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As the WWE Universe prepares itself for the 11th, and penultimate, pay-per-view of 2014, this week’s Raw was geared at garnering hysteria around its main event at Survivor Series.
One of the franchise’s ‘big four’ PPVs, Survivor Series has thrown up some of the greatest fights in WWE history (who could forget Stone Cold vs Bret Hart in 1996?).
It has also regularly pitted a team of heels against a group of faces, a format that is brought back to life at the 28th edition of Survivor Series.
Desperate to ramp up excitement for Sunday’s showpiece, the majority of this week’s Monday Night Raw was made up of the main protagonists exchanging words of ill feeling that ultimately ended in the WWE Superstars picking their sides and having a good old fashioned brawl.
The Authority kicked things off, with Triple H at his evil CEO best, before a series of events unfolded to show us who will be fighting in what corner at the Scottrade Centre in St. Louis.
It will be Team Cena that they face. A group of fan favourites aimed at upsetting the odds and engineering some appeal from a largely disgruntled set of WWE fans who have been let down this year by botched storylines and the obvious disappointment surrounding the launch of the WWE Network – the organisation’s digital TV service.
As the night wore on we saw the beginnings of a fruitful rivalry between Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper (the latter claiming the Intercontinental Championship in predictably controversial fashion), The Miz talking to a cat, a pair of sisters acting equally catty and some heavyweights suplex each other into submission.
That was all before the contract signing which saw all hell break loose and the names confirmed for the big one this weekend.
Team Cena: John Cena, Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Ryback and Erick Rowan
Team Authority: Kane, Seth Rollins, Luke Harper, Mark Henry and Rusev
Hero of the week: Dolph Ziggler
Jumped by Harper’s henchmen before the fight, Ziggler demanded the referee continue with proceedings despite getting a battering before his title defence even began.
Ziggler went on to lose but Harper as a combatant could make for a good run for Ziggler who has long been in need of a rival with some real venom.
Villain of the week: Triple H
Doing what he does best, Hunter’s role at the heart of all things evil is one he has mastered over his career.
He may just about be able to breathe some life into this rivalry yet and deliver a main event to bring cheer to fans of the WWE.
