WWE Survivor Series 2024 Review

WWE Survivor Series 2024 review By James “High Octane” Lanham

Show opening: The show opened in a typically great Triple H era manner, coming in on the end of the Canadian National Anthem before showing hyped up talent arriving to the building and featuring the typically awesome WWE video package, which has always been something WWE does better than anyone else. At first look the arena looks great, with a smaller entrance way in keeping with most recent arena PLEs to fit as many fans in as possible, and the venue definitely looks full! Between the hot crowd, wrestlers really selling the gravity of the event and in my opinion more creative than in the past approach show openings, this really did a good job of building a big fight feel!

Match 1) Women’s War-games match: Rhea Ripley, Bailey, Bianca Belair, Iyo Sky and Naomi vs Nia Jax, Liv Morgan, Tiffany Stratton, Raquel Rodriguez and Candice Lerae.

The match started off well, with Nia and Bailey being the first in for their respective teams. Liv Morgan once again shows that she truly gets the pro wrestling artform with her nuanced and clever mannerisms and clever “character” work such as a cheeky salute to fellow world champion Nia Jax as Jax marched to the ring asserting her leadership. Naomi entering next to give the face team the advantage worked on this occasion against the larger and more dominant Jax, who in my opinion has come a long way. Naomi’s birthday party hat was a fun touch, as was the personalised kendo stick and toilet seat she brought in. I’m a sucker for wrestler specific and unique weapons. The match fell apart for a while when Nia went to use a chair on her opponents, who were unfortunately only in position to take head shots, which obviously are against company concussion policy. There were loud boos after Jax could be heard audibly saying “no” and rightfully pausing and avoiding hitting either in head, which was the right thing to do for her career and bank account, and most importantly the safety and quality of life for her opponents. It also showed that the recklessness Jax had shown towards the likes of Becky Lynch and Kairi Sane is very much in the past. It took a while for the crowd to get back into it after their suspension of disbelief was understandably shattered after the chair spot, but eventually they were won back to some degree as other competitors would enter and showcase clever spots like Candice Lerae’s step up off a chair code breaker on one opponent that resulted in a back senton on the other as she came down. Iyo Sky was especially over, as was her trademark trash can complete with cord to allow her to climb to the top of the cage with it, as was heel Tiffany Stratton, who the crowd seem to be really impressed by plus are very much invested in her inevitable cash in and probable face turn. This will be very close to the hearts of many Australian fans as it was her career enhancing, if not outright making, performance at Elimination Chamber in Perth earlier this year that really cemented her. The were loud “we want Mami” chants, with Rhea Ripley’s entrance into the cage blowing the roof off.

In my opinion, Rhea is the biggest star in the women’s division, equaling most of the established upper card/headlining male superstars such as Kevin Owens, Drew McIntyre, Randy Orton, Gunther and C.M Punk in sitting just below Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes in terms of drawing power and being the total package. The match continued with chaotic and very creative action, but unfortunately some of the high risk spots didn’t go to plan, at times taking the crowd back out of it and in the case of Sky and Stratton actually winning the audience over even more by their clever recovery and subsequent display of athletic one upmanship. Unfortunately the crowd were taken out of things again buy a mistimed breakup of the Riptide by Jax, which led the move being completed at half strength which made the spot fall flat. Sky and Stratton scaled the cage at opposite ends in a real heart in mouth moment, with Sky performing her now signature trash can over her own head moonsault and Stratton delivering a breathtaking Swanton bomb in a highlight package worthy sequence. After more twists and turns Rhea would score the win over Morgan with a Riptide through a table, leading to an inevitable title match between the two.

Result: Team Ripley win by pinfall

Overall opinion: while this is unlikely to go down as a classic, and was plagued by mistiming and awkward moments, most were down to honest human error in a high risk and high pressure setting, or by adhering to company concussion policy. While disappointing compared to most previous years incarnations, it was not due to lack of effort, talent, creativity or bad booking. While a lot went wrong, this was a commendable effort. My match rating: 6.5/10 Match

2) U.S. Title match- L.A. Knight (c) vs Shinsuke Nakamura: Nakamura’s new entrance set the tone well for this version of his persona, as did his ring and entrance gear. Funnily enough as he initially emerged from the darkness with the ceremonial helmet, he actually looked like Super Dragon on PWG fame! L.A. Knight entered to a huge pop and continued to show that unlike what Vince McMahon thought, he’s definitely not too old. Michael Cole and Corey Graves were incredible on commentary, as they always are together, and even covered up Knight dropping the belt during his entrance to the ring and his slight misstep when leaping to take top rope (an impressive feat regardless of age). It’s probably unlikely, but I’m wondering if the belt dropping at least was a Sabu esque intentional mistake to sell how much Nakamura had gotten in Knight’s head. The match was great, and appeared to achieve everything it set out to. The crowd were quiet at times but appeared always interested. Even with his new, intentionally more methodical and measured offence, it very much appears that Nakamura has had fire lot under him on screen and likely off too, with his crisp, precise unique strikes and his quiet intensity. Knight looked great on all fronts, seemingly selling the mind games from Nakamura by using a little less crowd work then usual. After a simple but really enjoyable rollercoaster ride of a match, that was the perfect follow up to the chaotic War Games match prior that had so many moving parts both match and intersecting storyline wise, Nakamura scored a surprising but far from upset victory to claim his 3rd U.S title.

Result: Shinsuke Nakamura defeated L.A. Knight to become U.S champion.

Overall opinion: While it may not be a classic match that many will remember years from now, this was a great example of simple yet effective storytelling both in the lead up and in the match plus a mix of old school psychology with some new school offence very much gets the job done and without the risks of injury or mistakes a more ambitious and complicated match can often lead too.

My match rating: 7.5/10

Match 3) Triple threat match for the Intercontinental championship – Bron Breakker (c) vs Ludwig Kaiser vs Sheamus

If the previous match was simple and subtle storytelling at it’s best making for a fun rollercoaster ride, it was a shorter rollercoaster suitable for the kids whereas this match was balls to the wall barely letting up storytelling making for a longer rollercoaster ride that was more suited to adult thrill seekers with a strong disposition and no heart problems! The action was well planned out and very fast paced, but the logical and interesting psychology and the fact having three participants allowed for realistic selling that went beyond just the initial taking of the move made for the perfect blend of most approaches to wrestling and despite the rollercoaster analogy was one of those times that a particular match would have been enjoyable for literally every type of wrestling fan, from the young, the old, the casual to the die hard or even lapsed fan. Hell, this would even be a match I’d show a non-fan to try and convince them to give wrestling a chance. The triple threat stipulation made this a real pick ‘em, as did the fact that WWE haven’t been shy in having the I-C title change hands a little more regularly lately. The no disqualification aspect guaranteed a proper finish, and the fact Bron could lose the title without being pinned or submitting added to the intrigue. They way all three wrestlers have been presented in recent times as well as their consistent performances and most importantly of all audience investment in each superstar meant that no one would have their stock drop by losing this one. The offence on offer ranged from Bron’s strikes, tackles and other attacks using his body and showcasing his freakish athleticism and speed, Kaisers crisp and impactful European influenced offence and cruel and devious intent and best of all Sheamus’s veteran toughness and trademark meat slapping. There was some great use of weapons and environment too, and a particularly scary moment when Kaiser nearly got dropped on his head on the outside by Bron’s overhead belly to belly suplex. It was miraculous that he didn’t, and even though it was a slightly less dangerous version than caused Big E’s catastrophic injury, common sense would dictate that this move should no longer be used outside of the ring. Barely half way through this match I told myself it was already an 8/10 on the Octane scoreboard as long as the finish wasn’t done cheaply, but after the brilliant near fall where Kaiser pulled the ref our to deprive Sheamus of his first ever and grand slam completing intercontinental title, despite my disappointment automatically bumped this up to 9/10. Another heart stopping near fall and a few more twists and turns later, and Bron hit a body failing him but not heart Sheamus, who took the pinfall to finish a bona fide match of the year contender, and hopefully lead to Sheamus getting his moment on an even grander stage, maybe WrestleMania or Clash in the Castle or a similar stadium PLE, but please not a Saudi show!

Result: Bron Breakker pinned Sheamus to retain the Intercontinental championship.

Overall opinion: It might be recency bias, but I think that was as good as the IC title triple threat at WM 29! An instant classic that had the crowd going nuts with one of the most deserved “this is awesome “ chants since it became a more common chant.

My match rating: 10/10

Match 4) World Heavyweight Championship – Gunther (c) vs Damian Priest: The match was preceded by yet another great video package that wonderfully gave the backstory and set the tone for the match. Cole and Graves continued to prove why they’re my favourite current day commentary team by explaining the importance of the match to Priest’s momentum and place on the card going forward and providing background on his other rivalries and the effects they’d had previously on Priest’s attention and world title aspirations while also putting them in the background and making it clear THIS match is the focus for Priest and should be for the audience. Yet another example of why wrestling works best when all the cogs are moving together. This was a typically great match for and between these two who’s styles, stature and body type work well together. The technical work and other sound wrestling and psychology from Gunther put to bed recent criticism from a minority online that he “can’t wrestle” and is too reliant on chops. While pre main roster WWE he was definitely risking becoming too chop and other strike oriented, although never totally getting to that stage, Gunther continues to prove that he’s an incredibly diverse performer in and out of the ring. Similarly, I think Priest continues to silence critics who said he wasn’t world championship material during his previous run. Yes, Priest may not be the tippy too guy in the company like Cody and Reigns are currently but I thought he was a more than worthy world champion (as is Gunther) and I have no doubt that both are capable of being the top guy with the right booking, continued progression in their respective skill sets and avoiding serious injuries. Priest has adapted seamlessly to fighting from underneath as a Babyface while never once coming across as weak or losing his edge and being a more white meat Babyface. The psychology and pacing were on point from both, with Priests selling of the arm deserving particular praise. A moment that really stuck out was when Priest went for a near fall following a very impressive Razors edge but sold very effectively before being able to cover his man and even when he managed too he couldn’t hook the leg affectively due to the damaged arm. Gunther displayed typical dominant and dangerous heel aura yet still showing the integrity he likes to display towards his sport when taking out Fin Balor following a run in from the crowd where Fin hit a double stomp on Priest. Gunther would go on to choke Priest out with a cool looking submission hold in a finish and match that left both men looking even stronger than they did coming in.

Result: Gunther retained the World Heavyweight Championship by referee stoppage.

Overall opinion: A fitting world title match and great showcase of both men’s strengths. Well booked, planned and performed.

My match rating: 8/10

Match 5) Main event- Men`s War Games match- Roman Reigns, C.M. Punk, Jimmy Uso, Jey Uso and Sami Zayn vs. Solo Sikoa, Jacob Fatu, Bronson Reed, Tanga Loa and Tama Tonga: The bloodline entered together in a sign of solidarity whereas the original bloodline anted separately leading to speculation that there could be dissension in the ranks as the body language between C.M and punk and Roman Reigns strongly hinted at. The match started out really well and picked up steam with each new entrant. While it didn’t have the big bumps or huge dives to start with that some other war games matches have the intertwining character work and feuds one more than enough to keep one emotionally invested in this match and entertained until the bigger bumps and most dramatic storyline moments happened towards the end. Jacob Fatu added a lot to this match he is the 1st wrestler in years in the WWE since Brock Lesnar to have this type of dangerous aura about him. While he may not have the imposing ripped physique of Brock Lesnar it is clear that is dangerous and threatening nature goes beyond the confines of wrestling or combat sports both in terms of kayfabe realms and real life at least in his younger years. Between his reputation, totally believable mad man mannerisms and explanations of such on commentary far too brings an air of danger and realism to every match he’s involved in and very much gives off Bruiser Brody or others of that ilk vibe. Everyone was incredibly impressive in this match and Bronson Reid in particular had some big moments not least the huge splashy hit off the page through a table. Unfortunately, early reports say that he has badly injured both his ankles on landing and that Jimmy Uso has broken his toe on landing his splash. Fatu looked to have injured his knee when landing awkwardly but it has been reported he decided to sell the possible injury and lean into awkward landing to add to the drama. This type of improvisation that adds to the match rather than take away or change the plans of the match in my opinion are a great sign of veteran instinct and probably would not have happened under Vince McMahon in more recent years. I won’t detail every spot and every entrant in order as this was a long and very involved match but it gave off vibes of late 80s and early 90s chaotic war games matches in JCP/WCW that were all about the rivalries, strategy and overwhelming sense of danger in WCW but with more structure and planning and featuring the modern WWE style multi person match storytelling with chaos and lots of action but enough space between key moment and the focus of the viewer on one exchange being allowed by for the most part not having multiple big bumps and spots happening at the same time, which was one of the pitfalls that the pre WWE Wargames matches had. It was definitely the best of both worlds as none of the drama and menacing vibe of the match was lost with the greater level of planning and structure. After many twists and turns end more than hinted at dissension between Punk and Reigns rains would go onto score the pinfall on Sikoa after hitting a spear in a fitting and definitive end to the match. I would be very surprised if this isn’t leading to a Reigns versus Punk match WrestleMania, possibly in one of the main events.

Result: Team Reigns defeated Team Sikoa when Reigns pinned Sikoa.

Overall opinion: A great match and incredible piece of storytelling on every level

My match rating: 9/10

OVERALL SHOW RATING: A