Credit: WWE/TwitterCredit: WWE/Twitter
The show's card underwent drastic changes in the weak's leading up to it, including Styles replacing Jinder Mahal and the late additions of Triple H and John Cena, all with the intent of ensuring that WWE build up momentum on the road to The Royal Rumble and WrestleMania 34. Whether that will work out for the company in the long run is still up in the air, however, as WWE's business has proven to be somewhat cyclical in the recent past.
According to WWE's Key Performance Indicators, ratings for both Raw and SmackDown have slightly dipped (by 1%) over the past year while the average WWE Network subscriber count dipped by more than 180,000 from Q2 to Q3 2017 despite that period featuring a number of dream matches, including Cena vs. Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman and many others. Alas, that hasn't prevented WWE pulling out all the stops at its recent PPVs, including at Survivor Series, which featured an incredible amount of star power.
The good news, though: Survivor Series was perhaps WWE's best PPV of the year, which means that interest should be up in the coming weeks and months after important storyline developments for top names like Angle, Triple H, Styles, The Shield, Lesnar and more. So, what did we learn about where WWE might be headed after an excellent showing at the dual-branded PPV?
Here are five things we learned at Survivor Series 2017.
The Shield May Be Around Longer Than Expected
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
The Shield defeated The New Day at Survivor Series, which suggests that Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins could have an extended run as a trio.
When The Shield first reunited last month, the widespread expectation was that their reunion would be short-lived because, quite simply, Rollins, Reigns and Ambrose are so valuable as singles stars that it might be difficult to have The Shield last longer than a few months. But a victory over The New Day, the most established act in WWE's tag team division, indicates that there will be more longevity to The Shield's current run than initially expected.
The New Day won't be hurt by a loss to The Shield because Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston and Big E are cemented as one of WWE's most popular acts (see: their impressive merchandise sales) while The Shield features three of perhaps the top five or six merchandise movers in the company. While Raw's ratings haven't changed much over the past year, the hope is that re-pushing The Shield as a dominant faction can reestablish the trio as a top draw, like it was in 2014, and a major attraction for both TV ratings and the WWE Network.
It certainly looks like The Shield, who are listed as "feature superstars" (a.k.a. best sellers) on WWEShop.com, is getting over again as a unit. Thus, given their impressive victory over The New Day, it stands to reason that Rollins, Ambrose and Reigns have much more to accomplish as a unit and could stick together for the long haul, potentially setting up a number of dream matches or even a massive heel turn that would have much more impact if The Shield reunion is a lengthy one.
Sami Zayn And Kevin Owens Are Turncoats
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
It's been a whirlwind ride for Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens over the last several weeks.
Owens main- evented Hell in a Cell in a match against Shane McMahon last month, a bout which marked Zayn's reunion with Owens and set up the two as the most featured duo on SmackDown. Then, Zayn and Owens were reportedly sent home from WWE's UK tour last week for reportedly going off-script on the November 7th episode of SmackDown, which even caused some fans to speculate that their WWE careers might be in jeopardy.
Pro Wrestling Sheet noted that the two appeared to be "unhappy" backstage, and the fact that they were left off the Survivor Series card lent some credence to reports that they were dissatisfied with their roles. However, Owens and Zayn, despite not having a match on the show, were a major part of it, interfering in the traditional 5-on-5 match between Team Raw and Team SmackDown to attack Shane McMahon.
Thus, it appears that reports regarding any potential backstage heat on Zayn and Owens may have been overblown, and in fact, WWE may still have plans to push them as one of the biggest acts on SmackDown. Although both Owens and Zayn were probably disappointed that they didn't wrestle an actual match at Survivor Series, their betrayal of the blue brand will surely be a focal point on the show going forward, which may be better for them than any match could have been.
">WWE Survivor Series 2017 featured Triple H and Braun Strowman standing tall for Team Raw, Brock Lesnar defeating AJ Styles and The Shield outlasting The New Day to cap off one of the most star-studded pay-per-views in recent memory.
Credit: WWE/TwitterCredit: WWE/Twitter
The show's card underwent drastic changes in the weak's leading up to it, including Styles replacing Jinder Mahal and the late additions of Triple H and John Cena, all with the intent of ensuring that WWE build up momentum on the road to The Royal Rumble and WrestleMania 34. Whether that will work out for the company in the long run is still up in the air, however, as WWE's business has proven to be somewhat cyclical in the recent past.
According to WWE's Key Performance Indicators, ratings for both Raw and SmackDown have slightly dipped (by 1%) over the past year while the average WWE Network subscriber count dipped by more than 180,000 from Q2 to Q3 2017 despite that period featuring a number of dream matches, including Cena vs. Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar vs. Braun Strowman and many others. Alas, that hasn't prevented WWE pulling out all the stops at its recent PPVs, including at Survivor Series, which featured an incredible amount of star power.
The good news, though: Survivor Series was perhaps WWE's best PPV of the year, which means that interest should be up in the coming weeks and months after important storyline developments for top names like Angle, Triple H, Styles, The Shield, Lesnar and more. So, what did we learn about where WWE might be headed after an excellent showing at the dual-branded PPV?
Here are five things we learned at Survivor Series 2017.
The Shield May Be Around Longer Than Expected
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
The Shield defeated The New Day at Survivor Series, which suggests that Roman Reigns, Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins could have an extended run as a trio.
When The Shield first reunited last month, the widespread expectation was that their reunion would be short-lived because, quite simply, Rollins, Reigns and Ambrose are so valuable as singles stars that it might be difficult to have The Shield last longer than a few months. But a victory over The New Day, the most established act in WWE's tag team division, indicates that there will be more longevity to The Shield's current run than initially expected.
The New Day won't be hurt by a loss to The Shield because Xavier Woods, Kofi Kingston and Big E are cemented as one of WWE's most popular acts (see: their impressive merchandise sales) while The Shield features three of perhaps the top five or six merchandise movers in the company. While Raw's ratings haven't changed much over the past year, the hope is that re-pushing The Shield as a dominant faction can reestablish the trio as a top draw, like it was in 2014, and a major attraction for both TV ratings and the WWE Network.
It certainly looks like The Shield, who are listed as "feature superstars" (a.k.a. best sellers) on WWEShop.com, is getting over again as a unit. Thus, given their impressive victory over The New Day, it stands to reason that Rollins, Ambrose and Reigns have much more to accomplish as a unit and could stick together for the long haul, potentially setting up a number of dream matches or even a massive heel turn that would have much more impact if The Shield reunion is a lengthy one.
Sami Zayn And Kevin Owens Are Turncoats
Credit: WWE.comCredit: WWE.com
It's been a whirlwind ride for Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens over the last several weeks.
Owens main- evented Hell in a Cell in a match against Shane McMahon last month, a bout which marked Zayn's reunion with Owens and set up the two as the most featured duo on SmackDown. Then, Zayn and Owens were reportedly sent home from WWE's UK tour last week for reportedly going off-script on the November 7th episode of SmackDown, which even caused some fans to speculate that their WWE careers might be in jeopardy.
Pro Wrestling Sheet noted that the two appeared to be "unhappy" backstage, and the fact that they were left off the Survivor Series card lent some credence to reports that they were dissatisfied with their roles. However, Owens and Zayn, despite not having a match on the show, were a major part of it, interfering in the traditional 5-on-5 match between Team Raw and Team SmackDown to attack Shane McMahon.
Thus, it appears that reports regarding any potential backstage heat on Zayn and Owens may have been overblown, and in fact, WWE may still have plans to push them as one of the biggest acts on SmackDown. Although both Owens and Zayn were probably disappointed that they didn't wrestle an actual match at Survivor Series, their betrayal of the blue brand will surely be a focal point on the show going forward, which may be better for them than any match could have been.
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