The Shield main event was showcased and Kurt starts off the show announcing that Survivor Series will be a series of champion vs. champion matches alongside two five-on-five tag team matches. Miz comes down to complain alongside The Bar and Axel. They all trap Kurt mid-ring before Seth and Dean come down to save him and then we get a six man tag with The Bar and Miz against Seth, Dean, and AJ STYLES! This really should have been the main event, since Raw main event multi-man tags are usually great – and this is no exception.
The Bar is just a great base for everyone and their brawling is spot-on. They hit a slick double kick after going super saiyan and boot Dean in the corner. The Shield guys work the majority of the match, but AJ comes in with a big Pele. AJ hits the corner lariat before the ushigorishi gets 2. Shield hits a double dive onto Sheamus and Miz before AJ pins Cesaro. This was a ton of fun – not a classic, but a great all-action affair. Kane comes down and all of the heels there, plus Axel beat up the faces. Kane shows off the beating of Braun and cuts a promo on him before Finn Balor comes down to face him. Kane eats a lot of Finn’s offense, but beats him with THREE CHOKESLAMS here in 2017. Well, Balor went from feeling like he’s ready for Brock in a little bit to nothing in a day.
Kurt and Shane meet backstage and Shane says that SD beat Raw last year, but Kurt wasn’t GM then. Asuka faces Emma and they have the match they should’ve had at TLC – a near-blowout with Emma getting a bit of offense in, but a total showcase for Asuka. Alexa comes out and says the fans should chant “you deserve it” to her because she’s their goddess. Mickie comes down and kicks her before hitting the jumping DDT on the belt and saying she deserved that. Bayley and Sasha chat with Kurt and Alicia comes in and wants a Raw women’s tag match and Kurt says they’ll settle things like they always do in WWE – Alicia says it’s rock/paper/scissors. They’ll have a triple threat tonight to determine the captain.
Elias goes to sing and cuts a promo on the tech sabotaging his amazing performance. Jason Jordan comes down, thankfully, sans fruit and veggies. They have another match and Elias ends it quickly with a guitar to the shoulder. Heyman comes down and says that Jinder’s challenge is accepted by the number one champion in all of WWE – the undisputed Universal Champion, Brock Lesnar. Enzo’s title win is shown and it’s time for the women’s triple threat. Alicia actually wins by pinning Bayley after a really sloppy match with a head bonk as a finish and a fun spot with Alicia ringing the bell and going crazy on the timekeeper.
Enzo and his goons come down and Drew cuts Enzo’s promo for him and insults the Packers. Nese, Enzo, Drew, Daivari, and Dar face Kalisto, Gran Metalik, Cedric Alexander, Rich Swann, and Mustafa Ali. This is a crazy high-flying battle when the faces are in control, while the heels slow things down and Enzo avoids action whenever humanly possible. Kalisto pins Enzo with the SDS before he gets his rematch, so he’s doomed. Shane and a bunch of the SD roster come down through the crowd and then chase Kurt backstage. Shane says that Raw is under siege and we get a series of overly-produced beatings and Baron and Rusev bring Angle out and Shane challenges him to a Survivor Series tag match. Well, this was the first time since the brand split restarted that there actually felt like a rivalry between the brands – and because of that, it also felt pretty meaningless since half the folks who “hate Raw” now could come to it in mere months anyway.
