'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
To counteract the list of the biggest blunders WWE made in 2017, let's look on the optimistic side of things and give credit where it's due for the positive things that came out of this year.
For all the bad that fans criticize the company incessantly for, there are still always plenty of moments that make us happy and renew our faith that this form of entertainment is something we can continue to love.
There may not be an even number of highs and lows, but the highs can sometimes be worth all the struggling to get to those points, and that's what we'll be taking a look at here.
Keep in mind that this is all subjective and your opinion may differ not just on whether these five things on this list were the most worthy to mention, but also whether or not you even enjoyed them, to begin with.
As such, if you disagree or have other suggestions, be sure to chime in with your opinions in the comments section to keep the discussion going there.
Without further ado, here are my picks for five of the best things WWE did throughout this entire year.
#5 This is Roman's yard now
As a lifelong fan of The Undertaker and someone who feels WWE has mishandled trying to push Roman Reigns for years, it was quite a bit for me to watch him not just defeat The Phenom at WrestleMania, but to retire him.
Thankfully, the follow-up to that was absolutely perfect.
Instead of some diatribe about respect or a long-winded promo talking about how he'll take this win and apply it to the future, Reigns merely grabbed a microphone, let the fans boo for minutes on end, and stated: "This is my yard now."
Done.
That was as perfect as it could have ever been, and it was the best thing Reigns did this entire year.
In just those few words, he established dominance and got the crowd to react more fervently than whatever could have happened with something more drawn out.
Sometimes, less is more, and this was a perfect example of not needing anything but the bare minimum, letting the audience do the heavy lifting and giving us one of the best and most iconic moments of 2017.
#4 The rise of Braun Strowman
2017 was certainly the breakout year for WWE's mountain of a man, Braun Strowman, as he asserted his power over everybody he could get his hands on.
Things really kicked into gear after WrestleMania when he started to feud with Roman Reigns, having a standout moment when he flipped an ambulance.
He followed this up by attacking random people backstage, tossing Kalisto in a dumpster for hilarious effect and getting the crowd to go nuts in support for his path of destruction, despite him being the heel in the scenario.
An injury put a slight hold to this, but soon enough, Strowman and Reigns were fighting in an ambulance match at Great Balls of Fire.
Strowman followed this up with impressive showings at SummerSlam and No Mercy where he showed that even The Beast Incarnate could barely survive an encounter with him.
Not to be finished with his feud against vehicles, Strowman ditched the ambulance for a garbage truck at TLC, starting a feud with Kane that resulted in a nice spot of him powerslamming The Big Red Machine through the ring.
Now, he finds himself in the running for another Universal Championship title opportunity, and even though he isn't going to be successful in winning the belt at the Royal Rumble, it seems like a lock that he will achieve that goal of being world champion in 2018.
#3 A Perfect 10 entrant
It isn't always just the big moments that matter, but the little ones that are sprinkled throughout the year that can be nice reminders that WWE can still surprise us with some random joy.
One of those moments was Tye Dillinger's entrance in the Royal Rumble, coming out at the tenth spot and perfectly syncing up with his Perfect 10 gimmick.
It's simple, but it works. Fans who knew him went nuts and those who were unfamiliar with his work from NXT were introduced to him with a massive pop he wouldn't have received if he just showed up on SmackDown out of nowhere in a mediocre singles bout.
Some could argue that this was predictable, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. Also, it ignores how WWE can sometimes either completely miss the obvious call or purposefully avoid doing it, as there are plenty of instances where the predictable outcome wasn't the way things went.
Dillinger has struggled to remain relevant on SmackDown since making his true main roster debut, but that could be contributed to the creative team not knowing how to balance out the crew or a multitude of other situations getting in the way.
In any case, at least his Royal Rumble entrance was a welcome surprise that only helped him in the long run.
#2 The Fashion Files
Breezango was failing as a tag team, struggling to even maintain the level of irrelevant for months, until the idea to do The Fashion Files came along.
Whoever was responsible for pitching that deserves a ton of praise, as it completely saved their careers and turned them into featured members of the SmackDown Live brand.
Granted, they haven't won a tag team title, but they've been continuously one of the most entertaining aspects of the show for many months on end.
A simple Law & Order parody is one thing, and to follow it up with some takes on other cop shows like Miami Vice and Twin Peaks keeps it fresh, but we eventually saw everything from The X-Files and Stranger Things to Saw and Reservoir Dogs.
At this point, The Fashion Files could probably parody virtually any film or television show in pop culture and it would turn out to have a couple of great jokes.
Somehow, this even saved the careers of The Ascension along the way, too, which is an extremely impressive feat considering how low on the totem pole Konnor and Viktor have been since moving up to the main roster.
Not every single joke has landed as well as the best of them, but The Fashion Files has largely been a huge success on a consistent enough basis for it to be considered a hit.
#1 Everything at Survivor Series
Despite all the bad booking decisions and horrible things we've had to suffer from this year, somehow, in some way, WWE's creative team was just firing off great ideas left and right when it came to Survivor Series.
Virtually everything on this event was the way it should have logically been and the overall theme of things was nearly impeccable.
Sure, there were a couple of hiccups, like the early eliminations of Shinsuke Nakamura and Bobby Roode, but everybody who made the most sense to win each match did and before the event even started, the build to it was super fun with the brand warfare.
WWE even made the right call to have certain title changes take place to shift the card around to make it a more exciting pay-per-view, opting to go with Brock Lesnar vs. AJ Styles instead of Jinder Mahal, and for Alexa Bliss to face Charlotte Flair instead of Natalya.
Asuka was the sole survivor of her team, Triple H and Braun Strowman took home a win for Raw, The Shield were able to reunite to face The New Day, and Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn contributed to SmackDown's loss.
The way they booked this card goes to show that if they put in the effort, they can create magic, and when they don't pull that off, people are either not working to their full potential or their ideas just aren't up to par.
What do you feel is missing from this list? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below!
