2008 Survivor Series Reactions

Last night's WWE Survivor Series PPV saw the championship landscape of both Smackdown and Raw altered majorly within the same night. Fans were treated not only to the triumphant return of John Cena, but also to that of a surprising return of the Ultimate Opportunist, Edge. In addition, there were the traditional elimination-style matches which provided some interesting results, as well as an all-out battle in the casket match. Here's some thoughts regarding what went down with WWE's Thanksgiving Pay-Per-View.

First off, the return of John Cena. It had all the hype behind it, as he was making a huge return from injury in his hometown of Boston, MA. Some fans have noted that Cena seemed rusty, or the finish could have been better. It almost seemed as if the WWE promotions were continually telling the fans "buy this Pay-Per-View to see Cena win the title". Although I selected Jericho to win, it now sounds like picking Cena was a no-brainer. Myself and many others may have fallen into the trap of believing Cena's return was the big surprise or story of the night, but in fact it was the return of Edge. Cena's return may just have been to deflect fans' attention away from believing internet rumors that Edge would show up.

Edge's return accomplishes the usual mission. Big surprise, and Edge winning the title in a dramatic, sneaky fashion. No use of Money in the Bank here, or Edge look-alikes. Instead it was Edge arriving to the ring well into the match with both Kozlov and HHH layed out on the mat. Jeff Hardy had been reportedly attacked, making him ineligible to compete in a Triple Threat. Edge wanted to make the easy win, but Jeff made an appearance bashing a chair on both Edge & Kozlov. It wasn't enough though as Edge delivered a spear and managed to grab the winning pinfall on HHH. So now we have a Edge vs. Hardy feud. Kozlov still seems to have a claim to being in a title match, as he's undefeated on Smackdown.

A few things come up with this whole Edge returns & wins scenario though. First off, Vickie and Edge patched things up again, but how and why? They were a power couple before, but she brought back Undertaker to destroy him. Maybe it was just good ol' fashioned tough love, where Vickie taught Edge his lesson. In Edge's case, it seems cheaters always win. Secondly, if Hardy was able to make his return to the ring to attack Edge, why couldn't he be eligible to compete? It's basically a screw job by Edge & Vickie, which again accomplishes the mission of angering many fans. Great surprise though, the WWE tried for another big one similar to Cena showing up at the 2008 Royal Rumble this past year. Not sure if it had the same impact as wrestling fans were discussing Edge's return in a chat room, prior to the event.

As for the rest of the event, some may hate on me for this, but the Smackdown & Raw divas traditional match was somewhat entertaining. Not just for the eye candy factor, but more for the aggression that Maryse displayed as well as some of the new diva vs. diva fights that went on. The angle of divas uniting for their brand but not quite co-existing was a good idea. Mickie James vs. Michelle McCool was a battle that rarely if ever has been seen. Beth vs. Natalya would also have been great. Also the aggressive way Maryse went at Beth towards the end of the match really made it look as if Maryse was being put over on the fans. The only other suggestion I would have made to WWE for this match, add the Bella twins and capitalize off their recent popularity. A Bella twins switch-out to defeat Beth might have made for a great ending as well.

In the other two traditional elimination matches, it was surprising to see all Raw roster members as survivors (except Khali). In one match it was Shawn Michaels, Rey Mysterio and Khali winning. Quite possibly WWE wanted to make a joke about the biggest and smallest wrestlers of their brand being winners. But it was odd to see that as the final result, because the WWE could have gone so many other ways than to have Khali and Mysterio. For example, MVP winning it so he could have something to brag about on Smackdown. He still may lay claim to the fact he pinned someone for an elimination, but that's hardly a win. It made sense for Michaels to cost JBL the match to continue their feud, but otherwise you see there is no real feuds within that match. Then we have Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes as final survivors. Orton outsmarting Batista also made sense, and now he can also remind Rhodes that he was almost eliminated but Orton saved him. Might we see Orton, Manu and Rhodes aligning and casting out Dibiase?

And don't forget the casket match which definitely was meant to please, complete with pyrotechnic fire at the top of the ramp, two caskets, druids and a Big Flop finale as Show was sealed away. You really have to wonder how many caskets and takes they went through to practice the finish prior to Survivor Series...

See full 2008 Survivor Series PPV results here.