From The Shelf – WWF Survivor Series 1997

WWF Survivor Series 1997
11-9-97
Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Your hosts are Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler.

Survivor Series Elimination Match- The Headbangers (Mosh and Thrasher) and New Blackjacks (Windham and Bradshaw) vs. New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg and Billy Gunn) and The Godwinns (Henry and Phineas)
Windham overpowers Phineas and he bails. Back in, Windham slams Phineas and Bradshaw tags in. Powerslam by Bradshaw gets 2. Phineas works over Bradshaw and Henry tags in. Side Russian leg sweep by Bradshaw gets 2. Henry wins the battle for a suplex for 2. Lariat by Henry gets 2. Abdominal stretch cradle by Bradshaw gets 3!!! Henry Godwinn is eliminated.

Phineas and Bradshaw slug it out and Windham tags in. Suplex by Windham gets 2. Gut wrench suplex by Windham gets 2. Leaping clothesline by Windham gets 2. Lariat by Phineas gets 3. Blackjack Windham is eliminated.

Mosh drops an elbow to the back and he catches Phineas with a dropkick. Mosh works the arm but Phineas fights back and Gunn tags in. Double back elbow to Mosh and Gunn stomps away on Mosh. Mosh catches him with a clothesline to come back and he goes for the hip check but Gunn catches him and drives him face first into the mat for 3. Mosh is eliminated.

Thrasher bites the hand of Phineas and he rolls him up for 2. Thrasher works the arm and he takes Phineas down by the hair. Thrasher goes up and hits the seated senton off the top for 3. Phineas Godwinn is eliminated.

Hip toss to Road Dogg and Bradshaw tags in. Rolling short arm clotheslines by Bradshaw and he hits a gun wrench power bomb. Gunn distracts Bradshaw, allowing Road Dogg to roll him up for 3. Blackjack Bradshaw is eliminated.

Thrasher fires away on Road Dogg and Gunn nails him from behind. Thrasher blocks the Pump Handle Slam and Gunn blind tags in. He completely misses Thrasher on a flying leg drop off the top but Thrasher sells it anyway and Gunn covers for 3.
Winners- New Age Outlaws ** ( Man, what a lazy effort this was. There was a ton of start and stops throughout the match with no consistent action at any point. This was average as you can get and it was crystal clear watching this that the Outlaws were the stars of the match, almost by default. )

Survivor Series Elimination Match- Truth Commission (Jackyl, Recon, Sniper, and Interrogator) vs. Disciples of Apocalypse (Chainz, Crush, Skull, and 8-Ball)
Chainz with punches in the corner to Interrogator and he hits some clotheslines. Sidewalk slam by Interrogator gets 3. Chainz is eliminated.

Skull and 8-Ball attack and Recon tags in. Clothesline by Recon and he power slams 8-Ball. Tag to Jackyl and he goes up. Flying knee drop by Jackyl but 8-Ball no sells and catches him with a side walk slam for 3. The Jackyl is eliminated.

Back elbow by Sniper to 8-Ball gets 2. Cross body by Sniper gets 2. Tag to Recon and Crush. Back elbow by Crush and he slams Recon. He hits some leg drops and hits a belly to belly suplex for 2. Tag to 8-Ball and Recon catches him with a leg lariat. They collide mid-ring and Skull tags in. Lariat by Skull gets 3. Recon is eliminated.

Swinging neck breaker to Sniper gets 2. Double spine buster by Skull and 8-Ball gets 2 after Interrogator distracts the ref. Interrogator nails Skull from behind, allowing Sniper to hit a bulldog for 3. Skull is eliminated.

8-Ball works over Sniper and Crush hits a suplex for 2. Head scissors by Crush and 8-Ball tags in. DDT by 8-Ball but Interrogator blind tagged in. Sidewalk slam by Interrogator gets 3. 8-Ball is eliminated.

Head butt by Interrogator and Sniper tags in. Tilt-a-whirl slam by Crush gets 3. Sniper is eliminated.

Sidewalk slam by Interrogator gets 3.

Winner- The Interrogator *1/2 ( Another dry and at times ugly match. Obviously neither team is historically known for their work rate and at least this wasn’t the disaster it could have been. It also served its purpose of putting Interrogator over as a monster, so unlike the opener this at least did what it was supposed to do. )

Vader discuss that his team has one thing in common, their dislike for Canadians. Steve Blackman says he’s ready to adapt to pro wrestling in his first match tonight.

Team Canada says Team USA is in their domain and they’re going to be losers tonight. Doug Furnas declares that that you either love USA or leave it, and he left.

Team USA (Goldust, Marc Mero, Vader, and Steve Blackman) w/Sable vs. Team Canada (British Bulldog, Jim Neidhart, Doug Furnas, and Phil Lafon)
Mero fires away at Bulldog and Bulldog overpowers him to come back. Dropkick by Bulldog and Mero bails. Tag to Vader and he hits a short arm clothesline. Vader trucks Bulldog and he leaps off the second rope but Bulldog catches him with a power slam. Suplex by Bulldog and Lafon tags in. Vader catches him with an Avalanche and Mero tags in. Knee lift by Mero and Lafon comes back with a spinning heel kick. Lariat by Lafon gets 2. Tag to Neidhart and he rakes Mero’s face off the ropes. Tag to Lafon and Blackman. Bicycle kick by Blackman and he dropkicks Lafon in the corner. Blackman snaps Lafon’s neck off the ropes and he drops an elbow for 2. Lafon comes back with a DDT for 2. Crucifix by Lafon gets 2 and Blackman comes back with a thrust to the neck. Blackman backdrops Lafon to the floor and Team Canada goes after him on the floor. Blackman gets counted out in all the chaos. Steve Blackman is eliminated.

Neidhart misses a charge in the corner and Mero rolls him up for 2. Clothesline by Neidhart and he misses a second rope splash. Tag to Vader and Neidhart catches him with a clothesline. Flying shoulder block by Neidhart gets 2. Vader trucks Neidhart and drops an elbow. Big splash by Vader gets 3. Jim Neidhart is eliminated.

Super kicks by Lafon and he hits a spinning heel kick knocking Vader to the floor. Lafon sends Vader into the steps and back in, Vader hits a belly to belly suplex. Second rope splash by Vader gets 3. Phil Lafon is eliminated.

Dropkick by Furnas and he misses a second one. Tag to Mero and he fires away. Mero goes up and he hits an Asai moonsault for 2. Spine buster by Furnas and Bulldog tags in. He blocks a sunset flip attempt and Mero comes back with a straight right. Back elbow by Mero and Furnas tags in. They slug it out and Mero gets a sunset flip for 2 as Furnas rolls through for 3!!! Marc Mero is eliminated.

Vader pounds away but Furnas comes back with a leaping clothesline. Tag to Bulldog and Vader catches him with a suplex. Tag to Furnas and Vader catches him with a back suplex. Furnas goes low on Vader and Bulldog tags in. Vader catches him with a lariat and both men are down. Tag to Furnas and Goldust refuses to tag in. Overhead belly to belly suplex by Furnas gets 2. Hurricanrana by Furnas gets 2. Vader slaps Goldust and tosses him into the ring, forcing Goldust to come in. Goldust walks out on Vader and gets counted out. Goldust is eliminated.

Avalanche by Vader to Furnas and he power slams Furnas. Vader Bomb gets 3. Doug Furnas is eliminated.

Bulldog nails Vader with the ring bell for 3!!!
Winner- British Bulldog **3/4 ( Man, this crowd was molten hot for the Bulldog and clearly the crowd support motivated him, as he was on fire in the match and came across as a superstar. The match was a bit of a mess and the focus of the match was on the dysfunction and personal agenda’s of the Team USA roster but Bulldog and Furnas carried things well enough to make this serviceable. )

Video package for Kane/Mankind airs.

Mankind says he’ll launch himself into a brick wall until it falls. He says he’ll go down trying in his battle with Kane. He says Paul Bearer called him a pebble after giving a whole life to him, so he’ll ask Bearer if he’s a pebble when he applies the Mandible Claw on him. Typical awesome Foley promo.

Mankind vs. Kane w/Paul Bearer
Mankind attacks in the entrance way to start but Kane tosses him into the steps to come back. Back in, Kane works over Mankind but Mankind fires back. Cactus clothesline by Mankind but Kane comes back with a clothesline on the floor. Kane tosses the steps at Mankind and back in, Kane catches Mankind with a big boot. Kane works over Mankind in the corner and he catches Mankind with the Bossman Slam. He boots Mankind to the floor and he sends Mankind into the steps. Mankind catches Kane with a flap jack into the steps and he nails Kane with a chair. Back in, Mankind hits the pile driver on Kane. Mankind grabs the Mandible Claw on Bearer and Kane shoves him off the apron THROUGH THE ANNOUNCE TABLE!!!!! Mankind catches Kane with a DDT on the floor and he hits an elbow drop off the apron. Mankind goes up but Kane tosses him off the top to the floor!!!! Back in, Kane hits the Tombstone for 3.
Winner- Kane **3/4 ( As good a first match debut for a gimmick as you’ll see. Mankind took some frightening bumps for the sake of getting Kane and god bless him for it cause it work. Kane looked like a killer and he made easier work of Mankind than the Undertaker ever did. Really this was one of Mick Foley’s unsung performances. )

Vince McMahon talks about the importance of having Bret/Shawn take place tonight and they have taken extra measures to make sure there are no issues beforehand. He has no idea who’s going to win. Crazy this promo was planned before the chaos that took place later on.

Survivor Series Elimination Match- Nation of Domination (Faarooq, Rocky Miavia, D’Lo Brown, and Kama Mustafa) vs. Ken Shamrock, Ahmed Johnson, and Legion of Doom (Hawk and Animal)
Hawk overpowers Brown to start but Brown comes back with a pile driver. Hawk no sells and he hits a sitting neck breaker. Tag to Rocky and he catches Hawk with the Rock Bottom for 3. Hawk is eliminated.

Back elbow by Johnson and Kama tags in. Clothesline by Kama and Faarooq tags in. Back breaker by Faarooq and the Nation work over Ahmed in the corner. Brown whips him with a belt and Johnson catches Faarooq with the Pearl River Plunge for 3!!! Faarooq is eliminated.

Leg lariat by Brown and he goes up. Lo’ Down by Brown and he fires away which only pumps Ahmed up. Sit-out gordbuster by Ahmed and Rocky tags in. Spine buster by Ahmed and Faarooq trips up Ahmed. Rocky covers for 3 as Faarooq holds the foot down!!! Ahmed Johnson is eliminated.

Animal fires away on Rocky and Shamrock tags in. Clothesline by Shamrock and he hits a dropkick. Tag to Kama and he throws some kicks at Shamrock. Shamrock returns the favor and Animal tags in. Animal tosses Kama away and they clothesline each other. Back suplex by Animal gets 2. Flying shoulder block by Animal and he slams Kama for 1. Animal dropkicks Kama from behind and rolls him up for 3. Kama Mustafa is eliminated.

Dropkick by Shamrock to Brown and Rocky goes low on Shamrock. Leg drop by Brown gets 2 and he grabs a chin lock. Shamrock fights out so Brown cuts him out with a knee to the mid section. Brown chokes away and he hits a back breaker. Brown goes up and misses a moonsault off the top. Tag to Animal and he cleans house. Power slam by Animal and the New Age Outlaws come out. Animal goes after them and Road Dogg throws powder in his face. Animal gets counted out. Animal is eliminated.

Brown fires away and catches Shamrock with a clothesline. Tag to Rocky and Shamrock catches them with a double clothesline. Belly to belly suplex on Brown and he grabs the Ankle Lock. Brown taps!!! D’Lo Brown is eliminated.

Rock nails Shamrock from behind with a chair for 2!!! Rock works over Shamrock in the corner and he catches Shamrock with a DDT for 2. Slam by Rocky and he hits the People’s Elbow for 2. Shamrock counters the DDT with a Northern lights suplex and both men are down. Hurricanrana by Shamrock and he catches Rocky in the Ankle Lock. Rocky taps!!!
Winner- Ken Shamrock **1/2 ( These Survivor Series matches have really sucked. Again, another lifeless match filled with mediocre workers that dragged things down until the Shamrock comeback. The Shamrock/Rocky exchange was solid and pretty much saved the match and gave us a nice preview of what was one ended up being one of the more underrated feuds of 1998. )

Video package for Owen/Austin airs.

WWF Intercontinental Championship- Owen Hart w/Team Canada © vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin
Austin catches Neidhart sneaking up on him with a Stunner and Owen attacks. Owen rakes Austin’s face off the ropes and Austin fires back. Austin backdrops out of a pile driver attempt and Owens bails. Owen wraps Austin’s leg off the post a few times and Austin pulls him into the post. Owen tries to walk out but Austin attacks and Owen goes low. Owen chokes Austin with a cable and he wants to be DQ’ed but the ref won’t do it. Back in, Austin catches Owen with the Stunner for 3!!! Austin lays out Furnas and LaFon with stunners as well.
Winner and NEW WWF Intercontinental Champion- Stone Cold Steve Austin *1/2 ( They placed this safe with Austin still not being fully recovered from his neck injury which was probably for the best. They teased some neck spots but Austin ended up getting his revenge on Owen and continued on his road to superstardom. )

Video package for Hart/Michaels airs.

WWF Championship- Bret Hart © vs. Shawn Michaels
Shawn does things to the Canadian flag prior to the match that would never fly today. Bret fires away to start and he clotheslines Shawn to the floor. Bret sends Shawn into the post and he works over Shawn on the floor. They brawl in the crowd and back at ring side, Shawn begins to hammer away on Bret. They head back into the crowd and Bret backdrops Shawn back to ringside. Bret backdrops Shawn in the entrance way and he suplexes Shawn on the floor!!! Bret works over Shawn but Shawn pulls Bret into a ref to cut him off. Bret attacks him with a fire extinguisher and he nails a ref when the ref tries to intervene!!! Back in, Bret chokes Shawn with the Quebec flag and he hits a leg drop to the back of the head. Inverted atomic drop by Bret and Shawn comes back with a flying forearm. Shawn dumps Bret to the floor and he works him over. Shawn hits a gord buster onto the steps!!! Shawn drives a flag pole into the midsection of Bret and back in, he goes up. Double axe handle to the back by Shawn and he grabs a front face lock. Bret tosses Shawn away to break and he begins to work the leg of Shawn. Shawn rakes the eyes to come back and he slams Bret. Shawn goes up for the crossbody but Bret rolls through for 2. Bret slams Shawn’s leg off the post and he grabs the post Figure-4. Bret continues to work the leg of Shawn and he grabs the Figure-4. Shawn rolls over so Bret quickly grabs the ropes to break. Side Russian leg sweep by Bret gets 2. Suplex by Bret gets 2. Back breaker by Bret and he goes up. He goes for an axe handle but Shawn pulls the ref in the way to block. Shawn rakes the eyes of Bret and he grabs the Sharpshooter. The ref orders to ring the bell!!!!!! Earl Hebner is quick to leave the ring as Bret Hart spits in Vince McMahon’s face. Shawn angrily grabs the WWF Championship and walks out as they quickly end the show.
Winner and NEW WWF Champion- Shawn Michaels ***1/2 ( Yeah, there’s a lot to tackle here. First the match itself was quite the experience. The brawl prior to the official start of the match had the air of realism with WWF officials constantly around the action as Bret proceeded to lay waste to Michaels. The match itself was short but sweet, it wasn’t heading toward the wrestling classic these two were capable of but it was nice follow up to the wild opening with all the leg work that was clearly being set up for later in the match. Now, the screw job itself. With time and retrospect, nobody was in the right about what happened. The screw job wasn’t necessary as I’m sure Bret would have done right and drop the title on Raw or make good for not taking the loss here before heading to WCW. At the same time, no matter how much a piece of shit Shawn was and no matter how much Bret felt disrespected and flat out hated Shawn’s guts, he should have just agreed to drop the belt and be done with it. He should just lost to Shawn and taken all that anger and frustration and used it as motivation to go to WCW and stick it to the WWF. Instead, this pretty much mentally killed Bret and he was a shell of himself by the time he debut in WCW. Again, this is my own opinion and interpretation. Almost twenty years later this was still a surreal viewing experience and one of the most unforgettable scenes in the history of this sport. )

4.5

The final score: review Poor

The 411

There's a weird trend where everytime I review one of these historically significant shows, the wrestling on the show tends to be bad. This show had maybe the worst collection of elimination matches in the history of the Survivor Series, with only the Team Canada/Team USA match being solid and that's due to a motivated British Bulldog carrying things. Looking at the undercard, with Austin injured and Bret gone, that WWF roster was REALLY rough but the development of new characters and gimmicks like Kane and DX was able to carry things all the way to WrestleMania XIV. Obviously I'm recommending this solely on the Bret/Shawn match since it's the most famous backstabbing in pro wrestling history but the rest of this show is a total drag to sit through, so my score reflects that.