10 Best Survivor Series Elimination Matches EVER - According To Dave Meltzer
9. Ultimate Warrior & Brutus Beefcake's Team Vs Honky Tonk Man & Greg Valentine's Team (1988, ***1/2)
Lost to aggressive editing, the dramatic crux of this Survivor Series 1988 opener was lost to many fans that hadn't had a chance to watch to the original pay-per-view cut of the show.
Most home video versions positioned this underneath the spectacular ten-team elimination match, cutting out the body of an engaging battle featuring the ultra-charismatic and in-form Brutus Beefcake, the futuristic skills of The Blue Blazer and the superlative heel work of Greg Valentine and The Honky Tonk Man.
Starkly opposing the modern product in how it presents intra-match conflicts, the breakout of several mini-dramas carries the contest beyond even the star power of babyface team co-captain The Ultimate Warrior. His reputation is solidified in a closing overthrowing of Valentine and Ron Bass as sole Survivor, but his charismatic cheerleading for the largely ineffective Jim Brunzell and Sam Houston infuses their own portions with the energy that signposted him as a worthy secondary figure to Hulk Hogan.
On the heel side, Bad News Brown's severance with his comrades drew an explosive response from the capacity crowd and was wholly in keeping with his character. Walking out after taking an inadvertent shot (exactly as he would the following year), Brown was a proto-Steve Austin in his nonconformity and misanthropy.