WWE Survivor Series 2023: 3 Things We Hated And 3 Things We Loved
Welcome to Wrestling Inc.'s review of WWE Survivor Series, aka Survivor Series: War Games, aka The One Where CM Punk Came Back. Yes, in case you somehow haven't heard before now, Survivor Series closed on the image of the former multi-time WWE Champion and AEW World Champion stepping out onto a WWE stage for the first time in almost 10 years to the raucous approval of his hometown Chicago faithful. Punk's return came close on the heels of the return of Randy Orton, who appeared as part of the main event men's WarGames match, which was the show's second WarGames. It was quite the eventful evening.
As you might expect, while a lot of stuff happened that didn't involve either WarGames, Orton, or Punk, the reactions of the WINC writing and editorial staff tended to focus on those things. For a proper account of the event as a whole, we highly recommend our Survivor Series live coverage/results page. That space is about objective facts; this one most assuredly is not. These are our big feelings on the biggest happenings of the show. These are three things are hated and three things we loved about WWE Survivor Series 2023.
Loved: Women's WarGames kicks off the show hot
I don't think there was a better way to start out this show than with the women's WarGames match. It's been given so much time on weekly TV that it made a lot of sense to get the Chicago crowd hot right from the get-go. I personally thought this match started out a lot faster and got to bigger spots more quickly than the men's WarGames match, which I preferred at the beginning of the PLE. I'm also a big fan of gimmick matches, and WarGames might be the biggest gimmick of them all, outside of maybe the Elimination Chamber. With that combined with the sheer talent of most of these women, I knew going into the show it was going to be something I loved. It was also given plenty of time, but didn't overstay its welcome on a three-hour premium live event.
One of the things that stood out to me most was Flair and Lynch hugging it out in the middle of the ring, seemingly settling all the differences that were referenced on Friday night's episode of "WWE SmackDown" and then tied up at the post-show press conference. Which was great, because I didn't need any kind of storyline with them, especially with the two on separate brands, moving forward. The only ongoing story coming out of this match is the continued dissension within Damage CNTRL, and I think that's all we really need going forward. Bayley taking the pin, after kind of being forced to start the match in the first place, was excellent. Give these other women fresh feuds and stories going into the Royal Rumble.
Overall, it was an extremely enjoyable, fast-paced match with plenty of big spots and weapons used, without being too overly violent. IYO SKY is forever a highlight of WarGames matches for me, and with her now as champion, it works even better. Considering the way this premium live event went off the air, it's notable that this first match still stuck out in my mind at the end of the night, which is always a good thing when it comes to women's wrestling.
Written by Daisy Ruth
Hated: Bayley's sacrifice is rendered worthless
The women's WarGames match had a lot of big spots, with both IYO SKY and Charlotte Flair diving off the top of the cage, but there were also a lot of great storyline details throughout the encounter. One of these was the notion of Bayley seemingly wanting to prove herself in the new-look Damage CTRL, the latest chapter in an angle that has been going on for months. This played into the WarGames finish, in which Bayley sacrificed herself for her teammates — Flair was aiming to hit Kairi Sane with a Spear, but Bayley shoved Sane aside to take the bullet instead. This then led to her being hit by everyone else's finisher and ultimately losing the match for her team, but unfortunately, the sacrifice itself ended up being worthless.
Sane was never hit by Flair's finisher, yet for some reason after Bayley was taken out, she decided to just sit in the corner of the ring while her team lost. Sane was selling like she'd received a finishing move rather than like someone who had just avoided one, and the fact that she didn't help Bayley in any capacity left some confusion about the decision Bayley had made, because it didn't seem to be appreciated or tapped into properly. While this could all be part of a larger storyline moving forward, within the match, it did feel like a small detail that was overlooked and not properly addressed.
Most of the time when something like that happens, fans would've expected Sane to go and fight on Bayley's behalf, or at least try to help her out, but none of that took place. Instead, the moment and the sacrifice were both overshadowed.
Written by Matthew Wilkinson
Hated: The rest of the show is just kind of there
It's completely understandable, and expected, that a pair of WarGames matches will necessarily outshine the remainder of the card — and that's on nights that DON'T involve the returns of two extremely popular former WWE Champions. But in the case of Survivor Series 2023, it really feels like the midcard was set up to fail.
By far the hardest hit by this phenomenon was Rhea Ripley vs. Zoey Stark. Stark is an extremely competent wrestler who can pretty much do anything you ask her to do in the ring, but she hasn't gotten a lot of time to develop a personality beyond "is a good wrestler." She doesn't have a ton of star power, and what little she does have was absolutely overwhelmed by the massive star power of Ripley in a match that every single member of the WINC staff knew Ripley was going to win. It's the latest in a series of such matches for RIpley, who, since winning what is now the Women's World Championship in April at WrestleMania, has defended it almost exclusively against the likes of Zelina Vega, Natalya, and Raquel Rodriguez. In the six months she's held the title, Ripley has not gone up against a single member of the women's division's upper echelon (nobody who appeared in the women's WarGames match, for example) and defeating Stark does nothing to change that. It didn't help that this was Ripley's shortest title defense since May, and the match ended just about the moment it appeared to be getting interesting.
Meanwhile, Santos Escobar vs. Dragon Lee was an excellent contest purely in terms of in-ring work, but something special was lost when Lee replaced Carlito, who hadn't wrestled a singles match on a WWE PPV/PLE since 2007. Escobar vs. Carlito felt like it belonged on Survivor Series; Escobar vs. Lee felt like it belong on "WWE SmackDown." And while GUNTHER and The Miz gave by far the strongest effort when it came to attempted show-stealing, again, The Miz (a 43-year-old former champion who turned babyface basically yesterday) just wasn't the right opponent to make it feel like GUNTHER's reign was ever really in jeopardy. The wrestlers themselves largely managed to overcome this and got the contest firmly into banger territory, but they weren't set up to do so by the booking. They just did it, because they're that good and they were given a decent amount of time. How many people went into Survivor Series thinking "I'm so excited, they might give Miz the title"?
It's understandable that Survivor Series is now about WarGames, and that big returns are going to overshadow everything else. But the midcard deserved better than the lukewarm, predictable matches it was given.
Written by Miles Schneiderman
Loved: The Viper makes his return
While there was a huge surprise return at the end of the show that will have everybody talking, Randy Orton's comeback after over a year on the shelf can also not be overlooked from Survivor Series. Unlike CM Punk, the "Viper's" presence was well-known ahead of time, but the company teased the possibility throughout the night that he might not appear at all.
It was a good move, as it allowed fans to create a genuine buzz about Orton during the show, eventually giving him his big moment at the end, a full entrance with music, as he deserved. Orton appears to be in fantastic shape, and while he didn't have much to do inside the ring, he was able to rattle off the hits to quickly remind fans exactly who he is, including a super RKO on JD McDonagh, who was thrown from the top of the cage into the move.
The company also added storyline development with Orton, having him tease a potential turn Jey Uso, which had been in play from the beginning. The Bloodline, with Jey as a member, were the ones who "injured" Orton to write him off television, and pushing those issues between them mid-match made his return more than just paint-by-numbers (as it easily could have been) and gives him something to sink his teeth into moving forward.
Written by Matthew Wilkinson
Hated: CM Punk outshines the return of Randy Orton
I truly didn't believe I was going to have to write about the return of CM Punk to WWE Saturday night, but ... here I am. Part of what makes me so mad about Punk's return is that it overshadowed that of Randy Orton — a star who (in recent memory, we're not talking about when Orton was younger here) is not a problem in the locker room and who generally seems to be a good dude. Orton, who came back from really freakin' serious double-back fusion surgery. Orton, who was told by his own doctors that he shouldn't wrestle again, but he's so committed, it's so in his blood, he just had to come back to do what he loved. THAT Orton, whose return was overshadowed by Punk. I hate it.
Of course, it wasn't overtly ruined. WWE did wait until after the babyface team won the WarGames match to hit the music on "Cult of Personality," because Punk had nothing to do with anyone or anything involved in the WarGames match. But what is everyone coming out of this show talking about? CM Punk. Hell, that's what I'm coming out of this show talking about and I don't even care for the guy. I just feel like I'm living in an alternate universe at this point. Assuming it's true that the guys in the match didn't know about Punk coming back, I would be absolutely furious if I were Orton. Even if they did know, if I were Orton, I would still be extremely miffed.
As a fan of Orton and not of Punk, I am greatly looking forward to seeing what Orton can still do in the ring following surgery and what stories WWE has for him. Hopefully they doesn't involve Punk. But I'm not so sure I know much of anything when it comes to WWE and their plans anymore.
Written by Daisy Ruth
Loved: WWE stick the landing with CM Punk's triumphant return
It was the talk of the pro wrestling industry heading into WWE Survivor Series, and the company pulled off the biggest surprise and best-kept secret in recent history with the return of multi-time world champion CM Punk. After almost 10 years away from the promotion and just three months after being fired by AEW over a backstage incident, Punk shocked the world on Saturday night, making his entrance in front of a raucous Chicago crowd as the premium live event went off the air.
While the speculation and buzz surrounding a potential comeback had lingered for a number of weeks and months, all hope looked lost for Punk fans at the conclusion of the WarGames main event bout, with the babyface team led by Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes celebrating as the end credits card popped up in the bottom-right corner. While it usually indicates the broadcast fading to black, WWE used that to their advantage, blasting the iconic "Cult Of Personality" to a thunderous pop inside the Allstate Arena as Punk soaked in the adulation. There was no other place on the card where Punk's appearance would have made sense, especially given the void of world title bouts or major singles bouts, while the way it was handled allowed the returning Orton and the main event WarGames clash room to breathe and have its own spotlight.
Love him or hate him, Punk makes wrestling more interesting — that much was evident during his time with AEW — and there are now an abundance of fresh matches on the docket for "The Second City Saint." While the details are scarce at this stage, Punk's history inside and outside of WWE should create plenty of intrigue heading into the all-important Royal Rumble and WrestleMania season
Written by Liam O'Loughlin