For the last few months, WWE PPVs have seemed to be very repetitive. The feud not only gets pushed back to the next PPV event, but even matches on RAW and SmackDown seemed to constantly repeat myself. While I was excited for some matches at the Survivor Series PPV event, like Dean Ambrose and Bray Wyatt’s intense yet exciting feud and to witness the Divas match to see the state of AJ Lee amidst rumors that she was planning on leaving, I was beyond happy to be greeted with perhaps one of the biggest surprises in recent history in the WWE.

When I heard the music, I wasn’t sure who’s it was. Was it a new NXT Superstar debuting on the main roster? A new character that will be introduced to the public for the first time tonight? As soon as the camera panned to the Titantron I gasped, my heart racing. Was this it? Is he finally here? I recognized that black and white paint anywhere. He walked out. It took a minute for the crowd to register what was happening before their eyes and before we knew it, it was true. Sting had made his WWE debut.

The pop from the crowd was insane. The Twitter and Tumblr internet wrestling communities exploded with words in all capital letters, expletives, and a lot of exclamation marks. The rumors of Sting’s arrival have been running rampant ever since he was included in the WWE 2K15 video game and made WWE appearances at such events as the San Diego Comic-Con. Some speculated he would debut at Summerslam (nope), Night of Champions (nada) or Hell In A Cell (it didn’t happen). Whenever I would hear more rumors about, “Sting’s coming back tonight!” I would blow it off like the little boy who cried wolf. However, that element of surprise and honestly not knowing when he was to debut, especially in the era of spoilers and rumors, made his debut that more magnificent. The stare down in the ring with Triple H, who was explicitly not happy to see him. The first time seeing the Scorpion death drop in a WWE ring. Like when The Rock returned announced and the crowd went wild, Sting coming to the WWE for the first time (the former WCW and TNA superstar had long been reluctant to sign with the WWE), can easily be listed as one of the best surprises and greatest moments in recent WWE memory. Now, what’s next for Sting? Was it a one-time thing? Will he have a match with Triple H at WrestleMania 31? The only thing I can say is that my interest is definitely sparked and I, along with many others, am beyond excited for what’s to come.

-Celine

The Survivor Series PPV stood out for many reasons, but the one common reason would be simply the element of shocks, twists, and surprises. While both WWE television shows and PPVs have been repetitive in recent months, the WWE turned that off immediately with the Survivor Series event. With the PPV being the first one offered for free to new subscribers of the WWE Network as a part of the Network’s month long free trial period, it seems to be that the company wanted to make sure that this PPV was as amazing as possible. While I watch the Network on my Roku device on my television, there was not one single glitch—the first time that has happened for me.

There were returns, like the bearer of bad news with Bad News Barrett and Fandango with a new dancing gimmick. With the massive success of his last gimmick, he hasn’t been the same since his dancing partner, Summer Rae, and him parted ways. Hopefully him and Rosa Mendes will have a new type of chemistry that will push him back towards the top.

While The Miz and Damien Mizdow have gained popularity, I was not expecting them to win the tag team titles so soon. While it is unclear what the outcome was supposed to be, Miz’s stunned reaction, his eyes wide with shock and then excitement at the realization of his team’s victory, added more to the PPV’s element of surprise. The Divas put on an impressive Traditional Survivor Series elimination match. Lasting nearly 15 minutes, the days of the 2 minute squash matches from not to long ago seem like a distant past. It’s so refreshing to see the Divas shine as they use a wide array of their talents. On the other hand, the Divas Championship match with AJ Lee and Nikki Bella lasted only 35 seconds. However, it added to its storyline with Brie Bella giving AJ Lee the “kiss of death”, causing her to get pinned by Nikki almost immediately after similar to how AJ gave Daniel Bryan a kiss of death only to lead Bryan to get defeated by Sheamus in 18 seconds at WrestleMania 28 in 2012.

Bray Wyatt and Dean Ambrose put on an exciting match and there was that humorous element with Adam Rose and the Bunny defeating Slater Gator (Heath Slater and Titus O’Neil). Finally, the biggest surprise of the night was easily the debut of Sting in a WWE ring. From the sounds of the audience, no one saw it coming and those type of surprises help to make WWE so exciting, encouraging old viewers to come back for more while inviting new ones to join along for the ride.

-Celine