In a time where WWE fans are now used to the ‘brand vs brand supremacy’ theme of Survivor Series, with Raw and SmackDown battling for nothing other than vague and lifeless ‘bragging rights’, it feels like a lifetime ago that the show proposed anything different. In the main event of the 2004 show, the traditional Survivor Series elimination match wasn’t about brands, it was about rivalries, and it even had a peculiar stipulation added to it, making it one of the more unique iterations in the show’s history.
With The Winners Running Raw, Stakes Were Added To The Bad Blood
In the lead up to the event, Randy Orton had turned face after being betrayed by Evolution, with Triple H’s ‘reign of terror’ in full swing during this period. With Evolution attempting to run Raw with their own rules, General Manager Eric Bischoff booked the match for Survivor Series; Team Orton against Team Triple H, with the winners getting the opportunity to control Raw for a whole month. This was a fun, interesting take on the Survivor Series concept, adding actual stakes to winning and losing the match.
Something which is lost in present day, is the matches having any meaning. No one benefits from winning, which makes it feel pointless. Despite the stipulation for this match having very short-term impacts, this was during a period where it was more of a necessity to tune in each week, which much more unpredictability, making it an intriguing concept. This was also during a time where face teams would strictly face heel teams at the show, which is much different to today where there is a mix, making it even more uncertain who to root for.
The match was a four-on-four affair, made sparse by the fact that Maven was taken out earlier in the night (although he would return part way into the contest), making the match four on three, with Randy Orton teaming with Chris Benoit and Chris Jericho, to take on Triple H, Batista, Edge, and Snitsky. The match had some fun moments, and some dull moments, but would ultimately end in Randy Orton overcoming the odds to stand tall over his former mentor and leader, giving him a boost and great moment, defying expectations by having the faces take control of Raw.
The Aftermath Was Poor, But The Stipulation Made The Match Exciting
On paper, this was an exciting stipulation, but in practice, there wasn’t a huge pay-off, as Vince McMahon would step in over the next few weeks to overrule numerous decisions made by the faces. In an attempt to take the World Heavyweight Championship away from Triple H, a battle royal was booked, only for McMahon to take HHH out of the match and setting him aside to face the winner. Benoit and Edge would then eliminate each other, advancing to a triple threat match, which ended with Benoit and Edge simultaneously submitting and pinning one another, with the title being vacated. At the following PPV, Triple H would win the back the title anyway, rendering all of those events pointless.
In hindsight, the stipulation didn’t live up to much. But at the time, it gave the traditional Survivor Series match something to fight for other than just bragging rights, and it proved to be more entertaining and successful because of it. This is certainly something that should be incorporated into modern day iiterations of Survivor Series, giving more stakes to a stale concept, adding more reason for the talent involved to actually care about winning. Of course, planning ahead would be needed to prevent the stipulations from being underwhelming like it did in the 2004 Survivor Series main event, but it's certainly something that should be considered going forwards.