I challenge you to think of a snappier title.
In this post, I try out something new, as I run through all 16 pay-per-views(or special events) produced by the WWE this year, from worst to best(note: this does not include NXT TakeOver shows). I've included my initial score with each event, although that had absolutely no impact in the making of this list. Enjoy!
16. Battleground(My Score: 2/10)
Was there ever any doubt? I hated watching this show live, more than I hated watching anything from the company all year. The only, and I mean the only, saving grace of this show was another in the line of classic New Day-Uso matches, but that's it. AJ Styles and Kevin Owens had a well below average match with a botched finish, we all learned just how bad flag matches could be and we finally got the return of The Great Khali that no one was asking for. Terrible.
15. Summerslam(My Score: 4/10)
While I didn't think this show was quite as bad as the previous year's Summerslam, it left a lot to be desired. The main event was fun, big man chaos, and I enjoyed the Raw tag and SmackDown women's matches, but not a whole lot else. Looking back, this show doesn't really feel significant in any way, with almost zero impact on the product. Considering this was a Big 4 pay-per-view, that's saying a lot.
14. Fastlane(My Score: 5/10)
At the start of 2017, there was nothing I wanted more than to see Kevin Owens' Universal Championship reign come to an end. He's not at all a bad performer, but his comedy heel act had worn extremely thin to me. But putting the strap on Goldberg, just so he could drop it to Lesnar, never quite felt right. Throw in the messy ending to Charlotte's pay-per-view winning streak, and you can see why this show is so far down the list(you see what I did there?).
13. Backlash(My Score: 5/10)
Where to start with Jinder Mahal. His rocket push to the main event angered many, and his character work and promo skills have not really developed in the past seven months. I will say this for Jinder: he isn't the reason why this show failed. The show opening, with Shinsuke's debut match on the main roster against Dolph, completely flopped, and set the stage for his extremely underwhelming SmackDown run. Other than that, not much else to say.
12. Money in the Bank(My Score: 6/10)
This was a show focused completely on its two titular bouts. On one hand, the men's Money in the Bank match stole the show, and remains one of my favorite matches this year. On the other hand, you had the first women's Money in the Bank match, a complete clusterf*** with one hell of a controversial finish. I want to rank this event a lot higher, but I simply can't. One match simply cannot carry a show to success.
11. Extreme Rules(My Score: 6/10)
The same can really be said about Extreme Rules. The main event to determine Lesnar's challenger was great, and I also enjoyed the Hardyz/Bar cage match and the Ambrose/Miz opener, but the rest of the show was a bit of a dud. Shout-out to the Alexa Bliss/Bayley match, one of the worst feuds and matches of the entire year.
10. Clash of Champions(My Score: 5/10)
This is perhaps why my initial scoring can sometimes be taken with a grain of salt. Having looked back at this year of pay-per-views, I think I'd be willing to admit that I scored this show a little low. The main event, US and tag title matches all delivered, and three good matches should be enough to get this show further up the ladder. But I can't over-look the dud that was Kevin and Sami's match, ruined by Shane and D-Bry's antics. In the end, this was a fun show that probably deserves to be ranked higher, but they can't all be winners.
9. No Mercy(My Score: 6/10)
Man, it hurts to rank this show so low on the list. On paper, this was a complete slam dunk, featuring two of the biggest matches the 'E has to offer, with Lesnar/Strowman and Cena/Reigns. How did it fail? While, look no further than the two matches I just mentioned. Both were almost complete flops, never even coming close to living up to their potential. The only reason this show even got this high was thanks to the Raw Tag and Women's matches, but damn. This is just depressing.
8. Elimination Chamber(My Score: 7/10)
In the midst of SmackDown's dominant stretch the began in October of 2016, they produced what could have been one of the biggest moments of the year. When Bray Wyatt pinned AJ Styles and John Cena clean inside the Chamber, the whole wrestling world lost its mind. He proceeded to do the same thing a few days later, and surely was on the track to superstardom. But it all came crashing down, along with his house, thanks to Randy Orton. Ultimately, Wyatt's drop down the card can't be blamed on this show, although it was fairly average for the most part. Other than the Chamber match and Orton and Luke Harper's vast underrated encounter, it really struggled to get going, and remains a shining beacon of what could have been for SmackDown Live.
7. Payback(My Score: 8/10)
Maybe I'm biased because this show took place in San Jose, or maybe it genuinely was that good. When folks talk about some of the best pay-per-views this year, Payback rarely comes up, and that's just not fair. From Cesaro and Sheamus' heel turn, to Chris Jericho winning back the US title, to another great Neville/Austin Aries match and the ascension of Braun Strowman to the top of the company, it really was a monumental evening. It's time for Payback to start getting it's due.
6. Royal Rumble(My Score: 7/10)
You know what, I might've been wrong in saying one match can't carry a show. But there was a lot more to this show than that classic AJ Styles/John Cena encounter. I really enjoyed Roman and Kevin's Universal Championship match, Neville and Gallows and Anderson winning gold was great and the Rumble itself was fun. Ultimately, there really wasn't a lot wrong with this show, and that Styles/Cena was so amazing, that it gets the sixth spot on my list.
5. Hell in a Cell(My Score: 7/10)
For all the complaints about Hell in a Cell matches in WWE's current product, they do seem to deliver quite well. This show was book ended by two Cell matches, and they were both great in their own way. The New Day/Usos feud was taken to another level, in a match that became a little hard to watch at points, and of course, you can't not talk about Sami's heel turn in the main event, one of the biggest moments all year. The undercard was trash, to be expected, but it's a gimmick pay-per-view, and that gimmick delivered, so the show worked for me.
4. TLC(My Score: 7.5/10)
"When I think of what an entertaining car wreck would look like, I'm first horrified by that mental image. But secondly, I would picture this main event"- Henry Keys, 2017
I just quoted myself. That's meta as f***. But beyond the main event, there was a lot to like about this show. By that, I mean that incredible Styles/Balor match, put together on last second's notice. When you can put together a match of the year candidate on about two days prep, that's when you know you're among the very best, and both of those guys certainly are. It was really a two match show, but I showed up for Kurt Angle tossing fools around and Braun Strowman garbage truck executions, and got both, so I'm happy.
3. Survivor Series(My Score: 7/10)
There was a lot of skepticism surrounding this card when it was first announced, but WWE did a lot of work to turn into one of the strongest of the year. All of the champion vs champion matches delivered, especially the Styles/Lesnar bout(boy, AJ's name comes up a lot, doesn't it?). In the end, the only thing that kept this show from the top spot was the main event, which was a huge swing and miss. The match itself was horrible, with completely wonky pacing that took the live crowd out of it, and the finish wasn't much better. Braun destroying Triple H afterward was incredible, but was simply too little, too late.
2. WrestleMania(My Score: 9/10)
I know, I know, we as wrestling fans are supposed to hate almost every WrestleMania. Look, I hated 32 as well, but I just can't bring myself to dislike such a monumental show. Most of the matches didn't deliver to their best, especially the Seth/HHH match, but as corny as it may be to say, WrestleMania is about moments, and there were plenty. The Hardyz return, Shane's shooting star press, the chaos of Goldberg/Lesnar and of course, the retirement of The Undertaker. Maybe this show didn't deliver as a traditional wrestling show, but as a spectacle, it worked.
1. Great Balls of Fire(8.5/10)
Yep. You didn't read that wrong. The pay-per-view named after a Jerry Lee Lewis song was actually the best of 2017, and I'll tell you why. Because it was really, really damn good. The tag team Iron Man match was a fantastic use of the gimmick, Alexa Bliss had her best match of her career, Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns had another fun iteration of their incredible feud, with added attempted murder and Samoa Joe and Brock Lesnar put on a great main event, although cut quite short. Was this show perfect? Of course not, no show every will be. But for my money, Great Balls of Fire was the best WWE pay-per-view of 2017. Goodness gracious.
Disagree with my list? Feel free to tell me your opinions either through a comment on here or on Twitter. I would also love to know what you think was the best pay-per-view this year. It's been a hell of a ride, and let's hope 2018 is even better.
In this post, I try out something new, as I run through all 16 pay-per-views(or special events) produced by the WWE this year, from worst to best(note: this does not include NXT TakeOver shows). I've included my initial score with each event, although that had absolutely no impact in the making of this list. Enjoy!
16. Battleground(My Score: 2/10)
Was there ever any doubt? I hated watching this show live, more than I hated watching anything from the company all year. The only, and I mean the only, saving grace of this show was another in the line of classic New Day-Uso matches, but that's it. AJ Styles and Kevin Owens had a well below average match with a botched finish, we all learned just how bad flag matches could be and we finally got the return of The Great Khali that no one was asking for. Terrible.
15. Summerslam(My Score: 4/10)
While I didn't think this show was quite as bad as the previous year's Summerslam, it left a lot to be desired. The main event was fun, big man chaos, and I enjoyed the Raw tag and SmackDown women's matches, but not a whole lot else. Looking back, this show doesn't really feel significant in any way, with almost zero impact on the product. Considering this was a Big 4 pay-per-view, that's saying a lot.
14. Fastlane(My Score: 5/10)
At the start of 2017, there was nothing I wanted more than to see Kevin Owens' Universal Championship reign come to an end. He's not at all a bad performer, but his comedy heel act had worn extremely thin to me. But putting the strap on Goldberg, just so he could drop it to Lesnar, never quite felt right. Throw in the messy ending to Charlotte's pay-per-view winning streak, and you can see why this show is so far down the list(you see what I did there?).
13. Backlash(My Score: 5/10)
Where to start with Jinder Mahal. His rocket push to the main event angered many, and his character work and promo skills have not really developed in the past seven months. I will say this for Jinder: he isn't the reason why this show failed. The show opening, with Shinsuke's debut match on the main roster against Dolph, completely flopped, and set the stage for his extremely underwhelming SmackDown run. Other than that, not much else to say.
12. Money in the Bank(My Score: 6/10)
This was a show focused completely on its two titular bouts. On one hand, the men's Money in the Bank match stole the show, and remains one of my favorite matches this year. On the other hand, you had the first women's Money in the Bank match, a complete clusterf*** with one hell of a controversial finish. I want to rank this event a lot higher, but I simply can't. One match simply cannot carry a show to success.
11. Extreme Rules(My Score: 6/10)
The same can really be said about Extreme Rules. The main event to determine Lesnar's challenger was great, and I also enjoyed the Hardyz/Bar cage match and the Ambrose/Miz opener, but the rest of the show was a bit of a dud. Shout-out to the Alexa Bliss/Bayley match, one of the worst feuds and matches of the entire year.
10. Clash of Champions(My Score: 5/10)
This is perhaps why my initial scoring can sometimes be taken with a grain of salt. Having looked back at this year of pay-per-views, I think I'd be willing to admit that I scored this show a little low. The main event, US and tag title matches all delivered, and three good matches should be enough to get this show further up the ladder. But I can't over-look the dud that was Kevin and Sami's match, ruined by Shane and D-Bry's antics. In the end, this was a fun show that probably deserves to be ranked higher, but they can't all be winners.
9. No Mercy(My Score: 6/10)
Man, it hurts to rank this show so low on the list. On paper, this was a complete slam dunk, featuring two of the biggest matches the 'E has to offer, with Lesnar/Strowman and Cena/Reigns. How did it fail? While, look no further than the two matches I just mentioned. Both were almost complete flops, never even coming close to living up to their potential. The only reason this show even got this high was thanks to the Raw Tag and Women's matches, but damn. This is just depressing.
8. Elimination Chamber(My Score: 7/10)
In the midst of SmackDown's dominant stretch the began in October of 2016, they produced what could have been one of the biggest moments of the year. When Bray Wyatt pinned AJ Styles and John Cena clean inside the Chamber, the whole wrestling world lost its mind. He proceeded to do the same thing a few days later, and surely was on the track to superstardom. But it all came crashing down, along with his house, thanks to Randy Orton. Ultimately, Wyatt's drop down the card can't be blamed on this show, although it was fairly average for the most part. Other than the Chamber match and Orton and Luke Harper's vast underrated encounter, it really struggled to get going, and remains a shining beacon of what could have been for SmackDown Live.
7. Payback(My Score: 8/10)
Maybe I'm biased because this show took place in San Jose, or maybe it genuinely was that good. When folks talk about some of the best pay-per-views this year, Payback rarely comes up, and that's just not fair. From Cesaro and Sheamus' heel turn, to Chris Jericho winning back the US title, to another great Neville/Austin Aries match and the ascension of Braun Strowman to the top of the company, it really was a monumental evening. It's time for Payback to start getting it's due.
6. Royal Rumble(My Score: 7/10)
You know what, I might've been wrong in saying one match can't carry a show. But there was a lot more to this show than that classic AJ Styles/John Cena encounter. I really enjoyed Roman and Kevin's Universal Championship match, Neville and Gallows and Anderson winning gold was great and the Rumble itself was fun. Ultimately, there really wasn't a lot wrong with this show, and that Styles/Cena was so amazing, that it gets the sixth spot on my list.
5. Hell in a Cell(My Score: 7/10)
For all the complaints about Hell in a Cell matches in WWE's current product, they do seem to deliver quite well. This show was book ended by two Cell matches, and they were both great in their own way. The New Day/Usos feud was taken to another level, in a match that became a little hard to watch at points, and of course, you can't not talk about Sami's heel turn in the main event, one of the biggest moments all year. The undercard was trash, to be expected, but it's a gimmick pay-per-view, and that gimmick delivered, so the show worked for me.
4. TLC(My Score: 7.5/10)
"When I think of what an entertaining car wreck would look like, I'm first horrified by that mental image. But secondly, I would picture this main event"- Henry Keys, 2017
I just quoted myself. That's meta as f***. But beyond the main event, there was a lot to like about this show. By that, I mean that incredible Styles/Balor match, put together on last second's notice. When you can put together a match of the year candidate on about two days prep, that's when you know you're among the very best, and both of those guys certainly are. It was really a two match show, but I showed up for Kurt Angle tossing fools around and Braun Strowman garbage truck executions, and got both, so I'm happy.
3. Survivor Series(My Score: 7/10)
There was a lot of skepticism surrounding this card when it was first announced, but WWE did a lot of work to turn into one of the strongest of the year. All of the champion vs champion matches delivered, especially the Styles/Lesnar bout(boy, AJ's name comes up a lot, doesn't it?). In the end, the only thing that kept this show from the top spot was the main event, which was a huge swing and miss. The match itself was horrible, with completely wonky pacing that took the live crowd out of it, and the finish wasn't much better. Braun destroying Triple H afterward was incredible, but was simply too little, too late.
2. WrestleMania(My Score: 9/10)
I know, I know, we as wrestling fans are supposed to hate almost every WrestleMania. Look, I hated 32 as well, but I just can't bring myself to dislike such a monumental show. Most of the matches didn't deliver to their best, especially the Seth/HHH match, but as corny as it may be to say, WrestleMania is about moments, and there were plenty. The Hardyz return, Shane's shooting star press, the chaos of Goldberg/Lesnar and of course, the retirement of The Undertaker. Maybe this show didn't deliver as a traditional wrestling show, but as a spectacle, it worked.
1. Great Balls of Fire(8.5/10)
Yep. You didn't read that wrong. The pay-per-view named after a Jerry Lee Lewis song was actually the best of 2017, and I'll tell you why. Because it was really, really damn good. The tag team Iron Man match was a fantastic use of the gimmick, Alexa Bliss had her best match of her career, Braun Strowman and Roman Reigns had another fun iteration of their incredible feud, with added attempted murder and Samoa Joe and Brock Lesnar put on a great main event, although cut quite short. Was this show perfect? Of course not, no show every will be. But for my money, Great Balls of Fire was the best WWE pay-per-view of 2017. Goodness gracious.
Disagree with my list? Feel free to tell me your opinions either through a comment on here or on Twitter. I would also love to know what you think was the best pay-per-view this year. It's been a hell of a ride, and let's hope 2018 is even better.
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