughout the year, so that by the time Survivor Series rolls around, we’re actually craving these matchups instead of just being like “oh, this is cool.” Wrestling is at its best when you’re invested emotionally.

Sam Gladen: I enjoy that Survior Series is used to enforce the brand split and that we generally get entertaining champion vs. champion matches; however, I miss when Survivor Series was used as a way to end an angle instead of being just a filler show.

Steven Jackson: I really like the Raw vs. SmackDown tradition and it is something I wished WWE did more of during the heyday of the brand split in the early 2000s. I like how the format is planned out, and how there have been some really fun matches in recent years. It is one of the few things that has happened on the main roster that I have really enjoyed.

Juan Bautista: I’m good with the brand competition – it makes sense. I just wish there was more build up and not just “hey, it’s November and we hate each other now.” A nice balance of backstage interaction like Triple H and JBL had at WrestleMania 21, a match or two without saturation. There’s enough to build off of and enough leftover that I still want to see it.

John Corrigan: Not a fan. The rivalry means nothing and only happens in November. It makes no sense for people like Dolph Ziggler and Asuka to participate in a “battle for brand supremacy” when they joined that brand in April as part of an annual shakeup of the rosters. Plus, why would Asuka give a shit about SmackDown? Her career has plummeted since joining the blue side.

Jack Goodwillie: I love it. Don’t you remember playing the old SmackDown vs. Raw games as a kid and having to fight the other brand for supremacy in GM mode? Good times…though I do wish there was more to the desire of being the “better brand.” What’s the incentive? The main event at WrestleMania? Money? A trophy? I also wish there was more brand hostility throughout the year. Nowadays, it’s almost as if a switch flips from a writing standpoint when November rolls around. Where I come from, that’s called “bad writing.” And frankly, I don’t think WWE has, or ever will, scratch the surface of what a true SmackDown vs Raw feud can do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9Wny05zbWs

What’s the greatest Survivor Series team ever?

Gelfand: Team WWF at Survivor Series 2001 was a SQUAD. You had The Rock, Chris Jericho, Kane, The Undertaker and The Big Show all on one team. That’s five first-ballot hall of famers.

Gladen: The Hart Foundation in 1997.

Jackson: If I was looking at all the teams in a line, the one that would stand out the most is from the first ever Survivor Series in 1987, and coincidentally, the first ever Survivor Series match. The dream team of Brutus Beefcake, Jim Duggan, Jake Roberts, Ricky Steamboat and Randy Savage is an amazing hall of fame line-up!

Bautista: Team WWF from the 2001 Survivor Series. To take on The Alliance, all the big guns were brought out – Rock, Chris Jericho, Undertaker, Kane and Big Show.

Corrigan: The Rude Brood! In 1989, The Ravishing One captained Mr. Perfect and the Fabulous Rougeaus against Roddy’s Rowdies, with Perfect picking up the victory for his sexy, entertaining, all-star team.

Goodwillie: As critically panned as the inVasion angle is, the Survivor Series teams in 2001 were pretty stacked. Give me Team WWF, where you had the trio of Chris Jericho, Big Show and The Rock team with The Undertaker and Kane. Try stopping that combination! 4-on-4, I’ve gotta go with Team Guerrero in ’04, which featured Eddie Guerrero, Big Show, Rob Van Dam and John Cena.

What’s the greatest Survivor Series match ever?

Gelfand: I loved the Team Cena vs. Team Authority matchup that we got at Survivor Series 2014. On paper, it didn’t look like that great of a match, but the story told, Dolph Ziggler’s performance and of course, the debut of Sting, put this match over the top for me.

Gladen: Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels for the WWF Championship, my favorite match of all time.

Jackson: The greatest Survivor Series match is a lot easier for me to pick as this particular match is my favorite in WWE history. Bret “Hitman” Hart vs. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin from Survivor Series 1996 is just a masterclass in technical wrestling and storytelling. The crowd was red hot for Bret’s return and the chemistry these two exhibited was unreal. This match gets unfairly overshadowed by their seminal WrestleMania 13 bout.

Bautista: Stone Cold Steve Austin vs. Bret Hart from Survivor Series 1996. It was technical competition compared to their brutal fight at WrestleMania.

Corrigan: Austin vs. Hart from Survivor Series 1996. Although he was the villain, Stone Cold received a massive pop from the NYC fans, evolving into a legit main eventer during the match. Hart illustrated once again why he’s the greatest storyteller in wrestling history, taking a page out of his bout with Piper at WrestleMania VIII for the finish.

Goodwillie: I’m probably going to get a lot of hate for this, but the main event of Survivor Series ’14 had me on the edge of my seat. The build in the Cena’s Army vs. Authority angle was a mixed bag, but the match totally delivered. The Authority was stacked with monsters, who at the time, were on the warpath. Rusev ran roughshod for a while before knocking himself out on the outside Cat Kong-style. We got a Harper-Rowan confrontation, the Big Show betraying his team mid-match and star-making performances from both Seth Rollins and Dolph Ziggler, PLUS the debut of Sting in a WWE ring, with Ziggler getting the decisive three-count to end The Authority. Good God Almighty did creative take this storyline to the woodshed in the weeks that followed. It hurts to think about.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwMOtdNnWYY

What’s the greatest Survivor Series moment/angle ever?

Gelfand: I have two moments in mind: The first is Sting’s return at Survivor Series 2014. Seeing Sting finally in WWE was surreal by itself, but then he debuted in a Big Four PPV to banish The Authority (for like two weeks). My second favorite moment is Kofi Kingston pinning two former world champions – CM Punk and Randy Orton – in under a minute at Survivor Series 2009. I was so excited when this happened, and I thought that this was the start of Kofi Kingston’s ascension to the main event and it really should have been, but that’s not how history played out. I still believe in you, Kofi!

Gladen: Kurt Angle’s debut at Survivor Series 1999. The guy was a national hero who took wrestling seriously and in turn, lended legitimacy to the WWF with Greco-Roman wrestling fans and general sport lovers.

Jackson: Picking the greatest Survivor Series moment/angle is hard, as immediately, images of the Montreal Screwjob come into your head. But there is one moment and angle which will always stand out to me: Mr. Fuji turning on Demolition at Survivor Series 1988. The electricity from the audience when Demolition turned babyface is unbelievable.

Bautista: It’s tough competition between Undertaker’s debut, the Montreal Screwjob and Goldberg’s squashing of Brock Lesnar. Each had significant impacts: Undertaker is a first-ballot hall of famer, the screwjob catapulted WWE into the Attitude Era and Goldberg destroying Lesnar was totally unexpected. It lit a fire in a fan base that probably didn’t know that they wanted to see Goldberg in a ring again.

Corrigan: Obviously, I’m not going to pick Goldberg squashing The Beast. So it has to be the Montreal Screwjob, an incident that has fueled perpetual debate for more than 20 years. I’ve also been convinced by Sean Oliver that it was a brilliant work.

Goodwillie: The Montreal Screwjob. LOL jk. For me, it’s the Deadly Game tournament in 1998. It was a different take on the Survivor Series concept and it made sense in storyline. Why not replace traditional elimination matches with a one-night tournament to determine the next top guy? Needless to say, the whole body of work topped any King of the Ring ever done, and it ended with The Rock defeating Mankind with a brilliant finish to win the WWE Championship for the first time.

However, this was not the only instance of a one-night Survivor Series tournament. At the 29th Series in 2015, a one-night tournament was held to crown a new champion after Seth Rollins tore up his knee and had to vacate the WWE Championship. To me, this always seemed like a golden opportunity for WWE to recreate Survivor Series 1998 verbatim, and finally make Roman Reigns the heel everybody could be proud of. Instead, we got Sheamus Unleashed. Blegh.

What’s the greatest Survivor Series ever?

Gelfand: Survivor Series 2002 is great. It has a very good tag team tables match with Rico and Three Minute Warning taking on Jeff Hardy, Spike and Bubba Dudley. Plus, you have the reunion of Bubba and D-Von, Scott Steiner returning and immediately dropping F-bombs and the first Elimination Chamber, which was fantastic.

Gladen: 1997 is easily the greatest Survivor Series ever because of the historical significance of that main event. Not to mention how honestly entertaining the show is even 21 years later.

Jackson: Probably a surprising choice to many, the greatest Survivor Series ever was 1995. A great card from top to bottom, it was fun and had something for everyone. The whole roster got to shine and the crowd was fantastic. If you haven’t seen it yet, definitely seek it out on the Network as I’m sure you’ll enjoy it.

Bautista: Survivor Series 2002. You had Shawn Michaels conquering the Elimination Chamber, as well as a great elimination tag that included Eddie Guerrero, Chavo, Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit, Rey Mysterio and Edge. Although it wasn’t the best match, Brock Lesnar vs. Big Show did produce Paul Heyman turning on Lesnar.

Corrigan: I love Survivor Series 1996 and 2009, but I’ll give ’09 the slight nod because it’s the perfect blend of traditional 10-man tags and marquee attractions such as DX and Cena in a triple threat.

Goodwillie: After 2005, I found a lot of the elimination matches to lack meaning or stakes. The extra “oomph” required for those types of matches simply wasn’t there, so while we got great matches year to year, you can eliminate any show after 2005. Meanwhile, a lot of the old-school Survivor Series shows were good shows, but none have really stood out to me. 1997 stands out for the obvious reasons, but I’m curious to see how many people actually pick it, because of the sour taste it left in fans’ mouths. I liked 2001, but that was a one match show. 2000 and 2003 were really good and 2002 had the Elimination Chamber. However, I still have to say 1998. It was a smooth recovery from the rocky end to ’97, and the tournament format really allowed the show to come to life as its own ever-evolving story throughout the night.