By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
WWE Survivor Series Kickoff Show
Aired live November 22, 2020 on WWE Network and social media
Orlando, Florida at Amway Center
-The Kickoff Show was hosted by Charly Caruso, who was joined by Booker T, Jerry Lawler, JBL, and Peter Rosenberg.
-An Undertaker video package aired.
-Caruso asked the panel to talk about what the night means to them and for their favorite Taker memory. Lawler spoke about Taker starting as Mean Mark and working in Memphis. He also recalled facing him in a Casket Match. Lawler said Taker is the best of the best.
-Booker T spoke about Taker calming him down before his first WrestleMania match and telling him to take it all in. JBL said no one in sports or entertainment has had a run quite like Taker. JBL said the longevity and being on top for 30 years makes him the greatest of all-time. Rosenberg called Taker “a wrestling fan’s wrestler.”
-Paul Heyman was interviewed by Kayla Braxton in the backstage area. She gave him a chance to take back his statement that Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre is a champion vs. titleholder match. Heyman said he was doubling down because Reigns is the true champion, whereas McIntyre is a placeholder and a titleholder. “Drew McIntyre is a babysitter for a belt,” Heyman said.
-The panel recapped the Mandy Rose and Dana Brooke injury angles from Raw, along with Lana being put through the table again. The hosts discussed the women’s elimination match. Bianca Belair replaced Rosenberg at the desk and spoke about how excited she is to show why she’s the EST of WWE. Natalya showed up and made a claim for being the captain of the team.
-Rosenberg left and then the panel discussed Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods vs. The Street Profits.
-Rikishi was shown talking with son Jey Uso.
-The panel switched gears to discussing the Bobby Lashley vs. Sami Zayn match. Zayn showed up at the desk and continued to play up the idea that the Intercontinental Title is more valuable than the U.S. Championship. He said the Intercontinental Title is a working class title that is respected around the world.
-The Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown men’s elimination match was the next topic of conversation. R-Truth showed up at the desk with his WWE 24/7 Title. Truth set up a tribute he made to the Phenom celebrating his 30th anniversary. The footage was of the Gobbledy Gooker from the 1990 Survivor Series. The hosts explained that they were celebrating Undertaker’s anniversary. The Gobbledy Gooker showed up and hung out with Truth for a second. Akira Tozawa arrived. The Gobbledy Gooker pinned a distracted Truth to win the WWE 24/7 Championship. The panel noted that one of Gobbledy Gooker’s feet came off while he was running away.
1. Dual-Brand Battle Royal. The broadcast team was Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, and Samoa Joe. Rey Mysterio, Murphy, and Dom Mysterio came out together while most of the other entrants were in the ring. The Miz and John Morrison also received a televised entrance. The other entrants included Jeff Hardy, Ricochet, Elias, Kalisto, Shelton Benjamin, Cedric Alexander, Dolph Ziggler, Robert Roode, Chad Gable, Shinsuke Nakamura, Humberto Carrillo, and Apollo Crews.
Morrison was eliminated by Dom Mysteiro. Alexander eliminated Kalisto. Ziggler tossed Rey out. Carrillo was eliminated by Garza, who was then eliminated Alexander and Benjamin. Ricochet eliminated Alexander, then Benjamin eliminated Ricochet, and then Crews eliminated Benjamin. Roode eliminated Murphy, then Dom eliminated Roode and then Ziggler a short time later. Hardy eliminated Nakamura and then Elias.
The final four (barring someone hiding) came down to Hardy, Miz, Gable, and Dom Mysterio. Gable eliminated Hardy. There was a debate as to whether Miz was eliminated by Dom. Gable performed a series of suplexes on Dom, who came back with a springboard into an armdrag. Gable avoided the 619. Dom blocked a suplex attempt and ended up hitting the 619. Dom followed up by tossing Gable over the top rope to eliminate him. The Miz returned and eliminated Dom. The broadcast team showed that Miz rolled back under the ropes and was not actually eliminated….
The Miz won a dual-brand battle royal in 12:00.
Powell’s POV: That happened. In some ways, this battle royal feels like the perfect Kickoff show match for Survivor Series in that there was nothing actually at stake, much like the rest of the show.
Backstage, King Corbin told Kevin Owens that they couldn’t count on their partners, so it was up to them to carry the team. Corbin told Owens to follow his lead. Once Owens left the room, Billie Kay showed up and handed Corbin her headshot. He wasn’t interested. She took the hint and took the headshot back.
A video package spotlighted Drew McIntyre vs. Roman Reigns…
The hosts wrapped up the show…
Join me for live coverage of the Survivor Series main card in a separate post available on the main page.
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