home | wrestling | flashback_reviews | wwe | survivor-series

WWF Survivor Series 1999
Scrooge McSuck

Originally broadcasted live on Pay-Per-View, on November 14th, 1999, from the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, MI, home of other wrestling shows such as WCW Halloween Havoc '94, and the 1991 Survivor Series. 1999 Wasn't exactly a year I remember too fondly, and when my PPV collection from that year was the Big 4 (I didn't even want King of the Ring), you know it's bad. We're only about a month or so removed from the infamous departure of Vince Russo and Ed Ferrara to WCW, leaving the booking doors open on many programs at the time. Honestly, I don't recall much in terms of build for this show, other than a select couple of programs, and helpful recap packages.

- Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler are calling all the action, unless otherwise noted.

The Godfather, D'Lo Brown, The Headbangers (Mosh & Thrasher) vs. The Dudley Boyz (Buh-Buh Ray & D'Von) & The Acolytes (Bradshaw & Faarooq):

Traditional Elimination rules here. Everyone on the face side is dressed like the Godfather, with the 'Bangers sporting AFROS. UNITY! I honestly don't know how this came to be, and really, does it matter? I'm even more surprised by the fact the Headbangers were still around. This was shortly after reuniting after the horrible singles run for Mosh, a.k.a Beaver Cleavage, a.k.a Chaz, a kid from Jersey just wanting to have fun. The less said about those gimmicks, the better. Fun Scrooge tidbit: I used to love fucking with dumb marks who bought the ridiculous idea that Buh-Buh (har har) and D'Von were really related. Buh-Buh wants some H-h-h-h-ho's, but Godfather says N-n-n-n-n-no. Remember Buh-Buh's stuttering problem? That sure went away randomly. the Acolytes were on the verge of turning and becoming the APA, but they're still sporting their Ministry look.

Buh-Buh and Mosh start. Lockup, and they exchange hammerlocks. Buh-Buh rips the wig off and grabs a headlock, then comes off the ropes with a shoulder tackle. Criss-cross, and Mosh with a pair of arm drags, followed by a back drop. Whip to the corner, and Mosh runs in with a butt splash. Buh-Buh no-sells, and lays him out with a clothesline. D'Von tags in, and Mosh quickly takes control with a dropkick and arm drag. Thrasher tags in, and connects with a clothesline for two. Whip to the ropes, and Thrasher with an arm drag, followed by a jaw buster. D'Von comes back with a clothesline of his own. Bradshaw tags himself in and pounds away. Thrasher tries mounting some offense, but Bradshaw ends up KO'ing him with the Clothesline From Hell, eliminating Thrasher at 3:10. Mosh comes in with a body press, but that only gets two. Faarooq in, and a double shoulder tackle for two. Thrasher's lost his wig and vest, now. Faarooq misses a charge to the corner, but has enough to tag in D'Von. Mosh grabs a headlock, but Buh-Buh tags himself in, and the 3-D finishes Mosh at 4:58. Brown comes in with rights, followed by a diving forearm. Brown with a slam and leg drop for two. Bradshaw gets pushed off the apron, so he grabs a chair and lays Brown AND Buh-Buh out for the DQ at 5:52. The Acolytes and Dudley Boyz hate each other, remember? Faarooq and D'Von have problems with each other, and start fighting up the aisle, and hey, it's a Double Count-Out at around the 7:00 mark, I guess. Buh-Buh with a side suplex on Brown for a two count. Buh-Buh with jabs, but he walks into the Sky-High. That's only enough for two. Brown sets Buh-Buh up on the top rope, and Buh-Buh counters whatever he was trying with a sit-out powerbomb. Whip to the ropes, and we get a double clothesline spot. Godfather gets the hot tag, and charges in with clotheslines. Godfather with a slam and a leg drop. Whip to the corner, and he charges in with the Ho Train. Brown tags in, and the Frog Splash (the Lo Down?) finishes Buh-Buh off at 9:37, making the Godfather and D'Lo Brown the Survivors. Okay-ish opener, but too short, and too many cop-out eliminations for a bunch of undercard tag teams.

Shawn Stasiak vs. Kurt Angle:

This is Angle's in-ring debut, after a month or so of vignettes putting over his very real amatuer background, including a Gold Medal winner at the 1996 Olympics for the 200 pound Heavyweight rank. Stasiak was known as Meat for most of 1999, but reverting to his real name somehow makes him MORE of a Jobber. He'd also be fired shortly after this for secretly recording conversations of his fellow wrestlers. Angle recycles The Patriot's music, and I doubt anyone cared. He has ZERO heat, which just seems odd looking back. Lockup, and Angle with a fireman carry takeover. He grabs a headlock for a takedown, but Stasiak counters with a head scissors. Angle with a waistlock takedown, into a front facelock. Is the crowd chanting Let's Go Red Wings? Yes, yes they are. Angle with a slam, followed by an overhead belly-to-belly suplex. Stasiak comes back with a clothesline, follows by some stompin'. Who are we supposed to cheer? Stasiak was a heel, I thought, and Angle is CLEARLY setting himself up as a heel with his arrogance. Stasiak with a suplex for two. Whip to the ropes, and he connects with a diving elbow for two. Stasiak with a chinlock to keep the crowd quiet. Angle escapes, connects with a clothesline, then runs down the crowd for boo'ing an Olympic Gold medalist. If you want heat, get it cheap. Stasiak takes control, but is sent to the canvas with a pretty bad dropkick. He recovers enough to grab another chinlock. They do a series of counters that really doesn't go anywhere. Angle with a surprise cradle for two. Whip to the ropes, and a powerslam gets two, as well. Stasiak with the pussy version of an F-5, but a high cross body misses, and the Olympic Slam finishes it off at 5:57. Ugh... I wonder when they decided to change it from Olympic Slam to "Angle Slam"? Match was incredibly boring, even though it was fine from a technical standpoint. Angle would get much better, very quickly.

Val Venis, Gangrel, Steve Blackman, Mark Henry vs. The British Bulldog & The Mean Street Posse (Rodney, Pete Gas, Joey Abs):

Traditional Elimination Rules, and no, there is absolutely no reason for this match, other than to give a lot of people some PPV exposure. Bulldog was doing a mentor angle with the MSP for about two weeks, but they didn't have any issues with anyone in this match. Jim Ross: I'm sure all four of these men are heterosexual." What a way to describe the babyface team, and surely the line of the year in terms of broadcasting. You have to give the WWF production team credit... they gave the British Bulldog, user of a well known theme, a completely different, and very generic theme instead. He's also the reigning European Champion. I totally forgot about that.

Bulldog and Venis start, probably the best possible combination. Venis grabs a quick headlock, then comes off the ropes with a shoulder. Venis with a hip toss, and Bulldog takes out to Pete Gas. Then Bulldog tags back in. Huh? Venis goes for a suplex, but Bulldog counters with his own delayed version. VINTAGE BULLDOG! Gas tags in, again, and loses a slugfest. He sweeps the legs and slingshots Venis into the buckle, then takes him down with a back suplex for two. Whip to the corner is reversed, and Venis follows in with a clothesline. He takes Gas down with a running bulldog, and now Blackman takes his turn. He connects with a dropkick, and finishes with the Bicycle Kick at 2:58. Rodney comes in and quickly puts Blackman down with a clothesline. Blackman quickly regains control, and tags out to Gangrel. He sends Rodney from corner-to-corner. Rodney surprises him with a crucifix for two. We get heel miscommunication, and the Implant DDT finishes Rodney off at 4:27. Joey Abs comes in to try his luck, but I doubt this will end will. He takes Gangrel over with a snap suplex for two. Gangrel blocks a hip toss, and counters with a double-underhook suplex. Mark Henry tags in, and Abs somehow gives him a Hot Shot. He misses something in the ropes, and Henry lays him out with a clothesline. Henry connects with whatever Abs was trying to do, then crushes him with a Splash for three at 6:04. Bulldog comes in (obviously) and pounds away. Gangrel tags in, gets crotched across the top rope, and Bulldog with a Super-Plex for the three count at 6:48. Steve Blackman in to try his luck. He connects with a side back breaker, followed by a snap suplex. He misses a second rope headbutt. Bulldog with a fisherman suplex, and that gets three at 7:33. Venis with a clothesline, followed by stomping. Bulldog comes off the ropes with a sunset flip, but Henry breaks the pin attempt. Whip to the ropes, and Bulldog with a double clothesline. He keeps both men at bay for a bit, until Venis cradles him for a two count. Henry comes in to crush Bulldog in the corner and gives him a splash. Venis to the top rope, and he comes off with the Money Shot. That's enough to finish this turkey at 9:11. In short, a heatless mess. It was watchable, but all these pointless matches are starting to piss me off.

- Please forgive me, but I'm skipping the 8-Women Tag Team Match. It's not Elimination Rules, and clocks in at under 2-minutes. For those who absolutely need to know the results, the team of Tori (not Wilson), Fabulous Moolah, Mae Young, and non-wrestler Debra went over the team of Women's Champion Ivory, Luna Vachon, Jacqueline, and non-wrestler Terri Runnels. Entrances alone were double the length of the match, and HOW DID THE TEAM OF TWO DINOSAURS AND A MANAGER GO OVER THREE WELL ESTABLISHED WRESTLERS?

Kane vs. X-Pac:

Decent storyline here: Triple H re-formed D-Generation X to save his Championship about a month or so back, leaving X-Pac in a cross-roads, being an allie of Kane. He turns on Kane, because DX is where he belongs, and hey, Kane has a girlfriend now (Tori, Not Wilson), so X-Pac knows Kane's weakness (apparently it was in his pants). X-Pac attacks during the Pyro set-off, and hammers away with rights. Kane no-sells, throws X-Pac into the corner, and unloads with rights of his own. Whip across the ring, Kane misses a charge, and X-Pac with his signature kicks. Kane no-sells and takes X-Pac down with a clothesline. He grabs X-Pac with a choke-lift, and continues to mop the floor with him. Kane to the top rope, and X-Pac knocks him back to the floor with a dropkick. Smart counter, for once. X-Pac comes off the apron with an axehandle, then sends Kane into the steps. hey slug it out, with Kane clearly winning, until he wraps his own arm around the post. Back inside, and X-Pac continues putting the boots to him. Whip to the ropes, and a spinning heel kick barely has any effect. He connects with another and sets Kane in the corner for the Bronco Buster, but fuck you, Kane isn't like that, and grabs him by the throat. X-Pac comes off the ropes, and Kane turns it into a tilt-o-whirl back breaker. Kane with a big boot, and the second visit to the top rope concludes with the flying clothesline. Kane with the chokeslam, but Road Dogg sprints to the ring to pull him out of the ring. Kane takes care of him, then goes back in the ring, only to eat an X-Factor. That only gets two. X-Pac to the top, and he jumps into the arms. Kane turns it into a set up for the Tombstone, but Triple H runs in and bashes Kane with the belt, drawing a Disqualification at 4:17. WHAT?! ON A MAJOR PPV?! They do a beatdown on Kane, Tori comes back to help, and X-Pac accidentally on purpose lays her out with a spinning heel kick. Kane gets back to his feet to chase them off, shortly after. Very solid match, and as good as you could hope for from 4-minutes. They'd rematch at Armageddon in a pretty outstanding Cage Match, but sadly, the angle wouldn't die until well into 2000.

The Big Show vs. Big Boss Man, Prince Albert, Viscera, Mideon:

Where do I begin with this... in short form, the most offensive angle of 1999, that isn't intelligence insulting like the higher power crap. No, this was REALLY bad. Boss Man, for reasons unexplained, started to have beef with Big Show, who's father as apparently ill (in reality, I think his father was already passed on, and in goofy wrestling reality, we all joked Andre was already dead, too). Boss Man hired an actor to play a cop, telling Show his dad died, thus screwing Show out of a title match. From there, he not only enlisted the help of Albert, who was doing nothing now thanks to the unfortunate career-ending injury to Droz, but also ruined the funeral services by attacking Big Show, hooking the coffin to the bumper of his car (your daddy always wanted to be a drag queen), and speeding off with it. Show wanted revenge in a form of a match, but was assigned partners in the form of the Blue Meanie and Kai en Tai. Show decided to take them out of comission on the episode of Heat before the PPV, so he's going it alone. Did I mention the tearful sympathy card the Boss Man had for Big Show?

"With the deepest regrets, and tears that are soaked,
I'm sorry to hear your dad finally croaked.
He lived a full life, on his own terms,
Soon he'll be buried, and eaten by worms.
But if I could have a son, as stupid as you,
I would wish for cancer, so I would die too."

... Yeah, that was REALLY offensive. All it did was lead to a 4-minute blowoff in the middle of the card at the next PPV... wait, I forgot, we still have a match to get through. Sorry about that. Boss Man makes sure to flaunt the black arm band he's wearing in "memory" of Big Show's daddy. It blends in well with his all black attire. Show rushes the ring, and lays into everything walking. Show with the Chokeslam on Mideon for a three count at 19-seconds. Prince Albert walks into a Chokeslam, and that gets three at 30-seconds. Viscera comes in, gets slammed, and the Chokeslam (called the Showstopper, still) finishes him off at 56-seconds, leaving the Big Boss Man... who wisely takes a walk, pissing everyone off. Big Show is the Survivor at a whoppingly long 1:25. That was the right booking choice, I guess.

- Triple H tricks Steve Austin into chasing him through the parking lot, when suddenly, SOMBODY RUNS OVER AUSTIN! It was Billy Gunn... until they decided to make it Rikishi. Remember, only Road Dogg and X-Pac were present at the time, so it makes sense. The Bottom Line: Steve Austin is injured, and won't be in the main event tonight. THE SHOW MUST GO ON! There will be a replacement. Test. Wait, no, that makes too much sense. I guess we'll find out later (I was hoping for Test or Shane, at the time of the show). Obviously, this was done to explain Austin needing time off for surgery, which ended up taking him out of the ring for almost a year, but really, and this isn't to be heartless... could he not make it to the ring for a minute or two, rather than this? The guy has been wrestling for two years, desperately in need of repairing his neck, and the week of the show is when the decision was "he can't even take a bump anymore?" This wastes plenty of time, too, on a PPV. We're paying to watch a man lay on the ground and getting carted off for 10-minutes.

WWF Intercontinental Championship Match:
Chyna © (w/ Miss Kitty) vs. Chris Jericho:

Ugh... Chyna holding a real Championship. Still makes me sick. I dunno how this came to be, other than Jericho being a dickhead. Chyna's victory was overshadowed by Jeff Jarrett's holding up Vince McMahon for money to work without a contract. Jericho attacks before the bell, then shoves Kitty down for looking like Chyna (except, you know, attractive, and like a woman). They take it to the floor, where Jericho takes a bump into the steps. Chyna launches herself off the steps, and eats security wall. Jericho stomps away, and chokes with some ringside cables. Back inside, Jericho with rights (he's allowed to punch her? Holy crap!) and stomps. Whip to the ropes, and Chyna drops him across the top rope. Jericho traps himself in a Tree of Woe, and Chyna follows in with a basement dropkick. Jericho goes low, but Chyna no-sells and takes him down with a hurricanrana. Whip to the corner, and Chyna does the Harley Race bump to the floor. Jericho springboards to the floor with a body press as J.R. does the "sorry for not being into this" bit to "sell" Austin's injury. Jericho throws her into the announcers table, and slaps her with an empty water bottle. Is this the Hardcore Division, circa 2000? Back inside, Jericho comes off the top with a missile dropkick for two. Jericho with knees to the "face" (horribly, obviously, blocked with forearms) for a two count. Jericho goes for a slam, but Chyna hooks him for a roll up for two. Jericho dicks around with her, and connects with a delay vertical suplex. He does the arrogant pin to a babyface pop for two.

Chyna offers a comeback, but Jericho takes her down with a bulldog (to another face pop). He heads to the apron, and a slingshot splash gets two. Spinning heel kick and a nip up, and Jericho's REALLY playing it up now. He sends her to the floor with a clothesline, then gives Kitty a kiss. Kitty retaliates, but Jericho slams her off his back with ease. Chyna with a spear and AWFUL punching to negative crowd response (other than squeals, so men hate her, women like her. Just like John Cena). Back inside, Jericho gives her a powerbomb for two. Jericho goes for a Lionsault, but Chyna rolls away. J.R. actually called it a springboard Asai moonsault, other than the gimmick name. Chyna gets her comeback and the Muta springboard elbow, followed by a DDT for two. The ref gets bumped, allowing Jericho to bash her with the title belt. that only gets two. Chyna with the Pedigree, but Jericho is allowed to kick out of it when she does it. Chyna goes for a hurricanrana, but Jericho counters it easily with the Walls of Jericho (I much prefer the Liontamer name for the hold). She somehow fights her way to the ropes, forcing a break. Jericho sets her up across the top rope for a super-plex, but she goes low (thanks to a distraction from Kiss Kitty), and counters with a SUPER PEDIGREE (and it looked pretty bad) for the three count at 13:46. Ugly match at times, and the crowd was dead for most of it, but then they somehow started to wake up for all the near falls and the finish. Still, there were moments of this being pretty good, and then there were plenty of moments of Chyna not being a good worker.

Matt & Jeff Hardy, Edge, Christian (w/ Terri Runnels) vs. Too Cool (Scotty II Hotty & Grandmaster Sexay), Hardcore & Crash Holly:

There sure were a lot of fresh talent brought in and pushed towards the second half of 1999, including the return of Brian Christopher and Scott Taylor, Crash Holly, and the sudden push for former JTTS' the Hardy Boyz. Too Cool gets NO reaction, but then putting them with a fat, dancing Samoan, put them over. I don't get it either, sometimes. E&C and the Hardys had an epic Ladder Match at No Mercy to push them above curtain jerking status, and finally gave fans to give a shit about either of the four. The rest is history. The problem with the Russo Era of PPV's is that EVERYONE did something to give matches a reason, but the hell if we can remember what that was. This match is a great example... why is this happening? I know there's a reason, but I don't remember a thing of it.

Edge and Scotty start with shoving and a slugfest, won by Edge. They take it to the corner, exchanging slaps and chops. Whip to the ropes, and a Criss-Cross ends with Edge connecting with a spinning heel kick. Crash tags in, and quickly walks into a drop toe hold. Matt tags in, and a body press gets two. He drops Crash across the top rope and takes him down with a back suplex for two. Matt hangs Crash over the top rope again, and sends him to the floor with a clothesline. Sexay comes around to powerbomb Matt off the apron, setting off a series of high spots. Back inside, Christian with a powerslam on Crash for two. Hardcore comes in for the Hart Attack on Christian, but that only gets two. Christian offers a comeback, but gets laid out with a clothesline. GMS (Grand Master Sexay) in, acting like a moron. He takes Christian down with a bulldog for two. He goes for it again, but Christian sends his crotch into the buckle. Edge has his way with Hardcore and connects with the Spear. Everyone gets involved in the act until Edge accidentally spears Matt, allowing Hardcore to roll up Edge at 6:10. Scotty with a top rope DDT on Matt to eliminate him at 6:24. Jeff with a sunset flip, and he does a reversal sequence with Scotty for a pair of near falls. Too Cool with a double powerbomb on Jeff for a two count. GMS throws Jeff across the ring with a handful of hair, a spot usually reserved for women's wrestling. Snapmare and second rope dropkick by Sexay for two. Too Cool with the Hart Attack on Jeff for two. We get a mess of action, which will no doubt lead to a heel being pinned. Jeff ends up hitting a 450 splash on Scotty for the elimination at 10:11. Jeff and Christian with a double hip toss on Crash for two. They continue to double team Crash, until Jeff jumps into a missile dropkick from Hardcore. Sexay with a top rope leg drop for three at 11:30. Christian with a reverse DDT on Sexay for three at 11:45. Hardcore with a suplex, and Crash with a fist drop for two. They continue to double team Christian, and yes, I was surprised he ended up being the last member remaining, too. Christian manages to lay out Crash with the Impaler at 14:03, leaving him and Hardcore. They fight through a series of counters until Holly blocks a victory roll for the three count at 14:28. And no one cares. Really boring and heatless, if you couldn't tell by my lack of enthusiasm.

WWF Tag Team Championship Match:
The New Age Outlaws © vs. Mankind & Al Snow:

Hey look, Billy Gunn has finally shown up after countless appearances by the rest of D-Generation X (even Lawler picks up on this). Mankind and Snow formed a team after Snow framed the Rock for throwing away Mick Foley's book. This lead to a mild push for Snow as a heel, but then, according to him, went down the toilet for blowing a spot in the 2000 Royal Rumble. Mankind and Gunn start, but not before Mankind gives props to Stone Cold. Jim Ross: Mankind gave Al Snow head last thursday on Smackdown. That, gentlemen, is the most perverted out of context line I've ever heard from J.R. Slugfest until Gunn connects with a neck breaker for two. Whip to the ropes, and Gunn slaps on a sleeper hold. the action spills to the floor, where we get heel miscommunication. Snow and Road Dogg have their turn now. Snow with a weird jawbuster as we're reminded of his action figure being removed from Wal-Mart because of the inclussion of Head in the package and people having too much free time on their hands. Mankind pummels Road Dogg and rams a knee into the face. Snow uses a chair on him, then sends the Dogg into a clothesline from Mankind. Mankind with a chair shot, and you're honestly telling me the referee didn't hear that? Mankind with a chinlock... why is the face in control with that? The faces keep control of the action for a good, long while, too. They remain in control, until finally, FINALLY, we get the heel heat segment, after Snow gets introduced to various ringside accessories. Gunn slingshots Snow under the bottom rope, and Road Dogg comes off the apron with a double axehandle. After only a brief time in control, Snow manages to get the hot tag to Mankind (without a reaction). Gunn hits the Fame-Asser on Mankind, but that only gets a two count. Dogg goes for the Pumphandle Slam, but Mankind goes low, and does the Double-Arm DDT on Gunn. Snow with a Snow-Plow on Road Dogg, and it's Mr. Socko time! The Outlaws go double-low, then Snow bops Gunn with Head. Mankind covers, but only for two. Road Dogg trips Mankind up, and a Spike Piledriver finishes at 14:00. Wow, that was about 9-minutes longer than it needed to be. The crowd was damn near dead for two acts that generally get plenty of reactions (Mankind and Outlaws). Heck, Al Snow was the only one with reasonable crowd response here.

WWF Championship; Triple Threat Match:
Triple H © vs. The Rock vs. The Mystery Replacement... the Big Show:

Consider me incredibly surprised and disappointed by the Big Show replacing Steve Austin. I was pissed no matter what, but would've much, much, MUCH prefered Test as the replacement. It seemed like the most logical choice, even for a 14 year old. Rock and Hunter double-up on Show before the bell. Whip to the ropes, and he comes back with a diving double clothesline. He hits both men with headbutts and big boots. Chokeslam attempt to HHH is interrupted by the Rock. Show remains in control until taking a double clothesline to the floor. Show drags Rock out, and ends up ramming himself into the post. Rock and Hunter brawl around the ring until Show interrupts things. Show sends Hunter to the corner, but misses a charge. Rock takes him down with a russian leg sweep and comes off the ropes with the People's Elbow. Hunter breaks the pin attempt, and starts putting the boots to the Rock. Trips with a face buster, and Show with a side suplex on the Rock. He tosses Hunter to the floor, and they brawl up the aisle. Rock wakes up, wipes Show out with a clothesline and takes his turn with Triple H, putting him through a table with a PUNCH. That's one weak fucking table, or a hell of a punch. More stuff happens, but nothing of note, until Rock "hits" Show with a fire extinguisher. Hunter goes for a suplex, but Rock counters with his own. Show with the goozle, but Hunter goes low on him to save Rock from sure destruction. We head back to ringside, but not before Hunter plants Rock with a back suplex in the aisle.

Show reverses a whip, sending Hunter into the ring steps, then walks him around the ring to toss him into the other set of steps. Rock comes around, and spits something in Show's face. He rings Show's bell, and helps out Triple H by putting Big Show through the Spanish Announce Table with a double suplex. That thing exploded on impact. Rock and Trips have Random Brawling Part Three, this time into the crowd. Look at all those Austin shirts... damn Bait-and-Switches. Back in the ring, again, with Rock in control. We get a refere bump via a clothesline from the Rock. Whip to the corner, Rock goes for a rock bottom, Triple H escapes and goes for the Pedigree, Rock escapes that, sends Hunter into the buckle before finally hitting the Rock Bottom. No referee, though, until Shane McMahon runs in to count... two. He could've counted three, easily, just to fuck him over. Rock with another Rock Bottom, but Show pulls Shane out of the ring. Show pounds away on Rocky, then sets his eyes on the Champion. For whatever reason, Show heads back to the floor, throwing Rock into the steps. Shane takes a kick-wham-Pedigree, because it was necessary? Rock with a DDT on Hunter, Show with a clothesline on Rock. X-Pac and the Outlaws run-in (Russo's gone, stop with the run ins!), working over Show and Rock. Suddenly, McMahon struts his way to the ring, nails Hunter with a belt, and Show finishes with the Showstopper at 16:17, counted by McMahon, who was originally to be the special referee. What a mess of a finish, but it worked. McMahon had been hitting Austin and Rock with blown interference for the past few weeks, and it seemed like he would double-cross and help Triple H here, before going with the good ending. Match mostly stank, but had a hot final sequence. Show does the Shawn Michaels/WrestleMania XII celebration, but really, who cared? He was just a place-holder champion for 6-weeks.

Final Thoughts: Dead crowd, meaningless Elimination Matches, and the worst example of a bait-and-switch ever brought to us by the WWF means this one is worth skipping over. The best match on the card involved Chyna, so you know there can't be much to look forward to otherwise. Usually I'm a fan of meaningless Survivor Series matches, but when they're this meaningless, heatless, and pointless, with minimal effort from everyone involved to make anything out of them, even I have to wash my hands of it. One of the worst of the Survivor Series PPV's, even if it did have a "cool" surprise finish to the main event.

back to Survivor Series Index