The 28th Survivor Series is coming in November
from St Louis.
The night following Summer Slam includes a Wyatt promo. Bray, backed by Luke Harper (we start getting
his first name now as a method of individuation) Virgil and Cena, says what
you’d expect, he’s the real winner at Summer Slam because of the postmatch
beatdown, and since GDI is clearly dead, the beatings will continue all the way
until Survivor Series in which he will batter Claudio in the no DQ match. And while Bray has all the Wyatts – Claudio
is by himself.
Claudio enters – and will be followed by Cody and then
Swagger and then Nemeth. That’s half the
Survivor Series card, and we’ll mix and match them during the build.
Deeper dive.
WWF Title (No DQ) Claudio Castagnoli v. Bray Wyatt
-Bray’s argument through the build is Claudio should just
hand over the belt and join the Wyatts to save the humiliation and the
beatings. Claudio no sells all of it,
says he appreciates the offer to join
the Wyatts and really respects all of them – but he’s good with GDI and
maybe they’ll talk again about it sometime.
As for the title, he thinks maybe Bray’s analysis isn’t perfect, as he
believes he actually defeated Bray at Summer Slam and therefore, based on past
performance, is likely to do so again at Survivor Series. May the best man win! Hey!
(the key is there’s no wink to the camera, Claudio’s totally
earnest, he’s just happy and it gets under everyone else’s skin.)
The other babyfaces stay with Claudio throughout the build,
no other GDI members anywhere, but in an 8 man at the go home show, the other 3
babyfaces wind up, for various reasons, leaving ringside, and Claudio’s
doubleteamed by Harper and Bray, Harper getting the fall (only time Claudio is
pinned in the build) and so going into Survivor Series the story is that
Claudio is, in fact, on his own up against all 4 Wyatts potentially in a No DQ
match.
IC Title: Nick Nemeth v. Luke Harper
-Harper, recall, gave up the IC shot he earned in the last
build at the demand of Bray, but Nemeth revives it here and says he wants to
fight Harper because he earned it (it’s a babyface move and it possibly serves
to put a schism in the Wyatts). Bray
accepts for Harper, and in the build, when Bray talks about Harper winning the
IC title and bringing it home to the Wyatts, where it will sit right below
Bray’s WWF title, Harper is noticeably silent.
Harper has been kept distinct and strong
since the creation of the Wyatt Family, and each time he didn’t work a
show it was because Bray demanded it, because his bodyguard skills were more
valuable to the Family. As an example of
a stock wrestling storyline, I think it’s really hit all of the needed notes.
Nemeth and Claudio, put together for the opener at Summer Slam, do some two man
comedy stuff, consider that as adding to your understanding of Nemeth as a guy
who likes a buddy. Swagger. Then he really looked to embrace Sheamus and
Barrett as his equals, even when they clearly weren’t. Then Sandow, plucked from the bottom of the
card to be his pal. And now the champ,
Claudio. Nemeth likes that running buddy, even though he’s a prima donna
showboat.
Virgil v. Cody Rhodes
-In the build, Cody never beats his brother.
Okay, in the build we get what turns out to be the last ever
episode of Piper’s Pit. The guest is
Dusty Rhodes.
Piper looks to hit the “we were on the road 400 days a year
so family got screwed” notes before turning it up a couple notches on Dusty –
he was NWA champion in the early 80s and then spend the rest of his career trying
to get back what he never could get back.
Dusty hits back that Piper wouldn’t know what it was like to be world
champion. Piper hits back that he
wouldn’t know what it was like to leave his family. Dusty says he brought Dustin with him – we
see the clip from way back in 1990 when Dustin debuted in WWF as part of Dusty
turning on Hogan (if you’re new, that’s counterfactual history). Dusty says he tried, tried and failed, but
tried. And maybe he’s lost his kids,
maybe he’s lost Dustin – but he doesn’t think so, that’s why Dustin took the
name Virgil, it’s his roots, it’s his family, it’s his dad, he wants to come
home.
Dustin enters with Bray and Cena – Dustin says the Wyatts
are the only real family he ever had – Dusty cuts his “the view never changes”
promo, talking about Dustin walking behind Bray – and that’s it, the Wyatts
leave Dusty and Piper laying. Cody runs
in just going berserk, the Wyatts bail.
And that’s it for Dusty and Piper – they leave the territory
on their backs.
John Cena v. Jack Swagger
-The numbers got Swagger at Summer Slam, he’s looking for some
payback here.
The focus of the build, if there’s one match that is the
real draw for Survivor Series, is the tag title match.
WWF Tag Titles: 2 of 3 Belt TLC: The Shield vs. The Usos
-If the Shield wins again, they will pass the Hart Foundation
to become, by the time they defend at
the Rumble, the longest running tag
champs in WWF history. That’s the focus
of the build. The Shield cuts some
promos on every other tag champ in promotion history, the network has some
fantasy programming pitting the Hart Foundation from almost 30 years ago
against the Shield, there’s analysis, predictions, and then a simulation (the
Shield goes over).
The Shield’s beaten everyone. Done everything. What could be left?
Christian comes out of the RAW announce to provide an
answer.
Christian says the main reason why he and Edge, or the
Hardys, or the Dudleys, didn’t have a 21 month title run is that they were
killing each other in TLC matches.
Christian says the reason they stopped doing these matches, over a
decade ago, is the body count got too high.
But if The Shield wants to show they’re the greatest tag
team of all time, they’ll do it in not just a TLC match, but a 6 man TLC match
where the winning team has to grab 2 of the 3 tag team title belts hanging
above the rim.
It’s all 3 members of the Shield against all 3 Usos. The
build is clear – dudes are going to fall off ladders through tables. It is a TLC match where the Shield is trying
to prove it’s the best tag team who ever lived.
There’s another match where the Harts come into play.
Women’s Title: AJ v. Natty v. Paige
-After 3 decades we’re recommissioning the WWF Women’s Title.
AJ’s beaten both Natty and Paige as women’s wrestling made
its WWF PPV debut. And now the decision
has been made to reintroduce the women’s title belt. Through the sheets, we find out that AJs deal
is up and she’s not returning – she cuts a pipe bomb promo saying the Women’s
title will last one day, because she’s going to win it and take it with her
back to Chicago. AJ tweets out a spot at
her house where the belt will go – and in the shot is Punk’s NWA Title belt (Punk’s
the last ever NWA Champion).
That draws the attention of Charlotte Flair.
Charlotte, from Underground, along with fellow trainees
Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch make their RAW debuts to cut off an AJ promo. Charlotte says it is disgusting that the NWA
belt, the belt that belonged to her dad, is now at AJ Lees house. Sasha says that even if she does win at
Survivor Series, she’s not leaving St Louis with that title belt – because
Underground will be in the house.
That draws Paige, Paige is pissed at the trainees for being
here and intimating that she might not win – she tells them to go back and keep
training, and that if she needs help they’ll be the first to know.
Becky says they’ll be at Survivor Series whether Paige wants them or not – and if she wins, maybe they’ll take the belt from her too.
Natty’s babyface turns is complete in this build – because she isn’t just fighting for the title, she’s a Hart – so the title means, as with all other Hart titleholders, that she’d earn a Hart Foundation hockey jersey, which we’re reminded of when Bret appears unannounced on RAW to pump her up and remind everyone of the hockey jersey tradition. Bret doesn’t come alone – he then brings out the Anvil, and he and Natty hug (again, she’s a babyface now). Bret says he and the Anvil will be in attendance at Survivor Series and they might bring some friends. The Shield then hits the ring and we get the “if we were 30 years younger..hell, we could take them if we were ten years younger”…stuff from the Harts. The Shield says they can paint all of St Louis in pink and black; the Shield is walking out of Survivor Series with all 3 tag title belts and with the title Undisputed Greatest Tag Team of All Time.
Two more.
GHB says we need to start deporting some of the foreigners in the locker room, and why not begin with the Colons.
The Colons say they’re Puerto Rican and Puerto Rico is part of the United States.
That distinction isn’t of interest to GHB. And we’ve got a handicap match.
Rusev v. Colons
Finally, someone from Underground is going to lose his job; Fit runs the day to day in Underground since Regal, who remains the big boss, has the Fight Night job. The main roster guys come back to WWFU to get in some training work where Fit reveals that given the pressure from below with new guys ready to move up, someone has to lose his spot. Leaving us this highly pressurized tag match.
Sandow/Gabriel v. Curtis/Slater.
WWF Title (No DQ) Claudio Castagnoli v. Bray Wyatt
WWF Tag Titles: 2 of 3 Belt TLC: The Shield (Black/Ambrose/Langston) vs. The Usos (Reigns/Jimmy/Jey)
IC Title: Nick Nemeth v. Luke Harper
Virgil v. Cody Rhodes
John Cena v. Jack Swagger
Women’s Title: AJ Lee v. Natty Neidhart v. Paige
Rusev (w/Lana and GHB) v. Colons
Someone's Getting Fired: Damien Sandow/Justin Gabriel v. Fandango Curtis/Heath Slater
Rusev (w/Lana and GHB) v. Colons
Someone's Getting Fired: Damien Sandow/Justin Gabriel v. Fandango Curtis/Heath Slater
