Match Ratings For WWE Survivor Series 2017 From Sean Ross Sapp; Podcast Notes, Analysis

Rating guide (matches start as a 5 and slide as they improve or decline

10- Perfect, 9- Excellent, 8- Great, 7- Good, 6- Above Average, 5- Average 4- slightly below average, 3 or below: Poor

Thunder Rosa Discusses Managing Ideas, Comments On Her Face Paint

Pre show and backstage crappenings

  • Alexa Bliss and Charlotte were great. Alexa brought up her success against the Horsewomen.
  • Shawn Michaels looks uncomfortable here. 
  • They have Sam Roberts out there Todd Pettingilling. It's an art form.
  • A really awesome Styles/Lesnar video package that features WCW footage.
  • I don't see why stakes weren't added to the Raw vs. SD 5 on 5 matches. It's as simple as saying "the Survivors will get a title shot or be in a number one contender match"
  • Bayley can't take a shit without someone busting in and proposing next to her.

Elias defeated Matt Hardy 
4.75/10

  • All due respect to both guys -- I enjoy them both -- but why couldn't you announce another 5 on 5 match instead? Give people on the Kickoff show a taste of the main card.
  • A double underhook shoulderbreaker? Hose me down.
  • This is a fine, fundamentally sound match that you'll see on Raw five more times. Elias wins. 

WWE Cruiserweight Championship
Enzo Amore (c) defeated Kalisto
6/10

  • Kalisto is such a weak character that sometimes I forget how incredible he can be in the ring. A springboard Code Red reminds me of that. Enzo is a selling machine. 
  • Kalisto using Velveteen Dream's cartwheel Death Valley Driver 22 hours later, eh?
  • Either way, these guys are working their asses off. Excellent stuff. 
  • Enzo escapes by the skin of his teeth. He has really good in-ring chemistry with almost everyone because he keeps it basic and sells his ass off. 

Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn defeated Breezango
5/10

  • Kevin Owens is really playing up the "not wanting to be around" thing.
  • He and Zayn justify their actions from Tuesday night. 
  • This was a paint-by-numbers WWE tag match. It wasn't bad, it was just the standard.
  • You see the guys go through their normal spots and KO/Zayn win. 

The Shield defeated New Day
7/10

  • This is hard hitting stuff.
  • Rollins and Ambrose are wearing really dumbass half Raw half Shield shirts
  • Big E screams "SUCK ON THAT SUCKA!"
  • Ambrose teases Dirty Deeds, but can't hit it.
  • Unicorn Stampede leads to a neat comeback by Ambrose. Booker T, a great tag team wrestler, accuses the ref of not doing his job. Ha!
  • Dean Ambrose LEAPING three inches to make the tag was wrestling comedy gold.
  • The match picks up big time after a Roman Reigns series. Kofi gets caught with Ambrose and Rollins finishers, but it's broken up. 
  • The crowd seriously cheered The Shield getting their Triple Powerbomb stopped by New Day.
  • I get the feeling WWE didn't expect "New Day Rocks" chants here. They follow it up with a Snake Eyes Boot and an interesting Electric Chair Leapfrog Splash. Yeah, you read that right. 
  • A DOUBLE MIDNIGHT HOUR!!!! Big E had Rollins and Ambrose up! Reigns breaks it up.
  • WWE production miss: Ripcord Knee to Woods on the outside. Trash reffing, too. 
  • A Super Shield Bomb gets the win. Really, really good match.

Survivor Series
Team Raw (Asuka, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Nia Jax & Captain Alicia Fox) defeated Team Smackdown (Natalya, Tamina, Becky Lynch, Carmella & Naomi). Asuka was the sole survivor.
3.75/10

  • You could argue that 2017 is the most successful run of Tamina's career as a character. 
  • Becky Lynch gets pinned in a matter of minutes by a sneaky Bayley roll up pin. Nothing gets a babyface over quite like being a steaming pile of loser!
  • Tamina wrestling in a vest. Watching her try to keep up with selling Asuka's strikes was sad.
  • Bayley had a really good comeback in the corner where she attacked all of Team Smackdown. She's beaten by Tamina soon after. 
  • Biggest pop of Nia or Tamina's run? Them facing off. They should trade headbutts and not sell any of them.
  • Tamina superkicks Nia twice to sent her outside the ring, then once more outside. A countout beats Nia. This is easily the biggest year of Tamina's career. It hasn't been pretty, but I never thought she'd be back after her knee injury. 
  • Alicia is pinned by Naomi. She's late to kick out and was supposed to get submitted. Naomi gets tapped by Sasha.
  • The 5-man announce team and this match fit together perfectly and that's not a compliment in any manner
  • The agenting of this match was bad and the execution was worse. 
  • Camella gets kicked REAL HARD by Asuka. She's pinned. 
  • Sasha's bump off of being ran into the turnbuckle was neat. Natalya submits her after.
  • Asuka eliminates both Tamina and Natalya.
  • Boy, did that suck.

Baron Corbin defeated The Miz (w/ Miztourage)
5/10

  • This was, in fact, a match that happened.
  • Maryse is ringside.
  • Bo Dallas clips Corbin's knee, and he works from underneath. Miz works the leg well.
  • Corbin wins with End of Days, it looked rough. Wondered how Miz would take it.
  • Baron Corbin cut an ALL YOU PEOPLE promo to remind everyone he's a heel.

Usos defeated The Bar
7/10

  • Paint By Numbers WWE Tag Match™ until an Uso back body drops Cesaro into a turnbuckle.
  • I was lost on how anyone thought WWE was positioning the Usos as anything but babyfaces over the last month. Jey gutting out the Sharpshooter solidifies that point.
  • Sheamus catches Jey in midair and sets up a cool assisted White Noise. Cesaro used a springboard off the second rope for it.
  • Jey Uso, on Cesaro's shoulders, manages to Samoan drop Sheamus. Wow
  • There's a "superkick party," complete with Byron Saxton using the term. Cesaro sacrifices himself, but then Sheamus gets beaten with them. 
  • Really good. The crowd is hot despite no real stakes. 

Charlotte defeated Alexa Bliss
7/10

  • Alexa Bliss slams Charlotte face first to the floor from the apron by her arm. Nice, simple move that makes an impact.
  • A bodyslam reversal by Alexa looks really good too. 
  • Corner spots have really advanced in WWE in recent years. I write this after a scary looking exploder from Charlotte into the corner.
  • Alexa's offense has been really good thus far. A powerbomb goes into a huracanrana, and then a Code Red hits. 
  • A Charlotte powerbomb and a huge Alexa punch, and this match is cookin'. Natural Selection gets two. A missed moonsault and DDT does the same. This has been fantastic.
  • The women need a couple of new spots in general. The turnbuckle and Tower of Doom are overused. 
  • Charlotte gets the win with the Figure 8. I could see this being a WrestleMania match in the future.

Brock Lesnar (w/ Paul Heyman) defeated AJ Styles
8.5/10

  • I haven't seen anyone tweet that this show has needed more Jinder Mahal.
  • Lesnar manhandles AJ early. He drags Styles across the ring by his hair.
  • Nobody has taken a Lesnar belly-to-belly suplex better than Styles. He sells the German suplex by tumbling and tangling into the ropes. Follow that up with a sick bump outside. 
  • AJ Styles should adopt Sting's old comeback.
  • The crowd goes nuts when Styles gets any offense. 
  • There's some sloppiness off of a moonsault where Brock catches AJ, and then whips Styles down on a tornado DDT attempt. This is great.
  • Styles takes the old school German suplex sell where he lands face down.
  • Styles connects with a slingshot forearm. I feel like I'm just doing play-by-play, but this is just outstanding. 
  • Styles even busts out a Lionsault and a springboard 450.
  • LEGLOCKS ARE A LESNAR WEAKNESS!! CALF CRUSHER!!! Lesnar repeatedly slams Styles' head to get out. This is just great. 
  • A Phenomenal Forearm gets two. Styles/Lesnar was the right match to make. Styles got horizontal on that forearm in midair.
  • Lesnar catches AJ Styles. F5. Win. 
  • The commentary team indicates that Lesnar's knee could be hurt. 

Survivor Series Match
Team Raw defeated Team Smackdown. Braun Strowman and Triple H are the Survivors
4.75/10

  • Sorry, but you're not winning a battle of the entrances when you have Greg Hamilton on the other side. Pack it in, call it a day in that regard.
  • Half of these guys haven't wrestled a match on the actual cable show they're representing since before the summer.
  • Lots of finish teases right out of the gate, which I think is a good move.
  • "HERE COMES SHIN." Stop that. Balor Too Sweets Nakamura's forehead.
  • Roode and Triple H trading spinebusters and taunts was enjoyable.
  • Nakamura is beaten first by Braun. They set this up by Nakamura taking a cheap shot at Strowman.
  • I'm glad that Nakamura got eliminated first just so we don't have to hear Cole call him Shin all night. Roode is gone next. 
  • Cena and Orton get help from Shane, Roode and Nakamura in putting Braun through an announce table. 
  • Joe overhead superplexes Shane. That's a horrifying bump to have or trust a nearly 50 year old Shane McMahon to take.
  • Joe is out next after a Cena AA. I get the feeling someone walks out of this match injured. 
  • A Coup De Grace and Olympic Slam eliminate Cena! 
  • Orton may be the Survivor Series GOAT from a kayfabe perspective. That should be someone's deal. He catches Balor with an RKO.
  • Zayn and Owens attack Shane McMahon. Shane whips them with a chair and Orton RKO's Owens. He gets beaten by Braun
  • Triple H turns on Kurt Angle and Pedigrees him. It looked bad. Shane is really selling the ankle, and Triple H puts him on Kurt for the pin. Then he Pedigrees Shane and beats him. Ok.
  • Strowman goes off and Powerslams Triple H twice for crossing him!
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