# NXT Weekly Show Discussion Thread [NO SPOILERS BEFORE THE SHOWS AIR PLEASE]



## Clique

*General discussion thread for the weekly NXT show.*


----------



## TD Stinger

*Re: NXT Weekly Show Discussion [NO SPOILERS BEFORE THEY AIR PLEASE]*

A new thread? 3 years in the making? Say it ain't so!


----------



## 751161

*Re: NXT Weekly Show Discussion [NO SPOILERS BEFORE THEY AIR PLEASE]*

RIP old thread. 

Got to start this off right:

THE A-SHOW










Looking forward to the last episode before Takeover, which is shaping up to be a great show.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

*Re: NXT Weekly Show Discussion Thread [NO SPOILERS BEFORE THEY AIR PLEASE]*


----------



## Oneiros

*Re: NXT Weekly Show Discussion Thread [NO SPOILERS BEFORE THEY AIR PLEASE]*

A new thread?










Just kidding. Let's kick it.


----------



## Reil

Time for the true A-Show tonight.

Advertised for tonight:

* The Street Profits vs. The Mighty
* Roderick Strong vs. Tyler Bate
* Kairi Sane vs. Aliyah


----------



## MC

Roddy vs Bate :sodone


----------



## 751161

Damn, Roddy/Bate is going to be a nice as hell match. :tripsblessed Two of the best ring workers. Really looking forward to that.

Should be a good episode this week, and I'm really quite stoked for Saturday. Can't wait for Takeover. :mark:


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

A SHOW TONIGHT.

:mark:


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Roddy/Bate should be good, they had a great pre-show match awhile back.

Hopefully we get some kind of video package for Cole/Ricochet.


----------



## Reil

I hope Kairi murders Aliyah tonight.

I mean its Aliyah so its pretty much guaranteed that Kairi will win, but I want to see Kairi just completely murder Aliyah.


----------



## Jbardo

Really looking forward to Strong v Bate.


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

Finally saw last week's episode. It just felt sort of there. I did like Keith Lee's debut and thought the Brazlian chick was pretty hot. Gelt a bit sad seeing the setup for the three way that will never be. I am pretty hyped for Tyler/Roddy tonight. :mark


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

That promo :zayn3

They can't have this guy lose, yet.


----------



## Jedah

I don't think Cole has made enough of a mark as the inaugural champion to lose so quickly. Ricochet reportedly working injured probably solidifies that decision. I don't think Cole is winning clean, though. At War Games we're probably looking at Undisputed Era vs. British Strong Style vs. War Raiders and Ricochet.


----------



## 751161

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> That promo :zayn3
> 
> They can't have this guy lose, yet.


Yeah, I can't see Cole losing the Title yet. I think he loses it when they plan to have him go for the NXT Title, which won't be until Ciampa drops it.

I think Ricochet is a good ring worker, but I don't find him that interesting as a character honestly. He needs to work on that side of him. Before he gets a Title at least.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Yeah, I don't think he'll drop it yet. Honestly, I don't see him dropping it until Gargano wins the NXT title or around that time at least.


----------



## 751161

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Yeah, I don't think he'll drop it yet. Honestly, I don't see him dropping it until Gargano wins the NXT title or around that time at least.


Gargano vs. Cole would be pretty awesome. I'd be stoked for that. :banderas


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

The Fourth Wall said:


> Gargano vs. Cole would be pretty awesome. I'd be stoked for that. :banderas


It would be pretty f*cking awesome.


----------



## 751161

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> It would be pretty f*cking awesome.


Damn, crazy to see how far both guys have come since those days. Cole looks way better these days.

Those highlights. :banderas 

You just sold me on this match even more than I already was, I can't wait until this happens on a Takeover.


----------



## Reil

Yeah, I feel like the only title that will change hands at the upcoming Takeover is most likely the NXT Women's title. They like having one big babyface moment each year, and that would be the best one. No offense to Ricochet fans, of course. I feel like Cole will drop the title the same night that The Undisputed Era drop the tag titles.

Triple H brought it up during the media call today, and he outright said that Brooklyn this year is basically their version of Wrestlemania.

Yo, Kairi completely fucking murdered Aliyah in that match. It ruled. I saw shades of her Lucha Underground persona there.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

That Gargano/Ciampa video was AMAZING.

:trips8


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

That Cole/Ricochet promo package got me f*cking pumped :mark::mark::mark::mark: Cole sold the feud with that, he's gotta pull through.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Bate beats Strong.

:lmao


----------



## MC

Nice solid main event. Nothing too blow away from a wrestling standpoint but highly enjoyable nonetheless. 

The EC3 vs Dream segment was decent and the parking lot segment was amusing to say the least. The rest was highly forgettable.


----------



## Berakos

This to me is why NXT is fucking good, because they turned a negative into a positive and made this Aleister Black injury into a storyline.

I have a hard time believing that the culprit will play a role into the ending of the Gargano-Ciampa match.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

*" Ricochet is good, some days he may even be great but he isn't special. Adam Cole is special "* :banderas


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Decent show. The stories and build is already told. It's time for Takeover.


----------



## TD Stinger

New episode thoughts:

Opening tag was fine for what it was. The Mighty heel turn was what they needed but I'm still not invested in them. Ford and Dawkins are still entertaining though.

That is how you make sweet, adorable Kairi look like a killer. By busting out the Brock Lock, 3 Diving Elbows, and The Anchor while staring down Shayna at the same time. That same submission is how she should win the title.

The Cole vs. Ricochet promo made the most out a feud that hasn't had too much interaction between the participants.

The Dream and EC3 promo duel was the perfect mix of weird charisma for me.

Gotta say, as bummed as I am that Black is out of Saturday's match, that Gargano vs. Ciampa video package was just the best. The image of Johnny saying "my dream is to be NXT Champion" only to go straight to a shot of Ciampa holding the title was brilliant.

Bate vs. Strong had a lot of great transitions. Solid match overall.


----------



## Jedah

Decent go-home show. Beginning was what it was. I can't really get into the Street Profits or The Mighty.

Kairi vs. Aliyah. Kairi killed her. I wonder if Kairi is looking _too strong_ though? Commentators tried to make it seem Shayna was insecure but she didn't look it herself. Then again, they also showed Bianca getting ready to return and they did so for a reason. She won't be challenging Shayna, that's for sure. Confusing. :shrug

Velveteen and EC3 segment was fun. This is what's been missing all along. Though EC3 laying out Velveteen basically tells us he's losing on Saturday.

Gargano and Ciampa video was great. Teased Johnny going back into Johnny Wrestling mode but definitely still showed his descent into madness. I still can't see Ciampa dropping the title now. It's way too early. I'm still predicting they both leave on stretchers.

Bate vs. Strong was good, but I was expecting a bit better from them. Bate winning definitely means Undisputed is retaining on Saturday. NXT doesn't give as much away with these go-home shows but that's more obvious now.

So yeah, it really seems that only the women's and NA titles have a chance of changing on Saturday. At least one title has to change and there needs to be a big babyface moment. It won't be Gargano in this state.


----------



## Reil

I wouldn't look into the Kairi looking TOO strong thing too much, Jedah. There have been a lot of complaints about how she has no edge or anything. This was before the latest set of tapings as well. I imagine WWE put her over Aliyah so strong because A) Aliyah is a fucking loser who will never amount to anything (she's been working the coconut circuit for 3 years, which should tell you her ceiling in NXT), and B) They wanted to show a more brutal side of Kairi to silence some critics.

Also keep in mind that NXT generally doesn't fall into the same traps that the main roster does when it comes to creative/go home shows.


----------



## SAMCRO

Tyler Bate vs Roderick Strong was pretty damn good for what it was, Tyler Bate is almost incapable of having a bad match, and with Tyler winning it pretty much all but confirmed Mustache Mountain is losing at Takeover, as most expected anyways, but giving Tyler this win just confirmed it that much more.

Good to see Street Profits back on NXT, still don't know why they aren't the champions yet or at least in contention for the titles, these guys are crazy over and they've been on NXT a pretty good while now.

Lol wtf was that stupid detective who done it segment with Cathy Kelly? So they pretty much told us the entire roster is potential suspects considering they showed nearly the entire roster hanging outside right when it happened.

Kairi Sane vs Aliyah was alright, good to see Kairi showing more intensity, really hoping she wins the title at Takeover. But on another note can they PLEASE keep Shayna off of the commentary team? Shes straight up awful, its always awkward when shes on there, she has no idea how to naturally bounce off the other commentators and she always sounds like shes barely speaking into the mic. Just stop having her talk all together please.

I loved the EC3 and Velveteen Dream segment, so much better than their awful segment from last week, they had a good back and forth and Dream's facial expressions and selling of what EC3 was saying was brilliant, especially the fanny pack part lol. And the fight was great, really good intensity and gave me hope for their match at Takeover which i was thinking was gonna be a dud.


----------



## 751161

Another good episode this week. Enjoyed pretty much every segment & match. Bate vs. Roddy was the highlight of course, love both of those guys when it comes to ring ability, and they very rarely let me down. I still can't believe how good Bate is for his age, man, it blows my mind. That guy is going to go really far.

EC3/Dream segment was good, I'm still not sure how good the match-up will be, but it might surprise me. EC3 doesn't blow me away as a ring talent, he's just okay, but Dream is really good, and I reckon they could produce something good. I'm stoked for it either way, it's a cool match & the feud has been different. 

It's good to see Kairi on a role lately, let's hope she wins the Title at Takeover. I'm not a huge fan of Shayna to be honest, the Women's Title scene needs some life back into it. Kairi is one of my favourites in NXT, so It'd be satisfying to see her win.

The Ciampa and Cole packages were good to build-up their respective matches.

Really looking forward to Takeover on Saturday. Should be a good time. Definitely feels more like a Big 4 than Summerslam does.


----------



## Crasp

Stoked to see Aliyah kick out of 3 consecutive Kairi diving elbows!


----------



## ReekOfAwesomenesss

EC3 just showed the difference between the two in that segment. Way better promo and talent. He should go over and get promoted to the main roster quickly.

Cole was also perfect. He certainly caries the feud.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Another average episode of NXT, the last three weeks have felt so lazy, very disappointing build for Takeover.

Street Profits vs The Mighty was ok for what it was, the problem I have with these two teams is that Street Profits are fun to watch but their character work is unbearable at times, while The Mighty work better as heels but their character work is still bland.

More mixed opinions towards Kairi Sane...I loved the interaction between her and Shayna when she delivered the three elbows and submission; however yet again I found problems in some of her character work. There was a part of the match where Kairi pointed at Shayna as if Shayna was intimidating her from the announce table...Shayna though was just sitting there minding her own business, very weird. That plank walk gets worse everytime I see it, Kairi produced it like she was drunk. The main problem I have with Kairi is that she doesn't come across as a badass, all this intensity feels so forced, I just can't take her seriously when she still acts like a complete goof.

EC3 pissed all over Dream in that segment, I thought that was the blandest promo Dream has ever cut. I just can't get behind this match, it's just a very uninteresting matchup.

Cathy Kelley :done as for that Black attack video package what was with all the arrows pointing at the Wrestlers :lol

Bate vs Strong was ok but they've produced better, some of the transitions were great though, so smooth, the finish though was a bit anticlimactic.

For the first time in ages I'm not pumped for an NXT Takeover event, it's likely to deliver but right now I'm only really excited for one match and that's Undisputed Era vs Moustache Mountain.


----------



## Psychosocial

To be fair, they've had a few stumbling blocks in the build-up to this event. Black got injured and Ricochet hasn't worked a match in nearly two months for unspecified reasons so that obviously hurt the NXT and NA title matches as far as the build went. Most of the build to the tag match was already done in June/July so there wasn't much required there in the last episodes leading to their rubber match. I do think they could have done more with the women's match, but Shayna has had to carry that feud on her own though since Kairi's English is worse than Asuka's or Nakamura's even, and EC3/Dream, though. It's still an exceptional card, just a shame that they've had things to work around that they usually don't have to which clearly affected the initial plans.

Will chime in later with some thoughts on last night's episode.


----------



## Pizzamorg

Just watched this week’s NXT TakeOver go home show. 

I guess by conventional standards this wouldn’t be considered a good show as it was mostly just video packages and that Black segment but I cannot deny the high quality of both. I just hope Black has some involvement in the TakeOver match as otherwise he really got screwed by NXT here.

Talking about the main event, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised by how great this was given the talent of the workers in the ring, but they didn’t get a huge amount of time to work with and it still had to integrate all the shenans, yet they still hit some lovely stuff in the time they had. I am assuming BSS are gonna be the centre piece of NXT UK and so they are losing at Brooklyn, which is why Bate got the win here.

Also weird they’re doing Gibson/Dunne again next week.


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

I loved intense Kairi and the Ciampa/Gargano promo package. I just do not fell Dream/EC3 which surprises me a bit. My money is on Candice as the perpetrator of the attack on Aleister. Bate vs Roddy was good but not great. This show was fine but I've seen much better from NXT.


----------



## Alco

I liked that episode and I'm excited for Takeover. Although the results of at least two matches are all but confirmed, which is always a shame.

I really like Roderick Strong as a wrestler, but as a character/talker, he seems out of place in Undisputed Era. His promos almost always feel forced and over-acted.

I hope once Bobby is back at a 100%, they unceremoniously kick him out of the group. Which would make him look like the biggest idiot in history of course, but still. I think Roddy just works way better as a babyface who just wrestles. And limits the talking.


----------



## Psychosocial

Very late here but some quick thoughts on the last episode. The opening tag match was decent, but the Mighty are just not interesting to me and while I enjoy the Street Profits' character work, their in-ring work is lacking and leaves a lot to be desired still. Loved Kairi's beatdown of Aliyah, sent a strong message to Shayna with that right in front of her eyes. EC3 proved that he's as good as anyone in the company on the mic by even making Dream look bad in a promo, loved the Prince and fanny pack references. Too bad he's so poor in the ring otherwise he could be a big star in WWE. The video packages were awesome as usual and Bate-Strong was an enjoyable main event before the big show on Saturday. Really happy that they're making an angle out of the Black attack too, surely means he's staying a little longer in NXT and we'll get a payoff for all that's happened. He deserves a better send off than an injury costing him the TakeOver main event he deserved after a forgettable title reign, it's very different than Asuka's situation who went up after an injury but was coming off a 500+ day reign as champion and got tons of adulation on the way out. It would just feel bittersweet if Aleister's NXT career ended like this so here's hoping this new angle means that it won't, not yet anyways.

And Gibson-Dunne next week with the Brooklyn crowd :mark:


----------



## Jedah

So it looks like there might not be any call ups this week, which would be very weird.

Makes me nervous also, because Shayna needs to go for the sake of the women's division. I know it's unlikely, but I get this nagging feeling she could win the title back in a rematch at Evolution, because the finish in Brooklyn left the door open to such a rematch.


----------



## Reil

Shayna is advertised for the NXT house shows in October, and I don't think they would do that if she was being called up. But at the same time, I don't really see her winning the title back either. She can likely be like Bobby Roode. Stick around on NXT for a bit and drop a few more matches to people she previously beat.

I wouldn't be shocked if she gets her rematch at the upcoming tapings on Thursday. They generally don't drag out rematches to the next major event. They do it on NXT TV. And if they still feel the need to protect her, they can have Dakota Kai and/or Candice LaRae interfere in the match, and Kairi can capitalize to retain.


----------



## Jedah

Yeah but there's never been an "historic" fpalm event like Evolution before. It begs the question to what Kairi is going to do there because we know she'll be there defending her title.

All the same though, Bianca is certainly getting a title shot and it's unlikely to come against Shayna.

But I just don't rule anything out when it comes to this horsewomen shit they're obsessed with. I swear, the return to Diva era booking in 2017 was bad, but this MMA horsewomen invasion should could easily become a lot worse with just a few mistakes.

Hopefully Evolution just turns out to be a glorified house show, which seems to be the direction it's going in.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> Yeah but there's never been an "historic" fpalm event like Evolution before. It begs the question to what Kairi is going to do there because we know she'll be there defending her title.
> 
> All the same though, Bianca is certainly getting a title shot and it's unlikely to come against Shayna.
> 
> But I just don't rule anything out when it comes to this horsewomen shit they're obsessed with. I swear, the return to Diva era booking in 2017 was bad, but this MMA horsewomen invasion should could easily become a lot worse with just a few mistakes.
> 
> Hopefully Evolution just turns out to be a glorified house show, which seems to be the direction it's going in.


I'd calm down dude. If they are going to build to 4HW vs 4HW at Survivor Series, Shayna won't be able to hold onto the title, as she'll very likely be called in as backup. Most likely at Evolution or soon before that point, as the Bella Twins are likely going to have each others backs. Not to mention that there has never been a two time NXT Women's Champion before, and most people are relieved that Shayna's reign is over with. 

The only people who want her to regain the title are the Fightful staff. And that's because they all fucking love MMA stuff.

Kairi is going to retain the title against Shayna *if* they do a rematch (The match at Brooklyn was hammered home as their rubber match, and it seemed pretty final). I think its more likely Shayna gets her rematch on TV, loses, and does something else at Evolution. Bianca will probably jump Kairi after the match, setting up their feud for Evolution. The winner of the MYC 2 will probably get a match at War Games.


----------



## Jedah

Oh I know that's what's very likely, but I just don't rule anything out because they're obsessed with this shit. I do genuinely wonder who Kairi will defend against at Evolution though. Multi woman match? Bianca? Bianca again at War Games?

It's also just as possible Shayna goes up next week.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> Oh I know that's what's very likely, but I just don't rule anything out because they're obsessed with this shit. I do genuinely wonder who Kairi will defend against at Evolution though. Multi woman match? Bianca? Bianca again at War Games?
> 
> It's also just as possible Shayna goes up next week.


This isn't the main roster, dude. As obsessed as they are with the MMA stuff, it would be incredibly bad optics to put the title right back onto Shayna (remember: this is NXT creative we are talking about here, not main roster creative). Even if she does get a rematch at Evolution, I see her losing again. Because having the first ever MYC winner lose during the same night of the MYC 2 finals is absolutely horrible optics still.

I'm pretty sure they actually listen to feedback online with regards to NXT, and the general consensus is that while Shayna was a strong character, her in ring work left a lot to be desired. She never had any memorable matches at Takeover except for the one with Kairi.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> This isn't the main roster, dude. As obsessed as they are with the MMA stuff, it would be incredibly bad optics to put the title right back onto Shayna (remember: this is NXT creative we are talking about here, not main roster creative). Even if she does get a rematch at Evolution, I see her losing again. Because having the first ever MYC winner lose during the same night of the MYC 2 finals is absolutely horrible optics still.
> 
> I'm pretty sure they actually listen to feedback online with regards to NXT, and the general consensus is that while Shayna was a strong character, her in ring work left a lot to be desired. She never had any memorable matches at Takeover except for the one with Kairi.



My guess is that if they do go the rematch route, they'll have it take place at the upcoming tapings. Evolution is 2 months from now, so I have trouble seeing how they can possibly stretch it out that long. What they're going to have Shayna run roughshod over the babyfaces in the division twice over and bury them even further. If the reason that Nikki Cross is still spinning her wheels down in NXT is due to lack of credible Faces in the division, then having Shayna run roughshod over the division would be kinda redundant.


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> My guess is that if they do go the rematch route, they'll have it take place at the upcoming tapings. Evolution is 2 months from now, so I have trouble seeing how they can possibly stretch it out that long. What they're going to have Shayna run roughshod over the babyfaces in the division twice over and bury them even further. If the reason that Nikki Cross is still spinning her wheels down in NXT is due to lack of credible Faces in the division, then having Shayna run roughshod over the division would be kinda redundant.


I don't see Shayna winning a rematch either. Because then we'll be in the same boat we were in before Saturday. Shayna will have destroyed the entire division by that point then. I think its more likely she ends up losing matches to Dakota/Candice now, and then getting called up. Sort of like Bobby Roode. He stuck around for a bit in NXT after losing the title, but ended up losing matches to people he previously beat before being called up.


----------



## Jedah

Reil said:


> I don't see Shayna winning a rematch either. Because then we'll be in the same boat we were in before Saturday. Shayna will have destroyed the entire division by that point then. I think its more likely she ends up losing matches to Dakota/Candice now, and then getting called up. Sort of like Bobby Roode. He stuck around for a bit in NXT after losing the title, but ended up losing matches to people he previously beat before being called up.


Bobby Roode appeared on the SD after SummerSlam last year though, so we knew the deal. This is a weirder situation.

Perhaps she shows up tonight or next week. But either way, she really needs to go up.

Her losing matches to the babyfaces she wrecked would be the best way to start rebuilding them. Still, I'm not ruling anything out, even if it's unlikely, as NXT almost never does two time champions. The only reason they did it once with the NXT title was because they wanted Nakamura to win in Japan.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> I'd calm down dude. If they are going to build to 4HW vs 4HW at Survivor Series, Shayna won't be able to hold onto the title, as she'll very likely be called in as backup. Most likely at Evolution or soon before that point, as the Bella Twins are likely going to have each others backs. Not to mention that there has never been a two time NXT Women's Champion before, and most people are relieved that Shayna's reign is over with.
> 
> The only people who want her to regain the title are the Fightful staff. And that's because they all fucking love MMA stuff.
> 
> Kairi is going to retain the title against Shayna *if* they do a rematch (The match at Brooklyn was hammered home as their rubber match, and it seemed pretty final). I think its more likely Shayna gets her rematch on TV, loses, and does something else at Evolution. Bianca will probably jump Kairi after the match, setting up their feud for Evolution. *The winner of the MYC 2* will probably get a match at War Games.


 I though one of the finalist was in contract with NXT UK ? so normally she shouldn't be able to go for the belt of kairi


----------



## Jedah

It would be a really bad idea for the MYC2 winner to get a title shot so soon. War Games is only three weeks later. You only have two options - either hot shot the winner to the title prematurely, or cancel all the momentum she has for winning the tournament in nearly an instant.

There's also no rule that says the winner of the tournament gets an immediate title shot, nor did they hype it up any. Probably the only reason Kairi got the shot last year was because Asuka vacated the title and they did a fatal four way where she could be protected.


----------



## Reil

Considering the original plan for the MYC 2 finals was to make it for the UK Women's title, I can easily see them making it so the winner gets an NXT Women's Title shot instead. They could have easily excluded Kairi from the title hunt last year if they wanted to, but opted to give her a match anyways. No reason to think they couldn't do the same this year.

It's worth noting that while Ronda vs Alexa got a lot of mainstream coverage for obvious reasons (Ronda won the title), that Kairi vs Shayna also got a lot of coverage for showing off the heights (and limits as a negative point) that women can achieve in WWE.

https://sports.vice.com/en_us/artic...-show-the-heights-and-limits-for-women-in-wwe


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> Considering the original plan for the MYC 2 finals was to make it for the UK Women's title, I can easily see them making it so the winner gets an NXT Women's Title shot instead. They could have easily excluded Kairi from the title hunt last year if they wanted to, but opted to give her a match anyways. No reason to think they couldn't do the same this year.


Yeah but they gave Kairi an opportunity because it was fatal four way. I don't think the winner of the MYC will have a match if it's a 1vs1


----------



## Reil

rbl85 said:


> Yeah but they gave Kairi an opportunity because it was fatal four way. I don't think the winner of the MYC will have a match if it's a 1vs1


Yeah, and I'm saying they didn't need to add her into that match. But they did anyways. No reason to believe the winner of the MYC 2 won't get a title match either.


----------



## Reil

The first ever UK Women's Champion will be crowned this weekend.

https://www.wwe.com/shows/wwenxt/article/first-nxt-uk-womens-to-be-crowned-at-birmingham-live-event


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Brutal week of main roster TV for WWE this week between Raw and SD. 

A-Show tomorrow night.

:mark:


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1032290690540220416
:mark:


----------



## Jedah

Yep. The Bruiserweight in action tonight. :mark

Can't wait to see him in the War Games match in November, because that's where they're headed. :mark


----------



## SS07

Was ringside at Takeover, and without spoiling anything, the Dunne/Gibson match was fucking awesome.


----------



## Psychosocial

That comes as a surprise to no one, their last match in the UK in June was fantastic.

Deonna debuts against Bianca tonight as well, not acquainted with her but she seems like she's coming with some hype so looking forward to see her. Would be nice if NXT started to use people like Deonna, Axel Dieter Jr., and Chris Dijak more now that they've all made their debuts for the brand in recent times.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

DEONNA.

:mark: :mark: :mark:

Northern New Jersey's own. :mark:


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Good match with Bianca/Purazzo. Not a bad debut for Deonna. If booked right, Deonna will have a hell of a future in WWE.


----------



## Reil

It wasn't a bad match, but after seeing it, I still don't see Bianca as the next NXT Women's Champion. She felt really robotic in the ring and not really all that smooth. She still has a long ways to go, in my opinion.


----------



## Jedah

It's still too early. Boss of Bel-Air was right. She's coming along but it'll take another year or so before she's ready to hold a title. They would be insane to have her go over Kairi at this point. I don't think she will.


----------



## Mordecay

I felt like that Bianca/Deonna match lacked something. Not a bad match, but I don't know, there was something missing. Deonna is young and I hope she develops some personality, maybe her boyfriend can help her in that aspect since he has a hell of a personality, because she reminded me to Kimber Lee a little bit and we know how that ended. Bianca is a great athlete and she is developing well, just hope they don't rush her.


----------



## Reil

Yeah it felt like she was just trying to get all of her spots in. Not to mention we haven't really seen her in the ring against actual greener people yet. For all we know, she could be good in the ring against more experienced people. However, she could easily fall apart against greener talents.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Yeah, not like it was some great match or anything close, but it was a decent match for a debut for someone. That's all I meant.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Yeah it felt like she was just trying to get all of her spots in. Not to mention we haven't really seen her in the ring against actual greener people yet. For all we know, she could be good in the ring against more experienced people. However, she could easily fall apart against greener talents.



I don't know. Aliyah is fairly green, then again that was just a squash match, so yeah. Jury's still out if Bianca has progressed enough where she can carry a match.


----------



## sailord

Really enjoying the match between Dunne and Gibson


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

You'd think more people would think to attack the fingers like Dunne does. It seems like a minor body part to attack, but hey...getting your fingers all contorted seems painful af.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Dunne/Gibson just had the WWE match of the week (Raw, SD, 205 Live). Fantastic match.


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Showstopper said:


> Dunne/Gibson just had the WWE match of the week (Raw, SD, 205 Live). Fantastic match.


Yeah that was quite good!


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Showstopper said:


> Dunne/Gibson just had the WWE match of the week (Raw, SD, 205 Live). Fantastic match.


It was good no doubt, Gibson is the most underrated guy in wrestling. I didn't like how the finish made him look like a dumbass though. Still *** 1/4-1/2 match easy.

It seems clear the direction is headed for WarGames being TUE v. BSS v. WarRaiders & Ricochet. With Dunne saying in a backstage segment that he wants the NA Title I wonder if they'll have a stipulation where the tag belts & NA Title are on the line in the match.


----------



## Mordecay

It was a decent match between Gibson and Dunne, but I am not really into that british submission style, so I didn't enjoyed as much. And I thought the ending was a bit dumb tbh, Gibson takes Pete's mouthguard after leaving him laying, but as soon as he was going to throw it Pete hulks up, breaks his fingers, uses the Bitter End and wins, it was a bit sudden, didn't like it.


----------



## TD Stinger

Bianca vs. Deonna was a nice showcase for Deonna IMO. I'm not her biggest fan, but she was very fluid in her movements. Bianca seemed, IDK, a bit lost at times I guess. She's had better performances.

I don’t think I loved it as much as others but Dunne vs. Gibson was your typical “pretty good” Pete Dunne match that never quite went beyond that.


----------



## Jedah

Great match between Dunne and Gibson, though that thing with the mouthpiece and the finisher submission escape jarred me a bit, though I loved Dunne doing it by biting the ropes. :lmao



MarkyWhipwreck said:


> It seems clear the direction is headed for WarGames being TUE v. BSS v. WarRaiders & Ricochet. With Dunne saying in a backstage segment that he wants the NA Title I wonder if they'll have a stipulation where the tag belts & NA Title are on the line in the match.


Yep. It's gonna be great. I can't wait. :mark

Probably no titles on the line, though. Dunne and Ricochet could dissent from each other next week, leading to a title match that Undisputed interferes in.

The women's match at War Games seems fairly clear now too. They were again talking about how Bianca didn't get to compete in the #1 contender's match and hyping her undefeated streak. Bianca is also getting increasingly arrogant. It's almost certainly gonna be Kairi vs. Bianca there. Bianca will likely lose though. She's not ready yet and someone needs to take her down.

Biggest question mark is who challenges Ciampa?

Also, since we saw Deonna tonight....


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1032357833914888192
Looks like Io is gonna debut at this set of tapings. :mark


----------



## RiverFenix

Ciampa vs Black II makes the most sense, assuming Black is ready. It's not a marquee, but it doesn't need to be on the War Games II card.


----------



## Jedah

I also think it will be Ciampa vs. Black in the latter's last NXT match, but we can't be sure yet. It actually is the biggest match they could do right now though, with Gargano out of the picture for a while and it being too early for Keith Lee and Matt Riddle.


----------



## Mordecay

I don't think they will debut Io in tomorrow's tapings, it's mandatory to all of the NXT talent to be at Full Sail the day of the tapings


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> I don't think they will debut Io in tomorrow's tapings, it's mandatory to all of the NXT talent to be at Full Sail the day of the tapings


Possibly, but they also fast tracked Deonna to TV. They seem to want to fast track their big names to TV this year. 

As an aside, someone joked about how Kairi has aligned herself with BSS/Mustache Mountain. Someone else said that when Io debuts, she should align herself with The Undisputed Era. To be honest, I wouldn't be opposed to that.


----------



## Drshuk

Reil said:


> Possibly, but they also fast tracked Deonna to TV. They seem to want to fast track their big names to TV this year.
> 
> As an aside, someone joked about how Kairi has aligned herself with BSS/Mustache Mountain. Someone else said that when Io debuts, she should align herself with The Undisputed Era. To be honest, I wouldn't be opposed to that.


Also, Io tweeted about it, given how infrequently she has been using social media since joining it would be weird for her to tweet about being excited for the tapings if she wasn't doing anything, as she's already been to one taping since joining so far.


----------



## Psychosocial

I hope they're not doing Kairi-Io at War Games. They should save that match for New York in April when they're competing with the G1 Supercard and need to put on an insane card.

Deonna looked good, but no signs of what her character will be in that match. Hopefully we get to see that soon, she's young but she could become a hit in the women's division if she grows into whatever her role will be well. Bianca was alright but we've seen better from her before. I'm almost certain Dakota Kai is going to the UK brand full time, there's just not enough room left for her to really make it in NXT with Kairi, Bianca, Io, Deonna, Lacey, and Candice all there and possibly more to come in the aftermath of the MYC.

The main event was fun and good. I absolutely love Gibson, perfect look for a heel, nice presence and mic ability, and a fantastic throwback theme which is congruent with his old school British wrestling style. Man, that UK brand is going to be something worth watching with Dunne, Bate, Gibson, Andrews, Seven, the Coffey brothers, Storm, Jinny, and Dakota all there, and more to come.


----------



## Mordecay

The thing is Deonna probably will be an enhancement talent for a few months, so that's why they don't have a problem with make her "debut" earlier and use her to make a pushed talent look good. It's similar to last year, where the pre show womens match for Takeover Brooklyn III was Peyton vs Sarah Logan, who also was in the MYC last year. Io probably will be pushed from the beggining, so I don't think they will rush her to a debut.


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

I enjoyed Dunne as per usual and it was good to see Deonna.


----------



## Dibil13

Didn't Black destroy Sanity shortly before they left NXT? Nikki Cross being revealed as a witness to his attack makes me think Sanity did it as revenge and that's how they'll eventually debut Aleister on SD.


----------



## SAMCRO

Man i love Gibson so much, his in ring style reminds me so much of Nigel, he even pulled out the Jawbreaker Lariat on Dunne tonight which looked fucking brutal. However i don't get why they had Gibson lose yet again to Dunne, not saying Dunne should have dropped the belt here but why even have the match? Why not have Noam Dar vs Dunne for the title? 

I mean Noam did win the number 1 contenders match a while ago, would've made sense to ave that match here instead of having Gibson lose for a 2nd straight time to Dunne.

For some reason i got a feeling its gonna be revealed that Ohno took Black out, he aint got really nothing to do right now and they have been kinda building him up again lately.


----------



## Jedah

Ohno would be a waste of Black's time. It really either needs to be Ciampa or someone from the main roster. It should center on whether Black gets his rematch at War Games or if he's just called up to the main roster right away.


----------



## Jersey

I guess Bianca will be a face soon, she's a diamond waiting to be shined -J.R. Deonna is cute. I remember seeing a few of her matches in Philly at roh. Both put on a great match for the first time meeting.


----------



## RiverFenix

Bianca's "E-S-T of N-X-T" gimmick is dumb. I mean I get the point that it's supposed to represent strongEST, fastEST, smartEST or whatever, but also could easily be stupidEST, ugliEST, weakEST, slowEST.


----------



## ReekOfAwesomenesss

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> Bianca's "E-S-T of N-X-T" gimmick is dumb. I mean I get the point that it's supposed to represent strongEST, fastEST, smartEST or whatever, but also could easily be stupidEST, ugliEST, weakEST, slowEST.


I thought the EST stands for establishment?


----------



## Slit_Zurifa

One thing I don't like about Bianca is her bouncing during the entrance, her hand gestures, her entire entrance really. I guess it fits her character but I don't like it. However, she's a heel so that's okay. Once the bell rings everything about her entrance is forgotten though. Also Bianca seems to receive more and more cheers so I guess after her feud with Kairi she's going to turn face at some point.


Io could debut at tonight's tapings, I'm fairly sure she will. I also think she'll start as a face in Kairi's corner. She should turn against Kairi at Takeover Phoenix next January as start and build-up for their match at Takeover Brooklyn V at Mania weekend. That's also why she should debut tonight. Her betrayal will be more impactful if she acts as Kairi's best friend. Not for us of course since we smarks all expect it.  (not only that, a lot of us want it to happen)

Also do you think we'll get Kairi vs Bianca at War Games? I mean wouldn't it make more sense for Kairi to face the winner of the MYC at that Takeover? I think Bianca should be Kairi's opponent at Takeover Phoenix. Who else would she face then? Bianca in two Takeover singles matches with Bianca losing both times? I don't think so to be honest.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

Dibil13 said:


> Didn't Black destroy Sanity shortly before they left NXT? Nikki Cross being revealed as a witness to his attack makes me think Sanity did it as revenge and that's how they'll eventually debut Aleister on SD.


I think you are spot on and we will find out it was them at Wargames. Eric Young will probably come out during Black's rematch with Ciampa and cost him the match.


----------



## Jedah

Slit_Zurifa said:


> Also do you think we'll get Kairi vs Bianca at War Games? I mean wouldn't it make more sense for Kairi to face the winner of the MYC at that Takeover? I think Bianca should be Kairi's opponent at Takeover Phoenix. Who else would she face then? Bianca in two Takeover singles matches with Bianca losing both times? I don't think so to be honest.


It's pretty obvious that's what we're getting once any potential rematch with Shayna is out of the way. The commentators were hyping up Bianca's undefeated streak on NXT TV and she's getting increasingly arrogant, demanding to get what she deserves (IE: a title shot because she wasn't in the last match).

It's too soon for the winner of the MYC to get a title shot. It only takes place three weeks before War Games.


----------



## Mordecay

On a side note, I liked Deonna's entrance theme, I liked the instrumental stuff, very different to the usual hip hop/dance/pop music the women usually get


----------



## SAMCRO

Jedah said:


> Ohno would be a waste of Black's time. It really either needs to be Ciampa or someone from the main roster. It should center on whether Black gets his rematch at War Games or if he's just called up to the main roster right away.


Ciampa? That would be predictable and obvious as hell, its definitely not gonna be him, its gonna be someone from left field you wouldn't think of, thats why i think its gonna be someone like Ohno, plus he could use a change of character and go on a heel run.


----------



## Jedah

Doesn't change the fact that Ohno would be a waste of Black's time. He has much bigger fish to fry than wasting it on a jobber.

Ciampa would be predictable but make sense. If not him, someone from the main roster to give Black a logical exit from NXT, which is kind of where I'm leaning now. Black might have his swan song in a rematch with Ciampa at War Games (if not earlier) and then leave. The Eric Young hypothesis is intriguing. After all, Black sent Sanity packing from NXT, and they're all heels on the main roster. The whole thing fits Sanity's MO as well.

If Black doesn't get his rematch with Ciampa, there's nothing left for him to do in NXT.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Belair vs Purrazzo and Dunne vs Gibson were both decent this week.

Bianca impresses me everytime she's on TV episodes, she has everything going for her. She has the look, she has the charisma, she has the skill, she's still a bit green in places but she has such an impressive moveset, she pulls out the kind of moves that gets the crowds clapping, gasping and out of their seats. Deonna had a solid showcase here too.

Dunne vs Gibson was better than their match at the UK tapings, overall it was more solid, the psychology was better, I love both their styles, the way they target each other's limbs with effective moves here and there is a joy to watch. Really looking forward to the UK division, hopefully they bang it on the network in the next few weeks.


----------



## SAMCRO

Jedah said:


> Doesn't change the fact that Ohno would be a waste of Black's time. He has much bigger fish to fry than wasting it on a jobber.
> 
> Ciampa would be predictable but make sense. If not him, someone from the main roster to give Black a logical exit from NXT, which is kind of where I'm leaning now. Black might have his swan song in a rematch with Ciampa at War Games (if not earlier) and then leave. The Eric Young hypothesis is intriguing. After all, Black sent Sanity packing from NXT, and they're all heels on the main roster. The whole thing fits Sanity's MO as well.
> 
> If Black doesn't get his rematch with Ciampa, there's nothing left for him to do in NXT.


Well the whole point of it being Ohno would be to not make him a jobber anymore, elevate him to a serious threat and give him a dominate heel run. 

I mean no one thought for a second Rikishi was the one who hit Stone Cold cause he was a comedy dancing jobber right? But it was him and he turned into a serious heel after that and was booked as a main event player for a short while.

As for Sanity and EY it could be them but they're jobbers as well now on SDL so it makes them no different than Ohno, so i don't see how they would be a much better option than Ohno, they're not exactly bigger fish atm.


----------



## Jedah

Yeah, and Rikishi running over Stone Cold was a mistake they had to correct. If the plan is to elevate Ohno (which I don't buy for a second), Black feuding with him would still be a waste of time because we know he's coming to the end of his NXT tenure, unfortunately. Black either gets his rematch with Ciampa or goes straight to the main roster. There's nothing else for him to do.

If it was Sanity, Black could have a good debut feud for SD and hopefully start to get over there, though I of course expect main roster stupidity involved in such a feud.


----------



## SAMCRO

Jedah said:


> Yeah, and Rikishi running over Stone Cold was a mistake they had to correct. If the plan is to elevate Ohno (which I don't buy for a second), Black feuding with him would still be a waste of time because we know he's coming to the end of his NXT tenure, unfortunately. Black either gets his rematch with Ciampa or goes straight to the main roster. There's nothing else for him to do.
> 
> If it was Sanity, Black could have a good debut feud for SD and hopefully start to get over there, though I of course expect main roster stupidity involved in such a feud.


Well just cause it didn't work out with Rikishi doesn't mean every single heel turn for a midcarder feuding with a main eventer wont work out, and Ohno is ten times better than Rikishi. Point being its not unheard of for someone fans view as a jobber or midcarder to turn heel and start something with a main eventer. At the end of the day whoever it is its not gonna be some groundbreaking reveal or any big time feud anyways, atm Triple H probably hasn't even decided who its gonna be. 

And i don't get how it would be so great for it to be Sanity but not Ohno when Sanity are almost on Ascension levels of jobber status right now on SDL. Ohno has more credibility than Sanity does right now imo. I just don't see how a good intense feud with Ohno on Black's way out of NXT would be so bad, have him put over Ohno before he leaves making Ohno a now credible guy to be taken serious in NXT. Nearly everyone always loses on their way out of NXT putting someone else over anyways, thats just how it goes.

And i don't see them doing some cross brand feud with NXT and SDL, they've never done that where someone is on the main roster and goes back to NXT and starts something and then that guy debuts on the main roster coming after them. Not everyone watches NXT so it would be confusing as hell to alot like "Who the hell is this Aleister guy and why is he wanting revenge on these Sanity jobbers?".


----------



## Psychosocial

Now that we're in our longest stretch of the year between TakeOvers (3 months), this is a good time to take a break from the show for a month or so for me. I've already canceled my Network subscription and won't get it back until late September. Part of that is down needing to attend to real life with a new job, starting my college major, helping my dad prepare for a colon operation, and other things, another part is realizing that I'm overpaying for the Network with the $9.99 sub when I'm getting emails weekly for some $1.99-for-2-month deal. So I'll save some money for now and come back later on when I can catch up on all the episodes and everything I'll miss over the coming weeks. Until then, take care of this section guys.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

These TakeOver fallout shows are always real nothing shows, but I did watch the Gibson/Dunne match as I heard good things. I never watched the UK Tourney final as that whole event seemed like a meaningless exercise so I cannot comment on that, but this match here was okay. I’ve always thought Gibson is a great promo, he has charisma to spare but he isn’t that exciting a wrestler unless he has someone like Drake to bounce off of and that reality reflected in this match for me. I get what they were going for in trying to do an old school British style match but I honestly just thought this was just kinda boring with a weak finish that came from nowhere.


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

I love Zack Gibson so It's great to see him have a great match with Pete. Wasn't too crazy about the ending though.


----------



## SAMCRO

The Raw Smackdown said:


> I love Zack Gibson so It's great to see him have a great match with Pete. Wasn't too crazy about the ending though.


Yeah i'm really hoping at some point Zack wins the UK Title and is booked as the top heel of the NXT UK brand.


----------



## Piers

I have high expectations for NXT tonight. I didn't enjoy Smackdown or 205 Live and I didn't even bother to watch Raw based on the spoilers (except that awesome promo from the Revival)


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Looks like they cut out the part where the crowd chanted Johnny Failure at Gargano. Good thing too.


----------



## TD Stinger

Latest episode thoughts:

* WWE clearly edited out some “Johnny Failure” chants from the opening promo because they were non existent. That aside, Johnny was still very over as “Johnny Wrestling.” He’s reached the point where he knows he’s been in the wrong and knows he has to do something, but doesn’t know what to do about it. And from his erratic nature in this promo, you can tell he’s still not all there.

The Aleister Black tease was nice. “Before Aleister Black comes back and burns this place down.” Lol. Well, I can only help when he does come back, Aleister is beating up referees and jobbers left and right. And putting the seeds of Johnny being the culprit is a nice red herring.

And of course is Dream is, well, Dream. Just his great charismatic himself. I really hope he’s next in line for a shot at Ciampa, as weird as this matchup is.

* I see that Aliyah is now basically the Bo Dallas of NXT in a way where fans just hate her for existing. Match was fine.

* The Forgotten Sons are finally here……well, let’s see how they do.

* Nikki’s segment with Regal immediately had me laughing, especially with Regal’s reactions. Though it did get a bit too silly at times IMO. Nikki vs. Bianca sounds like a fun character clash.

* I really hope that Lars-EC3 stuff isn’t leading to a Takeover match. If you thought EC3 vs. Dream was subpar, just wait for this. Lars can be great with another great wrestler like Aleister who can get the most out of him. EC3 ain’t that guy.

* Keith Lee bitches! :mark :mark :mark

Anyways, they better be working on real music for the guy. Because whatever he has now ain’t getting it done. But this another reminder of why I love Lee. He is so great with facial expressions and mannerisms. He is so overly charismatic and confident and usually that’s to his detriment, as it was tonight.

But he didn’t let that stop him unleashing a wicked Pounce, Chop in the Corner, and dat Spirit Bomb:


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1034964491862204422
* Oney Lorcan will be back soon! Yes!

* And the main event was pretty good. Just some really good action with a simple story of Ricochet and Dunne having a miscommunication and TUE taking advantage.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

I wonder why Aliyah gets so much heat, she's pretty good when they let her wrestle.


----------



## SAMCRO

Good opening promo with Johnny, glad to see it looks as though he's moving on from Ciampa, hopefully. Dream vs Gargano should be great.

Lol is it just me or does Aliyah have some new look every week now? Awesome to see my girl Dakota getting a win, LOVE her finisher, she better win the title at some point.

Yeah that Nikki Cross segment was terrible, theres a difference between crazy and being straight up retarded, and Nikki was acting like a retarded 12 year old in that segment. But it was awesome to finally see Gunner from TNA and his new stable he's in to finally appear on NXT.

And i just knew Lars was gonna be EC3's next feud, go back and look in my "was it a mistake to put EC3 in NXT?" thread, Lar's is the one i said EC3 would be more over than in a feud, and surprise surprise his next feud is with Lars. Not too crazy about the feud but eh i'm not mad about it either.

Keith Lee was awesome tonight, LOVED that popup sitout powerbomb, damn that looked nasty.

Main event was good for what it was, they clearly set up Ricochet vs Dunne down the line with the miscommunication spot, and that match whenever it happens should be awesome. Not sure where Cole goes next though, i don't see him feuding with Ciampa since he's a heel, i know he'll get his rematch with Ricochet which he'll likely lose but not sure where he goes after that.


----------



## Jedah

Kind of a lukewarm episode but they're getting the ball rolling nicely. Johnny is slowly finding himself again and Dream picked up the segment well.

Dakota vs. Aliyah...this match wasn't good at all. Dakota finally getting a win is good for her but struggling so much against Aliyah isn't.

Liked the Black investigation too, though Nikki Cross is going a bit overboard. Now we have unambiguous confirmation that Bianca is being positioned for a title shot and she'll feud with Cross as a warmup. Not a bad idea, but with the Kairi/Shayna stuff still going on I wonder how they'll write it. Another reason to not like this Evolution PPV. It's gonna make things messy for War Games. Curious to see how Bianca gets her shot beforehand since the tapings for War Games will be done by Evolution.

Overall, the women's division itself is still pretty weak. Kairi has a lot of work to do. Shayna should be wrapping up her NXT stuff soon and putting the title back on her would be a disaster anyway. Bianca isn't ready yet. No one else is even close to championship material. Io should remedy that situation very soon but you can't pull the trigger on her too quickly. Curious to see how they fix things up.

EC3 has basically no reason for existing in NXT at this point. I wonder why he hasn't been called up yet.

Keith Lee was great, though Luke Menzies clearly isn't ready for TV yet.

Main event did its job. Nice start on the road to War Games. Delivers a good match while leaving us wanting more.


----------



## Silent Servant

Wonder if The Dream will ever get called up.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

The performance center is real, Adam Cole has gotta be in the best shape he's ever been in. Dude is looking jacked.


----------



## Mordecay

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> The performance center is real, Adam Cole has gotta be in the best shape he's ever been in. Dude is looking jacked.


I will miss the fatass Cole jokes :lol


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

SAMCRO said:


> Good opening promo with Johnny, glad to see it looks as though he's moving on from Ciampa, hopefully. Dream vs Gargano should be great.
> 
> Lol is it just me or does Aliyah have some new look every week now? Awesome to see my girl Dakota getting a win, LOVE her finisher, she better win the title at some point.
> 
> Yeah that Nikki Cross segment was terrible, theres a difference between crazy and being straight up retarded, and Nikki was acting like a retarded 12 year old in that segment. But it was awesome to finally see Gunner from TNA and his new stable he's in to finally appear on NXT.
> 
> And i just knew Lars was gonna be EC3's next feud, go back and look in my "was it a mistake to put EC3 in NXT?" thread, Lar's is the one i said EC3 would be more over than in a feud, and surprise surprise his next feud is with Lars. Not too crazy about the feud but eh i'm not mad about it either.
> 
> Keith Lee was awesome tonight, LOVED that popup sitout powerbomb, damn that looked nasty.
> 
> Main event was good for what it was, they clearly set up Ricochet vs Dunne down the line with the miscommunication spot, and that match whenever it happens should be awesome. Not sure where Cole goes next though, i don't see him feuding with Ciampa since he's a heel, i know he'll get his rematch with Ricochet which he'll likely lose but not sure where he goes after that.


Cross is crazy and it's funny as hell to see her interactions, especially with Regal.


----------



## SAMCRO

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> Cross is crazy and it's funny as hell to see her interactions, especially with Regal.


Personally i thought she went way over the top in this segment, Regal's reaction was funny but Nikki went full retard, you never go full retard. 

I mean she was rolling on his desk like a mentally challenged child, not a demented crazy person.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

SAMCRO said:


> Personally i thought she went way over the top in this segment, Regal's reaction was funny but Nikki went full retard, you never go full retard.
> 
> I mean she was rolling on his desk like a mentally challenged child, not a demented crazy person.


Eh, I don't see the theory.


----------



## Piers

I loved Nikki's segment. We need more stuff like this (not the crazy thing, I mean backstage interactions) to flesh out characters

The Forgotten Sons is a cool name, these guys look like a legit trio, I like them already

Anyone noticed that awesome nod to Regal's career ?


----------



## Death Rider

I like Nikki normally but that was waaay over the top. Tone it back. I am curious to see where this Black stuff goes though


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

Haven't seen the episode yet but it looks like Dream gets to be fed to Johnny Gargano... Oh Joy! Still more than he'd be doing on the main roster I guess


----------



## FaceTime Heel

-I like that they are not just letting this Aleister Black mugging just go by the wayside. I think diving into all the possible culprits and William Regal launching a "full investigation" will help a lot of the talent flush their characters out more over the coming weeks. 

-The Gargano promo was good for the progression of his character and the storyline. You can see the frustration. You can see he's lost and he's let angst consume him. I really think its interesting how he's turning into the one things he 'hates' the most (also love how this keeps the Aleister Black thing open because he never gave Regal a definitive answer. No man is ever truly good, no man is ever truly evil - should they choose to explore or revisit that feud later). I loved Velveteen interrupting and pretty much claiming to be the steal the show at NXT Takeover. Clearly he didn't steal the show but it works for the narcissistic/vain components of his gimmick. That should be a fun match.

-I thought Dakota and Aliyah was fine for what it was worth. Not the strongest performance by Dakota IMO (because I know what she's capable of) but it served its purpose. Aliyah did really well to me, it might be the best I've seen her. Aliyah seems to be getting toward that Elias and Bo Dallas level of "go away" heat for some odd reason. I like her though, I think she could be valuable in NXT/WWE.....sidenote, I think I'm in love with Dakota Kai. She does the girl-next-door thing so effortlessly.

-Forgotten Sons have arrived finally. They give me SAMCRO vibes but I like it so long as it doesn't turn into anything crazy like TNA did with Aces and Eights. I'm willing to see where they go with this. I'm a huge fan of stables. Most excited to see how Wesley Blake's character progresses. NXT seems to do well with repackaging folks.

-The Nikki, Bianca, and Regal segment was fun.....I did think that Nikki was teetering the line of being in character and being ridiculously over the top even for her unhinged character but truth be told, I like that it got to show her in different setting and overemphasizes how much of a screw loose she is. Also loved Bianca coming in there and regulating even while Nikki was still doing her thing. Bianca's demeanor during the segment was great. She pretty much carried it like 'I don't care how crazy you think you are but I'm he EST and I aint come in here for your nonsense, even if you were meeting with Regal before I was'. Sets up for what could be a cool little feud from two performers from seemingly polar opposite ends of the spectrum. 

-Lars and EC3 is fine by me. Gives them both something to do. EC3 shouldn't have been dry snitching on Lars if he didn't want those problems. This feud won't culminate to an in-ring clinic but this could be a very bitter and intense rivalry given how proficient both guys are with a mic in their hands........and good lord, Lars was out there destroying my guy Raul Mendoza (who I think has a very bright future in NXT, hopefully he gets some run in NXT UK as well. I think there could be an interesting dynamic there). Lars is real-life a gargoyle. 

-Ciampa cut a great promo backstage. Good to see him getting to do something outside of the confines of this DIY/Gargano-related storyline. Hopefully, he gets to do some work away from Gargano and sink himself in other feuds to show that his character stand without the DIY stuff (which I'm sure it can and will). Him talking about being a sports entertainer as opposed to a wrestler, being the one to make NXT the A-show, all of the he was saying was golden material to me.

-BASK TIME. Keith Lee is Keith Lee. Didn't think the WWE would let him use the Spirit Bomb then BOOM, Spirit Bombed a guy that looks to be at least 250 lbs. They're letting him show his stuff in these semi-squash matches and also showing the fact that he is willing to sell for his opponents so he doesn't look like such an overly dominant powerhouse. The/his future is dare I say, LIMITLESS....and I've never heard of Luke Menzies before tonight but I'm willing to check out his stuff. Seems a bit on the green side but he's fairly new to the game so I look forward to tracking his development.

-Love that Oney and Burch got a vignette. I dig that team a lot (Ones and Twos, idk if that's the their name or not but that's what I've been calling them). I hope they are able to float between NXT and NXT-UK. They worked hard to get themselves over as a tag-team, almost Revival-esque but as faces. I hope the promoters reward them for their efforts in some capacity.

-Main event was really good. Planted the seed for a Ricochet and Dunne, which will blow the roof off the joint whenever this match happens. Also, showed TUE for what they are, some cool a** dudes who know how to capitalize on even the most minute of transgressions. Glad they did use the freebird rules every so often. It also was good to see the hyena-like nature of TUE how they attack when their opponents are already vulnverable. War Machine and TUE willl be fun as well. I'm more excited about this NXT tag-team feud than I have been since American Alpha-Revival.

Great show overall for me. I'd give it an 8.7 out of 10.


----------



## Oneiros

That Keith Lee powerbomb was crazy. He picked that huge guy up like it was nothing.


----------



## Jbardo

Dat Keith Lee powerbomb tho.


----------



## Alright_Mate

A bit on the late side with NXT this week, nothing major happened though...

A very segment and promo heavy episode, unsurprisingly a lot of treading water as the next Takeover is a good few months away.

My favourite part was the Nikki segment tbh, I couldn't help but laugh, her reaction as soon as Bianca mentioned title was hilarious.

Main event was well paced, still struggling to get behind Undisputed Era as a unit though, they have failure written all over them.


----------



## karebear

wish i could get excited for keith lee but it's hard to knowing that he will probably be fucked once he get's on the main roster and don't give me that "he's a big guy, vince will love him" bullshit because he may be big but he also black and black wrestlers do have to fight a serious uphill battle to be taken serious by vince.


----------



## Mox Girl

I haven't watched the whole episode for this week but I did just check out Dakota's match.

I think Aliyah got WAY too much offense in it, and her restholds were way too lengthy. Dakota got barely any offense at all. I love her kicks and her finisher though.

LOL at like two people in the crowd chanting for Aliyah and everyone else just going "sucks!" :lol

I'm glad to see my girl getting a win, go Team Kick!


----------



## SAMCRO

karebear said:


> wish i could get excited for keith lee but it's hard to knowing that he will probably be fucked once he get's on the main roster and don't give me that "he's a big guy, vince will love him" bullshit because he may be big but he also black and black wrestlers do have to fight a serious uphill battle to be taken serious by vince.


Yeah he has a big hill to climb on the main roster since he's black, fucking company is racist. The Rock will go down as the only black WWE champion and its only cause he looks more samoan than black.

And how much you wanna bet Vince makes him put on a shirt? Just look at Killian Dain how ridiculous he looks now. Seems like Samoa Joe is the only fat guy Vince allows to go shirtless.


----------



## Piers

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah he has a big hill to climb on the main roster since he's black, fucking company is racist. The Rock will go down as the only black WWE champion and its only cause he looks more samoan than black.
> 
> And how much you wanna bet Vince makes him put on a shirt? Just look at Killian Dain how ridiculous he looks now. Seems like Samoa Joe is the only fat guy Vince allows to go shirtless.


To be fair, Keith's stretch lines are a bit off-putting.


----------



## Alco

I basked in Keith Lee's glory. Now I'm a huge fan.


----------



## Not Lying

Idk where to post this, but I read somewhere that Candice LeRae could be revealed as Black’s attacker because she wanted to give Johnny a 1 on 1 match with Ciampa. What do you all think?


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

– Mr Regal putting in all these resources to find out who attacked Black in the carpark yet we still have no clue who attacked Itami in the car park three years ago. Could they be the same person?! I really hope it isn’t Lars Sullivan…

– No interest in a Gargano/Dream feud at all, sorry. 

– Did Aliyah have a wig on? The match itself was all over the place and the finish came out of nowhere but I’ll take a Dakota Kai victory. 

– So Forgotten Sons make their NXT Debut next week? I’ve heard a lot of good stuff about these guys for what feels like a million years on NXT house shows, I guess they needed to get Sanity out of the way before they debuted them. Steve Cutler really has transformed for this role, I remember when he had those weird mutton chops and was billed as some ex marine which seemed to have him destined for greatness but he just fell off the map, I guess the same for the other Murphy brother, from Tag Team Title dominance to the forgotten brother, hence the name of the team I guess.

– Keith Lee with that crappy music and weird beard vs random English jobber? This was pretty bad, Lee should have just hit the Spirit Bomb out of the gate and they should have moved on.

– Nice video package for Burch and Lorcan. Weird NXT got them over and then just forgot all about them, even with that video package I’ve lost faith they’ll ever do them true justice.

— Main event was fine, just a little bored of Undisputed Era, it never feels like they are evolving.


----------



## FaceTime Heel

The Definition of Technician said:


> Idk where to post this, but I read somewhere that Candice LeRae could be revealed as Black’s attacker because she wanted to give Johnny a 1 on 1 match with Ciampa. What do you all think?


Intriguing. I'd jump through the roof if he Black Mass'd her because of that (if she is the culprit).


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

Just watched last week. Show was fine but nothing really stood out for me. I did get a chuckle out of the Johnny Failure line though.


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Well I read spoilers from the tapings like a dumbass. But still looking forward to the Gargano/Dream match.


----------



## Mordecay

Hawaiian Okada :buried


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Woof. Baszler is quite bad still.


----------



## Reil

I don't think it'll happen, but I can't shake the feeling they may put the title back on Shayna, especially with Marina and Jessamin working the house show circuit with her.

It would be an INCREDIBLY bad idea, but even NXT isn't infallible to bad booking.


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

I guess we'll get Shayna VS the Pirate Princess at Evolution. I agree it would be very weird to put the title back on her. Unless maybe they did an angle where she wins it back at Evolution and post-match announces she's been called up to main roster...or something along those lines.


----------



## Reil

GimmeABreakJess said:


> I guess we'll get Shayna VS the Pirate Princess at Evolution. I agree it would be very weird to put the title back on her. Unless maybe they did an angle where she wins it back at Evolution and post-match announces she's been called up to main roster...or something along those lines.


All that would do is bury the division. It would be the Asuka angle except worse. Because Shayna has never made anyone look even remotely credible at the end of the day. She steamrolled through the division quicker than Asuka ever did, and made them look SIGNIFICANTLY worse in the process.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Dream v. Failure was a really good match.


----------



## Mordecay

Pretty decent match between Dream and Gargano. Johnny's descent to madness is fun


----------



## MC

Pretty good match by Dream and Gargano. It fell apart by the end with a "why am I so violent" moment but really enjoyed it. That Everton fan in the crowd made me chuckle.


----------



## Mordecay

Johnny is losing it :lol


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1037508499977191424


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Reil said:


> All that would do is bury the division. It would be the Asuka angle except worse. Because Shayna has never made anyone look even remotely credible at the end of the day. She steamrolled through the division quicker than Asuka ever did, and made them look SIGNIFICANTLY worse in the process.


That's very true. I guess I was thinking from the angle of Shayna looking strong in heading to the main roster. The ONE person she hasn't steamrolled over is Kairi Sane though. Kairi beat her in the finals of the first Mae Young tournament. And she took the NXT title from her at Takeover. NOBODY else has been able to touch her. I could see her beating Sane and running off to the main roster while Kairi has yet to be called up. I could be way off in my thinking lol just speculation stuff of possibilties of course!

Although the scenario still leaves her burying the division...


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Although the scenario still leaves her burying the division...


----------



## TD Stinger

Latest Episode Thoughts:

Ohno's match was short and sweet, which plays into his recent string of matches. The more important thing obviously was the promo after the match. Gatekeeper is a good role for Ohno.

Ohno vs. Riddle anyone? Or Lee too.

The Forgotten Sons debut was......fine? Like, not bad in anyway but not memorable in any way. The Street Profits continue to show flashes of something really good, but this thing with The Mighty ain't going to well yet.

I love the insanity that is Otis Dozovic and the segment with him and Regal only confirmed that.

Dunne vs. Ricochet title for title in 2 weeks is gonna rule. But seriously Ricochet, stop saying "Home Boy." It does not make you sound cool.

War Raiders Vignette was good.

Kairi getting her title out of a treasure chest was adorable. Squash was what it was. And then a fun brawl with her and Shayna. These 2 just have a natural chemistry.

Ciampa's promo was good, though at the moment they're clearly killing some time until it's time for Ciampa's next big defense.

Dream vs. Gargano was really good. Was interested from the opening bell with the way these 2 were trash talking on another. And all in all they flowed really well together. The finish was pretty good with Dream hitting that Rolling DVD out of nowhere. I like he's had different moves established that can win a match besides the Purple Rainmaker. That will help his career in the long run.

Gargano is clearly in the next step of his recovery. After Chicago, he let Ciampa completely consume him and go to the Dark Side. Now, he realizes what he's doing is wrong (at least to him) and is trying to go back to what he was, but still can't completely fight off the urge to be like his hated enemy.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> All that would do is bury the division. It would be the Asuka angle except worse. Because Shayna has never made anyone look even remotely credible at the end of the day. She steamrolled through the division quicker than Asuka ever did, and made them look SIGNIFICANTLY worse in the process.


Yeah, when we talk about how the NXT Face roster needs to be built up, this is why. And if she wins the title back......well that'll be two people(Ember Moon/Kairi Sane) who have beaten Shayna Baszler only for the win to end up being meaningless in the end since Shayna got "the last laugh".


----------



## Jedah

So, new episode.

Kassius squashing people is a different sight, but clearly they're just fattening him up for Matt Riddle.

Not feeling any of the tag teams. The NXT tag team division outside of the top teams looks pretty bad right now. Maybe the Forgotten Sons will do better though but I'm not seeing anything special so far. And please give them new music.

Can Shayna just fuck off already please? Another reason why I hate this dumb Evolution PR stunt. Kairi having the filler defense there is taking away from what should be the build to her and Bianca at War Games. That could still happen, but it's going to be haphazard now. The story between Kairi and Shayna is at a dead end now. The bully's facade has been shattered. The only way to do anything with it from here is to introduce the other two "horsewomen" but that would be a catastrophe.

The Heavy Machinery backstage segment wasn't funny at all.

Johnny vs. Dream was great. Is there anyone on the roster more purely entertaining than Dream? Maybe Ciampa. I'm very, very much looking forward to that potential feud. Dream just has such a way of making everything he does into a story. That sad Johnny emoticon he wore on his sleeve was brilliant. :lmao



GimmeABreakJess said:


> I could see her beating Sane and running off to the main roster while Kairi has yet to be called up. I could be way off in my thinking lol just speculation stuff of possibilties of course!
> 
> Although the scenario still leaves her burying the division...


All that would do is take the NXT women's title away from NXT, so that's ridiculous. She either stays in NXT or loses and goes. She probably goes.


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Jedah said:


> All that would do is take the NXT women's title away from NXT, so that's ridiculous. She either stays in NXT or loses and goes. She probably goes.


Calm down...she wouldn't take the title with her she would vacate it. And it just a scenario that crossed my mind - not saying it will or should happen.


----------



## Reil

Vacating the title would be even more pointless. You would have women competing for essentially the pity prize again. Making another babyface into Ember Moon 2.0.

Shayna winning the title back is a bad idea. Very bad. While I don't think she will win the title back, NXT isn't immune to bad booking decisions from time to time. For all we know, WWE could have put the title on Kairi because of the Osaka show, along with showing that the MYC 1 winner did something noteworthy in the past year (to show that the MYC isn't a complete waste of time). And then they'll just put it back onto Shayna at Evolution.


----------



## Jedah

If the MYC was a reason, it would really defeat the purpose to have the first winner choke on the same night the final is being held. It's more than likely just filler, especially with Bianca being the clear next in line for a title shot. They aren't being subtle about it.

Kairi wasn't even added to the Osaka show until late in the game when plans were already in place. This isn't a two week thing like it was when Nakamura/Joe and Undisputed/MM traded their titles back and forth.


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

OK I agree with you guys...I don't WANT her to win it back.


----------



## Drshuk

It should be noted that it isn't like former champions having rematches is unusual for NXT's women's division. Sasha had one, Charlotte had two, and Bayley had one. Asuka and Paige didn't have one because they both vacated the belt , Ember is the only champion who lost the belt to somone else but didn't have a rematch.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Vacating the title would be even more pointless. You would have women competing for essentially the pity prize again. Making another babyface into Ember Moon 2.0.
> 
> Shayna winning the title back is a bad idea. Very bad. While I don't think she will win the title back, NXT isn't immune to bad booking decisions from time to time. For all we know, WWE could have put the title on Kairi because of the Osaka show, along with showing that the MYC 1 winner did something noteworthy in the past year (to show that the MYC isn't a complete waste of time). And then they'll just put it back onto Shayna at Evolution.



Evolution is a WWE event, and we all know that crappy booking and BS finishes are the norm at these events, so it's not out of the realm of possibility.


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> Evolution is a WWE event, and we all know that crappy booking and BS finishes are the norm at these events, so it's not out of the realm of possibility.


Yeah, but the only chance of that really happening is if Vince McMahon or Kevin Dunn decide to get involved in NXT stuff, which has never really happened before.


----------



## MC

It's nice to see people think having a strong champion is burying a division...oh wait, people only saying that because of her background. 

People are so worked by Shayna - what a great heel :lol


----------



## Reil

MC 16 said:


> It's nice to see people think having a strong champion is burying a division...oh wait, people only saying that because of her background.
> 
> People are so worked by Shayna - what a great heel :lol


Shayna buries a division because if she beats Kairi, there are literally no credible babyfaces left to beat Shayna. Shayna or rather her push has destroyed the momentum of everyone she has beaten.

And let's be brutally honest here. Shayna would have NEVER been signed or pushed this hard if it wasn't for her connection to Ronda.

It also doesn't help that Shayna, while okay in the ring, is FAR below pretty much every other NXT Women's Champion when it comes to actually wrestling. Her Takeover matches have all been well below the standards set by the other women who have held the title.

Kairi vs Shayna was good for the story it told. Not the in ring abilty.


----------



## MC

Reil said:


> Shayna buries a division because if she beats Kairi, there are literally no credible babyfaces left to beat Shayna. Shayna or rather her push has destroyed the momentum of everyone she has beaten.
> 
> And let's be brutally honest here. Shayna would have NEVER been signed or pushed this hard if it wasn't for her connection to Ronda.
> 
> It also doesn't help that Shayna, while okay in the ring, is FAR below pretty much every other NXT Women's Champion when it comes to actually wrestling. Her Takeover matches have all been well below the standards set by the other women who have held the title.
> 
> Kairi vs Shayna was good for the story it told. Not the in ring abilty.


That's on bad booking, not on Shayna. Not her fault if NXT doesn't build up women outside of the title. 

And Shayna is actually great IMO. Just because she doesn't do flips or shitty melodramatic acting, doesn't make her bad.


----------



## Jedah

Shayna's booking is what's being talked about here. For the sake of the division, she needs to move on. Very few stars came out of last year's Mae Young Classic because of her. Only Kairi and Bianca are main event players a year later. NXT doesn't need her doing the same thing to this crop of talent, which shows even more promise than last year's.

She probably will, but even now it's a poison because it's deviating from Kairi and Bianca who should be getting the build. I blame Evolution for this more than Shayna.

In the unlikely event that Shayna debuts her rookie buddies and gets the title back, the division is dead. People who thought Asuka's reign smothered it would be wishing for her back.


----------



## RiverFenix

I liked the Ohno/Reeves match, as short as it was. I think Kona is less OTT and obnoxious and is finding the right balance for his character. I think he sells pretty well, and he's taller than one expects. Is that sleeve new? Match was too short to really become anything and it mucked with the story - I mean when when it looked like Ohno would go on a bit of a rampage with that knee drop to the face and backing Kona into the corner - Reeves goes right back on offense for a couple moves and then we get the finish. 

Street Profits are too goofy at the start of the match, especially Tez. They're sort of stagnated as an act as well. They both show flashes, but don't seem to understand what works and what doesn't. Forgotten Sons don't need Jaxon Ryker as a third member. I'd rather they just be a team. Blake was the best wrestler in this match with his move set and selling. The Mighty's interference was silliness. They were stealing the damn cup? For what? Have I missed an angle where there is supposed to be special powers in the drink and they want it analyzed or something? 

Otis's Chris Farley act is too damn silly, and Tucker adds nothing to that team. Both are miscast and probably should be split and repackaged (if not released in Tucker's case). 

Ohno will be better as a heel, his heel move set and in-ring demeanor will probably play much better. He needs a look overhaul though. He should rock the Big Show style singlet. I still am a fan of Kona and thing there is still something there with him. I might put him in a tag team for the time being though. I'd put him with Dan Matha, as I think it would have a feel of the old "Power & Glory" team of Hercules Hernandez and Pretty Paul Roma.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just watched, Dream & Gargano saved that episode from being a cringeworthy mess...

Another Ohno squash...meh. Solid promo afterwards.

There's a reason why the Forgotten Sons were Forgotten about because they are shit, Blake and Cutler are boring, they dress like a knock off version of Sanity. Street Profits get more and more cringeworthy everytime they appear.

As for cringeworthy it's about time Heavy Machinery got released.

Then that was followed up by more cringe in the form of Kairi Sane, just when I thought her gimmick couldn't get any worse she's now throwing out fake treasure, forget wrestling, she would be perfect at children's birthday parties. Another boring squash match followed by an awful looking slap contest.

Now we finally saw some good moments...Ciampa's promo and Sullivan's office segment were brilliant.

Now to the match that saved this episode from being a mess. Johnny Gargano and Velveteen Dream are incredible performers, that was by far one of the best NXT TV weekly matches so far this year. I thought the start was a little sloppy, Dream's mat wrestling is weak, things soon picked up though in terms of intensity, Dream when he launched Gargano into the turnbuckle looked absolutely brutal. Some really nice back and forth action followed, some really nice looking counters. The last few minutes though were excellent storytelling, the DDT tease followed by the knee that costs Gargano again. A solid **** match.

Finally that Everton fan is by far the best fan in WWE, he should be in that exact same seat permanently, the guy is fucking hilarious.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Reil said:


> Shayna buries a division because if she beats Kairi, there are literally no credible babyfaces left to beat Shayna. Shayna or rather her push has destroyed the momentum of everyone she has beaten.
> 
> And let's be brutally honest here. Shayna would have NEVER been signed or pushed this hard if it wasn't for her connection to Ronda.
> 
> It also doesn't help that Shayna, while okay in the ring, is FAR below pretty much every other NXT Women's Champion when it comes to actually wrestling. Her Takeover matches have all been well below the standards set by the other women who have held the title.
> 
> Kairi vs Shayna was good for the story it told. Not the in ring abilty.


Doesn't help that they've tried to make Shayna a bully type heel, and for some reason, it just doesn't work. She doesn't look intimidating. She doesn't come across as intimidating. She sure as hell doesn't sound intimidating. To me, she was miscast and she's nowhere near good enough to overcome that. She's a dull, drab act, at least up to this point. Maybe she improves in the future. But up to now, she's a complete bore in every sense of the word. I don't lay it 100% on her, but she's been part of the issue, as well.


----------



## ellthom

The Forgotten Sons. Or as my first impressions are of them 'The 3 Eric Youngs', 'The Clones of Young'


----------



## Piers

The Forgotten Sons have potential. Give them proper characters though. Maybe a biker group like Aces of Eights


----------



## GTL2

Guess the standard of show had to drop at some point and this one was it. Not bad but just about OK.

Dream/Gargano probably the best. Gargano's mental issues thing is going to run out of steam soon though and need to bring it to some kind of resolution. Ohno going more heelish is interesting and worth following.

Profits may be too much for some (including me sometimes) but they have a genuine star quality. They have the basis of a main roster gimmick and need a push to get them to upper card.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

So the thing about the tag division is it's split in two; the contenders: TUE, War, MM and 1s&2s and the mid card: Street Profits, HM, Mighty and now the Forgotten Sons. Oney and Lorcan and Mustache Mountain will be permanently headed to NXTUK soon. War Raiders will take the titles off of TUE probably in Jan since I doubt they will be defended at War Games. I wouldn't put it past them to give TUE a third title reign before they move up though. If Gargano gets the belt at Brooklyn V and Cole takes it off him, TUE might not move up until the end of next year since I see them all moving up together. They are special to the brand so I can see them getting a record 3rd reign.


----------



## Hawky

TheMaskedAvenger said:


> Oney and Lorcan and Mustache Mountain will be permanently headed to NXTUK soon. .


Granted, I haven't looked at the results from the tapings but I would assume you would be correct about Moustache Mountain, but considering last week they had a vignette advertising the return of Lorcan & Burch on NXT tv I would imagine that means they are staying with NXT for the time being. 

I also wonder whether anyone who appears on NXT will be "permanently" going over to NXT UK. Before the Royal Albert Hall shows MM were barely used on NXT. I think the last time I remember seeing Trent before hand was losing to Killian Dain months ago. And I know they don't work the NXT house show circuit. So, they haven't exactly been regulars over the last year, so I don't see why the couldn't pop back over to NXT from time to time with the regularity that they have been. 

Of course, not saying this will happen, just my thoughts.


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Want to share my thoughts on The New NXT.

The Forgotton Sons look WAY too much like Sanity to me. I think they need to change their look a bit. 

Kaissus had a nice little squash match and it seems like he's being built up for Riddle. Can't wait to see their match.

So with Kairi and Shayna clearly going at it again I guess they're going to have at it again at Evolution?

Dream and Gargano was SICK AS FUCK. We're seeing the cracks of Gargano show: He's become Ciampa and I think he's realizes that and from this point on will be getting back to himself...To Johnny Wrestling!

Ricochet and Pete Dunn are gonna tear the house down when they fight. 

Loved the Lars Sullivan Segment too.


----------



## SAMCRO

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> I liked the Ohno/Reeves match, as short as it was. I think Kona is less OTT and obnoxious and is finding the right balance for his character. I think he sells pretty well, and he's taller than one expects. Is that sleeve new? Match was too short to really become anything and it mucked with the story - I mean when when it looked like Ohno would go on a bit of a rampage with that knee drop to the face and backing Kona into the corner - Reeves goes right back on offense for a couple moves and then we get the finish.
> 
> Street Profits are too goofy at the start of the match, especially Tez. They're sort of stagnated as an act as well. They both show flashes, but don't seem to understand what works and what doesn't. Forgotten Sons don't need Jaxon Ryker as a third member. I'd rather they just be a team. Blake was the best wrestler in this match with his move set and selling. The Mighty's interference was silliness. *They were stealing the damn cup? For what? Have I missed an angle where there is supposed to be special powers in the drink and they want it analyzed or something? *
> 
> Otis's Chris Farley act is too damn silly, and Tucker adds nothing to that team. Both are miscast and probably should be split and repackaged (if not released in Tucker's case).
> 
> Ohno will be better as a heel, his heel move set and in-ring demeanor will probably play much better. He needs a look overhaul though. He should rock the Big Show style singlet. I still am a fan of Kona and thing there is still something there with him. I might put him in a tag team for the time being though. I'd put him with Dan Matha, as I think it would have a feel of the old "Power & Glory" team of Hercules Hernandez and Pretty Paul Roma.


I think Montez's gold chain was in it, so it was more about the bling that was in it than the cup itself lol. And i completely agree about Blake being the best in the match, his moves and selling had a really good intensity to them. Cutler is trash, everytime i've seen him wrestle its always been underwhelming.


----------



## GTL2

SAMCRO said:


> I think Montez's gold chain was in it, so it was more about the bling that was in it than the cup itself lol. And i completely agree about Blake being the best in the match, his moves and selling had a really good intensity to them. Cutler is trash, everytime i've seen him wrestle its always been underwhelming.


Yeah, Blake raised his game this time. Good to see. He's been overshadowed by Murphy since they split and I've been getting kinda bored with his house show work but there is something there. I don't think he's as good as Murphy but something to work with.


----------



## Psyche

I just watched last weeks episode and I enjoyed Dream & Gargano a lot. Watching Johnny's downward spiral has been compelling. The Forgotten Sons had a good match with the Street Profits but I'm not sold on their character yet, but it's early so I'll give it time. The SAnity comparisons are apt, but they don't jump off the screen the way SAnity does.


----------



## Reil

So I'm only going to give my thoughts on the women's stuff tonight:

Shayna is going to go overboard and cost herself the rematch against Kairi at this rate.

And Bianca's brawling with Nikki post match was fucking terrible. Like it couldn't look any more fake if she tried. Also I wouldn't be shocked if Bianca vs Nikki ends up being a Last Woman Standing match and the winner gets to face Kairi/Shayna at NXT: War Games. It will give Bianca and Nikki something to do on NXT since they aren't on the Evolution card, and allow there to be some sort of buildup. Right now, Bianca should not be champion. I don't mind her challenging for the title, but she's *very very far* from actually being qualified to hold the title.


----------



## TD Stinger

Kind of a ho hum episode this week.

*My boy Lorcan is back! Fine little squash match.

*And Ciampa has theme music! Will probably take some time to get used to but I like the sound of it so far. I saw something in Ciampa I really haven't seen yet and that was range on the mic. Yes, he has been a great heel since coming back but I can't say he's wowed me on the mic either. He's been a story of great writing and great expressions.

But here, he was funny in a sinister way. He was heated. He spoke with confidence and conviction. He's growing even more now as champion. He's also starting to fall in the scene of where he's so good at being bad, people are starting to cheer him, which was clear tonight. Will be interested to see how they play that going forward. Things like stealing that kid's sign was a good start, lol.

*Shayna torturing that jobber was fun.

*I continue to love the randomness of Otis. Him and Ciampa's exchange was strange, but also interesting.

*Sullivan vs. Mendoza was an extended squash. Not much else to it.

*Dunne vs. Ricochet is gonna be a barn burner. And FFS, stop saying "homeboy."

*Ohno is gonna meet Regal's next shiny toy at the door....BRO. That match is gonna rule.

*Bianca vs. Nikki was a fun character clash. Say what you want about Nikki, the crowd eats her shit up. And this match was a good mix of Nikki putting Bianca off her game and Bianca using her power to counter Nikki. I can see them having some kind of gimmick match in the next few weeks.


----------



## Mordecay

One of the weaker NXT shows in a while. Great to see Oney and Danny back, fun squash. Another Lars squash, not much to it. I hate Ciampa's music, it's too generic, I prefered the no music mixed with the boos for his entrance. Teasing Otis vs Ciampa? Should be interesting. Poor Ohno is gonna be Riddle's first victim. Ricochet and Dunne are not very good at promos, but their match will probably be fucking great. And the main event... what a shitty main event. Bianca and Nikki don't mix well, Bianca needs someone who sells for her, and Nikki is not that kind of wrestler, and while the crowd is still loving her crazy schtick, I am getting tired of it, her matches are really poor because of it.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

You went from the best promo in NXT as North American champion in Adam Cole to one of the worst by far in Ricochet aka "Homeboy" fpalm


----------



## Mordecay

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> You went from the best promo in NXT as North American champion in Adam Cole to one of the worst by far in Ricochet aka "Homeboy" fpalm


I mean, it's NXT, as long as you can produce inside the ring you will be fine and Ricochet is one of the best inside the ring. Neville and Balor are the 2 longest reigning NXT champions in history and neither was a particulary strong promo (Neville became a good promo on 205).


----------



## Buhalovski

Guess Ohno is going to be knocked out by Riddle at the WarGames PPV. The more interesting thing is why he keeps wearing Cesaro merch... are they trying to tease us with something or its just a random thing?


----------



## Jedah

Pretty meh episode to be honest. The only thing that was really cool was Ciampa. His promo was good. He ultimately needs to prove himself a great heel when he doesn't have Gargano to contrast off and this was a good start. Him vs. Otis should be....OK filler I guess? Truth be told, it feels very random. Otis has no business with Ciampa at the moment. Guess he just needs to squash someone before finally moving on to Dream.

Good to see Orcan and Burch back but that was about it.

I repeat - can Shayna just fuck off already? The commentary team was trying to sell her as this huge threat but it felt hollow. Kairi beat her. The reign of terror is over. The act has run its course. She's needed on Raw WAY more than she is on NXT. Hopefully this is just filler for Evolution and then the division can move on.

I actually liked Sullivan vs. Mendoza. He got some good offense in before inevitably being run over.

Cannot wait for Dunne vs. Ricochet. :mark :mark

Ohno is obviously being fattened up for Riddle. It's basically unambiguous now.

Bianca vs. Nikki....wasn't good. At all. They're clearly hyping Bianca's undefeated streak suggesting she gets a title shot, but she's nowhere near ready to be NXT Women's Champion yet. Bianca right now is someone that needs to be put in there with a good worker to have a notable match. This one proved it. Nikki can do more than this, but her gimmick holds her back.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Mordecay said:


> I mean, it's NXT, as long as you can produce inside the ring you will be fine and Ricochet is one of the best inside the ring. Neville and Balor are the 2 longest reigning NXT champions in history and neither was a particulary strong promo (Neville became a good promo on 205).


I was just pointing out the fact that he's an awful promo.


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

Just watched this. On the whole, the episode was just okay. Liked seeing Lorcan and thought Ciampa was very good with his promos. I did like the Fortunate Sons vid also. I wonder if they let Dunne's marathon reign end?


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> I was just pointing out the fact that he's an awful promo.


That "Homeboy" line is REALLY bothering me for reasons I can't quite figure out. Like, it's just such a strange thing to call Pete, and it doesn't fit the feud AT ALL. 

Really hoping they do a triple threat match for both belts at WARGAMES (I haven't read spoilers, so please don't tell me if that's the plan), and Cole gets his belt back, and Dunne keeps his. 

Ricochet rules, but he needs a manager/girlfriend by his side ASAP. Otherwise he's going to start turning people off him and I'd hate to see that.


----------



## Psyche

Pretty uneventful from an in ring standpoint with the main event being particularly awkward. But Ciampa's promo was awesome, and even though having him come out to just a chorus of boos was great, I dig the new theme. The Forgotten Sons video package was cool as well. Looking forward to Ricochet vs. HOMEBOY next week. I wouldn't be shocked if they put both titles on Ricochet, but I'm leaning more towards some type of non-finish/interference of some kind.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Average episode, good to see Oney back and I'm not sure how I feel about Ciampa's new theme yet.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

I do like Ciampa's theme song. I was distracted over deciding if I like his song or not, so I didn't catch the first minute of his promo. But, in my opinion, Ciampa is a very similar to Triple H. They same current look helps a lot, but in terms of delivery in his promos, where he picks his spot to show intensity, I can see why he's the top heel (still credit to his own work). Triple H must love the guy. When Ciampa interrupted Heavy Machinery and said "this isn't a game" I half expected him to say "I AM THE GAME!".

Kairi is going to dethrone Asuka in a few months if she keeps learning more English. She already speaks better English than Asuka and has only been here for about 1 year.


----------



## RiverFenix

Burch/Lorcan vs Jaoude/Bononi was more than a squash/enhancement match. But then again I'm high on Bononi, though not that weak mustache attempt. Bononi sells very well, especially for a man his size, but needs to work on his offense and find some signature spots he can rely on in matches as he seems to get lost when on offense. Most memorable spot was the standing cross arm breaker sub from Jaoude. I don't get why Mauro puts over Adrian's Aikido prowess as Aikido is self-defense for 60 yr olds taught as the local community center. Bononi and Jaoude go by "Eh Nois" on house shows and call themselves that on twitter as well. It's hard to discern what they mean by that though and the google doesn't help much either - https://www.quora.com/What-does-Eh-Nois-mean-in-Brazilian Speaking of team names, Burch and Lorcan need one as well, so they don't keep getting the 1-2 chants, though for some god knows reason they seem to be playing that up. 

I really dig the Ciampa music - the heart monitor flatline reminds me of the Tazz entrance, but plays into his "Blackheart" moniker. And then the mix of vocals and lone instrumentals make it a good entrance in general and for Tomasso. I think once fans get used to it there could be a "No one can survive" scream-a-long, especially if he ever becomes badass face. 

Ciampa was damn good on the mic promo as well - again almost too good to stay heel. I think he only gets heel heat now because the smarter Full Sail fan is giving him what he is after. He's getting "smart heat" of you will, out of respect. I think Ciampa needs to be the Black attacker now - just because he went out of his way to deny it - so make it a bald faced lie. He can laugh and admit he did it later, saying he lied because he could, and because he wanted fans to really think maybe Gargano did it, and for Gargano to see the fans starting to doubt him etc. Just another mindfuck game with Johnny Wrestling. 

I know the wwe is against it, but I think Ciampa needs to assault Candice to really top off the emotional feud. It would keep Ciampa heel and Johnny Gargano super face for their final encounter. They could keep the assault a grey area where maybe it was an accident, maybe it was on purpose. Give Ciampa enough deniability so he isn't stripped and fired for male on female violence. Regal could say as much "I think you are a son of a bitch and if you did it on purpose you would be stripped and fired BUT there isn't definitive proof so I can only do what I can and what I can do is put you and Gargano is a Hell in a Cell".

Shayna is possibly the only wrestler on the whole wwe roster that makes me wince and cringe when she's working submissions. She really makes it look like she's hurting her opponent - sometimes I don't know how she's not. It's great. Announcers pleading with Violet Payne to tap when Shayna was working her arm was great as well. I think maybe she should have tapped there actually. The second attack was pointless - and the referees not being able to pry her off was a bit too much. 

I can't stand Otis and Tucker is miscast trying to keep up character wise, but I am intrigued in a Dozer vs Ciampa match just because it's something different and interesting why they use Dozer in a singles match here. 

That Undisputed Era segment was so damn good. They did so much in so little time with it. I love 4 man factions as well, so Fish's injury was a blessing in disguise I think. I hope they keep them together when Bobby is back. Speaking of which when is Fish cleared? Only think ultimately lacking is size, but it would need to be a character/personality fit that would be hard to find such a fit. 

Initially I was thinking that Mendoza deserves better than getting squashed, but I think he's ultimately serving his purpose and Sullivan gains more in the squash than if he was against an indie enhancement because Mendoza is a bit of a name/known entity with the fans. 

Why does Dunne push his luggage like that - everybody I've ever seen just pull it behind them tilted on two wheels. He wheels it beside him like he's walking a dog or something. I didn't think Ricochet's interview promo was all that bad. I mean it's paint by numbers and sure it's not AC caliber but really there is maybe a handful in the whole company who is, but it was fine. He'll only get better on the mic the more he's on it. "Homeboy" didn't bother me, as it felt natural, so I bet he does use that IRL if you will. I do worry that they're making it his "thing" and that it will appear on his merch though - that would be a mistake. 

Dunne vs Ricochet will be hot fire. Given it's on a regular show you know we're not getting a finish. Give it to me main eventing a Take Over and it would be a legit MOTY candidate. 

Forgotton Sons vignette was necessary to define them a bit - not sure where Blake fits in. I mean with Jaxon and Cutler they could be military vets "forgotton" after they were chewed up and spit out, but what is Blake's angle? If it's a Rural America/White Working Class angle, first of all I'm not sure WWE would go to that as a gimmick anymore, and second of all it will be damn hard to pull off without coming off as racist. 

I liked how Ohno was pissed that he wasn't considered a suspect, like Regal didn't seem him enough as a threat. Ohno vs Riddle will be friggin amazing if given enough time. Put that one on a Take Over and give it 20+ minutes. If they do it right, the winner wouldn't even matter (Thought Riddle probably has to win as Ohno is not upper card anymore). 

Bianca is a lot like Montez Ford. They're all about the swagger antics, and are athletic as hell but they don't seem to have a real feel for wrestling. This was decent enough - probably her best showing even. Nikki's gimmick hurts her in-ring work unfortunately as well. The finish back bump on the ramp was stiff as hell. Interesting seeing them check on each other with the hand squeeze because the referee had to be in the ring to count to ten.


----------



## americanoutlaw

forgotten sons get me as faces


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

For me, when Shayna holding the choke too long is a heel move. However, Shayna slapping her opponent a bit to wake her up was a very subtle face gesture. Shayna showed her dominance, but still woke up her opponent making sure they weren't seriously injured. I was intrigued because I can't imagine a face Shayna at all. But, I thought it was a genius way to tease a face turn.

Then a moment later Shayna went HAM and heel'd it up. So, nothing changed.


----------



## GTL2

Jaoude/Bononi did more than I expected and were pretty good. they need to find something coherent for Lars to do. The who-destroyed-Black suspense is beginning to go stale and when-will-Riddle-debut is becoming more interesting.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just watched, an ok episode but it lacked that big exciting match...

Oney Lorcan :mark: albeit a squash match it was nice to see an actual good Tag Team in action.

Tommaso Ciampa :clap I think we are starting to witness the greatest NXT Champion in history. This guy has turned himself into the full package, first off I think his new entrance music fits him perfectly, secondly that promo he cut was fantastic, one of the best promos I've heard on NXT this year. I look at certain wrestlers in NXT and they might be good but they are missing one or two things, Ciampa on the other hand can do it all, the perfect Champion.

Short and ruthless from Shayna, can clearly see what story they are portraying but I'm not bothered.

Otis Dozovic is an embarrassment.

Really starting to become a fan of Lars Sullivan; however I think he's the type of guy that needs to be on the main roster.

Few segments followed...Dunne & Ricochet cut bland promos. Nice to see Forgotten Sons hanging out where they belong. That Ohno/Riddle tease 

Nothing much to say about the main event because it was that short. Nikki Cross is bonkers. Bianca Belair when delivering offense was impressive again, nice to see her hair whip make a return, taking offense is where she struggles, she seems hesitant to take hits, she's been like that ever since the MYC last year. As for the brawl it was far better than what Kairi & Shayna did last week with their embarrassing slap fest.


----------



## BehindYou

Thought this was a fantastic episode throughout.

I love how they've used the Aleister Black storyline to give stories to everyone up and down the card. It's top level storytelling.


----------



## TD Stinger

Donnie said:


> That "Homeboy" line is REALLY bothering me for reasons I can't quite figure out. Like, it's just such a strange thing to call Pete, and it doesn't fit the feud AT ALL.
> 
> Really hoping they do a triple threat match for both belts at WARGAMES (I haven't read spoilers, so please don't tell me if that's the plan), and Cole gets his belt back, and Dunne keeps his.
> 
> Ricochet rules, but he needs a manager/girlfriend by his side ASAP. Otherwise he's going to start turning people off him and I'd hate to see that.


Well considering they have a War Games match coming up at the next Takeover, it's unlikely. And they way they've been building things, it's very likely that Cole, Dunne, and Ricochet are in that match. Maybe at the Takeover Royal Rumble weekend.

They should have Lio Rush pull triple duty and manage Ricochet while managing Bobby and wrestling on 205 Live. And honestly, I'm only half joking.


----------



## rexmundi

Ricochet blows my mind nearly everytime I see him. I hpe his style is not career shortening.


----------



## Piers




----------



## ellthom

Was there anything worth watching this week, I missed this weeks nxt but cannot be assed to go back and watch it. I saw the Ciampa promo on youtube... I don't usually miss NxT.



They Call Him Y2J said:


>


I don't think it suits him, I would have preferred something slow and heavy something more methodical and creeping. The song is fine but I wouldn't say it's for Ciampa myself.


----------



## Jedah

Part of me wonders whether Shayna is possibly going to put Io over in her last NXT match? If she's going to stick around a little longer, I wouldn't mind seeing that at all. Their match in Stardom was good and she's improved since then. Supposedly it was the match that first brought her to WWE's attention to begin with.








ellthom said:


> Was there anything worth watching this week, I missed this weeks next but cannot be assed to go back and watch it. I saw the Ciampa promo on youtube... I don't usually miss NxT.


Not really. Ciampa's promo was the best part of the episode.


----------



## FaceTime Heel

Thoughts of this week's episode:

-Love that Burch/Lorcan are back. Hopefully they stay a team a while because they could have a DIY-lite rise through the tag-team ranks. They seem like such a seemless fit. I love their brawler, no-nonsense approach. Kind of like a more direct, less arrogant Revival during their time. Could stand to build in a few more tag tactics but I really love them together. They do need a name, I've been calling them Ones and Twos (no surprise there). I see potential in Eh Nois, Bononi could really be the goods with some more finetuning and Jaoude as a very cool look and can offer a very different in-ring style (although I don't like how they oversell his martial arts background on commentary, hint at it and let us make the connection with his moveset instead of shoving it down our throats).

-Ciampa's new music fits his character and it is highkey fire....and he cut the best promo he has ever cut since he got to NXT/WWE. He always speaks with conviction and usually is quite intense when he speaks but the range he displayed in this one and succinctness of his promo was so good I actually watched it two more times before I moved on just to make sure I wasn't tripping. At first I was like, alright so where does he go next but it made sense and stayed within his character that it doesn't matter who his next competitor is because they're all the same to him. He's having the best runs in NXT that I think I've ever seen.

-Shayna dismantled that poor girl. I usually don't squirm or wince when watching wrestling but damn, every time she works I think she is really going to break someone's arm. The way she works over folks arm makes me think she needs to change her finisher from the Kirifuda Klutch to something more arm based but that is really nitpicky. The Post-match beatdown/choke out seemed excessive but then again, that was the point so I'm fine with it. She really walks around like a disgruntled, unhinged bully and I'm looking forward to Baszler/Sane pt. 3.

-Heavy Machinery are fun I guess. Not overly high on them but I don't hate them either. I'm middle of the road trending toward the support side. They are very interactive and seem like cool meatheads. Why they would mention Ciampa is beyond me though. Not sure what a Doz-Ciampa match would look like but it's different so I'm willing to go with it. If it ends up being Ciampa who is the culprit, it would be interesting if they weave that story with Heavy Machinery snitching into it making them Ciampa's next targets in a brief/side program.

-TUE are the epitome of cool, dickish, jockish heels. But ya know, I feel them. Great backstage promo work from all four members. Roddy always sounded weird to me but he fits so much into this group. Him mentioning how he beats his son in Hide n Go Seek every single time and the rest of the group cosigning it was golden to me. Bobby still beinig relevant in the faction with his words is good, I hope he doesn't become forgotten. No one has grown on me over the past year than KOR, never knew he had the chops like that. Adam Cole is Adam Cole, the bar is high and he clears it every time. 

-Mendoza is very underrated as a performer to me. He and Fabian Aichner are guys who I think can play bigger roles (midcarders not necessarily main eventers) on NXT and NXTUK. Lars is such a monster. He bludgeons his opponents to the point of incapacitation and that is what I love to see from monsters. I think he sells really well for a guy in his role. He looks like a legit threat on this stage and beyond. The match was fun and I loved that it wasn't just a squash. 

-Dunne and Ricochet's promos fell flat for me only in the sense that they were repeating a lot of the material they've used in the past. In essence, it seemed too similar to their backstage segment from 2 weeks ago. Contrary to most here, I love Ricochet's use of homeboy. I say that sht all the time and its different that what we normally get. I don't know why it has gotten the response it has here but I don't see it any different than saying dude, bro, etc. I'll tell you what, that match is going to be fire regardless if their promos from this past episode didn't hit all marks.

-I liked the vignette from the Forgotten Sons. Added depth to their character that we needed. Super excited for Blake the most, Jaxon is alright to me based on some of his pre-NXT stuff but I can't really say I'm feeling Cutler at all. I hope it doesn't get too misconstrued as a racist gimmick because it it could very well be taken that way and could get ugly in a hurry....especially in this current US climate (with reason of course). That said, I'm warming up to them as a stable more and more.

-I like this partnership between Lacey Evans and Aliyah. Something about them two together really seems cool to me. Dakota is bae and idk why all these chicks keep playing around with her but I love that she's getting opportunities. Her and Deonna together is nice as well. That should shape up to be a nice match. 

-I like pissed KO. I like the fact that he's confronted Regal about getting leapfrogged here on his second go round by a bunch of guys who he came before. I think if he goes with this gatekeeper/buzzkiller type gimmick, it would be great for him and NXT as a whole because I think he'll be an NXT lifer as a player-coach. His vague reference to Matt Riddle was cool too because I wasn't sure if he was referring to Riddle or Keith Lee but I'm glad he was able to clear that up.

-Bianca and Nikki was really good to me. It was a lot better than I expected it to be. I think Nikki's erratic style and Bianca's more powerhouse, brash style is a good mix. Bianca is getting better and better in the ring. She needs things like this to help her on her journey but I see the progress that she's made and I'm behind Melanin Monroe 100%. Nikki can stand to scale back some of the antics a tad bit so folks dont start to think of her as a joke but I'm always a fan of her ring work. Also, the post match brawl was good as it sets them up to continue their program and gives them something to do instead of waiting around and treading water waiting for Kaira-Shayna to be resolved. It was nice to see frustration and aggression from Bel Air's side and it is a good story progression to see Nikki frustrating her. I think this could be an underrated women's feud in NXT.

Solid episode overall.


----------



## Reil

Actually this will be Shayna and Kairi's 4th match. Not 3rd. They had a match back in February which Shayna won.


----------



## Punkamaniac

Why did they decide to give Ciampa music? I enjoyed him coming out to no music at all.


----------



## Piers

Punkamaniac said:


> Why did they decide to give Ciampa music? I enjoyed him coming out to no music at all.


Actually I think the only reason he didn't have any music was because they were
working on it. But as the silent entrance was quite popular, they took their time.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

Just watched this weeks episode and thought it felt like more of a filler episode. The tag match was good. I like Lorcan and Burch, very old school tag team and the Brazilian guys were good too. When I listened to Ciampa's new music on YouTube I didn't like it but when he came out to it I got chills. Cut an excellent promo too. Shayna is just brutal in a good way. Everything looks like it actually hurts when she does it. As for the victim, I like her name and she was very cute, I hope she gets more screen time. I've liked Heavy Machinery from the get go. Very interested to see how this Doz/Ciampa match goes. I'm still not quite sure what to make of the Forgotten Sons. They seemed like heels but the vin felt like face. We will see. TUE is always awesome and Ricochet and Dunne can't cut good promos to save their lives. Lars feels like he should go to the MR. I guess they are just buying time until EC3 heals his eye for that feud but he seems like he is spinning wheels right now. Raul is a good match but they need to put in someone closer to his size maybe feud with Doz since he is doing singles matches now. It was hard to pay attention to Ohno during that segment because I was just distracted by how much weight he has gained. The main event was ok. Bianca will be good in the future but she is still a bit green and her style doesn't match good with Nikki's. Overall it was more promo heavy show but there is so much time in-between these 2 Takeovers we were bound to have dull episodes.


----------



## GTL2

ellthom said:


> Was there anything worth watching this week, I missed this weeks nxt but cannot be assed to go back and watch it. I saw the Ciampa promo on youtube... I don't usually miss NxT.
> I don't think it suits him, I would have preferred something slow and heavy something more methodical and creeping. The song is fine but I wouldn't say it's for Ciampa myself.


If you're looking for straight entertainment value, TUE, Ciampa segments and Baszler's match were good. Nothing different from what they normally do, but just great to watch

If you're looking for new developments, Jaoude/Bononi debuted. Solid performance and they got their style/attitude across. Nothing to blow you away. 6.5-7/10
Forgotten Sons did a segment in a junkyard as a biker-themed gang with a leader called Jax(son), in which they all look like Eric Young. Not sure how much effort Creative put into this one. 5.5-6/10


----------



## Pizzamorg

Just caught up with the last two weeks of NXT I missed. 

Last Week’s: 

– Random Ohno squash and him announcing he accepts his fate as a Gatekeeper? That is a shame. He should be NXT Champ, or at least gunning for that NA Title. 

– Am I wrong for being surprised by how much fun I had with that Street Profits/The Forgotten Sons match? I guess I just didn’t expect them to have such a competitive match before The Mighty injected some shenans. The Forgotten Sons definitely need a lot of work, but the foundations are there and that is what NXT is for, right? 

– We know it is going to have a screw finish but I am still game for a Ricochet/Dunne match with both the NA and UK Titles on the line. 

– I wasn’t really interested in Dream/Gargano going in so maybe that is why this match just didn’t really click for me. You could tell though that Gargano was doing everything in his power to make up for Dream’s weaknesses as a wrestler and I respect the match for that and I do enjoy it when Gargano taps into his NegaGargano powers. I am guessing that fan was a plant, right? Weird crowd reactions at the end, too. 

This Week’s: 

– So Lorcan getting injured is why they got Burch and Lorcan over so big at that TakeOver a few months ago and then did nothing with them again since? What a shame. Either way this was a decent squash for their return, nothin remarkable. 

– So Ciampa has got music, awful music, now? Seems a shame, not only is the music awful but that sort of opposite Bruno Sammartino thing he had where he’d walk in to the music of the boos from the crowd (of course for Sammartino it was cheers) was really unique and special.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Do y'all think Black's attacker will be revealed or will it go the way of Itami?


----------



## sailord

good main event so far


----------



## Mordecay

Good stuff between Ricochet and Pete Dunne, I did felt like they were holding back a bit since they knew the ending, but still, it picked up nicely the last 5-10 minutes. Not much to say about the rest of the show: By the numbers womens tag match, Lacey needs a new finisher. How Aaliyah is employed I don't know, I don't see anything in her and it seems WWE doesn't either. Squash match for that guy from the Forgotten Sons, not much to it. ANd finally, Keith Lee is gonna be a star.


----------



## MC

Probably the best NXT show for a while. 

The opening tag match was a solid match. Lacey Evans showed loads of aggression and her offence looked much better. Good stuff from her. Deonna Purrazzo put in a great performances too. Glad she is in NXT now. She is very good in-ring abeit very bland but she can work on that. Poor Dakota Kai. Other girl did nothing. 

The squash was forgettable. Move on.

Dunne vs Ricochet was very good match. Pete Dunne doing some gnarly joint manipulation spots and laying into Ricochet with some nice shots and suplexes. Ricochet was still hitting his dives/flips in the robotic and jarring way he normally does but he meshed well with Dunne and they had some nice looking counters. Very good match. Better than any of the overrated Gargano/Ciampa matches most definitely. Undisputed Era's interference was predictable but still a nice touch. Undisputed Era acting like heels is what they are all best at IMO and it developed their feud with War Raiders. I guess they will be building Dunne/Ricochet/Raiders vs Undisputed Era for War Games.


----------



## RiverFenix

MC 16 said:


> I guess they will be building Dunne/Ricochet/Raiders vs Undisputed Era for War Games.


Is Bobby Fish due back before War Games? Otherwise that would be 4-on-3. I think it's more likely Cole/Strong/KOR vs Ricochet/War Raiders vs Dunne and either Bate/Seven or Lorcan/Burch.


----------



## SiON

F**k me that Dunne/Richocet match!

Am I alone in thinking that Dunne is far and away the best champion in the WWE today?


----------



## gl83

Mordecay said:


> Good stuff between Ricochet and Pete Dunne, I did felt like they were holding back a bit since they knew the ending, but still, it picked up nicely the last 5-10 minutes. Not much to say about the rest of the show: By the numbers womens tag match, Lacey needs a new finisher. How Aaliyah is employed I don't know, I don't see anything in her and it seems WWE doesn't either. Squash match for that guy from the Forgotten Sons, not much to it. ANd finally, Keith Lee is gonna be a star.



As a reminder, Aliyah was signed by WWE and working in NXT around the time that they were filming Breaking Ground, which was back in 2015 when Bayley, Sasha, Charlotte & Becky Lynch were in NXT. 3-4 years she's been down there, and there's no indicator that she's getting called up anytime soon.


----------



## LA Park

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> Is Bobby Fish due back before War Games? Otherwise that would be 4-on-3. I think it's more likely Cole/Strong/KOR vs Ricochet/War Raiders vs Dunne and either Bate/Seven or Lorcan/Burch.


Maybe. Torn ACLs take 6-9 months to recover from and his happened in early March.


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

I liked the show. As I predicted from day 1, Candice is the perpetrator. 

Really liked Dunne/Ricochet but two quibbles. I assumed there would be outside interference so I couldn't fully invest in the near falls and I hate it when very effective submission holds mystically no longer work. My favorite match of the week regardless. Dunne > Ricochet.

Oh yeah. Lacey Evans. :sodone


----------



## TD Stinger

The Women's Tag was your basic tag match. I've said before that Lacey has star potential, but the Punch as a finish is still ridiculous. Hell, some people thought it was ridiculous for Big Show to use it as a finisher, but at least his hands are the size of toasters.

Candice and Regal's talk was interesting. I don't think it'll end up being Johnny or Candice, but I do hope Black vs. Johnny is the direction for Takeover LA.

Ricochet and Dunne had a great, seamless match. Every transition and counter they did looked spot on the money. Add that to a hot crowd throughout and you've got a good match. Finish was never in doubt, but it sets up War Games.


----------



## Mordecay

gl83 said:


> As a reminder, Aliyah was signed by WWE and working in NXT around the time that they were filming Breaking Ground, which was back in 2015 when Bayley, Sasha, Charlotte & Becky Lynch were in NXT. 3-4 years she's been down there, and there's no indicator that she's getting called up anytime soon.


That's what I mean, she is from the same class than the IIconics, and I think every woman from her generation has been either called up or fired, with a lot of women who were hired after her already on the main roster (Ruby, Ember, Sarah, Asuka, etc), while she still is the resident NXT jobber, it's weird. I think she will became the female version of Angelo Dawkins, who I think has been on NXT since the first episode in 2012 and still is down there.


----------



## Jedah

Dakota really is the eater of pins on the babyface side of the women's division. Lacey is developing nicely but I really don't know why they're keeping her so strong. Perhaps she'll be Io's first victim. And she really needs a new finisher. Badly. It's the worst in the entire company right now.

They're hyping Bianca's undefeated streak a lot. This has to be heading to a match with Kairi, since Nikki certainly isn't going to break it. Evolution is really screwing with the schedule of it though.

Candice's weird behavior suggests again that Johnny is the prime suspect. It could be a red herring but with Ciampa now seemingly cleared, who else could it be? At this rate it's either Johnny or someone totally random, or a way to move Black to the main roster.

And Ricochet vs. Dunne was fantastic. We all knew it would be, but I didn't think it would be as excellent as it was. Dunne is just so good at playing the brutal brawler, and Ricochet sold for him like a champ. Seeing Ricochet's comebacks and all of Dunne's counters was awesome. One of the best matches on NXT TV this year.


----------



## Reil

If the homophobia allegations about Lacey end up being true, she'll likely be buried alive or outright released. We'll probably find out at the next set of tapings, to be honest.

Regardless, outside of Dunne/Ricochet, this was an average episode of NXT for me. Rootin for my boy Otis to beat Ciampa next week though (even though he wont).


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> Dakota really is the eater of pins on the babyface side of the women's division. Lacey is developing nicely but I really don't know why they're keeping her so strong. Perhaps she'll be Io's first victim. And she really needs a new finisher. Badly. It's the worst in the entire company right now.
> 
> They're hyping Bianca's undefeated streak a lot. This has to be heading to a match with Kairi, since Nikki certainly isn't going to break it. Evolution is really screwing with the schedule of it though.
> 
> Candice's weird behavior suggests again that Johnny is the prime suspect. It could be a red herring but with Ciampa now seemingly cleared, who else could it be? At this rate it's either Johnny or someone totally random, or a way to move Black to the main roster.
> 
> And Ricochet vs. Dunne was fantastic. We all knew it would be, but I didn't think it would be as excellent as it was. Dunne is just so good at playing the brutal brawler, and Ricochet sold for him like a champ. Seeing Ricochet's comebacks and all of Dunne's counters was awesome. One of the best matches on NXT TV this year.



They are literally copying the same underdog formula they used with Sami Zayn, Johnny Gargano & Bayley to a T with Dakota. 


If Lacey isn't getting a title shot against Kairi Sane, then yeah she's definitely Io chow.

Evolution really is messing with the taping schedule because tomorrow, they are going to do 4 tapings. But that doesn't cover everything up to Evolution. There will still be 1 episode left. The taping after that which lead to War Games, will also include the go-home episode for Evolution, so it's going to be literally impossible to avoid spoiling the results of Evolution unless they're not doing a women's title match at Wargames.


----------



## FaceTime Heel

Reil said:


> *If the homophobia allegations about Lacey end up being true, she'll likely be buried alive or outright released.* We'll probably find out at the next set of tapings, to be honest.
> 
> Regardless, outside of Dunne/Ricochet, this was an average episode of NXT for me. Rootin for my boy Otis to beat Ciampa next week though (even though he wont).


Never heard of this one before


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> They are literally copying the same underdog formula they used with Sami Zayn, Johnny Gargano & Bayley to a T with Dakota.
> 
> 
> If Lacey isn't getting a title shot against Kairi Sane, then yeah she's definitely Io chow.
> 
> Evolution really is messing with the taping schedule because tomorrow, they are going to do 4 tapings. But that doesn't cover everything up to Evolution. There will still be 1 episode left. The taping after that which lead to War Games, will also include the go-home episode for Evolution, so it's going to be literally impossible to avoid spoiling the results of Evolution unless they're not doing a women's title match at Wargames.


Nah. They can do all the building up in backstage segments (for the NXT Womens Title match) for War Games. They dont air those to Full Sail audiences.


----------



## RiverFenix

I think the Larae sketchiness is going to be "Gargano is gone to such a dark place that even Johnny's wife thought he might have did it" storyline. It will be all part of Johnny's redemption - "I swore I didn't do it, but Mr Regal didn't believe me, the fans didn't believe me, and what hurt the most my wife didn't believe me - and I don't blame any of them for thinking that. I'm lost. Ciampa has won. But he won the battle, and not the war. Johnny Wrestling will come back, and I will get that title off Ciampa - not for me, or any hellbent revenge but because NXT deserves a better champion".


----------



## december_blue

FaceTime Heel said:


> Never heard of this one before




__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1042613649486086144
It just seems to be a bit of hearsay at this point, so I can't see them punishing her.


----------



## Reil

Yeah, which is why I called them allegations. Then again, it wouldn't really shock me either, since you never see her hanging out with other NXT talent outside of house shows and such, but that may have to do with the fact that there are quite a few people who used to work in WWE who have outright said she's a huge fucking bitch behind the scenes, and no one really likes her.


----------



## RiverFenix

She's also a mother. Maybe she want's to spend time with her daughter over hanging out with co-workers.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Not much to say about this weeks episode apart from...

Pete Dunne vs Ricochet - HOLY FUCKING SHIT.

Despite the interference what a match that was, not only was that Takeover quality, that was one of the best NXT matches this year.


----------



## HiddenFlaw

Dunne/Ricochet das it mane shit was fire :mark


----------



## Jedah

gl83 said:


> They are literally copying the same underdog formula they used with Sami Zayn, Johnny Gargano & Bayley to a T with Dakota.


No they aren't. It's not like she's coming so close only to be disappointed over and over again. She's just losing. To everybody except Vanessa and Aliyah who are the absolute bottom of the barrel.


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> No they aren't. It's not like she's coming so close only to be disappointed over and over again. She's just losing. To everybody except Vanessa and Aliyah who are the absolute bottom of the barrel.



But, that has been the case for Dakota. She has been getting close, but every time it looks like she's starting to build any sort of momentum in the women's division, she gets knocked back down. She beat Aliyah a couple weeks ago and this week, she was taking it to Aliyah, but got taken out thanks to a blind tag from Lacey Evans. It's basically been 50-50 booking for her the last few tapings. 


It's really no different to how Bayley/Sasha/Alexa/Becky were booked when they started out in NXT.


----------



## Jedah

Beating Aliyah means nothing. Everyone beats Aliyah. She hasn't gotten close to anything. All she's been is Shayna's bitch, then gets her ass handed to her by Bianca and Lacey even after she said she's found new confidence, and the matches weren't even that competitive like they were for Gargano or Bayley, nor is she getting the focus they did. She's just being put in matches to lose.

At this point it's hard for me to see her getting out of the jobber role she's in with all the new prospects coming in.


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> Beating Aliyah means nothing. Everyone beats Aliyah. She hasn't gotten close to anything. All she's been is Shayna's bitch, then gets her ass handed to her by Bianca and Lacey even after she said she's found new confidence, and the matches weren't even that competitive like they were for Gargano or Bayley, nor is she getting the focus they did. She's just being put in matches to lose.
> 
> At this point it's hard for me to see her getting out of the jobber role she's in with all the new prospects coming in.



Then you probably weren't around back then because Dakota is getting treated the same way that Bayley was when she first started out in NXT. The same way girls like Sasha, Becky and Alexa were. And neither of them received much focus at first either. It's going to be the same with the new prospects too. With the exception of a few, most of them will be working in a enhancement role as well(if they even appear at all) for several months just like many of the girls had to in the past.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

Reil said:


> Yeah, which is why I called them allegations. Then again, it wouldn't really shock me either, since you never see her hanging out with other NXT talent outside of house shows and such, but that may have to do with the fact that there are quite a few people who used to work in WWE who have outright said she's a huge fucking bitch behind the scenes, and no one really likes her.


Plus she used to be a marine in which i'm sure she has had plenty interactions with gay females. More than likely Lacey probably just didn't like her and it didn't have anything to do with her being gay.


----------



## Mear

TheMaskedAvenger said:


> Plus she used to be a marine in which i'm sure she has had plenty interactions with gay females. More than likely Lacey probably just didn't like her and it didn't have anything to do with her being gay.


This is just a nobody anyway. He could've easily just made that up. If there are other people who are going who can say that did happen, fine but until then, there is no discussion or punishment that should happen since it could easily be false


----------



## SUPA HOT FIRE.

You know it's a fantastic NXT episode when a single match is of this caliber is better than an entire WWE Hell in a Cell PPV.

Another MOTY-contender btw, along with Cole/Ricochet.


----------



## ChrisMC

I just got a chance to watch NXT this morning and Ricochet vs. Dunne was phenomenal despite the no contest ending. They are both becoming two of my favorites.


----------



## 5 Star Giulia ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

*Bianca got that Zelina cosign :tucky*


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1042949359413993474


----------



## Alco

That Dunne/Ricochet match, man. What a fantastic match. Shame it ended in a no contest, but I didn't want either man to lose so it's fine.

The interference was quite random though, in terms of timing. If they wanted to ruin everybody's experience, they could've technically interfered in the first five minutes, but oh well. I'm guessing this leads to Ricochet vs. Dunne vs. Cole.


----------



## RiverFenix

Jackson Ryker (yes that should be the spelling) had a nice little debut squash match. Crazy thing there is Humberto Carillo, his opponent, will end up a much bigger star in the short and long term. Carillo, of course, is Ultimo Ninja sans his mask. Humberto is teaming with Raul Mendoza on the house show circuit and their team is getting a lot of buzz from their ringwork. 

Forgotton Sons look too much like Sanity in their packaging.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

I guess I'm the only person who finds technical wrestling insanely boring and couldn't sit through Dunne/Ricochet. I'm assuming things picked up in the last few minutes but after 12 minutes of chain wrestling and joint manipulation I had to turn that shit off.


----------



## MC

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> I guess I'm the only person who finds technical wrestling insanely boring and couldn't sit through Dunne/Ricochet. I'm assuming things picked up in the last few minutes but after 12 minutes of chain wrestling and joint manipulation I had to turn that shit off.


It did. Ricochet started to hit more of his high flying moves and they strung together some nice counters. Personally I thought the technical wrestling was the best part of the match but I can see why people wouldn't like it. Especially when one of the guys is far superior at the style than the other which was the case here; a lack of true competition can take the enjoyment of the work.


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Late as fuck but Loved this episode. 

Lacey needs a new finisher. It's fucking terrible. 

Ricochet vs Dunn was amazing. Sad that it ended the way it did but I didn't think they were gonna have either one of them lose the title to another so it was alright.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

—Why did that jobber facing the other one from the Forgotten Sons have better music than all of the top tier signings they’ve made from the indies? Also he looks a little like Tyson Kidd. Ryker himself though seems pretty good. 

— Sorry Candice, what is a Triple Dark match? It is going to be her, isn’t it? No one is looking at her. It is going to be a whole “I did it for the Rock” thing again isn’t it. Question is whether she did it for Johnny or Ciampa. She could be the Elizabeth to Gargano and Ciampa’s Hogan and Savage. 

— That video promo from Keith Lee was absolutely wonderful. So hype for him getting a proper run on NXT TV. 

— Pete Dunne’s meteoric rise is crazy, making history with Ricochet in this match. I mean is he the longest running title holder in WWE right now or is that Styles? Either way, it is difficult to see where Dunne can topple from the mountain top at this point, they seemed to be building up Gibson as the new face of the UK Division but the title didn’t change hands and Gibson is nowhere to be seen again so now it is hard to see anyone else beating him for the title.

In terms of the match itself, it was fantastic. Shame about the schmozzy finish but we kinda knew that was coming so I am going to ignore that. The match was really competitive, made both guys look their absolute best and the chemistry between Ricochet and Dunne was surprisingly great. Maybe a few too many kick outs? But the crowd were eating out of their hands, so it clearly worked. Actual passion for a WWE product from the crowd, holy shit. 4*

Plus in a wider sense, this match really shows what a great place NXT is in right now in general, surely? Does any promotion in the world have a better selection of wrestlers at their disposal? And for the most part, especially in the context of WWE programming, NXT really uses its talent properly and to their best. Sure there is a lot of talent not on a TV right now but the roster is so deep and they only have an hour a week so this could honestly be a good thing if done right as it gives a huge amount of opportunity for constant rotation to really keep things fresh in a way you cant on the MR where two guys wrestle for straight six months before moving back to the person they were wrestling the six months before that and so on.


----------



## Lord Trigon

This is the first time I've watched the weekly show in a long time.

I thought Dakota Kai would be beloved by now but she didn't seem to be getting much reaction (and she jobbed to a punch), did that PTSD angle kill her heat or is it something else? Or am I just over-analyzing?


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

The A Show is back tonight.

:drose


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Aight it's f*cking settled, Adam Cole is a f*cking God on the mic. NO ONE can touch him right now.


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Aight it's f*cking settled, Adam Cole is a f*cking God on the mic. NO ONE can touch him right now.












Ahem, someone would like a word with you on that.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

TD Stinger said:


> Ahem, someone would like a word with you on that.


Joe and Cole are like 1A and 1B.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> Ahem, someone would like a word with you on that.


Joe is automatically disqualified for stealing storytime :grin2:


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Joe is automatically disqualified for stealing storytime :grin2:


It's not stealing when he does it better .


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> It's not stealing when he does it better .


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Ciampa/Otis was much better than I was expecting.

:bjpenn

CIAMPA is GOD right now.


----------



## Mordecay

Impressive showing from my man Otis :bjpenn. He can be a more charismatic version of Rhyno in years to come

Not much to the show besides that. I hate Lacey Evans, but she was looking fine in that exchange with Candice :homer

EDIT: And a couple of fine promos by Cole tonight, @MarkyWhipwreck ; would kill me if I don't say it ::grin2:. This after the show.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1045115932828286976


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Mordecay said:


> EDIT: And a couple of fine promos by Cole tonight, @MarkyWhipwreck ; would kill me if I don't say it ::grin2:. This after the show.
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1045115932828286976


Much better buddy (Y) Honestly wouldn't mind if Cole was revealed as the attacker. Don't think it'll be him tho as I remember Regal saying TUE are off the list of suspects on the Brooklyn Pre-Show.


----------



## TD Stinger

Nikki dodged a bullet by not going up with the rest of Sanity. I really enjoy her role getting to wear multiple hats in NXT by herself.






My boy Keith gonna squash Reeves on his way to bigger and better things.






Dozovic had a great showing for himself. The match was everything it should have been. Doz was usual funny self but also showed he could mix it up with the champion. And Ciampa picked his spots to win the match.


----------



## RiverFenix

Otis is being wasted in the go nowhere tag team with go nowhere Tucker Knight. He needs to drop the Farley act and just be a round mound of hate. He has a beautiful Vaderbomb, and is from Colorado so that could be a homage/tie in. He could be some combination of Vader/Rhyno/Tazz if they top of the card in him. 

Or he could be somebodies goofball sidekick on the MR, the butt of everybodies jokes and the like but he thinks they're laughing with him, not at him - but then just one time he snaps and just starts wrecking fools with suplexes and throws. 

Nikki Cross was WAY too over the top - ridiculously so. Embarrassingly so.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

Damn Adam Cole. He's believable. The back & forth between regal and Cole was natural and convincing. I'm a fan of Strong and Kyle, but Cole stood out in terms of delivery. 

I enjoyed the woman's match, main event, and the gargano & lacey evans segment. Good episode


----------



## Jedah

Solid episode. Cole had a good promo.

The Lars match was academic. EC3 is going to get squashed soon.

That was the best tag match with the Street Profits so far, but they're so low on the totem pole after that loss that I don't know where they go after this.

Kairi vs. Vanessa was just a speed bump. The rematch with Shayna got announced as expected but the division really needs to move on from her. This needs to be the end of the feud and Shayna needs to go up to Raw.

Otis vs. Ciampa was much better than I thought. Otis was fun and Ciampa played his character well, still getting the heat even absent from Johnny.

Elsewhere, we have Dream building up to something and Johnny seemingly starting to come to his senses.


----------



## RiverFenix

Good solid hour of wrestling. No wasted segments or filler that goes nowhere. 

Regal and Cole were very good in their in-ring promo, it was very natural (at least for pro-wrestling standards) with their actually listening to each other to interrupt and counter argue. Set up some pretty killer matches in the coming weeks as well - War Raiders vs KOR/Strong and Ricochet v Dunne v Cole for NA title. 

That was the best match Street Profits had. Dropped their OTT silliness and for the first time looked threatening. Angelo Dawkins as a former gold glove boxer I believe and college wrestler - he should be sold as more legit. And Montez Ford has ridiculous hops. He cleared the top rope by over a foot or more on his Tope, and then that bit where he jumped up on to the apron to avoid the charging TMDK member was a fun spot. What I really liked was TMDK won - near the end I was hoping that for a change they'd tell the story of Ford unable to make the hot tag and quick victory but didn't think they'd do it. And they did. 

Sullivan's squash served the purpose of furthering EC3 vs Lars so that was something. Can't say I'm looking forward to that one at all. EC3's big run in was jab-jab-jab-jab-cross like three times in a row. It's going to be a terrible match hope it's not on a Takeover. 

I still don't care about Gargano's redemption - I think they might have waited too long and fans gave up caring. I'm worried they can't get him back. 

Vanessa Borne is always improving and Sane is showing more and getting more comfortable. NXT really needs a secondary women's belt or tag division. 

I already talked about Otis last night. He's being wasted in the tag team. Transitions were a little wonky at times, and on one of the overhead throws Ciampa was a little obvious in cocking his leg up for Otis to grab it - but Otis would get better working singles matches on house shows and the like. There is something there with him still. Heavy Machinery is the drizzling shits though. Tucker Knight offers nothing.

I liked that the comedy acts got to show their serious sides - Street Profits and Dozer. Now of course not everybody can be badasses, so their regular characters serve a purpose and provide variety ( even if it isn't my cup of tea) but maybe just dial it down a bit on the goofiness and show a bit more menace and presenting yourself as a threat in the ring - a little of both if you will.


----------



## Mordecay




----------



## Piers

Rather enjoyable episode

Otis did good, Ciampa was great as always
Glad the Mighty got the win, and Vanessa was hot as always. I don't see a lot of in-ring improvement but she's a jobber anyway for now.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Well I didn't like that episode for obvious reasons, it's like NXT officials read this forum and wanted to punish me for shitting on Street Profits, Kairi and Otis, so much so they feature all three in the same episode  anyway...

Show started well as Adam Cole yet again proved why he should be on his own, he made that segment his own, delivered a top promo and came across as a top guy, Kyle O'Reilly and Roddy Strong just look like two bland bitches beside him, they bring absolutely nothing to Adam Cole. 

Some nice backstage segments with Gargano, Dream and Nikki. Nikki Cross is starting to become one of my favourites, she's so much better on her own.

Fair play to Street Profits for wrestling a serious match for once. It started off hot until The Mighty gained control then it shit the bed.

Kairi Sane almost put me to sleep again, so overrated.

Then we finish with Otis putting on a display of a usual boring big guy, few splashes, few throws, that was it, nothing impressive, there's many guys who can do what he can but much better. 

Hopefully next week is better.


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Liked this episode. 

It's good to see Gargano story going forward but I do think this is getting a bit long in the tooth though. Pretty sure that Candace and Evans will have a match at some point.

So It's official..Kairi and Shayna at Evolution. Figured as such. The Feud should be over after that I think. 

I love the street profits and it's was mighty good to see them serious as fuck and just take it to the mighty. Even though they lost I think they'll win this feud in the end. 

The Main Event was fantastic. Otis did well against Ciampa.

EC3 vs Lars? Cool.

I'm liking Nikki and this feud with Bianca. I think whoever wins this will probably go on to face Sane at the next takeover probably.


----------



## SAMCRO

Johnny still remaining in NXT seems stupid to me, what more is he gonna do there? He's already failed at winning the NXT title like 5 times at this point, its clear he's never gonna win the title, plus its awkward knowing him and Ciampa are there at the same place and not trying to kill each other. When their feud ended one of them should have been called up, and that one is Johnny since Ciampa won the title. Just call him up and put him on 205 Live already.

Its clear as day Adam Cole is ready to hold the NXT title, but its a tough situation cause Ciampa is so hot right now and deserves to be champion a good while, i just don't know how you get the title from Ciampa to Cole, cause i really don't see which face would take the belt off Ciampa so Cole could beat them for it. Unless Cole wins it in a multi man match.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

SAMCRO said:


> *Its clear as day Adam Cole is ready to hold the NXT title*, but its a tough situation cause Ciampa is so hot right now and deserves to be champion a good while, i just don't know how you get the title from Ciampa to Cole, cause i really don't see which face would take the belt off Ciampa so Cole could beat them for it. Unless Cole wins it in a multi man match.


Clear as f*cking day.


----------



## TD Stinger

*Gargano beats Ciampa for the title WM Weekend in 2019.

*Cole beats Gargano for the title Summerslam Weekend in 2019.

*Cole holds the belt for until WM 2020 or Summerslam 2020 before leaving NXT to the main roster.

All of this hinging on Cole and TUE not getting called up beforehand, with the likeliest time being by after Mania next year.


----------



## MC

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Clear as f*cking day.


Even I agree with this. The fans are more behind Cole than anyone in NXT, they should go with him soon and not continue on with Mr Faux Intensity vs Broken Johnny (or whatever). Something new needs to be added at the top of the Takeovers.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

MC 16 said:


> Even I agree with this. The fans are more behind Cole than anyone in NXT, they should go with him soon and not continue on with Mr Faux Intensity vs Broken Johnny (or whatever). Something new needs to be added at the top of the Takeovers.


You know it's the f*cking truth when my guy MC agrees with me on something about Cole !!!









Honestly, they should just go with a simple old school approach, have a number 1 contenders battle royal after TUE wins WarGames. Cole & Johnny Failure are the final two (in which the crowd would more than likely side with Cole) they tease Johnny winning but Cole ultimately ends up winning. Cole/Ciampa at RR Takeover and Cole wins it. Cole like you said is the most over guy in NXT to the point it would feel like a face/heel dynamic with him facing Ciampa.


----------



## validreasoning

TD Stinger said:


> *Gargano beats Ciampa for the title WM Weekend in 2019.
> 
> *Cole beats Gargano for the title Summerslam Weekend in 2019.
> 
> *Cole holds the belt for until WM 2020 or Summerslam 2020 before leaving NXT to the main roster.
> 
> All of this hinging on Cole and TUE not getting called up beforehand, with the likeliest time being by after Mania next year.


I would imagine Cole and the rest of the gang are up by the raw/sd after mania 35. New day need a viable opponent that they haven't wrestled a million times before, the shield need an opponent that's not Ziggler, strowman and McIntyre. Honestly you could build the entire program from mania to Summerslam around the shield vs undisputed era.

No chance they keep him in nxt until summer of 2020..zero. that would be three years in nxt, three times longer than Nakamura, 6 times longer than Owens (who was about same level star as Cole prior to signing with wwe) and a 15 months longer than Balor


----------



## TD Stinger

validreasoning said:


> I would imagine Cole and the rest of the gang are up by the raw/sd after mania 35. New day need a viable opponent that they haven't wrestled a million times before, the shield need an opponent that's not Ziggler, strowman and McIntyre. Honestly you could build the entire program from mania to Summerslam around the shield vs undisputed era.
> 
> No chance they keep him in nxt until summer of 2020..zero. that would be three years in nxt, three times longer than Nakamura, 6 times longer than Owens (who was about same level star as Cole prior to signing with wwe) and a 15 months longer than Balor


I agree with that WWE wouldn't hesitate to put New and TUE as a match as soon as TUE debut. That's a hand in glove fit. The Shield however I doubt will still be together by WM 35. And yes, I myself very much doubt they would hold them off until the Summer of 2020.

But Cole seems like a guy they want to build NXT around more long term than others. And they have other guys that can go up before him like Black, EC3, Lars, etc. So I could believe if I saw Gargano gets his moment only to lose it Cole shortly afterwards.

Maybe Gargano only gets a short reign with the belt and Cole wins it next year at the June Takeover. But the earliest I see Cole going up is the fall of next year or WM 2020 time. Somewhere in that time frame.

And as for Ciampa vs. Cole being floated around. Look I'm not saying I wouldn't want to see it or that they couldn't make it work. But I just don't see NXT doing it.


----------



## december_blue

The God Tony Nese is on NXT tonight!


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1047470590389575680


----------



## Psychosocial

I've caught up with the 5 episodes that I've missed over the past month recently and it's been pretty intriguing to say the least. We still don't know who attacked Black but the investigation is getting hotter with each week. Lars is back and crushing dudes, Keith Lee is looking better with each appearance, and I like the direction they're going with Ciampa, Gargano, and Dream since Brooklyn on the show too. Gargano-Dream was a really good match. I really hope we end up getting Ciampa-Dream at WarGames, Gargano needs to face someone else and take some time rediscovering himself before going after Tommaso again. Undisputed Era, Ricochet, and Dunne all looking great too. Ricochet-Dunne might be my TV match of the year. Hopefully we get to see more of War Raiders in the ring soon, it's been months since their last match now. I like that Kairi and Shayna are continuing their feud after that undecisive finish in Brooklyn while they're still building Bianca too, but I don't get why Cross is still there and being protected. It's time for her to join the rest of SAnitY on SDL, I seriously don't get why they're prolonging the wait. Maybe Triple H still feels the other women are far from ready to carry the division and needs her around until they can do so.

All this going on and we still have yet to see Riddle, Io, and the remainder of the MMA Horsewomen make their debuts yet. Such an exciting time for the brand. See you guys in another month.


----------



## Jedah

The MMA horsewomen debuting is one of the things that worries me. Hopefully they get sent straight to the main roster. But either way, I don't think they're ready for TV yet.

I'm assuming Io and Riddle will debut at the next set of tapings.


----------



## Reil

I don't think Io will debut at the next set of tapings, to be honest. Probably the set right before or right after War Games.


----------



## Jedah

The next tapings are the last ones before War Games.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> The next tapings are the last ones before War Games.


Still don't think she'll debut because:



Spoiler: Potential Spoilers



Io is in the MYC finals, and they would be spoiling Evolution if they debuted her early, because if she wins, she'll be introduced as the MYC 2018 winner, and if she loses, she won't have that moniker.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Still don't think she'll debut because:
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler: Potential Spoilers
> 
> 
> 
> Io is in the MYC finals, and they would be spoiling Evolution if they debuted her early, because if she wins, she'll be introduced as the MYC 2018 winner, and if she loses, she won't have that moniker.



Odds of them just doing backstage segments w/ her & Lacey Evans and having Io wrestle Lacey at War Games as her "debut"(ala Asuka/Dana Brooke)?


----------



## TD Stinger

Latest show thoughts:

I love Nikki Cross. I love how she can exist in her own little crazy world, dealing with her own feud while being a key cog in another big story.

Lacey is someone who while still green shows great promise as a character between doing push ups while having Candice in a headscissors, using her Candice's hair as a a weapon behind the referee's back, berating Candice about being a "bad wife", etc. Match itself decent. I've said all I can say about Lacey's finisher, so I won't repeat myself.

Great video package hyping Dunne vs. Cole vs. Ricochet. And Ciampa vs. Dream is heating up and I can't wait for that eventual match or promo battle.

I enjoyed seeing the Forgotten Sons bully around the job guys, especially from Ryker. Overall still not convinced about their long term future.

Gargano vs. Nese was a really good match. Seemless counters and transitions (though got a bit too cute at times). And I'm glad we seem to be transitioning away from Emo Johnny.

That video package with Lorcan and Burch hit me right in the feels man.

And lastly the main event was...meh. think Lars can have fun matches with smaller, more well rounded opponents. Black is the prime example of that. But EC3's not the guy who will carry him. Match looked like it could have been something in the beginning with EC3 punishing Lars with the steps. But everything after that, IMO, was fairly pedestrian.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Cole never ceases to amaze me with his promo ability.


----------



## Jedah

Meh episode to be honest.

Candice really hasn't been impressive. She's now even falling into the tropes around her husband in throwaway matches like this. They did the exact same thing a month ago with Gargano vs. Dream. Meanwhile, Lacey did a lot more in that match and is developing more and more. I still don't know why they're keeping her this strong though. She needs to change her finisher badly.

Gargano vs. Nese didn't meet my expectations. It just didn't really take off except that both guys are great at doing moves.

Forgotten Sons squash. Whatever. EC3 vs. Lars. Whatever. One has to wonder why EC3 is still in NXT. He really has nowhere to go from here. It's obvious that with the talent there, Keith Lee now in, and Riddle arriving soon, he's not getting pushed anytime in the near future.

That triple threat is going to be awesome though. :mark


----------



## ellthom

NxT was okay last night.

Great match between Nesse and Gargano. Pretty much the highlight. 

My only nit pick is, what the hell are they doing with EC3? The mans been on a losing streak and I am not sure if they even have a direction for him.


----------



## RiverFenix

Probably Lacey's best match of her career. She's seemingly finally getting it - like she was struggling a long and all of a sudden it clicked. Candice is a wily vet of course so that probably helped as well. Same with Bianca last week with Nikki Cross - NXT should look to hire some more of these types - Mercedes Martinez would be great in such a role as well, though I don't know if she could make that move with her family for a pure development deal that likely would go nowhere. 

Lacey pulling out the handkerchief midmatch to dry any sweat should be an and of match ritual where she puts it in her opponents mouth like Dibiase did with money back in the day. She always has a face turn up her sleeve with her military past as well. Her finisher is terrible though, I mean for the sake of the finisher name they use a right hand punch? At least use the Tito Santana flying forearm finisher and call it that. Or a Kerry Von Erichs Tornado Punch or something. 

Still not sure what the Forgotton Sons are - I'm leaning to a Biker Gang now with the explanation of bringing in Ryker as their enforcer. Still think they look too much like Sanity. If they are Bikers, how about showing them on bikes. I still think they should have been left as a tag team. Not much to comment on in the actual match as it was a total squash BUT Blake still stands out for the little things character work. You can tell he's a student of the game type. I'd rather Ryker/Cutler be the "Forgotton Sons" tag team of ex-Vets who are neglected and "forgotten" once they leave the service and try to make it as civilians. Blake could form a "Cowboy" tag team with somebody - either a BlackJacks type or Smoking Guns type. Hell, put him with a Mexican cowboy character (with Humberto Carillo maybe) for something a bit different, or even one of the Chinese wrestlers sort of like a Jimmy Wang Yang gimmick where they're infatuated with Clint Eastwood and American Westerns and think that is what America still is. 

Marina and Jessamyn in the Shayna training vignette. Hmmmm. I don't worry about MMA Horsewomen running roughshod in NXT because Ronda ain't coming down, so they're most likley up on the MR. Ideally I think Shayna and Ronda should be on the MR together, with Jess and Shafir left in NXT, but also split time to go up to give Ronda and Shayna numbers on occasion. 

Nese vs Gargano is obviously trying to get Gargano back over again based on his stellar workrate - fans are still rejecting him though. I wonder if there is a cross over angle brewing here with Nese mentioning coming from 205 Live or it's a one off. I think best thing for Gargano would be to maybe move up to 205 Live for a stint to separate him from Ciampa and the fanbase who has turned on him a bit. Have a couple more CW's go down to challenge him and have him win and then get offered a title shot or something by Drake Maverick. 

Great promo vignette for Oney and Burch. Still needs a tag team name though. Wouldn't mind them splitting time with NXT UK as well. 

Lars has no reason to do the top rope headbutt. Nobody does really. EC3 is completely lost in NXT - put him in a tag team or call him up or something - or both. Pair him with Tino Sabbatelli as a couple of rich dudes flaunting their cash or something. 

At least this feud is a television one and won't take up a valuable Takeover slot.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

ellthom said:


> My only nit pick is, what the hell are they doing with EC3? The mans been on a losing streak and I am not sure if they even have a direction for him.


He's gotta be getting called up soon, he's been a flop in NXT.


----------



## Reil

I think the concern is less Ronda being down in NXT running wild with her buddies and more along the lines of Marina and Jessamyn running wild on the NXT Women's Division (which is JUST starting to recover) with Shayna. For reference, they've been undefeated on house shows. One of their most recent matches was an elimination tag match (Shayna, Marina, and Jessamyn vs Kairi, Dakota, and Candice). The UFC 4HW won 3-0. Not a single person was eliminated or ever in any real danger of doing so on the UFC side. Generally how people are handled on the NXT house show circuit is close to how they'll be treated on TV.


----------



## Jedah

No it isn't. Bianca has lost plenty of house show matches (including to Dakota of all people) but still crows about being undefeated on TV. Shayna lost plenty of tag team matches when she was champion. NXT house shows aren't predictive things.

That said, the danger is nepotism. After seeing this Mae Young Classic and all the talent coming in, the NXT women's division should be in another golden age next year, but if the horseshitwomen run rampant all of that potential is going to be ruined, just like Shayna delayed the rebuilding of the division following Asuka's reign. Even Ember's reign could have been a lot more than it was but she needed to look like a bitch to Shayna throughout almost all of it.

So I'm just hoping they all go right to the main roster. Supposedly Survivor Series won't be Raw vs. SD this year, and I hope they all debut for that stupid horsewomen match no one cares about and leave NXT alone.


----------



## RiverFenix

I think the possible storyline of Horsewomen vs Horsewomen could happen this year at SS and they're covering for Jess and Marina by the fact Becky and Charlotte are feuding, and there is Bayley/Sasha tension as well. So they'll sorta be forced to team and they they'll "blow up" mid match which will explain why Ronda/Shayna can win with vastly inexperienced Jessamyn and Marina on their team against four title holders. I don't think Shayna has anything left in NXT. Evolution will kick off Horsewomen vs Horsewomen. I also think Ronda and Shayna will be a semi-perminent tag team once the women's tag division kicks off.


----------



## Alright_Mate

More build from segments/promos this week rather than matches...

Nikki Cross is the best character in Women's Wrestling right now.

Lacey Evans vs Candice LeRae was solid. Lacey's in ring heel work gets better and better on every appearance, it's good to see her adding things, that head scissors takedown was perfectly executed, the pulling of the hair while grounding down Candice is simple but fantastic heel work, love stuff like that. Candice is very fun to watch in comeback situations, more good selling from her during that spell as well. The finish was well done too, liked how Lacey baited Candice in. 

Great hype package for a Ricochet vs Dunne vs Cole.

Another great backstage promo from Ciampa.

Forgotten Sons are just shit tbh, nothing about them, three boring guys, boring to watch, get rid.

Gargano vs Nese had it's moments but it had too many sloppy spots, that buckle bomb in particular which was more like a rope bomb was very dangerous from Nese. Gargano turned on the super powers towards the end, crappy selling. It was alright but I expected better.

Lorcan and Burch :mark loved that video package, hopefully they get another Tag Title shot by the end of 2018.

EC3 vs Sullivan was awful, like a wrestling match in slo-mo. It just showed how boring of a wrestler EC3 is, his offense is bog standard. Only good thing about this was the blood. Unsurprisingly they didn't click, poor ending to an ok episode.

Next two weeks look good though.


----------



## ellthom

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> He's gotta be getting called up soon, he's been a flop in NXT.


That's what I assume, I still think it was dumb of him to go back to NxT in the first place.


----------



## Piers

Fuck Lacey Evan's finisher. I can buy it from Big Show because of the size of his fist but not from a woman, sorry.


----------



## GTL2

I'm trying to picture the scene in Creative where someone thought Lars and EC3 would be a good match. Individually they have a huge amount going for them but this was never going to work. 

They are wasting a lot of talent in EC3 right now and he's not getting any younger. Move him to MR. I guess they needed a credible guy for Lars to beat and with Ohno reserved for Riddle, they are running low in the quality jobber department. 

Lacey is becoming a real asset to the women's roster and is still improving. 

Good promos from Ciampa and Oney/Burch

A bust for in ring action


----------



## Reil

Lacey is likely being built up to either be fed to Io upon her debut, or more likely going to feud with Kairi for the title at some point.


----------



## TD Stinger

EC3 needs to get called up yesterday. And not that he would be treated better there, but he fits the "main roster" mold more than he does the "NXT" mold. And with all the talent WWE has and will continue to bring in, he'll never break out of the pack.

Lacey's finisher is stupid, but part of me thinks that's the idea behind it. It's so ridiculous it makes people hate her more. And whether or not she makes it big in NXT or not, I'd be shocked with her look that she's not pushed to the moon on the main roster.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Lacey is likely being built up to either be fed to Io upon her debut, or more likely going to feud with Kairi for the title at some point.


My guess is she's being prepped for Io Shirai. The NXT instagram just posted a graphic of all the women that Lacey has defeated w/ the Women's Right which included Candice, Dakota & Kairi. My guess is Io feuds with Lacey for Takeover: War Games(assuming that spot isn't taken by Nikki/Bianca) and Io runs right through her putting her near the top of the pecking order even without a MYC tournament win.


----------



## SAMCRO

Lacey's finisher is retarded as all hell, it just always looks so goofy after a long back and forth match and it ends with a punch and the opponent falls as if Big Show just hit em, it looks dumb and is always a horrible ending. Also it never makes any sound of impact, at least when Big Show punched guys you'd hear a loud smack which made it look more viscous, but with Lacey theres no impact at all which makes it look even worse. Lacey's punch finisher has to be one of the all time worst finishers a female has ever had in pro wrestling.

She used to use the Dudebuster, i don't know why she doesn't use that. But regardless if she continues to use it i'll continue to shit on it everytime i see her do it.

Speaking of finishers wtf is with Ryker's finisher? A slingshot powerbomb? That doesn't look like a finisher at all, and the move obviously loses impact performing it that way, a straight up regular powerbomb would look so much better. Cause with the springboard part the opponent isn't being driven into the mat by Ryker, they're just falling from the momentum of the springboard which doesn't look vicious or hard hitting at all.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

After last week’s episode was all rather throwaway, I really enjoyed the episode this week. I know some people want NXT to be longer but the amount they are able to cram into an hour of NXT puts the other shows to shame for me. This episode developed characters and stories and was still able to deliver one great wrestling match. You can go three hours through Raw without the status quo taking a single hit and without seeing even one good wrestling match. 

— Who is a worse actor, Kairi Sane or Nikki Cross? 

— I hope Baszler takes the title back. I know people aren’t so hot on her but they way she has so naturally transitioned into pro wrestling has been great to see for me. Sure she has been constantly put in a position to look as good as physically possible but I dunno, I think she is one of the best acquisitions they’ve got in the women’s division in a long time.

— What was more awful, Lars/EC3 or LeRea/Evans? I guess at least the ladies can actually wrestle…

— Awesome hype package fo the NA Triple Threat. Crazy to see Dunne in this kind of position but I love it. I just hope he isn’t in the match to eat the pin. I guess even if he isn’t, he is apparently injured so whatever momentum he gets out of this match is going to be for nothing. 

— I actually am really enjoying the Forgotten Sons. Just a shame Cutler now looks like Zorro, is he going to have to permanently wear that thing or just until his injury heals? 

— Looks like Tony Nese got a promotion. From 205 Live to wrestling Johnny Gargano on NXT. It was a great match, too, just a shame that the finish came out of nowhere. You can stay, Nese. 

— Did Bianca call Nikki a widow? Man, that is rough… 

— Fantastic hype package for Burch/Lorcan. Put those tag titles on them in 2019! They can be the new DIY.


----------



## Reil

Completely 100% disagree on Shayna taking the title back. She's had her time in the spotlight, and she completely destroyed the babyface side of the division while she was champion. Her beating Kairi would kill it pretty much *permanently*. Especially since every other babyface is being jobbed out to Lacey and Bianca. Shayna should lose at Evolution, and then move up to RAW and feud with Ronda, since she'll _desperately_ need a credible opponent after Evolution. She's already beaten pretty much every other heel on RAW right now.

It doesn't help that the vast majority of Shayna's matches are very much one sided or she's never portrayed in any real danger, and her Takeover matches tended to be some of the worst in the history of NXT's Women's Division. Her matches against Ember were mediocre, her match against Nikki Cross was easily the worst NXT Women's Title match in Takeover history, and the only reason her match against Kairi was memorable was because of the good storytelling.

As for your acting question, I think both Kairi and Nikki excel at their roles. Kairi is an excellent underdog babyface (you don't need to be a good talker to portray this, as her body language and facial emotions do the job well enough, no other female on the ACTIVE NXT TV roster has that level of charisma right now), and Nikki's personality is great. It helps that Kairi used to be a TV actress in Japan.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

That main event tho :zayn3

Adam Cole not taking the pinfall tho :zayn3:zayn3


----------



## Mordecay

That main event though :clap. Too bad that it was the final match of the tapings and the crowd was a bit exhausted, but still, it was great, way better than the KOPW Triple Threat match

The opening promo between VD and Ciampa was also very good, and Nikki was fun, but I think it dragged a bit, Nikki is good in small dosis.

The rest of the show was just there


----------



## Buffy The Vampire Slayer

_*The main event of this week's show was lit. Adam Cole did his thing and I am proud of him. Good showing by all three of the competitors. :clap*_


----------



## Alexander_G

Pizzamorg said:


> — Who is a worse actor, Kairi Sane or Nikki Cross?


Kairi doesn't act. Her personality in the ring is the same in her personal life. The cute pirate princess is simply a symbolic, artistic extension of herself, her good nature, love for the sea and honorable standards.

So to answer your question, Nikki, of course is by far the better actress. Nikki in real life is actually much more "chillax", but handles gimmicks well.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

NXT delivers again. Great main-event. It's amazing how loaded NXT is with the likes of Cole, Ricochet, Dunne, Ciampa, and Gargano. Helluva top 5.


----------



## TD Stinger

New episode thoughts:

*I love the dynamic between Dream and Ciampa. Like, they're both assholes, but both charismatic in their own unique way. Which allows a "heel vs. heel" promo to work.

And I love Nikki's role in NXT at the moment, allowing her to be both a wrestler and a key cog in NXT's biggest story. Some people say she's over the top, but being over the top works for her. And the crowd loves it too. And for me most importantly, I love it. Because it's fun and entertaining and adds dept to this story

*Lee vs. Kona was another fun showcase for Lee. Which I like, but I'm getting ready to see him in something a little more important, whatever it is.

*Ohno vs. Riddle is gonna rule.

*Cole vs. Ricochet vs. Dunne was another very good match from these 3. Just lots of action. Fun side story of Cole constantly getting picked apart 2 on 1. Lots of great action. It was sloppy at times and even the finish wasn't well executed, which it takes it down a couple notches. But still a very fun match.


----------



## Reil

Alexander_G said:


> Kairi doesn't act. Her personality in the ring is the same in her personal life. The cute pirate princess is simply a symbolic, artistic extension of herself, her good nature, love for the sea and honorable standards.
> 
> So to answer your question, Nikki, of course is by far the better actress. Nikki in real life is actually much more "chillax", but handles gimmicks well.


Dropping the pirate stuff for a moment, you are correct in that its basically an extension of her real life self. She's one of the nicest people in the business behind the scenes apparently, and I don't think anyone has ever reported her having any sort of backstage incidents either.


----------



## Jedah

Really good episode this week. Awesome opening promo between Ciampa and Dream, two of the best in the company on the mic. Cross' presence makes me wonder if we're heading toward a triple threat at War Games instead of a one on one though. There don't seem to be any other suspects in the "who dun it?" game right now.

Kona Reeves is really good at getting cheap heat and then getting beat. Best role for him. Keith Lee didn't disappoint.

And of course that main event, what can you say? Another awesome match involving that combination. Not sure it was quite as good as the one on one match between Ricochet and Dunne, but it's still probably a low tier match of the year candidate. Cole not taking the pin suggests to me he's getting his one on one rematch. Really hope Dunne is OK for War Games. It would suck if he's not.

The only bad part was the Shayna promo. She seriously has go away heat with me now. Why is she still in NXT? Nothing good can come from her still being there. Nothing. The fact that they're hyping up Kairi "not accomplishing" the win would make it all even worse if she somehow loses. Go away, Shayna. Now.


----------



## Mordecay




----------



## candice-wrestling

What an episode! I'm really digging NXT lately. The opening was great! I'm not that big of a fan of Nikki Cross but I'm loving her stuff she's doing right now with the who attacked Aleister Black story. I can't wait until she reveals who it was. Keith Lee is really cool. Lastly I'm itching for Cole to be champion again whether it's the North American Championship or the NXT Championship he's just on fire right now and I love seeing him as a heel champion. Anyways looking forward to next week!!


----------



## LifeInCattleClass

When Ricochet talks, all i hear in my head is ‘Barcelooooonnnaaa...’ - he looks so much like Freddy Mercury


----------



## Oneiros

The main event was really good, but the highlight of the show was the opening segment. Ciampa, Velveteen and Nikki were all great. One of my favorite non-wrestling segments in NXT.

And Keith Lee is a cool badass.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Very good episode this week...

The opening segment was one of my favourite segments on NXT this year. Ciampa is an excellent promo and he cut another good one here on Dream. The Ciampa/Dream exchange was excellent too, some great lines in there, Dream calling Ciampa a "Bold man with insecurities", Ciampa with the tough enough dig, very fun stuff. We then got Nikki Cross...when she was with Sanity I wasn't really bothered whether I saw her or not; however now she's on her own she's quickly become one of my favourites, she's excelling on her own and is really playing a big part in NXT right now. Nikki isn't everyone's cup of tea, it's very wacky sometimes but it really is excellent character work, the Women's roster on all brands WWE lack interesting characters, Nikki is different, in a class of her own and right now she's fun to watch. Best part of her part was when she slapped and kicked the microphone from Ciampa's hands, Full Sail loved it. 

Keith Lee vs Kona Reeves wasn't up to much. I have split opinions on Kona, the guy is charismatic and in some recent backstage segments especially he's done a good job, his aggressive side in the ring is decent; however his gimmick is really letting him down, it's just not interesting enough. As for Keith Lee he is just treading water until they have something for him, I just want to see more of a serious side though.

The Shayna package and Kairi promo were the worst part of the episode. The Women's division is taking the wrong direction with Kairi at the top, that promo was short but it was so cringe, Triple H needs to see sense and get the title off her.

The Nikki & Ohno exchange a red herring perhaps?

Now that main event, WOW. To start with I honestly didn't think much to it, they produced some good things but the pacing was slow and it was all very 1 vs 1 while the other had a rest. Then the last ten minutes happened and everything turned excellent. The pacing picked up, you had loads of three way sequences, it was great stuff. In particular I enjoyed the submission sequence with Dunne and Ricochet, then Cole hit Ricochet with the backstabber. That double super kick spot on Ricochet was quality. The double rana spot was quality. The sequence when Dunne hit bitter end on Cole, then caught Ricochet in the triangle after Ricochet attempted the shooting star press was quality. Really thought Cole had the match after the brainbuster on Dunne. The ending came out of nowhere and was pretty abrupt but overall it was a well built match. Dunne's aggression in this match was excellent, Ricochet's offense was smooth as always and Cole played the perfect role as the heel.

Great entertainment this week, roll on next week which looks just as good.


----------



## RiverFenix

Lee vs Reeves was a fun television match - both Kona and Keith are getting better feel for their characters, tweaking things and dropping things that don't work. Reeves was too over the top with his earlier appearances but is finally finding the sweetspot I think. "The Finest" is still terrible, but at least he isn't spamming it every five seconds with a taunt". Lee of course is doing what he did on the indies, but is now playing for the camera versus playing up facials, gestures so the people in the back row can see him. 

I actually wouldn't mind to see a bit more from these two - maybe have Kona get a win by sneaky means in a rematch or something.


----------



## Alexander_G

Hope they made plans for temp relocation again, after what I'm hearing about this hurricane right now over there, guys.


----------



## Reil

Alexander_G said:


> Hope they made plans for temp relocation again, after what I'm hearing about this hurricane right now over there, guys.


Orlando is apparently pretty much unscathed. The hurricane hit the Florida Panhandle. And Orlando is on the complete opposite side of Florida. Worst case scenario is they got some light rain.


----------



## Psychosocial

Last week's episode was decent but a bit oddly paced with that solid Gargano/Nese match happening in the middle of the show while the lesser quality LeRae/Evans and EC3/Sullivan bouts opened and closed it respectively. Can't imagine EC3 will be in NXT for much longer, it just simply isn't working out for him there. I liked what I saw more from the Forgotten Sons this time as opposed to their previous appearances and Bianca had a good backstage segment, even if the undefeated thing is getting a little tiring to hear every time but seeing as I'm supposed to dislike her as a heel, it works. Loved the Burch & Lorcan package too, their rise this year has been inspiring and hopefully more opportunities will come for them next year.

This week's episode was really good though. Not much to say about the main event that hasn't already been said, another stupidly good performance by all 3 guys again. I do wonder how they build the WarGames match out of this though. Moustache Mountain haven't even been seen since Brooklyn and the War Raiders have barely been involved with Ricochet either. I hope they don't book this match main roster style. This needs to be a war between each group and become so personal that it can't be settled anywhere other than WarGames, not just three groups of guys occasionally fighting each other and then being locked in a structure. I liked the way they set up last year's match, I hope this year's is similar but they need to have a lot more interactions between the teams between now and then. Maybe they'll fast track that a bit next week with the tag title match, let's see.

Opening segment was awesome, but are they going for a heel vs. heel title match or are they planning on turning the Dream face? Although I guess Velveteen may well even be a tweener at this point even if it's not being acknowledged yet. Nikki is doing great lately, the crowd was hilarious when she interrupted their segment. I'd love to see Ciampa-Dream happen, with Black returning to face Gargano instead, but there still seems to be a lot to uncover before either of those matches become official at this point.

I'm enjoying Ohno's recent character work too. NXT has done quite well to tweak a few people's characters on the show lately and rejuvenate them. Looking forward to Riddle's debut too. Ohno vs Riddle should be a good match. Probably will happen TakeOver weekend on the pre-show tapings.

Lee v Reeves was alright. Kona is actually growing on me. That taunt he does is still horrible, but at least he doesn't annoy me as much with it anymore. And his change in entrance attire was definitely the right call too. I still can't get into that silly character but he's at least improving and that's what this is all about in the end. I wouldn't mind a mini feud here before Lee moves on to battle with someone like, say, Lars Sullivan. Now that would be fun.

Next week should be exciting with the tag title match which I fully expect to end with fuckery as I don't think it's time for War Raiders to take the gold yet. Bianca-Nikki is interesting too after what happened last time, wish they added a stipulation to it but it is what it is. If Bianca is being built up for a title match soon, she needs to win definitively this time. Also looking forward to the next chapter in the Aleister story and Ciampa/Dream. NXT as always is delivering on all fronts at the moment.



Showstopper said:


> NXT delivers again. Great main-event. It's amazing how loaded NXT is with the likes of Cole, Ricochet, Dunne, Ciampa, and Gargano. Helluva top 5.


Throw in Velveteen Dream and there's NXT's answer to the SmackDown Six of the early RA days. Or even Aleister Black.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Orlando is apparently pretty much unscathed. The hurricane hit the Florida Panhandle. And Orlando is on the complete opposite side of Florida. Worst case scenario is they got some light rain.


The only impact I think that the hurricane had on NXT is they had to cancel last night's NXT House show in Jacksonville.


----------



## Mear

Sweet god, I hope Nikki Cross can get the hell out of the Main Event scene. Seriously, how can you have Ciampa and Velveteen in a segment and then have her show up ? She's atrocious and the cringiest act on NXT. At no point does she feels like an actual person, it feels so forced, especially with how no one tells her to shut up.

Otherwise, another week, another classic involving Pete Dunne vs Ricochet except it's even better with Adam Cole into the mix. I'm curious to what it will lead to Takeover but I only know one thing, it will lead to an absolute classic based on how incredible that program it has been. It kinda sucks however that the NXT Title and Ciampa is just an afterthought now but I guess it works since the North American title needs to feel important as it is new.

I hope that considering Pete Dunne basically had the match won, it will lead to him being a recurrent NXT superstar and a future NXT champion in the future


----------



## Eulonzo

I'm gonna be honest, I LOVE Nikki Cross. Do I think she can be a bit too goofy? Yeah. She did go a tad overboard with it this week, but for me the goofiness works for her psychotic/crazy personality, unlike Dean Ambrose.

One thing I got out of the segment though is I wouldn't mind if they turned her heel again & put her with Tomasso. The parts where she took the mic out of his hand & kicked it and their staredown, it made me go 'hm, this would be interesting'. But neither two really need anybody right now.

As for Velveteen Dream, he's still my favorite on NXT & I hope he wins the North American title at some point, if not the world title. Just keep him in NXT for as long as possible. He just has IT.



Jedah said:


> The only bad part was the Shayna promo. She seriously has go away heat with me now. Why is she still in NXT? Nothing good can come from her still being there. Nothing. The fact that they're hyping up Kairi "not accomplishing" the win would make it all even worse if she somehow loses. Go away, Shayna. Now.


She's literally Baron Corbin with ovaries. I don't hate her or anything, but she's about as interesting as Corbin was in NXT & currently on the main roster.


----------



## ellthom

Mear said:


> Sweet god, I hope Nikki Cross can get the hell out of the Main Event scene. Seriously, how can you have Ciampa and Velveteen in a segment and then have her show up ? She's atrocious and the cringiest act on NXT. At no point does she feels like an actual person, it feels so forced, especially with how no one tells her to shut up.
> 
> Otherwise, another week, another classic involving Pete Dunne vs Ricochet except it's even better with Adam Cole into the mix. I'm curious to what it will lead to Takeover but I only know one thing, it will lead to an absolute classic based on how incredible that program it has been. It kinda sucks however that the NXT Title and Ciampa is just an afterthought now but I guess it works since the North American title needs to feel important as it is new.
> 
> I hope that considering Pete Dunne basically had the match won, it will lead to him being a recurrent NXT superstar and a future NXT champion in the future



I like Nikki Cross but since WWE wont have her with Sanity she needs a gimmick change, she stands out a little too much as 'the girl who got left behind' lol


----------



## MC

I liked the main event but a LOT less than others here. Kind of embarrassed . The match started off promising with Dunne and Ricochet "teaming up" to get at Cole but then it turned into the generic three way which was fine enough. One thing I did hate about the match is how telegraphed the big moments were. It wasn't a smooth transition from spot to spot, it was clearly set up, especially at the end (Dunne is looking at Ricochet ffs). Took a little away. Good match though with decent performances from all, even Cole


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— What an incredible opening segment. Dream isn’t much of a wrestler but I really enjoy his character work. The use of Cross established mental unhingedness to throw a spanner in the works around the Black situation is great.

— Are we really losing out on epic Keith Lee matches on the indies for this shit? Lee should have just squashed Reeves in one move. Why is Lee not going after the NA Title? 

— These hype videos about Baszler ahead of her match at Evolution are awesome. The contrast between this and then Sane’s shitty interview with her ludicrous pantomime acting, just awful. 

— That main event was fucking insane, God damn. So insane at some points I started zoning out as I couldn’t keep up with it all (I mean that in the best possible way). The drama. The near falls. The mind blowing spots. I love NXT.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

This is one of those rare times on this board that everyone agrees about something; the main event from this week's show being great.

:bjpenn


----------



## Psychosocial

Showstopper said:


> This is one of those rare times on this board that everyone agrees about something; the main event from this week's show being great.
> 
> :bjpenn


It's NXT so that's easy because everyone here knows how great it is already.

Now getting everyone to agree on something being great on the main roster, that's a whole other monster altogether.


----------



## Jbardo

God I love nxt.


----------



## GTL2

Yep, main event was good. I liked Shayna's promo. Nikki just way too much for me. Dream has built himself a big character. There aren't many from the PC who can go toe-to-toe with the bigger indy talents with character work (Lars may be another) but he sure can.


----------



## SAMCRO

Seeing Nese last week against Gargano get that much of a reaction from the crowd was great, he does the same shit on 205 Live except he gets no reaction at all from the crowd on there. Thats why 205 Live NEEDS to be moved to Fullsail, i feel like the wrestling would even be better on there for some reason, cause NXT has that indy carefree go out out type of wrestling, and 205 Live kinda has that main roster style to it.


----------



## Psychosocial

SAMCRO said:


> Seeing Nese last week against Gargano get that much of a reaction from the crowd was great, he does the same shit on 205 Live except he gets no reaction at all from the crowd on there. Thats why 205 Live NEEDS to be moved to Fullsail, i feel like the wrestling would even be better on there for some reason, cause NXT has that indy carefree go out out type of wrestling, and 205 Live kinda has that main roster style to it.


I don't think that 205 has a main roster style to it, but I guess that's just subjective observation. I think the show is getting better crowd reactions now that they're doing it before SD too and not after, hopefully they'll keep it that way even after the MMC is over. Fingers crossed.


----------



## Y2JHOLLA

Loved Nikki. LOVED the main event, fucking classic.


----------



## SAMCRO

Psychosocial said:


> I don't think that 205 has a main roster style to it, but I guess that's just subjective observation. I think the show is getting better crowd reactions now that they're doing it before SD too and not after, hopefully they'll keep it that way even after the MMC is over. Fingers crossed.


I just feel like they could be going much faster and doing alot more than they are on 205. 205 Live is good but they aren't going at the level they was in the CWC, and i feel like at Fullsail they would.


----------



## jdhommert

I didnt want to make an entire new thread to try to spam the NXT section, so I figure maybe I'll drop a post in here.....

For anyone going to NXT during the Rumble weekend:
Hey everyone, wanted to let you guys know that Mania Club (facebook group, massive tailgates every Mania etc, recognized by Stephanie/WWE for raising money for Connor's Cure etc) are doing suites for the weekend. The Rumble suites area already confirmed and you should still be able to join them. $250 a piece I think.

But We are wanting to do a suite at NXT, but they either have 16 people suites or 60 people. The bigger suite is much cheaper at only $120 a person instead of $175. The problem is we only have about half of what we need now, and a deposited is needed this week. So if anyone is interested speak up ASAP. Go join and look at Mania Club on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/groups/1674206756189573/ and there are a couple threads there about it. There is one asking for a definite head count, either speak up in there and/or PM the Admin of the group making the purchase for the suites Gary Fonseca and he'll talk to you about it.

Anyone going for the weekend, this is the way to do NXT! Remember after whatever your normal ticket price would be, Ticketmaster will gouge you for another 20-40%, so you may end up paying as much or more for regular seats instead of being in a badass suite. There is a thread with pics of the suite on the page too. Big comfy leather chairs with plenty of room, couches, barstools, tables, ottomans, should have private bathrooms and food/drink available for purchase in the suite too! $120 is a steal for this, but we need you guys to join in to make it happen!!!


----------



## Undertaker23RKO

I hate Nikki Cross.


----------



## HorsemenTerritory1

That’s WAAAYYYY too much glitter to bring into the ring, Bianca.

It’s getting absolutely everywhere and on everybody.


----------



## Mordecay

Gotta give credit when credit is due, that was probably the best match Bianca has had since her match with Kairi at the MYC, same with Nikki, probably her best match since her LWS match with Asuka. Good to see they improoved from their first match, which was really bad.

The tag titles match was fine, and it picked up nicely in the final few minutes.

I know Britt was legit injured after that match, not sure if it was because of Shayna or not.


----------



## ellthom

Great Episode of NxT. Two really solid matches, War Raiders v Undisputed Era was awesome a great use of War Machines power and Undisputed Era's story to try and outsmart them snd overpower them was pretty cool

Bianca Belair v Nikki Cross was a very good match too. They both have really good chemistry and it's nice we got to see more of Bianca Belair too and what she can do, no doubt the best match she's had since coming to NxT.Nikki is awesome as always. Always makes me smile, she is just charming as hell.


----------



## Ham and Egger

Strong and O'Reilly are really good at making their stuff seem legit. Ut looks like everything they do looks real. The War Raider have some cool tandem offence.

Bing and Rocky got a lit theme !!!


----------



## TD Stinger

New Episode Thoughts:

*War Raiders vs. TUE was a pretty good tag team match. Good, simple story of the Raiders using their power to their advantage and TUE having to be smart on how to bring them down.

It's good to see Bobby Fish back, but one has to wonder where he fits in now. I like Fish, but in ring wise it felt like Roddy and Kyle took off a lot more than Kyle and Fish did in NXT, despite Kyle and Fish being a tag team for years before coming to NXT. It'll be interesting to see how they integrate him back in.

Do they go Free Bird style with Roddy, Kyle, & Fish while Cole handles the singles stuff?

*Shayna's match was again, simple but good heel heat.

*Oney is back :mark. That is all.

*They gave the women a lot of time in the main event and I thought they made the most of it. I love contrasting styles/characters. And you don't get 2 different characters than Bianca and Nikki. Nikki makes the most out of the smallest things, and Bianca is a freak of nature.

And the Aleister Black return and the way it was done and produced was great. Provided a great tease going into next week.


----------



## Jedah

Good episode. The tag title match was a taste of things to come.

Shayna....again I say this every time now, can she please fuck off already? This act is beyond stale at this point. We get it. She's a bully. Fine. We've seen enough of it over the past year. The division badly needs to move on.

Lorcan and Burch win academically. It was interesting to see the other two debut.

Bianca vs. Nikki was far better than I expected. It definitely looked like practice for a TakeOver match from Bianca and in my estimation she passed. This was Bianca's best match and Nikki's best since her one with Asuka.

Aleister's acting was nice but he overdid it when the copyright sign rolled.


----------



## Even Flow

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1052756539331629056
Borash :done


----------



## TD Stinger

It's officially official, and they're not wasting any time with her.

Seeing her that over joyed is pretty heart warming.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

ROBERT FISH :mark:


----------



## SAMCRO

Jedah said:


> Good episode. The tag title match was a taste of things to come.
> 
> Shayna....again I say this every time now, can she please fuck off already? This act is beyond stale at this point. We get it. She's a bully. Fine. We've seen enough of it over the past year. The division badly needs to move on.
> 
> Lorcan and Burch win academically. It was interesting to see the other two debut.
> 
> Bianca vs. Nikki was far better than I expected. It definitely looked like practice for a TakeOver match from Bianca and in my estimation she passed. This was Bianca's best match and Nikki's best since her one with Asuka.
> 
> *Aleister's acting was nice but he overdid it when the copyright sign rolled.*


Lol i thought the same thing, i don't care who it was he found out that attacked him, that reaction was so over the top it was almost cartoony, reminded me of this









Its gonna be funny finding out who it is and think how dumb and over the top his reaction was just because ____attacked him. I don't really see who on the NXT roster warrants that reaction, i mean he has no best friend that could have betrayed him, he's a loner so i don't get who would bring out that over the top reaction from him.

Also it kinda bugs me they had Nikki and Bianca go that long into the match where it was practically time for the finish, they're clearly saving the finish for Takeover but they practically already gave us the match it just didn't have a finish. The match should have went like 7 or 8 minutes then had Black interrupt it, cause what more can they do now at their Takeover match now? It wont be much better i can bet, they kinda blew their load.


----------



## Buhalovski

^By that reaction i think its going to be a babyface, thats why he acted like that... i guess? Gargano - Black would be cool feud.


----------



## SAMCRO

Tsvetoslava said:


> ^By that reaction i think its going to be a babyface, thats why he acted like that... i guess? Gargano - Black would be cool feud.


Even if it was Gargano, they aren't friends, and Black did hit him with Black Mass a week before the attack. Gargano doesn't warrant Black's head to implode with anger, i could understand if they really built them up as friends and allies but they aren't, they never even liked each other.


----------



## Buffy The Vampire Slayer

_*I have had this thought for the last few months and the only thing I can think of who attacked Black is none other than Johnny Gargano. He had a lot of to gain with Black being gone so he could beat Chiapa for the NXT Championship. However, he failed to do so and lately since he has failed to beat him most of the time. Johnny has been walking on dark side's door and entered it. Black vs Gargano would be a perfect send off for Black out of NXT and straight to the main roster. *_


----------



## candice-wrestling

This episode was pretty good! Loved the ending with Black & Cross!


----------



## RiverFenix

War Raiders vs TUE was Takeover worthy. Damn good match with so many little things. The Bobby Fish injury is the best thing that could have happened for Roddy Strong - he found his spot in the company after treading water otherwise. It will be interesting to see what they do with him in TUE with Fish seemingly back. They CAN'T boot him out. Do they Freebird Rule the tags or does he give the tag strap back to Fish and maybe refocus on Pete Dunne's UK Title or go after Ricochet's NA Title with Cole going after the NXT Title? Anyways on to the match - 

-KOR just makes everything look so legit, that guillotine he was cranking on Hanson early in the match was nasty. 
-KOR trying to pretend he was the legal man after a tag to confuse Rowe and get upperhand was The Revival level of in-match strategy
-The deadlift gutwrench by Rowe on KOR's rolling kneebar attempt needed a German Suplex finish rather than the flapjack
-Rowe was very good selling the knee damage, limping even when running the ropes for example. He never forgot to sell it the whole match. 
-Strong walking into two gut punches from a grounded Rowe while trying to get in close - third time comes with basement dropkick to the face
-Hanson was great on the hot tag
-War Raiders have good tandem moves, some better than their finisher TBH
-Bobby Fish is BACK!! 

Kyle O'Reilly might be Top 5 pure worker in the company. War Raiders - TUE - Burch/Oney is very reminiscent of AOP - The Revival - #DIY, and like that period they're heads and tails above the rest of the tag roster. The Mighty could possibly hang, but they haven't really connected yet and caught on. I might consider The Mighty and Burch/Lorcan to the UK Tag Division for a stint - that feud/program could put that brand division on the map. War Raiders, TUE could build Street Profits, Forgotton Sons, Bononi/Jaoude, Carillo/Mendoza, Heavy Machinery. NKT UK could have Coffey Brothers, Burch/Lorcan, The Mighty, Mustache Mountain, Gibson/Drake.

Rocky needs a new ring name. I always thought he was a comedy act from house shows in part because of it. Speaking of names - Burch and Lorcan need a team name. Was the announcers trying to float one with the "United" mention and tying it to _United Kingdom_ and _United States_ "but that word means so much more to them". I think it would have to be The United (fill in the blank). Bing looked okay in his time in the ring, Rocky didn't do much. 

Bianca vs Nikki have chemistry - no denying that. I still wish Nikki would tone down her craziness as she's a really good worker. I wondered why they had the Tag Title Match open and this non-title grudge match close given the finish of the tag match, but the Black appeared. Nikki was great with the creeping smile on her face, then acting silly (almost flirty for her "crazy" or am I reading too much into it?), and then when beckoned she slides across the ring and the crowd is shushing each other so they can hear what she has to say. The whole angle was brilliant - I can see the overact criticism of Black, but it's minor and given the attacker needed to be kept secret he couldn't say anything, just emote. And his reaction makes you wonder who it could be for such a reaction.


----------



## Alexander_G

Kyle O' Reilly is the one that deserves a US title shot right now, not anybody else. The most underrated guy on the whole roster.

What Shayna did to Britt Baker was disgusting, unsportsmanlike conduct. Let's see more of it.

I've never been an enormous fan of Black, personally. But this is the most interested I've been of seeing him since he debuted. He's probably the best guy on the roster that is good at saying so much without saying nothing, next to Nikki Cross. Nikki Cross, as far as in-depth acting and promo skill, is the most amazing characterization on the roster, and when she finally gets drafted, she's going to be awesome on the main roster shows should she be used appropriately. I've not seen a woman yet in WWE that has that acting level.


----------



## TD Stinger

I'll be honest, part of me wants a new found partnership with Aleister and Nikki going forward. Not that we have to see them together all the time, but let them have kind a wreslter/valet thing going on, or whatever twisted take she would take on valet.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just watched, those double main event matches certainly delivered...

How good is Kyle O'Reilly? I could happily watch him wrestle all day. The match started slow and methodical with O'Reilly and Strong working over Rowe's leg, decent enough work, some nice stiff moves from O'Reilly in particular. Match really got going though after Hanson's hot tag, NXT do such a good job at building matches and this was one of them, despite the shenanigans the last five mins or so were very fun. I do have one nitpick though, Undisputed Era matches are starting to become quite predictable. With Fish now back it will be interesting to see if Strong is pushed out.

Quick and brutal work from Shayna.

Oney Lorcan :mark i wish he was the hot tag instead of Burch.

Now the main event, throughout it I just kept thinking that these two should be fighting over the title. Bianca Belair and Nikki Cross draw audiences in like no other NXT women can do. Some won't agree when I say this but Bianca Belair is more than ready to be NXT Women's Champion, she excites the fans and gets them out of their seats, she does things that some women can't do, she has charisma, her character work is improving more and more, yes she has things to work on but so does every other Women in NXT. These two put on a really fun match here, Nikki's mannerisms especially were fantastic throughout, of what we got this was a good main event.

Finally I thought the Black/Cross segment was perfection, Nikki proved here what a great character she is, laughing and going crazy, then Black put his hand up and her facial expression suddenly changed, she's been awesome to watch recently. Black's reaction was a bit OTT, surprised he didn't cause himself a seizure.


----------



## Pizzamorg

Pretty weak episode of NXT I thought until that ending. The crowd were fucking annoying as shit but it looks like Black is back on form after he became a casualty of war thanks to the Gargano/Ciampa feud. Until he won the belt Black was one of my favourite things in WWE and I cant wait to see him go on a rampage through the locker room.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

Alright_Mate said:


> Just watched, those double main event matches certainly delivered...
> 
> How good is Kyle O'Reilly? I could happily watch him wrestle all day. The match started slow and methodical with O'Reilly and Strong working over Rowe's leg, decent enough work, some nice stiff moves from O'Reilly in particular. Match really got going though after Hanson's hot tag, NXT do such a good job at building matches and this was one of them, despite the shenanigans the last five mins or so were very fun. I do have one nitpick though, Undisputed Era matches are starting to become quite predictable. With Fish now back it will be interesting to see if Strong is pushed out.
> 
> Quick and brutal work from Shayna.
> 
> Oney Lorcan :mark i wish he was the hot tag instead of Burch.
> 
> Now the main event, throughout it I just kept thinking that these two should be fighting over the title. Bianca Belair and Nikki Cross draw audiences in like no other NXT women can do. Some won't agree when I say this but Bianca Belair is more than ready to be NXT Women's Champion, she excites the fans and gets them out of their seats, she does things that some women can't do, she has charisma, her character work is improving more and more, yes she has things to work on but so does every other Women in NXT. These two put on a really fun match here, Nikki's mannerisms especially were fantastic throughout, of what we got this was a good main event.
> 
> Finally I thought the Black/Cross segment was perfection, Nikki proved here what a great character she is, laughing and going crazy, then Black put his hand up and her facial expression suddenly changed, she's been awesome to watch recently. Black's reaction was a bit OTT, surprised he didn't cause himself a seizure.


I've been "All In" on Bianca since her match with Kairi at the MYC last year, I think the best female prospect that's been homegrown at the PC since Charlotte. Like anybody else currently in NXT, I dread the inevitable call-up to main and subsequent squandering.

It's a shame we got a non-finish again between her and Nikki but the payoff with the "Who attacked Aleister" made up for it. Again, a great example of NXT being able to have storylines transcend the male/female divisions.

Re: Britt Baker, I think it was all a worked injury to make Shayna look more bad-ass, given that she attacked Britt more while she was being tended to.


----------



## DELETE

Adding Roderick Strong to the UE is one of the best moves NXT has ever made imo. I hope they don't cast him out. Roderick is great with them.


----------



## Psychosocial

Forgot to throw in my $0.02 on last week's episode in the midst of all that's happened lately for me.

I really enjoyed the tag match, I was actually surprised that it opened the show but by the end of the night it became obvious as to why it did. TUE-War Raiders is a very different type of feud, but I think this could be the most exciting program the NXT tag division has seen since the days of The Revival and DIY (not counting MM who were hardly on TV even leading up to Brooklyn 4). If this match was anything to go by, we're gonna have plenty fun with these two teams in the coming weeks/months. My only concern is what they'll end up doing with those titles come Mania weekend if they're having these two teams face off this early and with no other credible teams built up behind them at the moment.

As far as the match went, O'Reilly was the MVP as he has been quite a bit lately but his understanding and partnership with Strong has been so impressive as a whole, I really hope now that Fish is back that they don't push Strong out of the group. Either let Cole go on his own or keep them together as a four-man stable, especially since none of these guys besides Adam would be doing much but stuck in the mid-card on NXT and stuck in purgatory if they were to get promoted to the main roster. I know they may start to run out of stories for TUE soon once the War Raiders feud is over unless they build something new up in the tag division, but there's still a lot of potential both wrestling and business wise with them as a group so I hope that they don't split them up before any of them move up to RAW or SmackDown. Hanson and Rowe looked good too, they certainly mesh well with these types of opponents better than an AOP or SAnitY did in the past, hopefully the matches will get better and better from here rather than the other way around. Enjoyable contest.

Nice little squash from the One-Two Combination, although like others it'd have been better had Oney got the hot tag instead given that he was the one who stole the show at Chicago and consequentially got injured that night, leaving him/them out of action for a while. Felt weird seeing Tian Bing in action too as he got released the next day after being highly touted when he first joined, but the guys at the PC must know something that we fans do not as to why he didn't make it in the end. Maybe he was homesick or didn't live up to expectations or his injury affected him more than previously thought. Shame for him, but life goes on.

Shayna's squash wasn't as fun, mainly because we've seen it so many times until now, but it was effective for what it was. I hope we get something more than that though for the go-home episode before Evolution between her and Kairi. That match should be the end of their feud and hopefully NXT will begin to move on from Baszler being at the head of the women's division afterwards. I like her more than some here do, but we have Kairi, Io, Lacey, Bianca, and Candice all in that division, it's their time now.

The main event was fine, better than their previous encounter, but I'm still not as sold on Bianca as people here seem to be. She's obviously very athletic, has a great look/presence, and charisma, but she still lacks in so many departments. Her selling outside of the key moments in the match is questionable, her psychology is close to null, and her transitions aren't very smooth. It helps and hurts to work with someone like Nikki, at the same time she's working with a vet who's good at these things she's also working with an OTT character wrestler which forces the match to go in a certain direction and restricts them from getting to show everything they have in their locker. She's at a farther level now than most of the women are as far as everything outside her in-ring abilities go, but she's still too green for a TakeOver title match with a Kairi Sane for example. Maybe others will disagree, but that's the way I see it right now in regards to Bianca.

Really liked the finish even if we didn't get a decisive winner between them again. Aleister Black is my favorite current wrestler and seeing him back was great, even if I did think he overdid it at the end there with his rage expression. The angle between him and Cross was fun and made me look forward to what's going to happen next in this story. I really hope it was Gargano who did it in pursuit of taking Aleister out and getting Ciampa all to himself at Brooklyn, thus setting us up for a Gargano-Black and Ciampa-Dream double header in LA. We'll find out tonight.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Seeds were clearly just planted for Adam Cole vs. EC3 at NXT Takeover: Phoenix. They showed some decent chemistry, so hopefully they can build on that.

Hopefully this is a feud Cole can actually win :lol


----------



## RiverFenix

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Seeds were clearly just planted for Adam Cole vs. EC3 at NXT Takeover: Phoenix. They showed some decent chemistry, so hopefully they can build on that.
> 
> Hopefully this is a feud Cole can actually win :lol


Worry I have is that it could be argued that EC3 would need it more and NXT bookers might think Cole can stay over with a feud loss. 

EC3 has been a flop, maybe using face booking 101 booking of him being out numbered in beatdowns and then getting "over" talent to aid him and partner with him is what they're trying to do here.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> Worry I have is that it could be argued that EC3 would need it more and NXT bookers might think Cole can stay over with a feud loss.
> 
> EC3 has been a flop, maybe using face booking 101 booking of him being out numbered in beatdowns and then getting "over" talent to aid him and partner with him is what they're trying to do here.


With Cole taking the initial pin in the "feud" clean, I would think he'd win the blowoff. At this point with Cole though, you never know.


----------



## TD Stinger

New NXT. Lots of shit went down tonight.

*Cole continues to very proficient with a microphone in his hand. And him and EC3 had a nice back and forth. Their match was pretty solid too. Cole's a smaller guy so it makes it easier for a guy like EC3 to throw him around. Surprising win but one has to wonder where it leads.

EC3 won, out smarted all of TUE, but then got laid out with an injury angle. So is this just setting him up for Cole after War Games. Maybe he'll be in War Games if Pete Dunne can't go. Or maybe this writes him out of NXT. We'll have to find out.

Also, Full Sail, make up your damn mind. You mainly cheer EC3 during his promos and his matches (when he's not facing Dream) and then you chant "Thank You Bobby!" when Bobby attacks him with a chair. Makes it hard to take you seriously.

*Mia's debut match was kind of underwhelming to be honest. And honestly, after her performance in last year's MYC, she looked more impressive there and it would have felt more fitting had she got signed then. But we'll see how she progresses from here.

*I love Regal in NXT. From his interaction with Bianca to his interactions with TUE. Regal's like a high school principal and TUE are like rebel jocks from a bad movie, lol.

*Lacey's gonna do big things in this company, whether NXT or the main roster. And with her look, probably the main roster.

*Heel Ohno was so fun to watch. He punished his opponent while at the same time mocking his level of competition. His opponent's bloody mouth at the end only made it better. More of this guy please.

*The final segment was so well done and so intriguing on so many levels save for one thing really.

Regal, Ciampa, Dream and even Lars played their roles very well here. Problem is Lars feels completely shoehorned in here where he's not needed. It's not as if he's another face to make things somewhat even. All 3 guys are heels. We'll see where that goes, but hopefully at Takeover it's just Dream vs. Ciampa.

And Black's entrance into all of this was awesome. From Nikki's warning to then immediately to Black killing all of the security guards. That last Black Mass on that last security guard had me in stitches. And then he runs into the arena so fast and hard he knocks out a camera. And finally delivers on last Black Mass on Lars for good measure.

And finally...........Johnny? Really? Is he the attacker? That's....surprising. I'll wait to see how things play out, but damn, I don't know what to think of that really.


----------



## RiverFenix

I didn't like Johnny revealed when I read the spoilers and even opined that MAYBE that was just a receipt for the Black Mass he got last time he and Alister were in the ring together (after Gargano cost him the title the week earlier). 

But thinking more about it - it's necessary for the Gargano character as fans were turning on him to the level Ciampa would be getting the cheers. Now you make Johnny Wrestling the badass face rather than the goody two shoes type and he could remain the face as his character would have enough edge to keep fans backing him against Ciampa. And fans can pick a side between Black and Gargano. 

He can be "Stone Cold" Johnny. There to kick ass and take names. He can say he's there for two reasons - to win the NXT title and to destroy Tomasso Ciampa and luck has it that he can do both at once and nothing will get in his way because he's not called Johnny Freakin' Wrestling for nothing.


----------



## Buhalovski

I was sure the attacker was Gargano but im not too sure if turning him complete heel was the right choice. Especially if the main goal for him is to win the title at Brooklyn. I mean at the end of the day he is probably the most over person in NXT. We will see i guess.

Btw, Nikki would be a cool valet if they pair them up with Aleister. Hope they continue to use them together.


----------



## Dragonballfan

Awesome fucking entrance by Black... Poor Security, Samoa Joe continues to Haunt Regal :lmao


----------



## Jedah

This episode was weird. It was half filler and half intense as fuck.

Adam Cole vs. EC3...I just don't get why EC3 won. I understand wanting to turn the heat on Undisputed and it was a rollup, but it still felt silly. The segment afterward did its job though.

Mia Yim's match was meh. I don't know why Aaliyah got so much offense in.

Then lots of promos. Bianca not so subtly telling us she'll be getting her title shot soon. Lacey getting a promo also tells us something. She's either going to get a title shot and lose or she's going to be Io's first victim. They're building her for something and it's going to be one of those two scenarios. The Kairi vs. Shayna promo left enough doubt about the winner, which I suppose is what you want, but after Shayna calling Kairi not a real champion, it would be even worse if she's somehow proven right. Kairi really needs to win so the division can move on. This filler has been harmful.

Ohno was intense as fuck and I loved it. Great way to build him up for Riddle, who coincidentally, debuts next week! But are they really going to use that "bro" sound? Because it sounded lame as hell.

And finally the ending. Oh man that was great. First the promo with Dream and Ciampa, then Black coming back Stone Cold style, and then Johnny. Johnny was the prime suspect given his non denial when Regal first asked him, but they fooled us with the red herring in the Nese match where he teased going back to the light. I do worry though that after this, they won't be able to turn him back in time to beat Ciampa, but I will give NXT the benefit of the doubt. They deserve it. I just think turning him outright is an odd choice.


----------



## Dragonballfan

Oh and this










:ha


----------



## Psychosocial

I don't understand why EC3 would go after Adam Cole or The Undisputed Era right now. That opening segment was nice to watch, but it made little sense to me when EC3 hasn't been involved with them at all recently and with 4 weeks to go until TakeOver, I don't get why it's happening now. TD Stinger made a good point on this and the possible reasons for his involvement, but potentially substituting Pete Dunne for EC3 in a WarGames match, man that's honestly a bummer to even think about. I hope that isn't what's happening but fear it is.

Mia Yim looked fine to me, she looked good in there considering who she was in the ring with. Aliyah is absolutely terrible. I think Big Show at his fattest would have moved quicker than she did during that quick, early sequence of offense from Mia. 5.5 years in the game and this is as far as she's come? No wonder she's nothing more than enhancement talent in developmental. Mia deserves and will get better people to work with later on, so no worries there.

I liked the way they transitioned from Bianca to Aleister to TUE as Regal's focus in that backstage segment, I certainly don't envy the stress that comes with having his job right now. Lots of issues on the show for him to clean up at the moment. Bianca is getting a little annoying especially with the un-de-fea-ted line, but I guess that means she's doing her job right. Still not sure she has claim for a title shot yet though after failing to beat Nikki twice and not registering a major win in NXT yet, even if she is undefeated in singles competition. That may change soon though.

Didn't like that neither Kairi or Shayna appeared on the show before their match at Evolution. Sane didn't appear last week either. Still looking forward to the blow-off match, but they could have done a little more to build the anticipation up for this a bit better.

I'm starting to wonder whether Ohno-Riddle might actually make the TakeOver card and not just be part of the tapings prior to WarGames for the following week. They've invested a lot of time in Ohno lately and they're hyping up Riddle's debut, which is next week and I am excited, so you have to think this may be what they're building towards. We'll find out next Wednesday. That attire though, god it was worse than usual. Please do us a favor and find some new gear, Kassius.

Now for the main event segment. I thought it played out absolutely perfectly. Even Lars being in there just for that sick vicious Black Mass from Black on him, probably his best one since the Itami match at Brooklyn 3. I'm chuffed to bits that it was Gargano who attacked him as that's what I wanted and thought it'd be. I'm not sure it was a full heel turn like others think here, but we'll see what the following episodes bring on that side of things. I think he'll still be tweener Johnny who's in between being the Gargano we loved and this madman who's obsessed with Ciampa. By the way, I can hardly think of a wrestler in the world that can match Aleister Black when he displays the intensity that he did tonight from when he showed up until Gargano knocked his lights out. I just wish we could see it more often from him, maybe now we will.

It looks like we'll get the double header that I mentioned earlier for WarGames. Ciampa v Dream and Gargano v Black. I could see them doing Dream v Sullivan soon with the winner getting the title match in LA, with Velveteen winning and Lars maybe going on to face Keith Lee instead. It'd be interesting to see if they could work in Lee getting involved in that match if it were to happen to set it up a little quicker. There's not enough time left to build that feud after all, gotta work some things in now.

Overall, a fun episode albeit a bit strange at times. Looking forward to the fallout now for Gargano/Black, what they'll do about the NXT title, and how they'll set up the WarGames match.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Good episode!! Welcome to the darkside Johnny Gargano!


----------



## ellthom

Loved NxT this week. Lots of developments into their next ppv. I love when NxT kicks itself into gear.



Dragonballfan said:


> Oh and this
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> :ha


I laughed so hard at that. Was so awesome


----------



## Mordecay

Bald fucker is proud


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1055266636700282880


----------



## RiverFenix

EC3 is so bloody bland. There is zero "it" with him, no matter how he tries to fake it. He's too muscled up for his frame that he can't even move properly. And I don't get remotely how he's supposed to be a face. 

I'm really worried now that he'll replace Dunne in War Games as well, talk about downgrade of all downgrades. Keith Lee would have been a much better fit here assuming Gargano/Black and Dream/Ciampa already are booked. But I guess they need to pretend that EC3 was a terrible signing. 

I'm not down on Aliyah as others here. I think she's decent enough in ring - I always get Stratus vibes from her ring work. She is just "there" with no gimmick and a terrible win/loss record. It's like what's the point. She needs to try something characterwise to hook the audience. Going back to my Stratus style mention, and how she's from Toronto - I'd have her go all Trish Stratus Stan, with Stratus back at Evolution and might stick around - Have Aliyah go crazy fangirl over Trish - dye her hair blonde etc. Aliyah is so young she would have legit been a young kid when Trish was at her prime. Trish doesn't need to actually waste matches and appearances on Aliyah but just have one awkward meeting between the two taped at Evolution for NXT where Aliyah accosts Trish at an inopportune time gushing about how big a fan she is and can she have a selfie.


----------



## 751161

Just saw clips on Youtube & posted on Reddit. That ending segment with Aleister Black was incredible. Also cool to see Gargano embracing the dark side. That's very different for him, as he's practically a natural babyface. Definitely considering watching the next Takeover for sure.


----------



## Dibil13

Mordecay said:


> Bald fucker is proud
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1055266636700282880




__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1055463581913964544
He sure is. Imagine heel DIY vs Black Velvet :mark:


----------



## TD Stinger

Dibil13 said:


> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1055463581913964544
> He sure is. Imagine heel DIY vs Black Velvet :mark:


Imagining Black and Velveteen having to team to take down a common enemy. It's like Batman and Joker teaming up. Damn now I want this.


----------



## Mear

I usually think NXT misses the excitement, the mark-out moments. They have solid writing but it always feel like a routine and never do I want to stand up and jump everywhere because of how awesome a moment is but I can fairly say that I marked out this time. 

Aleister Black coming to the arena was incredible and it shows how great NXT could be if they decided to go out of their comfort zone more often. That was just beautiful and I felt like I watched Raw in 2000 which is the best year in the WWE imo. They gotta keep it up


----------



## gl83

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1055506923674578949


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just watched, good storyline development and a lot of video packages this week...

Quality opening promo from Cole, then EC3 happened. I'm not going to be harsh, he is incredibly bland in the ring but I thought that was one of EC3's better matches since joining. Cole's facial expressions are brilliant, from the shocked look when he lost to the sheer excitement when Fish hit EC3 with the chair, so good at telling a story through mannerisms.

Another week, another different outfit from Aliyah fpalm I think she has an identity crisis. Mia Yim is bang average yet for some reason Full Sail love her.

Ohno fucking destroyed Justin the Jobber, not a fan of squash matches but that was one of the best I've seen, can't wait for Ohno vs Riddle.

That final segment was quick, chaotic and to the point, loved it. Everyone got their stuff in, Ciampa, Dream and Sullivan are all decent mic workers, Black storming the ring and grabbing Regal was brilliant, then Johnny delivers that...

I'll see how it develops but I'm very unsure about this direction, I think they missed the boat on Gargano. There were two perfect moments for him to take the title, against Almas at Takeover Philly and against Ciampa at Takeover Chicago, after losing against Ciampa in Chicago I think novelty wore off a bit, he then lost again at Takeover Brooklyn and it was like "Well that was shit". Gargano has been that guy who has been in the wrong place at the wrong time, Almas was hot and had all momentum, Ciampa likewise, now we get this direction when really Gargano should be NXT Champion right now.


----------



## JustAName

So Gargano is clearly about to lose to Black, no way in hell that Black is coming back like this and losing any time soon. I love it but at the same time I keep going back to one thought: What are their actual plans for Gargano?


----------



## elo

Damn, Ciampa has corrupted Johnny Wrestling and he's so proud of it - the writing of the shows the past few weeks has been sooooooo good, execution right on point too.


----------



## SAMCRO

I kinda like how Ohno hasn't said Matt Riddle's name, but has called him the shiny new toy, it was a cool way of vaguely setting their feud up. And i love the angle with Ohno being fed up with these big top indy guys coming in and being handed everything while he fades away in the background being forgotten about.


----------



## Psychosocial

gl83 said:


> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1055506923674578949


Hmm, a heel DIY on the horizon? Would be interesting but kinda hard to explain that one given that Johnny basically tried to kill Ciampa in Brooklyn once he took Aleister out of the equation. Not sure how you recreate that alliance, no matter how short term, after all that transpired, but definitely anticipating to see what comes next.


----------



## SAMCRO

I don't see Ciampa and Gargano reuniting this soon, it would be dumb, Johnny is a heel now but still he shouldn't just forgive everything Ciampa did and forget about the last year of hell he went through because of Ciampa. If anything i think Johnny gets called up to the main roster after the feud with Black ends.


----------



## Donnie

The last ten minutes were CAR CRASH TV in the best kind of way. Interweaving multiple stories, Tommaso/Dream feud now has LARS involved. Black was the perfect tweener as he wreaked everyone poor bastard in his way. THAT SECOND BLACK MASS ON THE GUARD COMING THROUGH THE DOOR :andre The way he grabbed Mr Regal and demanded to know where he is was awesome, and even though I don't like that it was Johnathan Grappling because it's only going to lead to him vs Tommaso part 4, he was fucking great. 

Oh, speaking of great, Nikki Cross is just the best in every aspect. Love her. Also, she still knows what Tommaso, Dream and OHNO did, and we need to know as well. That's least another two months worth of TV. 

OHNO is killing it playing the shitkicker bully of NXT tremendously. He was amazing at this from 2015 until he left, and i'm SO happy he gets to do it again.


----------



## Psychosocial

Yeah, what did Ohno do? What was Nikki referring to there? Is it possible that Gargano attacking Black is a cover up (like Rikishi) and that the real attacker is Ohno (HHH) in this case? I don't know what else Nikki could have meant when she said she knows what Ohno did.

This storyline could go in so many directions now. 5 days to find out is such a long time.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

– So I am assuming at WarGames it will be Ricochet, EC3 and the War Raiders vs Undisputed? Couldn’t care less. 

— Aliyah/Yim was embarrassingly bad. How has Aliyah been in NXT for about a decade yet she is still so shit? 

— Why did they have to show that Reigns promo again and make it into a video package? My heart cant fucking take it. Fuck cancer.

— Matt Riddle hype package? Fuck yeah. Seems like they are keeping his stoner character too interestingly. 

— Blimey that ending was abrupt. I have a feeling that it isn’t quite as simple as just being Gargano. Seeing Black go on that rampage was pretty damn awesome. No idea what it means for Sullivan though.


----------



## SAMCRO

Psychosocial said:


> Yeah, what did Ohno do? What was Nikki referring to there? Is it possible that Gargano attacking Black is a cover up (like Rikishi) and that the real attacker is Ohno (HHH) in this case? I don't know what else Nikki could have meant when she said she knows what Ohno did.
> 
> This storyline could go in so many directions now. 5 days to find out is such a long time.


Personally i don't think Ohno did anything, i think it was just Nikki fucking with him cause she said she knew the attacker and she was screwing with him like she might pin it on him. 

I doubt Nikki continues fucking with Ohno beyond this point, i think it was all just making people think it was Ohno that attacked Black and at the same time messing with him and making him nervous. 

I just don't see Nikki continuing with this "I know a secret" stuff after Black's attacker has been revealed, its gonna get repetitive.


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Okay. I loved the last few moments of the show. I marked to fuck out to see that Gargano did it. Gargano is fully hear now I suppose. 

I'm interested to see where they do with Gargano going forward. Obviously he's gonna be feuding with Black but after that I feel like it's gonna be up in the air with what they do with him.


----------



## Piers

The ending was amazing 

This is what I want to see in wrestling on a monthly basis : good writing, surprises and a lot of superstars interacting with one another


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

So, Johnny vs Black announced for Takeover. Gargano also tweeted this a few mins ago:


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1057801104732418050
:hmmm


----------



## Alexander_G

Best NXT ep. in a while.


----------



## TD Stinger

#1: Matt Riddle is a super star. Such a high level athlete. Can't wait to see more of him.

#2: That closing segment was great. They finally had someone interrupt a TUE promo and lead to a great fight that while short, had so many little sub segments that made it so entertaining.

#3: We now have Black vs. Gargano, Dream vs. Ciampa, and War Games official for Takeover. Let's fucking go.


----------



## sailord

TD Stinger said:


> #1: Matt Riddle is a super star. Such a high level athlete. Can't wait to see more of him.
> 
> #2: That closing segment was great. They finally had someone interrupt a TUE promo and lead to a great fight that while short, had so many little sub segments that made it so entertaining.
> 
> #3: We now have Black vs. Gargano, Dream vs. Ciampa, and War Games official for Takeover. Let's fucking go.


Card looks great I'm happy I decided to get tickets for it


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

EC3 is defintely gonna replace Pete Dunne in WarGames, did you see when Pete came out with the chair? He could barely walk.


----------



## Buhalovski

The booking of UE is really strange though. Last week EC3 single-handedly outsmarted them and beat their leader, now War Machine beat the living hell out of them  A PPV win is a must.

Matt Riddle looks not that ''big'' on a WWE camera. I thought he is on Drews level at least, lol.


----------



## candice-wrestling

That ending brawl though! Great stuff!!


----------



## HorsemenTerritory1

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> EC3 is defintely gonna replace Pete Dunne in WarGames, did you see when Pete came out with the chair? He could barely walk.


Oh God, no....

I like EC3, but that would be the downgrade of all downgrades.

Last night was taped a few weeks ago, plus we have a little bit of time until Takeover. Dunne could recover a bit as long as they keep him off it. And WarGames isn’t a one-on-one match, plus Dunne can always be the last man to come in. They can hide it.

Dunne on one leg > healthy EC3


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> EC3 is defintely gonna replace Pete Dunne in WarGames, did you see when Pete came out with the chair? He could barely walk.


:andre lets not go nuts now, dude. Just chuck Lee onto the team and its set.


----------



## TD Stinger

Donnie said:


> :andre lets not go nuts now, dude. Just chuck Lee onto the team and its set.


We can't have nice things like that Donnie.

Plus Lee with the War Raiders would too much beef for the TUE to handle.


----------



## Sick Graps-V2

I did type a bigger post but my phone messed up and I lost it, so I'll chop it down to this; great TV debut by Matt. He deserved to have a great debut since he's worked his ass off to get there. I'm really happy for the dude and hope he finds lots of success in his career. I've been saying it for years, this guy's going to the top; he's got it all. Well done Matt.


----------



## Donnie

TD Stinger said:


> We can't have nice things like that Donnie.
> 
> Plus Lee with the War Raiders would too much beef for the TUE to handle.


:mj2 You always got crush my dreams, man. 

Cole has more than enough BEEF to handle them by himself. 


Really though, If EC3 has to be in this, than he can come out last and let the others do the work


----------



## EdgeheadStingerfan

Just watched the highlights. This brand looks awesome. 

Just wish it was on the USA Network.


----------



## Jedah

Alright so, hope everyone had a happy Halloween.

This episode was pretty good. Loved the ambiguous stuff about Candice and Black with Candice implying Nikki is ruining their lives...but then why would Gargano attack Black? This is possibly the best angle in the company now. Cannot wait to see this at War Games.

The announcement of Dream vs. Ciampa at War Games was obviously expected, but I have to say I'm disappointed with the build. This could have been an off the wall feud but they've really done nothing with it. Right now, it feels like the fourth most important angle on the brand after Black/Gargano, the War Games angle, and whatever clusterfuck of a mess is going on with Kairi and Shayna. Ironic given that Ciampa loudly proclaimed he was the main event. Perhaps it's just the curse of the NXT title, but Ciampa has felt less important after Brooklyn, even though he's the right man to hold the title now. Just strange.

Really, Black/Gargano or War Games feels like it needs to main event that show.

Speaking of War Games...man that brawl was an adrenaline rush. I wish the main roster did more backstage brawls like that. Awesome stuff. Pete Dunne's foot was noticeably being nursed, though. Hopefully he's OK in time.

Edit: And yeah, Riddle. I wasn't too familiar with his work before, but damn, this guy is going to be a star. He has everything. Future NXT Champion for sure. Good chance to be a main event player on the main roster too.


----------



## RiverFenix

Riddle needs work in presentation. His entrance theme SUCKED and I still think he needs wrestling boots, or at least tape his ankles to look more a fighter than a "surfer dude" given his "Bro" character. Menzies was an interesting choice for his debut match given Luke is pretty green still - I would have went more enhancement match for Riddle here with a wily vet who could sell and bump his ass off. The knee strike should be Matt's finisher. The Twister sub is unnecessary after you his that level of strike. Riddle is a future champ at all levels though. So athletic and charismatic. 

I'm worried about Dream vs Ciampa happening still - why have Sullivan vs Dream next week? Setting up a Triple Threat? Because otherwise Sullivan seems off the Takeover card. 

Humberto Carillo is so smooth in the ring, it's like he was born in it. He gets great air/hang time as well. He just has such a babyface, looks so young - he'll need to work on his facial selling, but it's to be expected given he wore a mask until coming to NXT. 

Street Profits need to drop the "cup" crap. It's an empty plastic cup - It's dumb. Give Montez is crown and give Dawkins gold chains or something if you want things to steal from them. They are becoming more serious in their presentation during matches with was very needed. King Tez could be a future singles star if he can tone down his "silliness" - dude had hops. That frogsplash was ridiculous. TMDK are finally seemingly getting comfortable as well. Could be a good time for a Dusty Classic tag tournament. 

That ending brawl was great television. War Raiders are being booked to be a little too strong IMO, but it's a minor quibble right now but bears watching. I cringed everytime TUE took bumps on the concrete though, especially for their elbows. Really looking forward to the War Games match, though I too am VERY worried that ECIII is going to replace Dunne - hopefully it's a "Plan B" just in case Dunne cannot go option to sub in ECIII late but otherwise Dunne is still the plan. 

Looking at the card and rest of the roster ECIII or Keith Lee are the only other two that made sense. I would have gone with the latter, but ECIII is the bigger name signing and is flailing so maybe they include him here to try and get some sort of rub.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

HorsemenTerritory1 said:


> Oh God, no....
> 
> I like EC3, but that would be the downgrade of all downgrades.
> 
> Last night was taped a few weeks ago, plus we have a little bit of time until Takeover. Dunne could recover a bit as long as they keep him off it. And WarGames isn’t a one-on-one match, plus Dunne can always be the last man to come in. They can hide it.
> 
> Dunne on one leg > healthy EC3


I really hope you're right, EC3 would absolutely be a downgrade.



Donnie said:


> :mj2 You always got crush my dreams, man.
> 
> Cole has more than enough BEEF to handle them by himself.
> 
> 
> Really though, If EC3 has to be in this, than he can come out last and let the others do the work


Cole has more beef than WarRaiders & Keith Lee combined.

Side note, if they do the format where one man from each team starts the match, Cole & Ricochet HAVE to start these match.


----------



## Mordecay




----------



## Death Rider

Tbf even if EC3 is in there instead of Dunne the match will still be great :draper2. Less good but great. Also yes Cole needs to start with Ricochet please


----------



## RiverFenix

I'd want KOR vs Ricochet or KOR vs Dunne in there first. 

TUE has to have the advantage so have Cole be the first one added making it 2-on-1. 

KOR vs Dunne
Cole 
Ricochet
Roddy
Rowe
Fish
Hanson


----------



## Psychosocial

Best episode in recent memory. Enjoyed this one almost all the way through.

Surprised that it kicked off with Cross v. Mercedes but nice to see Martinez still getting chances to showcase her abilities in WWE, shame she's a little too old to sign for them and do much there now though. Alright match but the real story was the post-match angle with Aleister, Nikki, and Candice. Wish we could have heard what they were saying a little better over the crowd though but oh well. Wonder if Candice turns heel in the midst of all this? Hope not as they have enough of them in this division anyways.

Fighting over a cup is the dumbest reason yet for a match, but this was the best of the Street Profits-Mighty matches to date. I'd say it was SP's best in NXT period as well. Liked seeing this higher intensity from Dawkins and Ford and for once TM's heel work was actually good and improved the match. Great finish too, Montez is a hell of an athlete. I know that they're EVOLVE tag champs now so we may see a little less of them in the next few tapings, but hopefully they'll ride their momentum and grow from here and make 2019 the year of the Street Profits in NXT. Agree with the guy who said it might be a good time for a Dusty Tag Classic tournament, although I'd leave TUE and War Raiders out of it otherwise it becomes too predictable and doesn't really build any new teams up. This is the most promising the tag division has looked since early 2017 so hopefully they keep building on that now.

Really, really liked Riddle's debut. Probably the best debut I've seen in a while in WWE. Not sure about that theme but it goes well with the bro chants so I'm okay with it. This was the first time I saw him in action outside of clips but this guy has it, he's going to be a future NXT champion without question. I was just surprised that Ohno didn't come out to confront him at any point, but there's still time left for that. What a way to make your mark though, Matt. Impressive stuff.

Liked the tag match between Lorcan/Burch and Carillo/Mendoza a lot too. They seem to be high on Raul, he's always losing in these short matches he gets but he always gets offense in and looks good himself so I can't really call them squashes. This was a great example of how to put on a show when you're given just 3 minutes to work with. Good fun and another win for the One-Twos.

The other stuff on the show was good too. Loved the main event brawl but am I the only one who feels like they don't really do enough to set up a WarGames match? They did a couple of these last year before Regal announced it the same way. Everyone knows that match will be on the card ahead of time by the way it's advertised but does the way the booking builds up to it convince you? Is this how they did it in the WCW/NWA days? I don't know, just hasn't really done enough for me, even if I enjoy these brawls and the match should be excellent if Dunne is healthy.

Velveteen-Sullivan seems weird if they already announced Dream as Ciampa's opponent. I hope Lars doesn't get added to the match but I don't see Dream beating him clean either. Maybe someone interferes to start a program with Lars? Keith Lee?

And I guess they're just going to build up a Kairi/Shayna rematch now with pre-taped segments? Evolution coming after the last tapings were done really hurt them here. I know people didn't like Shayna winning but she had to. If she lost, she'd have no claim for another rematch and there'd be no time to build up another opponent for Kairi with the tapings already done prior to WarGames. Doing it the way they seem to be going with this allows them to debut the Horsewomen and Io at once and inevitably get the belt back on Kairi at the end of all this. I'm just not sure what they'll do with Shayna, Duke, Shafir, and Bianca now if Kairi wins it back at TakeOver, but that's a discussion for another time.

Really good episode and I'm just amazed with how much they managed to squeeze into just one hour. The card is shaping up to be another exciting one for WarGames, can't wait.



Jedah said:


> The announcement of Dream vs. Ciampa at War Games was obviously expected, but I have to say I'm disappointed with the build. This could have been an off the wall feud but they've really done nothing with it. Right now, it feels like the fourth most important angle on the brand after Black/Gargano, the War Games angle, and whatever clusterfuck of a mess is going on with Kairi and Shayna. Ironic given that Ciampa loudly proclaimed he was the main event. Perhaps it's just the curse of the NXT title, but Ciampa has felt less important after Brooklyn, even though he's the right man to hold the title now. Just strange.


Why don't you like the build? I think it's been fine so far, it's just been intertwined with other stories leading up to other matches but I don't see that as a bad thing. They clearly still feel important and the match is getting hyped up. There's still 2 weeks left so I'm sure we'll see more interactions between them too.

I don't think the title is cursed, but it just seems like whoever holds it lately is unlucky that there's always something bigger going on around it that takes the spotlight off of it somewhat. Almas-McIntyre was overshadowed by the first WarGames match in 17 years, Black's reign was overshadowed by the company's FOTY, and now Ciampa-Dream is being overshadowed by the Aleister's attacker story and yet another WarGames match.

I'm sure that whenever the final chapter to the Gargano-Ciampa story is ready to be told, the title will be the centerpiece of the show again, but lately it's just been an unlucky coincidence that the champion hasn't been the most important thing going on the show. But again, I don't think that's a bad thing when you look at the circumstances.


----------



## Alright_Mate

This weeks episode was loaded...

Nikki Cross vs Mercedes Martinez just didn't really get going, not the best match chemistry wise. This was all about the aftermath, Candice confronting Nikki(Wearing all black which obviously means something) Black then confronting Candice. Still not sure how Gargano develops from here but the angle has been a fun watch so far.

Street Profits are so much better when they wrestle seriously, decent storytelling as this match went on. As for The Mighty they are pretty directionless, wouldn't be surprised if they get released by this time next year unless they suddenly find themselves. 

Riddle showcased himself extremely well on his debut, good in ring performance and his charisma shined bright. The potential Riddle vs Ohno match excites me massively.

Lorcan/Burch vs Mendoza/Carillo was short but fun. Would like to see more of the Mendoza/Carillo tag team, fun to watch and they work well together, Carillo is one to keep an eye on.

That brawl was fun and creative, you wouldn't see anything like that on the main roster. O'Reilly's reaction to the War Games announcement was gold. Not overly bothered by the War Games concept but no doubt it has potential to be a great match.

This Takeover card is shaping up to be potentially the best ever.


----------



## Psychosocial

I'm still not convinced that Gargano is the attacker. That's why I said last week that I don't believe what he did to Aleister was a full fledged heel turn. It was just a receipt for the Black Mass prior to Brooklyn IV. Notice that Nikki wouldn't say anything about it to Aleister. I feel like they're just making it seem like it was Johnny just so they can have the Gargano-Black match at TakeOver but the story won't end there I'm sure. Imagine Aleister wins that match and Nikki comes out, crazy as ever, and tells him "it wasn't Johnny." That thought is chilling.

Crazy how NXT has two amazing storylines going on at the same time with Gargano's descension into a lost man and the Aleister attacker situation, both of which probably won't have a pay-off until the RR or WM TakeOver. Main roster creative can only wish they could write stories this captivating.


----------



## A PG Attitude

Alright_Mate said:


> This weeks episode was loaded...
> 
> Nikki Cross vs Mercedes Martinez just didn't really get going, not the best match chemistry wise. This was all about the aftermath, Candice confronting Nikki(Wearing all black which obviously means something) Black then confronting Candice. Still not sure how Gargano develops from here but the angle has been a fun watch so far.
> 
> Street Profits are so much better when they wrestle seriously, decent storytelling as this match went on. As for The Mighty they are pretty directionless, wouldn't be surprised if they get released by this time next year unless they suddenly find themselves.
> 
> Riddle showcased himself extremely well on his debut, good in ring performance and his charisma shined bright. The potential Riddle vs Ohno match excites me massively.
> 
> Lorcan/Burch vs Mendoza/Carillo was short but fun. Would like to see more of the Mendoza/Carillo tag team, fun to watch and they work well together, Carillo is one to keep an eye on.
> 
> That brawl was fun and creative, you wouldn't see anything like that on the main roster. O'Reilly's reaction to the War Games announcement was gold. Not overly bothered by the War Games concept but no doubt it has potential to be a great match.
> 
> This Takeover card is shaping up to be potentially the best ever.


Considering Luke Menzies only job was to lose to Riddle on his debut I think he showed potential to be one to watch in the future.


----------



## Alexander_G

Psychosocial said:


> I'm still not convinced that Gargano is the attacker. That's why I said last week that I don't believe what he did to Aleister was a full fledged heel turn. It was just a receipt for the Black Mass prior to Brooklyn IV. Notice that Nikki wouldn't say anything about it to Aleister. I feel like they're just making it seem like it was Johnny just so they can have the Gargano-Black match at TakeOver but the story won't end there I'm sure. Imagine Aleister wins that match and Nikki comes out, crazy as ever, and tells him "it wasn't Johnny." That thought is chilling.
> 
> Crazy how NXT has two amazing storylines going on at the same time with Gargano's descension into a lost man and the Aleister attacker situation, both of which probably won't have a pay-off until the RR or WM TakeOver. Main roster creative can only wish they could write stories this captivating.


Wait, wait, if it isn't Johnny, then what did Nikki whisper in Aleister's ear? And why would Johnny superkick Black just as he was turning around?



A PG Attitude said:


> Considering Luke Menzies only job was to lose to Riddle on his debut I think he showed potential to be one to watch in the future.


I actually liked Menzies as much as Riddle, as he seems to have a great Kurt Angle-esce moveset.


----------



## Psychosocial

Alexander_G said:


> Wait, wait, if it isn't Johnny, then what did Nikki whisper in Aleister's ear? And why would Johnny superkick Black just as he was turning around?


Because that's what Black did to him the last time we saw him before the last TakeOver. As soon as Gargano turned around, Aleister gave him a Black Mass. I think this was just payback for that from Johnny. No one has admitted so far that it was him, we're all just assuming it is based on one superkick.

As for what she whispered in his ear, well I guess we'll find that out in due time. Remember when Nikki kept telling Ohno for a couple of weeks that she knew what he did? I doubt that was all for nothing. It's too predictable for it to be Johnny, I got a feeling that it isn't and there's more to this than what we know now but we won't see the twist in the tale until TakeOver itself or after.


----------



## SAMCRO

Riddle's debut was great, love his theme, love that he's keeping his barefoot look, love his moveset, dudes already over as fuck, he's gonna be a star. Only thing is i was expecting to see Ohno attack him, Ohno hinted at Riddle for weeks asking Regal "Whens your shiny new toy get here?", well he's here where you at Ohno?

Also i can 100% guarantee Vince makes Riddle put on boots or kickpads or something when he gets to the main roster, i just know how Vince is and something like that will bug him "Whats this? This guy trying to stand out and be different from everyone else? Fuck that put some boots on him damn it! we need everyone to look the same damn it!"


----------



## Jedah

Psychosocial said:


> And I guess they're just going to build up a Kairi/Shayna rematch now with pre-taped segments? Evolution coming after the last tapings were done really hurt them here. I know people didn't like Shayna winning but she had to. If she lost, she'd have no claim for another rematch.


She shouldn't have had a rematch to begin with. She should have gone up to the main roster after SummerSlam. Evolution fucked a lot of things up but this build should have been Kairi vs. Bianca. If they needed a women's match for War Games, they could have debuted Io against Lacey, who seems to be getting built up to be fed to her. And even if she wound up staying in NXT, she needed to be doing something else, as Shayna has suffocated the NXT women's division and now looks set to do it again unless Kairi takes the title back soon.



> Why don't you like the build? I think it's been fine so far, it's just been intertwined with other stories leading up to other matches but I don't see that as a bad thing. They clearly still feel important and the match is getting hyped up. There's still 2 weeks left so I'm sure we'll see more interactions between them too.


It just feels like an afterthought compared to Black/Gargano and the War Games angle. They've only done one segment together, whereas Black and Dream by this point had a lot of segments between them. There's still time but it really feels like a let down considering what could have happened between them.

As for the title situation, you're right. It just seems that something else more interesting is always going on. Really does feel like a curse.

As for whether or not it's Johnny, it really is up in the air, which is half the fun. Gargano's non-denial with Regal, other suspects being eliminated, and now his outright attack on Black suggests almost beyond reasonable doubt it's him, but it's STILL not officially confirmed. I love it. This whole angle has turned the worst luck into gold.

Part of me still wonders whether it's someone on the main roster who attacked Black, and he'll come up after Survivor Series. We did see a bunch of callups last year.


----------



## Psychosocial

Jedah said:


> She shouldn't have had a rematch to begin with. She should have gone up to the main roster after SummerSlam. Evolution fucked a lot of things up but this build should have been Kairi vs. Bianca. If they needed a women's match for War Games, they could have debuted Io against Lacey, who seems to be getting built up to be fed to her. And even if she wound up staying in NXT, she needed to be doing something else, as Shayna has suffocated the NXT women's division and now looks set to do it again unless Kairi takes the title back soon.


I know you don't like her, but just take a moment and think about it. If Shayna went up to the main roster by now, what would happen with Duke and Shafir? Your answer would probably be who cares, but clearly WWE see some value and potential in doing a MMA Four Horsewomen angle at some point. If their two friends were already in the big leagues and they were stuck in developmental, on their own or as a pair, how would they really fare? Probably not too well judging by the reports on how they're doing on house shows so far. NXT is all about development after all and they're trying to develop the 4HW gimmick there so that all the legwork is done before they go up to the main roster and team up with Ronda.

You may not rate Shayna but they and a lot of people do and her sticking around in NXT to both mentor her friends and develop that 4HW gimmick makes sense. I'm 1000% certain that she'd already be on RAW otherwise because she had nothing left to achieve in NXT anyways, but now that they're seriously trying to push Duke and Shafir and get them up to scratch so they can move up, it's sensible to keep Shayna around to help and work with them before they all move up together and they can finally have their idea come to fruition.

Now you might say that's fine but that Shayna didn't need to win the title back. Well, as we've already established, it's a fucked up situation that became even more messed up because of Evolution's timing. Clearly they want a women's title match at TakeOver and the only one that they could possibly do with the tapings done before Evolution was a rematch between Kairi and Shayna. And given that this was already Shayna's rematch, her losing again would have meant that was it for her as far as the title picture went. So they used it as an opportunity to debut Duke and Shafir to help get the belt back on Shayna and set up a rubber match at WarGames which is all they could do in the circumstances and they'll probably use that match to debut Io to help Kairi win it back and end the feud once and for all. Not what I would have done, but I do see the sense in the direction they've gone in.



> It just feels like an afterthought compared to Black/Gargano and the War Games angle. They've only done one segment together, whereas Black and Dream by this point had a lot of segments between them. There's still time but it really feels like a let down considering what could have happened between them.


I recall at least two in-ring segments between them and a few backstage promos by both where they talked about each other. I don't think the dynamic is there to tell a story like the Black/Dream or Ciampa/Gargano ones between them, especially since I'm not even sure Velveteen is a full fledged face either. They'll obviously interact next week with Dream facing Lars and I'm sure there'll be something on the go-home episode too so that's not too bad in the end. For a match that's likely the third most important on the card despite carrying the title in it, it's gotten enough attention and build to still feel like it really matters, at least in my view.

How would you have booked it up until this point instead? Keep in mind the whole Nikki/Aleister/Johnny situation which clearly ties into this story too.



> As for the title situation, you're right. It just seems that something else more interesting is always going on. Really does feel like a curse.


I don't think they intentionally try to put the NXT title on the back burner, it just sort of happens. WarGames is like their Royal Rumble in the sense that it'll main event over the title and be the major focus of the show when it happens. That explains the title not being the center of attention for the last two Novembers now. Aleister's reign was just terribly unlucky to come at the same time as this Gargano-Ciampa feud, when it was white hot no less.

It'll get better after WarGames, I'm sure. The title will become the main focus after it again.



> As for whether or not it's Johnny, it really is up in the air, which is half the fun. Gargano's non-denial with Regal, other suspects being eliminated, and now his outright attack on Black suggests almost beyond reasonable doubt it's him, but it's STILL not officially confirmed. I love it. This whole angle has turned the worst luck into gold.


That's why as upset as I was at the plans for the last TakeOver going in ruins with Aleister's injury, I knew that NXT would make the best out of a bad situation in the end. It feels nice and refreshing to know that you can trust a creative team to come up with something good even when in a tough spot. This is almost never the case with the main roster, for example. NXT creative can consistently have and keep your trust, RAW and SmackDown... not so much.

I still don't think it's Gargano, either. That's what adds to the intrigue of the whole thing for me.



> Part of me still wonders whether it's someone on the main roster who attacked Black, and he'll come up after Survivor Series. We did see a bunch of callups last year.


Hmm, that's possible but the only guy I could think of who might be culpable is Orton. Not sure that's the direction they'll take this in but you never know. I don't know what he could do any longer in NXT until Mania is over so now might be as good a time as ever for him to make the jump to the main roster.


----------



## Jedah

Psychosocial said:


> I know you don't like her.


I like her if she's used properly, but this run should have ended in Brooklyn. I really don't want to see another extended Shayna title reign because it will be no different than the last one. She's good at what she does but she can't do anything else, and it's time for a change.



> If Shayna went up to the main roster by now, what would happen with Duke and Shafir? Your answer would probably be who cares, but clearly WWE see some value and potential in doing a MMA Four Horsewomen angle at some point. If their two friends were already in the big leagues and they were stuck in developmental, on their own or as a pair, how would they really fare? Probably not too well judging by the reports on how they're doing on house shows so far. NXT is all about development after all and they're trying to develop the 4HW gimmick there so that all the legwork is done before they go up to the main roster and team up with Ronda.


You know NXT is basically non-canon to the main roster. Most of what happens there doesn't matter. There is no need for Shayna to stay. Her friends should be developed just like everyone else and not get special treatment, especially as you say, with the problematic house show reports and the fact that they look like charisma vacuums in the segments they're in. There's clearly still a lot of work to be done and it's going to take some time. They should not hold everyone back because they're connected to Ronda (which is the only reason anyone would even give a remote shit about them in the first place). It's pure nepotism and very detrimental to not only the programming, but the development of other people. Bianca has more star potential than any of them and she's suffering because of this, along with other people. They can do their idea (which I am certain few people actually care about at the end of the day, since Ronda is the only one among them that matters here) when the other two are actually ready. They really shouldn't be pushed before they're ready. It's just as bad for them as well as everyone else.

For the record though, I'm not sure the rematch takes place at War Games. I think we're getting a six woman tag match instead. They've been doing it on the house show circuit for months. If it happens this early I don't think Kairi gets the title back. I think the best case scenario now is that you see a war up until Phoenix, where Kairi does get the title back, only for Io to turn on her afterward, which would be a great touch but still inferior to what otherwise could have happened with the division. I'm not terribly optimistic, though.



> I recall at least two in-ring segments between them and a few backstage promos by both where they talked about each other. I don't think the dynamic is there to tell a story like the Black/Dream or Ciampa/Gargano ones between them, especially since I'm not even sure Velveteen is a full fledged face either. They'll obviously interact next week with Dream facing Lars and I'm sure there'll be something on the go-home episode too so that's not too bad in the end. For a match that's likely the third most important on the card despite carrying the title in it, it's gotten enough attention and build to still feel like it really matters, at least in my view.


I think there was only one segment - the one last week. I just would have done more. More segments and promos between them. Let them really try to get in each other's heads in one another's presence. You have arguably the two best guys in the company at that and it just feels underwhelming to me, at least compared to what it could have been.



> Hmm, that's possible but the only guy I could think of who might be culpable is Orton. Not sure that's the direction they'll take this in but you never know. I don't know what he could do any longer in NXT until Mania is over so now might be as good a time as ever for him to make the jump to the main roster.


Yeah, beyond another match with Ciampa, Black doesn't appear to have much left in NXT. I was thinking Orton for a while now. This ruthless version of Orton vs. Black could be a really good feud. Unfortunately you need to trust the main roster booking with it.


----------



## Reil

People seem to forget that if Kairi wins the title back, then Shayna gets yet another rematch. Given I can see them blowing that one on NXT TV, but they could drag it out to Takeover: New York as well and have Kairi send the MMA 4HW packing then.

Also Kairi is absolutely pissed tonight. Even Dakota is scared of her.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1058167783496839168
e: They are facing Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shayfir tonight. No Shayna at all. Apparently she didn't really interact with fans all that much either.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> People seem to forget that if Kairi wins the title back, then Shayna gets yet another rematch. Given I can see them blowing that one on NXT TV, but they could drag it out to Takeover: New York as well and have Kairi send the MMA 4HW packing then.
> 
> Also Kairi is absolutely pissed tonight. Even Dakota is scared of her.
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1058167783496839168
> e: They are facing Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shayfir tonight. No Shayna at all.


That does not look like "Pirate Princess" Kairi Sane. That looks like LU "Dark Lotus Triad" Kairi Sane.


----------



## Reil

Looks like Marina and Jessamyn defeated them tonight, getting the pin on Dakota.


----------



## Psychosocial

Jedah said:


> I like her if she's used properly, but this run should have ended in Brooklyn. I really don't want to see another extended Shayna title reign because it will be no different than the last one. She's good at what she does but she can't do anything else, and it's time for a change.


I really don't think this will be an extended title reign. I'll happily eat my words if I'm wrong but I'd be surprised (and worried) if she still has that belt after WarGames.



> You know NXT is basically non-canon to the main roster. Most of what happens there doesn't matter. There is no need for Shayna to stay. Her friends should be developed just like everyone else and not get special treatment, especially as you say, with the problematic house show reports and the fact that they look like charisma vacuums in the segments they're in. They should not hold everyone back because they're connected to Ronda (which is the only reason anyone would even give a remote shit about them in the first place). It's pure nepotism and very detrimental to not only the programming, but the development of other people. Bianca has more star potential than any of them and she's suffering because of this, along with other people. They can do their idea (which I am certain few people actually care about at the end of the day, since Ronda is the only one among them that matters here) when the other two are actually ready.


Booking and achievements in NXT don't count for much in the main roster, sure, but it's still important for what it primarily achieves in helping talent develop characters, learn the production side of things, and working with and learning from people with more experience. Duke and Shafir on their own are not valuable at all to WWE, their value comes from their connection to Ronda and the whole MMA Horsewomen thing. They're clearly trying to take advantage of that and if they're that serious about it, it makes sense to keep Shayna around to mentor them, grow that gimmick in WWE, and not totally expose their weaknesses which they seemingly have very many of. And once that's over, they'll go up to the main roster, join forces with Ronda, and WWE will be able to realize their plans for them, whatever they may be.



> For the record though, I'm not sure the rematch takes place at War Games. I think we're getting a six woman tag match instead. They've been doing it on the house show circuit for months. If it happens this early I don't think Kairi gets the title back. I think the best case scenario now is that you see a war up until Phoenix, where Kairi does get the title back, only for Io to turn on her afterward, which would be a great touch but still inferior to what otherwise could have happened with the division. I'm not terribly optimistic, though.


Where are you getting a 6-woman tag match from? Shayna, Duke, and Shafir against Kairi, Io, and who? Wouldn't make any sense with Io not having debuted yet and no one else linked with the Japanese women here. No way Duke and Shafir get TakeOver matches before Bianca either. A rematch makes much more sense.



> I think there was only one segment - the one last week. I just would have done more. More segments and promos between them. Let them really try to get in each other's heads in one another's presence. You have arguably the two best guys in the company at that and it just feels underwhelming to me, at least compared to what it could have been.


There was this one too.






Plus, a couple backstage Ciampa promos and I think a Dream one too where they mentioned each other. May not be much, but it's enough in this case so far.

Again, like I said, I don't think the dynamic is there with this being heel vs. heel and their current characters not really being compatible enough to tell a unique story. How is Velveteen supposed to get in the head of the man who broke Gargano?

The match should be very good, I just don't think the characters are a great match up.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> *People seem to forget that if Kairi wins the title back, then Shayna gets yet another rematch.* Given I can see them blowing that one on NXT TV, but they could drag it out to Takeover: New York as well and have Kairi send the MMA 4HW packing then.


Npt necessarily. Ember, Roode, Andrade, all lost their titles at a Takeover, then got called up and never asked for a rematch


----------



## Reil

They were running Marina, Jessamyn and Shayna on the house show circuit before they even debuted, and Io Shirai is likely going to debut as the best friend of Kairi. As for who they tag with, there are a wide variety of people they can work with. They've tagged with Mia, Dakota, Xia, and Deonna on the house show circuit. 

And I agree with Jedah that Kairi likely won't get the title back if they do the rematch at War Games. It's way too early. And they'll want the MMA 4HW to make a big statement, so a Takeover match isn't unlikely, since they'll be "protected" in a six woman tag.



Mordecay said:


> Not necessarily. Ember, Roode, Andrade, all lost their titles at a Takeover, then got called up and never asked for a rematch


Nah. It's Shayna, so they'll drag this out for as long as possible.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> They were running Marina, Jessamyn and Shayna on the house show circuit before they even debuted, and Io Shirai is likely going to debut as the best friend of Kairi. As for who they tag with, there are a wide variety of people they can work with. They've tagged with Mia, Dakota, Xia, and Deonna on the house show circuit.
> 
> And I agree with Jedah that Kairi likely won't get the title back if they do the rematch at War Games. It's way too early. And they'll want the MMA 4HW to make a big statement, so a Takeover match isn't unlikely, since they'll be "protected" in a six woman tag.
> 
> 
> 
> Nah. It's Shayna, so they'll drag this out for as long as possible.


Also teamed with Candice, but she's probably not an option since they may be turning her Heel, judging by her confrontation with Nikki Cross & Aleister Black this past week.

If they do a rematch at NXT Takeover: War Games, I'm seeing Jessamyn and Marina causing an intentional DQ when Kairi has Shayna dead to rights, thus allowing Shayna to retain her title.


Yeah, I doubt Shayna is getting called up. The only reason would've been to feud with Ronda, but with the Road to WM looming, that feud would've just been filler. No, if Shayna gets called up it will be after WM.


----------



## Jedah

Psychosocial said:


> Duke and Shafir on their own are not valuable at all to WWE their value comes from their connection to Ronda and the whole MMA Horsewomen thing. They're clearly trying to take advantage of that and if they're that serious about it, it makes sense to keep Shayna around to mentor them, grow that gimmick in WWE, and not totally expose their weaknesses which they seemingly have very many of. And once that's over, they'll go up to the main roster, join forces with Ronda, and WWE will be able to realize their plans for them, whatever they may be.


Correct, which really goes to prove the point. They aren't valuable. They were flops in the UFC and there's too many weaknesses they have. It's going to take time and Shayna is going to need to move up. At least she had a few years of experience before coming in. If you need a special mentor to develop, you shouldn't be there. If they need Shayna to hold their hand for years, they have no business being there, because Shayna can't stay there forever.



> Where are you getting a 6-woman tag match from? Shayna, Duke, and Shafir against Kairi, Io, and who? Wouldn't make any sense with Io not having debuted yet and no one else linked with the Japanese women here. No way Duke and Shafir get TakeOver matches before Bianca either. A rematch makes much more sense.


It's because they've been doing it on the house show circuit for months. The same circuit that they started doing Ciampa vs. Dream as well. Io will be easy enough to introduce. She just made the MYC finals after all. Segments are fine enough. The third person is the puzzling one. But either way, that's where they seem to be headed. It's doubtful Kairi just wins the title back at War Games though, so that's what I'm hoping happens.

It's in this context that Duke and Shafir do have a good chance of getting a TakeOver match before Bianca, who is basically directionless now. Nepotism wins.



> Plus, a couple backstage Ciampa promos and I think a Dream one too where they mentioned each other. May not be much, but it's enough in this case so far.
> 
> Again, like I said, I don't think the dynamic is there with this being heel vs. heel and their current characters not really being compatible enough to tell a unique story. How is Velveteen supposed to get in the head of the man who broke Gargano?
> 
> The match should be very good, I just don't think the characters are a great match up.


Ah, that one. Yeah, that one was overshadowed by Nikki and the Aleister story.

Dream is more of an egocentric, self-interested tweener instead of a heel though. Ciampa is egocentric as well but has no redeeming qualities. Their promo was quite good too. I think you could have done far more.

Not that I'm complaining though. It's two of my favorite guys so of course I'm looking forward to the match. I just would've liked to see it get more attention.

Ironically, I think Black/Gargano main events this TakeOver. Well, either that or War Games. But in my mind, Black/Gargano needs to main event.


----------



## Psychosocial

I can't see Black/Gargano main eventing unless they do a huge angle to end the show. And it'd have to be Orton RKOing Aleister out of nowhere and admitting he was the attacker levels of huge for that to happen. Don't see it.

This card would have a completely different feel to it if they do a 6-woman tag instead of a title match, add Lars to the NXT title match, and replace Dunne with EC3 in WarGames. I hope none of these happen.

I'm still hoping we'll get Sane/Baszler to end their feud and Ohno/Riddle with the other 3 matches remaining as is. Add Bianca/Nikki and Lee/Sullivan to the tapings for the post-TakeOver episode and that's pretty much perfect for me.


----------



## Jedah

Black/Gargano feels like the biggest deal in NXT right now. I wouldn't be surprised if it main events. It could be the War Games match again like last year too, though. Personally, I'd have that open the show this time. Fingers crossed for Dunne. EC3 could be added but that's a dramatic drop off in quality.

Unfortunately, if Kairi and Shayna go one on one again here, the feud probably ends with Shayna winning, and that's a disaster right now. So the six woman tag is most appropriate for the mess the division is in right now.


----------



## Mear

Lord, that springboard frop splash from Montez Ford was just insane and the match as a whole was really good.

And that Main-Event segment was awesome. I will say what I said last week, NXT is finally feeling like an old-school show of Raw and it is just so awesome, I hope they can keep it up. Though, if the match sounds great, I feel NXT has done a bad job at building it up. The Undisputed Era just looks so much weaker than their opponents on paper


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Ain't a f*cking way in hell Black/Gargano main events over WarGames.


----------



## Psychosocial

I can't see Kairi-Shayna not happening at WarGames and I certainly can't see Shayna winning the feud in the end. Especially if Io debuts to help Kairi and she still loses. You basically kill the top two babyfaces and the entire babyface side of the division by doing that. And if the match doesn't happen at WarGames, then it would happen on NXT TV and it makes no sense for this long drawn out feud to end there. It's not going to last until Phoenix, they've already run out of ideas to further the story between them, just look at the lackluster build to the Brooklyn IV and Evolution matches. They can't run this for another 3 months, it's not like Gargano/Ciampa where they have plenty of material to last them a while. Plus, I don't think they can really keep Bianca's push on hold and have her talking about being undefeated for months without ever getting a title chance. Too many things fall out of place and become unbalanced if they don't end this feud at WarGames. It has to end there and surely, it will.


----------



## Jbardo

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Ain't a f*cking way in hell Black/Gargano main events over WarGames.


War games is 100% main eventing, not sure why anyone would think otherwise.


----------



## Ertan Soner

yes i agree wargames should me


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

Man, after Black became a bit of collateral for the wider Gargano/Ciampa feud, they’ve really gotten him back on track in a big way without actually removing him necessarily from the wider Gargano/Ciampa story. On the one hand I’m happy to see Black being presented well, he had become a firm NXT favourite of mine and the use of Nikki Cross has been fun, but why couldn’t they have just done this in the first place? Why did they have to make Black, who they had been building up strong for so long, into a transitional champion? Why did they even change his character to that goofy, smily fool, cutting shitty promos filled with bad jokes? (they also changed the NXT venue for a short amount of time during this time too now I remember. Weird). The fact they’ve gone back to the original Black character again shows the changes were awful so this whole stretch of his career just feels like a weird fever dream we should probably all forget which is ironic in itself as it should be a big deal he was NXT Champion.

Then again he is lucky he isn't Kevin Owens I guess. His career has never recovered from him winning the Universal Title. Poor guy.

Some other thoughts: 

— Lars smashing stuff outside in his pants trying to get attention so someone would ask him how he was was absolutely hilarious for all the wrong reasons. 

— Riddle was my favourite wrestler on the indies for years and so seeing Riddle debut on NXT was an awesome moment any way, but he really got a great showing in his debut and has got some of the best music out of the indie signings in a while. 

— The TakeOver Card is shaping up very nicely.

— Baszler/Sane was the MOTN for me at Evolution and that little extra interaction really hits home their magic chemistry for me. I’m not much of a fan of Sane as a character, but she is a terrific wrestler and she and Baszler just make something special out of it every time they share the ring. I think Baszler is the future though, I know right now Ronda is the bigger star for obvious reasons, but the way Baszler has taken to wrestling just says to me we’ve got many great years ahead of us. Especially if Ronda really is doing only a year. 

— For a glorified squash that Burch/Lorcan v Mendoza/the other guy was a surprisingly fun match. Hard hitting, athletic, big spots and lightning fast. I really do hope they start using Burch and Lorcan for actual stories now.

— The closing seven odd minutes were awesome. I cant wait to see this inside War Games. What a crazy run Pete Dunne is on, really happy for him.


----------



## Jedah

Psychosocial said:


> I can't see Kairi-Shayna not happening at WarGames and I certainly can't see Shayna winning the feud in the end. Especially if Io debuts to help Kairi and she still loses. You basically kill the top two babyfaces and the entire babyface side of the division by doing that. And if the match doesn't happen at WarGames, then it would happen on NXT TV and it makes no sense for this long drawn out feud to end there. It's not going to last until Phoenix, they've already run out of ideas to further the story between them, just look at the lackluster build to the Brooklyn IV and Evolution matches. They can't run this for another 3 months, it's not like Gargano/Ciampa where they have plenty of material to last them a while. Plus, I don't think they can really keep Bianca's push on hold and have her talking about being undefeated for months without ever getting a title chance. Too many things fall out of place and become unbalanced if they don't end this feud at WarGames. It has to end there and surely, it will.


Unfortunately I don't think Triple H cares about any of that. This is the one area where I don't trust NXT in. Like I said, based on the house shows (where Kairi didn't even get a single title defense), I think we're getting that 6 woman tag. If a singles match happens at War Games I can't see Kairi winning. They can drag it out until Phoenix that way by introducing the faction war element.



Jbardo said:


> War games is 100% main eventing, not sure why anyone would think otherwise.


Because Black/Gargano has gotten the most attention and build. It's very possible War Games main events again but Black/Gargano has felt like the most important thing going on right now.


----------



## TD Stinger

Assuming Dunne is healthy for the match, I'd go with this as the order for Takeover:

1. Cole
2. Ricochet
3. O'Reilly
4. Rowe
5. Fish
6. Hanson
7. Strong
8. Dunne

So if Dunne is still working hurt he doesn't have to pull the heaviest load. And if he can't go you can just throw EC3 in that same spot.


----------



## Reil

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1059493887054626817
Interesting. Keep in mind this is only a few days before War Games.


----------



## Dibil13

So they're actually going to spoil the Takeover results unless all of the key players are absent from these tapings.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1059493887054626817
> Interesting. Keep in mind this is only a few days before War Games.


Either this is because they're not doing any tapings during the Holidays or they're just taping one episode. Because the last set of tapings will cover this week and next week leading up to Takeover: War Games. The pre-show will cover the 11/21 episode of NXT. Which leaves the San Jose show to cover the 11/28 episode of NXT, while they tape the next batch of episodes the very same night in Full Sail on 11/28.


----------



## Psychosocial

Maybe they're just doing these tapings for the 11/21 episode so that the matches take place in a different setting than War Games where they'll have two rings for every match again?

I don't know, just taking a guess. I doubt they're going to give away the TakeOver results beforehand.


----------



## gl83

Psychosocial said:


> Maybe they're just doing these tapings for the 11/21 episode so that the matches take place in a different setting than War Games where they'll have two rings for every match again?
> 
> I don't know, just taking a guess. I doubt they're going to give away the TakeOver results beforehand.


It's basically the same scenario as the episodes running through the Evolution PPV, except now instead of Shayna & Kairi having to be MIA lest you spoil the results of the PPV, now you also have Ciampa & Velveteen Dream being MIA. And no in-ring segments regarding the NXT title and NXT women's title lest you spoil the results within the promo.


----------



## Reil

Kairi Sane vs Shayna Baszler in a 2 out of 3 falls match was set for NXT: WarGames.

I can already see where this is going and I don't like it.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Johnny really did turn.

:trips8


----------



## Dibil13

Shit. A rematch this soon means Kairi is likely never getting the title back. That means they're free to call her up very soon.


----------



## Mordecay

Dibil13 said:


> Shit. A rematch this soon means Kairi is likely never getting the title back. That means they're free to call her up very soon.


They need a babyface to feed to Becky I guess


----------



## Reil

Dibil13 said:


> Shit. A rematch this soon means Kairi is likely never getting the title back. That means they're free to call her up very soon.


I think the only thing working against that is that the NXT Women's Division has absolutely no credible babyfaces left if Kairi loses. Candice is turning, Dakota loses to anyone who isn't named Taynara or Vanessa, and yeah.

This division is completely fucked if Kairi loses at NXT: War Games. Like, it will pretty much never recover levels of fucked.


----------



## Mordecay

Honestly, I wasn't really hyped for the Takeover show. Yes, I knew the matches probably would be good, but I felt that it lacked something. Well, today they added that something, the video packages they did were great, the Gargano video was awesome, and even the Dream stuff at the end was good, so kudos to them for knowing how to hype a show.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Episode Thoughts:

*Heavy Machinery vs. Forgotten Sons was a decent little tag math. And that's about it.

*Kairi vs. Shayna 2/3 Falls? That's going to be interesting to see how that lays out.

*Taynara continues to make little strides every time I see her perform. And Dakota was on point tonight.

*Once again, WWE/NXT production comes through with a great video package hyping the War Games match.

*So we got Johnny's explanation. And there's no mystery about it now, he did it. And he's not hiding from it. It's an interesting twist to take with Johnny. As a face he felt lost after losing to Ciampa in Brooklyn. And now it feels like he's gone to the dark side. And the interesting thing is that he still believes he's the good guy in all this, which is usually the mark of a delusional heel. He's still straddling the line right now. I'll be interested to see how they continue to book this angle and how the fans react to him. And is there any way the old Johnny can come back from this.

*Dream vs. Lars was a pretty fun main event. Dream, while not the most polished guy in the ring, seems to make everything work. And if the ending was any indication, they want this guy as NXT Champion. It won't happen, but Ciampa vs. Dream is going to be something to behold.


----------



## Buhalovski

I still dont like the idea of heel Gargano. Hope the redeption arc(if there is one at all) is good... sorry but he sounded like a geek, didnt like the explanation.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

I think for the second year in a row, Adam Cole scores the pinfall and TUE wins WarGames. Cole goes onto feud with EC3 while TUE feud with War Raiders.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— So Forgotten Sons are already losing? Wow… They went down like a lead balloon. 

— I didn’t like Nikki Cross for the longest time, but since she became the sort of herald of Black I am really starting to warm to her. 

— The way William Regal growls “War Games”. 

— Talking about WAAAR GAAAAMESSS, I am sort of experiencing mixed emotions on the way the actual War Games match itself is shaping up. On the one hand from what I remember last years War Games match was great as something like that can be in a PG product (although NXT does seem to have more leniency than the MR does) and the talent inside the structure this year is even better than last year, so this has the potential to be absolutely phenomenal. The problem is though is that we’ve seen basically every single combination this match offers already in the last few months in the build up and this new singles matches to decide the order thing, is that gonna be between the people in the War Games match? If so we are risking the chance of some serious fatigue by the time the actual match arrives. 

— Not the crispest match in the world but a surprisingly fun one between Kai and Conti given it had no real context, story or heat and was over fairly swiftly. A few months back Kai seemed to get a lot of spotlight on NXT which led me to believe she was getting some sort of push. That then just stopped one day and I ended up completely forgetting about it even being a thing until she had this meaningless match against Conti this week. Hopefully she’ll get better used on NXT UK.

— Fuck me that Ohno/Lee/Riddle backstage thing was cringe AF. 

— I always forget that Gargano can cut a really great promo when given the chance to. I hope he gets to be a badass heel or tweener like Becky Lynch is allowed to be right now. 

— Everyone seemed to have already predicted that Ciampa would schmozz the finish of the Main Event, I just hope that it doesn’t turn into a triple threat at TakeOver because that has the potential to tank, hard.

— Oh and I completely forgot, Sane/Baszler best two out of three falls! Assuming Baszler can be stretched for this kind of match, this has the potential to steal the whole show.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

I want to watch this week's NXT but can't, for some reason the latest episode is not currently available on the Network.


----------



## ellthom

kendo_nagasaki said:


> I want to watch this week's NXT but can't, for some reason the latest episode is not currently available on the Network.


Yup I cannot find the new episode either. Maybe they took it down or forgot catalogue it


----------



## Reil

kendo_nagasaki said:


> I want to watch this week's NXT but can't, for some reason the latest episode is not currently available on the Network.





ellthom said:


> Yup I cannot find the new episode either. Maybe they took it down or forgot catalogue it


Here you go:

http://network.wwe.com/video/v2518841983

You can also find it by clicking on the schedule and finding the next airing of it, and clicking Watch Now.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> I think the only thing working against that is that the NXT Women's Division has absolutely no credible babyfaces left if Kairi loses. Candice is turning, Dakota loses to anyone who isn't named Taynara or Vanessa, and yeah.
> 
> This division is completely fucked if Kairi loses at NXT: War Games. Like, it will pretty much never recover levels of fucked.



Let me tell you what's going to happen, Kairi and Shayna will pin each other 1 time but when Kairi is about to pin Shayna a 2nd time, the 2 other "mma" girls will do something.

At the end when all hope seems to be gone Shirai comes out or they put her music Shayna don't know what's going on and Kairi win by a roll up of doom (I don't see her winning with the elbow drop)


----------



## Mear

Velveteen Dream is such a star, I love him. He just have that charisma that pulls you in and even if the match was short and not the greatest, he made everything counts, I can't wait to see him kill it in the Main-Event

Otherwise, I'm kinda sad for Heavy Machinery. They won but the crowd didn't seemed really hyped for them which shouldn't be a surprise considering they haven't done much in NXT, sucks because Otis really have something... And I really like the women with Shayna. It's great to have women who actually feels like they are ready to kick your ass and want to kill you, actual legit fighters

The match between Taynara and Kai was cool but the problem is that they act too girly, too weak. Kai gets kicked once and she's down crying, Taynara screams to order Kai to give up instead of saying with confidence. Shayna and Co actually looks like they are ready to get shit down

Also, that promo package for War Games was really good and totally got me hyped for that match


----------



## Alright_Mate

Pretty average episode this week...

Skipped Heavy Machinery vs Forgotten Sons, not wasting my time watching those trash teams go at it.

My god Taynara Conti is annoying, she's improving in the ring, I enjoyed her work on Dakota's arm but her character work is dreadful, the random screaming, looking like a badass one minute then acting like a stroppy 10 year old the next, I don't get her. Dakota her usual self, fun offense and sold incredibly well.

Mia Yim "Head Baddie In Charge" :WTF2

The video package for the War Games match was absolutely brilliant.

Gargano's explanation was understandable but obvious, they've just opted for the obvious route with this and I'm still unsure whether it's the right move. A nice touch to video himself next to the spot where he attacked Black, that was cool. Looking forward to their match though, if Gargano is to win then I'd like Candice to get involved.

Sullivan vs Dream was booked in the best way possible, a nice fun match, both of them are impressing me every time I see them, Dream is a star, Lars is slowly establishing himself as potentially the best big guy in the business. The aftermath got such a pop, I can't see it happening but I'd love to see Dream take the title.


----------



## GTL2

Lars/Dream was the standout. Dream is taking his own path and doing it great. Lars is probably the guy with the highest chance of main roster success and Creative need to think how they will work that transition. It would be a serious waste if they just moved him up. They continually fail to work out any way of giving these guys any kind of momentum to when they go up.

Liked the War Games segment and Gargano is doing way better as a heel than I expected.

Kai/Conti wasn't great. Conti overdoes everything and just needs to dial it back. Some very soft action too which could be improved.

HM/FS was about adequate. Knight came out looking strong and Otis is always creating something. FS have basic wrestling/promo skills but they should be a lot better than they are for their experience. Blake has flashes of being interesting but needs to keep that level.


----------



## Psychosocial

Heavy Machinery/Forgotten Sons - Thought this was a pretty fun tag match, this is the most interesting thing that FS have been involved in thus far. Jaxson Ryker's expressions are terrible though. Shame that the crowd didn't react to Heavy Machinery as much as usual though, seems like they've been cooled down a lot and Full Sail aren't as high on them anymore as a result. Maybe it's time for them to split up and Otis either try things on his own or find a new partner. He has something special and hopefully it won't just be let to go to waste like this.

Kai/Conti - Decent match but only because of Dakota, really. Taynara was really bad all around, both in terms of her wrestling and her character work. Less of her and Aliyah and more of Vanessa Borne, please.

The women's segments - That was probably the best talking Candice has done as of yet although I'm not certain yet if she turned heel or not. The Horsewomen segment was fine too and we got the Kairi/Shayna rematch I expected. Don't know why some were worried that Duke and Shafir would have their debut match at WarGames, they're nowhere near that level yet. HHH knows what he's doing. The Bianca/Mia segment was absolute cringe from both though.

Ohno/Riddle is definitely happening too. Ohno was looking at him the whole time during that backstage segment. What a match that will be.

Gargano explanation - So in the end they've gone down the route with Johnny really being the one who attacked Aleister. Kinda disappointed as they could have used this whole thing as a foil to something else later on, but it is what it is. I wonder how that promo would have gone over in front of the audience given that he had both face and heel tones at times during it. It's going to be really interesting to see how they turn him back around once it's time to face Ciampa again and win the title.

That WarGames video package was really good and a great example of how a quality video promo can mask and hide the discrepancies of the actual booking. I'm not a fan of how they've built up this match, but that video made it all look like it was a year-long journey and master plan. So well done to those who made it, I guess. 

Velveteen/Sullivan - Short but fun main event. Velveteen's entrance is starting to become as long as Undertaker's. Interesting match-up because these two probably have the most transferable characters to the main roster from anyone in NXT. Lars winning is fine with the Ciampa distraction, but hopefully he won't be added to the match at WarGames because then it'd become a clusterfuck with two heels and one tweener.

The post-match was good too, crowd really got behind the Dream there. If there was ever a time to put the title on him, this would be it. Unfortunately I don't see it happening as Ciampa's reign is only going to lead to Gargano finally getting the title and winning the feud, whether that's in Phoenix or Brooklyn.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Johnny Banter


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Really liked Heavy Machiney/Forgotten sons match. Thought it was a fun match.

The Women's match didn't care for.

So With Johnny they did go for the obvious route but that's fine because it still makes sense in the end. I also like that he filmed when he attacked Allister. Can't wait for the match at War Games.

Dream's not gonna win at War Games I feel like but I do like how he's doing in this feud. I think this is gonna be a good match at War Games.

So I'm pretty much assuming we're getting Riddle vs Ohno for the 5th match?


----------



## Psychosocial

Go-home episode tonight before War Games. :mark

If it's true that Saturday's card will only have 4 matches, then I expect Ohno-Riddle to be scheduled for next week's episode, taped prior to TakeOver. I'd like to see at least one of Bianca/Nikki (they never had a clear winner in their matches) or Lee/Sullivan on there too as I'm interested in seeing those matches at some point.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

This was mostly a video-package show hyping up the matches on Takeover this Saturday. The Gargano/Black and Ciampa/Dream and Shayna/Sane video packages were all fantastic.

Decent main-event, too. Don't want to give away who won just in case people haven't watched it yet even though it has officially aired.


----------



## Jedah

I'm bummed we aren't gonna get Riddle vs. Ohno at War Games proper. Oh well. It should still be good next week.

Go-home episode was so-so. Hot second half with O'Reilly and Rowe. Nice brawl at the end. Got me hyped for War Games.

First half was..............eh.

Mia Yim loses to Bianca, cutting off yet another potential hot new babyface at the knees right out of the gate for no reason. Now, this would have been justifiable if Bianca was getting a title shot at War Games, but they decided to fuck everything up with Evolution, so she's not. So this was just stupid.

Then you have Lacey continuing with her stuff. They're certainly fattening her up for Kairi or Io, but she's taken a lot of babyfaces out too.

.....It really is impossible to overstate just how BAD this women's division is right now. You have a top heel who's act has long gotten stale, a top babyface who's at risk of becoming a choke artist, and secondary heels that gobble up all the rest of the babyfaces and make them irrelevant. It's bad. Really bad. This division desperately needs to move on from Shayna at the top of it. Logic would indicate that with them building Lacey and Bianca up, this should change...but I still don't see Kairi getting the title back unless they want to debut Io in the match to help her out. Six more months of this is going to be very bad, and then probably only to drop the title to Toni Storm, which would be pretty bad too, considering her status.


----------



## Sephiroth766

Psychosocial said:


> Go-home episode tonight before War Games. :mark
> 
> If it's true that Saturday's card will only have 4 matches, then I expect Ohno-Riddle to be scheduled for next week's episode, taped prior to TakeOver. I'd like to see at least one of Bianca/Nikki (they never had a clear winner in their matches) or Lee/Sullivan on there too as I'm interested in seeing those matches at some point.


I honestly think Candice vs. Nikki is the direction after last week. It makes more sense to do that match. Although I agree Bianca/Nikki never had a blow off


----------



## Mordecay

Episode was fine I guess. Again the video packages were the highlight of the show.

Bianca vs Mia did nothing for me if I am honest, it dragged and I didn't felt much chemistry between the two

Riddle is super charismatic, but my god he is bad on the mic, not Ricochet bad, but bad

Lacey Evans basically squashing a jobber, not much to comment, one can tell they have plans for her

Gargano/Black video package was awesome, and the Kairi/Shayna one was very good, even with Kairi's broken english. The VD/Ciampa was good was fine, but I felt it was the weaker of the 3.

Main event was fine, but I am not really into the ground base offense Kyle does, so I suppose I didn't like it as much as many probably would. Then all the interferences and stuff made it more exciting, but I suppose that the result was predictable. And you can tell is very likely that they will take Dunne out of the match, at least for the way the show ended. I suppose they will replace him, most likely with EC3 or, as a long shot, Keith Lee.

I would my interest on the matches is:

1. Gargano/Black
2. War Games
3. Shayna/Kairi
4. VD/Ciampa

I really don't feel they have done a good job building interest in VD/Ciampa, and I would be really surprised if VD beats Ciampa, because he seems so weak compared to the bald fucker.


----------



## Jedah

I think if Dunne were going to miss War Games, we would have heard about it by now. They'd have done a segment or something. It seems he'll be fine. Thank God if so.


----------



## Alright_Mate

I decided to watch an episode early for once  ...

Another solid showcase from Bianca; however she still has the same problem that I've alluded to many times, she needs to learn how to take offense better, she still seems nervous in that aspect. As for Mia Yim, Full Sail is full of deluded idiots, why on earth did they want to see her get signed? She's bang average, her offense is weak looking, especially her crappy looking dropkicks.

I thought Kairi Sane was cringeworthy, Matt Riddle is on another level, he sounded stoned. Shame we aren't getting him vs Ohno at Takeover though, could've easily been MOTN.

Karissa Rivera was a nice find, incredibly attractive. Lacey Evans produced a "Fuck this bitch" kind of performance to squash her though. Didn't think much to Lacey's promo afterwards.

The O'Reilly vs Hanson main event was like watching a Tree Surgeon chopping down a Tree. An interesting match up in styles but I couldn't really get into it, love watching O'Reilly but Hanson is just your typical big guy, he is just like a more athletic version of Killian Dain. We had the predictable shenanigans towards the end which led to O'Reilly winning and that was that. I guess Dunne might be getting written out of the match with that knee injury, if so and EC3 replaces him I can't wait for the dead reaction he'll receive.

Finally NXT produce the best video packages, that Black/Gargano one in particular was quality.

Roll on War Games, very strong card, could well be the best Takeover ever.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole's vertical leap on that jumping enzuguri was insane.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT.

— It takes way too long for Belair to transition into a pin after her finisher. 

— The story is a mess but I cant deny how hype I feel for Black/Gargano after that video package. Honestly the whole card has shaped up really nicely. Probably the weakest match on the card is ironically probably the NXT Title match which feels like an afterthought behind everything else somehow. I also don’t think Dream is much of a wrestler so I don’t expect this to be all that great a match either and unless Black or Gargano screw up the finish, I just don’t have any suspension of disbelief in that Dream has any chance of winning here. The charisma collision may be fun though, especially as the crowd should be red hot for this regardless. 

— Matt Riddle’s acting and dialogue is so terrible I couldn’t help but laugh.‘Dee Butt’. Have they also made him stick stickers over the logo on his jacket? 

— Hanson/O’Reilly was great. Interesting to see Hanson outside of War Machine and O’Reilly is just so special in the ring, we don’t get to see him work enough. Nice chemistry and contrast of styles. Right winner too, heel advantage off a cheat finish, as it should be. That brawl at the end got me hyped for War Games too, even if we’ve basically seen every combination of the War Games match now up until this point. 

— Isn’t Dunne legit injured in real life? Is that why they had Dunne nursing his leg on the ground to give him a kayfabe way out of WarGames? Love this character tweak to Fish that after his knee injury shelfed him, he is now this knee obsessed psychopath who always tries to injure his opponents like he was injured. 

— Aw, Sane sounded so sad about her empty treasure box


----------



## Mear

God, they need to make this Riddle guy a heel very fast. Jesus, I want to punch his face hard. What the hell is this accent ? He must be one of the most annoying guy in the company and I only saw him for a minute, can't imagine what it would be if he had the mic for more time


----------



## TD Stinger

New NXT Thoughts:

*I'm gonna sound like an asshole here, but Mia Yim got signed a year too late. In last year's MYC, she was at the top of her game. She was great. But in this year's MYC, she was one of the more underwhelming performers honestly and since she joined NXT, she doesn't seem nearly as slick as before. It seems like she's going in slow motion half the time. I don't know what happened, but she's just not as good as she used to be.

Match overall was "meh" but the right person won.

*All of their video packages were great. Kairi's empty treasure box was hilarious and saddening at the same time. Black and Johnny's back and forth promo was pretty good too. Dream and Ciampa have the least to work with story wise, but there's was fun too.

*Another squash for Lacey. I like Lacey a lot with her character. I'll just that if people talk about the "Blonde Apocalypse" on the main roster, just wait until Lacey gets there.

*O'Reilly vs. Hanson was solid though we were all just waiting for the interference. O'Reilly is one the slickest wrestlers they've got with the transitions. Obvious winner, but fun match.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> New NXT Thoughts:
> 
> *I'm gonna sound like an asshole here, but Mia Yim got signed a year too late. In last year's MYC, she was at the top of her game. She was great. But in this year's MYC, she was one of the more underwhelming performers honestly and since she joined NXT, she doesn't seem nearly as slick as before. *It seems like she's going in slow motion half the time. I don't know what happened, but she's just not as good as she used to be.*


In all honesty, as someone who's seen a lot of her work. She's always been like this, she's never been *THAT *good.


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> In all honesty, as someone who's seen a lot of her work. She's always been like this, she's never been *THAT *good.


I've seen her work in Impact and in last year's MYC. And to me, she just seemed quicker and more athletic back then. And I enjoyed her matches a lot. Now her matches just seem sluggish for some reason.


----------



## gl83

TD Stinger said:


> I've seen her work in Impact and in last year's MYC. And to me, she just seemed quicker and more athletic back then. And I enjoyed her matches a lot. Now her matches just seem sluggish for some reason.


Didn't she suffer a back injury or something last year or so?


----------



## Psychosocial

Bianca/Yim was fine, I don't think the two really clicked at any point and the match never took off but it was fine for what it was. Mia's been unconvincing thus far, but Bianca is getting better and better and it's evident. As someone said earlier though, still not a fan of her selling, she needs to improve on that and her psychology but she's improving. I think in a couple of months she could get there by Phoenix. Maybe a little more time is better for her rather than having that title shot now at WarGames.

Holy crap, that Black-Gargano video package, one of the best WWE has done in years, got me really hype for that match now :mark

Lacey Evans squashed a very attractive woman who I'm going to have to look up after this. Much like Bianca, her character work and in-ring skills are improving but she's still green in other areas. Lacey could be Io's first feud should she debut soon, but after that, I don't really see a whole lot to do for her as she's down the pecking order as far as title contenders go. Maybe a main roster call-up is likely after Mania weekend. Wish she'd debut a new finisher before that though.

The main event between Hanson and O'Reilly was good and well booked. O'Reilly won after he hit Hanson with his tag belt and finisher behind the ref's back who was paying attention to the brawl on the outside between the other WarGames participants. Undisputed Era have the advantage for Saturday which was expected, that match should be great. Pete Dunne nursing his knee was concerning, but it's been 4 weeks now and no news about him missing TakeOver since so I think we're good.

I know some posters here are concerned about the state of the women's division and rightfully so, but I'm equally as worried about the tag division. War Raiders didn't get much of a reaction here and we saw last week that Heavy Machinery's reactions have cooled off also. Then you have the Mighty and Forgotten Sons who Full Sail doesn't seem to care much for. Street Profits are there too, but it doesn't look like they'll get a title shot soon. I don't know what they can do to fix this problem, especially after TUE moves up to the main roster, but the tag division is in straits right now.

Every video package was quality and the stage is now set for another excellent TakeOver. A bit miffed that Ohno/Riddle isn't on the card, but it's for the best. Last year's WarGames had two matches that went 5 min and 9 min and with a 2.5 hour slot, there's only so much time you can give to each bout. We'll get a good match that'll get more time next Wednesday and we get to enjoy the 4 matches we have on Saturday even longer.

Bring on WarGames.


----------



## Alright_Mate

One thing I failed to mention last night, Kyle O'Reilly's selling.

I don't know whether to applaud or laugh at him sometimes, the way he falls off the ring apron especially is hilarious.

What a guy.


----------



## candice-wrestling

I love Kyle O'Reilly he's just so fantastic in every way.


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

After that episode I could help but think a o’rielly Cole fued would be tremendous!! Either they turn on Cole or o’rielly either way I want that fued more than any other in wwe right now


----------



## Sick Graps-V2

I'm hyped to see more of Matt Riddle under the WWE banner. That guy's amazing at what he does. Bonefide future champ material. Matt's got it all, and he's in a place he can evolve and grow further. Considering how good he already is it's scary to think how good he'll be in a few years. 

It'll be more than cool watching The King Of Bros move up the ranks.


----------



## Mordecay

Well, this was cute


----------



## Reil

Tonight's episode will have the following:



> - Candice LeRae vs. Nikki Cross
> 
> - Lars Sullivan in action
> 
> - Keith Lee in action
> 
> - TakeOver: WarGames 2 aftermath


I imagine the aftermath will just be the typical reairing of the backstage promos. As for projections on the future for each title, this is how I imagine things will go:

- *NXT Championship*: Alister Black will likely get a title shot against Ciampa soon, after beating Gargano at Takeover

- *NXT Tag Team Championship*: War Raiders won at War Games, so they will probably get an actual title shot soon.

- *NXT North American Championship*: I dunno honestly. Lars was my original guess but not anymore. Maybe Johnny?

- *NXT Women's Championship*: Again, don't really know. I don't think Bianca/Shayna would be an engaging feud [both are heels, and Shayna cannot carry greener talents to save her life, and Bianca is very much hit or miss], so I could see them doing that match on TV, with Shayna retaining through MMA 4HW fuckery. That being said, with Triple H suggesting that the business with Kairi/Shayna isn't over yet, who knows.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Reil said:


> - *NXT North American Championship*: I dunno honestly. Lars was my original guess but not anymore. Maybe Johnny?


It'll more than likely still be BayBay & Brusierweight.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

These post TakeOver NXT episodes are usually pretty throwaway and this wasn’t any different. I am almost excited for the top of the card to be called up at this stage so guys like Keith Lee and Matt Riddle can have proper things to do. They’ve changed LeRea’s music to an even blander song. For what was basically a five minute long match, the match against Cross was fine.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Solid episode, mostly takeover recaps. One thing I did find weird was Lars Sullivan saying he wants an NXT Championship match considering they've advertised him going to the Main Roster.


----------



## Mear

Well, the jobber Keith Lee fought was fun to watch. I really like his look and attitude, always nice to see jobbers talk smack before going down. Using Sullivan to put him over in his last NXT match seems cool.

I hope Nikki Cross will have a last match to put someone over though, maybe give a clean win to Bianca to put a definitive end to their feud or to Lacey Evans since they seem to want to push her


----------



## TD Stinger

Seeing Lee and Sullivan face off was pretty cool, especially since it finally gives Lee something meaningful to do. I just hope it leads to a Takeover match where Lee beats Sullivan on the way out.

The Gargano/Candice stuff continues to be confusing. Candice comes out, gets a babyface reaction. Acts like a babyface. And then acts kind of heelish during the match.

I mean I know it's easy to pair Johnny and Candice together and it's lead to some good things, but she really needs to build herself up on her own, or maybe a better way to say it is that they need to let her do so.


----------



## Psychosocial

This last episode was good, better than the usual post-TakeOver ones in my opinion. Not very often you see them use these kind of shows to build a new angle like what they did with Lee/Sullivan so that was refreshing. It may not be a TakeOver match like I had hoped these two would have somewhere down the line since Lars is moving up to the main roster after this, but at least we'll get to see that battle manifest itself on NXT at all, really looking forward to seeing their match on Wednesday in what will likely be Sullivan's swansong.

Didn't really find the Candice/Nikki match all that interesting but it wasn't bad. Finish felt a bit sudden though. I'd rather have seen Nikki and Bianca go at it here and prove who's the best given that we never got a decisive winner in their first two matches, but Candice and her have beef too so I guess this match was necessary. Not sure as to what direction both women go in now, especially Candice who really has yet to find her way in the brand and has almost exclusively been linked to her husband during her entire existence in NXT. This show needs another strong babyface as it's already packed with credible heels, so if they're really planning on slowly turning her heel with all the events that have occurred with Johnny, it wouldn't make any sense and would just further put the women's division in straits than it's already in as of now.

Wonder how Wednesday will go given that it will be the taping they did in SJ just days prior to TakeOver.


----------



## Psychosocial

Well, Lars just beat Keith Lee clean as a whistle....didn't see that coming. The commentators' point afterwards about no one being able to stop Sullivan in NXT tells me that he's not moving up just yet. But if Lee isn't the guy to beat him on his way out, who is? Not sure what they do with that situation from here.

Not much of an episode in the way of new developments as none of the TakeOver participants were there except Kairi and Ciampa through backstage segments. The 6-woman tag with Kairi, Io, and Dakota against Shayna and her cronies is clearly coming, just hoping it happens on TV and not at the next TakeOver. I fully expect Ciampa to be interrupted by Aleister when he shows up to the ring next week, he's got unfinished business with him for the title.

Lorcan/Burch against the Mighty was a decent match. About time Miller and Thorne did something heinous which finally got them a reaction from the crowd. Now they just need to find a way to get the same reactions at Full Sail. This crowd was pretty hot, even for a throwaway Mia Yim v. Vanessa Borne contest.

Marcel Barthel :mark: Unless this guy can't speak English, there is no reason for him to not be on TV more, his work is fantastic. His match with EC3 here was good. EC3 called out Fish afterwards so looks like they'll have him go through the Undisputed guys before reaching Cole so that might be the first sign of a potential match taking place in Phoenix. Not sure I want to see it honestly, but Cole does need a win having not win at TakeOver since Mania weekend. If he's being geared up for a title run soon, he needs to start racking up the wins now.

We saw a Chris Dijak, who is now named Dominik Dijakovic, vignette too so I guess he'll be the guy replacing Lars on the roster as NXT's resident big guy. Not undeserved either, he's ready to be on TV more often from the last I saw of him.

As I did after Brooklyn IV, I'll be taking a little break from NXT for a few weeks and will catch up on the episodes around the holidays and come back in here for my thoughts on them. Hope the build and card for Phoenix ends up being another really good one. See you all soon.


----------



## Jedah

Not much to this episode. Mostly filler. Lars vs. Keith Lee was fun toward the end but it plodded. Are we sure Lars is ready for the main roster? I also have no idea why Lars would win here if he's getting called up. Really weird.

Ciampa and Black is clearly going to start sooner rather than later, after that callback he did when he talked about getting the title on the first shot. I'm looking forward to this.

And that promo with Kairi, Dakota, and Io....BAD on all counts. Kairi sounded stupid, especially with that nonsense about the referee's decision being final when she basically got screwed twice in the same match. Io's English sounded better during her MYC promo videos. Don't know what's going on there. I guess she'll get used to it but still... And Dakota was really bad too. And Io is basically going to be wasted right out of the gate with two rookies who look like total dopes out there and have no presence. Yeah, I've said it before, but it cannot be overstated just how BAD this women's division is right now.


----------



## Buhalovski

The only reason for that win is to set up a rematch where Keith Lee sends him on the main roster after clean win. Otherwise i cant really see why...


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Some good action in that opening match but I don’t know why this match was so competitive, I don’t care about TM61 at all. 

— Axel Dieter Jr. or Marcel Barthel as he is now known is using the actual Ringkampf theme now? I guess they can now they’ve signed WALTER. They gave him a really good showing here even if it was just to set up EC3’s babyface comeback. 

— Damn that Dijak video package was fucking hype. They’ve renamed him again to Dijakovic though? Really? Is he going to be playing a Rocky villain? 

— That main event sure was… meaty. Why the fuck did Keith Lee lose though?


----------



## SAMCRO

Wait why did Keith Lee just lose clean to Lars? Lars is leaving for the main roster, Keith Lee is being built up currently and hadn't lost any matches, what sense does it make to suddenly derail his momentum to lose to Lars a guy whos leaving? Makes no sense.


----------



## Pizzamorg

SAMCRO said:


> Wait why did Keith Lee just lose clean to Lars? Lars is leaving for the main roster, Keith Lee is being built up currently and hadn't lost any matches, what sense does it make to suddenly derail his momentum to lose to Lars a guy whos leaving? Makes no sense.


wwe l o l


----------



## RainmakerV2

Sullivan needs new ring gear. He looks dumb. The LARS on his trunks look like 50 cent pieces of toilet tissue colored and taped on by a 5 year old.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

Keith Lee and Lars has me scratching my head, usually it's tradition someone being called up puts someone new over on the way out the door.


----------



## validreasoning

That was a super fun match big man between Lee and sullivan. Would love to see part 2 on ppv some day as long as we don't get a million rest holds

I suspect there was no plans to bring up Lars when this show was taped, even commentators make no mention of hos callup and say 'who in nxt can stop Lars Sullivan' suggesting his callup was planned survivor series weekend


----------



## RiverFenix

Lee went toe to toe with Lars - that is rub enough in a way. I mean Lars didn't do the honors on the way out but he's getting called up to be a monster character more than likely and NXT isn't a territory but a feeder system. Lars was a title contender on NXT, so losing a competitive match pushes Lee up the card still. Fun big man match. 

The Mighty is finally finding their niche I think. Match was good, the post-match beatdown finally got them some heat. I hope this was the start of a program between the two teams. 

Marcel has to drop the "Nein" with THAT hand gesture. It would be mistaken is all I'll say. Nothing to say about EC3 that I haven't said before - better to just ignore him at this point. 

Vanessa Bourne probably deserves to start winning as she's much improved, but is it too late for her - she's jobbed like crazy for years.


----------



## Alexander_G

SAMCRO said:


> Wait why did Keith Lee just lose clean to Lars? Lars is leaving for the main roster, Keith Lee is being built up currently and hadn't lost any matches, what sense does it make to suddenly derail his momentum to lose to Lars a guy whos leaving? Makes no sense.


This is nothing to get worried about. One little loss is not going to derail Keith Lee. 



kendo_nagasaki said:


> Keith Lee and Lars has me scratching my head, usually it's tradition someone being called up puts someone new over on the way out the door.


They want to put over Lars strong before he moves, or else the one who would've been derailed was Lars. He's been built up longer and has more to lose in terms of cred than Keith does, Keith just got there and can move on to being built against other guys.


----------



## Alexander_G

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> Vanessa Bourne probably deserves to start winning as she's much improved, but is it too late for her - she's jobbed like crazy for years.


Vanessa only wins against girls that are usually below her or are considered job-a-night competitors. Otherwise, she's always been at the bottom of the pack (she would be just over Aliyah as the 2nd most pinned woman in the whole NXT roster), and isn't really that great anyway compared to her peers. She make a decent heel jobber and may as well stay that way.

I don't like her work for the most part, it's bland and boring PC fare or what the PC teaches and think the typical heel should act like. Conti and Ripley, as much as I like them, do this stuff as well and it's kind of like, there are other more creative heel psychologies than the same old generic hair whips, trash talk, head shoves and slaps. I don't get much of a noticeable impression of skill beyond that kind of routine. Girls like Bourne are a dime-a-dozen.


----------



## Piers

I like Lars, I'm glad they gave him a big win before he left. I'm impressed how he lifted Keith for the finish. I hope they don't bury him on the main roster but he will probably wear half-cropped tops and dance with Breezango by 2020.

Why was this week's episode so dark ? Did they film it somewhere else ?


----------



## crayaddams

Has anyone noticed how the female referee's acting is always really strange? She always looks annoyed or worried - even when she's raising a face's hand at the end of a match in victory, she looks upset. May seem pedantic but once you notice it it actually becomes distracting. Couple of examples below:


----------



## RiverFenix

They Call Him Y2J said:


> I like Lars, I'm glad they gave him a big win before he left. I'm impressed how he lifted Keith for the finish. I hope they don't bury him on the main roster but he will probably wear half-cropped tops and dance with Breezango by 2020.
> 
> Why was this week's episode so dark ? Did they film it somewhere else ?


Filmed the day before Takeover IIRC. It was an additional late taping announcement that switched a house show into a tapings set.


----------



## TD Stinger

Even if this show was just a house show chopped up for TV, I wish NXT would go on the road more often for TV. Maybe tape 4 weeks of TV or something at different locations every time instead of having it just in Full Saill all the time.

The bigger atmosphere was really welcomed here. I'd like to see more of that.


----------



## Jedah

Pretty good episode of NXT. This was the first in a while I could sink my teeth into.

- Martinez actually has a great look. Him and Riddle had an OK match, not terrific, but Riddle is clearly just killing some time.

- The tag division is being built up. That was a long time coming. Is the stuff about Hanson's injury true?

- Women's division continues to stink up the joint. Granted, I can't complain _too_ much about this match. Dakota didn't get squashed at least. It's the strongest anyone's looked against Shayna except for Kairi. But it's the same old shit every single time from Shayna. The match just didn't get into third gear despite the time it was given. Shayna is very limited and matches like this expose it. She didn't even sell Dakota's Coup de Grace. That match in Phoenix that we know is coming is going to suck big time. The other two also continue to look like dopes. 4 more months of this is going to be painful. Unlike Ciampa, where it feels like it's going to be a huge deal when he finally loses, with Shayna it's just going to be a sigh of relief. The sooner that title gets to Io, the better.

- And speaking of Io, it was nice to see her make the save. Nothing truly explosive from her, but it was a nice taste of things to come.

- Now we get to the main event. That was the best segment I've seen in a long time. Brilliant from beginning to end. Ciampa does his thing and even brings Mauro into it who had the perfect look on his face. Black comes out and challenges Ciampa in what was his own best promo since the one he had with Zelina all the way back in March. But Gargano's obsession refuses to die - something nicely pointed out by Ciampa who knows it better than anyone. Loved Ciampa just playing them all for puppets and manipulating them into making the steel cage match. Gargano retreats from the Black Mass only for Ciampa to eat it after looking smug on the apron. Almost perfect.

- The one flaw is that this seemingly throws away Gargano's last chance for redemption. Black absolved his sins but he refused to accept. It's hard to imagine that Gargano is going to beat Ciampa now. It looks like it's time to move on. Perhaps it's best to just let Riddle do it. It's still possible but it's going to be very hard for Gargano to get back the support he lost in time for Mania weekend. And the rest of NXT gets held up because the "Gargano fairy tale" just keeps rolling with seemingly no purpose now. We'll see what's to come as Phoenix gets closer but that's my impression now.


----------



## Reil

So yeah, NXT thoughts:

- Carillo and Mendoza are way more interesting than The Forgotten Sons. Push them instead.

- Gargano/Black in a steel cage will be pretty good.

- Good fucking god Marina and Jessamyn looked like utter fucking shit tonight during that post match beatdown of Dakota. Like holy fuck there isn't a word out there to describe how fucking shitty they looked. They really should not be on TV in any shape or form right now. And this is after EIGHT MONTHS OF WORKING AT THE PERFORMANCE CENTER.

e:

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1070506086350745602
Post show interviews. Shayna is real bad at acting. So are Marina and Jessamyn.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole is irrelevant as hell right now.


----------



## DirectorsCut

I guess it's good Steve Cutler's finally getting pushed....


----------



## Buhalovski

The staredown between Aleister and Gargano while Ciampa talking was a little bit cringy for me, not gonna lie  

Gargano needs a clean win in Phoenix. Aleister(sadly) is more than ready for the main roster.


----------



## Reil

Tsvetoslava said:


> The staredown between Aleister and Gargano while Ciampa talking was a little bit cringy for me, not gonna lie
> 
> Gargano needs a clean win in Phoenix. Aleister(sadly) is more than ready for the main roster.


It won't be happening at Black's expense in Phoenix. Regal has already made the match official. Black vs Ciampa at Takeover: Phoenix.

And even then, I wouldn't expect Black to be called up until after Wrestlemania, because WWE doesn't like to do official callups during the Road to Wrestlemania.


----------



## Jedah

:hmmm

Where was the match made official?

Also, Royal Rumble call ups have happened in the past. Samoa Joe. If Black is going up, part of me wants to see him debut in the Rumble itself and potentially challenge THE NEW DANIEL BRYAN.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> :hmmm
> 
> Where was the match made official?


Twitter.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1070502605858766848


----------



## Jedah

Well, that could easily change depending on what happens with Gargano in the cage.


----------



## Buhalovski

Oh, fair enough that changes the things. Maybe we will have the triple threat we never saw then?


----------



## DennisRodmanNWO

Punishment Martinez has A potential... why they have him job...... that man has some size on him, isn't all fat either


----------



## SAMCRO

Of course they had Martinez job in his first match.... I hate it when they sign guys like him who aren't that big of a deal on the indies like a Ricochet is, so they just debut them in a nothing match where they lose within 5 minutes or less, did the same thing when they signed Eric Young, Kyle O'Reilly and Dominic Dijak just had them lose in like 5 minutes in their first matches. 

See if you don't get a Takeover sitting in the crowd spot before you debut you are pretty much losing your debut match and are gonna be enhancement talent for at least a year. Look at Dijak was signed over a year ago and is just now getting a push. See it depends on how big of an Indy star you are, if you're someone like Martinez you're gonna be paying dues and jobbing your entire first year in the company, makes no fucking sense.

And holy shit Forgotten Sons are so bad, just end them now please, Ryker would be better on his own. Cause together they just come off as Sanity light, their entrance gear looks just like Sanity's attire, and Ryker looks just like Eric Young with the big beard and walking in the middle of them all serious and crazy looking. Like how did Triple H not see how much they resemble Sanity? I mean what sets them apart from Sanity exactly?


----------



## AngryConsumer

Reil said:


> So yeah, NXT thoughts:
> 
> - Carillo and Mendoza are way more interesting than The Forgotten Sons. Push them instead.
> 
> - Gargano/Black in a steel cage will be pretty good.
> 
> - Good fucking god Marina and Jessamyn looked like utter fucking shit tonight during that post match beatdown of Dakota. Like holy fuck there isn't a word out there to describe how fucking shitty they looked. They really should not be on TV in any shape or form right now. And this is after EIGHT MONTHS OF WORKING AT THE PERFORMANCE CENTER.
> 
> e:
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1070506086350745602
> Post show interviews. Shayna is real bad at acting. So are Marina and Jessamyn.


I mean... how in the hell do Marina and Jessmayn even have supporters, or those actually believing they’ll be stars in this company?

They look like two overjoyed kids riding along with their mother. 

Both will have a long, long ways to go in this business. 

Count me in the majority that sees no potential at all in neither.


----------



## SAMCRO

Yeah Marina and Jessamyn are awful, they have no idea how to act, and Jessamyn always looks like she has no idea what do with her arms. And their facials expressions when they're attempting to react to Shanya getting put in a match or something they look ridiculous, especially Jessamyn she just looks very odd to me, ridiculous long and lanky arms and she always has her mouth open showing her teeth.

And have they ever uttered a single word since coming on tv? i swear they haven't they just stand behind Shayna looking awkward.

I can only imagine how terrible they are in the ring, they're clearly nowhere near ready for tv, but Triple H has a boner for MMA chicks so of course he has to rush them in there and make them the top females on the roster despite them having next no experience or barely any training.


----------



## CM Buck

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah Marina and Jessamyn are awful, they have no idea how to act, and Jessamyn always looks like she has no idea what do with her arms. And their facials expressions when they're attempting to react to Shanya getting put in a match or something they look ridiculous, especially Jessamyn she just looks very odd to me, ridiculous long and lanky arms and she always has her mouth open showing her teeth.
> 
> And have they ever uttered a single word since coming on tv? i swear they haven't they just stand behind Shayna looking awkward.
> 
> I can only imagine how terrible they are in the ring, they're clearly nowhere near ready for tv, but Triple H has a boner for MMA chicks so of course he has to rush them in there and make them the top females on the roster despite them having next no experience or barely any training.


The one whose married to strong should really watch her husband's tapes. And strong should be training her exclusively.


----------



## Jedah

SAMCRO said:


> I can only imagine how terrible they are in the ring


We'll find out next week, I think. Let's see if Io can carry them to something watchable. If she can't, that's an even worse sign.

And _this_ is why they had to give Shayna the title back and kill the rest of the division for the immediate future when it could have started an exciting new phase in the wake of the Mae Young Classic. :lol


----------



## Crasp

Reil said:


> - Good fucking god Marina and Jessamyn looked like utter fucking shit tonight during that post match beatdown of Dakota. Like holy fuck there isn't a word out there to describe how fucking shitty they looked. They really should not be on TV in any shape or form right now. And this is after EIGHT MONTHS OF WORKING AT THE PERFORMANCE CENTER.


Basically was just going to say exactly this. I had low expectations and they're seemingly below those even. They're like a couple of Eva Maries out there & perhaps in the case of the tall one, probably worse.

Clearer than ever that the only reason they're employed is because of Ronda & Shayna, and the 4HW/4HW concept. And from what we've seen from these other two turkeys, the potential match is just not worth doing by _any_ metric.


----------



## ChrisMC

Dakota & Shayna but on an awesome match this week. I really enjoyed it. I hope Dakota eventually gets a title run.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck




----------



## Alexander_G

Again, my issues with NXT's matches stem from a noticeable lack of selling from most wrestlers and that many matches just go at too fast a pace for my tolerance. A lot of these guys need to slow down, reserve all the hundreds of high spots for another day and build some character psychology. Creative needs to ask these guys to not overdo it so much. They're giving the fans a sensory overload.

Case in point, the match with *Mendoza/Carrillo vs Forgotten Sons*. This match was nonstop pace and gives the facade that there doesn't seem to be any drawbacks, but I want to keep pointing out to people how badly structured matches like this are. You cannot just bust out a move over and over on a guy and not allow the effect of that move to settle in. Think of a wrestling move as a musical note, it has to reverb outward to the atmosphere clearly felt and understood. If you play musical notes too fast, they start to just become noxious noise. I can't tell you how many times in this one match alone I had to see Mendoza and Carrillo here taking the brunt of counters only to get up or be picked up and continue on with the nonstop routine once again. Where is the thrill? Where is the effect? Next thing you know, the act like they were never hurt at all and continue on their leapfrogging and spothogging.

This type of match only irritates me. It is soulless. I don't care how the big mouths in the front row at Full Sail with their "OHHHs!" and rah-rahs want to yammer on about as if they haven't see a match like this a million times. 

Wrestlers have to build a characterization in that ring as much as possible or they are just going to be another third rate jabroni being the fill-in card in the WWE.

Nor do I find their look in any way appealing. Half-pints Mendoza/Carrillo look as baby boy vanilla as it gets. No star appeal. Forgotten Sons look like every other bearded greaseball we've seen for the past decade. NXT Creative is quickly running out of imaginative ideas which means they didn't have that many to begin with. Kind of sad for a world class company.


Aside from that, the rest of the show I review as follows....

*Matt Riddle vs Punishment Martinez *- Both Riddle and Punishment have great looks. I find Riddle a bit overrated and annoying, but I can't deny he works pretty good and is doing a great job of creating a rep of "truly more dangerous than the norm". Martinez meanwhile looks reasonably strong regardless of losing the match. I don't think booking him against Riddle so soon was too wise as I'd rather he be built with a significant winning streak first, but one loss won't hurt. If it continues, it will. You don't put certain guys you *know* are more talented than most together so soon without time to settle in because they are precious material needed to market. Also, the Riddle vs Ohno feud doesn't interest me too much, but keep it going. On one hand I'm not an Ohno fan and really I think he should just be drafted to main, but on the other hand Riddle needs the development and Ohno will suffice.

*Dakota Kai vs Shayna Baszler* - Bearable, but... This was more or less like every other Dakota/Shayna match I've seen enough times, but with Dakota giving just a little more offense back this time. Dakota is very underrated and before she signed to NXT she was far stiffer than how NXT wants her to be portrayed. Obviously that's to be expected. Duke & Shafir were props and not an issue to me. I know what to expect and it isn't out of the realm of plain, simple empirical analysis. As in, don't overthink the matter at hand. Shayna is a great effective, sadistic heel and that's all that matters at the end of the night. It pleased me to see Io Shirai joining in this fray and anything she will be involved in instantly makes things a whole lot more interesting. This feud will keep me watching.

*Tommaso Ciampa segment* - I thought this was the best part of the night. Ciampa is by far one of my favorite wrestlers in NXT and is most deserving of his spotlight through the latter half of this year. He's a genius and has got to be one of the most watchable heel NXT champions I've seen since Almas, and I'd argue better since Ciampa has a gift for cutting good promos. This guy really puts a smile on my face because how knows exactly how to play up his character in a way that he no doubt feels like a superstar.

Black noticeably lacks the kind of charisma Ciampa has when we compare both in the ring here, but not by too much. I can understand why some favor Black but I don't see him being anymore popular of a guy than a typical condensed cult following. His character works, but it doesn't work across the board. I don't think he's an easy guy to like or identify with and he is the last person I'd take advice about "absolving sins". Obviously he's selfish and guarded, but the respect is there especially seeing as he is the one suffering the most injustice in this storyline and so is the effect of being a fighting man who struggles but cannot be overlooked as a real top tier competitor.

Gargano is playing his character okay but I am one of those who prefer him as more of a sympathetic face than a frustrated heel, and let's face it he is a heel based on the cheating and sneaky cocky attitude he's taking. He's only fortunate that he's good enough to still be among the top tier and his wrestling is always a pleasure to watch. I nonetheless am not big on him and find him annoying these days. However I see how the devious snake Ciampa is playing him like a fiddle and the story is going smoothly.


All in all, average show this week.


----------



## Araragi

I liked the Martinez debut, would've liked to see it go a little longer though, especially since they had Martinez tap. Him not winning in his debut is whatever to me, I think he'll be fine. They're just going through that petty phase they do with certain guys where they feel like have to break you down before they build you back up. He could eventually fit in the role that Lars had now that he's being called up. But I think that he has a higher ceiling than Lars.

Dakota and Shayna had a fantastic match, one of Dakota's best since she's been on NXT T.V. Shayna is so awesome in her role. But I do agree with the sentiments in here that Duke and Shafir look like absolute bums, so awkward and unnatural and are already dragging Shayna down just by being out there. The 3-on-1 post match beat-down of Dakota was bleh, but Io making the save solo was cool to see.

The closing segment _so good_, I loved it from start to finish. Solid episode this week


----------



## RiverFenix

Punishment Martinez has pretty good entrance music and has a presence about him that I think will go a long way for him. Also he has a voice like Low-Ki. I don't mind the job in his debut as Riddle is getting the rocket strapped to his back, however I would have liked it a bit longer. Martinez, in losing, is going to be more a midcard act out o the gate, which is fine. Eventually I think he ends up in a tag team or as a enforcer/muscle for another act. I think he could work in that latter role for Kona Reeves for example. 

I like Cutler and Blake as a tag team and their in-ring work - it's so grimy and physical. Ryker just adds NOTHING to them - just stands there with "intense face", and he's not good enough to be the solo act and leader. Should have left them as a tag team act - would limit the Sanity comparisons as well. You know who would have been a great manager for Forgotton Sons - Dutch Mantel. 

Carillo is just so smooth in the ring - it almost hurts him as it looks too easy for him. Poor Mendoza never wins - first as a singles and now in tags. Sooner than later I might have Carillo turn on him for being the forever loser and have a program between the two of them.


----------



## ellthom

You know I gave Forgotten Sons so many chances to be interesting, I kept saying to everyone 'give them time'. But to be fair I have given up caring. I had more interest in the guys they were facing this week than the Forgotten Sons themselves. I wouldn't be surprised if they never make it out of NxT.


----------



## GTL2

Strong opening match. Martinez will be OK and the loss doesn't matter against someone like Riddle. By the end he was looking strong and he's getting good segments.

Carillo and Mendoza bring a whole new dimension to NXT. Huge move set and completely secure in what they do.. The absence of any mic work up to now suggests English isn't their thing and that will be an issue. Not so bad in a tag team as there is more opportunity to express themselves in a team.

Dakota and Baszler were good and Dakota getting some offense in

Ciampa again is just nailing every promo and segment. He's raised the acting bar well above what others have managed. Brass ring grabbed.


----------



## Jedah

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1070493276828983298
:gsp

Why the fuck is Jessamyn just swinging her arms like that? She's probably the worst of all of them indeed. Io saved that segment.

What a fucking shit show this division is, and believe me, it's going to get worse.


----------



## TD Stinger

Latest Show Thoughts:

*I do not say this as a compliment. I do not say this is a insult. Just an observation. Punishment Martinez literally looks like the love child of Roman Reigns and Baron Corbin. It's just stunning at times, lol.

Got to say Riddle and Punishment had a very entertaining short match, both of them mixing in their strikes and agility. And of course you get Ohno's interference at the end. I do wonder where this leads after Riddle squashed him in 6 seconds at Takeover. Like is this going to lead into another match at Takeover Phoenix? We shall see.

*Always love seeing a Heavy Machinery vignette with steaks and weights.

*Carillo and Mendoza might have something with this tag team. They were really fun here in this match. Carillo in particular was slick as shit. And they made The Forgotten Sons look good in a match they were always going to lose. But they elevated their stock.

*Velveteen Dream and Queen Cathy never dissapoint. What's next for Dream? Can only hope it's getting involved with Ciampa/Gargano/Black.

*TUE doing their promo in a closet or whatever it was after getting attacked in their usual spot is hilarious.

*When I saw that Dakota lost to Shayna, I was disapointed that it was more of the same. But there was character development here. Dakota did fight back. She showed a lot more fight than ever before against Shayna. She showed she wasn't scared. I wish she would be a bigger name, but I do like the character development here.

*Tomasso as this manipulative troll was great to see. Black on the other hand in this promo was a bit off. Black's a guy who when he's just talking like a normal person in a vignette or a backstage thing, he sounds fine. But then you have promos like this where he gets really shouty and angry where in he sounds unintentionally funny with how red and stretched his face gets.

And Johnny himself got a bit too shouty here in this promo, but I did love the line of "The parking lot? Remember what happened last time?" And Black hitting Black Mass with Ciampa on the apron was hilarious.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Weird they had Martinez debut against Riddle who was also having his Full Sail debut (I think?) only to have Martinez tap clean in a nothing match before Riddle got destroyed in one hit by Ohno. You think they’d protect their new talent but what do I know… 

— Oh and Martinez is keeping the trend going for God awful “music”. Riddle is probably the one exception as he has kept his indie vibe in his music but Martinez music is basically a bunch of nondescript white noise. In fact basically all new talent signed for the last year or two has had nothing but white noise. This seems to be a very recent thing, guys like Undisputed, Roode, Nakamura, Black etc they all have great music so I dunno what the fuck happened. Even on NXT UK there are so many guys on there with just nothing tracks rather than actual music like Devlin who basically just enters the ring to an ominous sound effect overlaid onto one of those preset beats you used to be able to turn on on the keyboards at school.

— They’ve caked Marina Shafir in so much makeup she looks like a man in drag. I really hate the stage makeup and fake tan of WWE. Just look at Strong during that Undisputed interview, fucking hell that bordered on Blackface. 

— Where’d that Kai/Baszler match come from?! Damn that was great and out of nowhere. I don’t get the hate around Baszler at all and they made Kai look stronger than she ever has, even in defeat. Really enjoyed this. Nice little showcase for Shirai at the end, too. 

— That closing segment between Black, Gargano and Ciampa was great.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Good episode this week...

A solid showcase from Riddle & Martinez, the match could've done with another five minutes though. Riddle is very entertaining as a performer but so cringe when it comes to character work.

You know the Tag Team division is bang average when Heavy Machinery are in line for a push.

Carrillo & Mendoza > Forgotten Sons. Carrillo and Mendoza are entertaining to watch, definitely want to see more of them.

Dream's backstage segment :lol

Thank god NXT is used as a development brand, because Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir sure need developing, if they get put on the main roster sooner rather than later they'll be tonnes more uproar, they are like two cringeworthy cheerleaders, one of them screamed "Let's go" during their entrance, when Sonya Deville does that it's annoying, this sounded worse.

As for Shayna vs Dakota though it was a really good match. Shayna is one of the best heels around when it comes to Women's Wrestling, shame more people don't realise that, her performance in this match was excellent, a proper aggressive bully who picks away at a body part. Dakota is excellent when it comes to selling but her overall performance in this match was great, it was nice to see another side to her. The match ended abruptly though which was the only downfall.

Finally the ending segment was fucking brilliant, so intense. Ciampa's promo work was excellent as always, I think he's shown enough over the past few months to be classed as the best NXT Champion in history. We then got the Black/Gargano exchange which was perfectly intense, Ciampa pulling the strings and talking them into a cage match just proved how good he is in his current role. A very good intense segment, loved every minute of it.

The Women's and Tag Divisions are far from perfect; however when it comes to the Men's division it's in a real strong place right now.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Decent episode I thought! First two matches were cool. Punishment looks alright so far. Shayna/Dakota was good, I'm glad DK got more offence in this time and didn't get squashed. Nice little bit of character development from Dakota as well with her not being scared to go after Shayna anymore. Marina & Jessamyn are still awkward af, that beatdown was awkward and they messed up getting into place for Io's dropkick. Good to see Io though. UE promo was good, Bobby is a good talker I feel a lot of people don't acknowledge that about him. And that end segment was awesome, hell of a Black Mass hit on Ciampa!


----------



## Ham and Egger

Alexander_G said:


> Again, my issues with NXT's matches stem from a noticeable lack of selling from most wrestlers and that many matches just go at too fast a pace for my tolerance. A lot of these guys need to slow down, reserve all the hundreds of high spots for another day and build some character psychology. Creative needs to ask these guys to not overdo it so much. They're giving the fans a sensory overload.


These guys are literally fighting for their spots. Many talents aren't featured week to week and the matches that they have must fit within a hour TV show every week. I kinda get why Lorcan/Burch and Carillio/Mendoza work at 100 mph is because that's the only way they can get noticed and more importantly, get over with the crowd.


----------



## Alexander_G

Ham and Egger said:


> These guys are literally fighting for there spots. Many talents aren't featured week to week and the matches that they have must fit within a hour TV show every week. I kinda get why Lorcan/Burch and Carillio/Mendoza work at 100 mph is because that's the only way they can get noticed and more importantly, get over with the crowd.


I get that too, but there more than one way to do that. Less is more. For instance, let's just take the finish in consideration. Carillio/Mendoza knew they were booked to lose. Okay. You want to keep Mendoza sympathetic in the future while losing, have him lose via heel pin. Pull the tights, prop legs on the ropes. To save a face, you CHEAT. It isn't smart wrestling psychology to demolish every face before a pin because it squashes the face badly. And none of them need to try to fit in 300 moves against each other in 5 minutes.

Impress the crowd by working smarter, not harder. I'm tired of seeing 100 mph spot monkey matches like this, there's no ingenuity to it and a longtime wrestling fan can see the mundane choreography coming a mile away.


----------



## JustAName

So I think the last segment was good apart from 2 tiny thingS. When Ciampa was doing his promo's on how the two felt about a cage match I am 100% sure they were supposed to have an intense, anger/hate filled stare down where they are not taking their eyes or focus off each other at al till they were gonna continue(finish up) their promo themselves. For some reason, neither of them manage to sustain that which made the thing seem off since they suddenly had their attention and focus on nothing at all or even a bit on Ciampa. It took away from it a little bit for me, but they did save the segment with that ending fire and I think that screaming would have made more sense if they never took their intensity and eyes/focus off each other during that entire Ciampa promo. 

It was still a great ending and I loved most of it except I think Black should have named a few places before he said the parking lot.. I know.. nit picky, but it would have felt a little less scripted to me. Like for example, I'll fight you, here, I'll fight you in the back, I'll fight you in the crowd(Which would probably cause a pop) then he comes with the "I'll fight you in the parking lot" at which point Johnny interrupts and the rest continues as it did


----------



## MC

Heard Baszler vs Kai was on the show so I decided to give it a watch. Exactly what I expected a solid show with a few ups and few downs. I liked it. 

Fun squash for Riddle and Martinez. Riddle looked great and Martinez looked far better here than he ever did in Ring of Honor. Ohno attacking Riddle was awesome too.

The Forgotten Sons are boring and generic. So generic even that I have to still search up their names online to figure out who is who. They seem like stereotypical WWE guys so I see why they are pushing them but they do nothing for me and I just don't care. The other two looked impressive with a few high spots but nothing major. Average match. 

A good Undisputed Era segment with a solid Fish promo which are always fun to watch; very underrated as a promo IMO and is by far the best talker of the lot IMO. The Undisputed Era have been awesome all year, even making Cole decent to watch and produced some great highlights and this was no different. Even if it was short.

Baszler vs Kai ruled. Loved Kai's scrappy offence, suited the match perfectly with her being the big underdog against the heel champion. And Baszler was very good of course. Her submissions looked nasty as hell and she put in a good showing. Great call back to the squash too. Another good match by the champ. The beatdown angle afterwards was fine; nice setup for a future match presumably. Should be fun to see the four horsewomen in action. 

"Johnny Badass" Ughhhh - Who came up with this? :lol. Dull Ciampa promo. I've compared him to Triple H before meaning he has a tendency to make promos seem longer than they are (It probably went 3 minutes but felt much longer.)and is generally not compelling when talking. I'm just not feeling Gargano's heel turn at all. He is a MUCH better face and he doesn't pull off intensity well enough imo to be a heel. Meh segment overall, felt rushed and it didn't work for me.


----------



## Mear

Damn, that was a good burn from Strong to The Mighty lmao.

Otherwise, it was a cool episode, the ending promo wasn't as strong for me as for many because seeing them be manipulated that much by Ciampa without standing up for themselves was pretty bad in my opinion. Like, this is Ciampa, why don't one of you at least tries to kick Ciampa's head off when he is next to them ? Otherwise, it was a pretty cool segment

Not too fond of Io Shirai debut either. I mean, they are 3 on 1, they should be booked way stronger and not run away like that. The match was really cool too, I'm hoping Dakota Kai will be a major player of NXT in 2019. All it would take is one Takeover match for her to win the crowd over


----------



## SAMCRO

MC said:


> Heard Baszler vs Kai was on the show so I decided to give it a watch. Exactly what I expected a solid show with a few ups and few downs. I liked it.
> 
> Fun squash for Riddle and Martinez. Riddle looked great and Martinez looked far better here than he ever did in Ring of Honor. Ohno attacking Riddle was awesome too.
> 
> The Forgotten Sons are boring and generic. So generic even that I have to still search up their names online to figure out who is who. They seem like stereotypical WWE guys so I see why they are pushing them but they do nothing for me and I just don't care. The other two looked impressive with a few high spots but nothing major. Average match.
> 
> A good Undisputed Era segment with a solid Fish promo which are always fun to watch; very underrated as a promo IMO and is by far the best talker of the lot IMO. The Undisputed Era have been awesome all year, even making Cole decent to watch and produced some great highlights and this was no different. Even if it was short.
> 
> Baszler vs Kai ruled. Loved Kai's scrappy offence, suited the match perfectly with her being the big underdog against the heel champion. And Baszler was very good of course. Her submissions looked nasty as hell and she put in a good showing. Great call back to the squash too. Another good match by the champ. The beatdown angle afterwards was fine; nice setup for a future match presumably. Should be fun to see the four horsewomen in action.
> 
> "Johnny Badass" Ughhhh - Who came up with this? :lol. Dull Ciampa promo. I've compared him to Triple H before meaning he has a tendency to make promos seem longer than they are (It probably went 3 minutes but felt much longer.)and is generally not compelling when talking. *I'm just not feeling Gargano's heel turn at all. He is a MUCH better face and he doesn't pull off intensity well enough imo to be a heel.* Meh segment overall, felt rushed and it didn't work for me.


Going by the promo he seems more like a tweener than a heel, seeing as he asked the fans "Do you guys wanna see us in a cage match?" *Fans cheer* "Alright lets do it" if he was a full blown heel he would have did a swerve and said "Well too bad cause you aint getting one!".


----------



## Death Rider

^ Gargano has been playing a heel who thinks he is still the hero. So it makes sense he would give the fans what they want cause he still thinks he is the hero of the people


----------



## Jedah

Mear said:


> Damn, that was a good burn from Strong to The Mighty lmao.
> 
> Otherwise, it was a cool episode, the ending promo wasn't as strong for me as for many because seeing them be manipulated that much by Ciampa without standing up for themselves was pretty bad in my opinion. Like, this is Ciampa, why don't one of you at least tries to kick Ciampa's head off when he is next to them ? Otherwise, it was a pretty cool segment


It was because of Johnny's derangement. Ciampa highlighted it by saying that when Johnny gets obsessed with something, he doesn't stop. Black did kick his head off at the end at least. He knows what he's dealing with, but Johnny's turned his obsession to Black, which is rather the wrong move (he needs to start turning back) but it is what it is.



> Not too fond of Io Shirai debut either. I mean, they are 3 on 1, they should be booked way stronger and not run away like that. The match was really cool too, I'm hoping Dakota Kai will be a major player of NXT in 2019. All it would take is one Takeover match for her to win the crowd over


Yeah, they are being booked like chickenshits, which is why it amuses me that people still think Shayna has the character she did in her first reign. But at least it put Io over big.

The match was average. Nothing bad, nothing terribly good. Bad news on the Dakota front though, she may have been injured in a house show match featuring those other two scrubs.


----------



## Alexander_G

Mear said:


> Like, this is Ciampa, why don't one of you at least tries to kick Ciampa's head off when he is next to them ?


Because you shouldn't always do that. Sometimes it is best not to overthink a scenario. There is a time and a place for giving the megaheel his just deserves, but if you embarrass him every time he's on the show, his heat will wane and people will just want him to go away. Ciampa needs to be protected to a degree so it makes him more central to the program.


----------



## safc-scotty

Look everybody, it's Tyler! 

This should be a great match, seems it's the week of the crossovers with Bryan/Ali and Ricochet/Breeze :mark:


----------



## Reil

Few thoughts on NXT tonight:

- The Fatal Four Way #1 Contenders Match is shaping up to be real mediocre. Especially since its very likely Bianca wins (since she's undefeated and the only notable person in the match so far). And if that happens, the NXT Women's Title picture is going to crater. Because neither Shayna or Bianca are worth rooting for (since both are massive shithead heels you aren't supposed to like). Not to mention that Bianca is still very rough in the ring at times, and Shayna can't carry greener talents to even remotely passable matches. So if they were to feud, not only would the story suck, but the match would likely be incredibly poor as well.

- Also I guess NXT isn't even trying to hide their agenda anymore regarding the MMA 4HW:


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1073031061058203649
(It's Io's NXT debut as well [and they should have mentioned that], but NXT is too busy focusing on Jessamyn and Marina)


----------



## Jedah

Meh episode of NXT till the end to be honest. Ricochet vs. Tyler Breeze was a fun sprint. If it got some more time it could have been much better.

I'm not feeling this feud EC3 is having with the Undisputed Era. And now Heavy Machinery is in the picture too. What's going on in that midcard? The injury to Rowe is bad enough for him to miss the TakeOver build? Speaking of the tag division - they should build Orcan and Burch back up to challenge in Phoenix. That was another good showing from them. The Might just isn't working as heels at all. I guess they're permanently enhancement talent, which is fine enough.

Women's stuff was shit as usual. Why, oh why would you put Reina in that spot with Mia Yim instead of somebody that showed a lot more promise in the tournament like Kacy or Xia Li? Puzzling. Plodding, shitty match.

And my God those two scrubs are bad. They stand around looking stupid and then they just giggle like idiots. Not that Dakota and Io's promo was much better. I can tell already that this "I'm going to defend my friends" role Io is in just isn't good for her. We need to see ice bitch Queen's Quest Io fast. That's what we should have started seeing before she rose to title contention but nope, gotta put the title back on Shayna, who also delivered the same old shit in her segment.

Black vs. Gargano in the cage next week. :mark Both guys promos were good, but Black basically said what I'm thinking. Johnny might be past the point of no return now. It really feels like War Games was moot with this latest turn of events. He needs to turn back if he's going to beat Ciampa in a timely fashion. If not, he needs to step aside.

TakeOver: Phoenix doesn't look good at this point, to be honest. I'd say SmackDown has been doing a better job of late.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

- Cole cut a great promo which is no surprise at this point. Best promo in NXT by a wide margin.

- EC3 v. Bobby was pretty rough, EC3 isn't an in-ring guy and Bobby is starting to show his age. Bobby needs to get back into the tag with Kyle or become a manager. I assume the plan at this point is Cole v. EC3 at Takeover: Phoenix 

- The Aleister & Gargano promos were ok.

- Ricochet v. Breeze was good, Breeze needs to stay in NXT and mix it up with those guys. Ricochet is the whitest of whitemeat babyfaces outside of the ring right now though.


----------



## Jedah

Reil said:


> Few thoughts on NXT tonight:
> 
> - The Fatal Four Way #1 Contenders Match is shaping up to be real mediocre. Especially since its very likely Bianca wins (since she's undefeated and the only notable person in the match so far). And if that happens, the NXT Women's Title picture is going to crater. Because neither Shayna or Bianca are worth rooting for (since both are massive shithead heels you aren't supposed to like). Not to mention that Bianca is still very rough in the ring at times, and Shayna can't carry greener talents to even remotely passable matches. So if they were to feud, not only would the story suck, but the match would likely be incredibly poor as well.
> 
> - Also I guess NXT isn't even trying to hide their agenda anymore regarding the MMA 4HW:
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1073031061058203649
> (It's Io's NXT debut as well [and they should have mentioned that], but NXT is too busy focusing on Jessamyn and Marina)


Maybe they're going on Io already having debuted in the MYC. She wrestled at Evolution, after all.

A lot of fans are pointing this out anyway though and don't give a shit about the scrubs.

There's a very real chance this whole thing is going to blow up in their face, especially if these two don't improve in the ring fast.


----------



## Buhalovski

Its amazing to me how a full-time jobber from the main roster can look like a total star in Full Sail. 

Filler episode, I guess next week we will see if Ciampa is dropping to Gargano in april.


----------



## Araragi

Cole's promo was good, he's a sure thing on the mic. Although I feel like EC3 should be the one in these promo segments in this feud because he isn't very good in the ring. Burch, Lorcan & The Mighty had a pretty fun tag match. Io's in action next week and I wish I was able to be more excited about it. Her promo was better than Marina & Jessamyn's though, pft, even their laughs are cringeworthy. Gorgeous match between Ricochet & Prince Pretty. I do like these show crossovers they've been doing, keep them coming!


----------



## Reil

Black Cobra said:


> Cole's promo was good, he's a sure thing on the mic. Although I feel like EC3 should be the one in these promo segments in this feud because he isn't very good in the ring. Burch, Lorcan & The Mighty had a pretty fun tag match. Io's in action next week and I wish I was able to be more excited about it. Her promo was better than Marina & Jessamyn's though, pft, even their laughs are cringeworthy. Gorgeous match between Ricochet & Prince Pretty. I do like these show crossovers they've been doing, keep them coming!


I can't blame you for not being more excited for Io's debut. Even if she wins next week, I don't have high hopes for the match being good, due to Marina and Jessamyn being real bad.


----------



## Alexander_G

Black Cobra said:


> Cole's promo was good, he's a sure thing on the mic. Although I feel like EC3 should be the one in these promo segments in this feud because he isn't very good in the ring. Burch, Lorcan & The Mighty had a pretty fun tag match. Io's in action next week and I wish I was able to be more excited about it. Her promo was better than Marina & Jessamyn's though, pft, even their laughs are cringeworthy. Gorgeous match between Ricochet & Prince Pretty. I do like these show crossovers they've been doing, keep them coming!


I don't think EC3 is that bad in the ring, but that he just has a style that doesn't stimulate the average viewer and especially when compared to others. On his own merit, he's usually solid. As far as his promo ability, I think he's overrated.


----------



## Araragi

Reil said:


> I can't blame you for not being more excited for Io's debut. Even if she wins next week, I don't have high hopes for the match being good, due to Marina and Jessamyn being real bad.


I've enough confidence in her (and Dakota) that they'll be able to carry them to something watchable. I just would've liked to see Io's debut be treated as a bigger deal and not have them try and overshadow it by shoving those two down our throats.



Alexander_G said:


> I don't think EC3 is that bad in the ring, but that he just has a style that doesn't stimulate the average viewer and especially when compared to others. On his own merit, he's usually solid. As far as his promo ability, I think he's overrated.


Personally, he's somebody that I felt should have skipped NXT. I think he's a lot more valuable on the mic than he is in the ring and that his style would be a better fit for the main roster as opposed to the audience and crop of talent they have in NXT right now.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Black Cobra said:


> Personally, he's somebody that I felt should have skipped NXT. I think he's a lot more valuable on the mic than he is in the ring and that his style would be a better fit for the main roster as opposed to the audience and crop of talent they have in NXT right now.


I think after Cole beats him on Takeoverhoenix he definitely gets called up.


----------



## Alexander_G

Btw, Fish should please be more careful how he runs the ropes. That getting his head caught looked real ugly and he could have got some heavy duty whiplash from that botch.


----------



## Alexander_G

*Mia Yim vs Reina Gonzalez *- The more I see Mia in these NXT matches, the more it seems like I am left wanting. She has wrestled a lot better than this in the indies watching a million Shimmer matches with her; maybe it's the rushed match time or what but so far she looks a bit sloppy in there and I have not been impressed by her matches so far in NXT. I know she's capable of better. Give her a lengthy Takeover match one of these days, and then let her shine.

Reina Gonzalez is someone I actually like (and find attractive in all honesty), and I'm guessing I'm in the minority of that opinion, but it's one I am comfortable in keeping. I love her look and size, and her hearkening back to old school Texas roughhouse style and if it were me I imagine I would've booked her differently than she usually is. I'd book her like a female Blackjack Mulligan or a Stan Hansen (she already has got a Lariat finisher like Stan's) and make her look dangerous. But I knew going in she was just there to do the job and put Mia over, which she did completely professional. She is a pretty effective brute heel in that she is satisfactory at making faces she wrestles look good; her match with Kacy at MYC proved this. Hopefully she won't be a jobber for too long, she's too big and powerful to waste.


----------



## Pizzamorg

Weird episode of NXT as a lot happened but the whole thing felt like filler you could just skip through. Anyone know who that was in the background during the Kai and Shirai interview? Also after all the hype, what a bizarre opponent for Ricochet. I get that Breeze once had the honour of facing Thunder Liger but what has he done for the last three and a half years since? The match wasn’t all that great, either, but the crowd seemed to like it so what do I know.


----------



## SAMCRO

Breeze vs Ricochet was a pretty good match, Breeze held his own, that Superkick into the reverse huricanrana was awesome, it just goes to show you how wasted he is on the main roster, they quickly turned him into a huge joke and never allow him to really wrestle like he is allowed to on NXT. By this point Breeze should have had a few IC/US title runs and be a solid midcarder, but they just ruined him so fast and so hard he's nothing but a huge joke thats lucky to get a 3 minute match where he's allowed any kind of offense in, if he can get on tv at all.

Its funny you could just see the dread on Breeze's face after the match like "Well shit now i gotta go back to that fucking hell hole that is the main roster".

I feel really bad for Velveteen Dream, he's gonna get the same exact treatment Breeze got on the main roster, get a decent debut, start off with a few wins, then quickly get turned into a huge joke in dumb comedy segments, then little by little jobbed out, then will get to the point where he's barely on tv and when he is he jobs.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Decent episode but mostly filler. Loved the promo by Cole, he's so good at getting my attention and keeping it through his words. This is gonna sound so petty but Marina Shafir's face just bothers me, like when I look at her I just cringe and then get the urge to punch her in the face.


----------



## gl83

candice-wrestling said:


> Decent episode but mostly filler. Loved the promo by Cole, he's so good at getting my attention and keeping it through his words. This is gonna sound so petty but Marina Shafir's face just bothers me, like when I look at her I just cringe and then get the urge to punch her in the face.


So what you're saying is that Marina has a very punchable face.




Jedah said:


> Maybe they're going on Io already having debuted in the MYC. She wrestled at Evolution, after all.
> 
> A lot of fans are pointing this out anyway though and don't give a shit about the scrubs.
> 
> There's a very real chance this whole thing is going to blow up in their face, especially if these two don't improve in the ring fast.



I know you're usually all doom-and-gloom in regards to the women's roster, but if Dakota's injury is as bad as reported, then the Face side of the roster may be as limited from a workrate standpoint as much as a credibility standpoint. Of the remaining Faces, Mia Yim has been lackluster in her recent NXT matches; Nikki Cross is stuck in limbo(and it seems they're just waiting on a main roster callup with her) and is more character than ringwork; and then there's Candice, who would be a reliable hand in the ring on the Face side of things, except I have no clue if she's even Face or Heel right now.


Basically Kairi and Io seem to be their only reliable hands on the face side of things, and that's assuming Kairi doesn't get called up post-RR/post-WM.


----------



## RiverFenix

Nothing show this week. Did a lot of "fast forwarding" thought matches and segments. 

Couldn't care less about EC3 or Heavy Machinery. Firstly why link up the self proclaimed "top 1%" with the lunch bucket blue collar fatasses? Otis looked terrible without his singlet. I'm ready for all three of the "face" side of this interaction to go away. EC3 is a heel gimmick - and he's so limited in the ring he's a much better fit as a character on the main roster working 3-4 minute television matches. 

Bobby Fish is the last of UE who should be working singles matches. I mean I get why he would be vs EC3 and I like how they're making him the psycho of the group to differentiate them all personality wise - but he's a tag wrestler. KOR or Roddy should be the secondary singles star of the group. 

I like TMDK but they're spinning tires right now in NXT. I might have sent them to NXT UK for their new tag division. Well actually I would have sent ONEY and Burch, and then pushed The Mighty better in this program right now. The Mighty need something to give them a bit of a reboot - I suggest a manager. Imagine them with an equivalent to a Jimmy Hart or Jim Cornette or Bobby Heenan at ringside with them. Why not use a PC Trainer in an on-screen role like this? 

Tyler Breeze should look to drop his gimmick if he's heading back as more than just a one-off.


----------



## Jedah

gl83 said:


> I know you're usually all doom-and-gloom in regards to the women's roster, but if Dakota's injury is as bad as reported, then the Face side of the roster may be as limited from a workrate standpoint as much as a credibility standpoint. Of the remaining Faces, Mia Yim has been lackluster in her recent NXT matches; Nikki Cross is stuck in limbo(and it seems they're just waiting on a main roster callup with her) and is more character than ringwork; and then there's Candice, who would be a reliable hand in the ring on the Face side of things, except I have no clue if she's even Face or Heel right now.
> 
> Basically Kairi and Io seem to be their only reliable hands on the face side of things, and that's assuming Kairi doesn't get called up post-RR/post-WM.


I haven't been as negative as I have been without reason, and you're seeing it now. And it's going to get worse. The sad part is that it didn't need to be this way, but here we are. Shayna getting the title back was a disaster. Dakota's injury just makes things even worse.

Kairi isn't even very credible at this point either. As for Io, I really don't think this "I just want to defend my friends" thing is going to suit her at all. I really, really hope they don't waste her in trying to get Ronda's friends over. So far, so good at the tapings, but Io needs to drop this act soon. She's the best in the world, she should be wanting to make that crystal clear and have an even bigger chip on her shoulder after the MYC.

The midcard of NXT isn't even looking that good either at the moment. We'll need to see who Ricochet's next challenger is, but EC3 and Heavy Machinery vs. Undisputed...it's just hard to care for that at all.

And the main event is fine because Black, Gargano, and Ciampa are so damn good, but you can already tell that it's teetering. This Gargano story is really becoming convoluted right now.

All in all, NXT looks surprisingly weak as the year ends. I'd say SD is the stronger show right now.


----------



## Alexander_G

gl83 said:


> and then there's Candice, who would be a reliable hand in the ring on the Face side of things, except I have no clue if she's even Face or Heel right now..


On that point, I don't there has been anyone more overlooked and unfortunately pushed to the background as much as the incredibly talented Candice LeRae. Who I never hear anybody here come to her defense about anything, because people you want to talk about bad booking? Candice has been the epitome of it all year long.

In no way shape or form should she just be regulated to just being "Johnny's girl", losing to an already leaving Nikki Cross a few weeks back, and having to lower herself to doing staring contests once a month with Aleister Black; if that's all this company wants to have her doing then she was better off in the indies than coming here. 

Candice is a Sasha-lvl talent in workrate, and a pretty blonde so that kind of kills an argument that it's only blondes that get favored pushes. 

Then again she's well worth a push, but I can count on one hand how many times she's even been wrestling on TV tapings.


----------



## Jedah

Calling Candice on the level of Sasha is a big stretch, but nevertheless I've remarked about her booking before.

First she was just Johnny's wife and then during the summer she just lost unceremoniously to Shayna after Kairi was already the #1 contender. It was another needless Shayna victory that furthered the work of her burial of the division. Then they did nothing to build her up again after. God knows we could have used a credible Candice right now.


----------



## Reil

I think the fact of the matter is regarding the NXT Women's Division is that right now they are actually going to have to resort to pushing heel vs heel matches it seems because Triple H is blinded by this MMA horsewomen shit. Jessamyn and Marina are for all intents and purposes, not ready to be on TV. And it should probably be apparent next week.

Things are only going to get worse on that front in terms of fan reaction because I guess a lot of people (who haven't been following house shows or backstage reports) are expecting them to be at the same level as Shayna or Ronda as of right now. They were put on TV/Network way too early, and the fact that Triple H has said he wants to keep Shayna, Marina, and Jessamyn together is a real bad omen. 

I honestly have zero interest in an MMA vs WWE 4HW feud. Sasha and Bayley are both severely damaged, Charlotte and Becky are at each others throats in a blood feud, Ronda is a babyface, and Shayna is a heel. And on top of that, Marina and Jessamyn are the furthest thing from ready.


----------



## Alexander_G

Jedah said:


> Calling Candice on the level of Sasha is a big stretch, but nevertheless I've remarked about her booking before.
> 
> First she was just Johnny's wife and then during the summer she just lost unceremoniously to Shayna after Kairi was already the #1 contender. It was another needless Shayna victory that furthered the work of her burial of the division. Then they did nothing to build her up again after. God knows we could have used a credible Candice right now.


She is most definitely on the level of Sasha on a good night. She's put on remarkable matches against both men and women for years and even now, if they put her in an imaginary match with Sasha with at least a 10 minute bout, they'd tear the house down so good it would be a hard act to follow. Irregardless of her having losses to Shayna, Candice should never be anywhere below most of the womens roster. At her peak she would have been a high threat to Kairi had the match happened. My issue is they are not doing enough to put her on the platform at all. 

NXT needs at least two womens matches a night, because if you're going to sign all these women there has to be multiple platforms to tier them better. More women need to matter to the spectators. One women's match is not enough anymore. I think Candice for instance would own Bianca as she's better than Bianca on every level short of power. Bianca is getting a push over Candice because Candice has not been given enough of a chance.


----------



## Reil

Alexander_G said:


> She is most definitely on the level of Sasha on a good night. She's put on remarkable matches against both men and women for years and even now, if they put her in an imaginary match with Sasha with at least a 10 minute bout, they'd tear the house down so good it would be a hard act to follow. Irregardless of her having losses to Shayna, Candice should never be anywhere below most of the womens roster. At her peak she would have been a high threat to Kairi had the match happened. My issue is they are not doing enough to put her on the platform at all.
> 
> NXT needs at least two womens matches a night, because if you're going to sign all these women there has to be multiple platforms to tier them better. More women need to matter to the spectators. One women's match is not enough anymore. I think Candice for instance would own Bianca as she's better than Bianca on every level short of power. Bianca is getting a push over Candice because Candice has not been given enough of a chance.


I think the problem is at the end of the day, the only objective that Triple H seems to have in mind for the NXT Women's Division right now is pushing Shayna, Jessamyn, and Marina at the expense of the rest of the division. If that means _inevitably_ feeding everyone to them in an attempt to make them look good, so be it.

There are SIGNIFICANTLY better matches (and even stories) you could have ran with Kairi as champion. Kairi vs Candice, Kairi vs Bianca, Kairi vs Mia, Kairi vs Io, etc are all way more engaging matches and better storylines than Shayna being on top of the division again, except now with two completely untalented wastes of space being her goon squad.

It doesn't fucking help that at least for the time being, it seems like Kairi is out of the title picture despite an incredibly screwy finish (twice!). Where if it were to happen with Shayna, she would have gotten yet another match. It's incredibly bad booking all around, and completely shatters my faith in the NXT Women's Division improving any time soon, if ever. Because I don't see WWE calling up Jessamyn and Marina until they are "ready", which will probably be another year or so. And as long as they aren't "ready", I don't see Shayna dropping the title.


----------



## Jedah

Eh.......I do expect Shayna to drop the title to Io on Mania weekend. But maybe that's just me being optimistic where it admittedly isn't warranted.

It's just depressing when you think about the possibilities that aren't happening because Ronda's friends need to be pushed at everyone else's expense. There's an incredible combination of possibilities we could get on this roster and we're getting none of them because nepotism is running wild. Hopefully that will change after April, but that's not guaranteed, and it's still a long wait where the division will be in a dark age.


----------



## Alexander_G

Reil said:


> I think the problem is at the end of the day, the only objective that Triple H seems to have in mind for the NXT Women's Division right now is pushing Shayna, Jessamyn, and Marina at the expense of the rest of the division. If that means _inevitably_ feeding everyone to them in an attempt to make them look good, so be it.
> 
> There are SIGNIFICANTLY better matches (and even stories) you could have ran with Kairi as champion. Kairi vs Candice, Kairi vs Bianca, Kairi vs Mia, Kairi vs Io, etc are all way more engaging matches and better storylines than Shayna being on top of the division again, except now with two completely untalented wastes of space being her goon squad.


I give these things some thought, and arriving at the road whence views meet, at this point I have to agree.

As I've said before, I don't dislike Shayna and while I have rather been patient with all this, at the same time it's just that I think she's ran her course at what use she has and especially now that Kairi and Dakota are questionable in health within the picture at the moment, yes, okay, I don't really see the point of carrying on with this Kairi/Io/Dakota vs Shayna/Duke/Shafir program. Better off to just scrap it and work a clean slate for 2019.

Shayna is dragging her feet being in NXT at this point, she needs to drop and move up.

I imagine they are probably not going to do any of that though anytime soon, knowing WWE. I will just have to wait things out until the springtime and hope things are in the clear.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> Eh.......I do expect Shayna to drop the title to Io on Mania weekend. But maybe that's just me being optimistic where it admittedly isn't warranted.
> 
> It's just depressing when you think about the possibilities that aren't happening because Ronda's friends need to be pushed at everyone else's expense. There's an incredible combination of possibilities we could get on this roster and we're getting none of them because nepotism is running wild. Hopefully that will change after April, but that's not guaranteed, and it's still a long wait where the division will be in a dark age.


If there is one thing I have earned the right to be cynical about, its Triple H's obsession with MMA fighters. I can easily see Shayna retaining at Mania, and continuing her reign of terror. Because again, as long as Jessamyn and Marina aren't ready to be on the main roster, I don't see Shayna being called up since Triple H is adamant about not separating them.



Alexander_G said:


> I give these things some thought, and arriving at the road whence views meet, at this point I have to agree.
> 
> As I've said before, I don't dislike Shayna and while I have rather been patient with all this, at the same time it's just that I think she's ran her course at what use she has and especially now that Kairi and Dakota are questionable in health within the picture at the moment, yes, okay, I don't really see the point of carrying on with this Kairi/Io/Dakota vs Shayna/Duke/Shafir program. Better off to just scrap it and work a clean slate for 2019.
> 
> Shayna is dragging her feet being in NXT at this point, she needs to drop and move up.
> 
> I imagine they are probably not going to do any of that though anytime soon, knowing WWE. I will just have to wait things out until the springtime and hope things are in the clear.


Kairi has been cleared to compete. She wrestled on the house shows last weekend. I think the issue I have is they moved away from the Kairi/Shayna feud way too quickly, and its likely going to go unresolved now, unless something major happens at the next set of tapings.

At this point, the only reason I can see Shayna sticking around in NXT is to "help" Marina and Jessamyn. At the expense of the rest of the division. I mean Shayna already buried pretty much every single babyface sans Kairi, and she may as well be dead in the water as well if she never gets to deliver actual comeuppance to Shayna. And Io isn't established yet.


----------



## SAMCRO

I love how when Jessamyn and Marina had the mic infront of them and was asked about being challenged by Dakota and Io they just laughed and didn't say anything, yeah of course they didn't say anything because Triple H knows how god damn awful they are and just never has them speak. I'am curious have they spoken a word since the pairing with Shayna? I swear they haven't, i can only imagine how fucking bad and cringe they sound.

I can't wait to see the disasters they are in the ring next week. Jessamyn and Marina have to be the two most greenest and worst performers they've ever let on NXT tv, both of them are jsut so lost and clueless when on tv, they have no idea how to act, and Jessamyn has no idea what to do with her arms or her mouth when it shows her, she just always looks so damn goofy.

And at Takeover when Shayna won the title back from Kairi she went outside and they was on the mat and she was literally asking "What are you doing?" and had to pull them up and lead them cause they had no clue what they was doing, they was literally just sitting there staring at her with no idea what was going on.


----------



## Jedah

At a certain point reality is going to have to hit him in the face. It's clear that these two scrubs aren't going to improve fast enough, if ever, and the stupid horsewomen match won't be worth doing. When that happens is the key question. About half the fanbase already sees this. Just watch what happens when they start competing on TV.

I do expect Io to get the title eventually. Hopefully on Mania weekend. I still think it will be there, but there is reason for skepticism.

But even when she does get it, how she gets it matters too. She could have gotten it after turning on Kairi and becoming the best heel in the women's division since Sasha in the process. Now she'll be at best an edgy babyface. God forbid she keep this "I just want to defend my friends" act up. I guess it could still happen and Kairi could get it back first but I doubt that now.

So at this rate, until Io gets that title, this division is dead, and even then we won't see the best we could from her.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

I agree this episode feels like filler but there is still quite a bit of time until Phoenix. It takes them some time to set things up especially because NXT always does a slow build with their stories. 

As for the episode, I didn't think it was bad. I like EC3 and Heavy Machinery. EC3 is just wasting time until the call up which will probably be at or just after the RR. Heavy Machinery is a filler opponent for TUE until War Raiders are "healed". Mia Yim is ok I guess and with Dakota's injury she looks to be featured prominently at least in the mid card. I really want to "dis"like The Mighty but honestly I just don't care about them. I do like Lorcan and Burch though but I'm afraid they are too bland to be given the titles. NXT UK is probably the best place for them. Treat them like Mustache Mountain and Pete Dunne and let them go back and forth. Promos from Gargano and Black were great but I wish they had used their Takeover match to change Johnny back. The girls interviews where borderline cringe but whatever. I have made it known that I don't think old talent should come back down. The roster is too large and the time is too small for that, at least for TV purposes. That being said it was a good match because Tyler is a good wrestler. He would made a fine addition to the 205 crew. Also 205 should be held at Full Sail as well.

Look forward to the cage match next week.


----------



## Alexander_G

If every NXT woman with true potential (and only the truest potential) were given Velveteen Dream style booking, meaning being allowed to showcase themselves against another big star at least every Takeover and whether winning or losing looking like they MATTER, and being beneficial to their credentials, we'd have a better looking women's roster across the board. In all honesty I could totally ignore Baszler if there were outlets NXT provided to do so. How long have I wished for a Deonna vs Candice match? For crying out loud, they've got to do better at building other women with proven history.


----------



## Reil

SAMCRO said:


> I love how when Jessamyn and Marina had the mic infront of them and was asked about being challenged by Dakota and Io they just laughed and didn't say anything, yeah of course they didn't say anything because Triple H knows how god damn awful they are and just never has them speak. I'am curious have they spoken a word since the pairing with Shayna? I swear they haven't, i can only imagine how fucking bad and cringe they sound.
> 
> I can't wait to see the disasters they are in the ring next week. Jessamyn and Marina have to be the two most greenest and worst performers they've ever let on NXT tv, both of them are jsut so lost and clueless when on tv, they have no idea how to act, and Jessamyn has no idea what to do with her arms or her mouth when it shows her, she just always looks so damn goofy.
> 
> And at Takeover when Shayna won the title back from Kairi she went outside and they was on the mat and she was literally asking "What are you doing?" and had to pull them up and lead them cause they had no clue what they was doing, they was literally just sitting there staring at her with no idea what was going on.


Like the dumbest part is both Jessamyn and Marina were making stupid faces during the interview from last night's segment. Like the dumbest faces possible like they weren't taking the segment seriously either. They really have no business being on TV right now. And I listened to a review of NXT this morning, and the guy said that he is interested to see how they do next week, but due to the rumors of them being "on the same level as Ronda or Shayna", his expectations are sky high. So it'll be interesting to see how people react next week after the match.

Because keep in mind, Jessamyn and Marina couldn't be carried to a good match with some of the best workers in NXT. Candice, Kairi, Dakota, and Io can't carry them to even remotely watchable matches on the house show circuit. And Io carried literal 13-18 year olds to amazing matches in STARDOM.

...Think about that. When there are 13 year olds who can wrestle better matches than a grown woman, there are issues happening.



Alexander_G said:


> If every NXT woman with true potential (and only the truest potential) were given Velveteen Dream style booking, meaning being allowed to showcase themselves against another big star at least every Takeover and whether winning or losing looking like they MATTER, and being beneficial to their credentials, we'd have a better looking women's roster across the board. In all honesty I could totally ignore Baszler if there were outlets NXT provided to do so. How long have I wished for a Deonna vs Candice match? For crying out loud, they've got to do better at building other women with proven history.


I think WWE's logic in not doing this is because they want the spotlight solely on the MMA 4HW in NXT right now. If other women put on great matches that don't involve the MMA 4HW, you may be more interested in people like Candice or Dakota (and potentially even questioning why the MMA 4HW are the primary focus when there is significantly better matches/feuds going on that don't involve them), when WWE wants you talking about how the MMA 4HW are the future of the company (regardless of how terrible they are).


----------



## SAMCRO

Reil said:


> Like *the dumbest part is both Jessamyn and Marina were making stupid faces during the interview from last night's segment. Like the dumbest faces possible like they weren't taking the segment seriously either.* They really have no business being on TV right now. And I listened to a review of NXT this morning, and the guy said that he is interested to see how they do next week, but due to the rumors of them being "on the same level as Ronda or Shayna", his expectations are sky high. So it'll be interesting to see how people react next week after the match.
> 
> Because keep in mind, Jessamyn and Marina couldn't be carried to a good match with some of the best workers in NXT. Candice, Kairi, Dakota, and Io can't carry them to even remotely watchable matches on the house show circuit. And Io carried literal 13-18 year olds to amazing matches in STARDOM.
> 
> ...Think about that. When there are 13 year olds who can wrestle better matches than a grown woman, there are issues happening.



They always look goofy to me in their segments, especially Jessamyn, i mean just look at her here









I just can't stand their faces, or anything about them. I fucking hate that they was hired just for being friends with Shayna and Ronda, everyone else has to do try outs and go through a series of hard obstacles and sequences, but these idiots was just handed contracts despite being fucking terrible. You know how many talented wrestlers way better than them are turned down every year at these try outs for WWE? and these fucking bitches get signed.....

Little tip for any woman or man out there wanting signed by WWE, just go become an MMA fighter for about a year or two, don't even have to be good you can lose every fight and you'll still get signed by Triple H.


----------



## TD Stinger

Nothing too much to talk about on this episode.

Seeing Breeze do his old gimmick again was great to see and him and Ricochet do their thing. Breeze either needs to be back in NXT or on 205 Live.

But other than that and some good promos by Gargano, Black, and Cole, most of this episode felt like them spinning their wheels and killing time until 2019 comes.


----------



## Reil

Tonight's episode of NXT will feature the following:

- Heavy Machinery in action

- Dominik Dijakovic in action

- Io Shirai and Dakota Kai vs Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shayfir

- Black vs Gargano in a Steel Cage Match.


----------



## Jedah

Black vs. Gargano in a cage might be one last match of the year candidate in the making. Looking forward to it. :mark

And let's see if Io can carry these two basic bitches to something watchable. If those two can't get an entertaining match with the best women's wrestler in the world, that would be a major, major bad sign. Shame Io has to waste her time with this on her TV debut, but at least it's the big story in the division so they're gearing her up for a push.


----------



## Araragi

This looks like a packed episode. From the preview the only thing that I'm not interested in is Heavy Machinery. I'm really hyped for Black vs. Gargano, no doubt it delivers. It's a shame that Io's debut wasn't made to be _*her* _moment and not theirs. But she's had to carry lesser talent in the past, so even though I'm not expecting that much out of the match I still think it'll be passable and seeing Io in action will always be a net positive in my book.


----------



## Reil

New episode of NXT is up on the network already. The Io/Dakota vs Duke/Shafir match opened the show.

http://network.wwe.com/video/v2521258683

Christ, Jessamyn and Marina were...*INCREDIBLY* green at the absolute best. Everything they did was either incredibly sloppy or an outright botch. Not to mention their gear is awful looking. Both Io and Dakota struggled to carry them to an even remotely watchable match.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> New episode of NXT is up on the network already. The Io/Dakota vs Duke/Shafir match opened the show.
> 
> http://network.wwe.com/video/v2521258683
> 
> Christ, Jessamyn and Marina were...*INCREDIBLY* green at the absolute best. Everything they did was either incredibly sloppy or an outright botch. Not to mention their gear is awful looking. Both Io and Dakota struggled to carry them to an even remotely watchable match.


Well Io kind of squash them, she didn't even had to sell a punch.

I think between the moment when Dakota made the tag with Io and when Io pinned Shafir, less than a minute passed


----------



## Araragi

Reil said:


> New episode of NXT is up on the network already. The Io/Dakota vs Duke/Shafir match opened the show.
> 
> http://network.wwe.com/video/v2521258683
> 
> Christ, Jessamyn and Marina were...*INCREDIBLY* green at the absolute best. Everything they did was either incredibly sloppy or an outright botch. Not to mention their gear is awful looking. Both Io and Dakota struggled to carry them to an even remotely watchable match.


Like I said I wasn't expecting much, but thank god it didn't go any longer than it did. Their offense is pretty embarrassing, and despite Dakota being an awesome seller even she had trouble making any of it look good. At least they had Io outright squash them though.


----------



## Jedah

OK so, most of it felt like filler until the main event.

- Women's tag team match.... :lmao :lmao :lmao. Wow that was bad. Not Nia Jax level sloppiness bad but wow do these two scrubs not belong on TV. Some of the worst character work I've ever seen. There were a couple of takedowns and throws that looked OK but that was it. Jessamyn tried to mimic Shayna with ground work and just failed so spectacularly at it. Marina was even worse. The icing on the cake was commentary trying to hype them up but it being visibly the total opposite in the ring. Release these two yesterday. They just aren't worth investing any resources in. At all. Glad to see Io take them out in a whirlwind. You could tell Io needed to slow down by 80% so they wouldn't look even worse. As an aside, I really like Io's MYC theme much better. I wish she'd go back to that one.

- Dijakovic looked good. I really like his finisher too. He could be somebody.

- Matt Riddle's promos are weird. I don't know whether to laugh or hate him.

- Heavy Machinery squash was what it was.

- Good main event. Not quite on the level I thought it could be but still very good. The crowd wasn't good though. I think it could have been better with a better crowd. Seeing Ciampa and Johnny align to take out Black is extremely weird though. The NXT title scene is confusing now and it really feels like Johnny can't be the one to take out Ciampa now.


----------



## Reil

To be honest, I like Io's current theme more than her MYC theme. Her previous one was literally the same loop every 30 seconds. This new one is probably her theme going forward, since it was produced by CFO$.

Also its based loosely off of her STARDOM theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Z1P14_Iln0


----------



## Donnie

:imout my nightmare continues until Mania, fuck it, probably until TAKEOVER Chicago 3 :bunk


----------



## SHIVV-EAUX-EMME-GEEE

The show was basically the main event. Color me unimpressed with the hind end of the Faux Horsewomen. Hope Black goes to Smackdown and challenges Bryan.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Show Thoughts:

So this really the 1st time I've actually watched a full Shafir and Duke match. Duke just looks awkward. She's so lanky compared to the other women, even someone like Dakota. And her face honestly freaks me out. Shafir I will at least say has a personality in the ring between body language and trash talking. And she had a nice Dragon Sleeper.

But uh, yeah, they were there to do basic moves to Dakota and sell for Io. And that was it.

Dijakovic's debut was alright. Nice finisher. But as of right now all there is to the character is a guy who snarls a lot. We'll see if more comes from that.

Heavy Machinery's squash was a squash, purely there to build to their tag title match. So it accomplished what it needed to. Obviously we know HM aren't getting those belts, but it could be a fun match.

Gargano vs. Black had a nice match utilizing their normal wrestling maneuvers while incorporating the cage as well such as Black's Moonsault, Johnny's Powerbomb and Lawn Dart, etc.

Seeing DIY hit their "Meet in the Middle" finish was kind of surreal, and I'm interested how far Johnny will fall with Ciampa. And will Black have a partner come to his aid as well? We all know we want it to be.


----------



## Buhalovski

I dont think heel DIY will be a thing, most likely Gargano will turn on Ciampa and this is how his redemptioin story begins.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Alright episode tonight. 

- Io/Dakota vs. Marina/Jessamyn was meh tbh. Jessamyn & Marina are very basic and honestly the more I see Marina the more I don't like her. She was pretty dumb to just stand there and talk when Jessamyn had her hand up for the tag. I'm glad Io & Dakota won and Io got to put them away, seems like that shows despite all this horsewomen stuff Io is still important to NXT. 

- Dijak is cool, I'm glad he finally debuted but I am gonna need some time to get use to that name. 

- Heavy Machinery squash was just that and I liked how the UE came out and watched the match from the stage. 

- Gargano/Black was good. I'm certain Johnny's reaction was them setting up his redemption story.


----------



## MC

Donnie said:


> :imout my nightmare continues until Mania, fuck it, probably until TAKEOVER Chicago 3 :bunk


Just think about the EPIC~!! sToRyTeLlInG.


----------



## Donnie

MC said:


> Just think about the EPIC~!! sToRyTeLlInG.


:avon Fuck that noise.

People out here on Reddit and Twitter calling it "the best long storytelling in WWE history" 

We're fucking doomed


----------



## MC

Donnie said:


> :avon Fuck that noise.
> 
> People out here on Reddit and Twitter calling it "the best long storytelling in WWE history"
> 
> We're fucking doomed


You just don't get it. This is Elite level storytelling. You have to have a high IQ to understand this story. :Cal


----------



## Donnie

MC said:


> You just don't get it. This is Elite level storytelling. You have to have a high IQ to understand this story. :Cal


:monkey Apparently you need a lazy eye like Shawn to understand how AMAZING this is


----------



## Death Rider

Still easily better then the main roster attempts at storytelling and watching shayna's mates try to wrestle <img src="http://i.imgur.com/7KU7Fqx.png" border="0" alt="" title="Draper" class="inlineimg" />


----------



## MC

Donnie said:


> :monkey Apparently you need a lazy eye like Shawn to understand how AMAZING this is


You gotta thing about how DRAMATIC this feud is. I could cry thinking about this deep storyline. Poor Johnny Grapples.


----------



## DammitChrist

Roy Mustang said:


> Still easily better then the main roster attempts at storytelling and watching shayna's mates try to wrestle <img src="http://i.imgur.com/7KU7Fqx.png" border="0" alt="" title="Draper" class="inlineimg" />


Oh yea, I'll EASILY take this storyline/storytelling with Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa over just about anything the main roster attempts to do story-wise. It's not even close :lol

Shayna Baszler's lackeys' attempts to wrestle though :bosque


----------



## Araragi

DammitChrist said:


> Oh yea, I'll EASILY take this storyline/storytelling with Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa over just about anything the main roster attempts to do story-wise. It's not even close :lol
> 
> Shayna Baszler's lackeys' attempts to wrestle though :bosque


Exactly. if people are complaining about it now, just wait until the main roster writers get their hands on it when they attempt to carry the story over when they're called up. More often than not on RAW I'm ready for a storyline to wrap up about 2 weeks in to it.


----------



## Jedah

Ciampa and Gargano has gotten convoluted. It was logical, but showing cracks, up to War Games. After Black "absolved him of his sins" that should have been it and Johnny should have started coming back to the light. I really don't know what's going on now. It's going to be very hard to position Johnny to beat Ciampa at this point.

Still much better than the women's stuff though. If it's this bad in NXT, I can't imagine what will happen when the main roster gets their hands on this horsewomen crap. Hopefully the day never comes.


----------



## Death Rider

Jedah said:


> Ciampa and Gargano has gotten convoluted. It was logical, but showing cracks, up to War Games. After Black "absolved him of his sins" that should have been it and Johnny should have started coming back to the light. I really don't know what's going on now. It's going to be very hard to position Johnny to beat Ciampa at this point.
> 
> Still much better than the women's stuff though. If it's this bad in NXT, I can't imagine what will happen when the main roster gets their hands on this horsewomen crap. Hopefully the day never comes.


Oh it has it's flaws but still miles better then numerous other programs on the main roster. Whilst enjoying it I agree gargano realising the error of his ways would have worked better for me.


----------



## TD Stinger

Guys, I hate being that guy but can we stop saying "it's still way better than the stories on the main roster." I don't care if it's WWE, NXT, NJPW, ROH, Lucha Underground, Impact, etc. Judge a story on whether you think it's good or not.

Gargano and Ciampa is a story that to me has good history all the way back to their DIY days when they first subtly teased a break up between the 2. From there you have their triumph as a team, Ciampa's shocking betrayal, Johnny's journey to find himself while Ciampa was away, Ciampa's return, Johnny defeating Ciampa thinking he had rid himself of this dark shadow, Ciampa coming back and Johnny's anger getting the best of him, allowing Ciampa to win the NXT Title, which has corrupted Johnny to what he is now.

There's been some bumpy spots. For example I don't care for how Candice Lerae is basically tied to whatever her husband is doing. Hell she even started dressing in all black when Johnny turned heel, just because. And the story did suffer from having to shoehorn another Gargano/Ciampa match at Takeover Brooklyn due to Black's injury.

But through even some rough spots, I still enjoy this story they're telling from the beginning and hopefully to a true, good end.


----------



## Reil

So WWE is stuck b/w a rock and a hard place with next week's F4W #1 contenders match.

No matter who wins, I feel like they are just being fed to Shayna. Especially if the rematch clause going away thing also ends up applying to NXT. I think its best that Shayna retains at Phoenix, and then drops the title at New York.

And out of everyone next week in the F4W, the only two who have a chance of winning are Bianca and Io. And if Bianca wins, its pretty much a lock that Shayna is retaining at Phoenix. Because you would hope that NXT isn't stupid enough to have one heel defeat another big heel for the title and send them packing. Shayna absolutely needs to be taken out by a solid babyface. Not a tweener or a heel.


----------



## RiverFenix

Io/Kai vs Duke and Marina was fine. Much better than the vitriol it is getting here. I think it's a case of some being so invested in their hate that they feel the need to keep piling on. There was nothing botchy or bad about the match - Dakota sold her ass off, but the Horsewomen did their part. It was a solid little television debut that will set up Shayna coming for Io given how Io ran through Shafir once she was tagged in. Jess does need better ring gear, she is so long and lanky, she should look to make that a basis of some of her offense - especially subs with the leverage her arms and legs could add. They're both going to be fine. 


Dijakovic is going to be a star. He's the obvious Sullivan role replacement, and it was only a squash but he looked good - has a presence about him. His finisher is a better Go2Sleep - it's more impressive looking, hopefully he can hit it on bigger wrestlers. Not sure why he got this type of gimmick - the mma striker/Muay Thai practitioner when they have legit mma fighters but he looked good with it. I might have gone a little less "monster" with him with all the snarling and glaring. 

Good riddance to Heavy Machinery. Doz could have maybe been something - he's just a goof now. And he's too big he can't even move normally it seems. They could possibly do better on the main roster - good for them if they do. I don't watch the MR for the most part so as long as I don't have to see them anymore. 

Gargano has patented that 1000 yard "dazed/out of it" stare, but it looked like Black stiffed the shit out of him with that elbow when Black started firing back after the entrance attack. I think Johnny was expecting a chest chop and Aliester went high with a back elbow.

That was a helluva match. Always better when you're unsure of the outcome and I could have seen either man win. Both are so damn good - Black could be huge on the main roster if he's not given a "gayspooky" super powers gimmick by Vince and co. And if his strikes are gimmicked and just look really good and he's not too stiff. There is literally dozens of matches I want to see Black wrestle on the MR. The sooner the better for him - get him up in the RR and Black Mass a few fools to clear the ring and then sit cross legged waiting for the clock to count down. Black vs Bryan, Black vs Styles, Black vs Orton, Black vs Lesnar could all be HUGE money feuds.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> So WWE is stuck b/w a rock and a hard place with next week's F4W #1 contenders match.
> 
> No matter who wins, I feel like they are just being fed to Shayna. Especially if the rematch clause going away thing also ends up applying to NXT. I think its best that Shayna retains at Phoenix, and then drops the title at New York.
> 
> And out of everyone next week in the F4W, the only two who have a chance of winning are Bianca and Io. And if Bianca wins, its pretty much a lock that Shayna is retaining at Phoenix. Because you would hope that NXT isn't stupid enough to have one heel defeat another big heel for the title and send them packing. Shayna absolutely needs to be taken out by a solid babyface. Not a tweener or a heel.



Baszler needs to stay in NXT until Duke and Shafir are ready (or less green)


----------



## Reil

rbl85 said:


> Baszler needs to stay in NXT until Duke and Shafir are ready (or less green)


I don't think that's a good idea if Duke and Shafir aren't significantly better by Wrestlemania. Keeping Shayna down there is a horrible idea because they'll keep her as champion until those two are ready, which will likely be a very long wait. And would completely kill the division. The only credible babyfaces left that aren't injured or already buried by Shayna are Kairi and Io.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> I don't think that's a good idea if Duke and Shafir aren't significantly better by Wrestlemania. Keeping Shayna down there is a horrible idea because they'll keep her as champion until those two are ready, which will likely be a very long wait. And would completely kill the division. The only credible babyfaces left that aren't injured or already buried by Shayna are Kairi and Io.


I think Shayna will be on Raw or SDL after Mania.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT:

The opening tag match wasn’t great or anything but I’ve heard some really bad stuff about Sharif and Duke and maybe it’s just a trio of lowered expectations, good editing and a serious carry job by Kai and Shirai but they weren’t that bad? There was nothing overtly horrible and offensive in this like I’d basically been conditioned to expect, even if I’m confused by the fact that the Horsewomen lost clean. 

What was also fine was Dijakovic debut. It seems weird they’ve changed his name to play up an ethnicity angle only for that not to play out anywhere else. He has a generic look and generic royalty free rock music. I will say that finisher is pretty sweet, even if the timing felt a bit off here. Otherwise yeah a perfectly fine squash that put Dijakovic over strong.

Not really all that invested in Heavy Machinery if I can be honest but I’m still hopeful for a fun Tag Title match against Undisputed. I’ve heard Machinery are getting called up though so I guess it’s a foregone conclusion they’ll lose?

Probably because it was the one thing I was actually excited for on this show in advance… that cage match let me down a little if I can be honest. I thought Gargano and Black had a way better match at TakeOver and that TakeOver match was fresh enough in my mind to drag this one down. I also don’t really like Cage matches, it doesn’t really add any new dynamic to the matches beyond a bunch of new — easier — ways to win in addition to the regular rules, rather than instead of. I dunno I think a cage match would work way better if it was just the case was that the door is locked and the match doesn’t end until the person is beaten. All this shit about escaping or opening the door and all that crap is just rubbish.

I will say I am surprised they’ve pulled the trigger on NegaDIY already. Black has really been shafted by this whole DIY feud thing and I feel really sorry for him, he deserves more.


----------



## chrisburr

Shirai = Future GOAT + Future Womens Champion + Lengthy Career

Kai = Talented and Could go either way

Sharif and Duke are the only members of the Faux Horsewomen that I can see lasting a long time in WWE! Those 2 are the only ones who stand out in that group

Especially Duke who could be a monster heel!

I hope those two eventually turn on and pummel Shayna!

Ronda Rousey = I dont expect her to be in WWE beyond Wrestlemania 35! I dont envision her being in WWE in 2020

Shayna = Will probably be a bust when she gets to the main Roster! High Expectations but will dissapoint! I dont see Shayna being there for long either! probably 2022 at the most!

Duke = Long Career & Future Monster & Future Womens Champion

Shafir = Long Career & Possible Women's Champion

WWE's Four Horsewomen will beat the Faux Four Horsewomen anyday!

Im just ready for anybody to take that belt off of Shayna ASAP!

to this day I still think Shayna was the wrong one to take it from Ember Moon!


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just watched two weeks worth...

*Last Week*
Pretty much a nothing episode like many have said in here.

Fish vs EC3 was boring. Thank god Heavy Machinery are getting out of NXT so they can't drag the Tag Division down, I hope they get buried on the main roster.

Looks like Io Shirai is going to be booked like a cringeworthy goof also fpalm

Lorcan/Burch vs The Mighty was very messy in parts, only thing I enjoyed was Lorcan's offense.

Skipped Mia Yim vs Reina Gonzalez. Why on earth is Reina getting TV time, her spot should've gone to someone much better.

Ricochet vs Breeze was very disappointing, the match never got going.

*This Week*
The first match will obviously get people talking for the wrong reasons. Shafir and Duke are as basic as they come, few UFC style moves and that was it. I actually prefer Duke over Shafir though, Shafir is an absolute embarrassment, looks awkward when taking offense and her random shouting is very annoying.

Lay off the weed bro (Y)

What's the point in changing Dijak's name? He now sounds like a Serbian football player. Dijak is a great performer but I wouldn't be surprised if his character work holds him back.

Of course I skipped the Heavy Machinery match.

Now the main event, nowhere near as good as their last match, very much of a mixture. Black's striking combinations in this match though were fucking awesome. Gargano produced the best spots with that powerbomb off the cage and the leg sweep off the cage into the Gargano escape. A few moments in this match made Black look like a dumb idiot, him going to escape the cage only to climb back down again in wasn't needed. Last five mins though were fun in terms of storytelling, nice continuity shown from their last match. Now as for Ciampa helping Gargano I couldn't help but get a buzz but god knows where this is heading. They dropped the ball with Gargano and it looks like this storyline is heading for a predictable ending, the excitement of seeing Gargano as Champ has somewhat worn off.


----------



## Reil

So uh I guess the Takeover Phoenix logo was revealed.

It's real bad. Really really bad.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1075852725999599623


----------



## Jedah

It'll be fitting too. It's too early to say but TakeOver: Phoenix is not looking good right now, based on where things look like they're headed. It has Black vs. Ciampa of course but who knows where that's going to end up now?

The Royal Rumble might well outshine it.


----------



## RiverFenix

^I kinda like it.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> So uh I guess the Takeover Phoenix logo was revealed.
> 
> It's real bad. Really really bad.
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1075852725999599623


That design looks like something you'd expect from a Randy Orton T-shirt.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Gargano/Black killing it again...to the surprise of no one. I bet Shawn was the agent for the match, too.


(Who knows, but I know it probably rubs some people the wrong way, so why the hell not?)

:hbk1


----------



## SAMCRO

The opening tag match was fine, alot better than i expected, Duke and Shafir did alright, i expected them to be outright terrible and they wasn't. Granted it was a short match and they just did some simple basic shit though, i think Duke has some promise, Shafir though seems like the worst of the two.

Good to see Dijak finally debut, dudes gonna be a star imo, someone his size that can move like he does, he can do moonsaults, plancha's, he's a great heel, aint no way he's not NXT champion at some point. Then again he may get called up pretty quick, i could see Vince liking him alot and giving him a big push on the main roster.

Heavy Machinery is pure trash, Otis looks like he can barely move, and Tucker Knight is just so damn generic and boring, he'd be released by now if they didn't put him with Otis. And their tag finisher is god awful, just two fat guys falling down on a guy. But i have no doubt their goofy asses will be over on the main roster, since the casuals love dumb goofy shit like New Day they'll love these idiots too.

Wasn't really excited about the cage match, i'm just tired of Johnny being in NXT, feels like he's just hanging around now when he should be called up by now. Aleister is another guy that just needs to be called up already, i jsut have no interest in him or Garagano in NXT anymore. And i'm not a fan of Gargano and Ciampa potentially reuniting again so soon after their blood feud only ended like a month or two ago, i wish Ciampa could just get far away from Gargano at this point. I pray to god they don't become DIY again but as heels, Cimapa is past that, dudes a main evneter and a star he don't need Gargano holding him down in a tag team.


----------



## Mear

I wasn't a fan of this Main-Event, looked forward to it but it just felt like Aleister Black was doing all the offense and Johnny Gargano looked pretty pathetic which took me off the match. It just felt so one-sided and I have to say that the storyline for Johnny and Ciampa is moving way too fast. 

He turned heel a few weeks ago and he is already working with Ciampa and I'm just here thinking " Please, not them against eachother again ". It's been one year of them going at it again and again and again. They need to give some time to breath, let people forget that those two could be involved against eachother

Otherwise, I really hope that Io Shirai isn't gonna win the F4W and beat Shayna already. Her basically squashing the Horsewomen isn't to my liking, I really want Bianca to have that one Takeover match. I'm sure Shirai will have her time but for Bianca, having that Takeover match could really turn her into a star


----------



## Reil

Mear said:


> I wasn't a fan of this Main-Event, looked forward to it but it just felt like Aleister Black was doing all the offense and Johnny Gargano looked pretty pathetic which took me off the match. It just felt so one-sided and I have to say that the storyline for Johnny and Ciampa is moving way too fast.
> 
> He turned heel a few weeks ago and he is already working with Ciampa and I'm just here thinking " Please, not them against eachother again ". It's been one year of them going at it again and again and again. They need to give some time to breath, let people forget that those two could be involved against eachother
> 
> Otherwise, I really hope that Io Shirai isn't gonna win the F4W and beat Shayna already. Her basically squashing the Horsewomen isn't to my liking, I really want Bianca to have that one Takeover match. I'm sure Shirai will have her time but for Bianca, having that Takeover match could really turn her into a star


I don't mind Bianca having a Takeover match against Shayna if she wins next week, but she shouldn't beat Shayna at the event itself. She's far from ready to hold the title. Considering her entire character is running around clapping her hands talking about how she's undefeated. When all of her singles victories have been against low tier people. Not to mention she is incredibly inconsistent in the ring. 

Also it would not sit well from a booking perspective if Bianca was the one to dethrone Shayna for good. Bianca is a tweener at best, and only an actual babyface should be the one to send Shayna packing.


----------



## Leather Rebel

I'm stunned of the amount of hate that Heavy Machinery have in these forums. I personally love them, obviously they will lose againts UE next week but I hope they have a nice run on the main roster. I found them decent wrestlers with a lot of charisma and very fun personalities.


----------



## JustAName

Heavy Machinery is sort of a team I should like, they have a lot of things going for them and do their stuff well, but I am just really indifferent to them


----------



## candice-wrestling

I wonder if the Jan 2nd episode will show the ten match tag match that is suppose to be happening on the 26th.


----------



## Reil

candice-wrestling said:


> I wonder if the Jan 2nd episode will show the ten match tag match that is suppose to be happening on the 26th.


It will likely be a recap show of everything that has happened over the past year.

Anyways, the main event advertised for Wednesday is the fatal four way for the right to challenge Shayna at NXT Takeover: Phoenix.

You have a bunch of people who want Bianca to win so she can get a shot at the title, because they feel like Io is being pushed way too hard and shouldn't be champion soon (which is funny considering how quickly Shayna was pushed, and the same exact people had zero problem with that).

I'm fine with Bianca potentially winning, but I do not think she should or will win at NXT Takeover if that's the case. She'll likely be a filler opponent for Shayna, and Bianca's "undefeated" streak isn't exactly high value at the moment, considering all of her wins have come at the expense of lower tier talent. She doesn't have a singles win over a super well established upper midcard or main event talent yet. 

(I have undefeated in quotes because she pretty much never wins at house shows, to the point of where she gets squashed by established talent like Io and Kairi)


----------



## The Masked Avenger

I love Heavy Machinery but they are not good enough to win the tag belts and I'm pretty surprised to see them getting a title shot. That being said they will absolutely be tag champs on the main roster and probably have a few reigns. The NXT tag belt still have prestige while the MR belts were given to a 10 year old. A team like Heavy Machinery is perfect for the MR tag scene.


----------



## TD Stinger

TheMaskedAvenger said:


> I love Heavy Machinery but they are not good enough to win the tag belts and I'm pretty surprised to see them getting a title shot. That being said they will absolutely be tag champs on the main roster and probably have a few reigns. The NXT tag belt still have prestige while the MR belts were given to a 10 year old. A team like Heavy Machinery is perfect for the MR tag scene.


They're a popular team but not as skilled as some of their other teams so it's not surprising that they'll get a TV title shot just so TUE can get a defense in without any worry of actually losing the belts.

I'd like to share your optimism about the main roster because I do like them, but chances are they end up like Sanity or The Ascension where most of the time they're in catering as opposed to on TV.


----------



## candice-wrestling

Reil said:


> It will likely be a recap show of everything that has happened over the past year.
> 
> Anyways, the main event advertised for Wednesday is the fatal four way for the right to challenge Shayna at NXT Takeover: Phoenix.
> 
> You have a bunch of people who want Bianca to win so she can get a shot at the title, because they feel like Io is being pushed way too hard and shouldn't be champion soon (which is funny considering how quickly Shayna was pushed, and the same exact people had zero problem with that).
> 
> I'm fine with Bianca potentially winning, but I do not think she should or will win at NXT Takeover if that's the case. She'll likely be a filler opponent for Shayna, and Bianca's "undefeated" streak isn't exactly high value at the moment, *considering all of her wins have come at the expense of lower tier talent. She doesn't have a singles win over a super well established upper midcard or main event talent yet. *
> 
> (I have undefeated in quotes because she pretty much never wins at house shows, to the point of where she gets squashed by established talent like Io and Kairi)


She has wins over Dakota Kai, Candice LeRae & Mia Yim. I would consider them upper mid card talents.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

True but everyone has a win over Dakota Kai.


----------



## Reil

Candice and Mia are both pretty much jobbers as well. Neither of them have any momentum, nor did they when they faced Bianca.


----------



## Reil

So that women's 4HW was...very messy. The only person who looked even remotely good in that match was Io. Everyone else fell apart completely when she wasn't directing traffic it seemed.

Also Bianca vs Shayna is going to be...mediocre at best. The crowd did not give one iota of a fuck when Bianca won tonight. For someone who people claim is SUPER OVER EVERYWHERE, she didn't get much of a reaction.

Christ, Shayna vs Bianca is going to be a mess and I can't wait until its over.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> So that women's 4HW was...very messy. The only person who looked even remotely good in that match was Io. Everyone else fell apart completely when she wasn't directing traffic it seemed.
> 
> Also Bianca vs Shayna is going to be...mediocre at best. The crowd did not give one iota of a fuck when Bianca won tonight.



Yeah but i feel like the illness of Kairi messed up HHH plans for the women division.

Also Bianca was the only "right" winner because it would be to soon for Io to be in a takeover match, Evans si going to the main roster and Mia is the same than Dakota.


----------



## llj

On the other hand, Kairi vs Shayna 3 would have been overkill. Maybe it was meant to be a triple threat though.

I suppose there is technically still time to put Kairi in the match though


----------



## Jedah

This was like a tale of two episodes. The first half sucked. The second was pretty good.

Women's F4W was...a mess. Sadly, it looks like they've slowed Io down even worse than I thought they would. You see at certain points her explosiveness, but then it just fades away. Maybe she just needs better opponents. I hope. Speaking of, they really should move that ramp back a few feet from the ring. Io looked like she almost clapped her head on that dive and that isn't the first time people have had close calls on that ramp.

The winner....well....get ready for sucksville, because this match might be the worst NXT women's title match in TakeOver history. Could be better than Shayna vs. Nikki, but that's still not the bar you want to compare yourself too.

What a shit heap this division has become. The main roster is far better than it right now. It's sad and ridiculous at the same time.

Forgotten Sons....this match was so boring that even Mauro and crew nodded off.

Then things get better. I love Ciampa when he's manipulating people like this. Gargano vs. Ricochet potentially in Phoenix? Now he talks about them as champions, like he's trying to wind Gargano up around his finger because he thinks he has everything figured out. There's a number of ways this can go. Color me intrigued.

Tag match was much better than I expected. The Era probably has a lot to do with that, but Heavy Machinery did well.


----------



## gl83

llj said:


> On the other hand, Kairi vs Shayna 3 would have been overkill. Maybe it was meant to be a triple threat though.
> 
> I suppose there is technically still time to put Kairi in the match though


Next week is going to be a recap episode, so they would only have 3 weeks(which would cover the next set of tapings) to set it up.


----------



## Reil

llj said:


> On the other hand, Kairi vs Shayna 3 would have been overkill. Maybe it was meant to be a triple threat though.
> 
> I suppose there is technically still time to put Kairi in the match though


I think the dubious finish at Takeover: Wargames was a way to further the feud. But with Bianca being added into the mix, the feud is derailed for the time being.


----------



## llj

gl83 said:


> Next week is going to be a recap episode, so they would only have 3 weeks(which would cover the next set of tapings) to set it up.


On the main roster that would be enough time...but very unusual by NXT standard, I agree


----------



## Reil

llj said:


> On the main roster that would be enough time...but very unusual by NXT standard, I agree


I think its more likely they just have Bianca lose at Phoenix, and then slide Kairi or Io into the title picture. Possibly by beating Bianca in a #1 contenders match after Takeover: Phoenix.


----------



## llj

Bianca vs Shayna just doesn't have enough heat by itself.

It probably should have been Kairi's turn again as champ right now in a hot potato feud. Oh well.


----------



## Cookie Crisp

They should make it a triple threat and have Kairi win by pinning Shayna.


----------



## TD Stinger

I'll give show thoughts later, but after tonight with the #1 Contender match and Ciampa imploring Gargano to challenge for the NA Title, the Takeover Phoenix card is looking like:

NXT Championship: Aleister Black vs. Tomasso Ciampa
NXT North American Championship: Johnny Gargano vs. Ricochet
NXT Tag Team Championship: War Raiders vs. The Undisputed Era
NXT Women's Championship: Bianca Belair vs. Shayna Baszler (vs. maybe Kairi Sane as well)

Room for probably 1 more match. But maybe 2. Maybe Riddle vs. Ohno. And I'm assuming EC3 and Lars are off the cards going forward.

So @MarkyWhipwreck, if you're looking for a Cole match, it's looking like either Dream or Lee by process of elimination. Probably Dream.


----------



## DammitChrist

Jedah said:


> This was like a tale of two episodes. The first half sucked. The second was pretty good.
> 
> Women's F4W was...a mess. Sadly, it looks like they've slowed Io down even worse than I thought they would. You see at certain points her explosiveness, but then it just fades away. Maybe she just needs better opponents. I hope. Speaking of, they really should move that ramp back a few feet from the ring. Io looked like she almost clapped her head on that dive and that isn't the first time people have had close calls on that ramp.
> 
> The winner....well....get ready for sucksville, because this match might be the worst NXT women's title match in TakeOver history. Could be better than Shayna vs. Nikki, but that's still not the bar you want to compare yourself too.
> 
> What a shit heap this division has become. The main roster is far better than it right now. It's sad and ridiculous at the same time.
> 
> *Forgotten Sons....this match was so boring that even Mauro and crew nodded off.*
> 
> Then things get better. I love Ciampa when he's manipulating people like this. Gargano vs. Ricochet potentially in Phoenix? Now he talks about them as champions, like he's trying to wind Gargano up around his finger because he thinks he has everything figured out. There's a number of ways this can go. Color me intrigued.
> 
> Tag match was much better than I expected. The Era probably has a lot to do with that, but Heavy Machinery did well.


Wait, did the commentary team seriously nod off? :done

Is that why they were silent throughout the whole squash match? :lol


----------



## Buhalovski

I like Bianca but she needs to lose. No need for another undefeated streak after Asuka and god knows how many people.


----------



## candice-wrestling

I'm really happy for Bianca! I'm really curious to see if they pull the trigger with her or just have her lose her streak here.


----------



## SAMCRO

I don't even understand why there needed to be a number 1 contenders match, Bianca has been undefeated for ages, shouldn't that just automatically make her the number 1 contender? I mean no other women on the NXT roster is undefeated.

O'Reilly and Strong really need a new tag finisher, that looked like Ascension's shitty tag finisher.


----------



## rbl85

Bianca is not undefeated....she loose nearly all of her house shows matches.

When Asuka had her streak she didn't loose any house shows matches.


----------



## Jedah

House shows are usually non-canon. However, Bianca did lose to Kairi in the Mae Young Classic.

I thought that this whole "undefeated" angle was as fuel for a feud between her and Kairi, but that was evidently too optimistic and sensible for this women's division.



DammitChrist said:


> Wait, did the commentary team seriously nod off? :done
> 
> Is that why they were silent throughout the whole squash match? :lol


It was just a joke. I do wonder why there was no commentary for that match though.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> House shows are usually non-canon. However, Bianca did lose to Kairi in the Mae Young Classic.
> 
> I thought that this whole "undefeated" angle was as fuel for a feud between her and Kairi, but that was evidently too optimistic and sensible for this women's division.


I think the sad part is there are people who honestly think that Bianca has a shot at winning the title. Like I'm almost certain the moment Shayna loses the title, she is getting called up. And I don't see WWE having her get called up and lost in the shuffle on the Road to Wrestlemania. Shayna has "night after Wrestlemania" debut written all over her.

And with rematch clauses no longer being a thing apparently, there would be nothing left for Shayna to do in the scene.

Someone else pointed out on the POST Wrestling website that having Bianca remain undefeated is insanely stupid as well. With Asuka it worked because she was lording over a division full of women who were mostly bad to mediocre (and she could carry them to good matches). Bianca would be lording over a division stacked with insanely talented women (and Bianca can't carry greener workers. At all.).

Fact of the matter is, the NXT Women's Division is in a bad spot right now, and people are right when they say this Bianca vs Shayna match has no heat, and doesn't feel worth investing in at all. WWE fucked up *real bad* by putting the title back onto Shayna. And unless Bianca is a transitional champion, putting the title onto her directly via Shayna is really stupid as well.


----------



## Jedah

No, the real sad part is that there are people that think this match is going to be good. Maybe I shouldn't be _too_ surprised, because Shayna and Bianca are both among the most overrated people in this company, but just taking a quick look should tell you that all indications are that this match is going to suck.

I'd be much more surprised if it turns out good. And even if it does, it still wouldn't be as good as Bianca vs. Kairi would have been, or Kairi vs. anyone else for that matter.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Very boring episode this week...

That Women's Fatal 4-Way looked way too choreographed, none of them looked good in that match. I thought Lacey Evans did the best work but she went for too many shitty looking pin falls. Io had one little flurry of offense and that was it. Bianca's spear was the only highlight for her in this match. Mia Yim unsurprisingly did nothing of note.

Still think a triple threat with Shayna vs Bianca vs Kairi is more likely than a singles match, surely HHH wouldn't be dumb enough to give us a Shayna vs Bianca singles match, it just doesn't make sense. 

Skipped the Jaxson Ryker squash.

Ciampa's backstage promo was interesting, that Gargano vs Ricochet tease got me a little bit excited.

Undisputed Era vs Heavy Machinery was one of the worst NXT Tag Title matches I've seen, felt sorry for Strong and O'Reilly having to work with those two useless pieces of trash.


----------



## Alexander_G

I find that I am once again having to stick up for Heavy Machinery around here. They certainly are not Kyle and Roddy lvl talent but I do not think they are trash either. They are middle of the road at best and their old school style clashes quite a bit with UE's style without it turning into a complete clusterfudge. In any case, I went in to that match knowing they'd lose anyway so I was unmoved, they are after all getting drafted up.

Ciampa's promos are always good to wait for. This man continues to feel like a big, important champion because he's ace at his psychology. The day he goes to main, I already get the feeling Vince is going to Bobby Roode-him. I'm just going to enjoy this Ciampa while he lasts.


*4-Way Womens Match - Io Shirai vs Lacey Evans vs Mia Yim vs Bianca Belair:* I'm typically of the view of Stone Cold Steve Austin when he says he hates 3-way and 4-way matches. I don't like them either, because of the annoying abruptness and endless changing of patterns.

The first thing I noticed, was that it is clearly evident just how much better Io Shirai is on so many levels to these American wrestlers. She's just on a whole nother current & feel than these other three in terms of athleticism, mechanics, and *ENERGY*. She soars overhead of them like an eagle. The other three look like they're literally moving in slow motion. There's not a damned thing in the WWE PC that they can teach Io that Io doesn't already do a hundred times better than these bumblebees in the ring with her.

In comparison, Evans looked like a frustrated amateur. She struggled to find spots here and look like she matter in the scheme. The same unfortunately went with Mia who was about as useful as a tree in the background of a landscape. Bianca did much more just by staying in the ring and concentrating on her goal, though I get rather off-put of her stumbling and bumbling through spots. When Bianca started whipping Io with the hair I said "oh fuck off" out loud, but then understood the moment a second later. Good heel tactics.

The match didn't tell much of a story, but I have no dislike for any of the 4 of them, so for what it was I enjoyed it. I don't rank it high though. Bianca won not because she was the best wrestler in the ring but because she was supposed to. I'll give her this, she was admittedly the second best looking wrestler in there. Curious now to see how this Shayna vs Bianca match goes.


I tend to think Japanese women exports just know how to bring it better than most American ones, but I'm not saying that's the case all the time either, so please don't misunderstand me. With how good the Joshi scene over in Japan looks though this month (Sendai, Stardom, Marvelous, TJPW, Ice Ribbon, etc), I get spoiled watching it and then come back to these NXT womens matches sometimes and feel left wanting but I suppose that's only natural.


----------



## SAMCRO

rbl85 said:


> Bianca is not undefeated....she loose nearly all of her house shows matches.
> 
> When Asuka had her streak she didn't loose any house shows matches.


House show matches don't count, on NXT which is what they do count shes undefeated.

Also can Ryker do anything besides making that one intense facial expression?









Plus the dude needs a new finisher, cause holy hell that slingshot powerbomb sucks ass.


----------



## Reil

SAMCRO said:


> House show matches don't count, on NXT which is what they do count shes undefeated.
> 
> Also can Ryker do anything besides making that one intense facial expression?
> 
> Plus the dude needs a new finisher, cause holy hell that slingshot powerbomb sucks ass.


Bianca also lost to Kairi in the MYC. So its not like Bianca is completely undefeated.

Bianca remaining undefeated past Phoenix is a real bad idea, since unlike with Asuka's reign, the division is completely stacked with talent right now. So Bianca running roughshod over the division as someone who is "undefeated" is insanely stupid.


----------



## SAMCRO

Reil said:


> Bianca also lost to Kairi in the MYC. So its not like Bianca is completely undefeated.
> 
> Bianca remaining undefeated past Phoenix is a real bad idea, since unlike with Asuka's reign, the division is completely stacked with talent right now. So Bianca running roughshod over the division as someone who is "undefeated" is insanely stupid.


The MYC doesn't really count either, they're saying since shes been on NXT shes undefeated.


----------



## Reil

SAMCRO said:


> The MYC doesn't really count either, they're saying since shes been on NXT shes undefeated.


Regardless, its time for her to lose. In my mind, she isn't undefeated. Her gimmick is incredibly shallow, and its painfully obvious she isn't ready to be champion yet. She did not look fluid at all last night. In order from best looking to worst looking in the ring last night:

Io >>>>>> Bianca > Lacey > Mia.

And Bianca not looking fluid is a pretty common occurrence with her. Which is why people are already dreading the Shayna match. Because Shayna is good, but nowhere near good enough to carry someone like Bianca to a good match.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> Regardless, its time for her to lose. In my mind, she isn't undefeated. Her gimmick is incredibly shallow, and its painfully obvious she isn't ready to be champion yet. She did not look fluid at all last night. In order from best looking to worst looking in the ring last night:
> 
> Io >>>>>> Bianca > Lacey > Mia.
> 
> And Bianca not looking fluid is a pretty common occurrence with her. Which is why people are already dreading the Shayna match. Because Shayna is good, but nowhere near good enough to carry someone like Bianca to a good match.


Shayna is the worst opponent for Bianca, i think we will see all the limits of Bianca against Shayna.


----------



## SAMCRO

Reil said:


> Regardless, its time for her to lose. In my mind, she isn't undefeated. Her gimmick is incredibly shallow, and its painfully obvious she isn't ready to be champion yet. She did not look fluid at all last night. In order from best looking to worst looking in the ring last night:
> 
> Io >>>>>> Bianca > Lacey > Mia.
> 
> And Bianca not looking fluid is a pretty common occurrence with her. Which is why people are already dreading the Shayna match. Because Shayna is good, but nowhere near good enough to carry someone like Bianca to a good match.


Most of the women on the roster don't look fluid, thats a problem with womens wrestling in general. But i agree Bianca isn't as good as some make her out to be and no shes not ready to be champion.


----------



## Jedah

Alright_Mate said:


> Still think a triple threat with Shayna vs Bianca vs Kairi is more likely than a singles match, surely HHH wouldn't be dumb enough to give us a Shayna vs Bianca singles match, it just doesn't make sense.


He's been doing dumb shit with Shayna for a year now. I don't expect him to stop now.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Jedah said:


> He's been doing dumb shit with Shayna for a year now. I don't expect him to stop now.


Your obsession with hating on Shayna is becoming unhealthy.


----------



## RiverFenix

SAMCRO said:


> House show matches don't count, on NXT which is what they do count shes undefeated.
> 
> Also can Ryker do anything besides making that one intense facial expression?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Plus the dude needs a new finisher, cause holy hell that slingshot powerbomb sucks ass.


No. No he can't. He's terrible in every way. I hope he gets tired of being in NXT and quits to try Hollywood some more as "Heavy #2" in the credits. He takes away from the Cutler/Blake team by making them a faction where inexplicably Gunner is the leader it seems. 

You put Blake and Cutler with Dutch Mantell as their manager/mouthpiece and that would have been MONEY.


----------



## Reil

Yeah the problem has less to do with Shayna at this point and more to do with the fact that the NXT Women's Division is a massive shitshow from a booking perspective. Putting the title back on Shayna was an *insanely* stupid decision in the grand scheme of things. And instead of following up on the feud...they decide its time for Bianca to get a title shot? Which makes Kairi & Friends look bad for accepting that she was screwed over by the ref and not following up on it. That may change over the coming weeks, but its a real bad look for your babyfaces to just roll over like that and admit defeat.

I'm starting to notice that on the main roster, the babyfaces are starting to show some edge and push back against stupid shit (and also show signs of intelligence). Where the opposite is starting to happen on NXT.

The issue people like me and Jedah have isn't that Shayna is champion, but the fact that NXT is dropping the ball hard on this feud in hopes of making the MMA 4HW a credible faction, at the expense of the babyfaces, who likely won't get actual revenge on Shayna, Marina, and Jessamyn. People are showing their frustration because Kairi, Io, and Dakota are being used to make Jessamyn, Marina, and Shayna all look good. Which is fine, if at the end of the day the babyfaces get their revenge. But that doesn't seem to be the case here.

For those who don't understand how stupid this is, let me use Becky as an example. Imagine if she won the title. Everyone was happy. But then she dropped it 40 days later with zero successful title defenses. And was screwed over by a heel and her friends. Constantly. And instead of us getting "The Man", WWE decides to have her roll over and admit defeat and not even raise a complaint about her being screwed over constantly.

It's really bad that the main roster (at least on the SD side of things) is currently handling the women's stuff a lot better than NXT is handling their divisions. Where on Smackdown you have three big stars in Asuka, Charlotte, and Becky. Where on NXT you have...Shayna. No one else is allowed to look better than her, or permanently get one over on her.


----------



## Jedah

Alright_Mate said:


> Your obsession with hating on Shayna is becoming unhealthy.


A fact is a fact. Get ready for a shit show.

I accept the mantle of being critical of the horrid turn the division has taken because of this push and the even worse origins of it. This will just be the latest example.


----------



## SayWhatAgain!

Keeping it 100, Shayna is a terrible talker.

Like WOAT level.


----------



## Jedah

It doesn't help that she's easily the worst in-ring competitor of all the NXT women's champions either. The other champions would have been able to get a TakeOver worthy match out of Bianca. Her limitations, and Bianca's, are going to show themselves very, very quickly in Phoenix.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

I know they won't do it, but this weeks up coming episode of NXT *SHOULD* air Adam Cole's North American Title defense against WALTER at EVOLVE earlier this year.


----------



## Jedah

Aside from Riddle vs. Ohno, this week's episode is going to be a recap show, right?

Maybe they'll air some house show footage like that. Maybe this week's 10 man tag from MSG?


----------



## Pizzamorg

I was on holiday with my family so I only just finished last week’s NXT. 

Opening Women’s four way was… not good but I enjoyed Shirai’s performance. The closing men’s tag title match on the other hand was pretty damn great, if this is the last wrestling match I squeeze in in 2018 I think I’ve ended on quite the high note. 

Strong and O’Reilly are a dream in the ring together (although do I read into O’Reilly tossing away his Undisputed Arm Band thing?) aand they brought out the best match I’ve ever seen Heavy Machinery wrestle. Admittedly I’ve never been that hot on HM so I guess that isn’t inherently a bold statement but I guess I am trying to say I never thought I’d enjoy a HM match this much. I guess they had to put HM over strong even in defeat because they are going to the MR but the match was better for it.


----------



## Reil

So NXT was a recap show tonight, so not much to note. That being said, I think I can name my NXT Male and Female stars of the year fairly easily:

NXT Male: Johnny Gargano - Has had quite a few Takeover main events this year, and has been amazing in all of them. Deserves the award

NXT Female: Kairi Sane - She's had great match after great match after great match with a huge variety of performers through 2018. Her title reign was unfortunately very short, but she definitely impressed me more than Shayna did (where Shayna had several really bad to mediocre matches as champion against well regarded talent).


----------



## Piers

Reil said:


> So NXT was a recap show tonight, so not much to note.


Well there was a match between Riddle and Ohno too. But Matt has cringe-worthy gimmick/nickname with a punchable face while Kassius is... sad to watch. So I guess people can skip this week's episode anyway.


----------



## Pizzamorg

I skipped all the recap stuff just to watch the Ohno/Riddle match this week. Ohno is in a sorry state right now, maybe it isn't the cool thing to say but I am sorry. He hit a few explosive moves which were fun in how violent they seemed but he dragged this match down to a snails pace. It just felt so meandering and Riddle was basically forced to work in slow motion so Ohno could keep up. Really sad really.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

This Wednesday :mark: surprised at their chemistry last time around so I'm actually looking forward to this.


----------



## Reil

Slated for NXT tomorrow night:

- Bianca Belair vs Nikki Cross
- Adam Cole vs EC3
- Gargano Promo
- Barthel and Aichner match


----------



## JustAName

Guess I was the only one that liked Ohno vs Riddle, oh well, more enjoyment for me


----------



## Reil

So yeah, that Bianca vs Nikki match was...okay? Definitely not great. And Bianca still looked lost at times and robotic in the match.

Which leads me to believe she's losing at Takeover: Phoenix. It was posted on reddit, but someone had the idea that Shayna could win through the Kirifuda Clutch, except using Bianca's hair as part of it. Along with Shayna's goons interfering. Because I think the thing with Bianca from a kayfabe perspective is that she has no friends in the locker room to back her up against Shayna. She's pissed off every single other woman in that locker room.


----------



## Jedah

This episode overperformed in a lot of ways.

The opening segment was great. Total chaos with Ciampa, Black, Gargano, and Ricochet. Those two respective matches should both be early match of the year contenders.

Nikki vs. Bianca was fine, and one of Bianca's better outings, though a lot of that had to do with Nikki selling her ass off.

Street Profits...who cares?

The tag team match was also a negative. I don't know why it took Berthel and Aichner so long. Just a bunch of spots, really.

EC3 vs. Adam Cole was better than I thought, and War Raiders run in was nice.

I have a feeling the tag titles and North American title are changing hands in Phoenix.


----------



## Reil

Yeah, the Nikki vs Bianca match was fine, but that was mainly due to Nikki being real good at selling.

Bianca is god fucking awful at it though, and Shayna isn't all that great outside of major spots either. Which is another reason why I'm not looking forward to their match.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> So yeah, that Bianca vs Nikki match was...okay? Definitely not great. And Bianca still looked lost at times and robotic in the match.
> 
> Which leads me to believe she's losing at Takeover: Phoenix. It was posted on reddit, but someone had the idea that Shayna could win through the Kirifuda Clutch, except using Bianca's hair as part of it. Along with Shayna's goons interfering. Because I think the thing with Bianca from a kayfabe perspective is that she has no friends in the locker room to back her up against Shayna. She's pissed off every single other woman in that locker room.



Yeah. Kairi, Io & Dakota have each other's back. And we saw that Io & Dakota beat Jessamyn & Marina, meaning that they can neutralize Shayna's backup. Bianca has no allies and every one she's interacted with probably wouldn't mind her getting knocked down a few pegs.




Jedah said:


> This episode overperformed in a lot of ways.
> 
> The opening segment was great. Total chaos with Ciampa, Black, Gargano, and Ricochet. Those two respective matches should both be early match of the year contenders.
> 
> Nikki vs. Bianca was fine, and one of Bianca's better outings, though a lot of that had to do with Nikki selling her ass off.
> 
> Street Profits...who cares?
> 
> The tag team match was also a negative. I don't know why it took Berthel and Aichner so long. Just a bunch of spots, really.
> 
> EC3 vs. Adam Cole was better than I thought, and War Raiders run in was nice.
> 
> I have a feeling the tag titles and North American title are changing hands in Phoenix.



The only way I see Undisputed Era retaining their titles against the War Raiders is if they decide to go full-blown "Two Man Power Trip" with DIY taking all the titles in NXT(NXT World title, NA title & tag titles)


----------



## TD Stinger

New Episode Thoughts:

*Gargano came out and cut one of his better promos. I do enjoy him being in denial about his relationship with Ciampa while still realizing what's really important in wins and championships. It's good character development but not forgetting everything Gargano and Ciampa have been through.

Ricochet needs to stop saying things like "homeboy" and "homie". Dear God.

Ah, poor Ciampa. Hurt by Gargano's denial. Don't worry Blackheart, he'll come around eventually. Seeing Black pop up on the big screen was a really fun (and funny) visual considering how small the stage is. He too had a very good, short, and intense promo before the black out and teleport.

Johnny Super Kicking Ricochet was a great way to end things. And though that's supposed to be a heel move, I mean he was standing right in front of Ricochet. Ricochet's the one who took his eye off the ball. I mean how many times did Shawn Michaels, heel or face, Superkick someone when they weren't expecting, heel or face, lol.

*Bianca vs. Nikki was a good match. These 2 work very well off each other. Their characters clash perfectly. And their in ring styles compliment each other well as well. Nikki bumps for Bianca. And Nikki uses Bianca's power to her advantage.

*Are those guys who faced Aichner and Barthel contracted performers? Because they got in a lot of offense here. But, Aichner and Barthel showed some really good chemistry. Aichner is very powerful and sudden and Barthel is very percise. Hope to continue to see more from them.

*Finally my boy Keith Lee on NXT again.

*Cole and EC3 had a very good match. EC3 works best with smaller guys who can bump for him and sell his more high impact moves. And Cole does that very well. And Cole was his game on offense as well. Bobby Fish may just be a cheerleader these days, but I love his antics at ring side, lol.

War Raiders vs. TUE in a proper Takeover match should be something special.


----------



## Buhalovski

Being outnumbered and still beating 4 people? I dunno if that was a good idea but War Raiders were looking solid there. 

Johnny Gargano is looking like a geek right now. I do think Hunter screwed the Gargano/Ciampa storyline, unfortunately.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Cool little opening segment, Phoenix is shaping up to have one of the best on paper cards in TakeOver history. 

– Interesting to see Brexit show up on NXT and now with matching gear. It is cool seeing these guys form before our eyes. Just a shame about the botched finish but shhhhh! I guess they have big plans for these guys. I am okay with that.

— I actually skipped the Main Event as there is little I care about less than the prospect of an EC3 Adam Cole match.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Nice start to the year, everything delivered in this episode...

Nice chaotic start with Gargano, Ricochet, Ciampa and Black, perfect way to hype their matches up. A good solid straight to the point promo from Gargano, Ricochet needs to improve his promo skills though. Nice outta nowhere SuperKick from Gargano to end the segment.

Nikki vs Bianca got better as it went on, first couple of minutes it felt like they were wrestling in slo-motion, the pace got better though. Yet again they proved they have good chemistry, the match got good and intense after they stared each other down when they got back into the ring at the count of 9, they finished well from that point. Whether you think Bianca is overrated or not, her impressive moveset always get her over with crowds.

Really liked the look of the Barthel/Aichner Tag Team, they have serious potential. That skinny jobber put in an impressive showing too, fair play to him.

Cole vs EC3 was solid, probably EC3's best showing in NXT. Fish shouting was a major distraction though, he might as well bring out some Pom Poms next time. The ending though made Undisputed Era look like geeks but it isn't the first time it's happened.

After watching this episode I'd love to see an Undisputed Era vs Walter/Barthel/Aichner feud in the future...


----------



## TD Stinger

Alright_Mate said:


> After watching this episode I'd love to see an Undisputed Era vs Walter/Barthel/Aichner feud in the future...


Yes, we must see Walter caving in Cole an O'Reilly's chests for the facial expressions alone.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> Yes, we must see Walter caving in Cole an O'Reilly's chests for the facial expressions alone.


Not again.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1011062779795640320


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Great NXT Episode.

FINALLY We see the Street Profits. I know they were/are in Evolve doing their thing but I don't like the fact that they're being kept off TV so much. I feel like they should've at least have gotten a title match by now. Hopefully them being in action next week will lead to them being more of a prominent feature in NXT.

Ricochet/Gargano/Ciampa/Black Segment was awesome. And it really made me hyped for both of their matches at Takeover Pheonix.

Bianca and Nikki was a nice little match. Given Nikki is going to Main Roster Land I guess this is her sendoff? Also not too crazy about her and Shayna's match at Takeover.

EC3 and Adam Cole was a nice match too. They pretty much telegraphed War Raiders are gonna be the next challengers. Nothing against the War Raiders But I do think there should be other teams ahead of them in terms of title contention.

Also liked the tag match with Aincher and Barthel. They seem like a good Duo so hopefully we see more of them.


----------



## .christopher.

Jedah said:


> Street Profits...who cares?


Me! Them and Shayna are my faves. I think.


----------



## SAMCRO

Damn that was one entertaining tag match with Marcel Barthel and Fabina Aichner vs those two jobbers, the jobber in the pink was surprisingly great, i'd sign him and put him on 205 Live immediately, dude has talent. Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner are pretty good together, love their tag finisher.


----------



## Reil

Tonight on NXT, for anyone interested:

- Kassius Ohno vs. Keith Lee

- Johnny Gargano in action

- Bianca Belair prepares for her title match

- Dominik Dijakovic returns

- Street Profits in action

This episode seems incredibly lackluster from an advertisement standpoint.


----------



## HorsemenTerritory1

Lol, introducing the Metro Brothers: Deuce and Domino!! ?


----------



## Reil

Yo, just posting this now but the Forgotten Sons fucking suck.


----------



## Reil

So yeah, I'll give my brief thoughts on what I've seen so far tonight:

- Forgotten Sons suck

- This Bianca vs Shayna feud is fucking awful and VERY shallow. Both women came across as *incredibly* unlikable. I can't believe I'm actually rooting for Shayna to win, but here we are. And I think she will win with the help of the MMA 4HW. Also Bianca is an absolutely awful promo. People like to say Kairi is bad, but at least she has an excuse with a language barrier. Bianca has zero excuse at all.

- Dominik rules.


----------



## rbl85

Yeah there is absolutly no heat in the women match….


----------



## Reil

rbl85 said:


> Yeah there is absolutly no heat in the women match….


Oh there were reactions. But I think if they were trying to portray Bianca as the face, it backfired horribly when Shayna made the overrated comment. This feud has no one you should be rooting for, and feels incredibly shallow and VERY poorly built. One of the worst in NXT history for the women, in my opinion.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> Oh there were reactions. But I think if they were trying to portray Bianca as the face, it backfired horribly when Shayna made the overrated comment.


Of course there was reactions, it's an NXT crowd after all.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Oh there were reactions. But I think if they were trying to portray Bianca as the face, it backfired horribly when Shayna made the overrated comment.



They're going to have to overbook the match with constant interference from Jessamyn Duke & Marina Shafir to get heat on Shayna for this match. If it's a typical Shayna Baszler match(with her dominating most of the match), best-case scenario: the crowd might end up cheering for Shayna instead of Bianca;worst-case scenario: the crowd hijacks the match.


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> They're going to have to overbook the match with constant interference from Jessamyn Duke & Marina Shafir to get heat on Shayna for this match. If it's a typical Shayna Baszler match(with her dominating most of the match), best-case scenario: the crowd might end up cheering for Shayna instead of Bianca;worst-case scenario: the crowd hijacks the match.


Yeah and its going to drag the match quality down significantly. There is so much wrong with this feud.

I also think Shayna is retaining simply because Bianca has no friends in the locker room. At all. Shayna has backup who have no problem interfering.

There is literally zero incentive for Kairi or Io to help Bianca out (and they are the only people who really have beef with Shayna outside of Bianca). Especially with Bianca cheating and essentially screwing Io out of a title shot.


----------



## WindPhoenix

After watching the Bianca and Shayna segment, i'm confused about who i'm supposed to be rooting for? Neither came off likable. 

I liked the War Raiders promo and anything Dijakovic.


----------



## Jedah

I have to say, this was a very boring episode tonight. SmackDown is honestly better than NXT at the moment as an overall package. Absent the top two programs, things are droll.

- Street Profits. Don't care. Forgotten Sons are terrible. Release them.

- Wow was that promo bad. Bianca looked lost. Shayna is a very bad talker as well. Her entire aura collapses as soon as she opens her mouth. Her two goobers looked like idiots as usual. It's unbelievable how bad this division is right now. Incredible. Ronda/Sasha and Asuka/Becky are both going to totally shit on this match, which is easily looking like the worst of the weekend. When is Triple H going to realize the common denominator to all the disappointment the NXT women's division has had over the last year?

- Dominic could be really good but this was academic. Let's see him get real competition.

- Gargano vs. Carillo was fun but also academic.

- I honestly have no idea why Keith Lee lost to Ohno, even if it was dirty. Riddle has beaten Ohno twice now? What's the point of this? A feud between Cole and Dream would have been much better for this TakeOver.


----------



## TD Stinger

You know your boy is screwed when he can't even beat Kassius Ohno :mj2.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> Wow was that promo bad. Bianca looked lost. Shayna is a very bad talker as well. Her entire aura collapses as soon as she opens her mouth. Her two goobers looked like idiots as usual. It's unbelievable how bad this division is right now. Incredible. Ronda/Sasha and Asuka/Becky are both going to totally shit on this match, which is easily looking like the worst of the weekend. When is Triple H going to realize the common denominator to all the disappointment the NXT women's division has had over the last year?


I think the problem is that if Bianca wins, she'll likely get a long reign as an undefeated champion. Except she's nowhere near as good as Asuka. Or even as charismatic.


----------



## Jedah

Bianca isn't winning. This is a clear filler feud. They aren't going to want to have another Asuka situation on their hands. They didn't even do that with Shayna.

The two titles that are likely to change hands in Phoenix are the tag team and NA titles. I'm almost certain that Undisputed are dropping theirs. I'm not sure about Ricochet but there's a good chance. It depends on what they want to do with Gargano and Ciampa on Mania weekend, which is honestly where I think their feud should conclude, but that doesn't appear possible now.


----------



## Mordecay

First time since her debut that I am rooting for Shayna lol. Bianca is coming off as such a bad Sasha ripoff and her running away and say "come fight me" while running to the ramp was hilarious. It's so weird.

Show was fine, nothing amazing tbh. Lee/Ohno match was ok but I expected better. Carrillo/Gargano was very good, Carrillo has potential and looks that could help him stand out. Profits vs Deuce and Domino 2.0, I feel like I've seen this match before and the boring Forgotten Sons appereance, that was trash. The War Raiders promo reminded me to tthe Bludgeon Brothers, but less intimidating, so I guess it didn't accomplished its goal.


----------



## Reil

I was listening to a live review, and the general consensus is that NXT messed up the Shayna/Bianca feud bad. There isn't a clear person to root for, NXT probably felt like they had another Velveteen Dream on their hands with Bianca, but pulled the trigger way too early. NXT probably expected the crowd to be firmly behind Bianca 100%. Except they aren't. Not to mention that its hard to get behind Bianca when she had *cheated 2-3 weeks prior* to win the #1 contenders spot in the first place.

This match has two full fledged heels facing off against each other. And its awful.


----------



## Jedah

The worst aspect isn't that it's two heels but that their styles just aren't going to mesh. At all. It's going to be a mess.

They could have given Bianca the title shot and successfully if they kept the title on Kairi. That's what everyone was expecting.

But nope. Gotta put the title back on Shayna so her two goobers could be introduced. :eyeroll


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> I was listening to a live review, and the general consensus is that NXT messed up the Shayna/Bianca feud bad. There isn't a clear person to root for, NXT probably felt like they had another Velveteen Dream on their hands with Bianca, but pulled the trigger way too early. NXT probably expected the crowd to be firmly behind Bianca 100%. Except they aren't. Not to mention that its hard to get behind Bianca when she had *cheated 2-3 weeks prior* to win the #1 contenders spot in the first place.
> 
> This match has two full fledged heels facing off against each other. And its awful.


They expected it to be a Velveteen Dream type of situation except they actually built up Dream. Dream had a impressive performance in the ladder match for the NA title at Takeover: NO and had good feuds/matches with Aleister Black, Ricochet & Johnny Gargano, where he ended up winning over the fans. 

Bianca hasn't had that impressive match or feud to win the fans over. She's basically been beating a bunch of local talent for the most part. Her only notable wins before all this was against Candice Lerae(which was early in her NXT tenure and whom was distracted by the Ciampa/Gargano situation) and Dakota Kai(who was at her lowest point in terms of credibility after the Shayna Baszler feud, and really did not get built up as a credible threat until after her excursion to NXT UK )


I guess the best term to describe Bianca would be a "paper challenger".


----------



## Buhalovski

I want to see more Keith Lee on my TV. Guy is in his 6th-ish month in NXT and still dont have a serious feud ffs. 

Oh, and yeah Bianca needs more Paul Heyman classes, she is still green as hell.


----------



## Reil

Worth noting that Bianca had an interview with WWE.com today, where she stated that she just sees Shayna as another obstacle, and that she *isn't bothering to do any sort of preparation against her (Shayna)*.

They are setting her up to be overly arrogant. I mean so is Shayna, but unlike her, Bianca has absolutely no one to back her up, and that will be a factor in the match.


----------



## EC3$$

At least most of the crowd chants overrated at bianca. Truth hurts


----------



## Ham and Egger

Does the "we forgot you" chant count for heat or for the fact that they are really forgettable?


----------



## TD Stinger

New Episode Thoughts:

*Street Profits win a squash. These guys are entertaining but we've been down this road before where they face jobbers or The Mighty and they just go nowhere. And this Forgotten Sons thing will probably just end in the same way

*Riddle is an amazing talent in terms of in ring ability and natural charisma. But good Lord he sucks on the mic. To this day I never get why people say he can talk. Like, have you heard him?

*I liked Black's short promo.

*Color me crazy, but I liked the Bianca/Shayna interaction. Bianca was fine. But Shayna really did well. Got under Bianca's skin, put her over by calling her the strongest and fastest but also put her down by saying she'll prove she's overrated. And the segment got over huge with the crowd.

*Dijakovic with another impressive squash.

*Gargano vs. Carrillo was a fun, short match. Gargano really seems to be gelling with his new character of kind of heel, but not total heel. Breathed some needed new life into him. Though I'm not convinced that Gargano vs. Ciampa is going to end WM weekend any more.

*Ciampa's promo was funny in the sense that he will never let Aleister forget that he's never main evented a Takeover.

*Lee vs. Ohno was decent but these 2 are capable of so much more. And again, it's a sad day when Lee can't even beat Ohno. I saw someone on another site propose that after Riddle beats Ohno at Takeover Phoenix, Lee turns heel on him. I like him better as a face, but I'll take anything to get Lee in a more prominent spot.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

You guys are being a bit harsh on Bianca, I thought she did pretty well in her promo. She promo's like how her character should and it comes off well, she got reactions to what she was saying.


----------



## Donnie

I think Lee turns heel on Riddle, and forms a team with Ohno. Let them be mean HOSSES for a while. Riddle shouldn't win just because he's Riddle, and I say that as someone who love the guy. Build a story, please


----------



## Reil

Since not everyone reads the house show thread, I'll cross post it here. 

Bianca's future isn't looking very bright. She faced off against Shayna at tonight's NXT house show, and was completely squashed in around 5 minutes apparently. Got in *no offense* at all. Crowd was firmly on Shayna's side as well.

The MMA 4HW did not interfere at all either, despite Marina having a presence at ringside.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Ace said:


> I think Lee turns heel on Riddle, and forms a team with Ohno. Let them be mean HOSSES for a while. Riddle shouldn't win just because he's Riddle, and I say that as someone who love the guy. Build a story, please


Agreed, give me something. I love Riddle as well but he's been pretty skippable TV thus far honestly.



Reil said:


> Since not everyone reads the house show thread, I'll cross post it here.
> 
> Bianca's future isn't looking very bright. She faced off against Shayna at tonight's NXT house show, and was completely squashed in around 5 minutes apparently. Got in *no offense* at all. Crowd was firmly on Shayna's side as well.
> 
> The MMA 4HW did not interfere at all either, despite Marina having a presence at ringside.


Not a good sign but it is just a house show, if something similar happens at Takeover Old man Trips has lost it.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> Since not everyone reads the house show thread, I'll cross post it here.
> 
> Bianca's future isn't looking very bright. She faced off against Shayna at tonight's NXT house show, and was completely squashed in around 5 minutes apparently. Got in *no offense* at all. Crowd was firmly on Shayna's side as well.
> 
> The MMA 4HW did not interfere at all either, despite Marina having a presence at ringside.


All of that is telling me that Bianca will probably win at Takeover. I mean, they had Peyton won all 4 ways matches before War Games and that didn't meant anything.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Bit of a cringeworthy episode this week...

Montez Ford is a talented performer but my god he gets more and more cringeworthy everytime he appears. Forgotten Sons rightfully getting "You suck" and "Stay Forgotten" chants, they should be released.

Riddle is another who is extremely cringeworthy when it comes to character work, his promo work is hard to listen to.

I agree with Stinger, I thought the Bianca/Shayna segment wasn't as bad as some are making out. Bianca showed a lot of similarities to Sasha Banks but nowhere near as good, Shayna on the other hand, I thought that was one of the best promos she's ever cut. The match up is just a weird concept though, from that I couldn't tell if Bianca was being portrayed as a heel or face or a bit of both.

Dijakovic vs Jaoude - Poor match, Jaoude's entrance sucks and he seems like he's in the wrong business. Why did they change Dijak's name? Ranallo and McGuinness can't even pronounce Dijakovic properly.

Gargano vs Carrillo was the best part of the episode, good little match, Carrillo is a serious talent.

Nice backstage promo from Ciampa again.

Finally Ohno vs Lee didn't offer much tbh, Ohno beat the piss out of him for a bit, Lee unsurprisingly had a little comeback spell then the fuckery happened. Not sure where they are heading with Keith Lee, he's lost his big matches so far, in terms of his work I'm yet to be impressed.


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Agreed, give me something. I love Riddle as well but he's been pretty skippable TV thus far honestly.


Yeah, he's just been portrayed as happy go lucky stoner with nothing to attach yourself to if you're unfamiliar with him. He needs something to sink his teeth into, and I think this would be a good start. That goes for Keith as well, because HHH hasn't done him any favours with how he's been portrayed either. All the complaints about how every new NXT guy is a just a wrestler with no gimmick, is starting to becoming alarmingly true. 

HHH and co need to fix this asap, Marky.


----------



## rbl85

Mordecay said:


> All of that is telling me that Bianca will probably win at Takeover. I mean, they had Peyton won all 4 ways matches before War Games and that didn't meant anything.


No Shayna will win but this time with the help of Shafir and Duke


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> All of that is telling me that Bianca will probably win at Takeover. I mean, they had Peyton won all 4 ways matches before War Games and that didn't meant anything.


Doubt it. Bianca is still very green. And the fact that the MMA 4HW have yet to interfere is a big factor at play here.

I mean before Takeover: War Games, Kairi lost all of her singles matches against Shayna, just to get screwed anyways at the event.

I think the general mood regarding Bianca is starting to grow sour anyways. She's getting more and more critics, and her promo from Wednesday didn't help her cause at all.

I think Bianca loses, goes back to the midcard for a bit, and maybe wins the title at the end of the year or something. I don't see Triple H having someone as polarizing as Bianca win the title from the top female heel in NXT. I think it will be a solid babyface who wins it.

And I think Shayna loses it at Takeover: New York to Io Shirai, to be honest. The STARDOM roster will be in attendance, including several names WWE is likely very interested in getting. Showing the STARDOM talent that they can make it big in NXT is a good way to attract eyes (WWE's) way instead of AEW.


----------



## Alright_Mate

I swear Reil and Jedah have pictures of Shayna and Bianca on their bedroom walls that they throw Darts at every night.


----------



## Reil

Alright_Mate said:


> I swear Reil and Jedah have pictures of Shayna and Bianca on their bedroom walls that they throw Darts at every night.


Maybe (I don't). :sk

But yeah, I have zero faith in this match being good, because Bianca more often than not looks incredibly mechanical in the ring, and it shows in some of her matches where she'll stop for a moment before registering what she needs to do next. And Shayna can't carry greener talents to good matches. Which is probably why tonight's match was so short.


----------



## Jedah

You're not allowed to point out how shitty this division is, apparently.


----------



## rbl85

Alright_Mate said:


> I swear Reil and Jedah have pictures of Shayna and Bianca on their bedroom walls that they throw Darts at every night.


Actually i think they don't really have a problem with Shayna alone.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

Matt Riddle is like RVD, a little too laid back for the in ring promo segments. Not sure what they're trying to do with him works with a wrestling promo format if I'm being honest - as a Riddle mark. Or maybe he just needs more time. 

But with someone like him I'd get more creative. More backstage promos or sit down interviews or even press conference format stuff like what he'd be used to in the UFC/MMA world. Those things can be intense and for whatever reason, he feels more natural in those formats


----------



## Reil

Yeah, I don't have a problem with Shayna's wrestling or anything. It's just that her booking is suffocating the rest of the division right now. And Bianca is shaping up to be Shayna 2.0 if she wins the title.

It's been a very long time since we've had an actual LONG NXT Women's Title reign with a *babyface* champion. Kairi got screwed with her reign. And Bianca winning the title would basically be giving the title to another heel to steamroll the division again.


----------



## Jedah

It's actually Shayna I have issues with. Her booking has been incredibly destructive to the division. There's just zero excitement in it now, because she's a one note performer who ran her course by last summer, and the main roster has left NXT in the dust as a result. Ronda, Asuka, Charlotte and Becky have shat on it for the past year now, and to no one's surprise, they will again on Rumble weekend.

To me, that's just unacceptable for a division that used to be the standard bearer and that has the usual great NXT booking behind it.

Bianca kind of got caught in the crosshairs. She's going to be the latest casualty of this odd Shayna push. I think Bianca is overrated, but if she was in there with Kairi the match and feud would have been fine. Putting her in there with Shayna is just a very bad combination though and we're going to see it at TakeOver.


----------



## Mordecay

Alright_Mate said:


> I swear Reil and Jedah have pictures of Shayna and Bianca on their bedroom walls that they throw Darts at every night.


I don't even think that I dislike Becky as much as they hate Bianca and Shayna :lol


----------



## Donnie

Jedah said:


> You're not allowed to point out how shitty this division is, apparently.


Well, when you say it EVERY GODDAMN DAY! Everyone gets a little sick and tired of it  

Maybe you should focus on stuff you like, instead of what you hate


----------



## Jedah

Everyone here shits on Raw every day and justifiably so. I'm not giving this a pass just because it's NXT. You shit on the Gargano/Ciampa stuff constantly. No one's telling you to "focus on stuff you like instead of what you hate."

You watch the show? You get to talk about it. Good and bad.

Oh and, no one seems to be saying it, but Riddle vs. Ohno III was made official for TakeOver. I really don't get why they extended this feud out so long. They should have done Dream vs. Cole instead. I hope they make a stipulation.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

From what I can see of the NXT women's roster, Shayna SHOULD be on top because she's the best there. They literally don't have any compelling prospects. Nikki and Lacey deserved more of a spotlight. And Kairi is decent. But otherwise they're all kinda geeks. I don't mind Shayna's booking cuz I don't see any interesting alternatives. Her and Bianca are the only two I see being stars

Sidenote: why do people hate the forgotten sons? These guys have had some pretty cool backstage promos. I get it. They're WWEs generic "too serious" heels with the bad facial expressions and heavy breathing but that ain't worth all the hate lol. Let em do more promos


----------



## Donnie

That would be because I shit on something that has sucked for months. You've hated Shayna since she showed up, and keep using the word Nepotism even though you don't know what it means, AND it doesn't fit why she's being pushed


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

Kassius Ohno is so good btw. Probably the best all rounder down there. Shame he'll never make it out of NXT


----------



## Jedah

It absolutely does fit why she's being pushed. If it weren't for her friendship with Ronda she wouldn't have even been signed. And you know it. To suggest otherwise is absurd.

And no, I gave her credit where it was due up to the summer of last year when I thought she was doing good work, but her problem is that she's incapable of doing anything else, and she basically killed everyone else in the division but Kairi by then. Her story was over in Brooklyn and now she's just dragging her feet, except worse because now she needs her two goobers so she doesn't even have the character from her first reign anymore. She's just a zombie at this point suffocating any other possibility in the division.

Nice whataboutism by the way. You shit on something you don't like but I'm not telling you not to do it or "focus on what you like."


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

As y'all can tell, I'm catching up on NXT in real time and what the fuck - when did Gargano become such a good promo? Love this guy


----------



## Reil

King Jesus said:


> From what I can see of the NXT women's roster, Shayna SHOULD be on top because she's the best there. They literally don't have any compelling prospects. Nikki and Lacey deserved more of a spotlight. And Kairi is decent. But otherwise they're all kinda geeks. I don't mind Shayna's booking cuz I don't see any interesting alternatives. Her and Bianca are the only two I see being stars
> 
> Sidenote: why do people hate the forgotten sons? These guys have had some pretty cool backstage promos. I get it. They're WWEs generic "too serious" heels with the bad facial expressions and heavy breathing but that ain't worth all the hate lol. Let em do more promos


People hate them because of the reasons you listed above, and the fact that all of The Forgotten Sons fucking suck in the ring.

Anyways, talking about the women: Kairi is the #1 babyface right now for the women on NXT. I don't expect that pattern to hold after Phoenix, to be honest. Either they will attempt to turn Bianca face if she wins the title (god no), or they'll start pushing Io Shirai as a serious contender if Shayna retains.

And as for best overall character, yeah Shayna is the best in that department. However best in the ring is easily Kairi as of right now. Io hasn't gotten much focus yet in the division, but I imagine if Shayna retains, she's next in line for a title shot at Takeover: New York. They'll probably have Shayna defend the title in a filler defense in the meantime (probably against Mia Yim), but otherwise there's no one else left in the division to challenge Shayna outside of Io.

But realistically, Shayna should not be dropping the title before Takeover: New York either. Because when she drops the title, I'm almost 100% certain she's being called up. And I think the absolute best time to call her up is the night after Wrestlemania. Where she will likely align herself with Ronda (who should turn heel if she loses the title).


----------



## Donnie

NOPE! She was signed because she was killing it in Japan and in the states, and HHH wanted her because of that. Pretty simple. Her friendship with Ronda had nothing to do with it, but hey, it fits your narrative.


----------



## Reil

Ace said:


> NOPE! She was signed because she was killing it in Japan and in the states, and HHH wanted her because of that. Pretty simple. Her friendship with Ronda had nothing to do with it, but hey, it fits your narrative.


Just a heads up, but Shayna wasn't really killing it in Japan. People weren't actively talking about her like she was a big name or anything. And her only memorable STARDOM match was against Io Shirai. Otherwise she was just a very mediocre wrestler in Oedo Tai.

And before you try to point out her World of STARDOM title reign, please remember that it was incredibly short and that was at a time when Rossy loved putting their big titles on foreigners.


----------



## Jedah

Killing it? She had one really good match with Io and that's because it was Io. The almost unanimous consensus in the first MYC was that Shayna wasn't that good but has improved considerably since then (which I agree with). Her age certainly didn't help her either.



Reil said:


> People hate them because of the reasons you listed above, and the fact that all of The Forgotten Sons fucking suck in the ring.
> 
> Anyways, talking about the women: Kairi is the #1 babyface right now for the women on NXT. I don't expect that pattern to hold after Phoenix, to be honest. Either they will attempt to turn Bianca face if she wins the title (god no), or they'll start pushing Io Shirai as a serious contender if Shayna retains.


I wouldn't worry. Like I said, the two titles that have the best chance of changing hands in Phoenix are the tag and NA titles. The tag titles I'm sure are changing. The NA title I lean about 60/40 in favor of Gargano, although that means his saga with Ciampa will continue for much longer.

Wonder what they'll do with Black after this though. Once he doesn't get the title back in Phoenix there's really nowhere left for him to go in NXT.


----------



## Donnie

See it doesn't matter what I say to argue this, because both of you have decided you want nothing to do with her. I like her, and so do a lot of others. 

Peace out on this discussion.


----------



## Mordecay

Shayna is boring in the ring, that's why her matches stick like a sore thumb whenever she is facing someone not named Kairi. She is a good bully though, I give her that.

I do find ironic that the people complaining about Shayna killing the division (which she kinda has) are Asuka fans, someone who did exactly the same 18 months ago.


----------



## Jedah

Except two things.

1. Asuka is much, much, much, much more talented than Shayna.

2. Asuka's division was basically dead already for the first year of her reign. After Bayley left there was no one in position to take the title from her. Not the case with this division. If Asuka had the kind of reign she had in this division I wouldn't be supporting it.


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> Shayna is boring in the ring, that's why her matches stick like a sore thumb whenever she is facing someone not named Kairi. She is a good bully though, I give her that.
> 
> I do find ironic that the people complaining about Shayna killing the division (which she kinda has) are Asuka fans, someone who did exactly the same 18 months ago.


I think the difference between Asuka and Shayna though is that Asuka was running a division that was almost completely devoid of talent. There was literally no one else to put the title on. I mean you had Nikki Cross and uh...I guess in a distant third Peyton Royce? That's it. Ember Moon came in near the end of Asuka's tenure in NXT, injured herself, and also had some of the worst promo skills in the company, to the point of where no one gave a shit about her.

However in terms of talent now, you have: Kairi, Io, Dakota (although she's injured), Tegan (also injured), Candice, Mia, and Bianca (to an extent). Not to mention the very occasional appearance from Mercedes Martinez and the NXT UK talents.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

Shayna's value to the division is severely underrated if you want to measure it just by how many other women have been champion while she's been on top. 

You wanna talk about value added? I didn't care about Ember Moon at all until he feud with Shayna. Seeing Shayna really fuck that girl's shit up, and the fire and heart she showed against such a convincing monster did something I didn't think possible - I cared about what was going to happen to Ember Moon. And I was genuinely worried about what Shayna would do to her arm next. 

Shayna had done the same for Dakota Kai and she did the same for Kairi Sane. Kairi was someone I considered toootally overrated until her feud with Shayna. After Shayna whipped her ass the second time, seeing Kairi basically crawl towards her on one leg backstage, still begging for a piece. It finally dawned on me why Kairi had any fans. Consummate baby face. 

So you can criticize the length of time Shayna has spent on type. But it's been quality ass time. From my perspective, she's played a key role in the development of wrestlers who I swear to God I wouldn't have given a fuck about. Shayna brings out the fire in her opponents, she brings out the best in them


----------



## Alright_Mate

Jedah said:


> You're not allowed to point out how shitty this division is, apparently.


You're entitled to say whatever you want but when you repeat the same thing every week it gets a bit boring mate (Y)


----------



## Mordecay

Shayna is a better promo than Asuka, and that's with Shayna being ok at best on the mic :shrug

Let's see Asuka's 2017 Takeover finishes:

San ANtonio: Killed both Peyton and Billie with just 3 kicks after kicking out of their tag team finisher and the Widows Peak and being laid out half the match

Orlando: Cheated to beat Ember, pushing the ref and then killing her with a kick

Chicago: Pinned both Ruby and Nikki at the same time

Brooklyn: Beat Ember clean after kicking out of the Eclipse

Leaves without putting over anyone

Yeah, that sure did wonders for the division :heston


----------



## Reil

Alright_Mate said:


> You're entitled to say whatever you want but when you repeat the same thing every week it gets a bit boring mate (Y)


People are allowed to criticize whoever they want. You don't see us harassing you about why you don't like Kairi. And you've been just as vocal at times about your intense dislike of her. 

I happen to not like Shayna and Bianca because both are overrated in every way.



Mordecay said:


> Brooklyn: Beat Ember clean after kicking out of the Eclipse
> 
> Leaves without putting over anyone


Brooklyn: Ember was pretty much dead in the water at the time. And her going over Asuka wouldn't have helped anyone at the end of the day.

And her leaving without putting over anyone was a Vince decision as he wanted the streak alive on the main roster. He still has the final call on booking at the end of the day, regardless of where its at.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

I refuse to accept "Shayna is overrated" comments coming from fans of Io Shira who is probably the most create-a-wrestler wrestler who ever wrestled lol generic in every way


----------



## Alright_Mate

Ace said:


> and keep using the word Nepotism even though you don't know what it means


:rileyclap


----------



## DammitChrist

Reil said:


> I think the difference between Asuka and Shayna though is that Asuka was running a division that was almost completely devoid of talent. *There was literally no one else to put the title on. I mean you had Nikki Cross and uh...I guess in a distant third Peyton Royce? *That's it. Ember Moon came in near the end of Asuka's tenure in NXT, injured herself, and also had some of the worst promo skills in the company, to the point of where no one gave a shit about her.
> 
> However in terms of talent now, you have: Kairi, Io, Dakota (although she's injured), Tegan (also injured), Candice, Mia, and Bianca (to an extent). Not to mention the very occasional appearance from Mercedes Martinez and the NXT UK talents.


Hey, what about Ruby Riott? Wouldn't she be the distant third choice over Peyton Royce, or was Ruby only on NXT for a short period of time near the end of Asuka's tenure?

I started watching NXT in December 2017, so that's why I ask 



Mordecay said:


> Yeah, that sure did wonders for the division :heston


Who the heck is claiming that Asuka's undefeated run on NXT was great for the division here? :aries2


----------



## Alright_Mate

Reil said:


> People are allowed to criticize whoever they want. You don't see us harassing you about why you don't like Kairi. And you've been just as vocal at times about your intense dislike of her.


I don't mention it every week though mate.

I make mention of it in my review sometimes depending on how she is in the episode and I leave it at that unless somebody bites.


----------



## Reil

DammitC said:


> Hey, what about Ruby Riott? Wouldn't she be the distant third choice over Peyton Royce, or was Ruby only on NXT for a short period of time near the end of Asuka's tenure?
> 
> I started watching NXT in December 2017, so that's why I ask
> 
> 
> 
> Who the heck is claiming that Asuka's undefeated run on NXT was great for the division here? :aries2


Ruby was there, but also not exactly high on the pecking order either. Not exactly someone that people cared about either. I mean she was successful, but also was limited by the fact that she was pretty awful as a babyface.

And I don't think I've claimed Asuka steamrolling the division was a good idea. Just that it was pretty much necessary since no one else was even remotely as over as she was.

---

Also lol at calling Io overrated. Shes easily one of the best wrestlers in the world. Go check out some of her STARDOM work, and if you want a brutal intergender match:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9yl1K6iwPQ (Io Shirai [Hitokiri] vs Pentagon Dark)

She hasn't had any real focus yet, and people seem to forget that she was easily the breakout star in the Evolution MYC finals. Her moveset is incredibly diverse.


----------



## Mordecay

DammitC said:


> Hey, what about Ruby Riott? Wouldn't she be the distant third choice over Peyton Royce, or was Ruby only on NXT for a short period of time near the end of Asuka's tenure?
> 
> I started watching NXT in December 2017, so that's why I ask


Peyton was booked stronger than Ruby on NXT, at least she was on 2017, you could even argue that she was the top heel in the division when Nikki turned. Granted, there was no other heels, probably just Sonya, Aaliyah, Bianca and Lacey, the last who were fairly new and green.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

Also if you thought Bianca's promo you probably live under a rock. She's basically a Cardi B gimmick. Maybe you don't like that personality but you don't know what you're talking about if you think she didn't pull it off to a T. Bianca is honestly the total package


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> Peyton was booked stronger than Ruby on NXT, at least she was on 2017, you could even argue that she was the top heel in the division when Nikki turned. Granted, there was no other heels, probably just Sonya, Aaliyah, Bianca and Lacey, the last who were fairly new and green.


To be honest, I'm shocked Aliyah is still around. She hasn't really improved in any regard. I guess because of her middle eastern heritage?


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> To be honest, I'm shocked Aliyah is still around. She hasn't really improved in any regard. I guess because of her middle eastern heritage?


I suppose they probably have thought in releasing her at some point, but with other companies focusing in the womens division maybe they don't want to take a risk? I don't know, but, like you said, I find weird that she is still around, she started with the IIconics and, say what you want about them, they are least have a gimmick and they play it well, Aliyah doesn't even have that and it's been almost 4 years. I guess she will be the female version of Angelo Dawkins or Kona Reeves, who also seem like they have been on NXT forever without much improovement.


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> I suppose they probably have thought in releasing her at some point, but with other companies focusing in the womens division maybe they don't want to take a risk? I don't know, but, like you said, I find weird that she is still around, she started with the IIconics and, say what you want about them, they are least have a gimmick and they play it well, Aliyah doesn't even have that and it's been almost 4 years. I guess she will be the female version of Angelo Dawkins or Kona Reeves, who also seem like they have been on NXT forever without much improovement.


Like...she's not even good in the ring which is the puzzling thing. I can't see any other company picking her up, except for maybe some C-Tier indie.

Hell, I would have to go back and check, but I think she's only won one televised match in the past few years, and that was in a tag match with Lacey Evans.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> Like...she's not even good in the ring which is the puzzling thing. I can't see any other company picking her up, except for maybe some C-Tier indie.
> 
> Hell, I would have to go back and check, but I think she's only won one televised match in the past few years, and that was in a tag match with Lacey Evans.


She also beat Peyton and Billie in a tag match teaming with Liv in April of 2017. And also beat the team of Peyton, Billie and Sonya in the Takeover Toronto pre-show, in October of 2016, teaming with Ember and Liv. But those two times and the match you mentioned she didn't even got the pinfall victory, despite being the hometown girl in Toronto. But those are the only 3 matches I remember her winning, she doesn't have singles wins as far as I know


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

Wow the crowd were so hot for that exchange between Belair and Baszler... but why though? The exchange was not very good at all. I dunno, I just aint excited for this match at all but I guess I am in the minority based on the crowd. This is like the one match on the whole TakeOver card I am completely whelmed by.

EDIT: After reading the thread after my post, please dont lump me in with those Baszler hating morons. I actually like Baszler (Belair less so) I just dont particularly care for this match up. Please do put me in the camp though with those baffled by the people who herald Asuka yet criticise Baszler for being on a very similar, albeit far less damaging, path as Asuka's atrocious, creatively bankrupt burialfest of a Women's Title run in NXT. Seeing her get humbled on the MR for years and all those smarks crying was so satisfying. 

The irony of that Dijacovik (or however the fuck it is spelt. What a stupid name change) is I took more away from his opponent than him. If that guy can get out of jobber status he could have a bright future, they should have had him in the open challenge against Murphy. 

Before someone calls me a philistine, I know Dijak is a great wrestler but he is not being used properly, or even really in general, by NXT at all. Why are him, Riddle and Lee not putting barn burners on on weekly basis's? If NXT would allow them to, they would, they were doing it on the indies for years all over the world. Just seems such a waste having them in NXT doing pretty much fuck all.

And yes, also before someone says anything, Lee and Riddle are in a story with Ohno. Sort of. But given these three names we've yet to see a classic from any of the combinations. Ohno is a shadow of his former self, Lee is getting the Diva treatment right now with his character being little more than “Riddle's mate” and Riddle has topped my Best Of lists for the last few years but we've seen so little of what he can do in this rubbish feud with Ohno it is frankly criminal.

Also is the audio commentary rerecorded after the show? I noticed a shot during the Main Event where Ranello was talking but you could see him behind Ohno and his mouth wasnt moving. Weird.

Blimey, that War Raiders video package thing was cheesy, huh? I am excited for the match but the build to this tag title match has fallen off a cliff. 

So they used Keith Lee's music for a 205 video package and they also had Carrillo answer the call who is also in action on NXT this week against Gargano? This match was so much better a showcase of Carrillo than that 205 Live Match. This match was faster, harder hitting, playing to a much better crowd and even Carrillo's moveset was more interesting here. If Carrillo is in line for a push of sorts, at least out of jobber status, I wasn't sold after 205 but I am sold here. Just as an aside, I always remember Gargano being super ripped but it looks like he is a little out of shape, at least compared to his usual ultra lean physique. I hope he is okay.


----------



## Mear

Kassius Ohno against Matt Riddle really needs to end. They should've gave it 10 minutes for the last Takeover and be done with it, it is just boring, especially when the rest of the card is much better. 

As for Bianca, I don't think her promos was boring. She at least have a unique way of speaking and a unique look. As for the ring part, Takeover will probably be make or break. If she can pull off a great match, she can secure a good spot but if she can't, I guess she won't go too far

I do like Shayna better than Asuka, mainly because what was frustrating with Asuka was that they just had to pull the trigger. Just have Nikki wins, just the have the IIconics win, just have Embem wins. It was just so frustrating because the matches were good but you knew Asuka wouldn't lose and she didn't as she left undefeated. Shayna at least, I have no doubt that she can actually lose the title


----------



## rbl85

Pizzamorg said:


> New NXT.
> 
> Wow the crowd were so hot for that exchange between Belair and Baszler... but why though? The exchange was not very good at all. I dunno, I just aint excited for this match at all but I guess I am in the minority based on the crowd. This is like the one match on the whole TakeOver card I am completely whelmed by.
> 
> EDIT: After reading the thread after my post, please dont lump me in with those Baszler hating morons. I actually like Baszler (Belair less so) I just dont particularly care for this match up. Please do put me in the camp though with those baffled by the people who herald Asuka yet criticise Baszler for being on a very similar, albeit far less damaging, path as Asuka's atrocious, creatively bankrupt burialfest of a Women's Title run in NXT. *Seeing her get humbled on the MR for years and all those smarks crying was so satisfying. *


For years XD

You seem to have a bad notion of time.....

Also the only reason why Asuka kept the title that long is because the women roster of NXT was way inferior than the current one.


----------



## Pizzamorg

rbl85 said:


> For years XD
> 
> You seem to have a bad notion of time.....


The irony of this comment.


----------



## rbl85

Pizzamorg said:


> The irony of this comment.


Well don't say "for years" when she got bad booking for just for a few month.

She won the FIRST women Royal Rumble, she won the first women tlc match, longest winning streak ever, sole survivor at SS and she's now champion.


When she stop her career she will be in the hall of fame.


----------



## Mordecay

rbl85 said:


> Well don't say "for years" when she got bad booking for just for a few month.
> 
> She won the FIRST women Royal Rumble, she won the first women tlc match, longest winning streak ever, sole survivor at SS and she's now champion.
> 
> 
> *When she stop her career she will be in the hall of fame.*


Rikishi, the Godfather and the Bushwackers are in the Hall of Fame, that is hardly an accomplishment these days


----------



## Jedah

Alright_Mate said:


> You're entitled to say whatever you want but when you repeat the same thing every week it gets a bit boring mate (Y)


I criticize it frequently because we have to SEE it frequently. And it's boring. This isn't hard to understand.



> Please do put me in the camp though with those baffled by the people who herald Asuka yet criticise Baszler for being on a very similar, albeit far less damaging, path as Asuka's atrocious, creatively bankrupt burialfest of a Women's Title run in NXT. Seeing her get humbled on the MR for years and all those smarks crying was so satisfying.


Killing a talented division is way worse than the untalented division Asuka killed for the first year of her reign. People are seriously getting selective memory at just how dead that division was for most of 2016.


----------



## Pizzamorg

rbl85 said:


> Well don't say "for years" when she got bad booking for just for a few month.
> 
> She won the FIRST women Royal Rumble, she won the first women tlc match, longest winning streak ever, sole survivor at SS and she's now champion.
> 
> 
> When she stop her career she will be in the hall of fame.


It is incredible just how selective you are here. Anything can be made to look good when condensed to highlights.


----------



## MC

Thank god that Kassius Ohno vs Matt Riddle was announced because honestly the TakeOver card was looking dire. Almost none of the card looked appealing to me at all. Now that Ohno vs Riddle has been announced, this card is looking at bit better than before. If this becomes anything other than an another squash, this should no doubt deliver.

Saying that, Baszler vs Belair looks good too. I'm not really on the Belair bandwagon, but I'm really pumped for her match with Shayna Baszler. Two totally different styles of wrestling. Completely unique match up. Could be excellent, could be a disaster, could be anything. Can't wait for that. I'd say Belair wins to allow Baszler to fully go into the Horsewomen vs Io/Kairi/Dakota feud, and gives the NXT women's division some new direction.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Jedah said:


> I criticize it frequently because we have to SEE it frequently. And it's boring. This isn't hard to understand.


The thing that obviously annoys a few is that you repeat yourself so often, you hate the division in it's current state, something that you've said probably 100 times on here.

You might as well copy and paste a post from a few weeks back, it would save you much more time


----------



## Jedah

I'll keep saying it, because the division is getting shat on by the main roster week in and week out, and that's a big disappointment that detracts from the show as a whole, because there's no reason why it shouldn't at least be competitive.

You don't like it? Put me on your ignore list.

I don't shit on people for talking about the things that annoy them constantly, like the Gargano/Ciampa stuff.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Jedah said:


> I'll keep saying it, because the division is getting shat on by the main roster week in and week out, and that's a big disappointment that detracts from the show as a whole, because there's no reason why it shouldn't at least be competitive.
> 
> You don't like it? Put me on your ignore list.
> 
> I don't shit on people for talking about the things that annoy them constantly, like the Gargano/Ciampa stuff.


We get the message mate, you do a review like others, fair enough, but then you have to emphasise your hate to Shayna especially in a separate post, then another, then another, then another, what's the point when you're just repeating yourself?

I just gave you great advice on how not to waste your time, you should be thanking me.


----------



## Jedah

Who's wasting more time, the person talking about the contents of a show on a forum or the one who's posting over and over again about somebody else's opinion?


----------



## Reil

MC said:


> Thank god that Kassius Ohno vs Matt Riddle was announced because honestly the TakeOver card was looking dire. Almost none of the card looked appealing to me at all. Now that Ohno vs Riddle has been announced, this card is looking at bit better than before. If this becomes anything other than an another squash, this should no doubt deliver.
> 
> Saying that, Baszler vs Belair looks good too. I'm not really on the Belair bandwagon, but I'm really pumped for her match with Shayna Baszler. Two totally different styles of wrestling. Completely unique match up. Could be excellent, could be a disaster, could be anything. Can't wait for that. I'd say Belair wins to allow Baszler to fully go into the Horsewomen vs Io/Kairi/Dakota feud, and gives the NXT women's division some new direction.


I dunno about the future of the horsewomen vs Io/Kairi/Dakota feud, buddy. Dakota went in for surgery for a torn ACL yesterday (so she'll be out for the next 6 months or so). So I'm of the opinion that its more likely that Shayna retains, and moves onto a feud with Io.

Not to mention even if they went the direction you mentioned, it would tie up all of the actual credible challengers to Bianca.

To be honest, I think an Io/Shayna feud is the direction they are going anyways. NXT generally doesn't have people go over other major names with minimal effort for no reason. And Io effortlessly disposes of Jessamyn and Marina every time they try to mess with her.

I imagine if Shayna retains, this will be the next few months of booking for NXT's women's division, leading up to New York:

- Shayna faces off against a filler challenger at the taping(s) b/w Phoenix and New York (probably Mia Yim).

- Io and Bianca feud for a bit, with Io winning a #1 contenders match. 

- Io and Shayna feud until Takeover: New York. Io goes over, Shayna goes up to the main roster to work with Ronda. I dunno about Jessamyn and Marina, but its painfully obvious they aren't going to be main roster ready any time soon, and keeping Shayna down there until they are ready is an insanely stupid idea, because it looks like it will be a long while.

To be honest, I wouldn't rule out Bianca being called up after Wrestlemania either. I can safely rule out Kairi and Io being called up any time soon (at least full time), because its been said that Triple H doesn't want Kairi and Io on the main roster at the same time as Asuka right now, because he fears they would drown because Vince already has Asuka. And he sees both Kairi and Io as big stars that would be squandered.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Jedah said:


> Who's wasting more time, the person talking about the contents of a show on a forum or the one who's posting over and over again about somebody else's opinion?


I think you've taken up more page space than anybody else in this thread, so in terms of wasting more time that would be you, especially as you repeat the same thing constantly.

Just copy and paste my friend, just copy and paste.

Anyway my Dog needs a walk, by the time I get back I expect to see at least 10 posts on the word nepotism.


----------



## Jedah

As if you aren't repeating the exact same thing constantly about somebody else's opinion rather than your own. Good grief. I hope you enjoy trying to police the forum. Ignored. Good day.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> I dunno about the future of the horsewomen vs Io/Kairi/Dakota feud, buddy. Dakota went in for surgery for a torn ACL yesterday (so she'll be out for the next 6 months or so). So I'm of the opinion that its more likely that Shayna retains, and moves onto a feud with Io.
> 
> Not to mention even if they went the direction you mentioned, it would tie up all of the actual credible challengers to Bianca.
> 
> To be honest, I think an Io/Shayna feud is the direction they are going anyways. NXT generally doesn't have people go over other major names with minimal effort for no reason. And Io effortlessly disposes of Jessamyn and Marina every time they try to mess with her.
> 
> I imagine if Shayna retains, this will be the next few months of booking for NXT's women's division, leading up to New York:
> 
> - Shayna faces off against a filler challenger at the taping(s) b/w Phoenix and New York (probably Mia Yim).
> 
> - Io and Bianca feud for a bit, with Io winning a #1 contenders match.
> 
> - Io and Shayna feud until Takeover: New York. Io goes over, Shayna goes up to the main roster to work with Ronda. I dunno about Jessamyn and Marina, but its painfully obvious they aren't going to be main roster ready any time soon, and keeping Shayna down there until they are ready is an insanely stupid idea, because it looks like it will be a long while.
> 
> To be honest, I wouldn't rule out Bianca being called up after Wrestlemania either. I can safely rule out Kairi and Io being called up any time soon (at least full time), because its been said that Triple H doesn't want Kairi and Io on the main roster at the same time as Asuka right now, because he fears they would drown because Vince already has Asuka. And he sees both Kairi and Io as big stars that would be squandered.




Triple H says a lot of things. This is the guy who said he wouldn't call up anyone from NXT unless there was a set plan for them already on the main roster. And as the last few years have shown, that really hasn't been the case as many ended up stuck in limbo with no plans within a few weeks.


----------



## Pizzamorg

Jedah said:


> Put me on your ignore list.


Your only good post.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Pizzamorg said:


> Your only good post.


The bloody petty sod has banged me on his ignore list Pizza, can you believe that :gameover

And there was me thinking about adding him to my friends list.


----------



## Pizzamorg

Alright_Mate said:


> The bloody petty sod has banged me on his ignore list Pizza, can you believe that :gameover
> 
> And there was me thinking about adding him to my friends list.


I hope he accepts my friend request


----------



## DammitChrist

Tommaso Ciampa vs Aleister Black, Ricochet vs Johnny Gargano, and Undisputed Era vs War Raiders have the potential to be thrilling matches! I'm definitely looking forward to watching those :mark: :mark: :mark:

I'm not nearly as interested about the other 2 matches though.


----------



## Piers

Gargano seems to have let himself go a bit









He looked like a million bucks last year :


----------



## BrokenFreakinNeck

Bianca beating Shayna would be a big mistake.


----------



## RiverFenix

Where is Velveteen Dream? Is he in the dog house for some reason or other? He has no program going right now and wrestling Rick Bugez in house show openers...


----------



## TD Stinger

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> Where is Velveteen Dream? Is he in the dog house for some reason or other? He has no program going right now and wrestling Rick Bugez in house show openers...


He'll be on the show next week I believe, and if you want spoilers:



Spoiler: NXT Spoilers



The Velveteen Dream returns to cut an in-ring promo on winning the NXT North American Title in 2019. Adam Cole and Bobby Fish of The Undisputed Era interrupt. 2019 will belong to The Undisputed Era as they will hold every NXT title - the NXT NA Title, the NXT Title and the NXT Tag Team Titles. They intimidate Dream and go to attack him but he gets away

* The Velveteen Dream defeated Bobby Fish

So sounds like Cole vs. Velveteen is on the horizon. They might even face off at that Worlds Collide tournament at Rumble Axxess.


----------



## Death Rider

DammitC said:


> Tommaso Ciampa vs Aleister Black, Ricochet vs Johnny Gargano, and Undisputed Era vs War Raiders have the potential to be thrilling matches! I'm definitely looking forward to watching those <img src="http://i.imgur.com/GkHkVKq.gif?1" border="0" alt="" title=":mark:" class="inlineimg" /> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/GkHkVKq.gif?1" border="0" alt="" title=":mark:" class="inlineimg" /> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/GkHkVKq.gif?1" border="0" alt="" title=":mark:" class="inlineimg" />
> 
> I'm not nearly as interested about the other 2 matches though.


Kassius ohno vs matt riddle will be sick I am sure. This card is looking so good :mark:


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Just watched the latest NXT.

So Street Profits and Forgotton sons are feuding? Cool. I hope this goes somewhere though because SP have had feuds before and then they just get taken off tv. 

Shayna and Bianca had a decent little exchange. Not too crazy about their matcha takeover. 

Gargano and Carillo match was awesome. Carillo is someone I want to see more of in the future. 

Pretty obvious that Dominic is going to be a major player in NXT soon I wanna see what they do with him. 

It seems kinda odd that they'd have Keith Lee lose. But At the same time I feel like with Keith they're just kinda waiting for NXT to clear out a bit before they really get serious with pushing him. Sure, they had some call ups just now but NXT is still pretty stacked. I think we'll see him get more important roles down the line.

It seems so Odd to me that they're stretching out This Riddle/Ohno feud. Pretty Obvious that this will be the 5th match for the takeover.


----------



## Reil

Advertised for NXT tomorrow night:

- Johnny Gargano calls out Ricochet

- Ciampa and Black stuff

- Velveteen Dream promo

- Burch and Lorcan vs Aichner and Barthel

- Kairi Sane and Io Shirai in action

NXT thoughts:

- Gargano/Ciampa are going to team up again against Candice's wishes. Dark DIY.

- The Barthel/Aichner vs Lorcan/Burch match was great.

- Dream vs Fish was also pretty good.

- Kairi/Io are an amazing team and it will suck when they inevitably break up.

Advertised for next week is The Forgotten Sons vs Street Profits. That match is going to fucking suck. Because the Sons are TERRIBLE.

Speaking of terrible, Duke and Shafir are in action next week against Shirai/Sane. From what I've seen and heard, Duke and Shafir are still *fucking horrible* in pretty much every way (look at their "promo" tonight), so I have a feeling Phoenix is going to rip them to shreds if they continue to be awful. I have no clue what NXT is thinking by putting them in front of that smarky of an audience. Hopefully they are at least smart enough to keep the match short and have Io/Kairi completely demolish Duke and Shafir. Anything else would be a massive mistake.


----------



## Jedah

Not bad for a go home show, with one exception. Sometimes NXT coasts on them.

- Dream with that good match with Fish and fun promo with Cole to open the show. I'd have much preferred Dream vs. Cole in Phoenix. I just don't care about Riddle and Ohno at all. It's a waste of a spot. Maybe they're saving this match for Mania weekend.

- Aichner and Barthel vs. Orcan and Burch was a fun sprint.

- I didn't know why Kairi and Io were tag teaming against jobbers since we now know that no NXT women will be involved in crowning the inaugural tag champs. ...Then we had that cringe segment with Kairi, Io, and the other two horseshitwomen. Terrible. Kairi can get away with cutesy shit but it doesn't suit Io AT ALL. They're butchering her and it's sad to watch. Io works best as a cold-hearted bitch. Why the fuck is she acting this way? Then to top it all off we have a match made. If Kairi and Io don't squash those two goobers next week... fpalm fpalm fpalm. I can't believe it, but it looks like this division is going to get even worse after Phoenix. The only worse division in the entire company at this point is the Raw tag team division.

- Moving on to better things...great ending segment. I don't know what the fuck is going on with Gargano and Ciampa but it's chaotic and crazy enough to keep me interested. Maybe Ciampa thinks he's completely consumed Johnny's soul and he thus has him under his control, and that's what Johnny is banking on to strike when the time is right. 48 Laws of Power shit. Maybe. Maybe not. I don't know, but it was a crazy ride, though others might justifiably find it convoluted. I think they've done a good job smoothing out some rough edges with this story in the past couple of weeks.


----------



## Mordecay

The tag match between Lorcan/Burch vs Aichner/Lorcan :bjpenn. Only thing that I didn't like was Lorcan completely not selling the Doomsday Uppercut.

Good video packages for the matches this weekend

I would lol'd if Dark DIY ends up beating Roddy and Kyle for the tag titles eventually

Good chemistry between Kairi and Io, but it really still feels like is Kairi and her friend, nothing about Io makes her stand out besides her wrestling ability.


----------



## Reil

I think the key thing regarding Io right now though Mordecay is that she was easily the most over woman in the match.


----------



## TD Stinger

Pretty good go home show this week:

*I'll just say this now, great video packages from NXT as always to promote Takeover.

*Glad to see Dream back after his traditional hiatus after a Takeover event. Interesting that he's specifically going after the NA Championship. Cole comes in and does Cole things. And Bobby's shouting promos are always hilarious. Dream's dynamic with Cole and Fish was funny, as was his exit from the ring. Cole vs. Dream looks like it's on the horizon. So, sign me up.

*Lorcan & Burch vs. Aichner & Barthel had one or two moments that will make you roll your eyes like Lorcan no selling an European Uppercut into a Submission but Lord this was just a high octane spot fest and was so fun to watch while it lasted. Lorcan continues to be one of my favorite wrestlers and Barthel is going to be a star one day. He should be a contender for the UK Title sooner or later.

*Io and Kairi teaming up was really fun. Their double team moves could work really well in the future tag team division.

*Dream vs. Fish was pretty good for what it was. The 1st half was basically a Dream showcase and then the 2nd half was Fish attacking the leg and Dream selling it really well, while using Cole as a distraction to win. Good match and again, can't wait for Dream vs. Fish.

*Ricochet cut his generic promo and it lead to what we thought it would. What made the segment good was the constant push and pull between Gargano and Ciampa of whether they should really reunite.

And of course Candice had to come out because apparently the only thing she can do in NXT is appear when Johnny is doing something stupid and she has to throw her self out there as well. She can do more than. That's the one part of this story I'm just tired of. Everything else I love.


----------



## Donnie

Dark DIY :lmao 

Can't wait for them to get back together this w/e, win the belts, hold them for a year and a change. Then have Chomper turn on him, leading to Johnny EMOTE, and then they can feud for another year.


----------



## DammitChrist

Dark DIY continuing their compelling and entertaining storyline :drose

That tag match between Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch and Fabian Aichner/Marcel Barthel was thrilling for its short length, and that match between Velveteen Dream and Bobby Fish was entertaining too! Both of those matches were decent, and definitely worth the watch for this episode 

That promo package tonight for Tommaso Ciampa vs Aleister Black was fucking awesome :banderas

The NXT title match, the NXT North American title match, and the NXT Tag title match this Saturday have the potential to steal the show :trips8


----------



## Donnie

:mj2 Man, you just eat up all the crumbs this company gives you. 

I'll just be over here, in the place where everyone knows this feud jumped the shark after Chicago.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

At this point, I'd be happy if I never saw Gargano or Ciampa on NXT ever again.


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> At this point, I'd be happy if I never saw Gargano or Ciampa on NXT ever again.


:banderas :zayn3 :fuckyeah

Goddamn crime that's not going to happen, and these two will continue to kill the main event for another 5 months until TAKEOVER Chicago, so they can end their "EPIC" feud


----------



## SAMCRO

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> At this point, I'd be happy if I never saw Gargano or Ciampa on NXT ever again.


Yeah Johnny's especially overstayed his welcome, and Ciampa is really holding Adam Cole back from ascending to the NXT Title picture. As long as Ciampa's the champion it feels like Cole is just forever drifting and not allowed to go near the title.

Ciampa's great but after WM i think its time he gets called up along with Johnny, but please put them on different brands, i'd like to see Ciampa involved with something thats not Gargano.


----------



## RiverFenix

Finally letting Aichner fly around a bit - that is what will get him (and the team) over. It's unexpected for a guy his size at first and it pops the crowd. I think the wrong team won that match. And ONEY no-selling the Doomsday Uppercut was assinine - come on already. Why not just have him break it up early causing the strike to miss or something and then taken out by Burch for the sub spot?


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

Those of you lashing out, on Dark DIY and gargano and ciampa fued are idiots! This is easily the best fued WWE has created in a decade. I can’t predict where this all goes, I have a picture in my head but really I have no idea what’s in store and I love it! 

DIY is the best thing to ever grace NXT


----------



## MC

NXTSUPERFAN said:


> *Those of you lashing out, on Dark DIY and gargano and ciampa fued are idiots!* This is easily the best fued WWE has created in a decade. I can’t predict where this all goes, I have a picture in my head but really I have no idea what’s in store and I love it!
> 
> DIY is the best thing to ever grace NXT


So much for having your own opinion eh. :mj4


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Pretty good episode last night. I'm looking forward to Takeover. Hopefully it delivers like it always does.


----------



## ellthom

Sad to see people not liking/or getting tired of the whole Gargano/Ciampa/Black stuff I honestly think it's the best stuff NxT have produced since it's inception. Storytelling is awesome, matches are awesome whats to complain about really?

Would it be better for some fresh faces in the title scene? Sure, but who? Cole doesn't need the title I am sure he'll be main roster bound come WM season. I honestly think the guy to take the title off of Gargano will be Matt Riddle. There's not many people I would consider worthy to do it.

I think we should just enjoy it while it's good. Because we'll miss this when they are all gone.


----------



## DammitChrist

ellthom said:


> Sad to see people not liking/or getting tired of the whole Gargano/Ciampa/Black stuff I honestly think it's the best stuff NxT have produced since it's inception. Storytelling is awesome, matches are awesome whats to complain about really?
> 
> Would it be better for some fresh faces in the title scene? Sure, but who? Cole doesn't need the title I am sure he'll be main roster bound come WM season. I honestly think the guy to take the title off of Gargano will be Matt Riddle. There's not many people I would consider worthy to do it.
> 
> I think we should just enjoy it while it's good. Because we'll miss this when they are all gone.


Honestly, I think Adam Cole is going to be the one to beat Johnny Gargano for the NXT title; and then Matt Riddle is probably going to be the next champion after Cole.

Besides, this lengthy feud between Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano delays the likes of Adam Cole (along with Matt Riddle) being involved in the world title scene for some more months; which also means that they'll likely be on NXT even longer than they would've if the Ciampa/Gargano feud ended for good months ago. 

Honestly, the longer all those names stay on NXT and avoid getting moved up to the main roster (which is inevitable); the better off they will be since they're more likely going to be booked to their strengths on NXT than they would be by the creative team for the main roster.

For the record, yes, I definitely will miss seeing these guys on NXT years later. On the bright side though, it’s great seeing the likes of Johnny Gargano, Tommaso Ciampa, Aleister Black, Ricochet, Adam Cole, Velveteen Dream, and Undisputed Era continue to deliver on NXT


----------



## Mear

I just can't with DIY, they are just so much about their rivalry, everything has to be about their rivalry. I mean, they are great wrestlers but between Dream/Ciampa & Black/Ciampa, the story just seem to be an afterthought. There is a contender but that's all he is, a contender and it is all about relying on DIY instead. And if the main roster doesn't put enough meat into their long term feud, NXT does the opposite. I have seen Johnny and Ciampa interact too much already, I'm sick of it

At least, Bianca Belair vs Shayna Baszler actually have a story to it, the overconfident rookie against the seasoned champ


----------



## DirectorsCut

I don't think Riddle will win the NXT title. Instead I think he's going to hang around in NXT for a year and then debut on the main roster like EC3. Matt Riddle is no young guy and unless NXT becomes something bigger I assume he ain't going to being hanging around in Orlando for a year 1.5 + waiting for his title reign. Matt's a big deal and should be on the main roster by then.


----------



## .christopher.

Probably already been mentioned but I got two man powertrip vibes off Ciampa and Gargano.

Not in terms of talent because neither are anywhere near as entertaining as Austin and, to a much lesser extent, HHH, but in terms of them eventually holding all the titles.


----------



## SAMCRO

The Ciampa/Gargano stuff is great, its just been going far too long, there is such thing as too much of a good thing, feels like they've been feuding/intertwined for like 2 years at this point. We've seen them trying to kill each other for over a year, now we're having to see them slowly reunite which will probably be built up for another 3 or 4 months.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Solid episode this week...

A good straight to the point promo from Dream to kick things off. No doubt Dream vs Cole will be in the works after Takeover.

Lorcan/Burch vs Aichner/Barthel was a fantastic little sprint, both these teams need pushing, I'd rather see them at the top of the Tag Division than War Machine.

Io Shirai and Kairi Sane partnership hno 

Dream vs Fish started a little scrappy but turned good when Fish went after Dream's leg, Dream's selling job in this match was fantastic. As for Bobby Fish he is starting to feel like a pointless part of Undisputed Era.

Another chaotic segment to end the tapings. I thought that was Ricochet's best promo in NXT so far. The segment made me even more excited for Ciampa vs Black and Gargano vs Ricochet. As for another DIY tease, Full Sail were creaming their pants over it but the next step in the feud is very much in the air. You fully expect this to lead to another Ciampa vs Gargano match; however that ship has sailed for me, Gargano beating Ciampa for the title does nothing for me anymore, it would just be a meh feeling.

Street Profits vs Forgotten Sons, Shirai/Sane vs Shafir/Duke scheduled for next week...poor Phoenix :lol


----------



## SAMCRO

Can they please just scrap Forgotten Sons? they're awful, they get no reaction, and pretty much everyone on here shits on them, i don't think they have a single person that gives a shit about them. 

I mean how are they any different from Sanity? They look just like them, Ryker acts just like Eric Young, has a big beard and constantly making that crazy intense face, and they go around in torn ragged looking clothes. Whats their gimmick exactly? 3 former bikers that went crazy? And who forgot them exactly they was never around before to my knowledge, you can make a case for Cutler and Blake but Ryker was never around to be forgotten, so their name makes no sense.


----------



## Donnie

ellthom said:


> Sad to see people not liking/or getting tired of the whole Gargano/Ciampa/Black stuff I honestly think it's the best stuff NxT have produced since it's inception. Storytelling is awesome, matches are awesome whats to complain about really?
> 
> Would it be better for some fresh faces in the title scene? Sure, but who? Cole doesn't need the title I am sure he'll be main roster bound come WM season. I honestly think the guy to take the title off of Gargano will be Matt Riddle. There's not many people I would consider worthy to do it.
> 
> *I think we should just enjoy it while it's good. Because we'll miss this when they are all gone*.


Yeah, i'm REALLY going to miss a two year feud that has sucked the life out of the main event scene, produced one classic, and two overrated matches with bad finishes. I really love that Adam Cole can't even feud for the belt because this cancerous feud has to continue, so he gets to eat pins when he should be winning. 

I LOVE that they took the "who attacked Black' storyline, and instead of giving someone new a chance to feud with Black, and potentially become a HUGE deal in NXT. They gave it to Johnny so we could continue this never-ending black hole of a feud. 

I also love how Candice has been reduced to "JOHNNY'S WIFE" instead of seeing her flourish in the women's division. 

I adore how they keep teasing them getting back together, it's truly compelling television, that for sure isn't a terrible story that can only end one way, and therefore is fucking pointless. 

I especially can't wait for Johnny to beat Ricochet at Takeover, so he can have a belt, and then we can do TITLE VS TITLE at Mania, which won't be the fucking ending of this, because HHH will drag out to Chicago so they can talk about how this has been an EPIC two year feud, and they can they FINALLY end it with Johnny winning the belt, even though he should have won it months ago. 

* LOVE IT *


----------



## MC

The Dream/Fish match was fun. Good little tv match that Fish is known for. So glad he is back from injury. Dream cut a pretty good promo early on the show too. He is improving every week which is promising. Not sure why he doesn't have a match on TakeOver though, it's not like they haven't built him vs Cole as a match or anything. 

For 4-5 minute match, Oney/Burchy vs Aichner/Barthel was a wicked match. So much action packed. Highly intense and great showcase for the teams. Aichner/Barthel is gonna do so much for both guys careers which I'm happy with. Glad to see these guys on TV finally. 

The DIY stuff is _meh_, but the quicker they do it, the quicker the feud/story can end, and they can finally move on. 

Decent go home show.



Ace said:


> Yeah, i'm REALLY going to miss a two year feud that has sucked the life out of the main event scene, produced one classic, and two overrated matches with bad finishes. I really love that Adam Cole can't even feud for the belt because this cancerous feud has to continue, so he gets to eat pins when he should be winning.
> 
> I LOVE that they took the "who attacked Black' storyline, and instead of giving someone new a chance to feud with Black, and potentially become a HUGE deal in NXT. They gave it to Johnny so we could continue this never-ending black hole of a feud.
> 
> I also love how Candice has been reduced to "JOHNNY'S WIFE" instead of seeing her flourish in the women's division.
> 
> I adore how they keep teasing them getting back together, it's truly compelling television, that for sure isn't a terrible story that can only end one way, and therefore is fucking pointless.
> 
> I especially can't wait for Johnny to beat Ricochet at Takeover, so he can have a belt, and then we can do TITLE VS TITLE at Mania, which won't be the fucking ending of this, because HHH will drag out to Chicago so they can talk about how this has been an EPIC two year feud, and they can they FINALLY end it with Johnny winning the belt, even though he should have won it months ago.
> 
> * LOVE IT *


Dude, stop being wrong. :armfold


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

This was a solid episode to me. Dream and Cole/Fish had a nice little spat. 

the Tag Match was INSANE. I swear WWE really needs to put the tag straps on Lorcan and Burch because they put on fucking clinics in that ring I was entertained the whole way through. It's times like this where I don't get why people can't just be entertained by a match without some stupid story attached to it. 

Those 2 MMA horsewomen are HORRIBLE. Like when they spoke in their segment they had no emotion and I just didn't care. WWE should've left them where they're at.

Dream/Fish was a nice match too. 

The whole Gargano/Ricochet thing was great. Like that Ciampa and Black came out. I understand people think this whole Garano/Ciampa thing is gone on too long and is a bit convoluted at this point but shit..I'll take this over ANYTHING on the Main Roster.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Just saw the last segment of the show with Gargano, Ricochet, Black, and Ciampa and that was really, really solid. Got me more hyped for both matches this weekend. An even better go-home show than I originally thought since I had to hold-off on seeing this final segment until tonight. Great stuff.

:bjpenn


----------



## DirectorsCut

Barthel and Aichner are amazing, overall seeing that match completely exceeded my expectations and both tag teams given the chance could do great things on the main roster.


----------



## DammitChrist

Thankfully, the crowds have been the most vocal over the angle involving Gargano and Ciampa. It makes sense too because their feud over the past year has been great, and ALL of their matches have delivered so far 

The reunion of dark/heel DIY has been heavily teased over the past month, and the crowds have totally been hot over this throughout all that time :mark: :mark:

It’s gonna be really satisfying when Gargano finally turns on Ciampa, and then goes on to beat him for the NXT title for a fitting end to their lengthy thrilling feud :banderas

For the record, I’d LOVE to see Candice LeRae get showcased in the women’s division; but they might as well just have her be involved with this angle involving her husband. She’s not going to do anything noteworthy as long as Shayna Baszler and her lackeys are dominating the division.

Maybe Candice may finally get a decent push as an active competitor by April.


----------



## ellthom

Ace said:


> Yeah, i'm REALLY going to miss a two year feud that has sucked the life out of the main event scene, produced one classic, and two overrated matches with bad finishes. I really love that Adam Cole can't even feud for the belt because this cancerous feud has to continue, so he gets to eat pins when he should be winning.
> 
> I LOVE that they took the "who attacked Black' storyline, and instead of giving someone new a chance to feud with Black, and potentially become a HUGE deal in NXT. They gave it to Johnny so we could continue this never-ending black hole of a feud.
> 
> I also love how Candice has been reduced to "JOHNNY'S WIFE" instead of seeing her flourish in the women's division.
> 
> I adore how they keep teasing them getting back together, it's truly compelling television, that for sure isn't a terrible story that can only end one way, and therefore is fucking pointless.
> 
> I especially can't wait for Johnny to beat Ricochet at Takeover, so he can have a belt, and then we can do TITLE VS TITLE at Mania, which won't be the fucking ending of this, because HHH will drag out to Chicago so they can talk about how this has been an EPIC two year feud, and they can they FINALLY end it with Johnny winning the belt, even though he should have won it months ago.
> 
> * LOVE IT *


Outside of the point about Candice I strongly disagree with how you see it, but each to their own I guess. I'm enjoying myself. :shrug


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole finally making it known he's going after the NXT Championship. Please win this tourney Cole and save us from Ciampa & Gargano.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1088995052981022720


----------



## Pizzamorg

Perfectly fine go home show from NXT this week. We'll see 90% of the episode during the preshow when they replay all those packages again but that is fine. Phoenix has one of the best on paper cards for a TakeOver show that I can remember, the build to most of the matches hasn't been the best but TakeOvers know how to deliver. Really enjoyed the Hard Bastards vs Brexit match, that is one thing worth watching from this show. What I don't care about is this whole Dark DIY thing, I know I might literally be the only person in the world that feels this way but I feel like while the Gargano/Ciampa story is good there has been a lot of opportunities to do it better where they have instead gone down a weird route which has now left this story somehow still going with the whole point of the story lost somewhere in the past somewhere. I thought a lot of the initial motivations and storytelling developments were really wobbly, pretty much all of the matches are ludicrously overrated and I hate that Black basically become a casualty to the blackhole that is their storyline. I just hope the Dark DIY thing doesn't just all consume this TakeOver as well but I really fear it will. I am ready for Gargano and Ciampa to get called up now so other wrestlers and stories can have the freedom to exist uninterrupted.


----------



## Reil

NXT tomorrow night:

- The Street Profits vs The Forgotten Sons (TFS getting any sort of spotlight at all is fucking dreadful)

- Kairi Sane and Io Shirai vs Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir (I have a really bad feeling about this match from a workrate perspective)


----------



## Jedah

Oh good, they aired Kairi and Io first so I don't have to watch the rest consisting of recaps and the Street Profits vs. Forgotten Sons.

Unsurprisingly, Kairi and Io ruled as a tag team. Kairi is so over. Wow. I like the name "Sky Pirates" as well. Seriously, just put them in that Elimination Chamber match. That match looks like it's going to be really bad right now. It's going to rely _entirely_ on Sasha and Bayley to carry it, and I don't think even they'll be able to. Putting Kairi and Io in there for one night should be the natural choice.

Shafir and Duke looked like dorks as usual. Especially Duke. Just two complete charisma vacuums. Their takedowns were fine, but everything else? Fortunately for them they were in there with two of the best so this was fine for what it was. I just want them all to go up after Mania and do this horseshitwomen match so WWE can get this stupidity out of their system. Duke and Shafir can be the first ones out. They can do that at least.


----------



## rbl85

Shafir was taking like 5s to think about what she should do before each move.

If Kairi and Io are in the EC match, they're going to put all the other teams to shame.


----------



## Mox Girl

Shaffir and Duke suck so much. Ugh. It was funny whenever they got booed though :lol


----------



## TL Hopper

Duke looks like a methhead. Seriously, why is she on TV? Ronda can't have that much pull


----------



## Reil

Not really worthy of its own thread, but apparently there are reports that out of everyone in NXT during Royal Rumble weekend, the only person who had merch sell out was Kairi. Nothing of hers was left in stock by the end of the weekend.


----------



## RiverFenix

Wesley Blake is actually really good in-ring and Cutler is serviceable - I dig them as a tag team even. Match was solid for television but ol' crazy eyes doesn't need to be there. At all. Street Profits have toned down their silly antics and they're worlds more watchable now.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

I skimmed through most of it as it was super heavy on the Takeover recaps.

Duke and Shaffir don't look anywhere near ready yet, totally been rushed onto TV ahead of time, credit to Sharai and Sane for making it look as best they could.

I guess Forgotten Sons are being built up as the Raiders next challengers.


----------



## TD Stinger

I love the Sky Pirates name. Kairi and Io just have great chemistry with how they fly around the ring but don't cross wires at the same time. Clearly Duke and Shafir are still developing. But, they do get heat, which made the match fun.

I've said it before, I think Shafir might have a future. She seems to have the right body language and facial expressions. She seems a little more fluid in the ring so far as well. Duke just always looks awkward.

The Forgotten Sons are just a dead act. The problem is, it's not a good thing to be called "The Forgotten Sons" is they were never remembered in the 1st place. So every time they come out and say "don't forget us" it's like dude, we never knew you to begin with. Couple that with the fact they are just bland overall in the ring.

Street Profits can't catch a break. First they had a never ending feud with The Mighty and now this thing with The Forgotten Sons.


----------



## rbl85

Everybody in the ring with Kairi would get some heat.


----------



## GTL2

Street Profits have dialled back the gimmick and they are really good now. I have no idea what was going through their heads with that attire though. I guess the Forgotten Sons are the only heel team left now Miller has gone and need building up to take on War Raiders. That is really shit planning by the PC to leave themselves so short of options.


----------



## RiverFenix

GTL2 said:


> Street Profits have dialled back the gimmick and they are really good now. I have no idea what was going through their heads with that attire though. I guess the Forgotten Sons are the only heel team left now Miller has gone and need building up to take on War Raiders. That is really shit planning by the PC to leave themselves so short of options.


Homage to Harlem Heat. There is a WWEPC Youtube Vid where they talk about it.


----------



## J-B

Duke is like a god damn stick insect, it’s gross.


----------



## iarwain

Saw my first episode of NXT. Thought it was kind of boring. I liked the Pirate Princess though 

Also caught some of Phoenix Takeover, thought that was pretty good.


----------



## The Masked Avenger

iarwain said:


> Saw my first episode of NXT. Thought it was kind of boring. I liked the Pirate Princess though
> 
> Also caught some of Phoenix Takeover, thought that was pretty good.


It was boring because it was just a recap episode filmed after the Takeover ended without any of the major players.


----------



## Reil

Advertised for NXT this week:

- Johnny Gargano promo

- Drew Gulak shows up on NXT

- Jaxson Ryker match (I wish the Forgotten Sons would go away forever)

- Kairi, Io, and Bianca vs Shayna, Jessamyn, Marina (Assuming the MMA 4HW lose, I assume whoever gets the pin in this match [Bianca, Kairi, or Io] will be next in line for a title shot, most likely at Takeover: NY.)


----------



## iarwain

TheMaskedAvenger said:


> It was boring because it was just a recap episode filmed after the Takeover ended without any of the major players.


Ah, good, I thought it was just me. Everyone raves over NXT so much, it came off as a little anticlimactic. I'm not giving up on it though.

I refused to get the Network previously because of their insistence on pushing Roman Reigns to the moon despite the audience clearly sending the message that they didn't want it. I thought this company wouldn't get any more money of mine if they won't listen to their audience.

But then they started pushing Becky Lynch so I guess my boycott is over, at least for now. I always love the Rumble, so it seemed like a good time.



Reil said:


> - Jaxson Ryker match (I wish the Forgotten Sons would go away forever)


I was not impressed by the Forgotten Sons match. Again, I thought maybe it was just me.


----------



## IceTheRetroKid

*Why are Aces and Eights in NXT? Dixie Carters invasion of WWE is very menacing.*


----------



## sailord

really good match between Gulak and riddle


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8

You can't wrestle chant at Marina Shafir lol


----------



## rbl85

On NXT tv Io never had to sell, not even a punch.


----------



## Reil

rbl85 said:


> On NXT tv Io never had to sell, not even a punch.


She's sold before, obviously. But it was pretty apparent they were putting her on a level above Shayna.

Anyways, my thoughts about this week's NXT:

- Gargano is totally being two faced in his promo.

- I still don't care about the Forgotten Sons.

- Bugenhagen is my favorite jobber now and I legitimately hope he becomes a thing. I dunno why but he's like a legend to me now.

- I liked the show of respect b/w Riddle and Gulak after the match. Which was also very good.

- The 6 woman tag match told a pretty good story. Bianca was overzealous and wanted to pin Shayna herself, going as far as to tag herself in when Kairi was reaching for Io. This set up Io blind tagging herself in as well, and scoring the victory. In terms of booking though, its pretty apparent that Io is being built up to be the next challenger. She completely flattened Shayna whenever she was in the ring.


----------



## Jedah

Pretty solid episode this week, but not flawless.

As usual, put members of the "NXT 6" together and magic happens. Great opening segment between Johnny, Ciampa, and Dream.

Can Ryker do anything more than one expression? Forgotten Sons suck.

Fun match between Gulak and Bugenhagen to start off. The contrast in styles was hilarious. That guy could be a fun lower card act. And Gulak is really underrated. Then you had the Matt Riddle match with Gulak which was awesome.

Women's division continues to be shit but at least they had Kairi and Io to carry that match. The "offense" from Marina and Jessamyn was very bad. I won't let Kairi off the hook either though because she didn't sell her leg after Shayna attacked it the way she usually does. Finally, Bianca was just there for....I don't know why. It looks like there's going to be a mini feud between her and Io over who gets the shot in New York, but I expect it to be Io, who will likely finally liberate the division from Shayna's monotony.


----------



## Mordecay

Io sould really change her finisher, is becoming a running joke now, she does everything great until is time to hit the moonsault, she landed on Shayna's legs lol


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> *She's sold before, obviously*. But it was pretty apparent they were putting her on a level above Shayna.
> 
> Anyways, my thoughts about this week's NXT:
> 
> - Gargano is totally being two faced in his promo.
> 
> - I still don't care about the Forgotten Sons.
> 
> - Bugenhagen is my favorite jobber now and I legitimately hope he becomes a thing. I dunno why but he's like a legend to me now.
> 
> - I liked the show of respect b/w Riddle and Gulak after the match. Which was also very good.
> 
> - The 6 woman tag match told a pretty good story. Bianca was overzealous and wanted to pin Shayna herself, going as far as to tag herself in when Kairi was reaching for Io. This set up Io blind tagging herself in as well, and scoring the victory. In terms of booking though, its pretty apparent that Io is being built up to be the next challenger. She completely flattened Shayna whenever she was in the ring.


Not on the "regular" NXT tv


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## rbl85

Mordecay said:


> Io sould really change her finisher, is becoming a running joke now, she does everything great until is time to hit the moonsault, she landed on Shayna's legs lol


I saw it half on the body and half on the legs. Need to rewatch it.

Edit : just rewatched it and she did landed half on the body and half on the legs (top of the thighs) so i don't see where is the problem ?

Also i don't know a wrestler who always hit that type of move perfectly :

Jeff Hardy sometimes when he do his swanton bomb, only his head makes contact.


----------



## HBurns

Hope to see a lot more of Bugenhagen, he was something else..Loved the abdominal stretch guitar strum lol


----------



## Jedah

This guy might just become my favorite jobber.


----------



## DirectorsCut

The BUGEZ finally debuted!!!! Yes, yes, yes, the its a mindset man is finally in NXT.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Episode Thoughts:

*Gargano continues to become more and more comfortable with his "tweener" character and how he talks. He can be the most beloved guy in the building to the most hated in an instant.

The Ciampa stuff is still hard to pin down. They tease the DIY reunion, only for Gargano to constantly go into denial, even after posing with Ciampa at the end of Phoenix. It's why I really hope they don't have a match in New York to end it. Because to me at least, this version of Johnny isn't the guy who should be going after Ciampa to end it. And even if they did their reunion and then Johnny came to his senses, there's just not enough time to do all of that before Mania weekend.

Dream continues to show why he might be the most charismatic guy in wrestling right now. Knows what to say, how to say it, and when to say it to get the biggest reaction. And seeing him interact with Johnny and especially Ciampa was a cool thing to see.

*Ryker won a squash....and that' it. Look he looks imposing and all and maybe in a different act, I'd care more. But it's the Forgotten Sons, who never know to be forgotten in the 1st place. What do you want me to do?

*Bugenhagen better have Velveteen Dream potential or else he's going to be the next No Way Jose with that shtick, no matter how talented the performer may be.

*Riddle vs. Gulak was a really good mat based match that showed how good Gulak can be and how all around great Riddle is in the ring. Can't wait to see what's next for him in NXT.

*The 6 Woman Tag was pretty fun overall with all the babyfaces getting their shine. Love the Gorilla Press/Elbow Drop combo from Kairi and Bianca. And in the end Io got the big win and they allowed Bianca to be more than just the girl who was happy to win, because she knew a pinfall win over Shayna would have probably meant another title opportunity. But now, that looks to go to Io. And Io vs. Shayna Mania weekend sounds damn good to me.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

1. Eric Bugenhagen is more than a jobber. He's got looks, promo skills, personality and fucking charisma. WWE would be fucking stupid to use THIS as a jobber when they DESPERATELY need guys like him

2. Nice opening segment. Gargano is another guy who sounds so much better as a heel. It's a cliche but it's just true, sue me. Ciampa confirming why he's so overrated on the mic. Solid but his mic work has gotten stale and wasn't spectacular to begin with. I can barely pay attention when he speaks but he's got the presence to make up for it. Dream is the Dream. Magic and money as usual. We saw Dream probably more than ever focusing on gold. Wasn't about just the spotlight, wasn't about his ego, it was about the championship. But his pre-established need to create special moments was enough to explain why he challenged for the lower card title, even though they really should get the whole damn NXT Title on him. Give him a year long ass reign too 

3. I can hear Riddle getting stronger on the mic each week but he's also still just bad lol. For a guy who's whole gimmick is "Bro", he sounds so awkward trying to say it. Like man how about just speak naturally and stop treating "Bro" like some punchline. It just comes out so awkwardly. Fortunately for Riddle, he's charismatic enough and a good enough wrestler that people are on their fucking feet by the end of the match regardless. What a great bout and I earned a lot of new respect for Gulak too. I always liked Gulak. He is the best Drew in the WWE. But that's his best night imo. Great little promo and match from him too. Back to Riddle - hopefully he'll be like Dream, who was really rough in the mic initially but made a lot of progress

4. Forgotten Sons are tone deaf. Nothing about them works in 2019. It just feels so outdated and generic. I really liked a couple of their original vignettes but they lost all of that gravitas and mystique real quick. Maybe go back to the original tone of the group and you'd have something 

5. The main event was ok. Shafir and Duke are developing well. They're not special but they're not bad. Duke showed some personality, some aggression, she enjoyed ad libbing and getting into the crowd's face. I think I'm gonna like her as she gets better. Io just annoys me. Just comes across as a bland derivative of Asuka. There's potential there, like there's something evil about her that they should take advantage of. But until then I'm not here for it


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

Like that Eric dude. Hope he can tone the gimmick down abit and throw some layers into his character. He could be fun. Riddle you make me cringe every time you touch the mic, then u make me so so so happy when u get in the ring. Honestly I have no idea if he is amazing or the drizzling shits. Guess it will be interesting to see where this plays out? Maybe the guy to finally beat ciampa? They almost need to open another performance Center and NXT brand to give all these stars the spot light they deserve!


Finger crossed.. NXT canada ??


----------



## Buhalovski

King Jesus said:


> 3. I can hear Riddle getting stronger on the mic each week but he's also still just bad lol. For a guy who's whole gimmick is "Bro", he sounds so awkward trying to say it. Like man how about just speak naturally and stop treating "Bro" like some punchline.



True. As much as i want him to succeed... if you ignore the fact that Matt Riddle is indie darling with decent in-ring skills, the bro gimmick is hella corny. Hopefully they will work on that in the next year cause his wrestling wont save him in the main roster.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

What a show of two halves this was! 

The first half in my opinion was awful. The DIYhole just wont die and it becomes more needlessly convoluted by the segment. They had a real chance to hit the reset once Johnny won the NA Title, at least for a while to allow this story some rest, but nope we just keep barrelling forwards as this awful story all consumes everything around it like some demented Pacman. This was all exasperated further both by the fickle crowd and the baffling inclusion of the Velveteen Dream. Dream wins the Worlds Collide Tournament to challenge for a midcard title he could have challenged for anyway. Well that whole tournament is completely pointless then, especially given the Network version of the show is basically just a trailer for the event and only includes a fraction of the matches. A fraction of the matches presented in such a way that defy all logic. What happened to the whole point of that tournament, Dream invading NXT UK to face Pete Dunne or 205 Live to face Murphy? They are far more exciting prospects than revisiting a feud he already had recently and for Dream to be inevitably be consumed, chewed and spat out by the DIYHole. We then got a Forgotten Sons segment thing and like... who cares? Is that the joke? Are they a meta joke within a joke or just terrible, is there a difference? 

The one shining light here was the set up for a Cole/Ricochet match. I know it wont be as good as their TakeOver match, that'll honestly be hard to top but I am sure they can do something great for NXT TV. It is a bit of a shame that there is still so much under utilised talent in NXT while the same guys are being filtered in and out of the same pictures but I am so happy with the prospect of another Ricochet Cole match that I don't really care? It still isn't nearly as damaging as the DIYHole that basically created this position NXT is in where it is effectively in a permanent holding pattern while we wait for DIY to get called up. 

But then holy hell that second half of the show was high spot after high spot. I love Drew Gulak, he is so slept on in 205 Live and it is just criminal. He deserves to be seen and deserves to be adored, so for him to turn up on NXT with at least the suggestion this might be a permanent fixture, at least for a time is a delicious prospect in isolation but then... it just kept getting better. Gulak faced an AMAZING jobber, that guy was great in how stupid he was. Gulak than cut an excellent promo, showing how fantastic he is when he gets to be the serious version of his character and then who would challenge him? Matt fucking Riddle. It is rare in wrestling these days that the emotion just takes me but when that music hit I just threw my hands up in the air saying “YES!”, I felt like a fan again, something I only really feel during TakeOvers these days. Do we need to wait three weeks for this match? No, you get it RIGHT NOW. Man alive, this is almost too wonderful for me to handle. 

The match was great, too. Shame it wasn't the Main Event (I actually skipped the Main Event because I swear they've basically done variations of that match like six times already now? I didn't care the first time, let alone now) but I think it got all the time it needed. That finish sequence from Riddle was brutal, Gulak lost nothing in defeat but Riddle earned a lot in victory. I am hoping for those who only know Riddle from his garbage feud with Ohno got a taste of why we love Riddle so much from this match. I just thought thought this was great. There is not enough wrestling in my mind where it is presented like legitimate competition between two fighters. Most wrestling is like live action anime between two superheroes which I obviously love but I just like a real, genuine, change of pace like I got here.


----------



## SAMCRO

I can just tell Bugenhagen is gonna go far, he's charismatic as hell, he had the fans engaged almost instantly as soon as he came out, plus he's got a good look, really muscular and looks imposing. Also i loved the Freddie Mercury comparison to his mannerisms and attitude on commentary, thought that was really cool, especially after i recently just saw Bohemian Rhapsody.

Man i really loved the Riddle/Gulak match, Riddle is so fucking good as is Gulak, that powerbomb knee strike combo was sick would love Riddle to use that as his finisher. But yeah i always enjoy it when 205 Live guys show up and have a match on NXT, Nese showed up last time and had a great match. Would love to see Rush come back to NXT and have a match with Ricochet, that match would be awesome.

Lol Marina Shaffir is the drizzling shits, man shes awful in every aspect, she gets tagged in and does like 1 basic move or a few strikes and tags out, and she looks awkward doing that, shes worthless. And maybe i missed it but the announcers haven't once explained why shes wearing that goofy face protector thing, i assume her nose or something is hurt, but i swear i can't remember the announcers explaining it.

Yeah this tag match i feel like i've seen it like 3 different times now with just Bianca added to it this time around before it was Dakota i think. But i'm glad it looks as if Io is gonna be the next challenger, and she should definitely take the title off Shayna without a doubt.


----------



## L.I.O.

More Drew Gulak in NXT please.

I LOST IT when he called Bugenhagen "Ben Stiller from Dodgeball."


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

A really fun show this week although not massively excited for Dream-Gargano. 

Bugenhagen got over well despite his quick job, Gulak was just GOAT in both his segments and the match with Riddle was great WRESTLING. 

6 lady tag was also rather enjoyable, said it already but Zhaffir and Duke are soooo green. There must be at least a dozen other wrestlers at the PC who are more ready for TV than these two. If they actually start picking up wins they'll be getting Eva Marie heat.

Edit: fun show except for the Ryker squash which I'd already forgotten by the time the credits rolled.


----------



## Crasp

I loved the Dream interaction with Ciampa/Gargano. 

It plays so well into Ciampa's entire character arc thus far. Why did he turn on Gargano in the first place? Envy, basically. And now Dream, in an example of "the man making the title", has opted to face Gargano over Ciampa. Dream is telling Ciampa that Ciampa & the NXT title are _less_ significant than Gargano & the NA Title, and that's going to absolutly eat Ciampa up. No matter what Ciampa does, after all that has happened, nothing has changed - he is _still_ secondary to _Johnny Champion_.


----------



## SAMCRO

kendo_nagasaki said:


> A really fun show this week although not massively excited for Dream-Gargano.
> 
> Bugenhagen got over well despite his quick job, Gulak was just GOAT in both his segments and the match with Riddle was great WRESTLING.
> 
> 6 lady tag was also rather enjoyable, said it already but Zhaffir and Duke are soooo green. There must be at least a dozen other wrestlers at the PC who are more ready for TV than these two. *If they actually start picking up wins they'll be getting Eva Marie heat.
> *
> Edit: fun show except for the Ryker squash which I'd already forgotten by the time the credits rolled.


Lol yeah you already got the "You can't wrestle!" chants at Marina last night, but the good thing is Trips knows they have no business going over anyone right now, they always lose when they wrestle. 

But that does make you wonder why the fuck they was even brought on tv to begin with, as you said theres definitely alot of wrestlers in the PC way more ready than them. But Trips got a hard on at the thought of a stable of MMA chicks so he had to bring them up immediately.

They're the only reason Shayna is still NXT champion, Trips was drooling over the thought of them as a stable with Shayna holding the title.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

SAMCRO said:


> Lol yeah you already got the "You can't wrestle!" chants at Marina last night, but the good thing is Trips knows they have no business going over anyone right now, they always lose when they wrestle.
> 
> But that does make you wonder why the fuck they was even brought on tv to begin with, as you said theres definitely alot of wrestlers in the PC way more ready than them. But Trips got a hard on at the thought of a stable of MMA chicks so he had to bring them up immediately.
> 
> They're the only reason Shayna is still NXT champion, Trips was drooling over the thought of them as a stable with Shayna holding the title.


I thought it was so they can finally payoff the Four Horsewomen (NXT) vs the MMA version that was teased at MYC1.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

The Horsewoman vs Horsewoman match just makes me shake my head. Nobody ever wanted this match. Nobody ever heard of the "Four Horsewomen" of MMA outside of Rousey. Maybe Baszler had some tiny amount of name recognition. But never did anyone who watches wrestling, or anyone in mainstream media ever hear about Shafir, Duke or care about this concept. So much is being invested into this storyline when the anticipation isn't there at all 




Tsvetoslava said:


> True. As much as i want him to succeed... if you ignore the fact that Matt Riddle is indie darling with decent in-ring skills, the bro gimmick is hella corny. Hopefully they will work on that in the next year cause his wrestling wont save him in the main roster.


Yeah I love Matt Riddle and still think he's got top guy potential. Everything about him is so different and people seem to lose their shit every time he's in the ring. But yeah fuuuuck is he bad on the mic. I've seen him in interviews on the indy circuit where he sounded comfortable. He sounds robotic now. Why can't we get a wrestler who just has it all :mj2 why do we always get so close to having the total package and then have one thing missing

I think the WWE can learn a lot about how to portray Matt Riddle by looking at RVD. Riddle can have all the RVD main event runs that never happened


----------



## gl83

M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8 said:


> You can't wrestle chant at Marina Shafir lol



Also Full Sail chanting for them to tag Shayna Baszler back in. Harsh.


----------



## TD Stinger

King Jesus said:


> Yeah I love Matt Riddle and still think he's got top guy potential. Everything about him is so different and people seem to lose their shit every time he's in the ring. But yeah fuuuuck is he bad on the mic. I've seen him in interviews on the indy circuit where he sounded comfortable. He sounds robotic now. Why can't we get a wrestler who just has it all :mj2 why do we always get so close to having the total package and then have one thing missing
> 
> I think the WWE can learn a lot about how to portray Matt Riddle by looking at RVD. Riddle can have all the RVD main event runs that never happened


To be fair, he's about what I expected so far on the mic. His voice is just naturally awkward with live speaking, though I thought he as good last night. And with them pushing this "Original BRO" shtick, it does handicap him somewhat. Though with some of the promos I've seen him cut in Evolve, his promos now aren't too different.

RVD has been the natural comparison since Riddle came in. I'll be interested to see how much his natural and physical charisma translates on the main roster one day.


----------



## DieLitAOTY

That Eric guy looks like he can be very good. Maybe he'll be NA champion in a year?


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

I don't think Jonny is a tweener. Jonny thinks he's a tweener, but he isn't. Jonny is leading this campaign that he's the good guy, the hero. Tweeners don't do that, brag about how they're the good guy. They're badass and run into danger. If Gargano was a tweener, he wouldn't be proclaiming he's the good guy. He would just be the good guy. 

Now thinking about it, Jonny is an original character. He's a heel trying to play a face. A tweener would be taking it to heels and faces; Jonny is only using cheap tactics against faces at the moment.


Now, what is Drew? That was a face turn if you ask me. He accepted a second match on the spot, then shook hands.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Little bit late with NXT this week, will keep my review short and sweet...

Johnny Gargano is becoming Johnny Boring in my eyes, really can't stand the guy atm. Ciampa and Dream were great though. Story wise, Dream going after the lower title instead makes zero sense.

Skipped the Ryker squash.

Eric Bugenhagen, hard to judge this guy on that showing, many already spouting about him having great potential, yet he did next to nothing in the ring. Very charismatic, those high pitched screams though have to go, they were fucking annoying.

Gulak vs Riddle the highlight of the episode, brilliant match, my kind of wrestling.

Shayna Baszler was so much better on her own, Duke and Shafir are dragging her down so bad, as for those two they are incredibly basic performers. The overall match was pretty bog standard, decent storytelling at the end though with Bianca tagging herself in, almost getting the pin fall but then Io tagged herself in and got the victory. Bianca best beat the piss out of Io after that, that would be the next logical step.


----------



## rbl85

Alright_Mate said:


> Little bit late with NXT this week, will keep my review short and sweet...
> 
> Johnny Gargano is becoming Johnny Boring in my eyes, really can't stand the guy atm. Ciampa and Dream were great though. Story wise, Dream going after the lower title instead makes zero sense.
> 
> Skipped the Ryker squash.
> 
> Eric Bugenhagen, hard to judge this guy on that showing, many already spouting about him having great potential, yet he did next to nothing in the ring. Very charismatic, those high pitched screams though have to go, they were fucking annoying.
> 
> Gulak vs Riddle the highlight of the episode, brilliant match, my kind of wrestling.
> 
> Shayna Baszler was so much better on her own, Duke and Shafir are dragging her down so bad, as for those two they are incredibly basic performers. The overall match was pretty bog standard, decent storytelling at the end though with Bianca tagging herself in, almost getting the pin fall but then Io tagged herself in and got the victory. *Bianca best beat the piss out of Io after that, that would be the next logical step.*


I think the story between Io and Bianca will happen after Mania


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

rbl85 said:


> I think the story between Io and Bianca will happen after Mania


I was thinking it would at Mania. Io vs Bianca. I imagine if NXT books Io to go for the title, she's getting the title. and, I imagine NXT doesn't want to remove the title from Shana this quickly. Io could give Bianca her first clean lose and I feel it won't hurt Bianca. 

That's all what I'm hoping for. Let Io win the title, but not too soon.:nerd:


----------



## Jedah

Io is likely going to go through Bianca in a mini-feud before getting to Shayna at TakeOver where she will go on to take the title. The seeds for it were clearly planted this week.


----------



## ellthom

Eric Bugenhagen is already a favourite... I need to see more of this guy in my life


----------



## Reil

cesaro_ROCKS said:


> I was thinking it would at Mania. Io vs Bianca. I imagine if NXT books Io to go for the title, she's getting the title. and, I imagine NXT doesn't want to remove the title from Shana this quickly. Io could give Bianca her first clean lose and I feel it won't hurt Bianca.
> 
> That's all what I'm hoping for. Let Io win the title, but not too soon.:nerd:


I think Io is winning the title during Mania weekend. Shayna's done everything she can do right now in NXT, and people are starting to turn on her reign because A) they've stripped away everything that made her interesting (Jessamyn and Marina have pretty much killed her character/aura), and B) her matches outside of the Kairi matches have been thoroughly average at best.

I think Shayna needs to be called up at this point, and Jessamyn / Marina need to learn to work on their own. Because its painfully obvious they aren't going to be ready to do anything any time soon, and keeping Shayna down there until they are ready is insanely stupid.

You also have to remember that the next Takeover is in April. So Shayna dropping the title by that point would be fine even from a length standpoint. And it's not too soon for Io to win the title. Keep in mind that Shayna debuted two weeks after War Games 2017 and won the title during Mania weekend.


----------



## TL Hopper

Really good episode. Loved the Bugenhagen debut. Gulak was the star of the show, I hope we see more of him on NXT


----------



## MC

Bugenhagen has a colourful look. A unique gimmick. Should be a fun comedy guy. But he is more suited elsewhere even if he isn't exactly ready. He won't make the fans chants "this is awesome" which is clearly what NXT targets now so he won't last long once Vince here's his name. I had fun seeing Gulak wreck him :lol.

Gulak vs Riddle was an excellent match. It was honestly a better showcase for Riddle than he got with Ohno, and I loved the Ohno matches. Showing off his technical skill as well as his explosive strikes is what's best for him. The bro stuff can be a bit tiring to some but it doesn't bother me actually because when he does get fired up and angry or something on those lines, it means much more. The Catch Point handshake was awesome too. Loved that little nod to their EVOLVE days. 

I loved the main event tbh. Putting the two horse women in tags is absolutely the way too go because they looked better here, especially Shafir who has a wicked forearm that I want to point out. I thought she looked quite good at times, she just needs to quickly learn what she is good at and stick to that. Duke was okay, still VERY awkward at times. But as a team, they all gelled pretty well I thought. Everyone got time to shine and it felt very competitive. Good stuff.


----------



## Mear

Christ, that guitarist guy was amazing. He is every I look for in a midcarder and he has so much potential, I really hope he isn't going to be forgotten and that I will be able to see more of him because he was the star of this show


----------



## RiverFenix

Gulak is better than 205Live. If NXT and 205Live are involved in the "Superstar Shake-up" in April post-Mania I'd like to see him end up in NXT full time. Others would be TJP and Kendrick. 

NXT has the better legit CW roster right now anyways - Ciampa, Gargano, Ricochet, Cole, Strong, KOR, Fish, ONEY, Burch, Montez Ford - Aleister Black might be a legit 205er as well. 

Rather than the NA title, I might have just had the CW title defended on NXT programming on occasion - and on Take Overs. Better there than on main roster pre-shows.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

We're getting a MOTYC tomorrow fellas & lady fellas. This render of Cole looks f*cking great btw.


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> We're getting a MOTYC tomorrow fellas & lady fellas. This render of Cole looks f*cking great btw.


No gargano, and the second best UE member on a NXT taping I doubt it


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

NXTSUPERFAN said:


> No gargano, and the second best UE member on a NXT taping I doubt it


This guy ^ must be a comedian.


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> This guy ^ must be a comedian.


I know right?

I mean 2nd is best is being generous. And if were counting cheer leading into this, Fish has Cole beat too. So Cole would be #4.

:troll


----------



## Reil

NXT Tomorrow:

- Adam Cole vs Ricochet

- Kassius Ohno Promo

- Street Profits Match

- Aliyah vs Taynara Conti

Uh what in gods green earth is the point of that last match I listed?

I also read the wwe.com description for the match and it still doesn't make any sense after that.


----------



## Jedah

Ricochet vs. Cole. :mark :mark :mark

The rest sounds ass but you know that's going to be a firecracker. Must-watch.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> I know right?
> 
> I mean 2nd is best is being generous. And if were counting cheer leading into this, Fish has Cole beat too. So Cole would be #4.
> 
> :troll


Damn, Keith Lee must really be ass then. I mean it was bad enough that Cole had to carry him to a good match but even worse he LOST to the fourth best member of TUE.










:troll:baybay:troll


----------



## Mordecay

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Damn, Keith Lee must really be ass then. I mean it was bad enough that Cole had to carry him to a good match but even worse he LOST to the fourth best member of TUE.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> :troll:baybay:troll


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Damn, Keith Lee must really be ass then. I mean it was bad enough that Cole had to carry him to a good match but even worse he LOST to the fourth best member of TUE.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> :troll:baybay:troll


Silly Marky, it's clear as day Cole paid Lee to take a dive.

Even towards the end while Cole was hitting his shitty little Superkicks, Keith's face said "Damn, I have to sell this shit? Ah well, the money's good."

:troll :troll :troll


----------



## RiverFenix

Reil said:


> NXT Tomorrow:
> 
> - Adam Cole vs Ricochet
> 
> - Kassius Ohno Promo
> 
> - Street Profits Match
> 
> - Aliyah vs Taynara Conti
> 
> Uh what in gods green earth is the point of that last match I listed?
> 
> I also read the wwe.com description for the match and it still doesn't make any sense after that.


I bet you're really gonna love it.


----------



## Reil

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> I bet you're really gonna love it.


Aliyah vs Taynara? Nah. Aliyah is legit one of the worst workers on the entire WWE roster and Taynara isn't good either.


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> NXTSUPERFAN said:
> 
> 
> 
> No gargano, and the second best UE member on a NXT taping I doubt it
> 
> 
> 
> This guy ^ must be a comedian.
Click to expand...

Honestly I don’t see it with Cole as much as you guys do, I by no means think he is horrible, just prefer o’rielly. Since Cole has been in NXT only contribution he has made is a lack luster fued with richochet? His matches have been good not great, same can be said for his mic time.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> Silly Marky, it's clear as day Cole paid Lee to take a dive.
> 
> Even towards the end while Cole was hitting his shitty little Superkicks, Keith's face said "Damn, I have to sell this shit? Ah well, the money's good."
> 
> :troll :troll :troll


TD, TD, TD..tisk, tisk, tisk. Keith's face isn't saying "Damn, I have to sell this shit?" His face is saying "Fuck, how do I sell?" because we know selling isn't a focal point of a Keith Lee match

:troll:baybay:troll



NXTSUPERFAN said:


> Honestly I don’t see it with Cole as much as you guys do, I by no means think he is horrible, just prefer o’rielly. Since Cole has been in NXT only contribution he has made is a lack luster fued with richochet? His matches have been good not great, same can be said for his mic time.


O'Reilly is a better in-ring performer than Cole sure but that's where it ends. You say his only contribution has been a feud with Ricochet ...... because honestly what has Cole been given to work with as a singles performer? You're saying this as if he's been given a vast amount of opportunities to shine but in reality his opportunities have been very few & far between so I don't really get your "contribution" point.


----------



## Crasp

Yeah true. It feels very much like they are just not on board enough with Cole to really put him up there amongst the top stars in NXT. If he gets called up before getting an NXT title run I'd say he's done for.


----------



## TD Stinger

Crasp said:


> Yeah true. It feels very much like they are just not on board enough with Cole to really put him up there amongst the top stars in NXT. If he gets called up before getting an NXT title run I'd say he's done for.


Oh God Crasp, please don't make Marky go off the deep end.....again.


----------



## Reil

NXT thoughts for tonight:

- Dominik Dijakovic is someone I think who has a bright future in NXT but I really hope that he loses his last name or something because god fucking damn its a pain to type out.

- TUE still claiming they'll hold all of the gold in 2019 despite...losing their last remaining pieces at Takeover is a bit weird but whatever.

- Speaking of backstage stuff, Io Shirai declaring her intentions to go after the NXT Women's Title is great. Also loved how Kairi was apparently cut off by Bianca. Who...still thinks she's undefeated? I know she's claimed its a mindset, but it's not a healthy one since it shows she never learned from her mistakes. I think this is either going to set up a triple threat #1 contenders match soon, or Io vs Bianca. And either Io is winning (and getting a singles match, which she should), or Shayna and the MMA 4HW will show up and attack everyone in the match, setting up a fatal four way for Takeover: Blacklist (New York), which is a bad idea.

- Kassius Ohno getting KOed by Keith Lee was great. Street Profits displayed some edge as well.

- I dunno who is next in line for the titles, but its probably KOR and Roddy again, to write TUE out of NXT.

- Taynara vs Aliyah was not good. At all. And what in the everliving fuck was Aliyah's finisher?

- Speaking of not good, the MMA 4HW are like the least menacing faction since 3MB right now. They have some SERIOUS credibility issues. Even Shayna is starting to get hampered by it. I know tonight's beatdown was supposed to make them look like a threat, but all they did was attack three jobbers, two of whom were weakened already.

- Ricochet vs Adam Cole was real good. That's all I can say.


----------



## Jedah

A much better episode than I was expecting.

Dominik looks pretty good. He's going to be a major player once some of the "NXT 6" move on, probably starting after Mania.

Now we get to some promos. At this point Cole just sounds deluded about TUE holding all the gold. Perhaps it's true and they'll come back stronger than ever, but one feels like that would be a step backwards for NXT. We've been there and done that already. I think they're going up to Raw after Mania.

I liked the promo with the women, for the most part. Io is clearly coming after the title but Kairi was about to say she was too. They're best friends for now but this could potentially be when their interests slowly begin to diverge, which can be explored later. Bianca interrupted it and laughably still said she was undefeated - they must not be trying to turn her face at this point, which wouldn't be a good idea. We're probably going to get a triple threat #1 contender match, which should be great. Kairi and Io can carry Bianca. All I'll say is that Io needs to start showing some of that Queen's Quest coldness because I don't want her winning the title like this. Hopefully the triple threat will allow her to start showing that ruthless ice queen waiting to come out of her.

The promo from Ohno and Keith Lee's revenge was well put together. Lee showed more charisma there than I've seen from him in NXT so far and I love it. Once again, Lee should be a major player when a few of the "NXT 6" start to leave. I expect Black and Cole to be gone after Mania, leaving a good spot for him to fill.

I'm not a fan of the Street Profits but the tag match was a lot of fun. It looks like the division is finally rebounding. One could argue that they made them all look like geeks to the War Raiders at the end and that wasn't completely well done, but I understand it. They all need to work their way up because none of them are title contenders yet, but potentially can be.

Now we get to the rest of the women's stuff. Sucked but what else is new? They should have just cut this shit out entirely and given the main event more time. Aliyah is horrible. Taynara has improved I see but she still has a long way to go. Then we get the least intimidating faction ever seen in NXT. The three of them run over all the geeks but they get their asses handed to them every time they encounter the Sky Pirates. Jessamyn and Marina again looked terrible. Please don't let them pollute our TV screens after Mania because it's clear as day that Shayna is dropping that title to Io in April. The other two are nowhere near ready for a call up. They're no better than Taynara was in the match.

Then we have Adam Cole vs. Ricochet. What can I say? When you get the NXT 6 involved with each other, magic almost always happens. Again, Cole definitely looks like he's on the way out of NXT.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Episode Thoughts:

*I do like how that Dijakovic, while still using his freakish athleticism, is wrestling more like a big man these days. If you give me 70/30 of big man stuff/flying stuff, I'm set. And Dijakovic going from a Springboard Corkscrew Plancha into Feast Your Eyes is right up his alley.

*Look I know Bianca said an interview or something that being undefeated is a state of mind but still, it sounds stupid to say it after you got beat. Regardless, Io's coming after that title.

*Not sure what Kassius is going to do with this whole "I'm leaving" shtick. Obviously in today's age everyone thinks AEW. But clearly this is a work for something. Whether it's the main roster, becoming a trainer, or staying in NXT, I have no idea.

Nice to see my guy Keith get some shine. He's so charismatic and charming when he gets the chance to be.

*The tag match was fine. Seeing Stacy Ervin Jr. debut was cool, his Moonsault is insane. Though the match was kind of clunky as well. And the brawl at the end is either leading to a #1 Contender's match or the Dusty Classic, if they have time to do it this year.

*The only thing to say about Aliyah vs. Taynara match is that a pissed off Shayna is fun. That's it.

*I do like how they went a different route for the main event as opposed to their Brooklyn match. Cole worked over Ricochet's leg after one mistake and it played a role throughout the entire match, and from there they had the kind of match you expect them to have.

I know some are down on what's going on with TUE. Some even think they're main roster bound. But I don't know, the more they talk about winning all the gold, I think for now they're tearing them down a bit to eventually build them up for a big year, probably around Summer time.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

NXT 6 earning their title! That was a great main event. 

I think NXT is setting up for a big multi-team tag match at Mania. Even Ricochet and Black could enter together, now. There's a lot of good teams, plenty that haven't worked Wer MacRaiders.


----------



## Jedah

You just made me remember that this is the time of year where they do the Dusty tag team classic. Perhaps Black and Ricochet are going to team together for it as a special attraction of sorts? That could be a lot of fun. And a lot of teams made their mark this week. Still have to think Black is getting called up after Mania though, but maybe that's how he goes out.

But that really raises questions about Ciampa's next challenger. Ricochet might have been a good candidate before, but if he's going to be teaming with Black for a while.........

Gargano vs. Dream next week is going to be VERY important, even more than advertised.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Bobby & Kyle getting back together and Roddy getting a singles run actually reassures me that TUE aren't getting called up.

EDIT: They're defintely building TUE back up to win all the gold


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1095871716230713344


----------



## DammitChrist

Ricochet vs Adam Cole was such a good main-event :trips8

I really liked that segment involving Keith Lee tonight too. He's a pretty likable guy, and they allowed him to show off his charisma with the crowd too. I think tonight may have been the most he's entertained me so far in his NXT run (besides that match against Lars Sullivan months ago). They should let the guy talk more often.



MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Bobby & Kyle getting back together and Roddy getting a singles run actually reassures me that TUE aren't getting called up.
> 
> EDIT: They're defintely building TUE back up to win all the gold
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1095871716230713344


Yep, they're REALLY hyping up all 4 members of the Undisputed Era holding ALL the gold at the same time; which still hasn't happened yet.

I actually think that's going to happen later this year (probably in the summer). Plus, they just revealed tonight that Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish are going to be reuniting as a pair once again while Roderick Strong is going to start becoming a singles competitor. I doubt they're getting called up after Wrestlemania 35, which is great for them because they'll likely avoid being on the main roster for another year by staying on NXT longer!

Anyway, Johnny Gargano vs Velveteen Dream and Aleister Black vs Roderick Strong next week should be thrilling matches :mark: :mark:


----------



## SAMCRO

Um anyone else find Bianca still saying shes undefeated completely retarded? Bitch you lost, YOU. ARE. NOT. UN. DE FEA TED. Its like shes made it her catch phrase or something even though it makes no sense now since she fucking lost.

Aliyah getting a push? one word, why?


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Bobby & Kyle getting back together and Roddy getting a singles run actually reassures me that TUE aren't getting called up.
> 
> EDIT: They're defintely building TUE back up to win all the gold
> 
> 
> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1095871716230713344


I hope you're right, brother. Roddy breaking Johnny Grapples and Dream in half with a Backbreakers, so he can win the NA title is my NXT dream right now :banderas


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Ace said:


> I hope you're right, brother. Roddy breaking Johnny Grapples and Dream in half with a Backbreakers, so he can win the NA title is my NXT dream right now :banderas


Yeah, I'm starting to think....

Cole dethrones Johnny as NXT Champ (can't come soon enough)
Roddy dethrones Dream as NA Champ
ReDragon dethrone WarRaiders as tag champs


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— That opening match couldn't have had less heat and was so boring as a result.

— Wow, Kassius Ohno and the entire tag division got buried.

— Great promo from Keith Lee.

— Really disappointed by the Main Event, Cole and Ricochet's TakeOver match was phenomenal but they introduced some limiter for Ricochet into this match for what... some cheap pops? Why not just let the guys wrestle and get some real pops? I always hate these injury angle matches, they are just so boring and since WWE booking is so transparent and repetitive I know the person suffering the injury is going to win, so I knew Ricochet was winning within the first few minutes of this only making the match even more boring as I had zero investment in any of the near falls because I had no doubt in my mind that Ricochet was winning. The one props I will give to this match is Ricochet did a surprisingly fantastic job in falling in such a way that it seemed he was protecting his injured leg and being careful not to use his injured leg during moves. That is usually an extra layer of shit in these sorts of matches when we watch a part worked over for a century only for the person to then use that part for their comeback and the commentators talking about some bollocks like “adrenaline” or something. These sorts of matches just suck.

— So Ricochet is the NA Number One Contender again then? Weird he lost the title and they cycled him straight back in again, although it looks like Black is now in the picture as well? Poor Black, the perennial third wheel. Dude should be main eventing TakeOvers, not being bolted on as a side dish to other feuds. Fucking DIYHole.

— So we thinking they are gonna split up Undisputed? Seems like all of their plans are failing, they are losing all their matches and there seemed some real awkwardness when Strong mentioned going after Singles gold. I don't really know if it is beneficial to have them break up really or not.


----------



## Rookie of the Year

Just finished this week.

I liked the opener until Dijakovic hit that corkscrew dive. My immediate thought was, "just because you can, doesn't mean you should." Dives are a dime a dozen in WWE nowadays, but at least leave it to the smaller guys so they've got some kind of calling card. Dijak is good enough with his speed and great displays of strength (Admittedly, I dig his finisher because I used a version of it as my finisher in one of the recent WWE 2K games). Thorne did well, think he has a higher ceiling than jobber though.

Ohno actually leaving or is it part of a bigger storyline?

Liked Profits vs. Humberto and Stacy. The back suplex on Stacy looked scary as hell, glad he was seemingly okay to continue and do some cool flashy shit. Profits seemed a bit heelish at times too, intriguing.

Conti vs. Aliyah was interesting, but it was funny seeing them go pretty heavy on the MMA inspired offense and then scurry off when the real MMA fighter, Baszler, showed up.

Ricochet vs. Cole was a quality TV main event, but I'd have been shocked if it wasn't. Nice to see Ricochet do a good job selling for the most part- he even let out a little grimace/gasp when he hit the finish.

Black and yellow brand delivered on just about all cylinders. Keen to see the Road To Takeover roll on like this.


----------



## Piers

Always nice to see the superior wrestler go over, great main event performance by Ricochet.


----------



## Jedah

DammitC said:


> Yep, they're REALLY hyping up all 4 members of the Undisputed Era holding ALL the gold at the same time; which still hasn't happened yet.
> 
> I actually think that's going to happen later this year (probably in the summer). Plus, they just revealed tonight that Kyle O'Reilly and Bobby Fish are going to be reuniting as a pair once again while Roderick Strong is going to start becoming a singles competitor. I doubt they're getting called up after Wrestlemania 35, which is great for them because they'll likely avoid being on the main roster for another year by staying on NXT longer!


Or they could just be preparing them for their role on the main roster.

Maybe this is something they wanted to do last year but couldn't because of Bobby's injury, but it doesn't sound like there's much for NXT to gain if TUE holds all the gold. We've basically been there already.

Unless they want to build Riddle up to be the one that takes them down.



SAMCRO said:


> Um anyone else find Bianca still saying shes undefeated completely retarded? Bitch you lost, YOU. ARE. NOT. UN. DE FEA TED. Its like shes made it her catch phrase or something even though it makes no sense now since she fucking lost.
> 
> Aliyah getting a push? one word, why?


Yeah, she needs to stop saying it. Even if she's supposed to be a deluded heel, she just sounds _stupid_, not arrogant.

As for Aliyah, she's not getting a push. She was just there for Shayna and her two goons to look tough in dismantling, even though it doesn't work because we know those three vacuums get geeked out whenever they encounter the Sky Pirates. The other two looking like hapless morons doesn't help either.

That title can't get around Io's waist soon enough. I just hope those two worthless wastes of space don't get called up with Shayna to pollute our TV screens after Mania. They're nowhere near ready to do anything.


----------



## ellthom

Good episode this week.

Dijakovic showing of some of his range in a match with Shane Thorne. And I really hope Thorne picks himself up too. Must suck having to start from the bottom and rebuild yourself. But Buddy Murphy managed to pull it off so who knows. Not sure where Dijakovic goes from her eon in, no doubt a big feud is waiting for him soon, I do fill they are going to continue to build him until the summer.

Not sure what that Ohno promo was about. Is he leaving? I don't see it, I do think he'll be sticking around maybe has a hand backstage. I expect his next feud will be with Keith Lee

Next was a great match from Profits vs. Humberto and Stacy. Love the heelish attitude towards on the Profits not sure if thats a hint towards a heel turn or just a more aggressive side they are showing.

The Undisputed Era promo was interesting. I do honestly think these guys are at the level where they just don't have anything for them. They are a bunch of losers at this point. They go out there put on great matches and then lose. More so is this present in Adam Cole. If I was Undisputed Era i'd cat the fat. Adam Cole to Undisputed Era is what Brya Wyatt was the to the Wyatts, in that he's all talk but can never get the job done. 

Conti vs. Aliyah was up next. And what are they doing to Conti? When she was in the MYC she came out with this swagger and attitude, now she is coming out skipping and smiling. Not a fan if this is what they got her doing now. She at least shows a little bit of attitude in the ring so that was good enough. Not sure she deserved to lose to Aliyah of all people but at least Vanessa is on screen 

Also the beat down from Shayna and co after the match was fine, I mean I really am getting go away heat whenever Shayna and Co come on screen now. I would have rather seen more development between Aliyah, Tessa and Conti to be honest. Shayna has reached that point where she has just become boring to me. And she is supposed to be champion. If all this is just to lead to Kairi v Io for the womens championship I will bear it.

Ricochet vs. Cole was fun, not as good as their PPV match, but some great selling by Ricochet. Would have preferred Adam Cole to win only because we have seen Ricochet win between them before. Adam Cole while is regarded as one of the top talent of Nxt is pretty much it's Ziggler at this point.


----------



## RiverFenix

Dijakovic is a freak. Big Show will have a talk to him abouthis flippy shit if he ever makes the MR though - especially in throw away television matches. I don't like his "Feast your eyes" taunt/catchphrase though as it doesn't seem to fit his character. Just find another tag partner for Thorne - newly signed Jonah Rock would be damn near perfect. Rock gives Thorne something very different than Mikey Nicholls offered so it would be a fresh reboot and they could be instant contenders with main roster potential. Thorne as a singles is going nowhere. 

That suplex on Ervin was scary dangerous. I think he expected to be able to reset his body balance to come down flat and safe but over rotated at the top initially and Ford went for the quick drop rather than pause for a half second at the top. Not sure why Ervin is already being used on television unless they're fast tracking him worried he could lose interest and leave and well he sorta has that quasi-famous fiancee and all...

Where is Raul Mendoza? Injured? Humberto Carillo should have spent more time in NXT with a push rather than jobbing here and then being mostly lost in the shuffle on 205 Live. He could be special if handled properly - unfortunately looks like he's being wasted. 

Aliyah should have been sent over to NXT UK for a stint. I actually think she's a bit underrated in-ring, but she's been a nothing jobber for so long it's just tough to get any traction now with any sort of push. Same with Bourne and even Taynara - none have the rub to give and beating each other does nothing, or does feuding with each other. Aliyah tapping Conti is sorta dumb booking as Conti is the judo blackbelt - that should be more her area of expertise than being caught in a sub from freaking Aliyah. I couldn't care less about a Bourne/Aliyah team of any sort. Over in NXT UK if you put Aliyah with Jinny that might have offered what they probably will try to do with Vanessa and Aliyah. All these women need to be paired up with other acts so it's not a case of seeing them wrestle once every two months and usually losing at that. 

This segment was booked terribly - any heat you might have got for Aliyah and Vanessa was pissed away by having them stomped by Shayna, Marina and Jess. Marina should flip up and down that protective mask as well. When they're standing around posturing and posing she looks sorta ridiculous with it on. 

Adam Cole loses again. Yawn. You don't get your heat back with a post match beatdown when you always. friggin. lose. the. match. first. 

I'm sorta tired of Ricochet as well - his main roster call-up can't happen soon enough.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

My write-up on Cole v. Ricochet last night.



> Overall this wasn't better than their match in Brooklyn last year but it did have some aspects that I think were better. I think the progression of this match was better than Brooklyn as this build was slow but beautiful. They started very heated as they are rivals and then Cole exposed the knee of Ricochet and worked it over really damn good. Credit to Ricochet here because his selling is usually ass but in this match it was f*cking amazing. This match wasn't clean in all aspects, there were some sloppy aspects but it made the match better. Ricochet only using one leg on his dives was beautiful even if he didn't land smoothly. This match never hit the high octane pace that Brooklyn did but that was fine because the story of the leg didn't need it. I also loved how Cole remained consistent in his work over the leg even down to their striking stretches. The finish was pretty good, this match was pretty long but I felt it could've went even longer. My current MOTY.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Solid episode this week, potential long term planning scattered in parts...

Dijakovic vs Thorne was a nothing match but had good use of psychology. It's about time they did more with Dijakovic though, few matches here and there isn't going to get him over despite being able to do impressive things. They need to delve into his character more.

They seem to be going down the long term route with Undisputed Era at the minute, by the end of 2019 they'll either have all the belts or they'll split up. Interesting that O'Reilly will be partnering Fish again and Strong will go back to singles but it makes sense, reDRagon were always one of my fave teams on the indies while Strong is much better as a singles competitor than Fish. I guess Strong could go after the North American Championship soon.

As I said last week unsurprisingly it looks like Io vs Bianca could be in the works to decide a Number 1 contender.

Lee was finally able to show his charisma in that segment with Ohno, good mic work.

It was nice to see a serious side of the Street Profits but I guess it was a way to make a statement. That suplex on Ervin was nasty looking though, ref was soon over to check on that one. As for Ervin he's been getting good reviews from the NXT house show regulars, I fully expect we'll see more of him sooner rather than later. Carrillo deserves a push, the guy is entertaining.

Skipped Taynara vs Aliyah, who on earth thought this match was a good idea fpalm

I quite liked the main event because we got to see Ricochet in a different light, he's had too many spotfests in NXT so far for my liking; however here it was nice to see him display a great selling job. The overall standard was pretty average but they told a decent story, Adam Cole as usual told a story through his great mannerisms, Ricochet told a story through his selling. Ricochet dropped the selling down the last stretch though but I'll class that as having "momentum". As for Cole he lost again but this episode really focused on the Undisputed Era, I think this was the start of a long term plan for them.


----------



## Mear

Christ, Adam Cole is such a jobber. Great selling by Ricochet but it just makes the whole thing worst, can he even beat anyone at this point ? How am I supposed to take him seriously when all he does is losing again and again. It's especially bad when the tag team however is actually booked pretty well and seen as a major threat. However, that was a cool match that I really enjoyed.

Otherwise, it wasn't a bad episode. I liked the tag match despite this awful looking back suplex and Humberto stealing his match once again, Keith Lee had a good showing with the mic and the burn of Mauro to Bianca " And now, someone who is ACTUALLY undefeated " was really funny


----------



## Death Rider

Match was amazing. However yeah whilst Cole is not a jobber yet he needs to pick up some wins soon again


----------



## The Masked Avenger

New episode, some of you guys don't seem to be reading the tea leaves:

Dijakovic has a big future in NXT based on the repackage, the promo videos and the crowd reactions. Right now he is waiting on the Lee/Riddle/Ohno feud to end but they are keeping him on screen so you don't forget about him. Unfortunately, Thorn lost his partner but they included him in the Worlds Collide Tourney, so they like him it's just going to be a bit to package him as a singles guy since everyone only knows him as a tag guy.

The Undisputed Era has been on top since they showed up. This constant losing is not by mistake. They aren't going to break up either and the constant mentioning that they will hold all the gold will happen before the end of the year. 100% guarantee. I feel like they tried to keep Kyle and Roddy together but Fish didn't look good in his singles matches so they opted for Roddy to be the guy to go after the NA title.

Ohno is not going anywhere. His promo might be Triple H's subtle jab at AEW since most people who watch NXT are a big enough wrestling fans to get the reference. I do believe Ohno is a trainer at the Performance Center and this might be a way to write him out.
Lee should move on to Dijakovic or turn against Riddle.

The Street Profits are the next man up for the tag belts. They have been getting good results and the crowd likes them. Marcel and Fabian, Ones and Twos, even Moustache MT. are all UK teams and I can't see them being real competition. HHH probably didn't expect to lose The Mighty and Heavy Machinery so early. Someone mentioned go-away heat and I couldn't think of anyone getting real go away heat in NXT but The Forgotten Sons absolutely get that. With them being a small roster with limited amount of TV space I can see segments and wrestlers that get absolutely shit on have short shelf lives. They could get repackaged soon or soon angle to write them off considering all the tag guys out in the episode and they weren't one of them.

Carillo is fantastic and I wish he would get a push in NXT but he's on 205 Live now if you didn't hear them mention it about 205 times. He was in the match as an advertisement for 205 and he made the SP look great because that's what he does. Mendoza was not in the match because they are probably still high in him and didn't want him to eat the pin. I'm glad Stacy was ok after that botch because that looked brutal.

The Aaliyah/Conti match was solely for the Shayna beatdown afterwards. Conti has only won 1 match out of maybe 3 on NXT TV so her losing is no big deal. Aaliyah gets a throw away win with help from Bourne who was out there just so they don't have to do another segment where Shayna is angry. The last time she put everyone on notice when they were all in the locker room. This times she is being more aggressive because she has lost to Kairi for the title once, she would have lost to Bianca if the ref had not been knocked out and she was the one pinned in the tag match by Io. She feels a bit vulnerable and is using intimidation to scare people from challenging her. 

The Cole/Ricochet match was good. Normally I don't like the injury angle in a match but I thought Ricochet sold it well. Even the end where he was putting weight on his knee he was selling the pain in his screams. Overall great match, not better than Takeover though.


----------



## Piers

Thorne is a great wrestler they need to repackage him.

I wish they signed Amber Nova full time. She's a total package


----------



## rbl85

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Thorne is a great wrestler they need to repackage him.
> 
> I wish they signed Amber Nova full time. She's a total package


She look bad in her tag match against Io and Kairi.

But it was just one match


----------



## Jedah

Really good episode today....except for the women's stuff. Surprise surprise.

Black vs. Roddy was obviously going to be a good match no matter what. Black might be low key one of the best sellers in the business.

Xia Li has improved rapidly. Good for her. I'd have had her win the match. But then the good stuff goes by the wayside. The more the horseshitwomen appear, the less intimidating they get. Just fucking boring. Shayna is without question the worst thing that ever happened to the NXT women's division.

Dream vs. Gargano. :mark :mark I had a feeling Dream would win. Ciampa staring down like an ominous bastard really sold the match. I think their story is going to conclude in New York, especially now with them both being quasi-main roster members.


----------



## DammitChrist

The opening match between Aleister Black and Roderick Strong was decent. I'd love to see them have another singles match with even more time because I'm sure that both guys can steal the show 

That main-event between Johnny Gargano and Velveteen Dream was very good! I thought it was an awesome watch! The match took a while to pick up, but when it did, the action and sequences got more exciting. The finish was really well done :banderas

A very good ending for a fun episode


----------



## Buhalovski

Thank god Velveteen isnt coming to the main roster anytime soon.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— The opening match was fine for what it was. Of course it was, it was a match between Strong and Black. That being said this story is a bit weird, no mention of the call ups on commentary (this came later in a video package bolted in the middle of the show, I guess deliberately buried into the show so no one saw that stupid DIY crap or Ricochet no selling his injury, contradicting the NXT storylines), Black just randomly saved Ricochet last week and is now facing Strong in response to that? Okay? This story feels like it is on fast forward, where is the beginning of this story? In fact, where is the middle for that matter??? 

— Oh shit is that Jeremy Borash? I am happy at the potential of Riddle being pushed to the top of the card but it seems a shame for that to be the case at the expense of Black and Ricochet potentially being shipped off to the MR to be mishandled.

— Baffled and elated by the Main Event. Genuine surprises are rare in wrestling, Dream with a Title gets no complaints from me and I guess this feeds into the wider story of Gargano needing Ciampa after all sort of maybe??? But man Gargano really lost the title in his first defence? I feel like that is damaging for him but in some senses damaging to Ricochet too. He lost the title to someone who lost it on his first defence to someone Ricochet has already beaten and what is Ricochet doing right now, limp ins to save Black in that muddled non story? Fantastic.

— As a match, it was about ten minutes too long for me. The closing sequences were fantastic, especially as Gargano had kicked out of obvious places to go down if he was going to go down at all, really making it mean something when Dream actually took it at the end but I actually thought the opening half or so of the match was really boring. I don't know why the long feeling out process was necessary anyway but in the context of the match it didn't really work either. It started hot, cooled right off, then went hot again. When it went hot for the go home stretch the two guys were countering each and every move thrown their way which suggests to me they know one another in the ring well enough for that whole feeling out portion to be completely unnecessary. Which it was.


----------



## Erik.

Riddle looks constantly high :lmao


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Gargano/Dream last night was utterly fantastic. Time for Johnny to get the TOP GOLD.

:mark:


----------



## RainmakerV2

Gargano and Dream was great. The lack of selling at the end was kind of ridiculous...but thats pro wrestling in 2019.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

That was likely my least favorite Black or Strong match I've seen in WWE. I'm shocked (pun intended) because Roderick Strong is like my top 2 favorites at the moment, a tad cooled off since 2018. I felt it was so much action, so much back and forth, I can't remember anything specific because it all blended together like a Jason Bourne fight scene. Black and Strong both have a ton of offense and I don't think they meshed well, both going back and forth at that speed. Honestly, some more rest holds would have done wonders. I was bored despite the high intensity. Perhaps they planned for a shorter match but were given more time, deciding to throw in an equal amount of action?

The rest was fairly good. The women's match was decent, fine run in at the end. 

The Main Event was sick. That was a great match, great pace, great false finishes. I knew they taped two endings and I wasn't spoiled on which was chosen so that helped.


----------



## TD Stinger

Just realized I hadn't given my thoughts on this week.

*Aleister and Roddy had a really good crisp match. That drop onto the steps by Roddy looked liked it sucked to take and was unique.

*I liked the flashes of potential and Xia Li. And I was more entertained the Mia then I usually am with her, though it's not saying much.

*God Riddle's voice man. Like, he's getting better. But that voice was just not made for promos.

*Gargano vs. Dream was a great main event. Great action and a good story of Dream frustrating Gargano enough make him lose his cool and pick the win.


----------



## SUPA HOT FIRE.

The Gargano/Dream match was magnificent. Straight up PPV-quality.


----------



## Piers

Man the women's division on NXT is abysmal these days. 

The show needs Chelsea Green with a cool character like the one she had in TNA. Or Santana Garrett as Samuel Shaw's crazy girlfriend


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

SUPA HOT FIRE. said:


> The Gargano/Dream match was magnificent. Straight up PPV-quality.


Agree. Gave it another watch, great match.



They Call Him Y2J said:


> Man the women's division on NXT is abysmal these days.
> 
> The show needs Chelsea Green with a cool character like the one she had in TNA. Or Santana Garrett as Samuel Shaw's crazy girlfriend


Shayna's boring ass and her two lackeys who can barely put one foot in front of another without tripping ruined the entire women's division. :lmao It's actually hilarious to watch every week.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole vs. Velveteen Dream is imminent :mark: don't add Matt f*cking Riddle to this sh*t please.


----------



## TD Stinger

My boy Keith singing his own theme. Also, it sounds like he also does vocals for his girlfriend Mia Yim's theme.


----------



## Reil

NXT Mini Review:

- While I see potential in Xia Li and Taynara Conti, I see absolutely *zero* potential in Aliyah and Vanessa Bourne.

- I enjoyed what we got to see of Big Boy Brawl (Dijak vs Lee), and I hope they are the non title match at Takeover.

- Io vs Bianca should be a fine little match, although I think it's Io's time to get a singles match at a Takeover. Not to mention Bianca is STILL running around acting like she's undefeated. It's obnoxious and no one is buying it.

- Shayna vs Mia was a good match, and no J&M Security in sight. Maybe this means WWE finally realized that Jessamyn and Marina have absolutely no business being on TV right now. Although this pretty much wipes out yet another contender to Shayna. Io is the only person Shayna has yet to beat in NXT.


----------



## Jedah

This was an episode that exceeded my expectations. Not great, but not bad.

Nice promo by Ciampa and Gargano. Really good facial expressions by the latter. You can tell the climax to this story is on the way.

Why that women's tag team match happened, I have no idea. Why Aliyah and Vanessa won, I have no idea. They need to release more people. Xia Li is the only one that's making notable improvements. Taynara has a good look but she hasn't gotten anywhere. The other two are useless.

I'm all down for Dream vs. Cole. Great segment. :mark

Great teaser match between Lee and Dijakovic. Will we see it at a TakeOver.

Why the fuck is Bianca still in the title picture?

That was Mia Yim's best match, but it was on her selling more than Shayna, who was robotic again. You can tell the crowd is beginning to turn on her.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> NXT Mini Review:
> 
> - While I see potential in Xia Li and Taynara Conti, I see absolutely *zero* potential in Aliyah and Vanessa Bourne.
> 
> - I enjoyed what we got to see of Big Boy Brawl (Dijak vs Lee), and I hope they are the non title match at Takeover.
> 
> - Io vs Bianca should be a fine little match, although I think it's Io's time to get a singles match at a Takeover. Not to mention Bianca is STILL running around acting like she's undefeated. It's obnoxious and no one is buying it.
> 
> - Shayna vs Mia was a good match, and no J&M Security in sight. Maybe this means WWE finally realized that Jessamyn and Marina have absolutely no business being on TV right now. Although this pretty much wipes out yet another contender to Shayna. Io is the only person Shayna has yet to beat in NXT.


Jessamyn sent out a tweet yesterday saying that she's working the Raw House show loop with Natalya(probably replacing Rousey). So, if anything they're doing the opposite.


----------



## DammitChrist

I wasn't watching NXT (unfortunately) when they were still around, but boy was it fucking cool to see Sasha Banks and Bayley return home to NXT tonight :drose

That opening segment with Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa was solid. It should be cool to see how their alliance falls apart in the Dusty Rhodes Classic tournament :mark:

DIY, Moustache Mountain, Aleister Black/Ricochet, Oney Lorcan/Danny Burch, Fabian Aichner/Marcel Barthel, Undisputed Era, and Street Profits all being in the tournament :trips8

Dominick Dijakovic vs Keith Lee was a fun match. I'd love to see them face each other again soon after the double-count out finish tonight 

It's looking like they're setting up a feud between Velveteen Dream and Adam Cole :mark: :mark:

The main-event match between Mia Yim and Shayna Baszler was decent 

Yep, tonight's episode was solid


----------



## TD Stinger

New episode thoughts:

*Gargano continues to straddle the line of face and heel. I will say that no matter the ups and downs of the Gargano/Ciampa story, moments like this always get me. Ciampa saying that this all started in the Dusty Classic really resonated with me.

Because Gargano and Ciampa made their debuts in the 1st Dusty Classic in 2015, and it's where their runs began. Loved that line. And Ciampa continues to manipulate Johnny for his own gain. That I like.

What I don't like is Candice continuing to only exist whenever Johnny comes around. She can do more ya know.

*Vanessa Borne and Aliyah are hilariously bad. Vanessa has the look, the entrance, etc. But got she is awful in the ring. Everything she does is in slow motion and looks like it barely connects.

Taynara and Xia Li are clearly still learning as well, but I see flashes of potential there.

*HOSS FIGHT BITCHES!

Finally Lee and Dijak(ovic) finally get a shot to just show their stuff together. Big strikes, athletic moves, everything. The crowd ate everything up and so did I. And since they went to a non finish, PLEASE let them go at it at Takeover New York.

*Seeing Bayley & Sasha get mega star reactions in NXT was cool to see.

*The Mia vs. Shayna match was a nice little gem of a match. Mia sold her leg very well and sold it consistently. And Mia did some cool things to work aroudn the injury to damage Shayna, before Shayna was able to over take her.


----------



## DirectorsCut

WWE needs to go all in on Dominik Dijakovic and booked correctly can make waves on the main roster.


----------



## Buhalovski

Finally some attention to Keith Lee. New theme song(which is a total banger) plus feud with somewhat relevant wrestler. Glad to see it, cant wait for the rematch.


----------



## Asuka842

Shayna really needs to move up already. The entre division has been stuck in a standstill for her entire title run. Having her best Kairi at Evolution, and then win the rematch was a mistake.

And having her decimate the division like this so soon after Asuka did the same wasn't a good idea either. Let her drop the belt and move up so that the NXT women can move forward.

The division went from one of the most exciting, to one of the most boring sadly.


----------



## SAMCRO

NXT will be so much better once Ciampa, Gargano and Shayna leave. 

I mean just imagine Adam Cole actually being able to get into the NXT Title picture, i know crazy thought aint it? And actually having a main storyline that isn't about Ciampa and Gargano's friendship, personally i don't get why so many still jerk off to those two's storyline, its beyond played out, they've been feuding for like 2 years straight people get over it already.

Basically the Womens division and the NXT title picture feel like they're just overtaken and being held hostage by Shayna, Gargano and Ciampa, everything revolves around them and no one else stands a chance.

Was it worth it Triple H putting the title back on Shayna just so she could parade around with those two talentless lackeys as her back up? cause thats the only reason he did it, he got a hard on at the thought of a womens MMA stable with Shayna leading them as the champion.


----------



## DammitChrist

SAMCRO said:


> NXT will *be so much better once Ciampa, Gargano* and Shayna *leave.*


Yea, not really. Losing Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano would be big losses for NXT in terms of quality (especially with the pair of Aleister Black/Ricochet leaving soon too).



> I mean just imagine Adam Cole actually being able to get into the NXT Title picture, i know crazy thought aint it?


Yea, I mean just imagine not being patient enough for Adam Cole to inevitably get his moment in the main-event later in the summer when NXT has clearly been hyping up all 4 members of Undisputed Era to hold gold at the same time at some point this year (which STILL hasn't happened yet). That's a crazy thought too, right unk2



> And actually having a main storyline that isn't about Ciampa and Gargano's friendship, personally i don't get why so many still jerk off to those two's storyline, its beyond played out, they've been feuding for like 2 years straight people get over it already.


Gee, maybe it's because many people find their segments to be entertaining (especially since Ciampa and Gargano tend to get the hottest positive crowd reactions on a weekly basis, so God forbid NXT heavily features them around the main-event scene). Maybe it's because their storyline is pretty damn compelling for many fans. Maybe it's also because the matches involving Ciampa and Gargano are usually pretty damn good. 

Both of those guys getting moved up from NXT will likely suck because it's highly unlikely that the creative team will give them any material/storylines that are as good as they are now.



> Basically the Womens division and the NXT title picture feel like they're just overtaken and being held hostage by Shayna, Gargano and Ciampa, everything revolves around them and no one else stands a chance.


Gargano and Ciampa aren't really holding anything hostage when many fans (especially the crowds) are actually supporting the push they're receiving atm. 

You're pretty much just accurate about the women's division though.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Heel DIY? NEXT.

— NXT has done quite a good job of weaving in the reality of certain wrestlers now working Raw and SDL as well but only referencing the parts that don't wreck their continuity and actually organically adopting some of the changes the MR has made to their characters into the NXT stories.

— Keith Lee finally has a proper entrance theme?! Does that mean a push is coming?

— Just like everyone has been asking for for months, they finally let Lee and Dijak just go out there and kill it and man did they deliver. This was so much fun and the best showcase either man has had since they joined. It is amazing how mishandled both men have been over the last year or so but hopefully this is new, better, beginnings.

— Man the Dusty Rhodes is STACKED. Some great matches ahead in this one for sure.

— Nice moment with the Sasha and Bayley homecoming thing.


----------



## SAMCRO

DammitC said:


> Yea, not really. Losing Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano would be big losses for NXT in terms of quality (especially with the pair of Aleister Black/Ricochet leaving soon too).
> 
> 
> 
> Yea, I mean just imagine not being patient enough for Adam Cole to inevitably get his moment in the main-event later in the summer when NXT has clearly been hyping up all 4 members of Undisputed Era to hold gold at the same time at some point this year (which STILL hasn't happened yet). That's a crazy thought too, right unk2
> 
> 
> 
> Gee, maybe it's because many people find their segments to be entertaining (especially since Ciampa and Gargano tend to get the hottest positive crowd reactions on a weekly basis, so God forbid NXT heavily features them around the main-event scene). Maybe it's because their storyline is pretty damn compelling for many fans. Maybe it's also because the matches involving Ciampa and Gargano are usually pretty damn good.
> 
> Both of those guys getting moved up from NXT will likely suck because it's highly unlikely that the creative team will give them any material/storylines that are as good as they are now.
> 
> 
> 
> Gargano and Ciampa aren't really holding anything hostage when many fans (especially the crowds) are actually supporting the push they're receiving atm.
> 
> You're pretty much just accurate about the women's division though.





> Gee, maybe it's because many people find their segments to be entertaining (especially since Ciampa and Gargano tend to get the hottest positive crowd reactions on a weekly basis, so God forbid NXT heavily features them around the main-event scene). Maybe it's because their storyline is pretty damn compelling for many fans. Maybe it's also because the matches involving Ciampa and Gargano are usually pretty damn good.


Sorry i don't find two guys feuding for 2 years to still be exciting and entertaining to me. I don't care how good their matches are or what the crowd reaction is, i personally don't find it that compelling seeing these same damn two guys constantly interlocked with each other for like 2 years straight hogging the main event scene. Heres a crazy thought, how bout those two move on and we get some new compelling story? It is possible other wrestlers can have a compelling story as well ya know. It can only happen though if they ever decide to end Ciampa and Gargano's never ending story.



> Yea, I mean just imagine not being patient enough for Adam Cole to inevitably get his moment in the main-event later in the summer when NXT has clearly been hyping up all 4 members of Undisputed Era to hold gold at the same time at some point this year (which STILL hasn't happened yet). That's a crazy thought too, right


Patient? ffs Adam Cole has been in NXT for 2 and a half years now, he should have already been NXT champion and be ready to go to the main roster. But no he has to sit and wait for Ciampa and Gargano to finish their decade long storyline. Don't talk to me about being patient as if Adam Cole just walked in the door. He debuted attacking the NXT champion, here we are 2 and a half years later and he's never even sniffed the NXT title yet, but yeah i need to be patient don't i? pfft.


----------



## Wrestlefire

ALL HAIL THE LITTLE SQUIRT IZZY!!!

That is all.

Carry on.


----------



## SAMCRO

Loved Keith Lee and Dijakovic's match, just two big studs throwing each other around, and the crowd was into everything they was doing which was awesome to see. Glad Dijak is finally getting a big feud, as is Keith Lee, its perfect cause both of them have kinda been on the sidelines for a longtime.

Dijak is gonna go far, that dude is so unique, i've never seen anyone that tall that does the shit he does.


----------



## ellthom

Keith Lee and DD match was fun. Wasnt a good match but it was fun entertaining match, its like a modern day test of strength. I loved it. Double count-out was the best decision too, hopefully they both have match at the next takeover .

Seeing Sasha and Bayley back in NxT made me happy. I love what WWE are doing with the womens tag titles too. I love this idea of making it a multi-brand. title... ...


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

Adam Cole marks are the worst! If you want to see an Adam Cole championship run, just go back and watch any of Shawn Michaels runs. Of all the things Adam Cole ripped off of michaels the only thing I’m happy with, is the slow build to the title and a mid card run.


----------



## metallon

I felt really happy for Izzy. Maybe she should manage Bayley and Sasha on their next NXT appearence.


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

Adam Cole marks are the worst! If you want to see an Adam Cole championship run, just go back and watch any of Shawn Michaels runs. Of all the things Adam Cole ripped off of michaels the only thing I’m happy with, is the slow build to the title and a mid card run.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

DammitC said:


> .
> 
> 
> 
> Yea, I mean just imagine not being patient enough for Adam Cole to inevitably get his moment in the main-event later in the summer when NXT has clearly been hyping up all 4 members of Undisputed Era to hold gold at the same time at some point this year (which STILL hasn't happened yet). That's a crazy thought too, right unk2


DC, I love you buddy but Adam Cole debuted in 2017. It's been two years, I think we've been patient enough.



NXTSUPERFAN said:


> Adam Cole marks are the worst! If you want to see an Adam Cole championship run, just go back and watch any of Shawn Michaels runs. Of all the things Adam Cole ripped off of michaels the only thing I’m happy with, is the slow build to the title and a mid card run.


:What?


----------



## Reil

NXTSUPERFAN said:


> Adam Cole marks are the worst! If you want to see an Adam Cole championship run, just go back and watch any of Shawn Michaels runs. Of all the things Adam Cole ripped off of michaels the only thing I’m happy with, is the slow build to the title and a mid card run.


Please don't insult my bud Marky's favorite wrestledude. Adam Cole is a great worker, and I think he deserves an NXT Championship run.


----------



## TD Stinger

Lee salivating over another Dijak(ovic) match just like the rest of us.

:mark :mark :mark


----------



## ellthom

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> DC, I love you buddy but Adam Cole debuted in 2017. It's been two years, I think we've been patient enough.


Did you forget Adam Cole won the North American Championship? If he gets the NxT title down the line he gets it, but don't act like the mans been wasted, the man is still one of NxT top 6 right now. I like Adam Cole too but come on...


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

ellthom said:


> Did you forget Adam Cole won the North American Championship? If he gets the NxT title down the line he gets it, but don't act like the mans been wasted, the man is still one of NxT top 6 right now. I like Adam Cole too but come on...


A north american title run that he lost in his first feud, the same title run that consisted of two televised defenses in which one was a squash. Not to mention he's never won a feud in NXT, he's lost every singles match at a takeover he's been in, his biggest singles match victory is against Kassius Ohno or EC3. And he missed two takeovers for no absolute reason in the last calendar year. He may be a part of NXT's 6 but that's moreso due to his talent at this point because of the totem pole of that 6 he's at the very bottom. 

He's had some good moments at times but for the majority of his run it has been an utter disappointment


----------



## Piers

Man that tag team match was bad. I had not seen such a terrible match in NXT in a while. And that comes from a Borne fan (even though I have never said I liked her for her ring abilities). 

I still have no idea what Aliyah and Vanessa's finisher was supposed to be. Conti and Xia were bad too, they both looked green as fuck and Xia has been in developmental territory for three years.


----------



## Reil

NXT mini review:

- Black/Ricochet vs Aichner/Barthel was a fine little match.

- Can the Forgotten Sons go away for like...forever? There is literally no upside to them at all.

- More Dijak and Lee? Sure!!!

- Seems like Dream is setting up multiple feuds for the North American title with Riddle and Cole.

- The Kairi/Io interview was pretty great, and its nice to see that Kairi has offered to step aside so Io can get a shot at the title. Bianca is starting to get incredibly obnoxious, and not in a good way. At this point I don't want to see her win the title simply because her current character arc is god awful.

- Mustache Mountain going over Street Profits was a weird decision but whatever.

- Poor TUE.


----------



## TD Stinger

You know I should have realized that they would air all 4 1st round matches this week but I didn't expect it coming in tonight.

And damn, what a great night of tag team wrestling.

*Black/Rico vs. EU was a great spotfest. Seriously, one of those matches you can't do play by play on. You just have to enjoy it as it's happening. Black and Ricochet are already on the main roster, and Aichner and Barthel will be studs for years to come.

*Oney and Burch brought it like they always do and they told a good story Oney's back. And for not being the biggest Forgotten Sons fan, they did pretty well here.

*Moustache Mountain and Street Profits probably had the most ho hum match of them all, but it was still an athletic and fun match.

*And the main event of TUE and DIY was great. A reminder that Fish can still go in this setting, O'Reilly is great, and the magic is still there with DIY.

Besides that, Dream vs. Riddle is the weird pairing I never knew I wanted but now have to have.


----------



## Donnie

Haven't watched yet, did they mention Chomper is died, or are they waiting until next week?


----------



## Buhalovski

^Next week. 

Dayum, im really trying to like Matt Riddle but he continues being ridiculously bad on the mic. I dont know if its an act or thats his natural way of talking but i really dont buy the gimmick right now...


----------



## ellthom

Watching this is depressing when you know of the news from Ciampa 

Think we have another 2 weeks worth of tapings before we catch up too


----------



## Reil

ellthom said:


> Watching this is depressing when you know of the news from Ciampa
> 
> Think we have another 2 weeks worth of tapings before we catch up too


Next week is the last week of taped episodes.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> Next week is the last week of taped episodes.


Apparently next week is a pretty weak episode.


----------



## Mahmenn

I hope Bianca goes over Shirai and kinda hope Shirai goes over at the same time , damn��


----------



## Piers

Black and Ricochet'd better not pull a Joe/Balor and win this. The win needs to go to the Forgotten Sons or Mustache Mountain


----------



## Reil

Mahmenn said:


> I hope Bianca goes over Shirai and kinda hopes Shirai goes over ��


I don't see Bianca becoming champion any time soon. Her current character arc has soured a lot of people on her (claiming you are undefeated isn't a mindset, contrary to what she says), along with her previous Takeover match against Shayna being one of the worst in NXT history, in regards to the women.

I feel like with the DIY reunion likely being iced due to Ciampa's neck surgery, NXT will need a super hot feud. Kairi vs Io for the title could be that feud.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Loved the presentation of this episode and I just feel like NXT shows how it is done when it comes to that story/wrestling balance the MR always gets so wrong.

— Really disappointed that Burch and Lorcan were eliminated by the Forgotten Sons, would have much rather had Black and Ricochet eliminate the Forgotten Sons and the Hard Bastards eliminate European Union. I really hope it ends on a Moustache Mountain v DIY final. 

— Talking about Moustache Mountain, I really enjoyed their match against the Street Profits. I think the finish was slightly botched but it didn't take away from how fun the match was. What is the jury's decision in a team using the other corner to tag in, is that allowed? I am not sure I have ever seen that before. 

— So hype for a Bro/Dream match for the NA Title.

— Something felt missing from the Undisputed/DIY match but I couldn't tell you what that was. I have to wonder if it just felt that way due to me overhyping it in my head. It told the story it needed to tell though, had some great sequences (and a surprising amount of saggy bits) and Kyle O'Reilly is just the best.


----------



## Ger

Someone asked me these days and therefore I share it here (if it was told before in this thread, then sorry):
Aichner said something in german to Ricochet, he said: "Was ist los, Ricochet?" which is similar to "What`s up, Ricochet?".


----------



## RiverFenix

Forgotton Sons gimmick is nondescript and I wish Jaxon Ryker and his constant intense face would disappear, but Cutler and especially Wesley Blake are pretty damn good in-ring. Physical and grimy - they both outshone Oney and Burch in that match.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just done a bit of catching up, not really had the motivation to watch over the past few weeks, the booking on NXT isn't the best atm.

Only watched Lee vs Dijakovic from last week, got what I expected, another solid fun showing from these two. Lee is starting to show his worth now, he is starting to find his groove in NXT. As for Dijakovic as I've said before they need to delve into his character more, we need to start seeing some promos from him.

As for this week...

Black/Ricochet vs Barthel/Aichner was a really fun match, hard hitting, good pacing, just what I like to see. Barthel & Aichner are underrated and really deserve a push.

Thought the booking of Forgotten Sons vs Lorcan/Burch really hurt the match, they played up Lorcan's back but he just did his normal hard hitting fast paced crazy shit, he also should be the hot tag, not Burch. Forgotten Sons produced some nice teamwork here and there but I still find them very dull.

I expected better from Moustache Mountain vs Street Profits, it was an ok match but nothing more. Two major talking points of the match were botches, Ford tagging from the wrong corner and Moustache Mountain botching their finisher. It's time for Street Profits to turn heel imo, they are a good team but as faces they are getting too annoying and not really doing anything. 

DIY vs Undisputed Era was one of the best NXT TV matches so far this year, fantastic tag team wrestling. Kyle O'Reilly was the MVP of this match, I could watch him wrestle all day, some of his work on Gargano was brilliant to watch. Pacing picked up with Ciampa's hot tag, he delivered about three vicious looking knees to O'Reilly. Good teamwork from both teams, really good pacing too, not that bothered about seeing DIY back together story wise but I appreciate the quality they showed here match wise.


----------



## SAMCRO

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Black and Ricochet'd better not pull a Joe/Balor and win this. The win needs to go to the Forgotten Sons or Mustache Mountain


Yeah i hated it with Balor and Joe, two singles guys just teaming up for the tournament and winning is bullshit, the win needs to always go to a legit tag team. 

I was pulling for Street Profits but for some reason they eliminated them first, i mean i don't get it, they're over as fuck, they're entertaining, good in the ring, why do they refuse to give them a real push? Having them win the Dusty Classic would've been just what they needed to give them a boost and make them feel like real contenders.

I don't get why a team that gets zero reaction Forgotten Sons advanced in the tournament, while Street Profits who are really over and actually invoke a reaction lose.


----------



## Piers

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah i hated it with Balor and Joe, two singles guys just teaming up for the tournament and winning is bullshit, the win needs to always go to a legit tag team.
> 
> I was pulling for Street Profits but for some reason they eliminated them first, i mean i don't get it, they're over as fuck, they're entertaining, good in the ring, why do they refuse to give them a real push? Having them win the Dusty Classic would've been just what they needed to give them a boost and make them feel like real contenders.
> 
> I don't get why a team that gets zero reaction Forgotten Sons advanced in the tournament, while Street Profits who are really over and actually invoke a reaction lose.


I cringe whenever I watch Street Profits, they're typically the kind of team the NXT crowd will dance and sing with because they have that catchy theme song from Team B.A.D but I find the whole gimmick annoying. 

Forgotten Sons have nothing special but I like the idea of wrestlers like Blake who was left aside and comes back to make an impact. Reminds me of Nexus. They haven't done anything memorable so far though.


----------



## SAMCRO

They Call Him Y2J said:


> I cringe whenever I watch Street Profits, they're typically the kind of team the NXT crowd will dance and sing with because they have that catchy theme song from Team B.A.D but I find the whole gimmick annoying.
> 
> Forgotten Sons have nothing special but I like the idea of wrestlers like Blake who was left aside and comes back to make an impact. Reminds me of Nexus. They haven't done anything memorable so far though.


They can be a bit over the top at times, but Montez Ford is really good, dude gets some major air for that Frog Splash, and he has some swag about him and a natural charisma. He's also great when he gets pissed and turns serious and gets all intense.

They seem to be the Enzo and Cass of this era, crowd loves them, they're entertaining, but they seem to lose alot and can't ever seem to get to that next level. But i can understand why some would not like them and cringe at times.

I do see some promise with Blake and Cutler but i dunno the whole gimmick and stable has kinda fallen flat so far, and Ryker is awful, dude only knows how to make one expression and he thinks it makes him look like some intense bad ass and its annoying.


----------



## J-B

Ryker gets right on my nerve. Gets pushed as the strongest member of the group because he’s the jacked one yet he has the charisma of a fucking teaspoon.


----------



## Mahmenn

SAMCRO said:


> They can be a bit over the top at times, but Montez Ford is really good, dude gets some major air for that Frog Splash, and he has some swag about him and a natural charisma. He's also great when he gets pissed and turns serious and gets all intense.
> 
> They seem to be the Enzo and Cass of this era, crowd loves them, they're entertaining, but they seem to lose alot and can't ever seem to get to that next level. But i can understand why some would not like them and cringe at times.
> 
> I do see some promise with Blake and Cutler but i dunno the whole gimmick and stable has kinda fallen flat so far, and Ryker is awful, dude only knows how to make one expression and he thinks it makes him look like some intense bad ass and its annoying.


Montez Ford is money af , Street Profits should get a tag title reign already


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

I finally got around to watching last week's NXT and I loved it. All the matches were good but I do wanna talk about street profits though because I honestly thought they would've beaten MM but they didn't. I don't get why they just refuse to really push them. They're a fun team that's over as fuck and they do well in the ring. 

I gotta admit seeing DIY back together again was fun and they had one hell of a match with Fish and Riley. 

Also. I'm not too keen on the forgotten sons. Like I don't dislike them but they really need SOMETHING to get me invested in them because them just looking like a low budget Sanity ain't cutting it. 

Io and Bianca #1 Contender match? Cool. And also can they PLEASE stop having Bianca say she's undefeated? She's not. Shayna beat her therefore she has lost so she ain't undefeated. I feel like they should be telling a different story with her now.


----------



## Jedah

Good episode despite a weak opening. The Forgotten Sons still suck.

Io vs. Bianca was better than I heard. Io looks like she's getting over and did decently in her first singles match in NXT but there's still something bothering me that this isn't the Ace of Stardom we're seeing. Hopefully she'll grow into it. Of course, before we can see anything more, we have to see the same old shit from Shayna.

So now we get this fatal four way. The whole thing is a mess. Why is Bianca still in the title hunt? Part of me has the bad feeling that she's there to get pinned but that would be really bad. Shayna is dropping the title for real this time, but Io or Kairi need to beat her clean. Bottom line. It should be Kairi (who should've never lost the title to begin with). I don't think Io is quite ready yet. Have Io turn on Kairi and THEN win the title, after a tag match with Boss n Hug, of course.

Now we get to the main event. Anytime the NXT 6 are there you know good things are coming. This wasn't quite as good as I hoped but still very good, and the show ended in a great way. I'm so saddened that Ciampa looks like he's out. Such a miserable conclusion just as the two year story finally looked set to reach its climax. That's the danger of delaying too long.

Riddle vs. Cole vs. Dream coming? And Lee vs. Dijakovic II next week. :mark


----------



## Mordecay

Decent show, not as good as last week's though

MM vs Forgotten Sons was a match, nothing special and I don't understand why they are pushing the Forgotten Sons

Io/Bianca was also a match, again nothing special until Shayna's interference. I honestly got so mad at the treatment of Kairi in this segment, they made her look like a complete geek. She went to confront Shayna and was choked out inmediately, like wtf? I honestly am not sure if she will be better staying on NXT or being called up, since all 3 divisions are trash atm

DIY/Ricochet and Black was fine, but I guess I am tired of seeing Ricochet and Black. This was their FOURTH TV MATCH IN A ROW (and 7th match in 10 days), I am just exhausted. Second half of the match was great and the ending of the show was good too, too bad we won't see what I imagine was going to be the conclusion of the angle.


----------



## rbl85

You know i'm really confident that Kairi is going to win at takeover New York


----------



## ellthom

Moustache Mountain v Forgotten Sons was a really fun match, and look, I understand why they are trying to push Forgotten Sons, but no one is really going to start giving a shit about them. I want to, but I’d be forcing myself. Also whoever that woman was in the audience during the first match needs to be muzzled. She sounded like a dying cat and it was pissing me off the entire match. I wanted to drill out my ears.

Am I the only one not feeling Matt Riddle? The guy seems cool, and he has a great look, but I am still waiting to see the best this guy can offer. 

Io Shirai v Bianca Belair was okay but really made me realise how much help the womens division needs right now. The mens division on Nxt is the best it’;s ever been in 2018 with a strong top 6 in Adam Cole, Gargano, Ciampa, Ricochet, Velveteen Dream and Aleistir Black. When I try and think of who is the top women are right now there’s really no one solidified at the top outside of Bazsler. I can see the contenders but there’s no one really on the same level. So it just makes everyone but Baszler look weak.

While Aleister Black& Ricochet v DIY was good it’s just like being spoiled when you realise that this feud has pretty much been forced to end. I am very interested to see what happens from this point on. I do feel this Wrestlemania weekend would have been the end of this feud too.


----------



## Buhalovski

Seems like the injury did more damage than expected. 

Now the question is who is able to carry NXT as the next champion? My bet is Adam Cole, it needs to happen. Matt Riddle is too green and Velveteen is busy with the NA title.


----------



## SAMCRO

Forgotten Sons vs Mustache Mountain was good, i'm starting to warm up to Forgotten Sons, Cutler and Blake are really good in the ring and bring the intensity, still not a fan of Ryker though he's awful. Really surprised they went over MM i didn't expect that.

Lol why do they keep putting Shayna on commentary? god shes awful, never mind that she sounds like a 13 year old boy but you can barely fucking hear her, she has no conviction or confidence in her voice, she always sounds like shes improving on the spot with what shes saying and it sounds awful. And i'm not a fan of 4 way matches, especially women 4 way matches, its bound to be a mess.

For the love of god don't have Black and Ricochet win this thing, i fucking hate it when two singles guys teaming up for the tournament win it. I'm not a big Forgotten Sons fan but fuck they better win this, at least they're a real team and will benefit from the win, unlike Black and Ricochet who it will do nothing for cause no one wants to see them as a team. Ricochet and Black is such a stupid fucking team too, it'd be like if Bray Wyatt started a team with Evan Bourne, it makes no fucking sense.

Was that seriously how they're writing Ciampa off tv? cause it was lame as fuck and didn't look nearly bad enough to say he's out for a year over. Also i didn't really understand it, so why did Gargano fake the knee injury? was it is his plan all along to throw the tournament and attack Ciampa? was he just testing Ciampa's loyalty by seeing if he'd have his back in defeat?


----------



## Piers

Ricochet and Black must NOT win this, the win needs to go to a legit team as SAMCRO said.

Also, I hope Gargano didn't turn face so quick after his heel turn. That would make him NXT's Ambrose


----------



## Asuka842

rbl85 said:


> You know i'm really confident that Kairi is going to win at takeover New York


I hope that you're right on that one, she's the one who makes the most sense to vanquish Shayna. Top face beating the top heel, and getting redemption for how weakly her first title reign was booked (having her drop the belt back to Shayna at Evolution ended up being the worst booking decision on that show imo). Then Shayna can hopefully move up (she's done all that there is to do in NXT and the division cannot truly move forward with her still there), and they can hopefully do a gradual Io heel turn and then a title feud between her and Kairi.


----------



## TD Stinger

The tag action wasn't as strong as it was last week.

Moustache Mountain vs. The Sons was OK. Again, not nearly as good as last week for either team. Ryker has a good physical presence as an enforcer. That's the most I got out of it.

Shayna committed dumb heel move #23 by attacking both of her contenders (and Kairi) and now has to face all of them. There are a lot of tropes in wrestling, some necessary. But this one will never fail to make the person who does it look stupid.

DIY vs. Black & Ricochet was a fun spot fest. And I did mark for Gargano's smirk when he revealed he was playing Ciampa. Given everything that's happened now with Ciampa, there's not much else to say which is sad.


----------



## SAMCRO

TD Stinger said:


> The tag action wasn't as strong as it was last week.
> 
> Moustache Mountain vs. The Sons was OK. Again, not nearly as good as last week for either team. Ryker has a good physical presence as an enforcer. That's the most I got out of it.
> 
> *Shayna committed dumb heel move #23 by attacking both of her contenders (and Kairi) and now has to face all of them. There are a lot of tropes in wrestling, some necessary. But this one will never fail to make the person who does it look stupid.
> *
> DIY vs. Black & Ricochet was a fun spot fest. And I did mark for Gargano's smirk when he revealed he was playing Ciampa. Given everything that's happened now with Ciampa, there's not much else to say which is sad.


Yeah i agree, did she seriously think doing that wasn't gonna result in her having to face all of them? When in the entire history of pro wrestling has a heel took out everyone in the number 1 contenders match and didn't end up having to face them all?

Do they think the manager is just gonna go "Oh well guess you don't have to face anyone now" lol they always book them against everyone after that. Its indeed a tired trope that always makes the heel look dumb.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Man fuck the Forgotten Sons, why are NXT pushing this complete garbage? I could imagine few TakeOver matches I'd care about less than Forgotten Sons vs War Raiders for the NXT Tag Titles. I am really worried though that they'll win so Raiders can go up.

— I mean maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised, maybe Black Ricochet will beat FS in like five seconds burying them beyond all recovery like they deserve and then go on to have an epic match with Raiders at TakeOver which would be the right thing to do. I just worry that NXT seem behind FS for some reason and Black Ricochet are a Frankenteam that seem to be half way into a call up so I see them taking the loss in the Final. 

— So Shayna is losing the title WrestleMania weekend, right? She couldn't be any more protected than being in a fatal four way. I hope Shirai wins the title at TakeOver.

— Cole vs Riddle? YES PLEASE. Well as long as Cole isn't doing the whole bitch heel thing... I get the character is that Cole can go but he'd rather just be a dick about it instead but I'd rather just see Cole and Riddle go all out.

— Another Lee and Dijak match? YES PLEASE.

— The main event was fantastic, no surprises perhaps given the guys involved. Maybe a little rougher around the edges than one might expect from these guys but whether unintended or not it worked for the story in play here.

— Talking about the post match angle, what the fuck even is this story any more? The story jumped the shark so long ago now I don't even know what the term is for a story that has lost its purpose so long ago yet just keeps circling the same plot points over and over.


----------



## Chelsea

Good ending, but Gargano should have destroyed Ciampa (you can't put the NXT Champion out of action just like that) and continued his journey as a heel.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

I'm about 99% sure DJZ is coming to NXT. I went to his farewell show in Pittsburgh last night, IWC. He said he wasn't allowed to mention where he was going, but this is last show there. He mentioned he'll be on our TV's very soon. People started chanting NXT and he said "hahaha I didn't say nothing guys!" 

Britt Baker has a match with IWC in June, Christopher Daniels has one in April in OH (Remix Pro). I think AEW isn't being as restrictive as WWE, so it's likely DJZ's new deal is WWE.


----------



## GTL2

Pizzamorg said:


> New NXT.
> 
> — Man fuck the Forgotten Sons, why are NXT pushing this complete garbage? I could imagine few TakeOver matches I'd care about less than Forgotten Sons vs War Raiders for the NXT Tag Titles. I am really worried though that they'll win so Raiders can go up.
> 
> — I mean maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised, maybe Black Ricochet will beat FS in like five seconds burying them beyond all recovery like they deserve and then go on to have an epic match with Raiders at TakeOver which would be the right thing to do. I just worry that NXT seem behind FS for some reason and Black Ricochet are a Frankenteam that seem to be half way into a call up so I see them taking the loss in the Final.
> 
> — So Shayna is losing the title WrestleMania weekend, right? She couldn't be any more protected than being in a fatal four way. I hope Shirai wins the title at TakeOver.
> 
> — Cole vs Riddle? YES PLEASE. Well as long as Cole isn't doing the whole bitch heel thing... I get the character is that Cole can go but he'd rather just be a dick about it instead but I'd rather just see Cole and Riddle go all out.
> 
> — Another Lee and Dijak match? YES PLEASE.
> 
> — The main event was fantastic, no surprises perhaps given the guys involved. Maybe a little rougher around the edges than one might expect from these guys but whether unintended or not it worked for the story in play here.
> 
> — Talking about the post match angle, what the fuck even is this story any more? The story jumped the shark so long ago now I don't even know what the term is for a story that has lost its purpose so long ago yet just keeps circling the same plot points over and over.


The inability of NXT to organize a Dusty Rhodes Classic that means anything is incredible. It could set up a proper tag team to pose a major challenge to the Tag Team title holders but they never manage it. The absence of credible heel teams is the fundamental problem and you just get a bunch of meaningless match ups.


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

Just watched NXT and I gotta say the tag matches weren't as good as last episodes but they're still good though. 

And that fatal 4-way for the women's title is just a way to protect Shanya so she can go up pretty much. 

The Ending for the DIY/Black Ricochet match...It feels like this feud is going in circles now. I really feel like this feud should've ended to 2nd time Gargano and Ciampa faced off which if I remember correctly was Takeover Chicago last year..but correct me if I'm wrong on that.


----------



## Reil

- Forgotten Sons are bad. So is Kona Reeves.

- Bianca Belair has officially jumped the shark into cringe territory with that god awful "undefeated is a mindset" line. No one is buying that. Just like how no one is buying the Kairi/Io will always be friends angle. Io is totally going to stab Kairi in the back for the title at some point.

- Very excited for Adam Cole vs Johnny Gargano in a 2/3 Falls Match at Takeover: NY.


----------



## Mordecay

A one match show and damn what a match. If you don't like indie style wrestling this is not for you, this was a 20 minutes of non stop high spots from 5 of the best NXT have to offer right now and it was super fun.

Bianca is so annoying, I guess that's the point and, if it is, good for them for realizing quickly that she wasn't going to work as a babyface.

Kona is still alive

Finally, Queen Cathy :homer


----------



## TD Stinger

Damn, that video package of Tommaso with is wife and kid got me. Between the family moments and the realization that Ciampa has spent a lot of time in Birmingham in the last couple of years, it was an emotional segment. Get well soon BLACKHEART.

The 5 Way was really good. Everyone got a chance to shine. If I have to pick one MVP, I'd have to go with Matt Riddle. He was on fire and looked great no matter who he was matched up with. The sequences with Dream really got me excited for their match. And now I'm really sad we will never see a Riddle vs. Black match in NXT.

I liked the finish too where you think Ricochet has it won but he's in the perfect position to get hit with the Last Shot.

The only thing that bothered me about this episode, unless I missed something, is they made no mention of Lee vs. Dijak getting canceled. Dissing my boy Lee like that.


----------



## gl83

TD Stinger said:


> Damn, that video package of Tommaso with is wife and kid got me. Between the family moments and the realization that Ciampa has spent a lot of time in Birmingham in the last couple of years, it was an emotional segment. Get well soon BLACKHEART.
> 
> The 5 Way was really good. Everyone got a chance to shine. If I have to pick one MVP, I'd have to go with Matt Riddle. He was on fire and looked great no matter who he was matched up with. The sequences with Dream really got me excited for their match. And now I'm really sad we will never see a Riddle vs. Black match in NXT.
> 
> I liked the finish too where you think Ricochet has it won but he's in the perfect position to get hit with the Last Shot.
> 
> The only thing that bothered me about this episode, unless I missed something, is they made no mention of Lee vs. Dijak getting canceled. Dissing my boy Lee like that.


I think during the entrances, Mauro said something about how they had other matches scheduled for the night, but this match took precedence.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Man, that Ciampa injury really took place at the worst time possible. It's really, really hurt my interest in NXT. Now, no matter who wins the belt at Takeover, you're really looking at a meh situation.

If Johnny wins it, he's Champion but he doesn't get his payoff against Ciampa which will be kind of disappointing.

If Cole wins it, they're giving the title to someone who's been booked like SHIT for almost a full year now and someone who has little to no momentum whatsoever.

It's a really shitty situation.


----------



## Jedah

What a tragedy for Ciampa and that entire two year storyline. Hopefully he recovers soon. Such a tragic way to end his reign.

I give all the credit in the world for them trying to make the most out of it though. It was obvious that Johnny was going to win and that Cole was going to be his next big opponent. Might as well get their feud started now I suppose. Johnny will win and then this feud will probably last until SummerSlam weekend where he'll have his swan song and Cole will finally get his reign.

Awesome fatal five way match too, but there wasn't any way it wasn't going to be with those guys in there.

As for the women's scene, they're already setting up Kairi and Io to turn on each other it looks like. I'm confident that one of them is walking out with the title. I just don't know which one, though I'm starting to inch toward Kairi. Perhaps that's the reason Bianca is still bizarrely in the title picture? Kairi steals the title from under Io's nose in New York, feuds with Bianca until June, and then Io turns on her to set up their own match the night before SummerSlam?

It would be exactly what I predicted when Kairi won in Brooklyn, but later, and it's what should have been happening all along. I still have no idea what the point of Shayna's second reign was. None.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Johnny ain't winning shit, it's Adam Cole's fucking time.


----------



## Dragonballfan

They should just give Cole the belt. Unless UE is getting called up Johnny doesn't need this win anymore


----------



## SAMCRO

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Johnny ain't winning shit, it's Adam Cole's fucking time.


Damn straight, Cole has been more than ready to hold that belt for a long time now, this is long overdo. Its crazy to think he debuted 2 years ago holding the title above his head and hasn't even been near the belt for 2 years.

I know theres alot who think Johnny deserves it but he's had chance after chance after chance, winning it now will just feel like a pitty reign, like "Well here ya go since you tried so many times". 

Adam Cole deserves this so much.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

SAMCRO said:


> Damn straight, Cole has been more than ready to hold that belt for a long time now, this is long overdo. Its crazy to think he debuted 2 years ago holding the title above his head and hasn't even been near the belt for 2 years.
> 
> I know theres alot who think Johnny deserves it but he's had chance after chance after chance, winning it now will just feel like a pitty reign, like "Well here ya go since you tried so many times".
> 
> Adam Cole deserves this so much.


It's the perfect story for Cole, two years after debuting and laying claim for the NXT Title he finally wins it in his first NXT Title match in the same damn arena he made the debut in. 

Cole has been sitting in the background just waiting at the bit for the gargano/ciampa shit to be over and the time has finally come. After months of being under-utilized boom just like that with one huge win he's the hottest act in NXT again. 

There's nowhere to go for Johnny and does no one any favors if he wins it. Cole needs this.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Jedah said:


> What a tragedy for Ciampa and that entire two year storyline. Hopefully he recovers soon. Such a tragic way to end his reign.
> 
> I give all the credit in the world for them trying to make the most out of it though. It was obvious that Johnny was going to win and that Cole was going to be his next big opponent. Might as well get their feud started now I suppose. Johnny will win and then this feud will probably last until SummerSlam weekend where he'll have his swan song and Cole will finally get his reign.
> 
> Awesome fatal five way match too, but there wasn't any way it wasn't going to be with those guys in there.
> 
> As for the women's scene, they're already setting up Kairi and Io to turn on each other it looks like. I'm confident that one of them is walking out with the title. I just don't know which one, though I'm starting to inch toward Kairi. Perhaps that's the reason Bianca is still bizarrely in the title picture? Kairi steals the title from under Io's nose in New York, feuds with Bianca until June, and then Io turns on her to set up their own match the night before SummerSlam?
> 
> It would be exactly what I predicted when Kairi won in Brooklyn, but later, and it's what should have been happening all along. I still have no idea what the point of Shayna's second reign was. None.


Yeah, even with Johnny hot again, it's still a downer. And Cole has little credibility right now with how long and how poorly he's been booked now. It's an awful situation. Whoever wins it is going to have a sub-par reign, tbh. Such a shame. Alot of the starch is gone now.


----------



## Donnie

HHH is at fault for blue balling a feud for two years, and risking a scenario like this one becoming real. He gets no sympathy from me. 

Fingers crossed Cole kicks Grappling the fuck out of NXT


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

NXT will be really fucked for talent if Johnny goes to the main roster along with Black and Ricochet and with Ciampa gone for along time. NXT and it's champions would be following an era that would make them look like shit. Good luck with that.

I'd rather Johnny go to the main roster at this point. The mass exodus of talent in NXT post-Mania is going to make NXT shit. Would rather him not have a shit title run in a shit version of NXT. Fuuuuuuck thatttttt.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Cole & The Era, Matt Riddle, Velveteen Dream, Keith Lee, Dijak & WarRaiders..... yeah sureeee that looks real shitty unkout


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Compared to what it's been for a few years now? That's DEFINITELY a comedown.

:deandre


----------



## Donnie

NXT's been trash since Chicago last year, everyone just wants to pretend it isn't. 

Grappling leaving, and Chomp being out FINALLY clears out the main event scene which has been a baron wasteland, and gives new people a chance.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Just wait to see what it could possibly become in the months to come if anyone thinks it's been trash recently. It can very easily become much, much worse in the months to come. Not going to say it's a guarantee, but it's certainly possible. Hope it doesn't happen. But with no Black, Gargano, Ricochet, Ciampa the roster is nowhere near as loaded as it's been. 

And the Women's division looks just as bad going forward, too.

I hope it doesn't happen as I like NXT, but right now it will be interesting to see what the product will look like in the months and years to come unless they go on a rampage and sign a bunch of guys (and girls) again and reload up the roster. But as of right now, if Gargano or Cole get called up after Takeover, the roster becomes somewhat questionable in terms of depth. And, if they were to call both Gargano and Cole up within the same year of eachother, then damn, it's even more questionable. And by questionable, I don't mean DOOMED. But I mean it's fair to say things become somewhat interesting in terms of what the roster will look like and if it would be as stacked as it's been these past few years. That's all.


----------



## SAMCRO

Ace said:


> NXT's been trash since Chicago last year, everyone just wants to pretend it isn't.
> 
> Grappling leaving, and Chomp being out FINALLY clears out the main event scene which has been a baron wasteland, and gives new people a chance.


Exactly, so many are so blinded by Ciampa and Gargano's feud thinking it was so amazing that anything else in its place will be shit. I think half these people wanted it to go on for another year.

Personally i think that feud should have already been finished and done with months ago, its ridiculous it went on this long. They kept dragging it out and out until one of them finally got injured, now they can't even finish it, idiots. It consumed the main event scene for ages, now others can finally progress and get a chance, it felt so refreshing seeing Riddle and Cole in the main event in the title picture.


----------



## Donnie

SAMCRO said:


> Exactly, so many are so blinded by Ciampa and Gargano's feud thinking it was so amazing that anything else in its place will be shit. I think half these people wanted it to go on for another year.
> 
> Personally i think that feud should have already been finished and done with months ago, its ridiculous it went on this long. They kept dragging it out and out until one of them finally got injured, now they can't even finish it, idiots. It consumed the main event scene for ages, now others can finally progress and get a chance, it felt so refreshing seeing Riddle and Cole in the main event in the title picture.


 Nice to see more people on this side of the fence. 

Yeah, I know for a fact a few posters on here wanted them to tag together until Brooklyn, and then break up again so they could drag this out to next years Mania takeover :andre :lmao 

This feud reached it's logical conclusion last year in NOLA, and they dragged it out until it gave the rest of the show cancer. Like, them taking a potentially amazing story in who attacked Black, and giving to Johnny just so they could keep this going because HHH is a fucking moron. 

I love Chomper, but I pray he never comes back to NXT. Moment he does we'll be back to this mess. 

Also, this "Cole won't have anyone to feud with" narrative is dumb. Riddle/Dream/Lee/Dijak/KUSHIDA. Maybe, they turn Roddy and have him feud with Cole. LOTS of possibilities right there. Anyone saying it is just pissed off that #DIPLEASEY Stan.


----------



## Death Rider

:lol at the show being shit for the last year. Even though there has been plenty of great matches. If gargano is staying in nxt he should win and have a short reign. If he is going to main roster Cole should win. Either way I will be happy tbh


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

Blimey Haitch's announcement was complex. So they aren't tying in Ciampa's injury into Gargano's attack, Gargano has earned a fixed place at TakeOver already, we have a pantheon of Gods in a five way to decide Gargano's opponent at TakeOver and the match at TakeOver is going to be a two out of three falls match. Damn.

The match, in execution, was fun in a way that was pretty much guaranteed when you chuck so many talented guys into a ring at the same time, but it was also because of this reason that in some ways this match was a little disappointing too. The way the match was was structured meant no one really came out of this looking any better really and I dunno if it was because this was a result of a change in plans but the match felt really sloppy and the timing felt off. This was all round very rough around the edges and lots of sequences didn't land as they were clearly intended to. 

I am also kinda confused by the winner, I think we sorta all expected it to be Cole but I, at the same time, don't really get where that match goes. Surely you cant really have him or Gargano lose, so what the hell do you do with that TakeOver match?


----------



## ellthom

Shame about the way they had to break off the Gargano and Ciampa feud which will no doubt go down as one of the best feuds in NxT history. Maybe they'll even continue it on the main roster (god that'll suck if they do), But at least it provides opportunities and possibilities for new champions after Transitional Cole wins the title. We all know if Cole wins it;s for Riddle to win it off him. 

NxT right now has a solid selection of good talent in the mens division that it hasn't had in some time.

I am more concerned with the women's division which seems the flattest it ever has been. And when you got Forgotten Sons going to the finals of the Dusty Classic you know the tag division isn't much better either.

But the NxT6 of Gargano, Ciampa, Ricochet, Black, Dream, Cole has probably been the best the mens division NxT has had, that it;s gonna be hard to beat when they are all gone.


----------



## Reil

The NXT Women's Division is pretty flat right now because Shayna's reign has gone on for far too long and its pretty obvious they are looking for ways to extend it, even though a lot of people have said that its dragging on for way too long now. 

They tried to turn Bianca babyface at one point but it flopped miserably. And I've noticed an uptick of people outright saying that her character is struggling massively right now, even as a tweener/heel. The whole "undefeated" thing is not helping her at all. Putting the title on her and continuing to let her run around and scream about how she's undefeated (even mentally) is going to just completely kill her character. Because no one is buying it, even when she's a heel. It's obnoxious heat. Not the good kind.

Kairi and Io are in a holding pattern that will probably change after Takeover: New York.


----------



## Mordecay

Pizzamorg said:


> I am also kinda confused by the winner, I think we sorta all expected it to be Cole but I, at the same time, don't really get where that match goes. Surely you cant really have him or Gargano lose, so what the hell do you do with that TakeOver match?


They are not afraid of jobbed out Cole if they have to, I think that has been clear for the past 9 months or so. And "Johnny Takeover" has only won like 3 or 4 out of his 11-12 appearences in Takeovers, so they are not afraid of jobbing him out too


----------



## Buhalovski

Showstopper said:


> But with no Black, Gargano, Ricochet, Ciampa the roster is nowhere near as loaded as it's been.


We will see more of Adam Cole as a champion, the development of Matt Riddle, Dominik Dijakovic, Keith Lee. Velveteen could be the main star of the show after awhile. Also theres some debuts waiting too. 

If they keep the current formula and logical booking I dont think it will be that bad as people making it to be.


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

My only concern is Kona getting more tv time now! There is a lot of signed talent sitting waiting to be featured, not in anyway am I saying they are gonna be able to replace ciampa but still we have yet to see the full package with dijak, Lee, riddle, punishment Martinez, and the others that have been signed and just not seen yet. This year is gonna be Cole vs riddle


----------



## Even Flow

Why the fuck is Bianca Belair still going around saying she's UN-DE-FEA-TED? 

She fucking lost to Shayna smh


----------



## Reil

Even Flow said:


> Why the fuck is Bianca Belair still going around saying she's UN-DE-FEA-TED?
> 
> She fucking lost to Shayna smh


I dunno. She's claiming its a mindset now, but no one is buying that.

Unrelated but also related:


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1108731633983807489
Kairi is real mad.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Tsvetoslava said:


> We will see more of Adam Cole as a champion, the development of Matt Riddle, Dominik Dijakovic, Keith Lee. Velveteen could be the main star of the show after awhile. Also theres some debuts waiting too.
> 
> If they keep the current formula and logical booking I dont think it will be that bad as people making it to be.


And compare those names to what they've had the past 3-4 years, and you see the decrease in quality. I don't even think they have anyone in the pipeline (off TV) that they can eventually put on TV, either.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

ellthom said:


> Shame about the way they had to break off the Gargano and Ciampa feud which will no doubt go down as one of the best feuds in NxT history. Maybe they'll even continue it on the main roster (god that'll suck if they do), But at least it provides opportunities and possibilities for new champions after Transitional Cole wins the title. We all know if Cole wins it;s for Riddle to win it off him.
> 
> NxT right now has a solid selection of good talent in the mens division that it hasn't had in some time.
> 
> I am more concerned with the women's division which seems the flattest it ever has been. And when you got Forgotten Sons going to the finals of the Dusty Classic you know the tag division isn't much better either.
> 
> But the NxT6 of Gargano, Ciampa, Ricochet, Black, Dream, Cole has probably been the best the mens division NxT has had, that it;s gonna be hard to beat when they are all gone.


That last paragraph; exactly  But hey, they have ROBBIE E in the pipeline right now. :lmao Anyone who thinks NXT has sucked for awhile now will be in for quite the rude awakening later this year if they call some of these guys up.

Only way they've been right is what you pointed out, that women's division has been TRASH. Worst division in all of WWE. Good to see that everyone sees that.


----------



## DammitChrist

Showstopper said:


> Just wait to see what it could possibly become in the months to come if anyone thinks it's been trash recently. I*t can very easily become much, much worse in the months to come. Not going to say it's a guarantee, but it's certainly possible. Hope it doesn't happen. But with no Black, Gargano, Ricochet, Ciampa the roster is nowhere near as loaded as it's been. *
> 
> And the Women's division looks just as bad going forward, too.
> 
> I hope it doesn't happen as I like NXT, but right now it will be interesting to see what the product will look like in the months and years to come unless they go on a rampage and sign a bunch of guys (and girls) again and reload up the roster. But as of right now, if Gargano or Cole get called up after Takeover, the roster becomes somewhat questionable in terms of depth. And, if they were to call both Gargano and Cole up within the same year of eachother, then damn, it's even more questionable. And by questionable, I don't mean DOOMED. But I mean it's fair to say things become somewhat interesting in terms of what the roster will look like and if it would be as stacked as it's been these past few years. That's all.


Exactly! Removing 4 of the NXT 6 (Ciampa, Gargano, Black, and Ricochet) hurts the quality and star power of the show. The roster was stacked and loaded with all those guys on NXT for the past year. I'd like to keep it that way with Ciampa being gone now. You can still slowly build up the likes of Matt Riddle, Keith Lee, and Dominik Dijakovic in singles competition this year. If Black and Ricochet stay on NXT for a while longer, I'd have them compete in the tag division for a bit so they can give the newer guys more room for singles competition. They can still have singles matches though, but with them ultimately putting over Riddle, Lee, and Dijakovic in the end.



MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Cole & The Era, Matt Riddle, Velveteen Dream, Keith Lee, Dijak & WarRaiders..... yeah sureeee that looks real shitty unkout


Yea, as good as those set of newer names are; that group still doesn't compare to the current NXT 6 in Tommaso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Adam Cole, Aleister Black, Velveteen Dream, and Ricochet with the likes of the other 3 members of Undisputed Era/Pete Dunne (when he's there)/Matt Riddle being secondary relevant characters. 

Losing Gargano, Black, and Ricochet will most likely take a hit on NXT's quality ESPECIALLY with Ciampa being injured now too; which is why I'd rather see them stay on NXT as long as possible with the former world champ being hurt atm.




Ace said:


> NXT's been trash since Chicago last year, everyone just wants to pretend it isn't.


NXT being "trash since Chicago" when it's been entertaining for the past year at least :mj4



> Grappling leaving, and Chomp being out FINALLY clears out the main event scene which has been a baron wasteland, and gives new people a chance.


Nah, Gargano would most likely get wasted if he moved up to the main-roster already. He's better off staying on NXT to feud with Cole over the world title. Plus, most of those new people don't seem to be nearly as compelling nor as hot as the likes of Ciampa, Gargano, Cole, Black, Dream, and Ricochet. I'd rather keep those NXT 6 on the show as long as possible, build up the newer guys (Matt Ridde/Keith Lee/Dominik Dijakovic) in singles competition, and then finally have any of those 6 names (barring the injured Ciampa) put over the newer guys before they eventually leave NXT many months later; but hey, at least you don't have Ciampa around anymore unk2




Ace said:


> Nice to see more people on this side of the fence.


What do you mean by "more people?" :kobe

You mean those same few vocal people who kept bitching/whining about a hot and great feud that kept entertaining the majority of fans with the thrilling matches, segments, and (mini-)feuds over the past year? I bet those who were displeased with the DIY storyline are outnumbered by those who were entertained by it :lol



> Yeah, I know for a fact a few posters on here *wanted them to tag together until Brooklyn, and then break up again so they could drag this out to next years Mania takeover :andre :lmao*


Except nobody on here stated that they wanted that specifically. That's literally just you (and a few others) exaggerating on here as usual :lmao




> *This feud reached it's logical conclusion last year in NOLA, and they dragged it out until it gave the rest of the show cancer.* Like, them taking a potentially amazing story in who attacked Black, and giving to Johnny just so they could keep this going because HHH is a fucking moron.


Okay, I keep hearing how that Unsanctioned match last year was supposed to be the "logical conclusion." It really wasn't. That match was just designed to reinstate Gargano back on NXT. Plus, that was literally Ciampa's 1st match back after returning from injury (and he lost too). There was always going to be more to the storyline besides that.

Plus, imagine claiming that NXT is "cancer" because you aren't fond of an entertaining storyline :lol



> I love Chomper, but I pray he never comes back to NXT. Moment he does we'll be back to this mess.


Sure, because Ciampa should totally risk getting wasted with little direction on the main roster unkout


----------



## MC

So when is Stokely going to show up? We need his brilliance. Fuck it, let's go full on EVOLVE and reunite Catch Point. You got most of the roster already . 

NXT gonna rule when KUSH is announced! kada

And Trev too. Gonna teach the others on how to cut promos and be a compelling face. :


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

This is the best part about NXT. The reset!! Nothing gets over done! No John cena reign of terrors. I excited to see the new faces in new spots!! They should have this as a three tier chart, flush NXT to smack down then smack down to raw. Then acts retire to keep everything fresh


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

This is particularly targeted at DC & Showstopper.... Y'all really think Johnny staying in NXT is going to do NXT any favors ? :lmao:lmao:lmao Hey lets put the title on Johnny just because we need a 3rd of the NXT 6 to stay down here longer while there's literally nothing for him to do or no direction to go (Y)

I'll keep it a bean with you all, y'all saying the NXT 6 is "better" than Cole/TUE, Dream, Riddle, Dijak, Strickland, Keith Lee & Kushida.... even if that was true, I'm going to take the second group of guys over the NXT 6 because I'm 99% sure they will actually be developed and not have to take a backseat or be warped into a two year long feud that did no one favors. At the end of the day I still have Cole & Dream arguably the best two of the NXT 6 those are two NXT megastars right there, I've got Riddle a future megastar, I've got Keith Lee & Dijak two performers who are unlike anything else in NXT, I've got Strickland who will literally replace Ricochet and everything he does and I've got Japan expansion in Kushida. All of those guys will be developed. I didn't even name Pete Dunne who could make the move over to NXT after he drops the title to WALTER. Didn't even name Trevor Lee either !!

And honestly, let's keep it a stack. They were called the "NXT 6" because of how they consistently put on good matches. Four out of the six all took a backseat to the other two, that's starpower for you :lol If you think for one second, Cole/Riddle/Dream/TUE/Lee/Swerve/KUSH/Dijak can't put on just as quality matches and be more developed stars, you're out of your fucking mind.

Hell, I literally almost want to guarantee you Cole/Dream & Cole/Riddle over the NXT Title both will be 10x the feud Gargano/Ciampa ever was :shrug



Ace said:


> Also, this "Cole won't have anyone to feud with" narrative is dumb. Riddle/Dream/Lee/Dijak/KUSHIDA. Maybe, they turn Roddy and have him feud with Cole. LOTS of possibilities right there. Anyone saying it is just pissed off that #DIPLEASEY Stan.


If anyone is saying Cole won't have anyone to feud with they're losing their fucking mind. Where the hell would they go if Johnny won the belt? NOWEHRE :lmao:lmao:lmao it's always best to build around a heel champion and with all the new talent (that are FACES I might add) Cole has tons of challengers, grapples has none


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> This is particularly targeted at DC & Showstopper.... Y'all really think Johnny staying in NXT is going to do NXT any favors ? :lmao:lmao:lmao Hey lets put the title on Johnny just because we need a 3rd of the NXT 6 to stay down here longer while there's literally nothing for him to do or no direction to go (Y)
> 
> I'll keep it a bean with you all, y'all saying the NXT 6 is "better" than Cole/TUE, Dream, Riddle, Dijak, Strickland, Keith Lee & Kushida.... even if that was true, I'm going to take the second group of guys over the NXT 6 because I'm 99% sure they will actually be developed and not have to take a backseat or be warped into a two year long feud that did no one favors. At the end of the day I still have Cole & Dream arguably the best two of the NXT 6 those are two NXT megastars right there, I've got Riddle a future megastar, I've got Keith Lee & Dijak two performers who are unlike anything else in NXT, I've got Strickland who will literally replace Ricochet and everything he does and I've got Japan expansion in Kushida. All of those guys will be developed. I didn't even name Pete Dunne who could make the move over to NXT after he drops the title to WALTER. Didn't even name Trevor Lee either !!
> 
> And honestly, let's keep it a stack. They were called the "NXT 6" because of how they consistently put on good matches. Four out of the six all took a backseat to the other two, that's starpower for you :lol If you think for one second, Cole/Riddle/Dream/TUE/Lee/Swerve/KUSH/Dijak can't put on just as quality matches and be more developed stars, you're out of your fucking mind.
> 
> Hell, I literally almost want to guarantee you Cole/Dream & Cole/Riddle over the NXT Title both will be 10x the feud Gargano/Ciampa ever was :shrug
> 
> 
> 
> If anyone is saying Cole won't have anyone to feud with they're losing their fucking mind. Where the hell would they go if Johnny won the belt? NOWEHRE :lmao:lmao:lmao it's always best to build around a heel champion and with all the new talent (that are FACES I might add) Cole has tons of challengers, grapples has none


:clap :bow :banderas

I agree with EVERYTHING you said. Cole winning opens the show up, and gives new people a chance. Grapples winning means he's redoing the same feuds again, until either Chomp comes back, or he drops it in Brooklyn. Fuck that. 

Sidenote: Watch NXT dramatically improve once Cole wins the belt, and then watch all the current NXT fans say shit like "Oh, it's crap now. Give me my EPIC #DIY feud" :lmao


----------



## TD Stinger

Reading through this thread and it's like guys, shit happens. Injuries happens. Life happens.

Just because Ciampa got hurt at the worst time is not a confirmation they should have ended this sooner or done this or done that. It doesn't mean Adam Cole or anyone else should have been champion sooner. Would the show have been better? Hell if I know. You can't tell me that his stories would have been booked better or prioritized more. There's know way to know.

Point is, when this happens, you pick up the pieces and move on. Which is what they're doing. And again, regardless of who wins at Takeover New York, I think Johnny and Cole are going to be fighting for that title for awhile.

And for everyone begging for Johnny to be shipped off.....why? Like, OK. Let's say Cole wins at Takeover New York and Johnny goes off to the main roster. Cole feuds with who exactly?

Dream's a champion. Let's say he retains his title. Riddle? Why should he get a shot after losing to the North American Champion with no other story ties to Cole. Black and Ricochet are going to the main roster. Ciampa's out for a year. Lee and Dijak aren't established enough yet. Dunne is over in NXT UK.

Like I'm seriously asking, if you all get your wish and Cole wins and Gargano leaves for good, what good option is there Cole going forward in the immediate future while NXT rebuilds after losing 4 big names to the main roster and injuries? Guys who have carried NXT for the past year. Because I don't see it.

Gargano vs. Cole is a feud that could carry NXT for awhile. And that would be my game plan.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Just watched this weeks ep...

Will start with the main event as that was really the only thing worth watching this week. I thought the match was set out perfectly and the pacing was great. 

Cole played the heel role to perfection playing spoiler numerous times, first off he spoilt the Black/Ricochet tease, then he stopped Black hitting Black Mass, pulled the ref out when Riddle was close to victory, then finally stole the win from Ricochet's grasp, Cole finally being booked perfectly. 

Thought Matt Riddle had a great showing here, his wrestling ability is top notch, just a shame he sucks in other areas. That manoeuvre on Black into the Bro Mission especially was brilliant.

Velveteen Dream and Aleister Black have great chemistry, glad the match had numerous sequences between the two.

Of course you had the usual indie spots in there, your typical 5 man sequence then your usual shitty turnbuckle spot :lol

Another negative I have to throw in I'm afraid, Ricochet is starting to bore me to tears, his constant flippy crap is getting tiresome.

Other notes
Matt Riddle might be a great wrestler but his promo ability is getting worse.

The Women's segment was absolutely dreadful, none of those three are Champion material right now.

Cathy Kelley is absolute perfection

Takeover
As for Takeover two things must happen...

Adam Cole must win the NXT Championship 
Velveteen Dream must retain the North American Championship 

If those things don't happen then NXT is dead.


----------



## Erik.

I hate EVERYTHING about Matt Riddle.

Except his ring work. He looks so real in there, a great worker. 

But man, his promos, character, ring attire, face. I hate it all.

Such a fucking shame.


----------



## Mahmenn

Matt Riddle has everything , except a proper gimmick and ring attire.


----------



## Donnie

TD Stinger said:


> Reading through this thread and it's like guys, shit happens. Injuries happens. Life happens.
> 
> Just because Ciampa got hurt at the worst time is not a confirmation they should have ended this sooner or done this or done that. It doesn't mean Adam Cole or anyone else should have been champion sooner. Would the show have been better? Hell if I know. You can't tell me that his stories would have been booked better or prioritized more. There's know way to know.
> 
> Point is, when this happens, you pick up the pieces and move on. Which is what they're doing. And again, regardless of who wins at Takeover New York, I think Johnny and Cole are going to be fighting for that title for awhile.
> 
> *And for everyone begging for Johnny to be shipped off.....why? Like, OK. Let's say Cole wins at Takeover New York and Johnny goes off to the main roster. Cole feuds with who exactly?*
> 
> Dream's a champion. Let's say he retains his title. Riddle? Why should he get a shot after losing to the North American Champion with no other story ties to Cole. Black and Ricochet are going to the main roster. Ciampa's out for a year. Lee and Dijak aren't established enough yet. Dunne is over in NXT UK.
> 
> Like I'm seriously asking, if you all get your wish and Cole wins and Gargano leaves for good, what good option is there Cole going forward in the immediate future while NXT rebuilds after losing 4 big names to the main roster and injuries? Guys who have carried NXT for the past year. Because I don't see it.
> 
> Gargano vs. Cole is a feud that could carry NXT for awhile. And that would be my game plan.


Marky and I listed all the names in this thread. Just because you and everyone else want to say "Oh, they aren't established enough. It HAS to be to Johnny" doesn't make it true. 

How the fuck is anyone meant to be established if we have to circlejerk Grapples for another year? 

It's baffling that so very few us can see how fucked NXT is, and will be if this continues, but no one else wants to admit it.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

You have zero options if Johnny wins the title. If Johnny wins he never beat Ciampa and gets and underwhelming sympathy title win and that also makes Cole looks way worse in the process. "Hey Adam, Johnny couldn't beat Ciampa but he can beat you two out of three times easy." Johnny's time has come and it's gone, he should not win the strap and they should not carry Cole/Gargano past New York.

Some of you just don't get it, I literally just said it.... Cole is a heel champion with a gang of babyfaces waiting in the bit. This is not the main roster where you have 4 weeks to build a challenger for a PPV you have four months until the next takeover. In that time after Cole wins you begin the progression of the next challenger, whether it's Riddle, Dream, Dunne, Lee, Swerve, KUSH, etc. You have FOUR MONTHS.


----------



## DammitChrist

Ace said:


> Marky and I listed all the names in this thread. *Just because you and everyone else want to say "Oh, they aren't established enough. It HAS to be to Johnny" doesn't make it true. *
> 
> How the fuck is anyone meant to be established *if we have to circlejerk Grapples for another year?*


Who the fuck is implying that Gargano should be in the NXT world title scene for another year? :lmao

I don't even get the big deal if Gargano wins the NXT title in a few weeks anyway. He's going to lose it to Cole anyway whether it's as early as Wrestlemania weekend, or later in the summer in a short reign. I'm fine with either Gargano and Cole winning the world title.

For the record, I literally mentioned in my previous post that Gargano (along with Black and Ricochet) can stay on the show for a little while longer to put over the newer/fresher talents (Riddle/Lee/Dijakovic) in new feuds before they get moved up many months from now; but I see that comment got conveniently ignored.

If anything, this thread has been the complete opposite of a "circle-jerk" for Gargano lately. Anyway, enough with your ridiculous assumptions already (like in the bolded) unkout



> It's baffling that so very few us can see how fucked NXT is, and will be if this continues, but no one else wants to admit it.


Nah, it's actually baffling to see the few of you try to intentionally be the buzzkill and ruin the fun/hype for others who actually do enjoy watching the show.

You ever considered the possibility that maybe there is a great portion of people here who actually do believe that NXT has been a good show for a while now, and that there's (almost) nothing for them to admit? :hmmm


----------



## Donnie

DammitC said:


> Who the fuck is implying that Gargano should be in the NXT world title scene for another year? :lmao
> 
> I don't even get the big deal if Gargano wins the NXT title in a few weeks anyway. He's going to lose it to Cole anyway whether it's as early as Wrestlemania weekend, or later in the summer in a short reign. I'm fine with either Gargano and Cole winning the world title.
> 
> For the record, I literally mentioned in my previous post that Gargano (along with Black and Ricochet) can stay on the show for a little while longer to put over the newer/fresher talents (Riddle/Lee/Dijakovic) in new feuds before they get moved up many months from now; but I see that comment got conveniently ignored.
> 
> If anything, this thread has been the complete opposite of a "circle-jerk" for Gargano lately. Anyway, enough with your ridiculous assumptions already (like in the bolded) unkout
> 
> 
> 
> Nah, it's actually baffling to see the few of you try to intentionally be the buzzkill and ruin the fun/hype for others who actually do enjoy watching the show.
> 
> You ever considered the possibility that maybe there is a great portion of people here who actually do believe that NXT has been a good show for a while now, and that there's (almost) nothing for them to admit? :hmmm



Look at Marky's above quote, dude. Johnny winning now would be a "sympathy" reign because Chomper is died. It does no one any favours, and just makes both of them look like shit.

I'll be the buzzkill because I can handle it, because I'm tough enough.


----------



## Alright_Mate

With Undisputed Era keep making mention of "We'll hold all the gold in 2019", it's come sooner than expected but Cole winning at Takeover New York is the perfect place to start. As for NXT going forward I think a lot will depend on how far they want to go with this potential, "Undisputed Era hold all the gold in 2019" storyline.

Marky is absolutely spot on regarding Gargano, if Gargano is to win at Takeover New York then it would be an underwhelming sympathy title win, Gargano winning the strap now just wouldn't feel right.

If Gargano loses then moves up to the main roster then so be it. Whether we get a Takeover in June or the definite one in August, why not push someone like Pete Dunne into the mix, he'll more than likely drop the NXT UK Championship to Walter by that point, considering how long he's held the UK Title for I think that makes him the perfect candidate to get a shot at the NXT Championship.

If you want to then go all in on the "Undisputed Era hold all the gold in 2019" storyline, then have Roddy beat Dream for the NA Championship and O'Reilly/Fish beat War Raiders for the Tag Championship between the period of June to August.

Then you can end that storyline with Undisputed Era dropping all the titles at Takeover in November or the first Takeover of 2020.


----------



## TD Stinger

Ace said:


> Marky and I listed all the names in this thread. Just because you and everyone else want to say "Oh, they aren't established enough. It HAS to be to Johnny" doesn't make it true.
> 
> How the fuck is anyone meant to be established if we have to circlejerk Grapples for another year?
> 
> It's baffling that so very few us can see how fucked NXT is, and will be if this continues, but no one else wants to admit it.


Why is NXT fucked? Because the guy you wanted to have with the title hasn’t been champion. Because they ran a long running story you happened to not like. Dude, that’s your opinion and that’s fine. But that doesn’t make it fact. NXT has other problems that aren’t rectified by having Cole as champion or sidelining DIY.

Again, give a series of opponents you will actually take seriously to challenge Cole after New York after losing 4 big names that you will actually take seriously in a main event story right now. I already went through the options myself and I haven’t seen a good argument.

I know you yourself have said the NA title shouldn’t be passed around. Ok, so Dream should retain then right? So he can’t challenge Cole then. Riddle will have lost to the NA champion so he doesn’t deserve a shot. Black and RICO would have been great challengers to Cole, but they’re off the table. Ciampa is gone. Dunne’s on a different brand. Lee and Dijak haven’t even wrestled on a Takeover yet. Guys like Gargano, Black, Cole, etc. have all had to work their way up the card, they should be no different.

I keep hearing “where do they go if Gargano wins?” They run Gargano vs. Cole and other guys work their way up the card. If Cole wins and Gargano leaves, then you have to pick up the pieces of a reshuffled roster. Sorry, I don’t see the advantage of that. They’ll make the most of what they have, but it’s still starting on a disadvantage.


----------



## Reil

The main event for the April 3rd episode of NXT has been announced apparently.

https://www.wwe.com/shows/wwenxt/2019-04-03/article/kairi-sane-vs-bianca-belair?sf209777040=1

It's Kairi Sane vs Bianca Belair.


----------



## JustAName

Even Flow said:


> Why the fuck is Bianca Belair still going around saying she's UN-DE-FEA-TED?
> 
> She fucking lost to Shayna smh


Being undefeated doesn't have to do with losing and winning anymore, it's now a mindset :ralph. There is a medical term: delusion, so guess she's working on her heel character


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

Honestly Cole beating Gargano, Walter beating Dunne. Then at the next tapings have dunne, surprise everyone and challenge Cole. They have a history which never really was finished. Then u have a lot of options from there. I think UE needs to turn on o’rielly because I feel like he could be another main event player. Oreilly vs riddle fued could be a neat in ring dynamic


----------



## TD Stinger

I’ll give full show thoughts later, but I got to ask this. Who was that one girl with. Velveteen on the stage. The one with the black hair.

Because Damn.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

After that opening promo, I actually think Gargano is winning the NXT Title (unfortunately). He didn't have a better promo because Cole outdid him with actual emotion and it didn't feel dry like Johnny's but damn.... Johnny's promo got double the time Cole's did, felt like Johnny was talking forever. He got to say soooo much.


----------



## DammitChrist

TD Stinger said:


> I’ll give full show thoughts later, but I got to ask this. Who was that one girl with. Velveteen on the stage. The one with the black hair.
> 
> Because Damn.


I'm not sure if it's the woman you're referring to, but I was definitely fixated on that hot one on the right (our right) of Velveteen Dream :trips8

Both of them looked good though :nice


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> After that opening promo, I actually think Gargano is winning the NXT Title (unfortunately). He didn't have a better promo because Cole outdid him with actual emotion and it didn't feel dry like Johnny's but damn.... Johnny's promo got double the time Cole's did, felt like Johnny was talking forever. He got to say soooo much.


I think both men did a pretty good job getting their own stories over and their accolades. And I did like that Cole got one word last word in at the end to get the last laugh. And with them running down their accolades, it did make me realize whoever wins at Takeover will be the 1st Triple Crown in NXT.

I will say however that be prepared for Candice LeRae to completly neutralize TUE by herself, lol.


----------



## Jedah

Not a bad show at all. NXT is still the A show even in an off week of sorts.

Great promo between Cole and Gargano. Johnny is obviously winning this, but I wonder how they're going to keep Cole's credibility because he's obviously going to be the guy that takes it off him. TUE showing up is a clue.

Why the fuck is Aliyah being pushed? Kacy and Lacey Lane don't look ready for TV yet. Then Shayna comes out and of course the whole thing is awful. I still have no idea what the point of her second reign is. Please let me know if you can think of it.

Riddle vs. Reeves was fun, mostly because of Dream's cameo. Awesome stuff. The main roster never does shit like this. Please stay in NXT Dream. Don't go to Vince's shithouse.

Black and Ricochet are gelling together as a tag team quite fast. Good tandem stuff. And they were obviously superior to their opponents. New York looks great going in.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> I will say however that be prepared for Candice LeRae to completly neutralize TUE by herself, lol.


Yeah, I already knew that was coming. TUE will look like geeks fpalm


----------



## TD Stinger

*Gargano and Cole had a great promo. And they needed to given they have so little time to build their match.

I liked how they told the story saying while both men got to NXT under different circumstances, but their runs have paralleled each other in terms of their accolades. Both NXT Tag Champions. Both NA Champions. And now fighting to become NXT Champion.

Cole was his usual self, and Gargano did great at flipping the gear back to super babyface for this match.

*Vanessa Borse has a great entrance theme. And she's hot. And those are about the only positive qualities to her as a wrestler. And Aliyah is.....hell if I know. I like Shayna having goons, but the well has run dry on this angle of interrupting matches. It's time to end that.

Shame Kacy didn't get any action in this match either.

*Riddle vs. Kona was basically a backdrop for Dream and his awesomeness and the stuff after the match. I can't really explain why but I'm getting such a good vibe from these 2 together. I can't wait for their match at Takeover.

*The Forgotten Sons had probably the best match they could. And Black and Ricochet sold for them well enough to have a decent match. Predictable outcome that leads to a match at Takeover with a predictable outcome. But at least that match could be great and we will get one last chance to say goodbye to Black and Rico in NXT.


----------



## SAMCRO

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> After that opening promo, I actually think Gargano is winning the NXT Title (unfortunately). He didn't have a better promo because Cole outdid him with actual emotion and it didn't feel dry like Johnny's but damn.... Johnny's promo got double the time Cole's did, felt like Johnny was talking forever. He got to say soooo much.


Yeah he talked alot more than Cole, but i'm so tired of the "I came from nothing and worked for what i've got promo" nothing he said was original, i've heard that from i don't know how many underdog babyfaces.

And him telling Cole "I didn't come in and get handed a top spot immediately like you" yeah you know why? cause you wasn't a big name on the indies, Adam Cole was one of the top stars from the indies. He worked and made a name for himself which earned him that top spot he was given on NXT.

I just hate those kind of promos where he's making it sound like Cole was handed something without earning it, he did earn it on the indies.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah he talked alot more than Cole, but i'm so tired of the "I came from nothing and worked for what i've got promo" nothing he said was original, i've heard that from i don't know how many underdog babyfaces.
> 
> And him telling Cole "I didn't come in and get handed a top spot immediately like you" yeah you know why? cause you wasn't a big name on the indies, Adam Cole was one of the top stars from the indies. He worked and made a name for himself which earned him that top spot he was given on NXT.
> 
> I just hate those kind of promos where he's making it sound like Cole was handed something without earning it, he did earn it on the indies.


And what's even more ironic about it, is that Cole wasn't handed shit in NXT :lol


----------



## Cheetara86

Man Adam Cole and Dream are fucking money


----------



## SAMCRO

I'm so tired of them giving the Dusty Classic win to two singles wrestlers who teamed up just for the tournament, i fucking hated it when they did it with Joe and Balor and i hate it with Ricochet and Black. The Dusty Classic should be about the actual fucking tag teams, the chance for the tag teams to shine and get the spotlight, but no they give the win to two guys who are pretty much leaving NXT and wont benefit nothing from the win.

Look at their tag division, its pretty fucking thin, Forgotten Sons winning this would have really elevated them and made them a top team in the division, which would have been the smart move seeing as they're gonna be in NXT for a while unlike Ricochet and Black.


----------



## Donnie

SAMCRO said:


> I'm so tired of them giving the Dusty Classic win to two singles wrestlers who teamed up just for the tournament, i fucking hated it when they did it with Joe and Balor and i hate it with Ricochet and Black. The Dusty Classic should be about the actual fucking tag teams, the chance for the tag teams to shine and get the spotlight, but no they give the win to two guys who are pretty much leaving NXT and wont benefit nothing from the win.
> 
> Look at their tag division, its pretty fucking thin, Forgotten Sons winning this would have really elevated them and made them a top team in the division, which would have been the smart move seeing as they're gonna be in NXT for a while unlike Ricochet and Black.


BuT tHe SoNs SuCk. Yes, they do, but at least they're a real fucking team who gets heat, and can be a good gatekeeper team. 

War Raiders beating two singles guy doesn't do any good for the division, it just makes it look like crap.


----------



## Jersey

The main event felt like I was watching a Take over. Great match a lot of back and forth but definitely entertaining.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Meltzer gave last weeks fatal five way that Cole won **** 1/4 stars.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Time for a depressing review...sorry.

Cole and Gargano cut great promos but in terms of the story I'm just struggling to care. Gargano gave us a history lesson of why he deserves this spot but I just can't get behind him, he has become insufferable, no fault of his own though, Triple H has destroyed his character. Cole proved why he should be the top dog in NXT, how the segment played out though I don't see him winning, Undisputed Era will probably try and interfere and against all odds Gargano wins.

Skipped the Women's crap.

Forgot Kona Reeves existed, still very much an unbearable prick. The match with Riddle was pretty much a nothing match. Best part was Dream on his sofa.

As for the main event I don't understand the praise from others, I thought that match was crap. Blake and Cutler are so fucking slow, their Tag Team work is just so basic and boring, the part where they worked on Ricochet's back for about five mins was sleep-inducing. I understand the point that others are making about Black and Ricochet not being a proper team; however I'd rather have them on a Takeover event than the Forgotten Sons. They should've gave their spot to Street Profits, Moustache Mountain or Lorcan/Burch, pushing Forgotten Sons over those three teams is just ridiculous.

Best part of the episode was Dream on his sofa, rest was meh.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Alright_Mate said:


> Cole and Gargano cut great promos but in terms of the story I'm just struggling to care. Gargano gave us a history lesson of why he deserves this spot but I just can't get behind him, he has become insufferable, no fault of his own though, Triple H has destroyed his character. Cole proved why he should be the top dog in NXT, how the segment played out though I don't see him winning, Undisputed Era will probably try and interfere and against all odds Gargano wins.


Just like I said, Cole out-promoed him by a hefty margin. The emotion Cole had with what he was saying was gold. He sounded like a fire was under him. Johnny's promo was very dry imo with the typical "scratch and clawed my way up" theme. But how the promo laid out, Johnny talked for at least double of Cole's time and with TUE showing up at the end it lays out the formula that Johnny is gonna overcome all four of TUE to finally win the big one fpalm


----------



## SAMCRO

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Just like I said, Cole out-promoed him by a hefty margin. The emotion Cole had with what he was saying was gold. He sounded like a fire was under him. Johnny's promo was very dry imo with the typical "scratch and clawed my way up" theme. But how the promo laid out, Johnny talked for at least double of Cole's time and with TUE showing up at the end it lays out the formula that Johnny is gonna overcome all four of TUE to finally win the big one fpalm


Yeah thats another thing i didn't like how they made Cole act as if he was going to directly use his buddies to cheat for him to win. We all assume they might interfere but him just flat out going "Hey heres why i'm gonna win i'm gonna use my buddies here to help me cause i can't do it on my own" was kinda signaling Gargano will win.

Thats the only part i didn't like of Cole's promo.


----------



## RiverFenix

Forgotton Sons should have won that match but NXT booked themselves into the corner to needing to find a match for Ricochet and Black on the Takeover card so we get another piecemeal tag team winning the Dusty Classic. It's basically valueless anyways I guess.


----------



## SAMCRO

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> Forgotton Sons should have won that match but NXT booked themselves into the corner to needing to find a match for Ricochet and Black on the Takeover card so we get another piecemeal tag team winning the Dusty Classic. It's basically valueless anyways I guess.


It just makes all the real tag teams look weak as hell, like these 2 guys who aren't even a team can just decide to team up and defeat all these tag teams who've been teamed up alot longer. So they're telling us experience as a tag team means nothing, and any two random guys with nothing in common can just team up and be able to beat them.


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

I was for sure thinking the Forgotten Sons wee gonna win that. Oh well. Just because that’s how I would book it doesn’t make it wrong or right. We don’t know what’s next, for anybody, in hindsight we may love the booking. In HHH I trust!!!


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah thats another thing i didn't like how they made Cole act as if he was going to directly use his buddies to cheat for him to win. We all assume they might interfere but him just flat out going "Hey heres why i'm gonna win i'm gonna use my buddies here to help me cause i can't do it on my own" was kinda signaling Gargano will win.
> 
> Thats the only part i didn't like of Cole's promo.


Yeah, it wasn't needed and in a way exposes the outcome. And at this point, it should be Cole doesn't need TUE to win honestly. His character relies on them almost too much.


----------



## GTL2

SAMCRO said:


> It just makes all the real tag teams look weak as hell, like these 2 guys who aren't even a team can just decide to team up and defeat all these tag teams who've been teamed up alot longer. So they're telling us experience as a tag team means nothing, and any two random guys with nothing in common can just team up and be able to beat them.


I guess it came down to the hard reality of who was going to put on a potential 5* match at Takeover. War Raiders need some high quality opponents for there to be any chance of this. NXT need to push Barthel and Aichner to get better quality heel teams next time


----------



## RiverFenix

I would have went with Lorcan/Burch vs War Raiders. Face vs Face could have worked there. 

But what does Ricochet and Black do at Takeover? You scrap the 2/3 falls match and instead have a tournament where the semi-finals and finals happen at Takeover. Have Ricochet vs Gargano and Cole vs Black with the winners going on to face each other for the title. Three of the four were moonlighting on top brand programming - I'd have had Cole "called up" as well so it would be unknown who was winning as all could be getting called up sorta deal. 

Three falls in current main event would take roughly same time as three singles matches to make up the tournament.

Winner 1 (Gargano) vs Winner 2 (Adam Cole)
Baszler vs Io vs Kairi vs Bianca
War Raiders vs Burch/Lorcan
Riddle vs Dream
Black vs Cole
Ricochet vs Gargano

I'd not have the UK title match on the PPV - save Dunne vs Walter for UK Takeover.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— I dunno whether it is because it is all rather last minute but that promo exchange between Gargano and Cole was not good and it went on forever.

— Black and Ricochet carried that main event, hard. The Forgotten Sons are genuinely awful and the match suffered as a result whenever they were on top. While I would have rather an actual team won, especially a team who aren't in the process of going up to the main roster as we speak, I actually couldn't help but cry “THANK FUCK!” when Black and Ricochet won. These two against the War Raiders at TakeOver? YES PLEASE.

— Oh, so they are doing TakeOver on the Friday and putting the Hall of Fame in between TakeOver and Mania? Is that for damage control purposes for when TakeOver blows Mania out the water?


----------



## fabi1982

Its because of all the other shows in NY on Saturday, especially the NJPW show, which sold out MSG. Not so much competition on Friday.



Pizzamorg said:


> — Oh, so they are doing TakeOver on the Friday and putting the Hall of Fame in between TakeOver and Mania? Is that for damage control purposes for when TakeOver blows Mania out the water?


----------



## J-B

Forgotten Sons do absolutely nothing for me. Ryker just stands there with his pretty muscles and gets protected despite having the charisma of a crusty ball sack. 

Looking forward to Johnny vs Cole though.


----------



## GTL2

What there was in this show wasn't bad but it was just lacking in action overall. 

Gargano/Cole was OK but too long. 

Reeves/Riddle was good. Reeves is strangely entertaining and Riddle does his thing.

Ricochet/Black/FS wasn't bad. Ricochet and Black had a lot of chemistry for a thrown-together team. Forgotten Sons had the same match as last week but with different opponents. Limited in what they can do but with the fireworks of Ricochet/Black going on, that isn't too much of a problem


----------



## Just Brock Lesnar

Most annoying thing about this show were the fans chanting 'Aleister Black' to the Addams Family theme tune!

That better not catch on at TakeOver or on Raw or SmackDown.


----------



## RiverFenix

Cole overtly talking about having TUE helping him makes me believe they'll be banned from ringside if not the arena come the go home show or at the start of the match by Regal. 

Whoever wins, it needs to be clean to mint the new champ as much as possible. Cole can't win with outside help or he's DOA as a weak champ. I guess Gargano could "overcome the odds" but it would get too schmozzy. And if Gargano wins in spite of ridiculous interference attempts it just makes the whole of TUE look weak and kills off a top contender right away. Cole loses clean and maybe there could be dissension in the ranks angle with TUE out of it.


----------



## JustAName

delete


----------



## Reil

NXT thoughts:

- War Raiders slaughtering two jobber teams rules.

- I wish Oney would have beaten Jaxson. No one likes the Forgotten Sons.

- Man, Bianca looked rough tonight. Kairi had to carry that match pretty hard at points, and while the crowd was split at first, almost all of them jumped over to the side of Kairi within the first few minutes of the match because Bianca really doesn't bring much to the table.


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> NXT thoughts:
> 
> - War Raiders slaughtering two jobber teams rules.
> 
> - I wish Oney would have beaten Jaxson. No one likes the Forgotten Sons.
> 
> - Man, Bianca looked rough tonight. Kairi had to carry that match pretty hard at points, and while the crowd was split at first, almost all of them jumped over to the side of Kairi within the first few minutes of the match because Bianca really doesn't bring much to the table.



The crowd just can't cheer someone who hit Kairi.

Bianca have a good offense moveset but her selling his really really bad.


----------



## Mordecay

Well, no ladder match for the women, thank God

Not much to this episode. I hate the treatment Oney and Danny are getting, having to job to the Forgettable Sons again.

The video packages for Dunne/WALTER and Cole/Gargano had me like :mark::mark::mark::mark::mark::mark::mark::mark::mark:

War Riders squashing two jobber tag teams, not much to it

Main event was decent enough, Bianca selling still sucks, and that botch when Kairi pull down the top rope for Bianca to fall outside, but she decided to go through the middle rope fpalm. I always lol when these women throw a 100 pounds woman and everyone fall down, it is even more comical with the women


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> NXT thoughts:
> 
> - War Raiders slaughtering two jobber teams rules.
> 
> - I wish Oney would have beaten Jaxson. No one likes the Forgotten Sons.
> 
> - Man, Bianca looked rough tonight. Kairi had to carry that match pretty hard at points, and while the crowd was split at first, almost all of them jumped over to the side of Kairi within the first few minutes of the match because Bianca really doesn't bring much to the table.


So, the match was worse than their last meeting at the MYC a couple years ago?


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> So, the match was worse than their last meeting at the MYC a couple years ago?


Yes. It was much worse. Bianca was very rough in spots, and pretty much had to be guided through parts of the match by Kairi.

It wasn't a bad match, just really sloppy on the part of Bianca. Not to mention for someone who is supposed to look dominant, she was getting her ass kicked by Kairi.


----------



## Mordecay

Almost forgot, poor Candice being stuck with those two geeks Aliyah and Vanessa. Hey, at least she seems like she is gonna get her own storyline away from Johnny, so at least that's something :shrug


----------



## rbl85

Reil said:


> Yes. It was much worse. Bianca was very rough in spots, and pretty much had to be guided through parts of the match by Kairi.
> 
> It wasn't a bad match, just really sloppy on the part of Bianca. Not to mention for someone who is supposed to look dominant, she was getting her ass kicked by Kairi.


Bianca can do big moves but she can't "bind" or link multiple moves (i Don't know which word is better). It's like she's lost between the moves.


----------



## Jedah

Pretty meh episode for a TakeOver go home.

Dunne vs. WALTER. :mark :mark :mark

War Raiders squash. Nothing more to say.

Why, why, why the fuck is Aliyah getting a match in a TakeOver arena? I really hope they aren't positioning Candice to get a title shot against a champion Bianca. That would be awful.

Forgotten Sons still suck.

Good to see Keith Lee is back on track.

Dream vs. Riddle - they really made the most of this on short notice. Looking forward to it.

Johnny Gargano has to win this unless he's going to the main roster.

And Kairi vs. Bianca was much worse than their Mae Young Classic match. Kairi did her best, but even she couldn't really carry Bianca here. And absolutely nobody gave a shit about Bianca either. It would be a terrible, terrible mistake if she wins on Friday. Fortunately now that Kairi announced she's at Axxess on Saturday I'm more at ease. Io again has all the momentum but it almost seems like too much, too soon. Either way, the story the division should take is to set up Kairi/Io, as it's been since Io signed last May. This second Shayna reign has but completely pointless and a Bianca reign would be more of the same. Still favoring Kairi to win.


----------



## Mordecay

:mark:












Jedah said:


> Why, why, why the fuck is Aliyah getting a match in a TakeOver arena? I really hope they aren't positioning Candice to get a title shot against a champion Bianca. That would be awful.
> .


It's not the first time Aliyah is getting a match in a Takeover arena though, she had one at Takeover Toronto (a six woman tag) and another at Takeover Orlando (against Peyton), I wouldn't read too much into it


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

That Cole/Gargano video package though.


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> Pretty meh episode for a TakeOver go home.
> 
> Dunne vs. WALTER. :mark :mark :mark
> 
> War Raiders squash. Nothing more to say.
> 
> Why, why, why the fuck is Aliyah getting a match in a TakeOver arena? I really hope they aren't positioning Candice to get a title shot against a champion Bianca. That would be awful.
> 
> Forgotten Sons still suck.
> 
> Good to see Keith Lee is back on track.
> 
> Dream vs. Riddle - they really made the most of this on short notice. Looking forward to it.
> 
> Johnny Gargano has to win this unless he's going to the main roster.
> 
> And Kairi vs. Bianca was much worse than their Mae Young Classic match. Kairi did her best, but even she couldn't really carry Bianca here. And absolutely nobody gave a shit about Bianca either. It would be a terrible, terrible mistake if she wins on Friday. Fortunately now that Kairi announced she's at Axxess on Saturday I'm more at ease. Io again has all the momentum but it almost seems like too much, too soon. Either way, the story the division should take is to set up Kairi/Io, as it's been since Io signed last May. This second Shayna reign has but completely pointless and a Bianca reign would be more of the same. Still favoring Kairi to win.



My guess is Candice loses to Aliyah due to outside help from Vanessa Borne and Candice then gets some backup to even the odds against them. Probably in the form of Kacy Catanzaro or Mia Yim.


----------



## rbl85

Jedah said:


> Pretty meh episode for a TakeOver go home.
> 
> Dunne vs. WALTER. :mark :mark :mark
> 
> War Raiders squash. Nothing more to say.
> 
> Why, why, why the fuck is Aliyah getting a match in a TakeOver arena? I really hope they aren't positioning Candice to get a title shot against a champion Bianca. That would be awful.
> 
> Forgotten Sons still suck.
> 
> Good to see Keith Lee is back on track.
> 
> Dream vs. Riddle - they really made the most of this on short notice. Looking forward to it.
> 
> Johnny Gargano has to win this unless he's going to the main roster.
> 
> And Kairi vs. Bianca was much worse than their Mae Young Classic match. Kairi did her best, but even she couldn't really carry Bianca here. And absolutely nobody gave a shit about Bianca either. It would be a terrible, terrible mistake if she wins on Friday. *Fortunately now that Kairi announced she's at Axxess on Saturday I'm more at ease.* Io again has all the momentum but it almost seems like too much, too soon. Either way, the story the division should take is to set up Kairi/Io, as it's been since Io signed last May. This second Shayna reign has but completely pointless and a Bianca reign would be more of the same. Still favoring Kairi to win.


Io too is at Axxess


----------



## Asuka842

Kairi really should win the belt on Friday. Shayna needs to move up, Bianca clearly isn't ready, and it's too soon for Io. Plus it'd be a nice payoff after how weakly they booked her first reign, and her losing the belt back to Shayna so quickly.

And Candice maybe getting to do something that doesn't involve her husband, that'd be refreshing.


----------



## Jedah

Asuka842 said:


> And Candice maybe getting to do something that doesn't involve her husband, that'd be refreshing.


As long as it's not a feud with Bianca for the title, which would probably be the worst NXT women's title feud in history, including Shayna vs. Ember.



rbl85 said:


> Io too is at Axxess


Good. I'm fine with either of them winning. One of them has to if this division is going to get back on track. I'd just prefer Kairi for story reasons.


----------



## Donnie

Shayna going to have another banger :banderas


----------



## sara sad

You guys are too hard on Bianca imo yeah she has some rough patches but she is not bad at all for her Experience level.


----------



## rbl85

sara sad said:


> You guys are too hard on Bianca imo yeah she has some rough patches but she is not bad at all for her Experience level.


It has nothing to do with her experience. 

Lot of experience or not if you're not ready, you're not ready.

She can't connect with the crowd and she always getting carried in her match.

She have a lot of potential but if you put the belt on her now....she's going to get exposed pretty bad.


----------



## Jedah

sara sad said:


> You guys are too hard on Bianca imo yeah she has some rough patches but she is not bad at all for her Experience level.


She's not championship material right now and that's the bottom line. Her winning would make the division worse. Blame Triple H for pushing her beyond her level of readiness.

And she honestly should have gotten better by now. It's been nearly two years since her debut but she's still incredibly clunky. Look how much better people like Rhea and Xia Li have gotten in that same span of time.

At this point Bianca is just taking spots from them.


----------



## RiverFenix

Is the training mask still a "thing" anymore, or just a bro-science "douchebaggy" gimmick for Cole to be using? 

One suggestion I would make for the training montages is the "sparring" should have the training partners wearing head gear and maybe have both wearing MMA gloves and shinpads etc. Make it look like sparring rather than you just kicking your training partners asses for your training. When Johnny in working on his through the ropes spear for example he could be shown drilling it while his training partner is wearing the boxing body shots stomach protection. When he's working on subs and transitions to subs - he can nail those, but then not crank back to make his partner scream but rather just know he got in cinched in and his opponent taps. 

I'm torn on Walter vs Dunne even being on Takeover NY - that should have been saved for next UK Takeover. I guess you treat it as a huge deal now, and have the return match for NXT UK Takeover II as Walter surely has to win. So Walter vs Dunne II could still main event there. I'd give it back to Dunne and then have the third match tiebreaker go to Walter, and move Dunne to mainline NXT.


----------



## Asuka842

This match plus her last Takeover match should have shown that Bianca's not ready to be champion. She might very well be at some point, but she's been exposed pretty bad recently, and she has trouble getting reactions from the crowd. And while I'm all for Candice getting into the title picture, she needs more time to be built back up after NXT has so underused her so far. Having Bianca win over Io or Kairi would be a terrible idea imo and I'd hope that Triple H would be smarter than that.


----------



## J-B

I like Bianca but that match was pretty naff. God, I have no idea why Shayna even bothers having Shafir & Duke around her, they do not look intimidating in the slightest. Their shirts which they always wear look fucking silly and they just stand there egging Shayna on rather than really get involved in the action and doing the business.


----------



## peep4life

Just finished watching the show and popped in here to see what people are saying about Bianca. She still looks lost at times on the ring and it's a bad look. She's very athletic and full of potential, but she needs loads of work. I'd be shocked if they put the title on her.

Sent from my SM-G928V using Tapatalk


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Finally people agree with me on Bianca. O-VER-RA-TED.


----------



## fabi1982

The video package of Dunne vs. Walter was just very awesome!! There you see that WWE can if they want. Honestly I dont care much about NXT UK, but I am hyped for the match just from that package!!

Generally looking forward to Takeover!!


----------



## rbl85

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> Finally people agree with me on Bianca. O-VER-RA-TED.


Her potential is not overrated but her actual capacities are.


----------



## SAMCRO

Ugh if theres one episode of NXT i can't stand its the NXT episodes after a Takeover, just filled with recaps and interviews and dark matches from the Takeover event with lowercard guys.


----------



## Piers

The new theme for NXT is a Slipknot song ?! :monkey


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT.

- Murphy coming back to NXT?! I’d much rather that than him going to SDL or Raw where he’d be undoubtedly mishandled. Even if it’s just a one off, Dream vs Murphy at Fullsail? YES PLEASE.

- finish came out of nowhere and Ryker is rubbish but I actually quite enjoyed the match because Burch is so fantastic. Not exactly charismatic but just wonderful to watch in the ring. I wish he got showcased more to be honest. Maybe they should send him to 205 as well.

- solid main event for a match that was only about five minutes long. Both teams GTSI and came across well despite having a very short run time.


----------



## Jedah

Murphy vs. Dream and Kairi's last NXT match tonight.

This episode is gonna be something to see.


----------



## Sensei Utero

Dream gonna make somethin' outta Murphy :woo


----------



## Reil

Buddy Murphy vs Dream was good.

And oh my fucking god if they don't have Io go over Shayna and take the title, this division is completely and utterly destroyed beyond salvation.


----------



## Jedah

Missed the first 10 minutes of Murphy vs. Dream.  I'll have to go watch it again but what a match it was. Didn't like how Dream just got up and hit the Purple Rainmaker at the end but other than that, very good. Looks like it's gonna be him vs. Dijak at the next TakeOver.

Gargano vs. TUE continues as expected. The match with Roddy next week should be great.

I can't get over how they used "War Raiders" and "Viking Experience" in the same episode. :lmao I really do wonder what happens with those titles though. Are they gonna go right back to TUE or somebody else? Probably not Street Profits since this was taped before the shakeup.

Unsurprisingly, Kairi gives Shayna one of her most notable matches. While it was derivative from what they've done in the past, there was some really great storytelling at the end with Io coming out and looking furious at the end.

After this, Io needs to take revenge and flatten Shayna whenever they meet for the title, otherwise it's just a burial really. And honestly, it should be in June. No waiting for August. NXT needs to get rid of Shayna and Raw needs her badly because that division just sucks right now.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Buddy Murphy vs Dream was good.
> 
> And oh my fucking god if they don't have Io go over Shayna and take the title, this division is completely and utterly destroyed beyond salvation.


If Io fails to take the title from Shayna, I think there is a very real possibility that Triple H is planning on having Shayna break Asuka's record as longest reigning NXT Women's Champion.


----------



## Jedah

She'd need to last until November to get the most combined days as champion and to March of next year if she wanted a longer single reign. That's crazy.

But Shayna's booking has always been bizarre so it's possible, but you might as well just call up all the women to the main roster because that division is a shambles and would somehow get even worse if Io doesn't win.

The fact that they didn't call Io up makes me think that she has to take the title from her.


----------



## Reil

For those curious what Io was shouting at Shayna after the match, the short version is basically that she plans to kill Shayna, Jessamyn, and Marina.

While I doubt she'll actually attempt to kill them, I wouldn't be shocked if this leads up to Io completely and utterly decimating Jessamyn and Marina over the next few months, and then Shayna at Takeover.


----------



## DammitChrist

Velveteen Dream vs Buddy Murphy was such a good opener :trips8

Johnny Gargano and the Undisputed Era had a nice segment tonight. The former facing Roderick Strong next week should be a fun one :mark:

Man, I really felt bad for Kairi Sane's arm getting destroyed in the end there :damn

She's one hell of a sympathetic babyface character.



Reil said:


> For those curious what Io was shouting at Shayna after the match,* the short version is basically that she plans to kill Shayna, Jessamyn, and Marina.*
> 
> While I doubt she'll actually attempt to kill them, I wouldn't be shocked if this leads up to Io completely and utterly decimating Jessamyn and Marina over the next taping (so they can't be at San Jose), and then Shayna at Takeover.


Okay, that's what what I thought Io Shirai said in the end there :lol

I could've sworn that I heard her say "kill" while she was shouting (which she did).


----------



## Jedah

And if Io doesn't, this division might as well just go bankrupt.


----------



## Cheetara86

Io avenged Kairi with Meiko, now she will...hopefully do the same through Shayna. But, really Io is knocking it out the park with her acting and showing so much emotion. I would love to see Black Lotus Triad Io come out and destroy Shayna.

Adam Cole is so fucking brilliant as that chicken shit heel. Helps that he is amazing with promos as well.


----------



## Asuka842

I must say, that was a really lame way for Kairi's NXT tenure to end. Really, she loses because her buddy gets her DQ'ed, and then she just gets beaten up again? Really Triple H really, I expected better from you.

And again, why even bother to have Kairi beat Shayna to win the MYC if Shayna was who you were FAR more interested in pushing? She was sacrificed on the alter of Shayna and her friends it would seem,

Kairi gets the shortest (she's the only NXT Women's Champion to no get a triple digit day reign with the title) and weakest (she never gets to defend it once on TV, a Takeover, a PPV, etc) reign in the belt's history. She wins via a "fluke" and then just loses it right back to Shayna at Evolution (why bother to give her the title if you weren't going to let her do anything with it)? Then she loses the rematch at the next Takeover, then publically states that she wants her title back, and then just fails repeatedly to get it back?

This might be unpopular around here as an opinion, but I feel like Kairi's NXT tenure was a bit, underwhelming, but it was NOT her fault. She just wasn't used to her full potential because of Trip's MMA obsession.


----------



## Jedah

It's tolerable for now because it really heats up the feud between Io and Shayna, but that's contingent on Io winning and sending her packing. If not, yeah, it's abysmal. It's an element in a story that could be well-told but it depends on the ending.


----------



## Asuka842

Eh as someone who said at the time that Shayna winning at Evolution was a bad call, and has been saying ever since that her second reign has buried the division, this just confirmed it. Kairi deserved better than this, and "well Io might do it" really doesn't change that for me.

If this was meant to make me more excited, it failed because I'm just bored of Shayna's one-note schtick at this point.


----------



## Jedah

Everyone is, but this is the best way to make it work with the means they have available. Shayna is so fucking boring at this point that they needed to go an extra mile and they just did.

Now Io has a character away from Kairi and a motivation to channel the spirit of Hitokiri that beat Pentagon.

Shayna getting the title back was probably the worst decision ever made in this division. Said it at the time and it's only been confirmed over and over again since then.


----------



## looper007

If Io doesn't beat Shayna on the next Takeover and beats her clean in the middle. Then Women's division is a mess. Tonight's ending has to lead to Io winning the title and getting rid of Shayna and her cronies for good. I have my doubts with the way HHH has booked the women's division but we'll see.


----------



## SAMCRO

Was it worth it Triple H? putting the title back on Shayna was it really worth it? just so those ugly awkward friends of hers could walk behind her everywhere she goes trying to act bad ass and cocky? And i have no doubt in my mind thats why he put the title back on her cause those two was signed and he was drooling at the thought of them as a stable at the top of the division.

Also anyone else hate the new NXT intro? the previous was so much better.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Pretty disappointed in that NA Title match. Murphy gave a fantastic showing but it felt like just as the match was coming together it ended and ended on a really weak and vaguely bullshitty finish. The match didn't need to be nearly as long as it was, especially with that finish and while I love Dream, that has to be one of his worst performances in a really long while. I am also sad because I know Murphy isn't going to NXT. This performance surely shows he belongs here.

— So the Raiders finally got merch only to be called up and have their name changed to a bad sounding porno? Fucking hell man. So what is the deal, they gonna drop the titles next week to the Street Profits and then be Thanos'd out of existence or are they just gonna run with a Pink Elephant and treat NXT like it exists in this sort of way station between continuity where only parts that suit carry between the shows like they have done in the past?

— I was honestly surprised to see the Cole feud continuing given how the TakeOver match played out but then he pointed out how he beat Gargano clean, early into the match so in any other match he would be champ and I was just like... damn. That third fall was so action packed, I had basically completely forgotten what happened before it.

— There are quite a few interesting directions they could go with the UE. I think them breaking up would be a mistake, but them all turning on Strong forcing him out to either pursue a separate singles career again or driving him to either turn the UE against Cole or form his own rival faction could make for some really great TV.


----------



## RiverFenix

UE should kick out Cole, replace him with Shane Strickland as their new leader. See if Cole can play a stand alone face before his call-up.


----------



## Asuka842

You know what, I'm done watching the NXT Women segments for now I think. I haven't really cared for how it's been booked since the end of Asuka's reign, so I think that this Shayna crap and fucking over Kairi for the sake of her Reign of Terror is the final straw. As long as she's there, I don't watch.

I'll still watch the other stuff though, that stuff isn't boring an repetitive as Hell after all.


----------



## Jokerface17

DetroitRiverPhx said:


> UE should kick out Cole, replace him with Shane Strickland as their new leader. See if Cole can play a stand alone face before his call-up.




:beckylol


All of the guys in UE are more talented and have way more experience than a fucking Shane “Swerve” Strickland with that stupid ass nickname.

ut
Fuck outta here with that bullshit.
ut



:thelist


----------



## RiverFenix

And Shayna's only chance at a call-up was alongside Ronda. And if she's done for the time being, it means Shayna is NXT4life. Baszler turns 39yo in August for crying out loud.


----------



## Donnie

I loved the closing angle so much. First one in months on this show I've enjoyed. IO saving her best friend but costing her everything in doing so is some great storytelling. IO about to cut a bitch, or three 

Buddy vs Dream was very, very good to the shock of no one. ***1/2

Buddy returning to NXT as a conquering hero who became CW champion, and one of the best wrestlers in the world in the process, after his last run ended with him spending 12 months on the Florida loop in front of the same 40 people every week is some accidental incredible full circle storytelling. 

I hate Johnny so much, and I hate that I do. I LOVED this man 12 months ago, but the last year has forever tarnished him in my eyes. Fucking heartbreaking to tell you the truth. 

I hope Roddy is the one to beat him for the belt. He's the one with an actual backstory that should make him the top face of the show. Not to mention being maybe the best wrestler in the entire company is more than enough reason to go with him. 

:mj2 Whelp, set myself up for heartbreak again. Fucking NXT.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole is too good, he needs that rematch against Gargano and he needs to win it. I'm pretty sure this teasing of TUE breaking up is just a front to help Cole win the title, similar to what ROH did when they teased Cole breaking away from the kingdom.



Donnie said:


> I hope Roddy is the one to beat him for the belt. He's the one with an actual backstory that should make him the top face of the show. Not to mention being maybe the best wrestler in the entire company is more than enough reason to go with him.
> .


I think I'm losing you fam, Roddy besting Gargano sounds terrible especially as a face. Even when they were "building" Roddy up back when Roode was champ, the fans still struggled to care. Roddy isn't top guy made. The only man that should knock off Gargano is Cole, that's where the story is going and that's what the fans want. Roddy can have the midcard NA Title because that's where he's best suited at.


----------



## Mordecay

Donnie said:


> I hope Roddy is the one to beat him for the belt. He's the one with an actual backstory that should make him the top face of the show. Not to mention being maybe the best wrestler in the entire company is more than enough reason to go with him.
> 
> :mj2 Whelp, set myself up for heartbreak again. Fucking NXT.


Roddy is bland af, they had to put him in the UE because people didn't cared about him, he shouldn't be nowhere near the NXT title scene or face of the brand position, put him against VD, he is charismatic enough for both.


----------



## J-B

I dunno if it's because I'm still burnt out from Wrestlemania last weekend but I just wasn't really digging this week's show for some reason. Opening match was good, Gargano/UE segment was okay but that was it for me. Didn't care to see Kairi/Shayna again. I swear I've said this a few times in the past but Duke/Shafir just look like such dweebs whenever they're on a TV screen. It just looks awkward, plus their gear sucks. 

But god damn, Adam Cole is such a good talker. He's just so charismatic, I'm always paying attention to whatever he says whenever a mic is in his hand.


----------



## Asuka842

Adam Cole has always been good.


----------



## TD Stinger

Dream and Buddy had a really fun match. Dream, while he's not the best in ring guy in the world, just does things in that ring that makes him stand out from everything else. Whether that's his charisma, his height, whatever else. And Murphy brought his usual brand of offense to make for a fun ride.

The Street Profits are so frustrating at times. They are very talented and while I understand their gimmick is supposed to be very over the top, at times it goes so over the top where it's so annoying I want their opponents to kick their ass. That and they keep hanging around the bottom of the division feuding with either The Mighty or the Forgotten Sons, not getting the chance to shine at the main level.

The Gargano/Cole promo was really fun. When Gargano can get away from the prototype babyface shtick for a second, he's a pretty funny guy. I loved how his promo basically could have summed up as "Scoreboard Bitch!" The "You Tapped Out Chants" added to the segment as well. And it was nice to see an angry Adam Cole and have him show that fire.

The stuff with Roddy and Regal backstage was intriguing. Roddy getting the match with Johnny, Cole's disappointed look. I still think it ends up being a swerve and no one turns on anyone, but it's interesting.

OK, I skimmed through the entrances so maybe I missed an announcement, but why did they announce Lee vs. Dijak for this show only not to do it? Like I get Lee is hurt, but why announce the match then?

Anyways, I'm happy for Dijak at least getting a squash win and an eventual title match against Dream.

The Baszler vs. Kairi match was basically a short sprint of their usual spots. The real stuff to talk about the stuff after the match. Kairi's time is up. And Io got her friend to disqualified and then Shayna made her watch as she destroyed Kairi's arm. So that's a strong story to play with and it gives Io something to fight for, but it will only matter if Io wins in the end.


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Adam Cole is too good, he needs that rematch against Gargano and he needs to win it. I'm pretty sure this teasing of TUE breaking up is just a front to help Cole win the title, similar to what ROH did when they teased Cole breaking away from the kingdom.
> 
> 
> 
> I think I'm losing you fam, Roddy besting Gargano sounds terrible especially as a face. Even when they were "building" Roddy up back when Roode was champ, the fans still struggled to care. Roddy isn't top guy made. The only man that should knock off Gargano is Cole, that's where the story is going and that's what the fans want. Roddy can have the midcard NA Title because that's where he's best suited at.


Roddy's PWG title run has show he can be a top guy, he just needs a chance. I've got no problems with Cole beating Grappling Emote, I'd just prefer Roddy.

Either way get the belt of this fucking dweeb.


----------



## gl83

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Adam Cole is too good, he needs that rematch against Gargano and he needs to win it. I'm pretty sure this teasing of TUE breaking up is just a front to help Cole win the title, similar to what ROH did when they teased Cole breaking away from the kingdom.
> 
> 
> 
> I think I'm losing you fam, Roddy besting Gargano sounds terrible especially as a face. Even when they were "building" Roddy up back when Roode was champ, the fans still struggled to care. Roddy isn't top guy made. The only man that should knock off Gargano is Cole, that's where the story is going and that's what the fans want. Roddy can have the midcard NA Title because that's where he's best suited at.



The only way I see Roderick Strong beating Gargano for the title is if they rehash the Evolution/Randy Orton split with Roddy in the position of Randy Orton and Adam Cole in the position of Triple H.


----------



## Alexander_G

DammitC said:


> Man, I really felt bad for Kairi Sane's arm getting destroyed in the end there :damn
> 
> She's one hell of a sympathetic babyface character.


Kairi Sane is as good of a seller as Ricky freaking Morton. She got it DOWN PAT.


----------



## Alexander_G

And folks, I am enraged at this episode. Nuff has been said here of why. I think all hope I had left was lost once this show was over, and now I'm just growling. Fortunately, I am starting to really loo forward to Adam Cole every week who seems to be the only guy brightening my spirits about this show.

What the hell do they think they are doing to the War Raiders? Is this company so stupid that they cannot understand that one of the main catches to this team is the fact that you can chant "WAR!" every time they come out there?

Why are they splitting up Burch from his bestie? Is it bad enough they got to fight for respect with pure athelticism to get recognized?

What the hell good is Commissioner Regal if he never does anything about those two lemonheads Duke & Shafir coming out there when we all know damn well it's going to be 3 on 1? And NOONE was punished for the interferences that they had committed for weeks in every womens match. Who's running this damn place? Get this shit together! 

I've never seen Io Shirai so pissed off. She looks like she about to morph into final form.

More Keith Lee matches please, they're not showing him enough.


----------



## Reil

So I was skimming through/listening to a lot of reviews today, and the general consensus I've seen regarding Jessamyn and Marina is that they are far too awful to be doing *anything* on TV right now.

Someone speculated WWE could use that as a way to write them off. Have Io beat the everliving fuck out of them (perhaps...snap their arms like Shayna did to Kairi), and use that as a way to write them off of TV entirely until they are actually ready to make an impact. Because holy shit they suck.


----------



## Jedah

Who really cares about the goobers? Shayna's the one that needs to go. Shayna goes, they go.

Io needs to get rid of all three of them. The way they wrote that ending mandates it.

Up to now Io just hung with Kairi and wanted to prove how good she is but now it's personal. They started the path to awakening Hitokiri. That version of Io needs to destroy Shayna like she did to Pentagon and then write her and her goobers off like they did to Kairi.

I can appreciate that as storytelling but if it doesn't end the right way Io might as well have been called up. The division is already dead so I wouldn't even know what to call it if Io loses.

(Side note - if Ronda is gone for at least a year, there's really no point even doing this horseshitwomen match. Just fucking release those two.)


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> Who really cares about the goobers? Shayna's the one that needs to go. Shayna goes, they go.
> 
> Io needs to get rid of all three of them. The way they wrote that ending mandates it.
> 
> Up to now Io just hung with Kairi and wanted to prove how good she is but now it's personal. They started the path to awakening Hitokiri. That version of Io needs to destroy Shayna like she did to Pentagon and then write her and her goobers off like they did to Kairi.
> 
> I can appreciate that as storytelling but if it doesn't end the right way Io might as well have been called up. The division is already dead so I wouldn't even know what to call it if Io loses.
> 
> (Side note - if Ronda is gone for at least a year, there's really no point even doing this horseshitwomen match. Just fucking release those two.)


Especially when you have the drama with Sasha Banks and her seemingly being fed up with WWE Management/Creative.


----------



## Sensei Utero

Well, that was a jam packed episode of NXT this week. Loved the opening match, and glad that Dream got the win. Albeit, very good performance from Buddy, and the match definitely lived up for a weekly NXT episode. Dominik Dijakovic's physique and size :vince8.

Wasn't too fussed on the main event, but Kairi is a good sympathetic babyface for sure. As for Johnny/UE, pumped for Gargano/Strong next week. Can definitely see the tension there, and how it's playing out on TV - I like it. Babyface Roddy comin' back, and it'll be intriguing to see how that goes.

Street Profits remind anyone else of Cryme Tyme?


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

I would assume Io takes title from Shayna, and she goes tot he main roster to fill the Ronda void. Then the goobers should not be seen on tv for while and allow them more time to develop. If they don’t come around which I’m sceptical, just never put them on tv again. Shayna and asuka, should be the next Charlotte Becky.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Marina and Jessamyn are obviously working things out with Roddy Strong and other guys. They'll be fine.


----------



## Reil

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> Marina and Jessamyn are obviously working things out with Roddy Strong and other guys. They'll be fine.


Hate to break it to you, but Roddy has outright said in an interview that he isn't training Marina. That he's leaving it up to the PC crew.

They've been real bad at this with no improvement for quite some time nwo.


----------



## Asuka842

The great exchange between Io and Kairi at the Takeover, wasted. We'll probably never get to see this on a Takeover now, the best place for it, because Shayna just HAS to hold that title forever apparently. Instead, the last shot of Kairi in NXT is her getting her ass kicked yet again to show that Shayna is big meanie(as if we haven't established that a billion times before already). 

A great encapsulation of Kairi's NXT career as a whole, undercut to make Shayna look mean. Trips is giving her the "Reign of Terror" booking that he got from 2002-2005, and I stopped watching Raw because of it.

If the Io vs. Kairi match never happens, it'll be one of the biggest missed opportunities in NXT history imo.


----------



## Sensei Utero

Gargano vs. Strong should be fun on this week's episode.


----------



## SAMCRO

Brother Utero said:


> Gargano vs. Strong should be fun on this week's episode.


I'm interested to see if it leads to Strong leaving Undisputed Era, they seem to be building up Gargano putting a wedge between Strong and Cole. You had the seeds already planted after Takeover when Cole was asking Roddy "And what the hell was you doing Roddy?".

I'm curious to see if this match leads to more tension between them.

Cause for a minute i was thinking they might do the Orton storyline from 2004 where he won the World Title and Triple H couldn't stand it that he won it while he couldn't and turned on him and kicked him out of Evolution. But i really couldn't see them letting Roddy win the NXT title even for that storyline, especially after Gargano just won the title.


----------



## Mordecay

By the numbers episode of NXT, I missed the first 15 minutes so I can't comment but since it was a Forgotten Sons match I probably won't watch it.

Street Profits vs War Raiders was fun, but I hated that the Profits were beaten so decisively and not even with their finisher, especially after attacking the War Raiders by surprise. I imagine they didn't know they were going to get called up when the tapings took place, but it hindsight it makes the Profits look really bad.

Horsewomen attacking Io... been there done that, I don't care about the division

Candice/Kacy vs Aliyah/Borne was a match. They have teased strongly about the IIconics facing one of these two teams and with the tapings scheduled for next week I think I wouldn't be surprised if they go there (and hopefully win something), although I think the european tour starts next week, so it may not be possible, since the rosters usually leave to Europe the day after RAW/SD.

Roddy/Johnny was a good match, not spectacular by any means and was more focused in setting up the tension in the UE, with Cole costing Roddy the match by accidentally kicking him. I think this will end up with one of the two leaving the UE and hopefully it is Cole, he is more than good enough to be on his own and the crowd already cheers for him anyways, so he can easily turn and hopefully start his redemption arc that ends up with him winning the title, besides Roddy need the UE more than him.


----------



## Reil

@Mordecay, at least remember that Jessamyn and Marina can't even do a basic fucking beatdown spot correctly without looking like complete idiots.

At this rate, just take them off of TV entirely, especially since Ronda won't be back any time soon, and if Sasha doesn't come back, the 4HW vs 4HW "storyline" is dead.


----------



## Jedah

Didn't watch Forgotten Sons.

Gargano vs. Roddy and Street Profits vs. whatever you want to call them now were good.

Io really needs to kill Shayna, as if that weren't obvious last week. But now it looks like they might insert Mia in to get a filler title shot because we can't just pull the plug now, of course. We need three more months and one more boring TakeOver match most likely. And there's not even an excuse to do this anymore. Ronda is gone for at least a year. Sasha might be gone forever. The horseshitwomen match cannot happen now. Take the damn title off Shayna and fire the other two. There's no point in keeping them around now.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> @Mordecay, at least remember that Jessamyn and Marina can't even do a basic fucking beatdown spot correctly without looking like complete idiots.
> 
> At this rate, just take them off of TV entirely, especially since Ronda won't be back any time soon, and if Sasha doesn't come back, the 4HW vs 4HW "storyline" is dead.


Can't even do the feud with the 2 top girls of each faction(Becky/Charlotte vs Ronda/Shayna) since Ronda is going to be gone and won't be back for awhile, if at all.




Jedah said:


> Didn't watch Forgotten Sons.
> 
> Gargano vs. Roddy and Street Profits vs. whatever you want to call them now were good.
> 
> Io really needs to kill Shayna, as if that weren't obvious last week. But now it looks like they might insert Mia in to get a filler title shot because we can't just pull the plug now, of course. We need three more months and one more boring TakeOver match most likely. And there's not even an excuse to do this anymore. Ronda is gone for at least a year. Sasha might be gone forever. The horseshitwomen match cannot happen now. Take the damn title off Shayna and fire the other two. There's no point in keeping them around now.



At this point, it really feels like the only reason that Shayna has the title right now is because they want her to break Asuka's record as longest-reigning NXT Women's champion. 'Cause there really is no rhyme or reason for why she kept the title past WrestleMania weekend. And with the lack of credible Heels and with Faces like Candice getting built up, it really doesn't look like Shayna is dropping the belt anytime soon.



In which case, RIP NXT Women's Division.


----------



## Reil

Candice isn't going for the NXT Women's Title anymore. She wants the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships with Kacy. NXT uploaded a post match interview and she talked about how her and Kacy are going after those now.

And Shayna is still a very long ways off from breaking Asuka's record. And people are already starting to get completely sick of her reign.


----------



## Jedah

Nah, she would need to reign until next March to break Asuka's record for longest title reign and until after War Games this November to have more days as champion. That's crazy.

I'll go out on a limb and say based on how they're writing this, she probably will drop it to Io eventually, but of course we have to wait for August because...reasons. The June TakeOver is always the filler one and they don't seem to want to change that.


----------



## WindPhoenix

gl83 said:


> Can't even do the feud with the 2 top girls of each faction(Becky/Charlotte vs Ronda/Shayna) since Ronda is going to be gone and won't be back for awhile, if at all.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> At this point, it really feels like the only reason that Shayna has the title right now is because they want her to break Asuka's record as longest-reigning NXT Women's champion. 'Cause there really is no rhyme or reason for why she kept the title past WrestleMania weekend. And with the lack of credible Heels and with Faces like Candice getting built up, it really doesn't look like Shayna is dropping the belt anytime soon.
> 
> 
> 
> In which case, RIP NXT Women's Division.


There was no point in doing it anyway. Of the tag dynamics, Becky works better in a team with Sasha and Charlotte's best tag dynamics have been with Bayley in nxt and Dana on the main roster.

Shayna has a long way to go before she even gets close to Asuka's 510 day reign. She is currently at 177, Combined she is at 310.


----------



## Sensei Utero

Another fun episode. Can really see the cracks starting to unfold in the Undisputed Era for sure. Strong was only really placed there to be a third man that could compete instead of the injured Fish, so I guess it's time for the UE to become a trio again - giving Roddy some chance to shine on his own in due course. I think they're building this really good, ultimately leading to Cole vs. Strong. Just wondering who Gargano's challenger for the title will be.

I'll miss War Raiders. Street Profits' time will come, eventually. Loving the continued push of Jaxson Ryker. I was always a Gunner fan when he was in TNA, so it's cool to see him killing it so far in NXT. Women's tag wasn't much, but eh - continues this Candice build up I guess, even though more could be done concerning that. I've never watched KUSHIDA, but folk seem pretty high on him, and I'm intrigued for his match against Ohno next week.


----------



## TD Stinger

I feel like NT was trying to get me to tune out by staring the show with the Forgotten Sons and then Aliyah & Borne in back to back segments, lol.

So yeah, I basically skipped the opening stuff. But with the women's tag I did like Candice's hot tag sequence.

Every time I get down on the Street Profits they come back strong. I loved how they got the jump on the War Raiders here. The whole pace of the match was great and different and both teams got a chance to shine. I know that TUE will probably get those belts back at the next tapings, but I hope after that they run with a team like The Street Profits.

Gargano vs. Strong was a pretty good match, as expected. I liked the finish with how they had Cole accidentally strike Gargano. And Riddle's insertion into this is interesting. Will he be the next to challenge Johnny with Roddy facing Cole or will will it be a 3 Way of Cole, Riddle, and Gargano.


----------



## Sin City Saint

Meanwhile, in October - Triple H presents the Big Gold Belt to the reigning NXT Champion, re-christening them as the NXT World Champion during the first broadcast of NXT Worldwide on FS1.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT.

— I hope Burch and Lorcan decimate the Forgotten Sons.

— I love me some Matt Riddle and his live action anime “Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass” gimmick he has going on.

— I didn't watch that women's tag, feel like I missed nothing as even the “highlights” looked abysmal.

— Ohno is a fun heel, it is just a shame he is so far from his prime in the ring. Still, hopefully he can do something fun with Kushida in his debut.

— What a fucking mess WWE has made of the War Raiders. This is botched on Shockmaster sort of levels. It appears NXT have just completely given up on making sense of or trying to cover up MRs fuck up but it then leaves the question open as to what now after they beat the Profits in a glorified squash.

— While I dunno how I feel about splitting up UE before they have actually achieved Undisputed status, I do like how they've set this up in such a way that this could go in half a dozen directions if they wanted. I thought the manner in which Strong joined UE was really, really, dumb but his inclusion has made the seeming implosion that much more dynamic.


----------



## J-B

I think Roddy is a phenomenal in-ring performer but I'd be kinda pissed if he became the new leader of TUE. Cole may not need TUE anywhere near as much as Roddy but I feel like the faction just wouldn't feel cool anymore if they took Cole out of it. 

Didn't watch the opening two matches, don't care for The Forgotten Sons & whenever I seem to watch a Bourne match it just seems so sloppy.


----------



## LongPig666

Shit!!! I thought for one second that there was going to be an Ohno v Regal match there. Damn!


----------



## Jedah

- Still don't care about the Forgotten Sons.

- Shayna is just a go away neon sign at this point. So boring. And her goobers make it worse.

- Dijack vs. Mansoor turned into a really good match.

- Dream is just the best. Holy shit that might have been the most entertaining segment all year (even though I hope Dream never sings again). _This_ is the guy. Don't fuck him up!

- Kushida vs. Ohno was OK. I wasn't too into it though for some reason. His entrance is great though.


----------



## WindPhoenix

Dijakovic looked like he was about to crack up over Dream singing.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

Honestly not a lot to say on this episode, the whole episode felt sorta... off. The opening tag match didn't really serve anyone. That match between Dijak and Mansoor was oddly structured and the Dream segment after the match was weird in the alienating sort of way and this modern shadow of the wrestler Chris Hero once was, was the wrong choice for Kushida's debut as this debut match was honestly really boring.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

I noted they never announced where Mansoor was from and the commentators just said he was "middle Eastern".

WWE not acknowledging Saudi Arabia again?


----------



## ellthom

Very standard NxT show this week, nothing amazing, Kushida made a huge mistake coming to WWE already he feels out of place, he'll be on 205 Live before you know it. Which is a shame, I liked him in New Japan but the man is already dead in the water when he gets to the main roster.


----------



## Mordecay

It is sad to see Ohno these days. Before you could give him a pass because he was fat but he could still work, but last night was a bit embarrasing, he was slow, clumsy, nothing like he used to, I was very underwhelmed by this match.

Not much to the rest of the show: Forgotten Sons suck, HW stuff sucks, Mansoor/Dijakovic was decent and that's about it


----------



## Asuka842

-Velveteen Dream continues to be awesome. 

-Kushida vs. Ohno was good, if a bit on the short side.

-More tension between TUE.

-Forgotten Sons continue to be bland.

-I didn't watch the Women's stuff, so whatever.




All in all, decent show.


----------



## Master Bate

Yoo Mansoor vs Dijak was pretty decent. I loved Mansoor's offense. Hopefully he finds a way to stand out looks / personality wise tho.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Finally found the motivation to catch up on three episodes...

17th April
Dream vs Murphy was average by their standards, the match never really got going until Dream produced a counter into the Dream Valley Driver. Best parts of the match was Dream's eccentric selling.

Gargano's promos are becoming repetitive, taking us through another history lesson that we've heard plenty of times before. Cole pissed all over him when it came to mic work.

Baszler vs Sane was kinda sloppy but the story of the match served a purpose. The haters of course won't agree but in my opinion more heels should be booked like Baszler is being booked, she's being booked as a brutal badass heel, the way she methodically destroyed Kairi was brilliant. The only downside to her right now is her cringeworthy cheerleading buddies.

24th April
Of course I skipped Ryker.

So Riddle is now part of the main event scene just because he was next in line after Cole for a photoshoot :lol that is main roster style booking right there.

Skipped the Women's Tag match.

War Raiders vs Street Profits was a fun fast paced match.

Gargano vs Strong was one of the best NXT TV matches so far this year. Watching Strong in this match was like watching his PWG title run, a cocky heel who brutalises his opponents, he is a joy to watch when booked in this manner. Of course he lost though in the end due to chaotic interference, no idea where they are heading with Undisputed Era, it's all a bit of a mess right now.

1st May
Of course I skipped The Forgotten Sons.

Cathy Kelley :done

Bianca Belair's character is getting destroyed just that little bit more every time she appears.

Dijakovic needs to be showcased against better opponents. As for Dream's promo afterwards, he just proved why he is the most entertaining superstar in the company right now.

Kushida's entrance is tailor-made for NXT Takeover events, his debut though fell flat, Ohno was completely the wrong opponent for him, the size difference affected the match. No doubt Kushida will have some great matches in NXT though, but I can see him going the same way as Itami.


----------



## Mordecay

Alright_Mate said:


> Cathy Kelley :done




























There is a reason why she is Queen Cathy :book


----------



## Alright_Mate

Mordecay said:


> There is a reason why she is Queen Cathy :book


----------



## TD Stinger

This Mansoor guy kind of came out of nowhere, but damn he is fun to watch. And even for an extended squash, he "maximized his minutes" while Dijak still got the dominant win.

And Dream, you are a treasure. Never change.

I'm surprised to see so much negative talk on Kushida vs. Ohno because I thought it was very good. In a small package it showed you what Kushida could do from a technical and high flying stand point and Ohno was his usual funny heel self with some hard hits here and there.



ellthom said:


> Very standard NxT show this week, nothing amazing, *Kushida made a huge mistake coming to WWE already he feels out of place, he'll be on 205 Live before you know it.* Which is a shame, I liked him in New Japan but the man is already dead in the water when he gets to the main roster.


I'm genuinely curious, how is he already out of place after one match?

Secondly, it was time for him to leave NJPW. He did everything there as Jr., he wasn't going to get a run as a heavyweight, and he wanted to take his career in a different direction in a different audience. And if he can get a 3 year run out of this and have some fun along the way, I or anyone else can't say he made a mistake

Now in NXT he has new and fresh opponents to work with of all sizes. And maybe he can go to 205 Live. Are we still acting like that's a bad thing? Neville/PAC reinvented his career on 205 Live and 205 is the main reason he's having the run he is now outside of WWE. 205 Live gave Buddy Murphy the platform that NXT didn't to show himself as one of the best wrestlers out there who now gets a chance to do his thing on Smackdown. Same thing for a guy like Ali who was just a guy, but 205 Live made him somebody.

So honestly the talk of 205 Live being some kind of death sentence, in my opinion, is so over blown or just flat out wrong.

All in all, will Kushida eventually fall into that pit of failed wrestlers on the main roster, if he's ever even on Raw or Smackdown? Probably. But that doesn't make it a mistake to decide to do something different with his life and the opportunity to have a lot of success along the way.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

I agree, Ali, Buddy and Cedric have shown that 205 Live isn't a total death sentence.

However, Kushida probably better off in NXT for as long as possible where you get more exposure, especially if he's wrestling on Takeovers.


----------



## Pizzamorg

I think the bigger issue with the match (and I get the sense from reading the other posts that this isn't just my feelings) was Kushida's opponent. Ohno is honestly pretty shit these days, if we are being honest. The dude can still go... I think but his matches lately have been slow, clumsy and sloppy. I don't know if this is just part of his heel shtick but since he looks like the Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons, it doesn't help him at all. It also doesn't help someone like Kushida who is getting some of the biggest hype for a new signee in a very long time. They should have stuck him in a five minute showcase match which was fast paced, fireworks and greatest hits and then a big go home. Kushida having to drag Ohno's fat ass around the ring did nothing but make the whole thing fall flat and for all of those who know of nothing about Kushida outside of this match, this was a horrible way to debut someone after so much hype.


----------



## Cheetara86

The only thing the episode showed was that we need to protect Dream at all costs when he hits the Main roster. God, he is a superstar in the making, but the trust level I have with Vince and the creative minds of the main roster, is zero to none.


----------



## ellthom

TD Stinger said:


> This Mansoor guy kind of came out of nowhere, but damn he is fun to watch. And even for an extended squash, he "maximized his minutes" while Dijak still got the dominant win.
> 
> And Dream, you are a treasure. Never change.
> 
> I'm surprised to see so much negative talk on Kushida vs. Ohno because I thought it was very good. In a small package it showed you what Kushida could do from a technical and high flying stand point and Ohno was his usual funny heel self with some hard hits here and there.
> 
> 
> 
> I'm genuinely curious, how is he already out of place after one match?
> 
> Secondly, it was time for him to leave NJPW. He did everything there as Jr., he wasn't going to get a run as a heavyweight, and he wanted to take his career in a different direction in a different audience. And if he can get a 3 year run out of this and have some fun along the way, I or anyone else can't say he made a mistake
> 
> Now in NXT he has new and fresh opponents to work with of all sizes. And maybe he can go to 205 Live. Are we still acting like that's a bad thing? Neville/PAC reinvented his career on 205 Live and 205 is the main reason he's having the run he is now outside of WWE. 205 Live gave Buddy Murphy the platform that NXT didn't to show himself as one of the best wrestlers out there who now gets a chance to do his thing on Smackdown. Same thing for a guy like Ali who was just a guy, but 205 Live made him somebody.
> 
> So honestly the talk of 205 Live being some kind of death sentence, in my opinion, is so over blown or just flat out wrong.
> 
> All in all, will Kushida eventually fall into that pit of failed wrestlers on the main roster, if he's ever even on Raw or Smackdown? Probably. But that doesn't make it a mistake to decide to do something different with his life and the opportunity to have a lot of success along the way.


Nothing against Kushida, I like Kushida, I like him a lot, but the current stench of WWE has already made me lose hope and interest him... He'll have some awesome matches that I have no doubt, NxT will be the height of his success in WWE though. Which in turn makes me feel like the man is already a lost cause.


----------



## Darkest Lariat

The Ohno choice was weird for Kushida. I get Ohno has experience in Japan, but his speed dragged the match down. Would've rather seen him debut against Homberto or a returning Lio.

I know Kushida's work really well. It wasn't his best work. But I guess that's why he left Japan. Easier matches.


----------



## Jedah

I gotta say I'm really just not feeling the direction NXT is going on.

The tag scene is a mess, even though that's not entirely Triple H's fault. Still, the War Raiders would have had challenges to get the division over even if they remained champions. With them gone, TUE is the natural next choice, but putting the titles back on them feels like a step backwards.

The women's division is obviously a catastrophe and has been for a long time. If Io doesn't beat Shayna it will just be that much worse. Even if Io does, who's there for her to feud with? Everyone's been geeked out by Shayna.

And the NXT title scene isn't that good either. Again, it goes back to Undisputed - they feel like they've overstayed their welcome in NXT. SD could use them a lot more. And though he probably will still be the next champion, Cole had his shot and failed, so it doesn't really feel like the right thing to put the title on him at this point. Again, SD could use him a lot more. I'm just not sold on TUE holding every title at this point, especially if it comes at the expense of Dream.

And speaking of him, Dream, and Dream alone, is the only thing I can say that's _really good_ about NXT right now. He shouldn't be dropping that title anytime soon unless it's to put the NXT title on him, which I think he's more than ready for.

Now, aside from the women, Triple H and his team have shown themselves reliable, so I'm confident NXT can get over this hump, but it's gonna take some doing.


----------



## Sensei Utero

That Velveteen Dream segment wens3 :mark:. He just gets better everytime in terms of his character. Really can't wait to see him in the ring again soon. I'm impressed with Dijakovic too. Used right, and used to his strengths, he can become a star in time for the NXT brand.

It was also the very first time I'd ever watched KUSHIDA. Considering that folk marked big time over him on here, I expected more - but I'm reading on here that it was far from his best, so maybe I'll see that best in time. Alright match though, and I love Kassius Ohno's work.

I didn't care much for anything else. As stated before on the post about last week's episode, I was a fan of Gunner in TNA, and I'm glad the Jaxson Ryker character is getting somewhat of a push...but the stable is a little stale. Burch/Lorcan are fun to watch, though. Wish they'd get a bit more of a push. Looking forward to Cole/Riddle next week.


----------



## RiverFenix

Mansoor getting a push in time for the Saudi event. His ring name should be Khashoggi.

Kushida is going to bust in NXT - that BTFT stuff works in Japan but won't work in the States. It would be like an American wrestler doing Samurai, Anime, Ninja or Geisha gimmick in Japan


----------



## The Raw Smackdown

I just saw the last two episodes and I have a few thoughts. 

-I really wish Oney/Danny would get a push. They more than deserve it with them putting on some damn good hard hitting matches. 

-The Women's Division is in Shambles. Shayna needs to fuck off to the main roster and her two henchmen need to go somewhere because they are HORRIBLE. 

-Dijakovic and Mansoon were good. 

-As of now with all the call ups NXT seems a bit empty and seems like people are missing. They'll get over this hurdle I think as they've had periods like this in the past and came out strong. 

-I'm a bit familiar with Kushida but his debut match...eh. I think he should've fought someone else.


----------



## MC

Forgotten Sons vs Oney/Burch/Carrillo was okay. Pretty forgettable if I'm honest. 

I thought Dijak vs Mansoour sucked. Everything they did looked so clunky and disjointed. Both guys looked so bad. Dijak can do better but he was so unimpressive. His moves looked so weak and awfully boring. Just god awful wrestling overall. Dijak has really flopped since joining NXT, done nothing.

The Dream segment was great though. Impressive of him to remember the entire song without looking at the screen. It made the match worthwhile at least. Dijak vs Dream looks to be the feud for the NA title. That's fine by me of Dijak wins the title and Dream moves on and wins the NXT Title ASAP. 

Riddle vs Cole next week sounds fine. Maybe Riddle can get something out of Cole besides the usual average match Cole has. 

KUSH vs Ohno was pretty good. Established KUSHIDA from the off. Interesting how they didn't have a smaller opponent for him, at least his size won't be a hang up for him.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole and The Undisputed Era are literally the only reason to watch NXT at this point for me, get the gold on Cole.


----------



## SAMCRO

NXT needs to get Trevor Lee and Shane Strickland on there asap, as well as give Keith Lee a legit feud, i think that will fill somewhat of the void left from the call ups.

Wasn't a big fan of Kushida's match, i groaned last week when Ohno was made his opponent, like why the fuck? he's on NXT UK now but still he's coming back to NXT to put over another new arrival to NXT? its ridiculous. Ohno is so trash nowadays, i can't remember the last good match he's had, Kushida should have faced someone like Drew Gulak or Oney Lorcan or someone he could do more with. Ohno's fat ass needs to be let go, cause he god awful to watch now.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

KUSHIDA's gimmick isn't the problem. Don't overthink it. A foreigner doing a gimmick idolizing an American movie - people will think it's cute and funny. His problem right now is - well he doesn't really have a problem. He had one meh match. They should've debuted him a faster and more exciting match, but that's ok, it was one match, we can calm down.

Dream was good, but we already knew that. He's everything WWE is missing right now. Creativity, effort and unique presentation. Get the fuck out of this company my man, please. 

I also agree, Keith Lee needs to be on TV more. The only reason I can think they aren't using him - two reasons: 

1) they never wanted to do anything with him but didn't want him anywhere else. 

2) he's not progressing in the promo/character department. Not only is he so bland that they're probably looking for the right character for him, but his actual promo work came across as very basic and even somewhat confused. I could see him thinking before he spoke and the results of all that thinking still weren't super compelling. Riddle's promos started off bad but at least he was still being himself while failing. A lot of people really made strides in the promo department on NXT. Riddle is listenable now - Gargano is actually really good, even Adam Cole improved A LOT in my opinion. Velveteen Dream too, he used to be rough himself and now he's one of the best in the WWE. Keith Lee was super rough and maybe he still is. But he's not going to get better if he doesn't get TV time.


----------



## Alexander_G

I don't find Keith Lee bland at all. Maybe just me but I find his personality highly magnetic.

That's not his biggest strength anyway. It's his incredible combination of size, speed, athleticism & moveset that gives me the nod. He's money. Pull the trigger on him.


----------



## TD Stinger

Keith Lee is a highly charismatic person, IMO. Maybe not a "promo" guy but a lot NXT stars in the past haven't been great promos. But he can talk and he's very charismatic when does. Not to mention his power and athleticism.

His issue has been bad timing. He came to NXT last Summer when NXT was already ridiculously deep with talent. And then a guy like Matt Riddle comes to NXT just months later and steals his thunder. And when he was finally going to get his shot with Dijak, he gets hurt, only now getting healthier.

Now do I think he's been underutilized? Oh hell yeah. They could have been doing a lot more with him in late 2018. But his main issue has been bad timing whether it be when he came to NXT or injuries.

He'll have his time, whether it's in NXT or even on Raw or SD.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Keith Lee will find his groove, that's literally the story of his career. He was overlooked in ROH, so he went independent and became a big star.


----------



## DammitChrist

Wait, isn't Keith Lee injured or something?

Isn't that the reason why he's been absent on NXT for a couple of months now?


----------



## Jedah

This episode punched above its weight.

Mia Yim vs. Bianca Belair was surprisingly decent. Fun little ending with her hair on the rope.

Mendoza vs. Moss was surprisingly entertaining. Funny little match.

Please just get the title off Shayna. That is all.

Cole vs. Riddle was good. I know it's probably a swerve but they shouldn't even consider making Roddy leave it. He's dead without them.


----------



## MEMS

Holy crap what a match but I’m so sick of Cole losing. 

Riddle has impressed a ton lately.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

That banger Cole/Riddle had :zayn3

Go watch it [user]Donnie[/user] & [user]MC[/user] so you two can stop complaining about Cole/Gargano.


----------



## SAMCRO

Surprised Moss lost to Mendoza, with a new gimmick, look and theme i figured he was getting set for a big singles push, and then they had the resident NXT jobber beat him. So i don't know what their plan is with Moss, is he just gonna lose constantly and be the Curt Hawkins of NXT? or is this just a reason to put him in a feud with Mendoza?

Cole vs Riddle was fucking great, love Riddle so much, i'd love to see him win the NXT or NA title at some point.


----------



## Mordecay

Cole needs a new finisher, the Last Shot/Shining Wizard has been super buried


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Mordecay said:


> Cole needs a new finisher, the Last Shot/Shining Wizard has been super buried


Mauro and the commentators buried it this match, The Last Shot is to the back of the head with the knee exposed. Cole didn't hit that this match, he hit a shining wizard to the front of Riddle. 

It's the same effect like Nakamura's kinshasa.


----------



## TD Stinger

New show thoughts:

*Mia vs. Bianca was fine. Action was kind of clunky. But you can tell the story was that of the hardened veteran vs. the cocky newcomwer which I appreciated.

*Mendoza vs. Moss was a surprisingly fun little match. I like Moss's new fitness junkie gimmick. I like his attitude. His trash talk. His power was on point (for the most part). And Mendoza made for a nice foil. But then Moss lost, which just felt weird.

*Cole vs. Riddle was really good. Riddle had most of the offense and it all looked good and they meshed really well together. The finish was again, weird. When Cole cost Roddy his match with Roddy, it was completely Cole's fault.

Here, Roddy's interference only helped Cole. It was off Roddy's distraction that Cole hit that Superkick on Riddle which looked amazing. It's not Roddy's fault that Cole immediately got caught in a Submission to lose. Again good match but if they were going for a role reversal thing, I don't think it worked.


----------



## Jedah

I never liked Cole's finisher, to be honest.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

This was basically a one match show, I skimmed the first half hour odd just to get to Riddle/Cole. It was a mouth watering prospect that actually really delivered in execution as well. The chemistry between Cole and Riddle was just wonderful, the counters and transitions, the sequences and exchanges... on point. 

Once that bell rings everything about Riddle feels so legit, it is why I fell in love with him on the indies. Not everyone can do it but there is always something so special about wrestlers who can take their legit backgrounds and translate it into a pro wrestling environment. His strikes always look brutal and his superhuman feats of strength and athleticism are always a great spectacle.

I have also grown to really love Cole's character in NXT as well, the fact that he is so arrogant that most of the time he doesn't respect his opponents enough to even try so he just acts like a little bitch instead. Then every now and then he gets serious, like he did here and you're like... oh yeah, Cole is an amazing wrestler and it just makes it all the more sweeter. 

I will also say that while the finish didn't really make any sense, I am glad we still got a finish. I was waiting for the match to peak and then the UE run in and screw it but instead we got a finish of sorts after their involvement so we could still get an end and still further the UE storyline. Shame it wasnt' a better finish like I say but I'll take it.


----------



## TL Hopper

anyone else really despise the new theme song and video?


----------



## Slit_Zurifa

Awesome show this week. Man Adam Cole and Matt Riddle sure are very talented and have great chemistry. I hope for these two to have a future match for the NXT Championship. I hope the next few championship reigns will be:

Adam Cole - Matt Riddle - Dominik Dijakovic - Keith Lee/ Kushida


----------



## SAMCRO

TL Hopper said:


> anyone else really despise the new theme song and video?


Yes, i hate it. It just looks dumb all the NXT roster in a big group looking like they're making a music video with that screaming metal music playing.


----------



## DammitChrist

Yep, I don't get why they changed the intro for the show. Gathering everyone on the NXT roster to group up together for the music video feels so forced.

I prefer the previous intro way more.


----------



## TL Hopper

DammitC said:


> Yep, I don't get why they changed the intro for the show. Gathering everyone on the NXT roster to group up together for the music video feels so forced.
> 
> I prefer the previous intro way more.


especially when you take into consideration how often the roster turns over. it already looks old after a few weeks


----------



## TD Stinger

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1128320459278307328
My guy.


----------



## Reil

Brief NXT thoughts:

- The Vanessa vs Jessie match seemed utterly pointless.

- Street Profits vs War Raiders sure didn't last long.

- Bianca, please stop with the whole undefeated thing.

- I'm sure Marky is real excited over Adam Cole getting another title shot.

- It was interesting to see Mauro referencing that Io is out for more than Shayna's title. She's also out for revenge. Hopefully that means NXT realizes that Shayna needs to drop that title in order to progress the story being told.


----------



## Jedah

Pretty nothing episode tonight.

Why did they book War Raiders to go out like that with basically destroying the division they're leaving?

It's still early, but Kushida just doesn't do it for me. I don't see big things for him. He doesn't have anything that makes him stand out aside from his entrance.

Why the fuck is Bianca still angling for title shots? What are Vanessa and Aliyah even doing?

Cole getting another title shot. That's 50/50.

I don't like Io's chances. It feels way too soon and there's not much build. The best realistic scenario would be some dumb finish that keeps the feud going until SummerSlam weekend. Either way, Shayna's reign just needs to fucking end yesterday.

There's really no bright spot in any of the women's divisions in the entire company right now.

The build to this TakeOver has been bad, to be honest, but it always is for the June show.


----------



## Mordecay

Still don't care about the NXT womens division, even if Io wins the title I probably still won't care, she is not very interesting and she probably will be feuding with Shayna or Bianca when she becomes champion. ANd Bianca still with her cringey Undefeated shit :eyeroll

Keith Lee is back, that's good to see. I wish they would have kept Ground Zero as his finisher, it is more unique than just another powerbomb

They are trying so hard to replicate the IIconics chemistry with Aliyah and Borne and it isn't working. Match with Jessie is what you expected. I see they dropped Jessie's nerd gimmick, that was the most interesting part of the match

Best part of the show was this


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1128815174570397697


----------



## Jedah

At least Io's TakeOver matches won't be shit.

I'm still hoping they turn her at some point.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Cole is finally overcoming SuperJohnny, thank goodness.


----------



## Mordecay

Jedah said:


> At least Io's TakeOver matches won't be shit.


Just the build ups to them, but that has been the case since the Asuka days, so nothing new.



MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Cole is finally overcoming SuperJohnny, thank goodness.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Mordecay said:


>


Come on man, we've gotta speak it into existence.


----------



## Jedah

This division is garbage right now, so the buildups are going to be bad no matter what (they either need another Mae Young Classic or to exchange some talent with the main roster bad). At least Io will actually deliver in the wrestling department though.

Could've had something special with a Kairi vs. Io feud but no, Sharon Corbin's reign needs to continue.


----------



## Mordecay

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Come on man, we've gotta speak it into existence.


I mean, there is hope, Gargano doesn't seem to know how to defend the titles. He lost the tag titles in his first Takeover as tag champion and he lost the North American title in his first title defense, so they may play that into the feud.


----------



## Jedah

Johnny's had his moment. There's a decent chance he loses just to create a shock, and with Keith Lee, Kushida, and Riddle, there's babyface challengers built up, and few heels. Either way, it's now or never for Cole.


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> This division is garbage right now, so the buildups are going to be bad no matter what (they either need another Mae Young Classic or to exchange some talent with the main roster bad). At least Io will actually deliver in the wrestling department though.
> 
> Could've had something special with a Kairi vs. Io feud but no, Sharon Corbin's reign needs to continue.



At this point, the only purpose of the Mae Young Classic is to feed and sacrifice more girls to the altar of Shayna(case in point Kairi, Dakota, Candice, Bianca from the 1st MYC and Mia & possibly Io from the 2nd, not counting PC girls like Kacy, Taynara & Xia Li)


----------



## Jedah

Yes, it's impossible to overstate just how bad Shayna has been for that division. They finally had a solid class to build behind after Asuka left but they just sacrificed everyone to her. And for what gain? I still have no idea.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> Yes, it's impossible to overstate just how bad Shayna has been for that division. They finally had a solid class to build behind after Asuka left but they just sacrificed everyone to her. And for what gain? I still have no idea.


Pretty sure part of the issue is Dave's fault, and another part is Triple H's fault.

Triple H because he has an MMA boner. It seems he thinks no one should be allowed to ever look legit over a former MMA fighter, even though outside of Ronda (and arguably Shayna, although to a MUCH lesser extent [15W-11L]), Jessamyn and Marina were both complete failures in the MMA world (I think their combined record was like 3W-12L).

Part of it is also Dave's fault because he spent months talking up how quickly Jessamyn and Marina were progressing apparently, until he actually saw them in person, and he recanted his statement soon after.

I think the more concerning thing is that if Io loses at Takeover: XXV, her NXT career is pretty much toast. And I'm gonna be questioning why they didn't just call her up alongside Kairi.

Shayna's already peaked in NXT. She's had zero character growth/evolution over the past 6 months or so. Jessamyn and Marina are completely worthless and with Sasha likely not returning, there's no point in keeping them around if they continue to suck as much as they do.


----------



## gl83

Jedah said:


> Yes, it's impossible to overstate just how bad Shayna has been for that division. They finally had a solid class to build behind after Asuka left but they just sacrificed everyone to her. And for what gain? I still have no idea.



Here's the sad thing: Dakota Kai tore her ACL a few months into Shayna's current title reign. There's a very real possibility that she's going to go through the whole surgery/physical rehab/cleared to work out at the PC process and things in the division will be no different from when she first went out. That is a 7-8 month span of things being the exact same(and let's be fair it was getting stale and dire even back then).



That is just sad & pathetic. I really don't know what their game is. She really should've dropped it at Takeover: NY. The only rational reason I could think of for why she's keeping the title is they want her to break Asuka's record as longest-reigning champion. 


Which is madness. But here's the grave reality: You have a division where all the Faces have been steamrolled by Shayna & friends; a division where thanks to several call-ups earlier this year is severely lacking in terms of credible and strong Heels. Last year you at least had some strong Heels built up for the next Face champ. But, nope, now we have nothing on either side of the spectrum.


----------



## Jedah

I don't think they care about the record. She's still a long way off from that. Triple H isn't petty or obsessed in that way like Vince is.

I truthfully don't know the answer. I sort of understood the still incorrect logic of him putting the title back on her in October. He hoped that those two worthless pieces of trash would get better. But now that it's clear they won't, and with Ronda and Sasha gone, there really is no point. He just won't change the title for some dumb reason.

At this point I'm just hoping they're doing a long build to SummerSlam weekend since I don't see Io getting the title in June.


----------



## Reil

I'm not ruling out Io winning the title in June, and the rematch being held during Takeover: Toronto either though. Or Shayna just being called up after Takeover XXV, assuming Becky retains any title at MITB. Because Shayna vs Becky is a feud that is really should happen and makes complete sense from a booking perspective. And there is usually one shocking moment during a Takeover.

WWE is marketing this as a major Takeover, since its their 25th one, even if it is taking place in the middle of nowhere.


----------



## TD Stinger

It's now or never for the Street Profits. Even after a year of 50/50 booking with teams like TM61 and the Forgotten Sons, they're still over. They're talented. People want them to win. It's time for them to get a chance. Either that, or TUE gets the belts back and the Profits win from them.

I was surprised that NXT did get that line of "if that is your real names" in there. Probably a little therapy for HHH, lol.

I loved how they shot Cole's interview transitioning into the commotion in the background. And Roddy stealing Riddle's sandle as proof his battle, priceless. This does put the idea of Roddy and Cole being at odds on ice for now. Whether the story is done or if this just another chapter in the story remains to be seen.

My boy Keith Lee is back and it's awesome to see him back and so over. He's had his string of bad luck, but I also feel like I've seen him squash guys so many times times now. Give the guy something interesting.

Vanessa Borne's an interesting one. #1, she has one of the better entrance themes out there. She's got a great look. She's got all that. But even after what's felt like awhile in developmental, she still hasn't really put it together yet.

The main event was fun while it lasted and I won't give away spoilers to how the whole tag team situation shakes out so I'll save my thoughts about that until then.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

I just realized the whip sound on Belair's entrance was for her hair. Jesus, I'm late to the party.


What happened to Riddle? Did Roddy stab him? :lmao I hope it's a work, Roddy siding with Riddle and Gargano, revealing at Takeover. Otherwise, Regal is just letting his wrestlers have gang wars :lol

I'm excited for a large tag match at Takeover now. The "If that even is your real name" line wasn't used well. I appreciate the jab, but I wasn't feeling it from Dawkins. I still hope Street Profits win the titles in a 4 way match


----------



## DammitChrist

Johnny Gargano vs Adam Cole should be good again :trips8

Hopefully, the Undisputed Era stay united for a while longer so Cole can win the NXT title soon :drose

I'm pulling for the Street Profits to win the NXT Tag titles off the Viking Raiders soon :dance

Kushida vs Drew Gulak has the potential to be a fun match :mark:



cesaro_ROCKS said:


> What happened to Riddle? Did Roddy stab him? :lmao


I bet Roderick Strong ambushed Matt Riddle from behind, gave him some of his nasty Backbreakers (which explains Riddle's back being taped up), and then stoled his sandal :lol


----------



## SAMCRO

So why did they take away Jessie's nerdy tomboy attire? it made her unique, now shes just wearing some generic tights that looks like something every other female jobber wears. Thats great take away something that made her unique and make her look like everyone else.

If that was truly the end of Cole and Rodrick's feud between one another then i don't get what the whole point of it actually was, it didn't lead to Roddy leaving UE, didn't lead to a match, just "Hey i just attacked a guy you don't like " "Oh really? welcome back buddy!" its gonna look really dumb and pointless if that was indeed the end of Cole and Roddy's spat.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— So Percy quit WWE? Nothing of value lost really, although I'd argue Beth was even worse here. Lifelessly reading from her script. All we want is a two man booth and at least Beth was quiet for long sections of this.

— This UE story is all over the place but I had to laugh at the bloodstained flipflop. So silly. Shame they ruined it a bit later on with them showing Riddle with no corresponding injuries. Or no real injuries at all really, just them putting a bandage around his middle like some kind of live action anime. 

— Gargano/Cole again for the NXT Title at the next TakeOver? Well you delivered that announcement as flatly as it deserved tbh.

— A pretty clunky match between Lee and Bononi but Lee got to look strong and I am just glad he is back.

— Man that Kushida/Reeves match was awful. However, a wild Gulak appears. The reaper to drag you away to forgottenhood in 205 Live.

— What were those last five minutes? Have the Raiders relinquished the titles again or are we getting some car crash multi-man for the titles at the next TakeOver? If they have relinquished the titles, why not just let the Raiders and the Profits have a proper match?


----------



## SAMCRO

Yeah why are they so dead set on 3 man commentary teams? And Beth is god awful on commentary, she doesn't sound at all natural, she sounds like shes reading right off a script, and at times its like shes not even there and sitting there not saying a word.


----------



## Pizzamorg

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah why are they so dead set on 3 man commentary teams? And Beth is god awful on commentary, she doesn't sound at all natural, she sounds like shes reading right off a script, and at times its like shes not even there and sitting there not saying a word.


Yeah I don't get it at all. It seems like they know if they have three high charisma personalities in a booth they'll all clash so in response we get like two high charisma personalities + an extra cardboard cut out of a human being to spout soulless company lines like some sort of text to speech software. These extra parts end up being such a non entity you wonder why they even have them there in the first place. It is exactly the same across every brand WWE has.


----------



## SAMCRO

Pizzamorg said:


> Yeah I don't get it at all. It seems like they know if they have three high charisma personalities in a booth they'll all clash so in response we get like two high charisma personalities + an extra cardboard cut out of a human being to spout soulless company lines like some sort of text to speech software. These extra parts end up being such a non entity you wonder why they even have them there in the first place. *It is exactly the same across every brand WWE has.*


Yeah on Raw its Renee, on SDL its Tom Philips, just dull pod people spouting generic lines.


----------



## Pizzamorg

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah on Raw its Renee, on SDL its Tom Philips, just dull pod people spouting generic lines.


WWE’s only consistent practice. 

Is this terrible?

Do it EVERYWHERE.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

How do they justify Cole getting another title match when he lost a 2 out of 3 falls match? Things don't get much more definitive than that in wrestling.

NXT's booking has been complete trash, first they drastically overextended the Gargano/Ciampa feud, then they did that corny pseudo-turn, then they give Johnny a consolation prize that he loses in his first defense, then he wins the NXT title on the flattest note possible story-wise, now they're doing an unnecessary rematch that neither guy can afford to lose. If Johnny loses he looks like Sasha Gargano and if Cole loses he and TUE look like a bunch of jobbers. Seriously, I don't even like TUE but why do they even exist if they're not going to hold all the titles at the same time?

They also let Shayna eviscerate the entire women's division and the tag division isn't any better off where the only team with enough credibility to challenge the War Experience Raider Machine is the freaking Forgotten Sons.

Also are they trying to kill Kushida's hype out the gate? Could they have put him against any 2 worse opponents? If this guy is a CW put him up against Humberto or Mendoza. I'm not seeing any charisma there so the least he could do is show me some amazing flippy shit.


----------



## MC

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> How do they justify Cole getting another title match when he lost a 2 out of 3 falls match? Things don't get much more definitive than that in wrestling.
> 
> NXT's booking has been complete trash, first they drastically overextended the Gargano/Ciampa feud, then they did that corny pseudo-turn, then they give Johnny a consolation prize that he loses in his first defense, then he wins the NXT title on the flattest note possible story-wise, now they're doing an unnecessary rematch that neither guy can afford to lose. If Johnny loses he looks like Sasha Gargano and if Cole loses he and TUE look like a bunch of jobbers. Seriously, I don't even like TUE but why do they even exist if they're not going to hold all the titles at the same time?
> 
> They also let Shayna eviscerate the entire women's division and the tag division isn't any better off where the only team with enough credibility to challenge the War Experience Raider Machine is the freaking Forgotten Sons.
> 
> Also are they trying to kill Kushida's hype out the gate? Could they have put him against any 2 worse opponents? If this guy is a CW put him up against Humberto or Mendoza. *I'm not seeing any charisma there so the least he could do is show me some amazing flippy shit.*


You're not going to see that from KUSHIDA considering he isn't a high flyer (Also, Humberto is bad so please not him). Instead, he is pretty much regarded as one of the best grapplers in Japan, not that I think WWE will show that because of their submission are for heels stance that they usually have. As for charisma, I like KUSHIDA but I don't know about that either. Then again, he is usually more over in the States and UK then he was in his own country. One thing is for sure, putting him against Kona Reeves won't help anyone.


----------



## Ham and Egger

Cesar Bononi has been jobbing forever. Do something with him or let the guy go. But they could also be seasoning him so that he may be good one day.

There is a reason Wesley Blake is still in NXT. He just looks goofy as hell.

Konami Reeves is still refining his character and once he puts it all together he'll be on of the better wrestlers there are.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Ham and Egger said:


> Cesar Bononi has been jobbing forever. Do something with him or let the guy go. But they could also be seasoning him so that he may be good one day.
> 
> There is a reason Wesley Blake is still in NXT. He just looks goofy as hell.
> 
> Konami Reeves is still refining his character and once he puts it all together he'll be on of the better wrestlers there are.


Kona's character is coming along quite hateably but I haven't seen anything special in his ring work, he seems like a big standard brawler without a good working strike or any big spots.

Are you seeing something I'm missing?


----------



## Donnie

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> How do they justify Cole getting another title match when he lost a 2 out of 3 falls match? Things don't get much more definitive than that in wrestling.
> 
> NXT's booking has been complete trash, first they drastically overextended the Gargano/Ciampa feud, then they did that corny pseudo-turn, then they give Johnny a consolation prize that he loses in his first defense, then he wins the NXT title on the flattest note possible story-wise, now they're doing an unnecessary rematch that neither guy can afford to lose. If Johnny loses he looks like Sasha Gargano and if Cole loses he and TUE look like a bunch of jobbers. Seriously, I don't even like TUE but why do they even exist if they're not going to hold all the titles at the same time?
> 
> They also let Shayna eviscerate the entire women's division and the tag division isn't any better off where the only team with enough credibility to challenge the War Experience Raider Machine is the freaking Forgotten Sons.
> 
> Also are they trying to kill Kushida's hype out the gate? Could they have put him against any 2 worse opponents? If this guy is a CW put him up against Humberto or Mendoza. I'm not seeing any charisma there so the least he could do is show me some amazing flippy shit.


Damn, even you're sick of NXT's shit. That's not me being an asshole, either. I know how much you loved NXT in 2015 (Never forget how much we wanted Baron to be the champ) 

HHH's bullshit has ruined everything. :suckit

KUSHIDA isn't a flippy dude. He's a technical dude who dominated the JNR division for years, and reigned as the ACE. Like, he can and will do big spots, but its not his game. 
The match against Gulak will rule, and I think you'll really enjoy it.


----------



## SAMCRO

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> *How do they justify Cole getting another title match when he lost a 2 out of 3 falls match? Things don't get much more definitive than that in wrestling*.
> 
> NXT's booking has been complete trash, first they drastically overextended the Gargano/Ciampa feud, then they did that corny pseudo-turn, then they give Johnny a consolation prize that he loses in his first defense, then he wins the NXT title on the flattest note possible story-wise, now they're doing an unnecessary rematch that neither guy can afford to lose. If Johnny loses he looks like Sasha Gargano and if Cole loses he and TUE look like a bunch of jobbers. Seriously, I don't even like TUE but why do they even exist if they're not going to hold all the titles at the same time?
> 
> They also let Shayna eviscerate the entire women's division and the tag division isn't any better off where the only team with enough credibility to challenge the War Experience Raider Machine is the freaking Forgotten Sons.
> 
> Also are they trying to kill Kushida's hype out the gate? Could they have put him against any 2 worse opponents? If this guy is a CW put him up against Humberto or Mendoza. I'm not seeing any charisma there so the least he could do is show me some amazing flippy shit.


Its legit cause they have no one else to face Gargano, no one on the roster besides Cole is ready to step into the main event scene and main event a Takeover. 

It really is starting show how thin their main event picture actually is when they just handed Cole another title match out of the blue with no real reasoning behind it. Didn't he even lose to Riddle before it was announced? So yeah it was the most obvious case of "well we aint got no one else to face the champion so lets go with this guy again".

Yeah i have no idea why they thought Ohno and Reeves would be good opponents for Kushida, its like they're purposefully making him go against the biggest guys on the roster and not guys suited to his style he can have good matches with.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Donnie said:


> Damn, even you're sick of NXT's shit. That's not me being an asshole, either. I know how much you loved NXT in 2015 (Never forget how much we wanted Baron to be the champ)
> 
> HHH's bullshit has ruined everything. :suckit
> 
> KUSHIDA isn't a flippy dude. He's a technical dude who dominated the JNR division for years, and reigned as the ACE. Like, he can and will do big spots, but its not his game.
> The match against Gulak will rule, and I think you'll really enjoy it.


I am sick of it, I haven't even watched the last 2 Takeovers and I was a month behind on the weekly show until today. Part of it is just me not liking the talent currently getting pushed, I don't have anything bad to say about them, they just don't do anything for me, but Gargano is one of the guys I do like and I feel like they've ruined his story. I wish there was more diversity in the talent and characters, aside from Dream there isn't a single person getting pushed that I'd want to watch a non wrestling segment from. I can't even tell if promo class and character development is even still a part of NXT.

Guys like Bugenhagen and Shaw are killing it in Instagram promos and can't get on TV, Street Profits have been the most over tag team for 2 years and HHH refuses to pull the trigger, Jessie is dripping with charisma and personality, but rather than debut her with a promo she gets squashed by Vision, Riddy Mo has da look and now he has a gimmick but he loses to the guy who has never beaten anybody (FTR I like Mendoza), he blew a potentially stellar feud between Kairi and Io to keep Shayna champ for 6 months longer than she should've been, Candice LeRae has had more airtime as "Johnny's wife" than in her own career. 

I just don't know what the fuck HHH is doing, can you catch dementia, did Vince infect him? I used to complain about NXT being too predictable but now it's unpredictable in a bad way because things don't make logical sense anymore. How did Shayna go from choking out the entire division clean, to needing help to win every match? Why did Johnny get put in the title match at TO:NY after losing his title, but everyone else had to fight for the other spot, including the guy that beat him? Why have Ricochet and Black win the Dusty, only to lose to the Viking Machine, knowing that both teams would be called up the next week?

It's like HHH thinks what would be the matches smarks want to see the most, then forces the booking to get there rather than letting the story build to the matches. Adam Cole loses the title match, then goes and feuds with Riddle, but it's Johnny that challenges him? How in the blue fuck does that make sense?


----------



## Ham and Egger

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Kona's character is coming along quite hateably but I haven't seen anything special in his ring work, he seems like a big standard brawler without a good working strike or any big spots.
> 
> Are you seeing something I'm missing?


From what I've seen he's got a good old school style and knows how to work with more athletic guys. I feel if given the chance he can easily work with the top mix of talent. I definitely see potential in the guy.


----------



## TD Stinger

I see people asking why Cole is getting another shot. Well, Johnny asked for it to prove a point. So, there's that. I mean it's a case of dumb babyface syndrome, like we've seen from guys like Sami in NXT Past. Plus he did get the 1st fall over Johnny at Takeover. And lastly there's no other contender yet. You could say Riddle, but he also lost to Dream at Takeover.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Just have Cole beat Gargano, don't make the same mistake twice HHH.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8

Anyone agree with this?


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1130514764575023105


----------



## Patrick Sledge

So......War Raiders are no longer NXT tag champs? But they never lost. WTF is this shit?!


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Cole over Gargano

Kyle/Bobby win ladder match

Roddy over Riddle (probably not)

UNDISPUTED SWEEP


----------



## Patrick Sledge

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Cole over Gargano
> 
> Kyle/Bobby win ladder match
> 
> Roddy over Riddle (probably not)
> 
> UNDISPUTED SWEEP


:rusevyes


----------



## rbl85

Those kendo shots were brutal


----------



## Patrick Sledge

rbl85 said:


> Those kendo shots were brutal


Io went full blown ECW on that spot. Loved it.


----------



## rbl85

Patrick Sledge said:


> Io went full blown ECW on that spot. Loved it.



I know 3 women who were very sore the next day XD


----------



## Reil

Yeah. The crowd came absolutely unhinged with those kendo stick shots. Like WWE would be INSANELY stupid to not put the title on Io after that segment alone. Jesus christ.


----------



## Patrick Sledge

Reil said:


> Yeah. The crowd came absolutely unhinged with those kendo stick shots. Like WWE would be INSANELY stupid to not put the title on Io after that segment alone. Jesus christ.


I said to someone months ago that Io will be the one to dethrone Shayna. She's held that title forever, and it's time for it to change. Io will make a great champion. I bet she wins at Takeover.


----------



## rbl85

Patrick Sledge said:


> I said to someone months ago that Io will be the one to dethrone Shayna. She's held that title forever, and it's time for it to change. Io will make a great champion. I bet she wins at Takeover.


Also the main roster really needs good heel.


----------



## Patrick Sledge

Matt Riddle and Kyle O'Reilly can have some 5 star matches for sure. Good lord the exchanges they had


----------



## Patrick Sledge

rbl85 said:


> Also the main roster really needs good heel.


Unfortunately, Shayna can't use a mic to save her soul. I don't see her going far to be honest.


----------



## Mordecay

Those kendo shots was probably the most interesting thing Io has done since she came to WWE, let's see if she can keep that momentum going because she is not gonna be able to do that every show.

Show tonight was good, highlight was VD and Breeze trading burns at each other, that was fun


----------



## Jedah

Good show this week. Let's run it down.

1. Ladder match. :mark :mark

2. Strong opening promo between Cole and Johnny. Johnny is better on the mic than he's often given credit for. Still, it really is now or never for Cole.

3. Opening match between Mansoor and that other guy...dead silence. Guys need to develop, I get it, but still.

4. Dream's promo was gold. Of course. Everything he does is gold these days. Breeze did really well too. I'm more hyped for this feud on such short notice than anything else. Dream is without doubt the MVP of NXT so far this year.

5. Yikes. Reina hasn't improved at all since the first MYC. And of course after that sloppy match we had to get the doofuses pretending to be badasses coming out. Io looked good, closer to the Queen's Quest Ace of Stardom Io that's been so badly missed. Please for the love of God let Io win at TakeOver and end this atrocious title reign. PLEASE. Sadly, I still don't have high hopes. They aren't building any heels. At best, we get shenanigans that keep the feud going. More likely Sharon Corbin just gets her win back and the shit show continues.

6. Main event was good, if a bit disappointing by the standards of those four guys. Good sell of the threat of the Undisputed Era heading into TakeOver though.


----------



## rbl85

Io shirai can turn heel after she win or be more like a tweener (Like Asuka when she became champ)


----------



## Patrick Sledge

Jedah said:


> Good show this week. Let's run it down.
> 
> 1. Ladder match. :mark :mark
> 
> 2. Strong opening promo between Cole and Johnny. Johnny is better on the mic than he's often given credit for. Still, it really is now or never for Cole.
> 
> 3. Opening match between Mansoor and that other guy...dead silence. Guys need to develop, I get it, but still.
> 
> 4. Dream's promo was gold. Of course. Everything he does is gold these days. Breeze did really well too. I'm more hyped for this feud on such short notice than anything else. Dream is without doubt the MVP of NXT so far this year.
> 
> 5. Yikes. Reina hasn't improved at all since the first MYC. And of course after that sloppy match we had to get the doofuses pretending to be badasses coming out. Io looked good, closer to the Queen's Quest Ace of Stardom Io that's been so badly missed. Please for the love of God let Io win at TakeOver and end this atrocious title reign. PLEASE. Sadly, I still don't have high hopes. They aren't building any heels. At best, we get shenanigans that keep the feud going. More likely Sharon Corbin just gets her win back and the shit show continues.
> 
> 6. Main event was good, if a bit disappointing by the standards of those four guys. Good sell of the threat of the Undisputed Era heading into TakeOver though.


I gotta say, Gargano is an awful champion right now. His reign doesn't mean much with Ciampa being out. Gargano winning the title with Ciampa around would've meant a whole lot more, but it's really fallen flat with me. I think Cole would be able to carry that title and make it mean something more than Gargano has.

Or maybe I just don't like Gargano. I've always been a fan of heels


----------



## TD Stinger

Pretty fun show this week:

*Johnny's promos are kind of corny, but I will always laugh when he gets under Adam Cole's skin even with a simple math promo. And Cole's a perfect foil to play off of.

*Maluta vs. Mansoor was a nice little showcase match between 2 guys on the bottom of the card trying to break out. And Mansoor is just really good. He came out of nowhere for me, but in the last month or so across NXT and NXT UK, the dude's had some impressive performances and he's really just getting started.

*Regal being the school Principal to the rebel TUE will always make me smile.

*In one night they got me to care about Breeze again. He fit right back into his old gimmick without forgetting what he was on the main roster. And Dream was at top form on the mic. So good and so quick to respond. And in one night, they made me want to see this match.

*Reina has been beaten far too many times for me to take her asa serious threat despite her size, but Candice worked with her well. The stuff the the MMA Horsewomen was kind of the same of what you've seen before but I did appreciate for once someone like Io had the foresight to bring a weapon to go 3 on 1 and she laid into those 3 women.

*The main event was fun. Gargano and Riddle looked like they were having fun teaming together. The Lawn Dart into the Jumping Knee by Riddle was a really good spot. And they did a good job of building both Gargano vs. Riddle and Roddy vs. Riddle for Takeover.

In fact in this one hour even with a match like Mansoor vs. Maluta, they promoted and built almost all 5 matches for Takeover which is looking like another solid show.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Really enjoyed that main-event. KOR worked on Riddle's ribs really well for awhile there. The Bazler/Io segment was well done. Io swinging that singapore kane with intensity over and over again. Cathy Kelly was looking better than usual, at least to me. She's goregous. I really could see Undisputed Era possibly breaking up at Takeover, if the story is they cost Cole the match, but we'll see. The Dream/Breeze segment was entertaining. I didn't read the spoilers, so I didn't know Breeze was showing up and then gonna get a match with Dream. I like that. Something different. It's not like Breeze was doing anything on the main roster, anyway, so why not. Good show. Really liked that main-event.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Patrick Sledge said:


> I gotta say, Gargano is an awful champion right now. His reign doesn't mean much with Ciampa being out. Gargano winning the title with Ciampa around would've meant a whole lot more, but it's really fallen flat with me. I think Cole would be able to carry that title and make it mean something more than Gargano has.
> 
> Or maybe I just don't like Gargano. I've always been a fan of heels


You're not wrong, Johnny has been a lame champion. That's not surprising though, a character like his is when the chase of the title is better than the actual capture of the title. And honestly, when he's not an underdog he's extremely corny. I expect Cole to end his dreadful reign next week just like how KO quickly ended Sami's reign.


----------



## DammitChrist

William Regal announcing that Fatal-4-Way Tag Team Ladder match for the ppv! That should be a thrilling contest :mark: :mark:

The opening segment with Undisputed Era, Johnny Gargano, and Matt Riddle was a fun one. It was a good way to kick off the show. Plus, Gargano's math promo getting on Adam Cole's nerves was amusing (with Bobby Fish yelling out that they get it) :lol

Mansoor has slowly been winning me over with his nice performances in the ring lately :nice

Matt Riddle vs Roderick Strong sounds like a very good match :wow

That segment with Velveteen Dream and Tyler Breeze was entertaining as hell. Dream was killing it on the mic tonight, and it's great to see Breeze get some direction now. Breeze getting the better of Dream in the end by attacking him (instead of taking a selfie together) after saying that wicked line was pretty cool :clap

It sounded like Breeze got one of the loudest pops of the night for returning :sodone

Good for Breeze though! I've liked this guy for a long while. Hopefully for Breeze, he ends up being used better on NXT. Dream vs Breeze in 2 weeks is likely going to be an entertaining match :dance

It's great to see Candice LeRae competing in the ring often lately! I'm just glad she's actually being used as a competitor, AND she's been getting some wins too 

Io Shirai destroying Shayna Baszler and her 2 lackeys with those Singapore cane shots :mark: :mark:

Cathy Kelly looked even more beautiful than usual tonight :trips8

That tag main-event with Matt Riddle/Johnny Gargano vs Undisputed Era was a good match 

Overall, tonight's show was a good one. The upcoming TakeOver ppv is looking promising so far


----------



## SAMCRO

This Takeover is kinda looking thrown together, a random Riddle vs Strong match with 2 weeks to build, Tyler Breeze vs Dream with 2 weeks to build, ladder match with 2 weeks to build, and Cole vs Gargano once again just no stipulation this time.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

SAMCRO said:


> This Takeover is kinda looking thrown together, a random Riddle vs Strong match with 2 weeks to build, Tyler Breeze vs Dream with 2 weeks to build, ladder match with 2 weeks to build, and Cole vs Gargano once again just no stipulation this time.


Doesn't feel that thrown together to me, except Breeze/Dream maybe.

- Roddy attacked Riddle to earn his stripes back with TUE, Riddle gets his revenge at takeover.

- War Raiders got called up, the top 4 teams have a match for the title.

- Cole pinned Gargano in the first fall clean, feels like he's entitled to a rematch without a stipulation so he can beat him clean again.


----------



## SAMCRO

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Doesn't feel that thrown together to me, except Breeze/Dream maybe.
> 
> - Roddy attacked Riddle to earn his stripes back with TUE, Riddle gets his revenge at takeover.
> 
> - War Raiders got called up, the top 4 teams have a match for the title.
> 
> - Cole pinned Gargano in the first fall clean, feels like he's entitled to a rematch without a stipulation so he can beat him clean again.


Roddy and Riddle though, i know Roddy jumped him, but it just doesn't feel like it warrants a 1 on 1 Takeover match, it doesn't feel big enough. It feels like a feud that would be ended in a match in the main event of an episode of NXT. It could feel like a Takeover kind of match if it had enough build and thought put into it.

Maybe if all this stuff was announced 2 weeks ago i'd feel different, its just where all these matches are being made with Takeover just 2 weeks away.

And Breeze vs Dream is the most bizarre fucking thing, a jobber from the main roster pops up and immediately gets handed a title match on a Takeover, did nothing to earn it other than relying on a time when he was over years ago in developmental. I'm just not a fan of it.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

SAMCRO said:


> Roddy and Riddle though, i know Roddy jumped him, but it just doesn't feel like it warrants a 1 on 1 Takeover match, it doesn't feel big enough. It feels like a feud that would be ended in a match in the main event of an episode of NXT. It could feel like a Takeover kind of match if it had enough build and thought put into it.
> 
> Maybe if all this stuff was announced 2 weeks ago i'd feel different, its just where all these matches are being made with Takeover just 2 weeks away.
> 
> And Breeze vs Dream is the most bizarre fucking thing, a jobber from the main roster pops up and immediately gets handed a title match on a Takeover, did nothing to earn it other than relying on a time when he was over years ago in developmental. I'm just not a fan of it.


You've gotta realize, Roddy/Riddle is a mid-card feud brother. They've gotten three weeks of back to back build when you think about it and that's more than most mid-card non-title takeover matches. It is on short notice but the build has been effective.

Breeze/Dream does feel thrown together though, I do agree with you there.


----------



## J-B

Really surprised to see ReDragon get the W this week. We need to see TUE holding all the gold (or at least the NXT title + tag titles) before this break up happens, I don't think Cole needs them like they need him but they play off one another well and it would be stupid to split them up before they have a proper run with the gold.


----------



## Death Rider

SAMCRO said:


> MarkyWhipwreck said:
> 
> 
> 
> Doesn't feel that thrown together to me, except Breeze/Dream maybe.
> 
> - Roddy attacked Riddle to earn his stripes back with TUE, Riddle gets his revenge at takeover.
> 
> - War Raiders got called up, the top 4 teams have a match for the title.
> 
> - Cole pinned Gargano in the first fall clean, feels like he's entitled to a rematch without a stipulation so he can beat him clean again.
> 
> 
> 
> Roddy and Riddle though, i know Roddy jumped him, but it just doesn't feel like it warrants a 1 on 1 Takeover match, it doesn't feel big enough. It feels like a feud that would be ended in a match in the main event of an episode of NXT. It could feel like a Takeover kind of match if it had enough build and thought put into it.
> 
> Maybe if all this stuff was announced 2 weeks ago i'd feel different, its just where all these matches are being made with Takeover just 2 weeks away.
> 
> And Breeze vs Dream is the most bizarre fucking thing, a jobber from the main roster pops up and immediately gets handed a title match on a Takeover, did nothing to earn it other than relying on a time when he was over years ago in developmental. I'm just not a fan of it.
Click to expand...

Dream vs breeze is thrown together but it is a match and fued I have wanted. Plus I think the dates if the takeovers changed so maybe some things were rushed. Also I don't think the war raiders going up was a long term plan


----------



## TD Stinger

I see people crapping on Johnny's title reign. Look if that's how you feel, fine, but why does anyone think if Cole was champion right now, things would be any different?

He would be doing the exact same thing Johnny is doing now, only in a heel fashion. Nothing around the title would change in terms of the people fighting for it, just the alignment.

And personally I've loved all of Johnny and Adam's interactions since Takeover and I like Riddle's inclusion into things. And, that's all I really have to judge right now because that's all that's happened so far. I mean I don't fee like I can even judge a reign until I see at least 1 title defense.


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

Johnny Garbanzo's reign has been pretty solid actually. The chase is always more fun than the reign itself, we know this. Gargano's reign is actually managing to produce an intriguing story involving the brand's top faction and roping an exciting up and coming guy (Matt Riddle) into the title picture. Not sure what more people are expecting :shrug would you like Gargano's long lost brother to return to admit that he murdered their parents in a house fire and is being controlled by local mortician?


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Well that ladder match should be epic.

— Although how come the TakeOver is not synced with MITB? Are they syncing it with the blood money show instead? That is sad if they are.

— How cringe is that blood money promo by the way? It should be at least as good as or exceed Wrestlemania or whatever it says, like what the fuck.

— Did Gargano always have that lisp? I never noticed before for some reason but I really noticed it here.

— A Riddle Gargano union is good with me though although I'd rather they have made the NXT Title match a triple threat rather than putting Riddle in a match against Strong with no real stakes. I'd rather have Gulak v Kushida on TakeOver instead. 

— Random jobber off, are they trying to make Mansoor a new guy? Why? Who even is he and where did he come from?

— I didn't realise how much I wanted a Prince Pretty/Dream feud until this episode of NXT. I am fully ready for them to steal TakeOver.

— Man I love O'Reilly and Fish so much and I just want to make the most of every moment of them on NXT as I am assuming UE will be called up sooner rather than later and I have no hope for any person on the MR.

— The main event was excellent. It features four incredible wrestlers individually so the exchanges were fantastic. However it also told such a great story. You had ReDRagon using their tag team expertise to dominate over the frankenteam of Gargano and Riddle, but you also had Riddle selling his little heart out too which really added to the drama and made Fish and O'Reilly look really great.


----------



## Jedah

Meh episode until the end.

- Bianca vs. Mia was...not good. If they have Io lose so one of these two can challenge Shayna, they're insane.

- Speaking of Io, I don't like this mess. Candice has her back? That fugly bitch makes it a point her two GEEKS will back her up? There's gonna be a lot of shenanigans on Saturday. Hopefully that means Io doesn't lose clean, because I don't like her chances of winning the title. If they set up Kairi or especially Asuka to come back for a surprise though, it'd be huge, but I'm not betting on it.

- Kushida vs. Gulak was a good technical match, but there was just no heat. I don't know. Kushida kind of feels just there to me right now.

- Forgotten Sons still suck. But thankfully, there was that really great brawl at the end. They better win their titles on Saturday after all that, especially Cole.

Frankly, NXT needs a makeover right now. Every title except Dream's should change hands and TUE should probably win the vacant titles.


----------



## Reil

Eh, the whole Io thing reeks of either fuck finish (Io losing), or her overcoming the odds. Because even with Candice backing her up, WWE made extra sure to make everyone aware that the odds are still stacked incredibly high against Io.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

It's time for an Undisputed Takeover, the ending of that episode shows it.


----------



## Mordecay

For a go home show for a Takeover this felt like "by the numbers" edition of NXT. Bianca/Mia was fine, but not sure what to think about it, since usually NXT doesn't do 50/50 booking, are they planning to continue the feud or both of them are moving to other things?

Gulak/KUSHIDA was well wrestled, but you can tell they were holding back for a match down the line.

VD/Dream video package was weird, since it was VD burying Breeze for 90% of it and Breeze not having any good answer to that. It should be a good match though

Cole/Gargano should be fine, but it is weird going from a 2 out of 3 falls match to a regular match

Both Io's and Shayna's promo didn't make me excited for the match, Candice telling Io that she is gonna have her back at Takeover was awkward and Shayna and her 2 goons are just channel changing stuff.

I don't know if it is because this is the first Takeover in a while not linked to a WWE PPV, or because of the general consensus that WWE kinda sucks right now or hell, maybe it is because we are just coming from an excellent AEW show, but I am not really hyped for this Takeover. I am sure is going to be fine and probably overdeliver (especially the guys in the ladder match are gonna try to kill themselves), but there is barely any buzz about it


----------



## DammitChrist

Holy shit, I think that ending tonight may have confirmed that Adam Cole is winning the NXT title this Saturday :mark: :mark:


----------



## Jedah

If he doesn't win the title, he's buried. It's that simple. Especially after that ending.

Cole and Io both need to win on Saturday. NXT needs a makeover. It's just not equaling what it was doing last year.


----------



## Alright_Mate

I agree Mordecay, so many seem to be jumping on the AEW bandwagon, myself included, while so many just can't be arsed with the WWE product as a whole right now.

I haven't watched NXT for about four weeks, mainly because I was just counting down the days until Double or Nothing, I just had zero motivation to watch anything WWE related.

Even after Double or Nothing I still have zero motivation to watch NXT in particular, not because the product and the performers are bad, it's because I've reached a point where I'm like "Why should I invest my time watching these guys, when 90% of them will do absolutely nothing in the long term".

After Saturday's Takeover I'm seriously contemplating giving up on everything WWE.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Alright_Mate said:


> I agree Mordecay, so many seem to be jumping on the AEW bandwagon, myself included, while so many just can't be arsed with the WWE product as a whole right now.
> 
> I haven't watched NXT for about four weeks, mainly because I was just counting down the days until Double or Nothing, I just had zero motivation to watch anything WWE related.
> 
> Even after Double or Nothing I still have zero motivation to watch NXT in particular, not because the product and the performers are bad, it's because I've reached a point where I'm like "Why should I invest my time watching these guys, when 90% of them will do absolutely nothing in the long term".
> 
> After Saturday's Takeover I'm seriously contemplating giving up on everything WWE.


Don't give up man, Cole is winning on Saturday.



DammitC said:


> Holy shit, I think that ending tonight may have confirmed that Adam Cole is winning the NXT title this Saturday :mark: :mark:


About time right?


----------



## gl83

And now we have another player in the women's title picture:


----------



## CHAMPIONSHIPS

I don't see why you can't watch NXT and AEW at the same time. Especially considering that AEW doesn't even have weekly TV


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> And now we have another player in the women's title picture:


Ugh. I don't like this at all. Mia is a solid hand, but she has done absolutely nothing to warrant an NXT Women's Title match, nor can I see her holding the title any time soon. At best she should be a filler challenger, but really the only woman in NXT who should be holding the title right now is Io. They invested a lot of resources into this feud, and if its just to get Shayna some heat, thats some main roster level bullshit.

The only takeaway a lot of people will have if Io loses on Saturday is that she's a massive choke artist. I might end up tuning out of NXT entirely after Saturday if the rumors are true about what is going down, combined with Io potentially losing.


----------



## Jedah

I've been telling you brah. This women's division is even worse than the main roster, even now at its low point. There's no point in holding on to any hope that things will get better. Ugly and her two GEEKS are probably here to stay.

Still, Mia vs. Shayna doesn't exactly scream SummerSlam TakeOver match. Mia's the kind of opponent you expect now, in June. Something seems off.


----------



## gl83

Things have kinda inverted from last year. At this point last year, it seemed like they were gearing for a long Kairi Sane title reign with all the Faces being fed to the likes of Lacey Evans & Bianca Belair. Now, it's the reverse with it appearing as if they're gearing for a long Shayna Baszler title reign with all the Heels being fed to the Faces(Vanessa Borne & Aliyah to Candice Lerae and Bianca Belair to Mia Yim)


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

HHH is a big Yim fan though.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— I wasn't aware they were marketing this TakeOver as “TakeOver 25”, given it is a landmark show it is weird that it has been just dumped randomly into the WWE calendar and it is weird that the whole show seems so bolted together. I am sure the show will be great regardless but for the twenty fifth show, you think they'd put a little more effort in.

— In fairness, it is amazing how quickly they got me hyped for the Dream/Breeze match which isn't even something I wanted a couple of weeks ago. Utilising how Breeze has been mishandled on the main roster while Dream under a similar gimmick has only seen his star rise on NXT. Really great stuff.

— Once it settled in, it was a pretty great match between Gulak and Kushida, other than that weird tap botch any way, given they dumped this on NXT TV rather than on the TakeOver where it belongs. I am more of a fast paced, high impact, strong style sorta guy but I do love a bit of mat wrestling when it comes to guys like Gulak or ZSJ who can wrap people into such imaginative knots. 

— I still don't think this is necessarily the right match for Kushida though, he has come in with such hype and while Gulak drew the best showing out of Kushida we've seen yet in NXT, I still haven't seen anything deserving of the amount of unprecedented hype he got coming in. I was actually more impressed by Gulak here than Kushida, especially since they gave Kushida such an unconvincing victory here just to make sure he really gains nothing but a tally in a victory box that WWE treats as meaningless.

— I just hope the finish means we get more Gulak in NXT. Just like with Gallagher in NXT UK, I think both guys are so damn talented they are wasted on 205 Live and should be just moved to these respective brands.

— I actually don't hate Basler like so many people do here but I haven't really cared about the women's division in NXT for years, I might actually watch the Shirai/Baszler match at TakeOver however as I feel like the match is well built and I am actually intrigued by what they'll be able to create together in the ring.

— While the video package was immense, as it always is in WWE, the NXT Title match is probably the match I care about the least on this show. I am sure from an in ring perspective the match will be great but they never explained why Cole is getting another shot at Gargano again immediately and before it was explained it was changed to a two out of three falls match to give a definitive winner but now they get a regular singles match? I mean even the Riddle/Strong match which initially had no real clear place on this card has had more build to deserve its place.

— I feel like it is especially frustrating as NXT has this insane roster but limited time to squeeze everyone in, if they just wanted a filler match before Gargano's next full feud, why not just throw in one of the indie favourites that can blow the roof off with Gargano for one night? Someone who can take the loss and not be damaged by it.

— The only real justification I can see for this match is that Undisputed walk out with all the gold on offer to them, but then why not put Strong against Dream to complete the picture, rather than brining Breeze back? Also, why not build that if that is the intention? If the whole purpose of this show is to begin the true Undisputed Era, what was the purpose of having the whole build up being them teasing a break up after losing over and over again? Unless they all cheat to win, everyone will look like suckers if UE take all the titles cleanly. This is like MR levels of bad booking.


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Oh man pretty sure next week was taped a couple weeks ago at a house show that I was at in Maryland. They had a full camera crew being out for 3 matches and said they were taped for an edition of NXT TV. Both advertised matches sound like 2 of the 3 they taped. (and a crazy brawl tag match with Io and Candice VS Shayna's buddies - I hope that airs!)


----------



## Jedah

Typical post TakeOver hangover episode. Man, I hope they aren't building Mia Yim up for a TakeOver match with Shayna. I know they need more formidable babyfaces but that just ain't it. Io says she isn't done? Let this reign of terror end in August. Please.


----------



## Reil

Jedah said:


> Typical post TakeOver hangover episode. Man, I hope they aren't building Mia Yim up for a TakeOver match with Shayna. I know they need more formidable babyfaces but that just ain't it. Io says she isn't done? Let this reign of terror end in August. Please.


I would be shocked if Mia is anything more than a filler challenger for Shayna at this point during the upcoming tapings. She's popular, but not at the level of being the face of the division. And Shayna is gonna need to regain some heat somehow after Io eviscerated her after their Takeover XXV match.


----------



## Mordecay

I wonder if they are burying Bianca or if she is getting called up, I mean, they need heels, especially on RAW


----------



## Asuka842

-I'm still hoping to see Koana show me, something. We'll see.

-Keith Lee would be a cool opponent for Dream I think.

-They're starting to do more with Mia seemingly, that's nice.

-You know I was annoyed that they booked Io to lose that match, but they could have made it a bit more forgivable if they'd have protected her a little bit in the loss at least (like they protected Shayna in her loss to Ember and Kairi). But nope, they made Io look like a careless moron with that finish, classic "idiot WWE babyface" booking there. Also even by WWE standards, Shayna's booking is repetitive as fuck and that match was no exception, it was "every Shayna match ever." It's not her fault, she's talented and plays her role well, but they've run out of ideas for her seemingly. I really struggle to care knowing that they're dragging out her title reign even longer, its so stale and repetitive now. Again NOT her fault, but it is what it is.


----------



## gl83

Mordecay said:


> I wonder if they are burying Bianca or if she is getting called up, I mean, they need heels, especially on RAW


NXT needs Heels as well, because outside of Shayna, they just have Bianca & Vanessa & Aliyah(which is a pretty big step down). As we've seen this past week, they can cover for Raw with the "wild card" rule.


----------



## gl83

Asuka842 said:


> -I'm still hoping to see Koana show me, something. We'll see.
> 
> -Keith Lee would be a cool opponent for Dream I think.
> 
> -They're starting to do more with Mia seemingly, that's nice.
> 
> -You know I was annoyed that they booked Io to lose that match, but they could have made it a bit more forgivable if they'd have protected her a little bit in the loss at least (like they protected Shayna in her loss to Ember and Kairi). But nope, they made Io look like a careless moron with that finish, classic "idiot WWE babyface" booking there. Also even by WWE standards, Shayna's booking is repetitive as fuck and that match was no exception, it was "every Shayna match ever." It's not her fault, she's talented and plays her role well, but they've run out of ideas for her seemingly. I really struggle to care knowing that they're dragging out her title reign even longer, its so stale and repetitive now. Again NOT her fault, but it is what it is.



You mean like have Io hit Shayna with the Moonsault and just before the referee's hand hits the mat for "3", Jessamyn & Marina dive in and break the count and intentionally disqualifying Shayna and costing Io the title. At least, Io would have a reason to flip out and snap for them costing her the title, whereas what they did on Saturday made Io look stupid(since Marina & Jessamyn were effectively neutralized by Candice) and like a sore loser.


----------



## Reil

I really don't get the sore loser mindset that people are spouting. It's something Nigel said. Reminder: He's a heel commentator. Hell if Io had won, he would have spun it as Shayna getting screwed somehow.

And people are acting like faces aren't allowed to be frustrated after losing a match, and expected to roll over and take it.


----------



## Asuka842

It's more babyfaces being made to look stupid and careless just so the heel can win. Also they've done this type of finish so much with Shayna that it's ridiculous and makes the faces look even dumber.

They protected the Hell out of Shayna when she lost to Ember the first time (since people want to compare Io here to that apparently), and when she lost to Kairi, by making them both "fluke" pins. There was no reason why they couldn't have at least had Io lose via dirty pinfall or something.

But instead, Io looks like an idiot for inexplicably taking her eyes off of Shayna to play cheerleader to Candice, even though she had to know that Shayna is opportunistic, and then PUT HERSELF in Shayna's finisher, which made her look even dumber. I mean the babyfaces are so incompetent apparently that Shayna's buddies don't even need to interfere directly, just them being at ringside makes the babyfaces catch a case of the stupids.

And then Io TAP OUT CLEAN, and wow was that the dumbest part of all. Not only again was it "every Shayna finsh ever," but it ensured that Io looked extra-pathetic. Again at least make it a flukey or dirty pin or something like Shayna got in her losses, but nope Io doesn't get the same courtesy apparently.


----------



## SAMCRO

Yeah Io looked fucking dumb as fuck, she took her eyes off Shayna to cheerlead Candice, then got herself put into Shayna's choke, she tapped out, then she threw a temper tantrum looking like a sore loser. Bitch you tapped the fuck out, you got no one to blame but yourself.


----------



## gl83

When it happened to Kairi, it would've made sense as Jessamyn & Marina got physically involved and costed her the title. But, with Io, both Jessamyn & Marina were already taken out by Candice. All she had to do at that point was turn her attention back to Shayna and finish the job. Instead, like an idiot, she wasted time cheering on Candice and that ended up costing her.


----------



## Bryan Jericho

I'd honestly prefer Candice or Mia beat Shayna for the title.


----------



## rbl85

We all know what's going to happen next week:smile2:


----------



## rbl85

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah Io looked fucking dumb as fuck, she took her eyes off Shayna to cheerlead Candice, then got herself put into Shayna's choke, she tapped out, then she threw a temper tantrum looking like a sore loser. *Bitch* you tapped the fuck out, you got no one to blame but yourself.


You feel strong behind your computer "bitch" ?


----------



## Asuka842

gl83 said:


> When it happened to Kairi, it would've made sense as Jessamyn & Marina got physically involved and costed her the title. But, with Io, both Jessamyn & Marina were already taken out by Candice. All she had to do at that point was turn her attention back to Shayna and finish the job. Instead, like an idiot, she wasted time cheering on Candice and that ended up costing her.


It's very hard to do that kind of finish and make the loser not look stupid. Not impossible, but difficult, and Io sure looked stupid there. When the heel goons don't even have to get physically involved, and the babyface STILL loses even when their buddy neutralizes the interference, it makes them look doubly incompetent.


Also it doesn't help that Shayna has won matches in such ways before, and Io should know that. Also she's very experienced, so she should know better than to take her eyes off of her opponent, especially one like Shayna in a title match.


So her ignoring Shayna to cheer on Candice, she wasn't even fighting off the other two or anything, as you said Candice took care of it. Io just decided to be an idiot and start playing cheerleader in the middle of the match. And then she puts herself in Shayna's finisher, and we get the same kind of "the person struggles in the hold only to then tap or pass out in the end anyway" that we've seen A LOT to finish Shayna matches, etc.


Yeah it was just a poorly-done finish that made the faces look bad. And like I said, they protected the fuck out of Shayna when she lost to Ember and Kairi, so they could have easily done that with Io here, they just didn't.


----------



## TD Stinger

Keith sold way too much against Kona. Keith is a monster. A fun loving monster, but a monster. And Kona is a job guy with no future at least in that gimmick. That needed to be much more dominant. And yes I'm a Keith Lee mark, but still.

Bianca vs. Mia I didn't find to be very good. Not bad, but the chemistry just is't there and to me I blame more of that on Mia. She just seems so much slower than I remember while Bianca, while not the most polished wrestler, is very quick and strong.

We'll have another week of taped stuff on next week's show but it looks like they'll be taping their entire road to Toronto next week as well. So that'll be interesting.


----------



## SAMCRO

rbl85 said:


> You feel strong behind you're computer "bitch" ?


Lol i love people who have no idea how to use the words "your" and "you're" properly, see "you're" means you're saying "You are", so what you said to me was "Feel strong behind you are computer". A proper way to use "You're" would be to say, "you're being an asshole for no reason".

Sorry your school system failed you, hope this helps you.


----------



## rbl85

SAMCRO said:


> Lol i love people who have no idea how to use the words "your" and "you're" properly, see "you're" means you're saying "You are", so what you said to me was "Feel strong behind you are computer". A proper way to use "You're" would be to say, "you're being an asshole for no reason".
> 
> Sorry your school system failed you, hope this helps you.


I have dyslexia so when i write a post to quick i tend to make that kind of mistake (even in my own language).


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

TD Stinger said:


> Keith sold way too much against Kona. Keith is a monster. A fun loving monster, but a monster. And Kona is a job guy with no future at least in that gimmick. That needed to be much more dominant. And yes I'm a Keith Lee mark, but still.
> 
> Bianca vs. Mia I didn't find to be very good. Not bad, but the chemistry just is't there and to me I blame more of that on Mia. She just seems so much slower than I remember while Bianca, while not the most polished wrestler, is very quick and strong.
> 
> We'll have another week of taped stuff on next week's show but it looks like they'll be taping their entire road to Toronto next week as well. So that'll be interesting.


I actually enjoyed something from Kona for the first time ever! Dude's striking was on point in that match and Lee selling for him actually made him look not clownish for once. It's like after Miz turned face and took out Sanity singlehandedly, them selling for them made Miz look like a serious competitor and helped sell his matches with Shane. I hope this can be a similar turning point for Reeves.


----------



## TD Stinger

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> I actually enjoyed something from Kona for the first time ever! Dude's striking was on point in that match and Lee selling for him actually made him look not clownish for once. It's like after Miz turned face and took out Sanity singlehandedly, them selling for them made Miz look like a serious competitor and helped sell his matches with Shane. I hope this can be a similar turning point for Reeves.


Look if I believed that this might lead to something more from Kona, that would be fine. Hell, he's a guy that before this "Finest" gimmick I thought he might be a player.

But there only ever going to use him in this role, I feel. I can't even saying he'll be DOA on the main roster. He's DOA now with that gimmick. So with that being the case, I wanted Lee to just crush him. We need to see more just straight up squashes for these new guys. Something like Aleister had when he first debuted in NXT and beat a guy in 5 seconds with his Black Mass.


----------



## Reil

For those curious, here are the announced/scheduled matches for next week's NXT (which have been taped already from a previous house show):

- Kushida vs Drew Gulak in a submission match

- Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir vs Io Shirai and Candice LeRae

- The Undisputed Era (Roddy and Kyle) vs Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Reil said:


> For those curious, here are the announced/scheduled matches for next week's NXT (which have been taped already from a previous house show):


I was at this show - it seemed really odd to me that they were taping this episode there. I don't recall them doing the weekly show outside of Full Sail (except the stuff taped at Takeovers)

Anyway really looking forward to see how it turned out. Hopefully we were a good audience! :smile2:


----------



## GimmeABreakJess

Good episode. Wish they weren't always ending it early lately though since it's my favorite hour of wrestling each week and NXT only gets an hour per week. Could probably fit in another short match to give a newer talent a bit of exposure rather than 10 minutes of ads before the 9PM timeslot.


----------



## Sin City Saint

Reil said:


> For those curious, here are the announced/scheduled matches for next week's NXT (*which have been taped already from a previous house show*):
> 
> - Kushida vs Drew Gulak in a submission match
> 
> - Jessamyn Duke and Marina Shafir vs Io Shirai and Candice LeRae
> 
> - The Undisputed Era (Roddy and Kyle) vs Oney Lorcan and Danny Burch


I tend to like the post-produced house show episodes a little more. The crowd is dimly lit because they don’t have their TV lighting rig but it’s really not necessary for the brand IMO. Would be cool if they did more of them - they tend to have the cameras recording at almost all of the on the road shows anyways (with a smaller crew of like four camera operators). Wouldn’t mind them doing these style episodes every week eventually. Maybe they’d have to change the positioning of the commentary team to an “area backstage (which would actually be at the Perfomance Center)” and tape the backstage stuff at the Performance Center but the positives would far out weigh the negatives in having it shot with different crowds all year IMO. Probably won’t happen anytime soon but would be cool to see.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Can we have a two man commentary team forever please?

— So what is the deal with the new venue this week, was this taped at a house show? Why?

— I wanted to love that Submission match but I didn't. Gulak tapping almost instantly sucked to me and the match just felt like it was never flowing very smoothly and lots of moves lacked their usual sense of impact. Just felt quite clunky and soft.

— Hey NXT less of that propaganda, thanks.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

What a great main event, my style of wrestling, just a bunch of brutal looking strikes and selling, it made wrestling look as close to a real fight as it possibly can.

But gotdamn there wasn't a single ounce of charisma or personality between the four of them. I normally would skip a match with these kinds of CAW type dudes but I was curious to see what kind of shape KOR was in after TO XXV. 

Also can anybody explain to me why Jaxson Ryker is NXT's Braun Strowman? I could understand if everyone in NXT was 205 Live size but there's Dawkins, Lee, Dijakovic, Reeves, Riddy Mo, and Bononi. I'm just not buying a 6'0 230 guy as a monster.


----------



## Mordecay

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> But gotdamn there wasn't a single ounce of charisma or personality between the four of them. I normally would skip a match with these kinds of CAW type dudes but *I was curious to see what kind of shape KOR was in after TO XXV.*


Match was taped before Takeover


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Mordecay said:


> Match was taped before Takeover


Ahh... dammit. 

Wait, why was Bobby Fish in a arm sling then?


----------



## Mordecay

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Ahh... dammit.
> 
> Wait, why was Bobby Fish in a arm sling then?


He got injured in the house show the day before this episode was taped (that's why it was Roddy/Kyle in the match instead of Bobby/Kyle), Bobby worked through the injury during Takeover, that's why when he came out to celebrate with Cole at the end of the show he was using the sling again


----------



## SAMCRO

Marina Shafir is a special kind of awful, she just looks as if she has no clue whats going on inside the ring at all times, its like they took someone from the audience and threw them into a match, shes that fucking bad. Duke isn't good by any means either its just she looks like fucking Bret Hart in comparison to Shafir inside the ring.


----------



## J-B

Shafir's facials expressions get on my fucking nerves, dude. Like the post above me says she just looks like she hasn't got a clue in the slightest at all times, its just all very awkward. I only bothered watching the main event, I enjoyed it. Don't care much for Birch/Oney but if it involves TUE then I'm all over it. I wish Jaxson Ryker would piss off though, he just reeks of the boring jacked up guy who gets pushed bc he's the pretty muscle guy. Fuck him, he sucks. KOR/Strong should've got the win before he came out and ruined it.


----------



## SAMCRO

I really don't get where they're going with Ryker and TUE, i mean they're all heels, am i missing something here? Forgotten Sons and UE are both heel factions, why are they feuding? makes no sense. I mean is NXT that hard up for tag teams that they just gotta put two heel teams against one another now?


----------



## TD Stinger

Was behind on this week's NXT, finally got caught up.

All 3 matches were really fun, and the did a good job of making it feel like a post Takeover show despite it being taped before Takeover.

Seeing Io get pissed and just beat everyone up was fun. Kushida and Gulak had a really, really good physical and technical match. And the main event was a rematch of one of the best tag matches in 218 so of course this delivered. Even with a distraction roll up win, since NXT doesn't do them often, I was fine with it.


----------



## TD Stinger

That opening promo. Greatness.


__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1141498024767709184

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1141498584686309377

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1141499159343763456

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1141499940352471046

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1141500376815951873


----------



## Mordecay

That opening promo was one best opening promos I've seen in a long time, everyone shown there, even Riddle.

The show went downhill after that. Li/Conti was bad, way too rehearsed, Punishment has a cool entrance, but I expected more from his squash match, Mia's video package was decent, but it was lacking something to make me root for her. The main event was good though


----------



## Derek30

Priest's entrance is so fucking badass. I have to imagine they have big plans for him. Very cool seeing him in a different light after his punishment gimmick in ROH.

How long until Vince gets an erection and calls him up prematurely


----------



## SAMCRO

The Breakout Tournament is an awesome idea, reminds me of ROH's Top Prospect Tournament, this a great way to get alot of the talent sitting in the performance center something to do. Hopefully this Breakout Tournament becomes a yearly thing for NXT.


----------



## Reil

A bit late on this, but my thoughts on NXT tonight:

- Xia Li vs Taynara was pretty rough. That being said, I feel like Xia has something there, but she needs to work with more established talent in an actual feud. Taynara has hit a wall, I think.

- I didn't care for the opening promo, it felt...empty for some reason.

- The Mia Yim video package was great if you wanted to know more about Mia as a *PERSON*. But as a wrestler, I still can't get behind her at all. I honestly don't see her dethroning the winner of next week's match (its pretty obvious she's the next challenger). And on the off chance that she does, I honestly think she's gonna end up dropping the title to whoever the next big heel is (or back to Shayna, god forbid) in her first defense against them.

- Damien Priest seems like every generic big dude ever, with a finisher that is just barely above a DDT in terms of interest.


----------



## DirectorsCut

Breakout tournament appears to be Swerve's to lose. Hopefully he delivers.


----------



## TD Stinger

The opening promo was so fun. Everyone jade me laughing.

I love Priests new presentation in NXT. He seems a lot more free flowing and relaxed than he was in ROH, where he basically played a big scary guy and that was it. He felt cooler here. And like NXT usually does well, he got his stuff in while making the other guy look good as well.

The breakout tournament is a great idea. Regardless of the winner, I think Swerve and Garza have the highest ceilings.

Great video package for Mia.

Conti vs. Xia showed me that while both women have potential with their respective backgrounds , they’re still a little rough around the edges.

Main event was decent. Basically there to show Dream’s selfish side and to let Roddy get a pin on him to justify a later title shot.


----------



## RiverFenix

Why acknowledge their indie names if you then rename them? I mean what is the kayfabe reason for the new names?


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole as NXT Champion is exactly what NXT needed, great promo from him and everyone involved in that segment. Match was ace too.

Cole making the main event scene watchable again :banderas


----------



## SAMCRO

Yeah that Conti and Xia Li match was terrible, why are they showcasing these women who are clearly not ready to be on tv yet? 

Damien Priest might have one the best theme songs in the company right now, decent squash match, but man he needs to get a new finisher asap, i hate those rolling cutters, they're the most generic looking finishers, i think Mike Kanellis is using one as well on 205 Live. He should just use his sitout chokeslam he used in ROH thats a cool finisher.

Good main event, Roddy as i expected is likely gonna go into a feud with Dream and take the NA Title, then Fish and O'Reilly will take the tag titles thus fulfilling Adam Cole's prophecy of all of Undisputed Era being draped in gold.


----------



## ellthom

Also minor nitpick, what have theyr done with Taynara Conti? Especially her entrance, where as before she came out with a swagger to her own music, and look all attitude, now she is coming out all smiling and happy, this is the second time she has done this... 

I don;t know if thats a change she made or a change they made. But I preferred when she had a bit of attitude to her entrance. She still shows that attitude in the ring, but it;s her entrance I have issue with. Which as I said, is a nit pick.


----------



## Piers

Priest looks like the old Corbin. He needs a new finisher now, this isn't a big man move. Hell, I'd even be fine with a Chokeslam instead of this Cross Rhodes kind of thing.

Taynara needs to stop acting goofy during her entrance. She's a martial arts tough chick, she should act like one. Xia has been in development for what, three years ? She still sucks...

Fortunately, Roderick makes the UE enjoyable. I'll be skipping whatever segment they have without him.


----------



## Sephiroth766

People say NXT is all workrate and no characters yet I see 10x the character development and showcasing of personalities in NXT than on the main roster.


----------



## Asuka842

Xia Li won a match, cool. Hopefully they start using her more going forward.

The Breakout Tournament is a good idea, provided that it actually leads to something tangible for the winner.

I like Mia Yim, I really liked her in Impact as Jade and her time in the Dollhouse/feud with Rosemary were really good. But they haven't built her up nearly enough for her to dethrone Shayna imo, especially if Dakota, Nikki Cross, Kairi, Candice, Bianca, and even Io cannot do it. It'd feel like an, anticlimactic end to the Shayna stuff imo.


----------



## SAMCRO

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Priest looks like the old Corbin. He needs a new finisher now, this isn't a big man move. Hell, I'd even be fine with a Chokeslam instead of this Cross Rhodes kind of thing.
> 
> *Taynara needs to stop acting goofy during her entrance. She's a martial arts tough chick, she should act like one.* Xia has been in development for what, three years ? She still sucks...
> 
> Fortunately, Roderick makes the UE enjoyable. I'll be skipping whatever segment they have without him.


Exactly, she comes out acting like Aliyah or something, like some prissy pretty girl, playing with her hair and smiling, it just doesn't match her gimmick at all.


----------



## validreasoning

Priest has awesome look. He could easily be top heel on raw SD right now instead of prelim nxt


----------



## LongPig666

Seriously, 17 minutes of promo, Kevin Dunn style wwe vignette shit, merch cross sells and Stomping Ground commercials, on a 54 minute show!!!

31% of non wrestling on a supposed wrestling company show. 

Disgraceful.

Then the wwe network goes down. Great.


----------



## McGee

That cage match was awesome tonight.


----------



## gl83

WWE, that is how you do a cage match, not whatever we got at Stomping Grounds.


----------



## looper007

Prove Me wrong HHH, still think he fucked up on Io losing twice. But if he has a long term plan for heel Io rather then just turning her heel for the sake of it. I'm taking this with a pinch of salt until the booking shows me otherwise. The way women's division has been booked doesn't fill me with much hope.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## Alexander_G

Aggressive Io is a pleasurable Io to behold. But a careful Io is also a pleasure. She generally has wrestled against gaijin that were bigger than her, and beat them by rope-a-dope and using her head, and this should be a reminder that she doesn't always have to take the chair-swinging route.

I also realize, however, an American crowd would perhaps prefer the chair-swinging route over a Japanese crowd that prefers more trial and finesse. I haven't seen an NXT match that has brought that form fully out of Io yet. 

She's perfectly capable of performing that classic Takeover match everybody will remember, she just needs the right opposite to do it with.


----------



## Buhalovski

Io needs to learn some basic english as fast as possible, huge star potential there... otherwise shes screwed when her time come up.


----------



## Alright_Mate

I see the brainless idiots on Twitter are praising Triple H like he's some sort of god because he turned Io heel.

Far too early to turn her heel, they made Io look like a pathetic loser and a crybaby.


----------



## Alexander_G

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Taynara needs to stop acting goofy during her entrance. She's a martial arts tough chick, she should act like one.
> 
> 
> Xia has been in development for what, three years ? She still sucks...


Not to try to move the goalpost or anything, but 3 years in the business with no prior experience in being a wrestler does not constitute a wrestler that can look like she is a comfortable performer on TV (unless you're Kacy C. or Millie McKenzie, but those are rare fish), which Xia Li certainly isn't. So let's be fair. You can tell by how nervous she looks in the ring with people; she wants to get it right but gets a bit too excited and I think this is a noticeable but fixable issue with her. She just needs to calm down a little and flow. I don't like that they have her coming down the ring yelling and sounding aggressive, she came off better when she was cool-headed, silent and graceful in '17.

As for Tay, I do have to agree. I don't know if it's just part of her natural personality or if she's just hamming it up too much, but her trying to mannerize and sound like a diva is not only goofy but it's annoying. It detracts from being able to take Taynara seriously. Unless, she doesn't want to be taken seriously, which I'm starting to wonder...

Tay's a judoka and a legit badass in rl; I can't stand seeing her tripping over her own feet in a wrestling ring or having to resort to Layla El level cheapness on offense. Her selling is like watching someone drunk. They got to re-work her immediately. She doesn't look dangerous at all.


----------



## Derek30

Io's mannerisms after the heel turn were on point. That was awesome stuff.


----------



## looper007

Alright_Mate said:


> I see the brainless idiots on Twitter are praising Triple H like he's some sort of god because he turned Io heel.
> 
> Far too early to turn her heel, they made Io look like a pathetic loser and a crybaby.


Agreed mate, NXT fan boys are easy to please. A heel turn in WWE for fanboys means everything before is washed away. But nah if she's trading wins back and forward with Candice and looking as bad as before and is off TV again, those fan's will be moaning again.

HHH's shitty booking of the women's division and of Io won't be changed overnight cause he turned her heel. She could still be booked like shit going forward.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Show Thoughts:

*Angel Garza has star potential. Good wrestler, good look, charismatic, etc. Wilde is a guy who is impressive in his own right but his ceiling is 205 Live. Maybe he can be like Neville, Buddy, or Ali and use 205 Live as a springboard for greater things, but I don't see it.

Fun match overall. Though what is Garza's finisher supposed to be. He double underhooks Wilde, lifts him up, and drops down on his ass slamming Wilde down on his.....ass. I mean, maybe I'm missing something, but to do a top rope Spanish Fly and then that's the finisher, I don't know, just weird.

*Damien Priest is instantly more entertaining to me in NXT than he was in ROH. He just sounds like a normal chill person in NXT, and he just seems like an interesting guy.

*Street Profits make quick work of the Forgotten Sons, good. And I'm down for Lorcan & Burch getting a shot.

*Keith Lee beats up another jobber. And was super over in doing so....Can he finally do something interesting!?

*Adam Cole on his World Tour looks super slick. And now he's stopping by a restaurant called "Gargano's". What, are we going for a Edge and Cena's dad moment again? Lol (and also yes please do that).

*Now this is how you do a steel cage match. Use the cage as a weapon, do some big spots, etc. Even the interference was fun for once with Candice diving all over the place and Io hitting the big Moonsault. Crowd was super into it by the end.

The finish was whatever. I mean I get it makes Shayna look lucky in victory and all but can't say I'm a huge fan of it. I am VERY intrigued however by the stuff after the match. Heel Io already has my attention. The way she attacked Candice. The trash talk. Again, very intrigued.


----------



## Alright_Mate

looper007 said:


> Agreed mate, NXT fan boys are easy to please. A heel turn in WWE for fanboys means everything before is washed away. But nah if she's trading wins back and forward with Candice and looking as bad as before and is off TV again, those fan's will be moaning again.
> 
> HHH's shitty booking of the women's division and of Io won't be changed overnight cause he turned her heel. She could still be booked like shit going forward.


On this occasion most definitely yes.

She's lost to Shayna twice, been made to look like a joke twice, and to top it all off she was made to look like a pathetic loser and a crybaby.

Yet the brainless idiots think it's the best thing ever.

Shayna is still Champ, they are prioritising Shayna and Mia Yim, while Io and Candice piss about in a midcard feud.

Triple H blew his load far too early on this one.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

The lack of interest in NXT over the past month or so compared to what it was even just a few months ago is absolutely staggering.


----------



## looper007

Showstopper said:


> The lack of interest in NXT over the past month or so compared to what it was even just a few months ago is absolutely staggering.


It's the talent they have on those Takeover shows that save this promotion, when you have the likes of Cole, Gargano, Kushida and Riddle and other great talents let loose and allowed to do their thing it will cover up for bad booking and storylines. But with AEW around now, they won't have the easy buy to indie or NJPW talent they once had especially if AEW TV becomes a success. I expect NXT to take a hit somewhere in the next 3 to 4 years to the point that they be lucky to have a 5 star match all year.

Enjoy this golden era of NXT and it's in ring work as it won't last long.


----------



## looper007

Alright_Mate said:


> On this occasion most definitely yes.
> 
> She's lost to Shayna twice, been made to look like a joke twice, and to top it all off she was made to look like a pathetic loser and a crybaby.
> 
> Yet the brainless idiots think it's the best thing ever.
> 
> Shayna is still Champ, they are prioritising Shayna and Mia Yim, while Io and Candice piss about in a midcard feud.
> 
> Triple H blew his load far too early on this one.


I think he blew his load not to get Io over but to use her to build up babyfaces for his pet project Shayna as he's pretty much buried everyone else.

I have no faith in this man's booking and he will be bound to fuck it up.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

The IO heel turn doesn't even make any sense. If it made some sense, I'd be cool with it. But it makes zero sense. I also just don't buy her as a heel at ALL. The laughing after beating up Candice was straight-up cringeworthy.


----------



## looper007

Showstopper said:


> The IO heel turn doesn't even make any sense. If it made some sense, I'd be cool with it. But it makes zero sense. I also just don't buy her as a heel at ALL. The laughing after beating up Candice was straight-up cringeworthy.


I bought it, plus she's a far better heel then face imo. No problem with the heel turn at all but it didn't make sense storyline wise as it should have ended with Io getting her revenge for her friend Kairi. But it made her look weak and felt it was all about putting Shanya over. 

If given the leeway she knock it out of the park but it's the booking of HHH that worries the hell out of me. I wouldn't be shocked if she's trading wins with Candice and just end up another heel on the roster. This heel turn should be the start of her big push to the title and winning it off Mia or whatever babyface beats Shayna.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

The BayBay Championship Celebration Tour >>>>> life


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## Alexander_G

I think if you turn someone heel, anyone really, but in particular a wrestler that has a significant fan base, there has to be something the wrestler gets out of it. Now, if it's to set a long term goal for a program, that's understandable. When you're doing it with unfinished business because the earlier programs haven't concluded yet, we bring the show into cluttered territory the likes of main roster material. We all like to think NXT has been free of that, but sadly the truth is it hasn't been for a long time.

The NXT's women's division is large enough today that it could literally have 2 to 3 feuds going on at the same time if they just balanced these out for tv time. 30-second promos of trash talking about someone else easily sets a feud in motion. Sometimes it doesn't take a lot, just light the fuse and make the match. Either that week or the next week. Then close it out once the winner is determined.

But they want to get all elaborate with these feuds yet not be fully prepared on what their end game is supposed to be, and come with these out of the blue incidences and face-heel turns. It can and many times does feel scatterbrained to the viewer. I guess they expect you to just shut up and deal. Good luck keeping dedicated viewers though.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

I think the Io heel turn is just more fuel to make Candice the biggest babyface in the division which'll lead to her dethroning Shayna. HHH has a terrible obsession with the Gargano's.


----------



## Alexander_G

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> I think the Io heel turn is just more fuel to make Candice the biggest babyface in the division which'll lead to her dethroning Shayna. HHH has a terrible obsession with the Gargano's.


If they want to turn Candice into a super over face, why do it now when they should have done that months ago? Not enough people care about Candice now, sorry to say, that a sympathy play is going to make her super over against the likes of Io or Shayna, both who are undoubtedly way more over.

This isn't like Johnny's situation, he's already had his mega push even before he won the belt. Candice has been lingering in the back for 2 years. She's put in this odd spot in an angle and we're left to be the jury on whether we suddenly have to cheer her now. The effect is lacking some hutzpah here if you ask me.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Alexander_G said:


> If they want to turn Candice into a super over face, why do it now when they should have done that months ago? Not enough people care about Candice now, sorry to say, that a sympathy play is going to make her super over against the likes of Io or Shayna, both who are undoubtedly way more over.
> 
> This isn't like Johnny's situation, he's already had his mega push even before he won the belt. Candice has been lingering in the back for 2 years. She's put in this odd spot in an angle and we're left to be the jury on whether we suddenly have to cheer her now. The effect is lacking some hutzpah here if you ask me.


What other babyface is Shayna gonna face after Mia ? It's gotta be Candice, I think.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT.

— DJ Z came across as super cringe in his new gimmick but the other guy, Angel Garza (who I don't think I've heard of before), came across really well. The actual match itself was fun, fast paced and imaginative.

— What the hell was that Nykos lad wearing? A fun squash for Keith Lee for sure but I'd much rather he was actually doing something in NXT.

— Honestly haven't got any interest in Sons/Bruch and Lorcan/Street doing another multi tag match for the titles.

— What an overbooked clusterfuck that main event turned into. It is a storytelling nightmare but I actually had a lot of fun watching that absolute car crash.


----------



## Alexander_G

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> What other babyface is Shayna gonna face after Mia ? It's gotta be Candice, I think.


I really don't know because in the case of Shayna it doesn't seem to matter anyway what side they're on, she beats them. I can't foresee much any longer. She might never lose and relinquish the belt once she gets drafted to main.


----------



## looper007

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> I think the Io heel turn is just more fuel to make Candice the biggest babyface in the division which'll lead to her dethroning Shayna. HHH has a terrible obsession with the Gargano's.


I wouldn't disagree with you at all, plus with the way HHH is with his booking of the women's division it wouldn't shock me at all that was the reason he turned Io heel cause he's pretty much buried all his babyfaces to Shanya. 

If Candice/Io feud is 50/50 booking with Candice winning the last match then yep you will probably be right. For me if this is about making Io top heel and the next heel champ, then she's got to go through Candice and look like a damn superstar doing it. 

I'm still not convinced this heel turn is about making Io.


----------



## HBurns

I think this breakout tournament is going to be great, already getting a male version of the MYC vibes.. Loved the innovation of some moves in that first match.


----------



## Reil

I can't rule out Mia being the one to dethrone Shayna simply because she (Mia) has a documentary about her past and dealing with domestic violence that came out very recently, and capitalizing on the PR from it is what WWE loves to do.

Also Mia and Shayna are actual roommates.

Either way, Mia would likely only be a transitional champion, probably dropping it to Io at War Games or whatever.


----------



## Donnie

Two months NXT free is going to end because I need to see my dude TNA SUPERSTAR Trevor Lee save this sinking ship.


----------



## Asuka842

I'm very, conflicted, on Io turning heel. I like the IDEA of it, but I'm not a big fan of HOW it was done.

-I don't like that they had her be such a failure as a babyface for so long. She's arguably the best female wrestler in the world, the fact that she was booked to accomplish nothing for so long is kind of ridiculous imo. It'd be like if AJ Styles came in, was booked to accomplish nothing for a year, and then they turned him heel. You can do that for some wresters, but not these two, they're too good for that. Io should turn heel from a position of strength, not weakness imo.

-I question the timing of turning her heel while Shayna is still there and still heel champion.

-I REALLY dislike that they had Kairi leave NXT the way that she did if they were always planning to do this. Because that all feels, pretty pointless imo. There was no payoff to it.

-Etc.

HOWEVER, all that being said, I'm sure that Io will kill it as a heel (she has before). And if this leads to cool stuff finally happening for her/her getting the push that she deserves, then that'll be awesome. So I'm taking a "we'll see" approach to this right now.


----------



## SAMCRO

Garza vs Wilde was great, this tournament kinda give me the CW Classic vibe which i love. But can someone tell me how the fuck a top rope Spanish fly couldn't get Garza the win but that lame ass finisher he used did? i mean isn't that Lana's finisher? i don't even get how that move is supposed to hurt, so the opponent lands on his ass and that takes him out? that just looked dumb to me.


----------



## Asuka842

Here's my problem. Suddenly Io turning into a dick is supposed to make me take her seriously, despite her being booked as an utter failure in NXT for a year, WHY?

Her beating up on Candice, who's also been booked to accomplish nothing in NXT, is supposed to make her seem more "badass" moreso than her actually getting to beat Shayna for the belt, WHY? It's too losers fighting each other in the midcard, why am I supposed to see that as more exciting than one of the best women in the world winning the title?

Shayna vs. Mia is your title program, why should I settle for Io in the midcard when THAT'S your title feud?

Etc.

For as badass as Heel Io can be, they sure haven't given me much incentive to be excited for this. They need to have her accomplish something of note SOON.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Joaquin Wilde might be a huge geek, Garza might be a star, need to see more of both to confirm.

Can Burch and Lorcan fuck off already? They're good workers but literally the most interesting thing about them is one guy holds up 1 finger when he comes out and the other guy holds up 2 fingers. That's some Bray Wyatt level character they're building./_s_

Can someone explain to me having the top 2 women in the division being heels with no babyfaces being built up? Is Mia no 1 contender because she strung together 2 wins? 

If Candice beats Io that means her heel turn accomplished nothing, if Io beats Candice then she beat a jobber and still accomplished nothing. 

HHH has really lost the plot.


----------



## LongPig666

Broke my heart watching DJZ being sanitised by McDonald's wrestling.


----------



## CenaBoy4Life

Garza is a future star. Guy needs to right to SD midcard title scene and work his way up.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

CenaBoy4Life said:


> Garza is a future star. Guy needs to right to SD midcard title scene and work his way up.


I'd love to see him Andrade and Zelina as a cartel.


----------



## Reil

Maybe I'll update this later, maybe I won't.

But god fucking damn there is no way I could believe Mia Yim can defeat Shayna Baszler if she took 10 minutes to put away fucking Aliyah. And the match wasn't even good. Both women looked INCREDIBLY slow and sloppy.

On top of that, the audience felt like it was lukewarm towards her at best, and her promo near commentary was pretty trash as well. I feel like if she wins the title, she's gonna drop it as soon as the next Takeover. Because woof.


----------



## Reil

Maybe I'll update this later, maybe I won't.

But god fucking damn there is no way I could believe Mia Yim can defeat Shayna Baszler if she took over 5 minutes to put away fucking Aliyah. And the match wasn't even good. Both women looked INCREDIBLY slow and sloppy. And Aliyah got way too much offense in as well.

On top of that, the audience felt like it was lukewarm towards her at best, and her promo near commentary was pretty trash as well. I feel like if she wins the title, she's gonna drop it as soon as the next Takeover. Because woof.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Cole's troll speech to the trainees at the wrestling school.

'Go grab a pizza, sit on the couch and give up.'

:lmao :lmao :lmao


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Maybe I'll update this later, maybe I won't.
> 
> But god fucking damn there is no way I could believe Mia Yim can defeat Shayna Baszler if she took 10 minutes to put away fucking Aliyah. And the match wasn't even good. Both women looked INCREDIBLY slow and sloppy.
> 
> On top of that, the audience felt like it was lukewarm towards her at best, and her promo near commentary was pretty trash as well. I feel like if she wins the title, she's gonna drop it as soon as the next Takeover. Because woof.



A live fan report mentioned that Mia came out and that they re-shot her promo, so if what we saw was the "improved" re-shot promo then.........


----------



## Asuka842

I've been enjoying the Breakout Tournament so far. I hope that whomever wins has something concrete lined up for them going forward.

Bianca with one of the better squash matches that I've seen in awhile.

It's cool to see Tyler Breeze getting a chance to show off what he can do properly, and of course Roddy is always good.

No offense to Mia, she was really good in Impact with the Dollhouse/her feud with Rosemary/etc. But with how they've booked her so far in NXT, her being the one to beat Shayna would feel like an anti-climax. Especially after Kairi, Bianca, and freaking Io couldn't do it.

Speaking of Io, as expected she's killing it with her performance, and her new music is great. But I still feel like they haven't set this up to be as "epic" as it could/should be. Io vs. Candice, is a great idea on paper, but neither woman has any momentum. It's one woman who's been booked to accomplish nothing in NXT so far and choke in big matches vs. another woman who's been booked to accomplish nothing and choke in big matches, fighting in the midcard while Shayna and Mia get the big feud, and I don't see what Io gains from feuding with Candice right now? Great idea on paper, not so great set-up basically imo.

But overall, good show.


----------



## rbl85

Io didn't appeared tonight.


----------



## Reil

Yeah, the only mention of Io tonight was a replay of last week, and Regal getting interrupted by the Forgotten Sons before he could talk about the situation.


----------



## Buhalovski

Trevor Lee is looking so out of shape. Im not really excited about him.

That segment at the PC was so good though, we need more of that in the main roster.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Adam Cole is the best asshole in wrestling.



Showstopper said:


> Cole's troll speech to the trainees at the wrestling school.
> 
> 'Go grab a pizza, sit on the couch and give up.'
> 
> :lmao :lmao :lmao


When he said that I died of laughter, that's gotta be in contention for one-liner of the year :lmao


----------



## Mordecay

I expected more from the Strickland/Lee match tbh


----------



## SAMCRO

Showstopper said:


> Cole's troll speech to the trainees at the wrestling school.
> 
> 'Go grab a pizza, sit on the couch and give up.'
> 
> :lmao :lmao :lmao


Lol yeah that legit cracked me up, funniest fucking thing i've heard on WWE in a long time.


----------



## SAMCRO

Mordecay said:


> I expected more from the Strickland/Lee match tbh


Same, and i didn't like Trevor Lee winning either, i was hoping Strickland would win the whole thing tbh. Not sure why they had Lee go over, he's out of shape and doesn't have a good look.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Just seeing a highlight clip on Twitter, Mia Yim has *nothing* that warrants her beating Shayna for the title, as much as that title run is long past overdue to be over at this point. No heat, no steam, no momentum, no emotional investment. She even looked sloppy from what I saw against that Aliyah chick.

Yeah, I'm not sold on Mia Yim in NXT and I doubt she becomes anything when she's called up.


----------



## NastyYaffa

Had to watch Trevor's debut, and wasn't disappointed. Much of the match was designed to be a Swerve showcase, but Trev.. GRIMES got to look great & showcase his style very well too. Bring on round 2 vs. whoever :mark:


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Cameron Grimes winning is the most inexplicable thing I've seen in WWE in quite a while, and that's saying something. This dude could be the third member of the Brit-Am brawlers he's so generic. He was outclassed in every facet of pro wrestling including charisma and overness. Just truly mind boggling.


----------



## Donnie

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Cameron Grimes winning is the most inexplicable thing I've seen in WWE in quite a while, and that's saying something. This dude could be the third member of the Brit-Am brawlers he's so generic. He was outclassed in every facet of pro wrestling including charisma and overness. Just truly mind boggling.


:mj2 Goddamn this hurt my soul, dude. Trevor is my dude. Hope he can win you over one day. 

Nice to see you like SWERVE  You should check out his MLW run if you have time, he's fantastic.


----------



## MC

Lee/Grimes vs Swerve was pretty damn good. The way Grimes used the knucklelock to control and manipulate Swerve's movements was excellent. Loved the rugged approach he brought to the match - very aggressive. Swerve had some great stuff too. He was able to show off his personality and his aerial offence. I'll watch Breeze vs Roddy later. KUSHIDA's squash was great. Loved that. Skipped the rest.


----------



## ellthom

I loved the Adam Cole segment, can we get one each week. I love this approach. Need more of this.

Also I think it sucks that Kushida is in WWE, that man doesn't stand a chance on the main roster. Hopefulyl he can stay in NxT. Because otherwise he's 205 Live bound mark my words. Cannot speak English is already a huge black mark in Vince's books. 

Killian Dain's re-debut interests me too.

Also Grimes v Swerve was great. very cool match. Also fuck these name changes. They made them harder to remember than their original games, they sound so generic. Give me Trevor Lee not this stupid re branding. I know names are no big deal but its hard to saw that when the names are this bad. They must have went to Vince first with these name changes after the fucking of Viking/War Machine/Raiders/Experience

Breeze v Strong match was as awesome as to be expected.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Donnie said:


> :mj2 Goddamn this hurt my soul, dude. Trevor is my dude. Hope he can win you over one day.
> 
> Nice to see you like SWERVE  You should check out his MLW run if you have time, he's fantastic.


Help me out here, did they tell Trevor Lorcan not to show any personality so as to not steal shine from Swerve since he was going over? 

Is his gimmick ******* with a ponytail? He looked like the fourth Forgotten Son that even they forgot about.

I guess theoretically it's possible he might win me over, Roddy did; it seems unlikely though since Roddy looks like Ric Flair compared to this guy.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Is Adam Cole acting like a 12 year old school bully meant to be cool?

— Given all the hype they've given Kushida, why is he facing jobbers and not in a title picture? I am assuming Riddle is just getting video packages because of his Goldberg comments. 

— Still don't get why everyone has been given jobber names in this Breakout tourney but man this week delivered another great match. It wasn't a five star classic or whatever, although there were some fantastic sequences and really imaginative exchanges once the match got going, but the match perfectly established exactly who Scott and Grimes are and both came out of this looking great. Maybe they are trying a little too hard to make Scott another Ricochet but he has plenty of his own personality to hopefully keep himself separate. I was honestly surprised he didn't win here. 

— Main event was meh. Some hard hitting action but there was nothing Earth Shattering here, Breeze's back injury just sorta being forgotten about mid-match while the commentary desperately tried to make sense of it was cringe and while the run in was predictable it was also weirdly handled as Breeze dispatched of Fish immediately but then was still distracted enough to lose the match I guess. There also seemed to be a lot of spot calling in this match which was weird. I noticed some in the Scott/Grimes match too but it was easier to ignore it there given it was a much better match.


----------



## SAMCRO

Anyone else find Mia's gangster shtick cringe as fuck? i dunno just this Asian chick trying to act gangster tough is cringe to me "back up! Whachu gonna do?!", i can't stand it it just comes off phony and forced. And her promos are just as bad and every match shes had feels slow and clunky, its fucking baffling to me this is the chick they're lining up to beat Shayna.

I mean who else is gonna beat Shayna? Candice? lol shes barely above jobber status, shes not had any huge win since being in NXT, and shes just as slow and clunky in the ring as Mia is. It has to be Mia they're building up to do it, either way its gonna be awful when one of those 2 wins the title and Io or Kairi couldn't.


----------



## Reil

SAMCRO said:


> Anyone else find Mia's gangster shtick cringe as fuck? i dunno just this Asian chick trying to act gangster tough is cringe to me "back up! Whachu gonna do?!", i can't stand it it just comes off phony and forced. And her promos are just as bad and every match shes had feels slow and clunky, its fucking baffling to me this is the chick they're lining up to beat Shayna.
> 
> I mean who else is gonna beat Shayna? Candice? lol shes barely above jobber status, shes not had any huge win since being in NXT, and shes just as slow and clunky in the ring as Mia is. It has to be Mia they're building up to do it, either way its gonna be awful when one of those 2 wins the title and Io or Kairi couldn't.


I think the ONLY rational reason Mia should win is if they wanted to use her as a transitional champion to put the title onto Shirai or Belair. The last few babyface champs have had short reigns, only surviving 0-1 Takeovers.


----------



## Asuka842

Which is why it was so freaking bizarre to have Io NOT beat Shayna. The set up was perfect, but they instead they had her choke TWICE in title matches, then turned her heel, at a bizarre time given that Shayna is still there, and now she's seemingly feuding with Candice. So two women who have accomplished nothing in NXT and lose big matches, feuding in the midcard while Mia is in the title feud. I mean you could have done the Io vs. Candice feud, but made it the MAIN Women's feud, that'd work better imo.

Because after Dakota, and Nikki, and Kairi, and Bianca, and Io couldn't beat Shayna, are people really supposed to buy Mia doing it? Because that feels like a tremendous step down if anything. And it doesn't help that she's lost clean to Shayna before and they booked her to have to work just to beat freaking Aliyah.

It all feels like a massive anti-climax imo.


----------



## TD Stinger

More of a ho hum episode compared to last week.

*Mia is fairly over. And I think against Shayna, she can have a good match because they have good chemistry. But overall I haven't thought much of her NXT run. Which is a shame because I remember in the 1st MYC, she was awesome. But in her 2nd run to now, something's just missing.

*You know I think wrestling has ruined us to a point when it comes to the Adam Cole segment. He was a great dick with Johnny's father and the guys at Johnny's school. Really good stuff. It's just we've been conditioned to see guys in this situation get punched (like Edge to Cena's dad) or houses destroyed (like HHH invading Orton's home). So you can't help but feel disappointed in some way, lol.

*Kushida isn't really a good squash match guy. He's not a big monster with just a few moves to get over. He's a great technical wrestler. If you want to build him up, great. But keep putting him in there with guys like Gulak.

*Swerve vs. Grimes started really slow but it really picked up by the end and both men got to show what they can do. Swerve is so smooth and slick in the ring and Grimes is a jack of all trades for a guy his size. Good for Grimes moving on but I'm surprised Swerve got eliminated so early as well.

*Bianca had an impressive squash. I really liked her aggression when Diamante pissed her off. Only question is what does she really do know story wise after losing to Shayna and losing to Mia. Honestly wouldn't be shocked if she gets some shock call up in the near future.

*I liked Riddle's training vignette.

*Strong vs. Breeze was solid Roddy gets the win, picking up momentum towards Takeover to challenge Dream.


----------



## DirectorsCut

Was really rooting for Strickland (Swerve) to take down the entire tournament given his work in Lucha Underground and Evolve that entertained. Disheartened to find he lost in the first hand, especially at the hands Mr. bland, Trevor Lee. At this point only ACH deserves the tournament win.


----------



## Kratosx23

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Adam Cole is the best asshole in wrestling.


Not. Even. Close.










:sip


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Tyrion Lannister said:


> Not. Even. Close.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> :sip


Cole >>>> MJF in every aspect of professional wrestling.

:kobe14:kobe14:kobe14


----------



## Mordecay

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Cole >>>> MJF in every aspect of professional wrestling.
> 
> :kobe14:kobe14:kobe14


MJF is not a fat bastard though :grin2:


----------



## TD Stinger

We’ll considering beating Elias is now the highlight of Miz’s career these days, pretty soon the WF wars for best heel will be Cole vs MJF.

Get your ammo ready Marky.


----------



## Kratosx23

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Cole >>>> MJF in every aspect of professional wrestling.
> 
> :kobe14:kobe14:kobe14


Cole is not even close to MJF on the mic. He's not even good by any high standard. Cole is, at best, about as good as maybe Xavier Woods, and that's being generous. I wouldn't even say he's that good. He's no higher than decent, whereas MJF can hang with guys like Joe and Kevin Owens. He has nowhere near the level of charisma. He doesn't have anywhere near the ability to play his character to the hilt and grab peoples attention, and his matches are embarrassing the business right now. He and Gargano just hit 800,000 big moves and don't sell a god damn thing. Even if I give him the workrate advantage (which he SHOULD have, because MJF is only 23), he falls so short in every other category it's not even funny. Workrate has never made a star in this business.

I guarantee you it wouldn't take MJF two fucking years to win the NXT title like it did Cole. There's a reason they held him back until they basically didn't have any more options. MJF would be the biggest heat magnet in the history of NXT and would instantly dominate the brand instead of sitting on the sidelines.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Tyrion Lannister said:


> Cole is not even close to MJF on the mic. He's not even good by any high standard. Cole is, at best, about as good as maybe Xavier Woods, and that's being generous. I wouldn't even say he's that good. He's no higher than decent, whereas MJF can hang with guys like Joe and Kevin Owens. He has nowhere near the level of charisma. He doesn't have anywhere near the ability to play his character to the hilt and grab peoples attention, and his matches are embarrassing the business right now. He and Gargano just hit 800,000 big moves and don't sell a god damn thing. Even if I give him the workrate advantage (which he SHOULD have, because MJF is only 23), he falls so short in every other category it's not even funny. Workrate has never made a star in this business.
> 
> I guarantee you it wouldn't take MJF two fucking years to win the NXT title like it did Cole. There's a reason they held him back until they basically didn't have any more options. MJF would be the biggest heat magnet in the history of NXT and would instantly dominate the brand instead of sitting on the sidelines.


I have never seen something I disagree with more on this site than this write up? Cole isn't close to MJF on the mic ? Yeah exactly because Cole is far superior to MJF on the mic, MJF has had a couple of good promos and now this site pretends he's god on the mic. Stop it. Cole has had years of excellent promo work dating back to his ROH & PWG days. When MJF produces some promo work close to Cole's promo's against Jay Briscoe & Jay Lethal let me know, that is if you even looked into Cole's actual promo work and not just talking out of your ass :lmao Matter of fact you let me know when Cole has half a good a promo as this





(starts at 47:08)

To say Cole can't hang with Joe or Owens is ludicrous, that's just ridiculous especially when Cole has already hung with Owens in the past multiple times in PWG & ROH. Not to mention MJF currently has all the freedom in the world, Cole still has restrictions in NXT, Cole's PWG & ROH promo work shits over MJF. And playing a character? Are you kidding me? Cole has literally done what MJF is doing but better YEARS AGO. And as of right now, Cole's undisputed leader character is miles ahead of MJF's character in execution and entertainment value. And my god, did you just say MJF is more charismatic than Cole? Holy :lmao:lmao do you not listen to the reactions Cole gets the fact that he can literally be the most over man in wrestling and be the most hated within the same time frame. He's arguably the most charismatic man in wrestling, MJF isn't close. You say his matches are embarrassing the business? Hmmm the crowd doesn't react that way, it's the dumbest thing on this site when people say something is killing or hurting the business because YOU don't like it, just stop it. You sound foolish. And just to let you know, if MJF was in NXT he would never win the NXT title. He'd be lucky to get a north american title reign. So as I said earlier, Cole is better than MJF in EVERY SINGLE ASPECT OF PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING. In fact it's not even close.


----------



## Death Rider

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Tyrion Lannister said:
> 
> 
> 
> Not. Even. Close.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/0f6uka9.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Sip" class="inlineimg" />
> 
> 
> 
> Cole >>>> MJF in every aspect of professional wrestling.
> 
> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/FblLlCt.png" border="0" alt="" title="Kobe" class="inlineimg" /><img src="http://i.imgur.com/FblLlCt.png" border="0" alt="" title="Kobe" class="inlineimg" /><img src="http://i.imgur.com/FblLlCt.png" border="0" alt="" title="Kobe" class="inlineimg" />
Click to expand...

I love Cole but MJF beats him on the microphone. In the ring Cole is better though


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Death Rider said:


> I love Cole but MJF beats him on the microphone. In the ring Cole is better though


My disagreements are in the post above you.


----------



## ReekOfAwesomenesss

I need to see MJF carrying a top level/remarkable storyline first to say that he is all that. If anyone can recommend anything I'd like to take a look. Tbh, after the greatness of the promo at DON, his Fyter Fest one wasn't that good and its easy to see that someone like Cole would thrive with that much freedom insulting the crowd.


----------



## rbl85

It's me or they changed the reaction of the crowd for Io ?


----------



## Reil

They did. They piped in boos and you suck chants.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> They did. They piped in boos and you suck chants.


Someone on reddit mentioned them editing out the dueling "Io/Io Sucks" chants.


----------



## Asuka842

The Tag Match was really good, and Montez Ford is athletic as Hell.

The Tournament match was good to.

As expected Io sells her "darker" persona very well, and I'm sure her and Candice will work their asses off to do this well.

But while the Io vs. Candice feud is a GREAT idea on paper, it'd be better if either of them had ANY momentum. But now it's one woman who's accomplished nothing in NXT and lost her big matches (actually I don't think that Io has won a single's match on TV since the MYC in fact). feuding with another woman who's accomplished nothing in NXT and lost her big matches, feuding in the midcard while a less interesting feud is the title one. Again great idea, not so great timing/set-up imo. Especially with Shayna still there as heel champion.

Also IDK what Io has to gain ultimately from feuding with Candice at this point?




Good show overall.


----------



## WindPhoenix

Was there a lot of crowd editing in the Io Segment? It sounded weird on tape. I like the new theme and new attitude.


----------



## Reil

WindPhoenix said:


> Was there a lot of crowd editing in the Io Segment? It sounded weird on tape.


From what I understand, yes. The crowd was a lot more split (in favor of Io). But WWE piped in boos and edited out chants FOR Io.


----------



## WindPhoenix

Reil said:


> From what I understand, yes. The crowd was a lot more split (in favor of Io). But WWE piped in boos and edited out chants FOR Io.


I was wondering since the boos didn't sound like they matched the crowd. I'm interested to see if the crowd completely flips on her or if she continues getting splits.


----------



## Buhalovski

Hunter and his team are great when it comes to entrances. Badass Io is gold.


----------



## SAMCRO

ACH vs Boa was alright, my problem with it was there was way to many wristlocks that went on forever, every other second one of them locked on a wristlock or a rest hold and it really brought the match down. I expected a little more action from a striker vs a high flyer, yet we got rest holds for like 70% of the match.

Damien Priest's theme is still fucking awesome, entrance is cool as shit, but he needs to tighten his game up in the ring. And for the love of god he needs a new finisher badly, i can't stand that generic rolling cutter, plus it doesn't go well with a really tall wrestler it looks awkward.


----------



## Donnie

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Help me out here, did they tell Trevor Lorcan not to show any personality so as to not steal shine from Swerve since he was going over?
> 
> Is his gimmick ******* with a ponytail? He looked like the fourth Forgotten Son that even they forgot about.
> 
> I guess theoretically it's possible he might win me over, Roddy did; it seems unlikely though since Roddy looks like Ric Flair compared to this guy.


:mj2 I forgot to reply. Sorry, dude.

Trevor burst onto the scene in 2014 when he beat your favourite guy wens3 at Kev's PWG farewell. He's an incredible wrestler who can seemingly work any style against any wrestler. He's got a Flair like gas tank as this dude works 70+ minute matches regularly in CWA where he was the ACE of the company. But he's more than your generic wrestler who is good at wrestling, which I know you hate.

His dad was a wrestler and promoter who took him to all the shows before he could walk, and he passed away last year. So Trevor has dedicated his career to making him proud. Plus, the Hardy's helped to train him which lead to him working with them in IMPACT, so they have history to build on if they choose to. If they can tell his story like they did for Roddy (with an actual payoff this time) He'll win everyone, and maybe even you over 

Also,I suspect part of the reason he got signed was when he got to start speaking more in PWG and IMPACT, and everyone saw how much potential he has on the mic 




I hope he can eventually make you a fan. 

.


----------



## Asuka842

And like I said above, Also what does she gain from feuding with Candice at this point?


-If she wins, well she beat a woman who hasn't been booked all that strongly in NXT anyway in a midcard feud, so who cares? And how does that make up for failing to avenge Kairi and beat Shayna for the title? How is that BETTER than her looking awesome ending Shayna's reign of terror?

-If she loses, or they have 50/50 booking, then her heel turn is already looking even less impressive. This feud would be far cooler if either of them had any momentum and hadn't been booked like total losers beforehand.

The timing of this heel turn just seems, off, imo. Turning her heel with Shayna still there as the heel champion feels premature. Basically WWE needs to get more creative and less predictable with their turns. Also given how so far above everyone Shayna has been booked in NXT for so long, Io winning the title from anyone else but her will feel like an anticlimax. It's not the other women's fault, it's Trips MMA boner running wild.


----------



## Reil

Dude you have posted that same argument like 50 million times now.

NXT needs a new female heel to fill the shoes that Shayna will leave behind. Could Io have won the title and then turned heel? Yeah. But that wouldn't have made sense with her previous character. Think about it from a kayfabe perspective. She would have had no reason to turn her back on friends or fans if she had won at Takeover or in the cage match.

Neither friends or fans have helped her win anything since joining NXT, so she turned heel and is pissed off at everyone now. As for the feud with Candice, its probably just meant to establish her as a major heel.


----------



## kendo_nagasaki

There had been concern that Keith Lee is already lost in the shuffle but that vignette seemed to tease he’s about to come to the forefront a lot more.


----------



## Asuka842

And why should I care. How does feuding with Candice establish her as a major anything. Candice has done jack shit in NXT, beating her doesn't prove anything. Also use some creativity, don't turn her into a loser, just to turn her heel, because she's still a fucking loser at the end of the day. Also unless Shayna is leaving very quickly, you've undercut her there as well.

Also part of this ties into Triple H booking Shayna as the be all end all, and holding the belt for so long. She's booked so far above everyone else, and NO ONE who has feuded with her and lost has progressed after that. There is nothing that will make you feel more epic in NXT than beating Shayna and ending her reign of terror. By contrast, Candice is a demotion and there's no one else that Io can win the belt off of that will feel as big as beating Shayna. Again not the other women's fault, it's Trips indulging his MMA obsession and sacrificing the entire division for Shayna for so long.

Basically this feels like a demotion, yet I'm supposed to go "oh this so much better than her beating Shayna," why? How is her winning the belt from Mia, or Candice, or whomever, going to make her a top star more than winning it from the woman who dominated the division for years? I'm just trying to understand how this is BETTER?

As for "making sense." Again use some freaking creativity in the booking instead of resorting to "babyface must look like hapless loser in order to turn heel." Because, am I suddenly supposed to buy her as a threat now?


----------



## MC

Donnie said:


> :mj2 I forgot to reply. Sorry, dude.
> 
> Trevor burst onto the scene in 2014 when he beat your favourite guy wens3 at Kev's PWG farewell. He's an incredible wrestler who can seemingly work any style against any wrestler. He's got a Flair like gas tank as this dude works 70+ minute matches regularly in CWA where he was the ACE of the company. But he's more than your generic wrestler who is good at wrestling, which I know you hate.
> 
> His dad was a wrestler and promoter who took him to all the shows before he could walk, and he passed away last year. So Trevor has dedicated his career to making him proud. Plus, the Hardy's helped to train him which lead to him working with them in IMPACT, so they have history to build on if they choose to. If they can tell his story like they did for Roddy (with an actual payoff this time) He'll win everyone, and maybe even you over
> 
> Also,I suspect part of the reason he got signed was when he got to start speaking more in PWG and IMPACT, and everyone saw how much potential he has on the mic
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I hope he can eventually make you a fan.
> 
> .


"Are You Super Dragon's Kid or something? :banderas

Based Trevor is the fucking GOAT.


----------



## Reil

Asuka842 said:


> And why should I care. How does feuding with Candice establish her as a major anything. Candice has done jack shit in NXT, beating her doesn't prove anything. Also use some creativity, don't turn her into a loser, just to turn her heel, because she's still a fucking loser at the end of the day. Also unless Shayna is leaving very quickly, you've undercut her there as well.
> 
> Also part of this ties into Triple H booking Shayna as the be all end all, and holding the belt for so long. She's booked so far above everyone else, and NO ONE who has feuded with her and lost has progressed after that. There is nothing that will make you feel more epic in NXT than beating Shayna and ending her reign of terror. By contrast, Candice is a demotion and there's no one else that Io can win the belt off of that will feel as big as beating Shayna. Again not the other women's fault, it's Trips indulging his MMA obsession and sacrificing the entire division for Shayna for so long.
> 
> Basically this feels like a demotion, yet I'm supposed to go "oh this so much better than her beating Shayna," why? How is her winning the belt from Mia, or Candice, or whomever, going to make her a top star more than winning it from the woman who dominated the division for years? I'm just trying to understand how this is BETTER?
> 
> As for "making sense." Again use some freaking creativity in the booking instead of resorting to "babyface must look like hapless loser in order to turn heel." Because, am I suddenly supposed to buy her as a threat now?


Dude. You post this comment everywhere. I assume you are spamming this same comment on reddit and on wwe's youtube video of Io's turn, since I've seen this same exact post in a million other places over the past few hours. Io has to take a backseat for now. Chill the fuck out. She's already being better received as a heel than a babyface.

Did I want Io to dethrone Shayna? Yeah. But she didn't. But she got a heel turn in exchange. Babyfaces getting frustrated and turning heel isn't a new trope, and its pretty reliable at that. WWE isn't even trying to hide the fact that Shayna got LUCKY in her cage match with Io.

As for the Candice stuff, they need to give Io more credibility as a heel. I'll post it again, just so you understand. Io turning soon after winning the title was a bad idea logistically. Because then her current character would have made no sense. And yes, Io has to take a backseat *FOR NOW*. 

She'll very likely be right back into the title picture if someone like Mia Yim wins the title, because outside of Shayna, there is a severe lack of actual credible heels in the women's division on NXT. The only other heels besides Shayna are Io Shirai and Bianca (and Mia already has Bianca's number). But you could possibly pass off Bianca as a tweener at times. Hell, you already have Mia talking trash to Io on social media. 

Also don't pull the OH IO SHOULD HAVE WON BECAUSE KAIRI situation. Io already addressed that in a promo uploaded to the Japanese WWE twitter account. Where she outright admitted that Kairi was weak and needs friends to survive, hence her "abandoning" Io and running off to be friends with Asuka instead. In terms of kayfabe, Io only wants the title for herself. Not for the other women. But herself.

e: Also Io's heel promo is the most viewed NXT video across all platforms from yesterday's episode. By a very wide margin.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

I need someone to explain to me what the fuck "Archer of Infamy" means. And why do they keep calling him a rockstar if he's an archer?


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> Dude. You post this comment everywhere. I assume you are spamming this same comment on reddit and on wwe's youtube video of Io's turn, since I've seen this same exact post in a million other places over the past few hours. Io has to take a backseat for now. Chill the fuck out. She's already being better received as a heel than a babyface.
> 
> Did I want Io to dethrone Shayna? Yeah. But she didn't. But she got a heel turn in exchange. Babyfaces getting frustrated and turning heel isn't a new trope, and its pretty reliable at that. WWE isn't even trying to hide the fact that Shayna got LUCKY in her cage match with Io.
> 
> As for the Candice stuff, they need to give Io more credibility as a heel. I'll post it again, just so you understand. Io turning soon after winning the title was a bad idea logistically. Because then her current character would have made no sense. And yes, Io has to take a backseat *FOR NOW*.
> 
> She'll very likely be right back into the title picture if someone like Mia Yim wins the title, because outside of Shayna, there is a severe lack of actual credible heels in the women's division on NXT. The only other heels besides Shayna are Io Shirai and Bianca (and Mia already has Bianca's number). But you could possibly pass off Bianca as a tweener at times. Hell, you already have Mia talking trash to Io on social media.
> 
> Also don't pull the OH IO SHOULD HAVE WON BECAUSE KAIRI situation. Io already addressed that in a promo uploaded to the Japanese WWE twitter account. Where she outright admitted that Kairi was weak and needs friends to survive, hence her "abandoning" Io and running off to be friends with Asuka instead. In terms of kayfabe, Io only wants the title for herself. Not for the other women. But herself.
> 
> *e: Also Io's heel promo is the most viewed NXT video across all platforms from yesterday's episode. By a very wide margin.*


Kavita Devi's match against Dakota Kai is the most viewed womens match in WWE history, that doesn't mean shit


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> Kavita Devi's match against Dakota Kai is the most viewed womens match in WWE history, that doesn't mean shit


It means something when WWE actually wants it to mean something. It means the interest is there. And its been explained before that the Kavita Devi match was because of interest from India. Who can't afford the network or get the shows for free, so WWE doesn't care about that demographic. India fans are INCREDIBLY supportive of any athletes who come from their country.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> It means something when WWE actually wants it to mean something. It means the interest is there. And its been explained before that the Kavita Devi match was because of interest from India. Who can't afford the network or get the shows for free, so WWE doesn't care about that demographic. India fans are INCREDIBLY supportive of any athletes who come from their country.


Ruby Riott and Scarlett Bordeaux are not from India and they have matches with 20 million views in Youtube, I guess they are the biggest female draws in wrestling :lol. Truth is the person who gets more views in WWE's youtube channel these days, I guess he is the biggest draw too and should be the face of the company. Tbf he would be better than Seth or Becky.


----------



## Alexander_G

I only just saw the Io promo on YouTube. Tell me if you agree but, I'm almost getting some Minoru Suzuki vibes off of Io Shirai right now. 

I love it on its surface. She looks so much more deadlier, intimidating... At the same time I'm also a bit ambivalent about it.

A big part of me thinks she should have a manager doing the majority of her talking for her immediately. Mannerisms are on point, but every time she speaks you can see her struggle and delay to put it rightly forward.

I know that she's on the no-friends course right now but I just feel that unless she can do mic work a little quicker she would be better off not talking much, and using more physical expression if she's not going to have a mouthpiece. And yes, I know the promo was supposed to be one of few words, but even then you can still easily see she struggles with the English.


I didn't watch the rest of NXT this week, haven't been interested. I think I've gotten bored so I'm kind of taking a break from it.


----------



## TD Stinger

I'll give full show thoughts later, but I'm glad they're finally giving Keith Lee something to chew on.

He acknowledges that he (whether you blame him or booking) hasn't lived up to his full potential yet. And in a promo that well shot and well produced, he vows to be better.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT.

— Those skintight leather trousers have sold me on this heel turn.

— Priest should have won after that first kick. So far I liked this better in NXT when it was Baron Corbin.

— So are they adding all of Evolve onto the Network? I'd actually quite like to go through their archives.

— Interesting ACH still has his old Naruto and gimmick stuff on even with his new jobber name. I am glad he beat Boa though, that guy seems so basic and dull. This was the worst match of the tournament so far by a clear mile.

— They don't use Keith Lee for a year and then turn it into a story? Why not just use him in the first place?

— Hopefully they bring Apollo back permanently to NXT. I know he isn't the most charismatic guy in the world but I remember he was really talented in ring and they've wasted the best part of what... four years of his career (?) not making any use of him.

— Skipped the main event, really don't like the Street Profits.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

That tall Asian guy was not great. Smiles miles (I think) was pretty good and I hope he gets someone better to with with round 2.


Io looked hot. Good promo considering how little she speaks. That was enough.

Street Profits match was ok. Looking forward to the UDE taking the titles though.




Mordecay said:


> Kavita Devi's match against Dakota Kai is the most viewed womens match in WWE history, that doesn't mean shit


I'd love to know where you saw this stat. Most viewed on the network; live tv; YouTube; cable ordered ppv? I don't believe it is and I think you pulled this out of your ass considering Ronda Rousey just wrestled in wwe for a full year. 

I don't even know what you were talking about but I had to interrupt your straight up lie.


----------



## Mordecay

All Elite Wanking said:


> I'd love to know where you saw this stat. Most viewed on the network; live tv; YouTube; cable ordered ppv? I don't believe it is and I think you pulled this out of your ass considering Ronda Rousey just wrestled in wwe for a full year.
> 
> I don't even know what you were talking about but I had to interrupt your straight up lie.


He is talking about Youtube, so I am talking about Youtube as well

Here are the most watched videos in WWE Youtube's channel, you can check it yourself if you like


































Is there any womens match above the Kavita Devi match? Check your facts first before calling me a liar


----------



## FaceTime Heel

Velveteen's press conference was different but fits his gimmick. Very solid presentation. Random but anoyone else notice he was dressed like Lil Nas X lol. Loved the vignettes from Keith Lee and Killian Dane. Both have something to prove and I'm excited to see what the future holds for both men. I'm feeling Black Lotus Io Shirai too, always liked her better as a heel than a face.....

Now for the in-ring action. They've nailed it with the presentation on Priest but soon he's going to have to give us more than just squash matches. Looked solid but it's hard to get a good sense of where he is at given the level of competition. I enjoyed Myles (ACH) v Boa. Myles is a gem imo and glad he's getting a chance to shine in NXT. Boa intrigues me, he's very green but I think there is something that they can tap into. Him being Chinese and NXT/WWE wanting to tap into that market doesn't hurt either. Street Profits v Brit-Am Brawlers was fun. I'm here for both teams. Had some overly scripted/telegraphed moments but other than that I liked it. Glad King Tez and Dawkins are getting some shine. Curious to see where they go with TUE coming back into the picture.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

Mordecay said:


> He is talking about Youtube, so I am talking about Youtube as well
> 
> Here are the most watched videos in WWE Youtube's channel, you can check it yourself if you like
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Is there any womens match above the Kavita Devi match? Check your facts first before calling me a liar


I apologize.

I put too much faith into humanity for having better taste.


----------



## Mordecay

All Elite Wanking said:


> I apologize.
> 
> I put too much faith into humanity for having better taste.


No problem. And it's simply because of the indian market who make a shit ton of those views. If you look at the first 10 videos there are 2 Khali matches there, indian people seem like they like to support other indian people, that's why we got the Jinder push (despite that he is actually canadian)


----------



## GTL2

I am stunned by how reasonably and sensibly a disagreement online can be put away.


----------



## Asuka842

Reil said:


> Dude. You post this comment everywhere. I assume you are spamming this same comment on reddit and on wwe's youtube video of Io's turn, since I've seen this same exact post in a million other places over the past few hours. Io has to take a backseat for now. Chill the fuck out. She's already being better received as a heel than a babyface.
> 
> Did I want Io to dethrone Shayna? Yeah. But she didn't. But she got a heel turn in exchange. Babyfaces getting frustrated and turning heel isn't a new trope, and its pretty reliable at that. WWE isn't even trying to hide the fact that Shayna got LUCKY in her cage match with Io.
> 
> As for the Candice stuff, they need to give Io more credibility as a heel. I'll post it again, just so you understand. Io turning soon after winning the title was a bad idea logistically. Because then her current character would have made no sense. And yes, Io has to take a backseat *FOR NOW*.
> 
> She'll very likely be right back into the title picture if someone like Mia Yim wins the title, because outside of Shayna, there is a severe lack of actual credible heels in the women's division on NXT. The only other heels besides Shayna are Io Shirai and Bianca (and Mia already has Bianca's number). But you could possibly pass off Bianca as a tweener at times. Hell, you already have Mia talking trash to Io on social media.
> 
> Also don't pull the OH IO SHOULD HAVE WON BECAUSE KAIRI situation. Io already addressed that in a promo uploaded to the Japanese WWE twitter account. Where she outright admitted that Kairi was weak and needs friends to survive, hence her "abandoning" Io and running off to be friends with Asuka instead. In terms of kayfabe, Io only wants the title for herself. Not for the other women. But herself.
> 
> e: Also Io's heel promo is the most viewed NXT video across all platforms from yesterday's episode. By a very wide margin.


-Io's been taking a backseat for close to a year. You act like this just happened, but it's been a long time now. She hasn't won ONE single's match on TV since the MYC. For arguably the best women wrestler on the planet, that's pathetic. WTF are they waiting for. Forgive me if I'm not excited for Io to potentially wallow in the midcard for months and months (especially when Shayna vs. Mia is the title program instead). Since they've spent almost a year doing nothing with her already.

-So how did Shayna "get lucky" by making Io tap like a bitch at Takeover XXV after Io look like an idiot beforehand?

-How does beating Candice "establish her?" I like Candice, but Candice has accomplished NOTHING in NXT. For most of her time, she's been "Mrs. Gargano" and she's won NO matches of note. Beating her means nothing.

-How is Io winning the title from Mia supposed to be more impressive than winning it from Shayna? Please explain that to me? Shayna has been booked so far above everyone else that there is no bigger rub possible than being the one to beat her, and they squandered that potential with Io.

-Oh I WILL bring up the Kairi thing. I don't give a fuck about Io's promo. Kairi was utterly humiliated booking-wise in her last night in NXT. Beating half to death and run out of NXT by Shayna and co, for NO payoff. Don't embarrass her like that, if Io isn't going to be the one to beat Shayna, because you embarrassed her for no good reason in the end. I mean it fits with how they used her in NXT, namely not to nearly her full potential, but still.

-Etc.

Look I LOVE the idea of Io vs. Candice, but I don't know why I should care? Explain how one loser (in-kayfabe) fighting another one in a midcard feud is BETTER than the best women's wrestler in the company being booked as a top performer like she should be? Why is this not the title feud? I'm really supposed to care more about Shayna vs. Mia instead?

And if this match isn't even on the main Takeover card, then THAT will be super-telling. Sorry, but I ain't backing down on this.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

NXT is almost completely irrelevant these days. Cole needs to do something with the title. He's had exactly ONE good segment since winning the title over 2 months ago. I mean, it's almost like the title has ceased to exist for the past 2 months now.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Showstopper said:


> NXT is almost completely irrelevant these days. Cole needs to do something with the title. He's had exactly ONE good segment since winning the title over 2 months ago. I mean, it's almost like the title has ceased to exist for the past 2 months now.


His reign just started, and world title reigns don't really get their legs until the former champion's rematch is done with. Which they're gonna do at Toronto. Cole had a good segment with TUE, Riddle & Dream after winning the title on NXT TV and then he had a excellent segment visiting Johnny's city. And he's got a title defense Wednesday, it's off to a solid start and he's not even finished with Gargano yet.

And it's only been a little over a month since he won the title.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> His reign just started, and world title reigns don't really get their legs until the former champion's rematch is done with. Which they're gonna do at Toronto. Cole had a good segment with TUE, Riddle & Dream after winning the title on NXT TV and then he had a excellent segment visiting Johnny's city. And he's got a title defense Wednesday, it's off to a solid start and he's not even finished with Gargano yet.
> 
> And it's only been a little over a month since he won the title.


June 1st so 1.5 months. It didn't really 'just start.' He's barely even been on TV. Just give me SOMETHING. The visiting Johnny's city thing was hilarious. I enjoyed that. But...that's it thus far.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

To be fair, the Bay Bay championship tour is better than any promo/segment the last 10 NXT champs have done... and I don't even like Cole.

The NXT title is a workrate title, it's not a story anchor title, that didn't start with Cole so he shouldn't be blamed for it.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Showstopper said:


> June 1st so 1.5 months. It didn't really 'just start.' He's barely even been on TV. Just give me SOMETHING. The visiting Johnny's city thing was hilarious. I enjoyed that. But...that's it thus far.


Well like I said he's defending the title this upcoming week and Takeover Toronto is coming soon so you should be getting your wish. And after he goes over Johnny, I expect we'll see a lot more of Cole.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> Well like I said he's defending the title this upcoming week and Takeover Toronto is coming soon so you should be getting your wish. And after he goes over Johnny, I expect we'll see a lot more of Cole.


Takeover Toronto is another month away. I wouldn't say that's all that soon. Doesn't matter, anyway. The excitement that NXT had not too long ago is pretty much gone and will be even more gone in the coming months. This section is pretty much dead which kind of reflects that.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Showstopper said:


> Takeover Toronto is another month away. I wouldn't say that's all that soon. Doesn't matter, anyway. The excitement that NXT had not too long ago is pretty much gone and will be even more gone in the coming months. This section is pretty much dead which kind of reflects that.


What "excitement" are you talking about exactly? The weekly shows haven't had much substance in forever. They were carried by the occasional good match and the Takeover's it's been that way for a long time. This thread is about the same as usual, a few will talk about the weekly show and then everyone else tunes in for the Takeovers.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> What "excitement" are you talking about exactly? The weekly shows haven't had much substance in forever. They were carried by the occasional good match and the Takeover's it's been that way for a long time. This thread is about the same as usual, a few will talk about the weekly show and then everyone else tunes in for the Takeovers.


There was a time when NXT's weekly show would get 100+ replies, that was a long ass fucking time ago, way before the show became Takeover-centric.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> What "excitement" are you talking about exactly? The weekly shows haven't had much substance in forever. They were carried by the occasional good match and the Takeover's it's been that way for a long time. This thread is about the same as usual, a few will talk about the weekly show and then everyone else tunes in for the Takeovers.


The posts for the weekly TV show (in here) and TO threads used to get alot more play. There used to be more daily threads/and posts in this section underneath this pinned thread, as well.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> There was a time when NXT's weekly show would get 100+ replies, that was a long ass fucking time ago, way before the show became Takeover-centric.


Yeah, I kinda remember that. Definitely around the time I joined the site and into 2015. After Balor became champ, it's been pretty much like this. 



Showstopper said:


> The posts for the weekly TV show (in here) and TO threads used to get alot more play. There used to be more daily threads/and posts in this section underneath this pinned thread, as well.


Maybe, but nothing extreme. No one really cares to post on the weekly show except for the select few and it's been that way for years. The Takeovers still get good thread interaction even if it's not "as much".


----------



## GTL2

The wider interest in the NXT weekly shows is probably reflecting WWE's interest. 

The Network was the Big Hope for WWE in 2014, in the era of declining tv audiences, but subscriber numbers were a disaster. NXT was one of their vehicles for attracting audience to it and they threw everything at it with new stars, more Takeovers.... We probably hit peak NXT in the 6 months or so after TO New York. 

Now it has flipped 180 degrees. The big money is in the tv deals, Vince has a new toy in XFL and the network is just kinda there. NXT isn't that big of a short term priority.

I had forgotten that Cole was champion and the main reason I knew Gargano was champion before that was because Ciampa was in hospital.


----------



## Mordecay

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1151660539698790400
Gargano/Cole III. Three stages of Hell... sort of


----------



## Bryan Jericho

Works for me, Cole/Gargano have had great matches so Im happy to get another.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

Riddle's match was fantastic. It made me stop playing on my phone and watch. That mma feel was awesome and I'd hope those 2 fight again.

If you recognized Dexter's music, that's because its the background music in Portal 2.


----------



## TD Stinger

New show review.

I’m always down for Riddle and a guy like Ruas having a good physical match. I like how Riddles unique in the sense he can win matches by stoppage by repeated strikes.

The Dain return is interesting, and the bump on the stage was a good way to end the segment.

I remember Dexter Lumis as Samuel Shaw in TNA years ago. Amazing to see him now. And honestly with his weird antics and athleticism he showed, he might have something.

Bronson Reed got screwed over most on the name changes. I mean his name was Jonah Rock. That was bad ass. Ah well. He showed flashes as well. And that big splash off the top will get him over.

Kushida vs. Apollo was just a really good wrestling match.

The Keith Lee promo, naturally, grabbed my interest. He sounded borderline disgusted that he hadn’t accomplished that much in a year and now there’s a breakout tournament for an opportunity he never got. So there acknowledging his situation, and whether it leads to a heel turn or whatever, I’m interested.

And finally The Cole/Gargano segment was well done in all fronts. I wonder what kind of match stipulation they go for at Takeover Toronto. Seems like you have to have one.


----------



## TD Stinger

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1151660539698790400
2/3 Falls again. This time Gargano picks one stipulation, Cole picks the other, and Regal picks the final one.

Really never should have done a 2/3 Falls match to begin in New York. The feud didn’t warrant it at the time. Still, I’m interested to see what the pull out here.


----------



## ripcitydisciple

Can anyone explain Beth Phoenix's commentary style? I can't quite put my finger on it. It is almost like when a parent raises their voice just a bit to sound stern when they are telling a child not to do something.

'Don't you go in there'

'Don't touch that, it's hot'

'Don't climb any higher or you could get stuck.'

I know it may not be exactly it, but can you hear it? This may be too difficult to answer without hearing the actual tone and inflection I am talking about.


----------



## ripcitydisciple

TD Stinger said:


> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1151660539698790400
> 2/3 Falls again. This time Gargano picks one stipulation, Cole picks the other, and Regal picks the final one.
> 
> Really never should have done a 2/3 Falls match to begin in New York. The feud didn’t warrant it at the time. Still, I’m interested to see what the pull out here.


My guess would be Gargano chooses a Submission match, because that gives him the advantage having the Gargano Escape and Cole as far as I can remember not having a signature submission. Cole will choose some kind of No DQ match so the rest of The Era can get involved and then Regal will then choose something that will prevent Cole's buddies from being involved in the final outcome and finally settle things once and for all between Cole and Gargano.

Cage, with Era barred from the ring?


----------



## Donnie

Grapples vs Cole in a THREE STAGES OF HELL MATCH :lmao Christ, that's going to be terrible. 

Hopefully the third fall is "both men are fired into the sun" :banderas


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Donnie said:


> Grapples vs Cole in a THREE STAGES OF HELL MATCH :lmao Christ, that's going to be terrible.
> 
> Hopefully the third fall is "both men are fired into the sun" :banderas


To think we became friends on this site by both being Cole fans, my how times have changed.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Holy fuck, Cole/Gargano in a two out of three falls match. Fucking yuck :Wat?

Not hyped really for this Takeover in Toronto, if we're being honest. It may deliver come showtime but I'm not seeing really anything that makes me feel like this is going to be a great show.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

I'll keep it honest, I wasn't really super hyped at another Cole/Gargano match, those type of matches take a lot out of you and idk how they would be able to top their previous encounter. They did well arguably topping their original 2/3 falls match at Takeover 25.

The 3 stages of hell format definitely has piqued my interest though. They need to do the first fall be a submission match, second fall be no dq and the final fall be a hell in a cell. That would be another banger for sure.


----------



## SAMCRO

Honestly i'm not really excited about any of the final 4 options for the breakout tournament winner, i wanted Strickland to win it but he lost right off the fucking bat for some reason. Then i was like well i'll pull for Dexter Lumis cause i loved him in TNA, he plays his character great and is good in the ring, but nope he lost as well. 

I guess i'd like Trevor Lee to win of the remaining guys but i aint really gonna care if he does or not, Strickland should have been the winner hands down.


----------



## Buhalovski

I dont get why Keith Lee doesnt have a major storyline since his debut as well. Once Gargano and Riddle leave for the main roster, he should take their spot for fuck sake. Hopefully that promo leads into something.


----------



## Donnie

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> To think we became friends on this site by both being Cole fans, my how times have changed.


I still love you, and him Marky. But this feud with Grappling emote has been terrible, and Cole has allowed this idiot to drag him into shitty forced epics. He stops doing that, and I wont say anything bad about him for a while.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

NXT doesn't know how to make every wrestler they have meant something. They just sign the hot flavors of the month just to play keep away and after three months or so, they just send them to the side. 

This is why people suggest that WWE have to release some talent. It's way too overbloated on the main roster and the case is the same in NXT too.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Donnie said:


> I still love you, and him Marky. But this feud with Grappling emote has been terrible, and Cole has allowed this idiot to drag him into shitty forced epics. He stops doing that, and I wont say anything bad about him for a while.


Nah, I get you brother. I understand their matches haven't been for everyone, I personally enjoyed them as you know but I get everyone won't. It's all good in the hood.


----------



## Piers

Has NXT ever had such an awful panel of champions before ? I'm slowly losing interest in the last WWE show I kept on with


----------



## jeffatron

Io Shirai in leather pants tho....

That ME was pretty good before my PVR feed cut off the ending and I'm too annoyed to go look who won (guessing Kushida)


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— After Riddle destroyed that jobber I figured his punishment was over but given he is being fed to the redebuting Dain, maybe not.

— That entire Breakout tournament segment is one of the most baffling things I have ever seen. Reed was a complete non factor in this match, everything here was all about Lumis with some of the most unique presentation I have ever seen... and then he lost. Like the fuck even was this? Did I dream this whole thing?

— That reaction for the returning Apollo Crews makes my heart happy. What a match this was too, given Crews hasn't been able to do anything for probably the best part of three years, if not longer, it was like he never left and he got the best match out of Kushida so far. So with Mauro's comments at the end, is Crews back for good like Breeze? I hope so.

— No real interest in a Lee/Priest feud but I guess at least they are doing something with Lee? I guess... Still weird they turned their bad booking into a story for him though.

— I am sure Gargano/Cole will have another great match but... really, three times in a row? Really? Like you sure you don't want to give anyone else a shot? You sure?


----------



## JustAName

I was way more interested in Dexter Lumis than I was the other guy, thought for sure he was going over, the other guy, aside from being athletic and stuff seemed pretty flat, oh well.

Kushida vs Apollo was an awesome wrestling match and I was genuinely happy to see how Apollo was received.

So the main event is pretty much 3 stages of hell? I am all for it and I hope the match goes for a good 45-50min or so. I could picture regel having final fall be hell in a cell, I can hope at least, we'll know if we see a massive cage hanging off the roof at the start of the PPV.

Did I miss anything? Oh yeah, the Riddle vs Guy I can't remember was extremely good and fresh, very interesting and it gave me a MMA feel for majority of it, cool finish, but I think he should have stopped defending himself and had his arms flat before he got TKO'd would have looked more legit and made Riddle look even more like a bad MFer.

Then there was the Keith Lee promo, intriguing as well, not sure if it will be a heel turn or him just crushing people, probably leaning more towards a heel turn after seeing who he's facing next week when he is for sure losing as they are building up Damien Priest by all accounts.

Not sure if I missed anything more, good and fun episode
I may still have missed something,


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

NXT is so fucking boring that I was looking forward to the Cole/Twon match, I was bothered by the kayfabe of it: why would that guy pass up the only opportunity he will e-e-ever get at the NXT title, or even wrestling on tv for that matter, to do the world's worst set up? 

Adam Cole IMO is a midcarder but compared to the rest of the people currently being pushed he's a HOF legend. 

The booking of this tournament has been completely inexplicable, first Grimes over Scott and now Reed over Lumis, it's almost like HHH doesn't want us to give a shit about the winner, they aren't even putting over the best workers let alone the best all around talents. Even if Garza wins I don't think I'll care because the overall quality has been so bad.

I'm not watching another Kushida match. All of the Japanese talents they've brought in have struggled to some extent to connect to the crowd but prior to Kushida they at least all had above average charisma, this guy is dead in the water. 

Jaxson Ryker is shorter than Tyler Breeze that makes them portraying him as NXT's Braun even more comical.

Where the fuck is Dream, he needs to come save this shitshow.


----------



## ellthom

I am super interested in Dexter... man is like some sort of athletic terminator 

These new guys are obviously in need of a lot of work and I am excited to see them all develop.

Also that pop Apollo Crews got was very sweet, not a fan of the guy but that must make him feel good. The match he and Kushida had was awesome too. 



Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Jaxson Ryker is shorter than Tyler Breeze that makes them portraying him as NXT's Braun even more comical.


Must have been the angle on TV because Ryker is actually taller than Breeze by a little bit.


----------



## Donnie

NXT sucks, and now everyone knows it. Vindication never felt sweeter. 

KUSHIDA needs to take the DeLorean back to 2010 and stop this from ever happening.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Donnie said:


> NXT sucks, and now everyone knows it. Vindication never felt sweeter.
> 
> KUSHIDA needs to take the DeLorean back to 2010 and stop this from ever happening.


#MajorBoys been called out the inevitable since 206/7, breh :dance

Yeah, NXT should be blessed those Takeovers has extended their free passes with their fanbase but I didn't even think Takeover 25 was all that great anyways and Toronto isn't looking all that exciting, either. 

The quality for the Takeovers is beginning to dip, IMO.


----------



## LongPig666

JustAName said:


> I was way more interested in Dexter Lumis than I was the other guy, thought for sure he was going over, the other guy, aside from being athletic and stuff seemed pretty flat, oh well.


Lumis' intro and gimmick was f*cking awesome. Creepy with 80's style "Escape from New York" synthesizer feel. Good offence.

The crowd hated him. Morons.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Why are they morons? Seems Shaw (Dexter) did his job, then.


----------



## LongPig666

WINNING said:


> Why are they morons? Seems Shaw (Dexter) did his job, then.


My poor choice of words. They were dead and didn't seem to know what to make of him.


----------



## Piers

Samuel Shaw kept his creep gimmick from Impact I see. He could do well on NXT. Funny that they called him Dexter, as he used to dress like the character


----------



## Reil

just wanted to post that i laughed real hard when the crowd booed candice after she jumped io

e: also candice's suicide dive onto io was really awful


----------



## DammitChrist

Man, Pete Dunne making a surprise appearance tonight was awesome :mark: :mark:

I'm even more excited for the NXT North American title match now 

It's going to be Velveteen Dream vs Roderick Strong vs Pete Dunne in 2 weeks :done

Seeing that match live is going to be one hell of a birthday present for me :trips8



Reil said:


> just wanted to post that i laughed real hard when the crowd booed candice after she jumped io
> 
> e: also candice's suicide dive onto io was really awful


That was only like a couple of fans booing :aries2

The crowd pretty much cheered when Candice LeRae attacked Io Shirai.


----------



## Alright_Mate

Haven't watched NXT in months, still don't plan too but when it comes around I'll definitely be giving Dream vs Strong vs Dunne a watch.

That is a quality matchup, three of the best performers in NXT.

Rest of the card does nothing for me, no doubt Cole vs Gargano will be another overbooked mess.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Show Thoughts:

*Garza is going to have a bright future. Face or heel, he's got too much natural charisma to not make an impact on whatever she he ends up on. I've said that I believe he and Swerve will be top 2 guys out of this new class in this tournament. So surprising to see him go here, but Myles is talented in his own right.

Overall a fun little match. The spot in the beginning where Garza tripped Myles off the apron looked liked it sucked for Myles. And from there they had a decent athletic match.

*Bianca winning another squash. A bit weird to see her out of the title picture after all that time and obviously they're still keeping her busy while she continues to develop. Something tells me she'll be an after Mania call up next year with never winning the NXT Title.

*These Killian Dain promos are really good. After years of being the grunting monster in Sanity, he speaks well for himself playing a more normal kind of character.

*Mia attacking Shayna's goons out of the arena is kind of weird. I mean you could argue she's being a heelish. But on the other......why hasn't someone done this before? Either way it makes me laugh, lol.

*I can listen to Dream talk any time. No one tries as hard to look like a star than Dream does and it resonates when watching him. And my God, did Roddy actually cut a decent promo. Damn. And yay! Dunne is back in main NXT and it looks like he's here to stay. So that's cool.

Regal was a dick to Roddy though. I mean he really didn't give Roddy a good explanation why he put Dunne in this match. I mean it's Regal and I love him so I'll easily forgive him, but still, dick move.

*I loved Io's aggression in her match, and equally loved Candice's run in. I know NXT has their 5 matches probably set for Takeover, but I'd really like if for once they did 6 and added this match.

*Lee vs. Priest had some good moments with a mostly dead crowd, which is unfortunate. Still, they did some really cool athletic stuff and that counter where Lee caught Priest was nasty.

So Lee loses and is STILL finding his way in NXT. The only saving grace now is that they seem to be telling a story with Lee losing and being frustrated. I need him to either turn heel and go ape shit on everyone or pick up some big babyface wins soon.


----------



## SAMCRO

TD Stinger said:


> New Show Thoughts:
> 
> *Garza is going to have a bright future. Face or heel, he's got too much natural charisma to not make an impact on whatever she he ends up on. I've said that I believe he and Swerve will be top 2 guys out of this new class in this tournament. So surprising to see him go here, but Myles is talented in his own right.
> 
> Overall a fun little match. The spot in the beginning where Garza tripped Myles off the apron looked liked it sucked for Myles. And from there they had a decent athletic match.
> 
> *Bianca winning another squash. A bit weird to see her out of the title picture after all that time and obviously they're still keeping her busy while she continues to develop. Something tells me she'll be an after Mania call up next year with never winning the NXT Title.
> 
> *These Killian Dain promos are really good. After years of being the grunting monster in Sanity, he speaks well for himself playing a more normal kind of character.
> 
> *Mia attacking Shayna's goons out of the arena is kind of weird. I mean you could argue she's being a heelish. But on the other......why hasn't someone done this before? Either way it makes me laugh, lol.
> 
> *I can listen to Dream talk any time. No one tries as hard to look like a star than Dream does and it resonates when watching him. And my God, did Roddy actually cut a decent promo. Damn. And yay! Dunne is back in main NXT and it looks like he's here to stay. So that's cool.
> 
> *Regal was a dick to Roddy though. I mean he really didn't give Roddy a good explanation why he put Dunne in this match. I mean it's Regal and I love him so I'll easily forgive him, but still, dick move.*
> 
> *I loved Io's aggression in her match, and equally loved Candice's run in. I know NXT has their 5 matches probably set for Takeover, but I'd really like if for once they did 6 and added this match.
> 
> *Lee vs. Priest had some good moments with a mostly dead crowd, which is unfortunate. Still, they did some really cool athletic stuff and that counter where Lee caught Priest was nasty.
> 
> So Lee loses and is STILL finding his way in NXT. The only saving grace now is that they seem to be telling a story with Lee losing and being frustrated. I need him to either turn heel and go ape shit on everyone or pick up some big babyface wins soon.


Yeah and Roddy said "Just what i thought Favoritism!" and Regal just kinda smiled going "Yes yeah". So yeah Regal was being a dick to Roddy basically saying "yeah i'am playing favoritism cause i like Dunne".


----------



## Buhalovski

Io is in Nakamuras position, I highly doubt she will ever get booed as a real heel. If that was me though I would just pair her with the OC, it kinda makes sense.


----------



## Piers

Bianca almost broke Xia's neck with that botched finisher. Those two are so green it's just sad to watch


----------



## Dizzie

Checked out the full Lee vs priest match, was hoping for a good big man match but they didnt seem to have good chemistry, it was quite a clunky match


----------



## Saritta

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Bianca almost broke Xia's neck with that botched finisher. Those two are so green it's just sad to watch


Xia isn't to blame for that movement, Bianca was very abrupt.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

The street fight in Cole/Gargano III should be refreshing, something different.


----------



## TD Stinger

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> The street fight in Cole/Gargano III should be refreshing, something different.


What you going with for Regal's stip (the 3rd fall)? I'm guessing a Ladder Match.


----------



## Piers

Saritta said:


> Xia isn't to blame for that movement, Bianca was very abrupt.


Indeed, but Xia is still really bad overall considering the time she's spent in development


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— So is the theme of this tournament that the worst man wins in every single match up? Just like with Lumis, this match was all Garza. Not only did he dominate throughout, but this match was just one giant showcase of how good a wrestler he was, his pure charisma and his classic sort of charming scoundrel character... then he lost... out of nowhere. Don't get me wrong, Myles is obviously athletically gifted but his goofy anime fan gimmick is pure cringe, out of the two I can see Garza going on to become a real star. I see no future for Myles under this gimmick, so I guess as per this tournament... of course Myles won. Going by the rules then, I am assuming Reed is winning this tournament?

— It is pretty inspired to have Johnny pick a street fight and then Cole after pick a straight wrestling match. 

— While the random Pete Dunne appearance was awesome, it threw up a lot of questions. Most notably why Regal is so open about his favouritism and why they couldn't have had Dunne earn his way into the match given he has a singles match with Strong now coming up anyway.

— Had no interest in Lee/Priest, skipped to the end and saw Lee get screwed after taking two moves with zero impact and knew I had made the right choice.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

By the way, this Mia Yim push isn't working. At all. They're overcompensating with having her do nothing for so long that now she's just going after Shayna's cronies. 

Fuck, Io should have just ended the streak. They are potentially going to give this big moment to the wrong person. Y'all will be here in three months asking "Should Mia have been the champion?"


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

TD Stinger said:


> What you going with for Regal's stip (the 3rd fall)? I'm guessing a Ladder Match.


Either Ladder or some sort of cage.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Gotdamn NXT is awful. This tournament is the worst booked thing in WWE history and that's saying a lot, what are they trying to accomplish by having the less talented person win every match?

Why would Johnny pick a street fight? I get that he's mad but that's just asking TUE to interfere. Adam Cole picking a regular wrestling match is also nonsensical, is this supposed to be a deluded heel thinking he can out wrestle Johnny? Johnny should've said submission because he'd have the advantage and Cole should've said street fight so TUE could beat the shit out of Johnny with weapons.

Was excited for Xia vs Bianca, got a fucking squash match, are you kidding? 

Mia Yim really did the Sargent Soaked "surprise motherfucker". I like to see a smart face but seeing as she hasn't had any interactions with Shaffir and Duke, her randomly taking them out is coming off heelish. Has she even been announced as the challenger for TO? 

Damian Priest vs Keith Lee was pretty bad, it was so low impact, I blame Priest since Lee managed to have a quality match with Kona fucking Reeves which I thought was impossible. Also, lol at Lee selling for Reeves but not for Priest, I wonder what the reason for that is.


----------



## Derek30

Man some harsh comments on Lee/Priest. I thought it was a fun match but I can't STAND Priest's finisher. Jeez, the man is an athletic powerhouse and you give him a ROLLING CUTTER?! Get the fuck out of here


----------



## TD Stinger

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Why would Johnny pick a street fight? I get that he's mad but that's just asking TUE to interfere. Adam Cole picking a regular wrestling match is also nonsensical, is this supposed to be a deluded heel thinking he can out wrestle Johnny? Johnny should've said submission because he'd have the advantage and Cole should've said street fight so TUE could beat the shit out of Johnny with weapons.


I mean if you've seen their matches, Cole beat Gargano in a straight up wrestling match and pinned him in the 1st fall Mania Weekend. And Johnny is the guy who's mad and has proven that he can go through all of TUE in the right circumstance, like he did Mania weekend. Plus through his rivalry with Ciampa, a street fight is something he's familiar with.

And yes, Cole is that deluded heel that thinks he can beat Johnny. And considering he just beat Johnny clean at the last Takeover, it's not really that deluded. And that does give him a little more depth than the regular chickenshit heel.


----------



## ellthom

Really not feeling this Damien Priest guy, he looks like a before version of Baron Corbin... Only with a wannabe vampire gimmick. 

I am actually enjoying the Mia Yim stuff, it;s the first time when a wrestler has actually taken the fight to Bazsler in the build up and I like that approach.

Also how did Dunne earn to be in that match? Seems very right out of no where. Shouldn't this man be on the main roster already?



Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Gotdamn NXT is awful. This tournament is the worst booked thing in WWE history and that's saying a lot, what are they trying to accomplish by having the less talented person win every match?
> .


I know right?

Although I guess we can be thankful the losers will still be around. It;as not like they are going anywhere. And that's good enough for me. Sometimes the losers are the ones who end up being more successful. Just look at all the Tough Enough winners


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

ellthom said:


> *Really not feeling this Damien Priest guy, he looks like a before version of Baron Corbin... Only with a wannabe vampire gimmick.*
> 
> I am actually enjoying the Mia Yim stuff, it;s the first time when a wrestler has actually taken the fight to Bazsler in the build up and I like that approach.
> 
> Also how did Dunne earn to be in that match? Seems very right out of no where. Shouldn't this man be on the main roster already?
> 
> 
> 
> I know right?
> 
> Although I guess we can be thankful the losers will still be around. It;as not like they are going anywhere. And that's good enough for me. Sometimes the losers are the ones who end up being more successful. Just look at all the Tough Enough winners


Somebody said the lovechild of Reigns and Corbin lol. I wish he was a vampire because that would at least make sense, besides it worked for the Brood, but his vignettes showed him in a limo partying with chicks and Nigel calls him a rockstar, but Mauro calls him the "Archer of Infamy" whatever that means, then there's the whole "live forever" thing. His character is just a mash of a bunch of things he thought sounded or looked cool and the end result is there's nothing cool about him.


----------



## ellthom

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Somebody said the lovechild of Reigns and Corbin lol. I wish he was a vampire because that would at least make sense, besides it worked for the Brood, but his vignettes showed him in a limo partying with chicks and Nigel calls him a rockstar, but Mauro calls him the "Archer of Infamy" whatever that means, then there's the whole "live forever" thing. His character is just a mash of a bunch of things he thought sounded or looked cool and the end result is there's nothing cool about him.


The vampire thing for me stems from his vignettes reminding me of those vampire raves from the movie Blade, he'd fit right in there lol.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

ellthom said:


> The vampire thing for me stems from his vignettes reminding me of those vampire raves from the movie Blade, he'd fit right in there lol.


Well maybe ACH/Jordan Myles can have a daywalker gimmick since he's such a huge nerd and these two nerds can have a cosplay feud.


----------



## Pizzamorg

It has been an interesting two or so years, I remember once that NXT could do no wrong, that they could book worse than the main roster but people would still kiss their fingers and claim "chef's kiss". I guess it is good that people are no longer willing to swallow any old bollocks with the NXT brand stuck on it but it is also sad that NXT has gotten so bad that now people cant just put their hands over their ears and go "la la la". It looks like it is only going to get worse too, if Vince does make it into a two hour live TV product he controls.


----------



## SAMCRO

Can we start a petition to get Priest a new finisher? Jesus i'm tired of that lame fucking rolling cutter, tall wrestlers shouldn't use shit like a rolling cutter, it looks dumb. 

I don't get why he doesn't just use the South Of Heaven Chokeslam, the name even goes with his new name

4:45


----------



## Derek30

SAMCRO said:


> Can we start a petition to get Priest a new finisher? Jesus i'm tired of that lame fucking rolling cutter, tall wrestlers shouldn't use shit like a rolling cutter, it looks dumb.
> 
> I don't get why he doesn't just use the South Of Heaven Chokeslam, the name even goes with his new name
> 
> 4:45


It's so damn low impact. The kick he hit on Lee prior to the cutter is more of a finisher than the cutter.

He needs a powerhouse move. Maybe something like the powerbomb/backbreaker A-Train used to use


----------



## SAMCRO

Derek30 said:


> It's so damn low impact. The kick he hit on Lee prior to the cutter is more of a finisher than the cutter.
> 
> He needs a powerhouse move. Maybe something like the powerbomb/backbreaker A-Train used to use


Yeah theres no impact at all to it, and it always looks awkward cause he's so tall. He definitely needs a powerhouse move, which is why i recommended the South Of Heaven Chokeslam. 

A bad or good finisher can make or break someone, you think Corbin would have been anything had he not had that awesome finisher? its pretty much what got him over. Priest wont amount to shit with that lame ass finisher everyone shits on, that finisher never gets a reaction from the crowd like "Oh shit there it is!" people just sit there not giving a fuck.


----------



## Donnie

Pizzamorg said:


> It has been an interesting two or so years, I remember once that NXT could do no wrong, that they could book worse than the main roster but people would still kiss their fingers and claim "chef's kiss". I guess it is good that people are no longer willing to swallow any old bollocks with the NXT brand stuck on it but it is also sad that NXT has gotten so bad that now people cant just put their hands over their ears and go "la la la".* It looks like it is only going to get worse too, if Vince does make it into a two hour live TV product he controls*.


Nothing could be worse than the 2 year #DIY nightmare. NOTHING. NXT's biggest problem is Gargano going from one of the best in the world to one of the worst in the world. Vince taking over means he gets rids of that turd, and tries something else. Might be really bad, but nothing could be worse than Grappling Emote and his EPIC matches.


----------



## Pizzamorg

Donnie said:


> Nothing could be worse than the 2 year #DIY nightmare. NOTHING. NXT's biggest problem is Gargano going from one of the best in the world to one of the worst in the world. Vince taking over means he gets rids of that turd, and tries something else. Might be really bad, but nothing could be worse than Grappling Emote and his EPIC matches.


The #DIYhole really did break NXT. 

So many NXT acquisitions over the years have languished, as has the overall quality of the show so Trips can circle jerk over the same couple of people over and over again, no matter the damage it causes. It is basically like nothing has happened for the last two or so years of the show, we are just watching the same episode over and over. We do have new additions like the Breakout Tournament, but this has MR at its worst level of booking. 

Trips seems to have a bit more of a focus on match quality but really otherwise he has all the same faults as Vince. He isn't the messiah he once seemed, to me. The last couple of years have shown he is trapped in the WWE bubble as much as Vince is. 

He has a specific kind of guy and will focus on him rest of the roster/show be damned but also like Vince he can be fickle and short sighted, chopping and changing plans to whatever whims he has. This is sort of the NXT cycle, you'll go through a stretch where the same two guys seem to be feuding endlessly (Balor holding the title forever, Joe vs Nakamura in 75 consecutive matches) and then you'll go through a period where a new acquisition gets Trips all excited (Roode hot shotted into the NXT Title) back to the endless cycle (#DIYHole) and so on. 

Here we are with arguably the worst NXT has been in three or four years despite it having arguably the best roster it has ever had.


----------



## Derek30

You know what I wish happened with the women's title? Have Io beat Shayna and then have her turn on Candice during a "celebration" segment on the first NXT weekly after Takeover. Io became so full of herself and beats the shit out of Candice for no reason and put her out with an injury. Could lead to a fun redemption storyline angle.

I really dig the dark, leather pants version of Io. Oh mama


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Donnie said:


> Nothing could be worse than the 2 year #DIY nightmare. NOTHING. NXT's biggest problem is Gargano going from one of the best in the world to one of the worst in the world. Vince taking over means he gets rids of that turd, and tries something else. Might be really bad, but nothing could be worse than Grappling Emote and his EPIC matches.


This is obvious, DIeYplease is the reason it took Cole two years to win the belt and now that he's got it it feels fresher but Gargano is still in the main event scene. Once Cole beats him in Toronto I think at least the main event scene will turn it around, we both know how well Cole can carry the ball as the top champion. I'm looking forward to some work with KUSHIDA, Keith Lee, Riddle, Dream etc.


----------



## Pizzamorg

MarkyWhipwreck said:


> This is obvious, DIeYplease is the reason it took Cole two years to win the belt and now that he's got it it feels fresher but Gargano is still in the main event scene. Once Cole beats him in Toronto I think at least the main event scene will turn it around, we both know how well Cole can carry the ball as the top champion. I'm looking forward to some work with KUSHIDA, Keith Lee, Riddle, Dream etc.


Cole is such a great wrestler and the wealth of talent in NXT is insane. Cole should be able to defend his title every week in incredible matches, you've literally got years worth of feuds with the depth of talent they have and instead Cole has been sucked into the #DIYHole even without Ciampa around. I have no doubt the Cole/Gargano match would be great but I've seen it enough, give me something else.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Yea Trips is obviously in love with Johnny Takeover (seriously 15 TO?!) and knows the second he leaves NXT his career is over so he keeps him down there, stretching out feuds until they become nonsensical so Johnny can shine, he's doing the same thing with Shayna Baszler. Between her and Johnny they have completely gimped NXT. I at least get it with Johnny who is charismatic and can wrestle, Shayna doesn't have either going for her.


----------



## Pizzamorg

I've hated women's wrestling in NXT pretty much from the beginning. Asuka's reign of dominance drained all interest I had in the division out of me so now I see Shayna doing the same thing I no longer have the energy to be mad any more. The men's division is different though, I know how great NXT can be (when firing on all cylinders, it is the best promotion in the world for my money) and it breaks my heart to see so many of my favourites no longer allowed to regularly work as they are locked inside the PC. It is such a God damn waste, so endemic of WWE's ridiculous gluttony and greed.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Pizzamorg said:


> I've hated women's wrestling in NXT pretty much from the beginning. Asuka's reign of dominance drained all interest I had in the division out of me so now I see Shayna doing the same thing I no longer have the energy to be mad any more. The men's division is different though, I know how great NXT can be (when firing on all cylinders, it is the best promotion in the world for my money) and it breaks my heart to see so many of my favourites no longer allowed to regularly work as they are locked inside the PC. It is such a God damn waste, so endemic of WWE's ridiculous gluttony and greed.


What I don't understand is if he's so deadset on having the same people on every TO why not expand the card? Takeovers are what, 2, 2 and a half hours long, plus half an hour for the tv taping? Why not add 2 more matches, have a 7 match card and actually allow some people who have never had a TO match on. For instance this Io/Candice feud can't happen at Toronto because you can't have 2 women's matches on a TO card, so they're going to feud on free tv and it won't elevate either woman. Why is Arturo Ruas having 4* matches on Evolve shows but has never even sniffed a TO? Why has Shane Thorne not been on a TO since Miller quit? Why has Keith Lee been in NXT for a year and not been on a single To? He didn't even get the new signing squash of Kassius Ohno that everybody else gets.


----------



## Bryan Jericho

I have zero problem with Gargano around the main event scene, because he's the best talent they have there, so it makes sense. Shayna though?! She does nothing for the womens division except make it look bad. Her matches have been some of the worst in NXT as well. Get that title off her and lets start rebuilding that division.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Bryan Jericho said:


> I have zero problem with Gargano around the main event scene, because he's the best talent they have there, so it makes sense. Shayna though?! She does nothing for the womens division except make it look bad. Her matches have been some of the worst in NXT as well. Get that title off her and lets start rebuilding that division.


You don't have a problem with them ruining stories to shoehorn Gargano into main event? Look how they stretched out his story vs Ciampa that series stopped making sense after Johnny lost the second time, then he loses his title to Dream and automatically gets put into the match for the vacant title but Cole had to earn his way in. I wouldn't have a problem with Gargano constantly in the main event if the stories made sense but because they don't, he feels like Nepotism Flair and how she gets jammed into every feud.


----------



## Dr. Middy

I've been meaning to watch the last two weeks since I missed them, but man this thread recently makes it seem like I should never watch it again :lol 

I do get the complaints though. While I do like the heel Io stuff (that entrance is sick), Shayna should have lost the title to her the first time around, and even though she is great with her character and all, her holding the belt for this long is WAY worse than Asuka doing the same. They need to start introducing new women or just let Io beat her as a heel or something and call Shayna up, because I don't think Mia will work well, and she doesn't seem that over. 

If Gargano disappeared for the next two years, I would be fine with that. His matches were really great, but he's gone full into moves-spam with the Cole stuff to where it's just completely forgettable. I can tell you nothing about the last Cole/Gargano match from memory, it's already completely gone.


----------



## Bryan Jericho

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> You don't have a problem with them ruining stories to shoehorn Gargano into main event? Look how they stretched out his story vs Ciampa that series stopped making sense after Johnny lost the second time, then he loses his title to Dream and automatically gets put into the match for the vacant title but Cole had to earn his way in. I wouldn't have a problem with Gargano constantly in the main event if the stories made sense but because they don't, he feels like Nepotism Flair and how she gets jammed into every feud.


Oh I agree that the Ciampa feud lagged on fora little too long. I enjoyed the matches though so I guess I overlooked it.


----------



## Saritta

I see NXT because of women's fighting.


----------



## Reil

Io Shirai vs Candice LeRae was set for NXT Takeover: Toronto.

It's not even funny how much that feud is eclipsing Shayna/Mia, which has been really cold at best, and even worse after that rather bad promo.


----------



## WindPhoenix

Interested to see how the Toronto crowd reacts to Io.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8

Saritta said:


> I see NXT because of women's fighting.


Me too lol


----------



## DammitChrist

Honestly, tonight's episode of NXT is worth watching only for Roderick Strong vs Pete Dunne.

That was a very good main-event :mark:


----------



## TD Stinger

New Show Thoughts:

*Hey, Breezango in NXT. Cool. I always thought they had a shot to be a solid tag team in WWE when they were doing those Fashion Files skits and getting pretty over until it stopped. NXT needs teams, I want to see what these guys can do.

*Grimes vs. Reed was a solid enough match. Most of the tournament matches have been solid but nothing spectacular. I hope Grimes and Myles get the chance to go all out at Takeover and we can see 2 new potential stars made.

*The promo off by Baszler and Mia was pretty solid. It's a simple story of someone who treats herself like a real fighter not believing in a "street rat" even though she's rattled the street rat took out her friends.

*Io vs. Candice at Takeover? Sweet.

*Dunne vs. Strong, while not their best work, was an enjoyable little slug fest. Good luck to anything that has to follow that 3 Way at Takeover.


----------



## Buhalovski

If Mia Yim is the one who will 'stop' Shayna that would be really dissapointing. I still dont get her push, the whole gimmick is sorta cringy for me. You already had ghetto chicks as Sasha/Bianca.


----------



## SAMCRO

Breeze being back in NXT doesn't interest me at all, just cause he failed on the main roster doesn't mean he should get to come back to NXT and take someones spot to try and relive his days of when he was over 5 years ago. I mean when theres tons of guys in the performance center who can't get on NXT, like the ones in the breakout tournament, its kinda bullshit Breeze gets to stroll back in and handed a spot.

And now Breezango being on NXT, i'm sorry but their jobber stink from the main roster can't be washed away in my eyes, Breezango has always been a joke team who was never any good, yeah NXT needs some tag teams but they got teams they could put on tv from the live events whos better than Breezango i'd wager.

I just have no interest in Tyler Breeze and Fandango, get some younger talent on the fucking show, talent who aren't damaged goods like those clowns.


----------



## candice-wrestling

I'm so happy Candice/Io is getting on Takeover!


----------



## ellthom

SAMCRO said:


> Breeze being back in NXT doesn't interest me at all, just cause he failed on the main roster doesn't mean he should get to come back to NXT and take someones spot to try and relive his days of when he was over 5 years ago. I mean when theres tons of guys in the performance center who can't get on NXT, like the ones in the breakout tournament, its kinda bullshit Breeze gets to stroll back in and handed a spot.
> 
> And now Breezango being on NXT, i'm sorry but their jobber stink from the main roster can't be washed away in my eyes, Breezango has always been a joke team who was never any good, yeah NXT needs some tag teams but they got teams they could put on tv from the live events whos better than Breezango i'd wager.
> 
> I just have no interest in Tyler Breeze and Fandango, get some younger talent on the fucking show, talent who aren't damaged goods like those clowns.


If it makes you feel any better, I feel they are only going to be gatekeeprs for those younger talent, they get to lose while the new fresh talent gets to be built up. Very much like an Ohno roll. Better than the fresh talent taking the loss

Tyler Breeze and Fandango are not the first ones to be called back to NxT. Jinder, Tyson Kidd, Cesaro, Hunico and Camacho all have before. And while I agree that I would rather fresh talent be there, I see no problem with having an established name(s) there to help.


----------



## Asuka842

Io vs. Candice being on the Takeover=good. This match needed to be on the main show. And Io should win imo. If she's meant to be the next top-heel in NXT post-Shayna, then she needs to start building real momentum.

Mia beats Shayna, because Shayna's reign needs to end and there's no one else left at this point. Then Io murders her and takes the belt at the next Takeover, if not sooner. That'd be the best option at this point imo.


----------



## Sephiroth766

I'm so happy Candice finally gets a Takeover match. This is the biggest match of her career easily and she's facing arguably the best female worker. This should kick ass.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Not sure how I feel about Fandango in NXT. Are they going to be presented as a serious tag team or just go back to being comedy jobbers?

— Wow, Grimes v Reed was awful. At least the more interesting man won for once, Reed is so boring.

— Dunne/Strong wasn't great either. For guys who have feuded a lot in recent history, there was a lot of obvious spot calling and botches here and just like with Grimes/Reed it had a really flat finish that came out of nowhere. The match in general just really seemed to drag and was quite boring. There were a couple of fun strong style exchanges but nothing earth shattering. I just hope they were saving themselves for TakeOver. 

— Intrigued by Riddle/Dain. I am intrigued by anything Riddle related to be honest.

— I couldn't care less about Baszler/Yim.


----------



## SAMCRO

Do we all agree that Riddle needs to be the next NXT champion after Cole? dude is great, i remember someone compared him to Kurt, how Kurt perfectly transitioned into wrestling from another sport and was so good right off the bat. Riddle is the same way, he's a very rare talent, also similar to Lesnar, just so good so early on you know he's gonna be a star.


----------



## Pizzamorg

SAMCRO said:


> Do we all agree that Riddle needs to be the next NXT champion after Cole? dude is great, i remember someone compared him to Kurt, how Kurt perfectly transitioned into wrestling from another sport and was so good right off the bat. Riddle is the same way, he's a very rare talent, also similar to Lesnar, just so good so early on you know he's gonna be a star.


Riddle was my favourite wrestler on the indies for about a year before he got sucked into the WWE machine. I don't feel like Riddle has got anywhere close in NXT to the level he performed at, at every show while on the indies but that isn't really Riddle's fault, NXT has way too much talent and either lacks the creative minds or TV time to make use of them all but a select few. 

I feel like the whole deck in NXT needs a reshuffle after this TakeOver, a full blown soft reset. They have the talent to have a really dynamic, healthy and exciting rotation in NXT rather than focusing on the same dozen or so people in a loop, they should really utilise their roster depth.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Wow, these so-called "breakout stars" are some fucking bums. Not only do they not have any personality, charisma, or promo ability, they aren't even having good matches. And yet these fucking jabronis get a Takeover match before Keith Lee, before Raul Mendoza?

This should've been Angel Garza vs Isaiah Scott in the finals or Garza vs Lumis for a styles clash. Instead we get weeaboo Apollo Crews vs Cameron Lorcan. If HHH is going to sign trash just to drain other promotions can he at least store his trash in NXT UK where I never have to see it?


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Wow, these so-called "breakout stars" are some fucking bums. Not only do they not have any personality, charisma, or promo ability, they aren't even having good matches. And yet these fucking jabronis get a Takeover match before Keith Lee, before Raul Mendoza?
> 
> This should've been Angel Garza vs Isaiah Scott in the finals or Garza vs Lumis for a styles clash. Instead we get weeaboo Apollo Crews vs Cameron Lorcan. If HHH is going to sign trash just to drain other promotions can he at least store his trash in NXT UK where I never have to see it?


Wanted to quote to simply co-sign. That's current NXT today. 95% of the roster have little to no character/personality/presence. Just a bunch of Wrestler "I'm glad to be here" A's and Wrestler "I want the title because I'm the best" B's around here.

Also saw that Yim/Baszler segment. WOW. That was bad. Shayna's reign needed to end a long time ago but Mia Yim isn't the girl to do it. She isn't ready. At all. Just have Shayna beat Mia at Toronto and insert Io in a triple threat match where Io wins. Simple.

This is not a Takeover I'm looking forward to, Io/Candice aside. I'm just not. Seems like I'm not the only one, either.


----------



## Buffy The Vampire Slayer

The only match I will be watching on Takeover is IO vs Candice. That is the rest of the card doesn't do it for me. I will watch the highlights for Undisputed Era.


----------



## gl83

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Wow, these so-called "breakout stars" are some fucking bums. Not only do they not have any personality, charisma, or promo ability, they aren't even having good matches. And yet these fucking jabronis get a Takeover match before Keith Lee, before Raul Mendoza?
> 
> This should've been Angel Garza vs Isaiah Scott in the finals or Garza vs Lumis for a styles clash. Instead we get weeaboo Apollo Crews vs Cameron Lorcan. If HHH is going to sign trash just to drain other promotions can he at least store his trash in NXT UK where I never have to see it?


Not only that, they're going to get a free title match against the champion of their choice before either of them. 

The thing is they're just having them go out there and wrestle and that's it. I mean at least with the MYC and CWC they had these vignettes and videos to give you their backstory, show off their personality/character and give you a reason to get behind them.


----------



## Mear

Cool to see Fandango on NXT. He's a talent who I always felt had potential and I'm really curious to see if he can reinvent himself into something less comedic.


----------



## Asuka842

I think that Dream makes more sense as the next NXT Champion, with Riddle taking it off of him later on. Also depending on how long Dunne is going to be around, they could maybe put him in the picture easily enough in the future.


----------



## Ham and Egger

Tsvetoslava said:


> If Mia Yim is the one who will 'stop' Shayna that would be really dissapointing. I still dont get her push, the whole gimmick is sorta cringy for me. You already had ghetto chicks as Sasha/Bianca.


What's wrong with being from the hood? If anything I see her being an extension of herself and I find her more relatable than I ever have in this current persona than any other character she has portrayed in the past.


----------



## Pizzamorg

I suppose because each TakeOver cycle is quite long, you could quite easily complete the Undisputed prophecy at this TakeOver and then use then use the next TakeOver after that to do a full reset of things.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Ham and Egger said:


> What's wrong with being from the hood? If anything I see her being an extension of herself and I find her more relatable than I ever have in this current persona than any other character she has portrayed in the past.


It feels like she's trying just a little too hard. It feels like she grew up more around her Korean side and now she's embracing her black side but it doesn't come off as natural, she's overcompensating by trying to 'act black'. 

When she said "game recognizes game and you looking unfamiliar" I almost died from second hand embarrassment, I don't think I've heard that said since the mid 90's.


----------



## Ham and Egger

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> It feels like she's trying just a little too hard. It feels like she grew up more around her Korean side and now she's embracing her black side but it doesn't come off as natural, she's overcompensating by trying to 'act black'.
> 
> When she said "game recognizes game and you looking unfamiliar" I almost died from second hand embarrassment, I don't think I've heard that said since the mid 90's.


Yea that line was a little embarrassing but I'm definitely glad she's embracing the other half of her genetic makeup. :lol


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

I doubt Mia gets the belt. Let Candice take it and have her and Io go nuts.


----------



## Reil

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> I doubt Mia gets the belt. Let Candice take it and have her and Io go nuts.


That would require Candice to go over Io at Takeover. Which is a horrible idea on so many different levels. Because if Io loses at Takeover, her heel turn may as well be toast. Her mystique will have been shattered entirely.

I still think Mia gets the title, and loses it very soon afterwards to Io.

It doesn't help that Candice really isn't that over either. I mean she got boos when she crashed the Kacy/Io match.


----------



## Mordecay

I want Candice to go over for the lolz

This week's NXT was just a nothing show tbh


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Reil said:


> That would require Candice to go over Io at Takeover. Which is a horrible idea on so many different levels. Because if Io loses at Takeover, her heel turn may as well be toast. Her mystique will have been shattered entirely.
> 
> I still think Mia gets the title, and loses it very soon afterwards to Io.
> 
> It doesn't help that Candice really isn't that over either. I mean she got boos when she crashed the Kacy/Io match.


Not Candice's fault she ain't over.


----------



## rbl85

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> Not Candice's fault she ain't over.


When nearly everybody sees you as the wife of Gargano…..


----------



## Reil

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> Not Candice's fault she ain't over.


Never said it was. But putting the title on her won't magically fix her booking problems. She's just seen as Johnny Gargano's wife. NXT spent two years pretty much cramming this down our throats.

Not to mention whoever dethrones Shayna is almost certainly going to be a short term champion considering the state of the NXT Women's Division. The only credible heels left after Shayna moves up are Io and Bianca. And Bianca has not only cooled off significantly, but is very close to needing a complete repackage as a character.

They could introduce some other heels, but Deonna suffers from a severe case of having no personality (this wasn't just a problem in NXT either, it was a problem in every promotion she was a part of), and Chelsea Green just screams midcard heel with her current gimmick.

And Rhea is still tied up with stuff in NXT UK, and they are probably going to be a bit wary about pushing her considering she fucked up real bad on a twitch stream a few months ago.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Reil said:


> Never said it was. But putting the title on her won't magically fix her booking problems. She's just seen as Johnny Gargano's wife. NXT spent two years pretty much cramming this down our throats.
> 
> Not to mention whoever dethrones Shayna is almost certainly going to be a short term champion considering the state of the NXT Women's Division. The only credible heels left after Shayna moves up are Io and Bianca. And Bianca has not only cooled off significantly, but is very close to needing a complete repackage as a character.
> 
> They could introduce some other heels, but Deonna suffers from a severe case of having no personality (this wasn't just a problem in NXT either, it was a problem in every promotion she was a part of), and Chelsea Green just screams midcard heel with her current gimmick.
> 
> And Rhea is still tied up with stuff in NXT UK, and they are probably going to be a bit wary about pushing her considering she fucked up real bad on a twitch stream a few months ago.


I was never that high on Bianca anyway. Great athlete, but her promos annoy the shit outta me.


----------



## SAMCRO

Reil said:


> That would require Candice to go over Io at Takeover. Which is a horrible idea on so many different levels. Because if Io loses at Takeover, her heel turn may as well be toast. Her mystique will have been shattered entirely.
> 
> I still think Mia gets the title, and loses it very soon afterwards to Io.
> 
> It doesn't help that Candice really isn't that over either. I mean she got boos when she crashed the Kacy/Io match.


Exactly, Candice should in no way beat Io, it would be astronomically dumb. The only logical thing that makes sense would be as you said Io to beat Candice and Mia to beat Shayan and then Io goes on to take the title from Mia.

Io absolutely has to be the top heel in the division after Shayna leaves, you can't have her losing to freaking Candice who isn't all that good tbh.


----------



## Reil

SAMCRO said:


> Exactly, Candice should in no way beat Io, it would be astronomically dumb. The only logical thing that makes sense would be as you said Io to beat Candice and Mia to beat Shayan and then Io goes on to take the title from Mia.
> 
> Io absolutely has to be the top heel in the division after Shayna leaves, you can't have her losing to freaking Candice who isn't all that good tbh.


Yeah. Her suicide dive to the outside when she attacked Io last week was sloppy. And her last few matches have had her completely botch her lionsault or other various moves. She's better than Jessamyn and Marina (that's not saying much), but she's nowhere near the top woman in the division. I honestly think the only reason people want to see her as champ is because of her time on the indies and tagging with Joey Ryan. Except they seem to forget that Candice was never a great worker when it came to wrestling other women.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Can we all agree that no matter who the next champion is the division is still fucked?

Either not over Mia or not over Candice beats the fucking terror of the division who crushed Ember, Nikki, Kairi, Bianca, and Io.

Or, Shayna retains and continues borking the division.

Or, Io beats Candice then beats Shayna as a heel and the division ends up with 0 faces. 

Or, Shayna relinquishes the title and for the 3rd time in it's short history HHH chooses not to pass on the rub.


----------



## Reil

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Can we all agree that no matter who the next champion is the division is still fucked?
> 
> Either not over Mia or not over Candice beats the fucking terror of the division who crushed Ember, Nikki, Kairi, Bianca, and Io.
> 
> Or, Shayna retains and continues borking the division.
> 
> Or, Io beats Candice then beats Shayna as a heel and the division ends up with 0 faces.
> 
> Or, Shayna relinquishes the title and for the 3rd time in it's short history HHH chooses not to pass on the rub.


The division will have zero heels if Candice wins and Shayna moves up. The only two are Bianca (who is dead in the water), and Io.

With Io as champ, you have Mia, Dakota, Tegan, and I guess Candice again.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> Yeah. Her suicide dive to the outside when she attacked Io last week was sloppy. And her last few matches have had her completely botch her lionsault or other various moves. She's better than Jessamyn and Marina (that's not saying much), but she's nowhere near the top woman in the division. I honestly think the only reason people want to see her as champ is because of her time on the indies and tagging with Joey Ryan. Except they seem to forget that Candice was never a great worker when it came to wrestling other women.


We get it, you want the japanese women always on top, despite the fact that before her heel turn Io was a fucking charisma vacuum :eyeroll

Also making fun of Candice botching the lionsault when Io has made an art of botching her moonsault :heston


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> We get it, you want the japanese women always on top, despite the fact that before her heel turn Io was a fucking charisma vacuum :eyeroll
> 
> Also making fun of Candice botching the lionsault when Io has made an art of botching her moonsault :heston


You mean the moonsault Io hasn't botched in quite some time? Yeah okay. Like quite a few others have said, it took time for her to adjust to the WWE ring. Where Candice has been in the WWE rings for two years and can't hit her lionsault, and is very sloppy in general.

And Io was arguably the top babyface of the NXT Women's division (after Kairi left) before her turn, and people were behind her fully. Where now the "top babyface" is Mia Yim, who is peak cringe right now.

Also I'm not the only one who apparently wants to see Io on top of the division either. The general consensus online is that she is the best suited candidate to run the division after Shayna leaves.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> You mean the moonsault Io hasn't botched in quite some time? Yeah okay. Like quite a few others have said, it took time for her to adjust to the WWE ring. Where Candice has been in the ring for two years and can't hit her lionsault, and is very sloppy in general.
> 
> And Io was arguably the top babyface of the brand (after Kairi left) before her turn, and people were behind her fully. Where now the "top babyface" is Mia Yim, who is peak cringe right now.
> 
> Also I'm not the only one who apparently wants to see Io on top of the division either. The general consensus online is that she is the best suited candidate to run the division after Shayna leaves.


She was the top babyface in a division with what? 2-3 babyfaces? One that has been booked like a fucking geek for years (Candice). Yeez, what an honor :lmao.

Also Candice must suck so bad that people are actually more excited for her match with Io than any of the times Io battled with Shayna :lol.

Io might be the best option, but not because she is best, it is because she is the least bad and has been somewhat protected (she still hasn't lost a match clean on NXT), and anything is better than Shayna.


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> She was the top babyface in a division with what? 2-3 babyfaces? One that has been booked like a fucking geek for years (Candice). Yeez, what an honor :lmao.
> 
> Also Candice must suck so bad that people are actually more excited for her match with Io than any of the times Io battled with Shayna :lol.
> 
> Io might be the best option, but not because she is best, it is because she is the least bad and has been somewhat protected (she still hasn't lost a match clean on NXT), and anything is better than Shayna.


People are excited for the Candice/Io match, because of Io's heel turn. It's new and exciting. I'm almost certain if it was Kairi in that spot instead of Candice, the match would have significantly even more hype behind it than it does right now.

Also lmao at calling Io bad.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

You can't follow up an excruciatingly long Shayna heel run with another heel run, the NXT women's title needs a solid babyface reign. Aside from Asuka who was more a tweener Bayley has the only good babyface reign.


----------



## Reil

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> You can't follow up an excruciatingly long Shayna heel run with another heel run, the NXT women's title needs a solid babyface reign. Aside from Asuka who was more a tweener Bayley has the only good babyface reign.


You kinda have to follow up with another heel run soon after Shayna's run with the way things are right now. Keep in mind that she had the title for awhile before Kairi won it, just to win it back 45 days later and go on another tear. NXT has also been shying away from long babyface reigns in general as of late. Not just for the women.

And there are no credible heels outside of Io and Bianca right now. And until Deonna finds a personality (and she's had this problem even before joining WWE) and stops bitching about her position on the card on twitter, along with Chelsea Green doing ANYTHING of note, that's pretty much it for heels.


----------



## Mordecay

Reil said:


> People are excited for the Candice/Io match, because of Io's heel turn. It's new and exciting. I'm almost certain if it was Kairi in that spot instead of Candice, the match would have significantly even more hype behind it than it does right now.
> 
> *Also lmao at calling Io bad*.


She hasn't exactly set the division on fire the way Asuka or even Kairi did, despite coming with the label of "best in the world", so she really isn't that good either. And no, people are also excited because Candice finally has a chance on a Takeover card, it isn't just because of Io



Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> You can't follow up an excruciatingly long Shayna heel run with another heel run, the NXT women's title needs a solid babyface reign. Aside from Asuka who was more a tweener Bayley has the only good babyface reign.


Kairi should have had that long babyface title reign, but I don't know why they put the title back on Shayna at Evolution, it killed Kairi and the division in general


----------



## Reil

Mordecay said:


> Kairi should have had that long babyface title reign, but I don't know why they put the title back on Shayna at Evolution, it killed Kairi and the division in general


A lot of sources said it was because WWE wanted a title change at the event. There was no chance of Becky losing, along with no chance in hell of Ronda losing. And obviously the tag titles weren't around back then. So Kairi had to do the job. Triple H also wanted to introduce the other MMA horsewomen at some point as well (although we all see how thats working out).


----------



## Asuka842

Which honestly is really stupid reasoning. Screwing over the entire division, Kairi, included for close to a year now, so that you could get "a moment" on one show. Yeah sounds like WWE.

Also Trips undermining the entire division to indulge his MMA fetish, yeah sounds about right as well.


----------



## Buffy The Vampire Slayer

Don't be shocked if Shayna beats MIa at Takeover this Saturday Night.


----------



## looper007

Buffy The Vampire Slayer said:


> Don't be shocked if Shayna beats MIa at Takeover this Saturday Night.


And don't be surprised if Candice beats Io to build her up for Shayna. Just wouldn't surprise me either. Be a stupid decision but this is HHH we're talking about.

The women's division is a mess and has been for a while now, definitely the weakest thing about NXT. A few things are catching up with it but they badly need to get Shayna out of NXT just to open more doors for other talent and just give it a fresh start.


----------



## TD Stinger

Your typical go home show for NXT. They did a great job with all of their video packages hyping the matches, and they made sure to give time to all matches.

Besides that that Contract signing was a nice change of pace from your usual brawl. Montez Ford showed flashes of how great he can be.

And Thorne vs. Wilde was solid too. Thorne does have potential as a singles guy. But there are only so many spots to have.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## TD Stinger




----------



## Asuka842

Io vs. Candice really should be the title feud. it has far more of an "epic" feel to it and is far more interesting right now.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Then Shayna has to retain first. Sorry Mia fans.


----------



## Asuka842

Not really. I ONLY support Mia beating Shayna because the latter's reign has gone on too long as it is and needs to end imo. Then Io hopefully wins the belt shortly afterwards, that'd be the best available option at this point I think.


----------



## Mordecay

This episode didn't do much for me. The video packages were good as usual, and I expect Takeover to deliver, but I don't know what it is, this (and the last Takeover) don't have that "must see"feeling the Takeovers for the past 18 months until Takeover Mania had. Cole and Gargano is a controversial match, since it relies a lot on multiple kickouts and it is take it or leave it. I am sure the Triple Threat will be great since it has Dunne and Roddy and VD can be carried, but the feud has been lackluster. Shayna/Mia... yeah, I haven't heard anyone looking forward to that one. UE vs Profits will be the true test of fire for the Profits, to see if they can hang with probably the best tag team in WWE inside the ring (at least it was when it was Kyle and Roddy). Not sure how much time they will give to Io and Candice, but it should be good. Candice is a good babyface and Io works better as a heel.

Kinda feel bad when I saw that it seems like they took the ACH/Trevor finals of the Breakout tournament match out of the Takeover card (like they have been promoting from the beggining) and was put on the tapings before Takeover. I mean, they still will get to perform in front of the same crowd, but I imagine that they were looking forward to be in the Takeover card


----------



## Buffy The Vampire Slayer

looper007 said:


> And don't be surprised if Candice beats Io to build her up for Shayna. Just wouldn't surprise me either. Be a stupid decision but this is HHH we're talking about.
> 
> The women's division is a mess and has been for a while now, definitely the weakest thing about NXT. A few things are catching up with it but they badly need to get Shayna out of NXT just to open more doors for other talent and just give it a fresh start.


I wouldn't be happy but I would understand why IO will lose since we have to have a face come out on top and Candice will be the one to face Shayna at the next take over but then I don't see Triple H having Shayna to lose to her either.


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT.

As this show ran through the TakeOver card, I realised that while every match on the card has the promise to be an absolute barnburner in the ring, the build for basically every match has been poor and has left me with no real investment in any of them. 

I am also getting pretty bored of them building every TakeOver around the Undisputed Era, either pull the trigger and put all the titles on them and get it over with or build a show around something else. The #DIYHole had the show in a holding pattern for about three years and now we're in this Undisputedhole instead and it sucks. 

You have so much amazing talent on NXT, rotate them for fucks sake. I mean the weird meta thing about this is that NXT are self aware seemingly of their own failings as they have all these wrestlers walking around where their entire character motivation is “NXT doesn't use me properly” like.... huh??? Rather than turning bad booking into a storyline... why not just rotate your talent????

It is very clear Riddle is being punished for that Goldberg stuff as rather than challenging for the NXT Title like he should be, he is just being fed to Trips' repackaged toy. 

I hope Breezango reimagined is them being a serious team, rather than a joke team.


----------



## candice-wrestling

I loved the contract signing! Montez is really something. Also since the breakout tournament is almost over I can say that Angel Garza was my favourite to come out of that, he showed the most personality I reckon.


----------



## Piers

Only one match this week ? What was that ?

It's sad to think that the only thing that I find exciting on NXT lately is Breezango back together


----------



## Asuka842

Buffy The Vampire Slayer said:


> I wouldn't be happy but I would understand why IO will lose since we have to have a face come out on top and Candice will be the one to face Shayna at the next take over but then I don't see Triple H having Shayna to lose to her either.


That'd be really dumb. It'd knee-cap Io's big heel turn right away and give the fans zero reason to take her seriously moving forward. Also they need to stop just feeding face after face to Shayna, that's why the division feels so stale and boring now, it's the same crap all the time.


----------



## SAMCRO

Shayna has to lose to Mia, i mean Io right now is being built up as the top heel, if she beats Candice which she should, the natural progression is to move on to the title and we can't really do heel Io vs heel Shayna, Io needs to take the title off a face, therefore Mia has beat Shayna as much as i don't agree with it.


----------



## Asuka842

The only other possibility is them building up Dakota to beat Shayna. But I REALLY don't want to have to endure months more of Shayna's Reign of Terror just for that.


----------



## Scissor Me Daddy-O!!

Well, if Shanta losses the title, then the rematch, she could have hey final match I'm NXT to Dakota at next takeover.

Mia moves on to heel Io who just beat Candice.


Damn. Booking is easy.


----------



## SAMCRO

Asuka842 said:


> The only other possibility is them building up Dakota to beat Shayna. But I REALLY don't want to have to endure months more of Shayna's Reign of Terror just for that.


Yeah i'd love for my girl Dakota to take the title, but as you said i really wouldn't wanna endure more of Shayna's title reign waiting for it.


----------



## rbl85

SAMCRO said:


> Yeah i'd love for my girl Dakota to take the title, but as you said i really wouldn't wanna endure more of Shayna's title reign waiting for it.


Isn't Dakota in NXT Uk ?


----------



## SAMCRO

rbl85 said:


> Isn't Dakota in NXT Uk ?


No, shes listed on the regular NXT roster on wwe.com, shes not listed on the NXT UK roster.


----------



## Reil

There's also the problem of no matter who dethrones Shayna, they likely aren't having a long reign. Because the state of the NXT Women's Division is that there are like a billion more faces than heels right now. And of those heels, only three could be considered credible. Shayna Baszler, Io Shirai, and Bianca Belair*.

*Except Bianca is more of a heelish-tweener and also in desperate need of a repackage.


----------



## TD Stinger

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1159491027604058112
Hoping after Cole winsome Sunday we here the heart beat and “No one will survive!” blaring through the arena.


----------



## Asuka842

Bianca also has fallen off after losing repeatedly to Shayna and then losing to Mia as well.


----------



## Reil

Asuka842 said:


> Bianca also has fallen off after losing repeatedly to Shayna and then losing to Mia as well.


It's funny you mention that. I guess Tegan and Candice beat Io and Bianca at tonight's house show. Bianca was rolled up after Io ditched her.

Io spent almost the entire match though standing on the floor checking her nails and yelling at fans. Candice did get a few hits in though before Io tagged in Bianca and ran up the ramp a little bit.


----------



## gl83

Asuka842 said:


> Bianca also has fallen off after losing repeatedly to Shayna and then losing to Mia as well.



Right now it feels like Bianca's role for the foreseeable future is to be a "gatekeeper" and putting over Faces to build them up for Heel Shayna/Heel Io.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Pizzamorg said:


> New NXT.
> 
> *As this show ran through the TakeOver card, I realised that while every match on the card has the promise to be an absolute barnburner in the ring, the build for basically every match has been poor and has left me with no real investment in any of them.*
> 
> I am also getting pretty bored of them building every TakeOver around the Undisputed Era, either pull the trigger and put all the titles on them and get it over with or build a show around something else. The #DIYHole had the show in a holding pattern for about three years and now we're in this Undisputedhole instead and it sucks.
> 
> You have so much amazing talent on NXT, rotate them for fucks sake. I mean the weird meta thing about this is that NXT are self aware seemingly of their own failings as they have all these wrestlers walking around where their entire character motivation is “NXT doesn't use me properly” like.... huh??? Rather than turning bad booking into a storyline... why not just rotate your talent????
> 
> It is very clear Riddle is being punished for that Goldberg stuff as rather than challenging for the NXT Title like he should be, he is just being fed to Trips' repackaged toy.
> 
> I hope Breezango reimagined is them being a serious team, rather than a joke team.


No surprise. That has been NXT's mantra for three years, IMO. They put on stellar Takeovers to overcompensate the lack of build for their matches or weak emotional investment of most of their characters to care. However, what is happening now is that the Takeovers are beginning to drastically dip in quality now, too. It's been happening well before that anyways but more and more people are beginning to see that. I don't think this upcoming Takeover has sold out yet, too.

HHH, just like Vince, has his favorites and will stick with them, even if the call to interchange talent is there. I echo the sentiment, though. Other than Io/Candice (and that's solely on Io as a heel thus far), I have little to no interest in this Saturday's Takeover.


----------



## Leon Knuckles

*I have front row seats to NXT Buffalo tonight. Who else is gonna be there? :mark:*


----------



## Reil

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1159986038955286528


----------



## validreasoning

WINNING said:


> However, what is happening now is that the Takeovers are beginning to drastically dip in quality now, too. It's been happening well before that anyways but more and more people are beginning to see that. I don't think this upcoming Takeover has sold out yet, too.


Quality of Takeovers hasn't dipped dramatically. Takeover NY this past April was one of the best shows on American soil ever imo. 2018 had incredible shows like New Orleans, Wargames, Chicago and Summerslam Takeover was great show too

Last Takeover Toronto didn't sellout out in 2016. This show is in course to draw better.


----------



## TD Stinger

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1161801636118794241
This shit is amazing.


----------



## Alexander_G

validreasoning said:


> Quality of Takeovers hasn't dipped dramatically. Takeover NY this past April was one of the best shows on American soil ever imo. 2018 had incredible shows like New Orleans, Wargames, Chicago and Summerslam Takeover was great show too
> 
> Last Takeover Toronto didn't sellout out in 2016. This show is in course to draw better.


My theory is that people are perceiving that the Takeovers have dipped in quality because the Takeovers have been for a long time now, are usually using more or less the same type of formula that viewers would expect, and so they've become burned out with it.

It's rather easy to get burnt out with this kind of stuff. Especially when you keep seeing the same champions win, the same blitzy no-sell styles performed and the same people booked on card positions that felt like the show before it, etc.

These guys work hard, very hard, to put on a good worked match. Yet that's not really the problem. I say they should work smarter, not harder. Viewers need surprising reactions. They need something they _won't_ expect. They are tired of NXT's monotony.


----------



## llj

The Takeovers are still quality, but NXT's storylines and booking definitely have been on cruise control it seems for a while now. So yes, there is monotony but I place the blame more on the overarching booking than the Takeovers themselves.

I don't even particularly think the booking from a script standpoint is *that* much better than the main roster. It's simpler, because it's a shorter weekly show. And it's more that they generally utilize talent in ways that the fans are more amenable to (Shayna aside) than the main roster does. But sometimes they fall in love with the same talent, good as they are, and that turns into monotony.


----------



## SAMCRO

All through this Breakout Tournament everyone i wanted to win lost, and the same for the finals, i like ACH/Jordan Myles, but Trevor Lee deserved that, he's got the more unique look, the better mic skills, ACH is so generic imo, just another flippy guy in shiny kickpads. Now he's gonna get some NA Tittle match or NXT title match that he will lose and we're gonna have 1 more flippy guy added to the roster, yay....


----------



## Saritta

The best about the show was the Io promo.


----------



## Piers

Did they sign Shaw at least ?


----------



## Reil

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Did they sign Shaw at least ?


Yes. Everyone in this tournament is under contract to WWE. Shaw is working the Largo Loop though.


----------



## Piers

Reil said:


> Yes. Everyone in this tournament is under contract to WWE. Shaw is working the Largo Loop though.


His feud as a creepy stalker of Christy Hemme is one of the last good memories I have from Impact Wrestling, I hope they do something similar with him.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— So Breeze and Dango are back to their comedy jobber persona again? Hopefully one turns on the other and they get to carry on doing serious things like Breeze was starting to do.

— If I never hear Unsainted again, it'll still be too soon.

— So this Undisputed Prophecy thing will take up another TakeOver cycle? Yay...

— I wondered why this Breakout Final wasn't on the TakeOver card but then I watched the match and saw why. This was really boring and they had no chemistry. No interest in Myles at all, what a terrible choice for a winner.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

This breakout tourney was the worst thing to happen to NXT since Shayna Baszler, a bunch of jabronis with no looks, no charisma, no personality and no mic skills, okay that's been NXT's credo for years so what's different? Now the jabronis aren't even having good matches. What's the point of signing bland Indy wrestlers if they can't have 4 and 5* matches? No match in the semis or the finals was better than 2.5*, that's pathetic for guys who literally offer nothing else besides in-ring work.

The worst part of the Fakeout tournament is that there were actually talented people in it and they all lost early, Isaiah Scott, Angel Garza and Dexter Lumis all seem capable of making an impact, the rest of these guys will either get released, be NXT UK cast aways, or join the catering club.


----------



## Pizzamorg

So I guess with the news I’ll stop watching NXT now I suppose. Vince’s grubby hands all over it and having to wait a month to watch it. No thanks.


----------



## LIL' WINNING FOOT

Apparently, NXT will be on the Network on Thursdays the day after it airs live on USA so it wouldn't be a month.


----------



## TD Stinger

Fun show overall tonight:

*Great promo from Cole to open the show. Nothing that important was said, but he said it so well, he sold it. I love the way Bobby talks. And Kyle's solid too. Roddy.......oh Roddy.

Myles challenging Cole is fine, but it's really odd that guys like Swerve and Garza, while not permanent I'm guessing, are on 205 Live while Myles is on NXT. Seems like it should be the other way around.

*Priest vs. Mansoor was a fun extended squash. Mansoor could be something special in the future. He always brings something out in his matches that I usually don't see. Like here, he did a Slingshot Neckbreaker. And Priest when he can just be himself, is really fun to watch. But please change your finisher. He does this bad ass Chokeslam called the South of Heaven Chokeslam. Make that you finisher. Not a Cross Rhodes which one of the top guys in the soon to be competing comany already uses.










*I basically skipped the Mia and Shayna stuff. The match with Borne was fine, but that's it. But LOL at William Regal's reaction to Mia afte the show:

"You attacked 2 of them, what did you expect?






*That Lee vs. Dijakovic vignette was amazing. Can't wait for that hoss fight :mark :mark :mark.

*Reed vs. Thorne was another fun one. Reed uses his body so well, and did so many times in this match. Thone's a guy I thought had singles potential for awhile now, so I'm glad to see him having success.

*Velveteen is amazing. Nothing more needs to be said.

*Riddle vs. Dain was good, but a little to stop and start in it's momentum. I like Dain's new entrance. The match overall had some good moments. I like Dain finishing him off with 3 straight Vader Bombs. Big win for Dain. And based off the post match brawl, I hope the next time they face there are no rules


----------



## NXTSUPERFAN

Great show. Aew isn’t safe!


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Cole did some fantastic promo work in the opening of this episode, his best TV promo's in awhile.


----------



## Asuka842

Dain vs. Riddle was really good.

Dream is awesome.

I have no interest in a Shayna vs. Mia rematch. Also doing the “Shayna and lackeys beat someone up” AGAIN, can we please come up with something new for the women, this has gone on for way too long now.

Io vs. Candice would work far better as the title feud as people are actually really into it.


----------



## Piers

The Undisputed Era opening the episode almost made me want to turn it off so I skipped the whole segment.

Also, there were rumors of CFO$ not working with WWE anymore, so I don't know who made those new theme songs we've heard in the last two weeks but they are absolutely garbage (Killian, Elias, Murphy, Thorne...)


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

Until CFO$ confirms it, I wouldn't buy anything.


----------



## Piers

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> Until CFO$ confirms it, I wouldn't buy anything.


Same, but whether it's CFO$ or someone else, every new theme has sucked since Cesaro debuted his.

Obviously not counting the Fiend's, as it was made by a band.


----------



## AlexaBliss4Life

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Same, but whether it's CFO$ or someone else, every new theme has sucked since Cesaro debuted his.
> 
> Obviously not counting the Fiend's, as it was made by a band.


True. Murphy's was so good..


----------



## Piers

AlexaBliss4Life said:


> True. Murphy's was so good..


I thought that 20 second dubstep loop was bad but the new one isn't better.


----------



## gl83

They Call Him Y2J said:


> Same, but whether it's CFO$ or someone else, every new theme has sucked since Cesaro debuted his.
> 
> Obviously not counting the Fiend's, as it was made by a band.



Is it the same band that did Aleister Black's theme?


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— Roddy is a terrible promo.

— While ACH and Cole might have a decent match, I have no interest in seeing it at all.

— Thorne and Reed had a really boring match. I went to like Reed as I quite enjoy his presentation but I just think his in ring style is dull.

— That Riddle/Dain match was real clunky and neither guy seemed to have much chemistry, however they both know how to make their offence look really brutal, so this was still kinda fun. Not really sure what all this means for Riddle, though.


----------



## Piers

gl83 said:


> Is it the same band that did Aleister Black's theme?


No that was CFO$ and Incendiary.

Code Orange made the Fiend's theme all alone.


----------



## JustAName

Thorne has a lot of potential


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

JustAName said:


> Thorne has a lot of potential


He's the only good thing in NXT right now besides Velveteen Dream. I hope the entire point of the breakout tournament was that it made his character jealous so he goes on to destroy all the jabronis who were involved. He's already taken out Wilde and Reed so far, I hope he destroys Myles so bad he can't compete in his title match and Thorne takes his place, now that would be justice.


----------



## Mr. WrestleMania

Bad episode already. The dark days of NXT are among us.

I did enjoy Riddle/Dain, though.


----------



## bonkertons

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> He's the only good thing in NXT right now besides Velveteen Dream. I hope the entire point of the breakout tournament was that it made his character jealous so he goes on to destroy all the jabronis who were involved. He's already taken out Wilde and Reed so far, I hope he destroys Myles so bad he can't compete in his title match and Thorne takes his place, now that would be justice.


That's a little harsh since there has literally been one week of story post-Takeover(unless you know the taping results). Cole needs a filler feud so I don't mind him going over this new guy who I agree has zero charisma. I'm kind of intrigued by invitation by Bazler to Yim - although if it leads to another match between the two I'll be pissed. I'm excited to see where Io goes from here(forget Thorne and Dream, IO is the best part of NXT right now). 

Aside from that I agree on Thorne. I'd love to see him beat the entire babyface crew of that Tournament. They could really use another top heel. Having Dain go over Riddle was a big step but they still need more, and Thorne could end up being - at the very least - a great opponent for Dream. Maybe even to the point where he'll be the choice to take the belt off of him, allowing Dream to move up and feud with Cole for the NXT Title.

My only cause for concern is the tag division. There are only two credible teams and that could get stale pretty quick. I can probably take one more match between UE and SP, but after that they really need to elevate another team. Overall though I'm invested in the show and am pretty excited to see where they go with a bunch of these angles.


----------



## White Glove Test

tonight's episode was great. Rhea showing up was awesome.


----------



## TD Stinger

Really fun show tonight I thought:

*Io getting a good squash and the stuff with Candice is continuing. If that kendo stick is a tease of anything, they need to face off in an Extreme Rules match next.

*Dijakovic vs. Lee :mark :mark :mark

Finally, fucking finally they get to have their real match. And fuck it was awesome. The power, the athleticism, the strikes, the fucking Spanish Fly from Lee. What an awesome match. Lee really sold it here with his facial expression and mannerisms. He is so good at that.

Obviously I'm a Keith Lee mark. And yes, I'm disappointed with how NXT has used him so far. Not that he isn' winning more, but that he hasn't gotten a chance to do what he just did tonight. After another big loss here, he either needs to turn heel or go on a tear as a babyface.

That's for the future, but for now what a great match.

*I made a thread after Takeover saying that Io needs to challenge for the NXT Women's Championship next. And I wasn't really wanting any other option.....until Rhea Ripley showed up. Rhea, who while still growing in the ring, just screams star and that showed tonight. The segment was short, but very effective in getting people hyped about Rhea.

I have no idea how their styles mesh but fucking Rhea is in main NXT. I want to see where that goes.

*The main event was good, though not as good as their Takeover match. I did like the callbacks to the previous match and the Profits doing role reversal by having Dawkins hit the Frog Splash. Fish and O'Reilly winning, almost completing the "TUE draped in gold" prophecy.


----------



## Reil

My thoughts on the stuff tonight:

Io should probably go over Candice again. None of that 50/50 booking bullshit that WWE likes to do. The post match attack by Candice seems justified on the surface, but it also makes her seem like a sore loser as well, because she did lose completely clean at Takeover.

I don't mind Rhea getting a title shot or even becoming champion, but I hope its a transitional reign. Io exudes star power and that same badass aura just as much as Rhea does, if not more. And she doesn't even have to resort to calling the other person a bitch to get that reaction either.


----------



## TD Stinger

The end of this promo just screams heel turn.

"You've been here 2 months and already got a championship opportunity."


----------



## gl83

TD Stinger said:


> The end of this promo just screams heel turn.
> 
> "You've been here 2 months and already got a championship opportunity."


His Kassius Ohno-esque promos a few months ago complaining about being a "gatekeeper" and doing nothing for over an entire year in NXT, while others who were around less than him have passed by him, clearly telegraphed a Heel turn.


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8

My reaction to this episode of NXT:


----------



## White Glove Test

M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8 said:


> My reaction to this episode of NXT:


HA!!


----------



## Reil

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1166896390682710016
It's subtitled by the way.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> __ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1166896390682710016
> It's subtitled by the way.



So....going out on a limb, but based on that segment between Mia and Regal last week, this promo and the segments from tonight's episode we're probably going to get a #1 contenders match between Rhea Ripley, Io Shirai, Mia Yim and Candice Lerae sometime in the coming month, right?


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## WindPhoenix

I feel like we are getting a multi-person women's title match between Mia, Rhea, Io and Shayna.


----------



## Piers

Rhea, Thorne and Dijak will be my only reasons to watch NXT from now on.


----------



## Buhalovski

Soo... with the new TV deal coming, NXT UK is basically development territory for the main NXT. Hope Rhea stays permanently then.


----------



## ellthom

Keith Lee v Dominik Dijakovic was one hell of a hoss battle. Just to big beefs beating the hell out of each other.


----------



## Asuka842

Rhea in NXT is cool, she's a badass. I wonder if Triple H would really hot shot the title onto her? He usually doesn't do that. I wouldn't really mind her beating Shayna, but Io still makes the most sense to do that imo.


----------



## TyBerns

M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8 said:


> My reaction to this episode of NXT:



KOOL KYLE 3 TIMEZ! All that remains is Roddy winning the North American Championship and that boys and girls is UNDISPUTED


----------



## Mear

Very cool show this week. Lee vs Dijakovic was really good and this is just what I expect from NXT, two guys hungry for more giving it their all. It wasn't perfect but there was a great amount of potential. Kinda disappointed Street Profits never got a full run though but they had to lose it now that they are on Raw I guess.

Otherwise, I really hope people are right and they are planning on a Fatal-4-Way for the women's title for the next Takeover, that could be a really great match


----------



## Piers

I know it was production music but I loved Dijak's theme, the new one sounds awful compared to it.


----------



## Mordecay

One of the better episodes of NXT in recent memory (mostly for how crappy it has been as of late)

Io killing a jobber was fine. And Candice appearing was cool. Candice though :homer

Rhea :mark:. She is the badass certain irish redhead wish she was :grin2:.

Lee/Dijak was what I expected :banderas. Sadly Lee lost, but what a match that was

Main event was alright, but the crowd was dead for most of it

Thorne is still a thing :lauren


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

Cole vs ACH next week :mark:


----------



## Pizzamorg

New NXT. 

— So with this NXT TV announcement, I understand that NXT will now be on Thursdays on the Network but is that a month behind like Raw/Smackdown or is it just a day later for us?

— Heel Shirai is the most interesting thing to happen to NXT's Women's Division in years. I am hype for a new LeRae/Shirai match, too.

— So is Gargano gone from NXT? I'll miss him, but I am also relieved in a way as he has been clogging up NXT for years.

— What is with Dijak's new music? Doesn't fit him at all.

— While it wasn't as good as their first match in NXT and I am surprised Dijak won clean, Dijak/Lee was still heaps of fun. Two freak athletes being freak athletes, with terrific chemistry. I really hope NXT are careful with Dijak/Lee. The two have put on two terrific matches on NXT and great matches on the indies but usually when WWE find a good combo they just decide those two people will have matches now for the next ten PPV cycles and that'll really spoil how special and big these matches feel if they do that here.

— Pretty random they've called Ripley back to NXT, isn't she part of the title mix on NXT UK?

— So Dunne is gonna be a staple of NXT moving forwards as he builds himself back up through the division?

— UE and Profits had a better match than they did at TakeOver, but still pale compared to the usual high standard of NXT Tag wrestling. Weird to see a title change here, I assume this isn't over. Did Dawkins get legit knocked out here?


----------



## TD Stinger

I will say this as a Rhea fan, she's still got a ways to go in the ring.

What she does have more than almost any other woman in WWE is presence. I can't really describe it, but when she goes out there, she looks and feels like a star. I always remember when she made her entrance at the Royal Rumble this year. The way she made her entrance with a sea of people behind her. She looked like a total star.

And that feeling was the same on this show. Her walk, her confidence, her swagger. Match that with her size and look, you just can't teach that or replicate it.

Now her vs. Shayna? Yeah, very good chance the match could suck. Or just be very subpar. I won't deny that. But, time will tell to see how Rhea performs on a big stage. And as of now I'm not convinced this stays 1 on 1.


----------



## Derek30

Yeah, Rhea is absolutely a star in the making. She really didn't have to say a word in that segment to get the point across. Her mannerisms were on point


----------



## Reil

TD Stinger said:


> I will say this as a Rhea fan, she's still got a ways to go in the ring.
> 
> What she does have more than almost any other woman in WWE is presence. I can't really describe it, but when she goes out there, she looks and feels like a star. I always remember when she made her entrance at the Royal Rumble this year. The way she made her entrance with a sea of people behind her. She looked like a total star.
> 
> And that feeling was the same on this show. Her walk, her confidence, her swagger. Match that with her size and look, you just can't teach that or replicate it.
> 
> Now her vs. Shayna? Yeah, very good chance the match could suck. Or just be very subpar. I won't deny that. But, time will tell to see how Rhea performs on a big stage. And as of now I'm not convinced this stays 1 on 1.


Considering Io has outright said she is going after the title during an interview uploaded last night, they'll probably insert Candice and Io into the feud somehow.


----------



## SAMCRO

Can someone tell me why UE couldn't have won the tag titles on Takeover? what was really the point in having them lose on Takeover only to win the titles on a random episode of NXT weeks later? Was it just cause they wanted to swerve people cause they thought UE was gonna win all the gold on the show?


----------



## Mear

SAMCRO said:


> Can someone tell me why UE couldn't have won the tag titles on Takeover? what was really the point in having them lose on Takeover only to win the titles on a random episode of NXT weeks later? Was it just cause they wanted to swerve people cause they thought UE was gonna win all the gold on the show?


I'm guessing it's either this or they wanted to keep the prophecy and titles win for the build-up to Wargames that will maybe end up being a Winners Take All situation


----------



## Jersey

So I'm assuming the trigger will get pulled on Bianca or are they gonna keep Shayzna Lesna on top?


----------



## rbl85

Jersey said:


> *So I'm assuming the trigger will get pulled on Bianca* or are they gonna keep Shayzna Lesna on top?


What makes you assume that ?


----------



## gl83

Mear said:


> I'm guessing it's either this or they wanted to keep the prophecy and titles win for the build-up to Wargames that will maybe end up being a Winners Take All situation


I'm gonna guess that the prophecy gets fulfilled on the first live episode of NXT. I'm not too sure if War Games will be "winner takes all"(which would probably be vs Gargano/SP/Dream) or if it'll be a grudge match to set up UE's next opponents for the following Takeover(Dream/Dunne/Breezango perhaps?).



BTW, who wants to bet that Io Shirai gets taken out by Candice Lerae before the #1 contender's match and gets replaced by Rhea Ripley?


----------



## Reil

Jersey said:


> So I'm assuming the trigger will get pulled on Bianca or are they gonna keep Shayzna Lesna on top?


Possibly, but I can't see Bianca being a long term champ either. She still lacks any semblance of a character.

For those out of the loop: The first live episode of NXT has announced a triple threat NXT Women's Championship #1 Contender's Match. Io Shirai vs Bianca Belair vs Mia Yim.

As much as I want to hope Io wins (and she should, but won't), I know Candice is going to cost her the match. Given if that happens, I fully expect Io to go over Candice in their inevitable rematch.


----------



## rbl85

gl83 said:


> I'm gonna guess that the prophecy gets fulfilled on the first live episode of NXT. I'm not too sure if War Games will be "winner takes all"(which would probably be vs Gargano/SP/Dream) or if it'll be a grudge match to set up UE's next opponents for the following Takeover(Dream/Dunne/Breezango perhaps?).
> 
> 
> 
> BTW, who wants to bet that Io Shirai gets taken out by Candice Lerae before the #1 contender's match and gets replaced by Rhea Ripley?


Wouldn't that be a first in NXT ?

Lot of thinks can happen :
-Io taken out before the match.
-Candice attacking IO during the match and maybe Io win via DQ.
-Nothing happen with Candice until after the end of the match.
-Nothing happen at all


----------



## gl83

rbl85 said:


> Wouldn't that be a first in NXT ?
> 
> Lot of thinks can happen :
> -Io taken out before the match.
> -Candice attacking IO during the match and maybe Io win via DQ.
> -Nothing happen with Candice until after the end of the match.
> -Nothing happen at all


Not really. On the road to NXT Takeover: Phildelphia, Velveteen Dream was suppose to be in a #1 contender's match with the winner facing Andrade Cien Almas, he got injured and was replaced by Johnny Gargano.


----------



## Reil

rbl85 said:


> Wouldn't that be a first in NXT ?
> 
> Lot of thinks can happen :
> -Io taken out before the match.
> -Candice attacking IO during the match and maybe Io win via DQ.
> -Nothing happen with Candice until after the end of the match.
> -Nothing happen at all


Triple threat matches are No-DQ.

I do think that if Candice screws Io out of the title match, it could spark quite a bit of resentment towards her (Candice). Keep in mind Candice was the person who decided to resume this spat with Io after last week (literally no one would have cared if Io beat down a jobber, and many were actually looking forward to it). So Candice screwing Io out of a title match (even after Io got a bit of retribution on tonight's episode) would have a very real possibility of a double turn happening.


----------



## Jersey

rbl85 said:


> What makes you assume that ?


Random thought


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Triple threat matches are No-DQ.
> 
> I do think that if Candice screws Io out of the title match, it could spark quite a bit of resentment towards her (Candice). Keep in mind Candice was the person who decided to resume this spat with Io after last week (literally no one would have cared if Io beat down a jobber, and many were actually looking forward to it). So Candice screwing Io out of a title match (even after Io got a bit of retribution on tonight's episode) would have a very real possibility of a double turn happening.


It probably is going to happen though. You had:

-Io warn Candice not to get in between her and her title chase
-Io attacked Candice backstage in the parking lot
-Candice obviously is going to be looking for a receipt


----------



## Reil

gl83 said:


> It probably is going to happen though. You had:
> 
> -Io warn Candice not to get in between her and her title chase
> -Io attacked Candice backstage in the parking lot
> -Candice obviously is going to be looking for a receipt


Oh don't get me wrong. I think it's going to happen as well. But I do think if it happens, Candice is losing their next match and the feud in general as a result. The Squared Circle Siren guy (Casey) apparently mentioned that Candice is INCREDIBLY beat up right now. Which is coded language for "nursing some injuries and will need time off". I can see them doing an extreme rules match on a following episode of NXT, and Io completely wrecking Candice, writing her off of TV until she's ready to return from injury.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> Oh don't get me wrong. I think it's going to happen as well. But I do think if it happens, Candice is losing their next match and the feud in general as a result. The Squared Circle Siren guy (Casey) apparently mentioned that Candice is INCREDIBLY beat up right now. Which is coded language for "nursing some injuries and will need time off". I can see them doing an extreme rules match on a following episode of NXT, and Io completely wrecking Candice, writing her off of TV until she's ready to return from injury.


I guess that match at Takeover: Toronto really did a number on Candice, because Candice rarely ever wrestles on NXT live events much less television, so it's not a wear-and-tear type of thing.


----------



## TD Stinger

A come down from last week:

*I like Breezango's new entrance. Anything to get rid of that mashed up entrance theme than they used to have. They're a nice addition to the tag division. Finisher isn't doing it for me yet though.

*Io beating up Candice outside was nice. I need an Extreme Rules match from these 2.

*I'm glad they're trying to give some depth to Cameron Grimes. Jury's still out on if it will though.

*Dream vs. Reeves was boring, but Roddy burning Dream's couch? Fucking priceless. Fuck you Roddy.

*Biana vs. Tanynara was nothing special but it was a solid showcase for Bianca's skills. Taynara has some pieces to work with, time will tell if she ever puts it all together.

*A Triple Threat between Mia, Bianca, and Io. Why is Mia in this match? Io deserves to be here. Bianca has won a few matches in a row so she's fine. But Mia just lost her shot. Honestly would have been better with Rhea in Mia's spot or just 1 on 1. Regardless, Io should win of the 3. Hell no to Mia getting another shot, and while I wouldn't mind Bianca getting another shot eventually, it's Io's time right now.

*Cole vs. Myles was a match that built and built and ended up being a fun mach. Nothing amazing, but a solid main event. Cole's trash talking mid match was nice story to tell for Myles. A guy who's clearly in over his head but Cole is daring him to give him his best, and Jordan did. And the last couple minutes or so were really good.

I also saw this bit with Keith Lee after the show:






I was sure last week we going for Heel Lee, but now I think we might get a tag team between them. Hell, we may get both in the end. Anything that leads to more Keith.


----------



## MarkyWhipwreck

- Cole v. ACH was a banger. 

- The couch promo was one of the best Roddy has ever cut.


----------



## bonkertons

TD Stinger said:


> A come down from last week:
> 
> 
> 
> *I like Breezango's new entrance. Anything to get rid of that mashed up entrance theme than they used to have. They're a nice addition to the tag division. Finisher isn't doing it for me yet though.
> 
> 
> 
> *Io beating up Candice outside was nice. I need an Extreme Rules match from these 2.
> 
> 
> 
> *I'm glad they're trying to give some depth to Cameron Grimes. Jury's still out on if it will though.
> 
> 
> 
> *Dream vs. Reeves was boring, but Roddy burning Dream's couch? Fucking priceless. Fuck you Roddy.
> 
> 
> 
> *Biana vs. Tanynara was nothing special but it was a solid showcase for Bianca's skills. Taynara has some pieces to work with, time will tell if she ever puts it all together.
> 
> 
> 
> *A Triple Threat between Mia, Bianca, and Io. Why is Mia in this match? Io deserves to be here. Bianca has won a few matches in a row so she's fine. But Mia just lost her shot. Honestly would have been better with Rhea in Mia's spot or just 1 on 1. Regardless, Io should win of the 3. Hell no to Mia getting another shot, and while I wouldn't mind Bianca getting another shot eventually, it's Io's time right now.
> 
> 
> 
> *Cole vs. Myles was a match that built and built and ended up being a fun mach. Nothing amazing, but a solid main event. Cole's trash talking mid match was nice story to tell for Myles. A guy who's clearly in over his head but Cole is daring him to give him his best, and Jordan did. And the last couple minutes or so were really good.
> 
> 
> 
> I also saw this bit with Keith Lee after the show:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I was sure last week we going for Heel Lee, but now I think we might get a tag team between them. Hell, we may get both in the end. Anything that leads to more Keith.




That’s actually a pretty good idea. I think that would be good for both guys and the division. There is a clear need for another legitimate team, especially babyface. 

I don’t see Fashion Police being credible, tbh, and I don’t expect them to last long anyway. I think Breeze is going to snap on Dango. Basically about how he came back to NXT to start over and get back to where he was, but a month in and he’s sucked right back into being part of a comedy tag team. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8

__ https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1169414078365917184


----------



## Asuka842

Io shouldn't lose another big match. Her heel turn has been great, so they need to fun with it.

Rhea should be in this match over Mia imo, no question. And Shayna needs to lose that title soon. Freshen things up for the move to live TV.


----------



## SAMCRO

Wait so let me get this straight, Dunne waltzes back into NXT and just gets handed a NA title match, but Rhea shows up challenging Shayna and she just gets a 1 on 1 non title match? and now we got a triple threat number 1 contenders match of everyone Shayna has already beaten getting yet another title opportunity? wtf?

I don't get why Rhea is just getting a one off non title match on the weekly show while 3 other women Shayna has already beaten is getting another title opportunity. Rhea vs Shayna is without a doubt a Takeover worthy match why are we just getting it on the weekly show and non title no less? its fucking stupid.

And as for the triple threat Io aint winning ya'll can forget that, Candice will screw her over, and Mia aint getting another title match this soon, its obviously gonna be Bianca's overrated ass cause they've clearly been building her back up these past few months. And Bianca will lose once again and she'll get called up, and Shayna's reign of terror continues so i don't even have the patience to bother watching that bullshit cause i can see how it all plays out a mile away.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

Who were those ghey French guys Breezango beat? I thought they were local jobbers but their Twitter names have WWE in them. Has HHH completely lost all standards when it comes to signing people.

*Sees Cameron Grimes*
Yes, yes he has. 

What was the point of Dream vs Kona? Either showcase Kona and build him as a threat or have Dream squash him, but a ho hum match does nothing for either.

Bianca vs Taynara is the example that Dream/Reeves should have followed. Taynara looked better than I've ever seen her, she should stick with the striking because her Judo throws haven't been very impactful.

Tried to watch Smyles vs Cole, wasn't feeling it. Can they banish this jabroni to NXT UK?


----------



## SAMCRO

Why is Tegan Nox going to NXT UK? that womens division is already stacked, NXT's womens division needed her more, all we got as of right now in terms of faces are Candice and Mia.


----------



## Reil

SAMCRO said:


> Why is Tegan Nox going to NXT UK? that womens division is already stacked, NXT's womens division needed her more, sorry was watching NXT UK and just saw where they said she debuts next week.


There are rumors Toni Storm is injured or taking a leave of absence on NXT UK. Which leaves them down a major babyface.


----------



## LongPig666

All the colours of the ? this week eh!


----------



## SAMCRO

Reil said:


> There are rumors Toni Storm is injured or taking a leave of absence on NXT UK. Which leaves them down a major babyface.


Well i mean they still got Piper Niven, Xia Brookside, Isla Dawn and Killer Kelly if they'd push her, thats more faces than NXT has with just Mia and Candice.


----------



## candice-wrestling

That was Taynara's best match for sure.


----------



## Reil

i just wanted to say congrats to rhea ripley for being the dumbest person in nxt right now, costing herself a title shot opportunity.


----------



## gl83

Reil said:


> i just wanted to say congrats to rhea ripley for being the dumbest person in nxt right now, costing herself a title shot opportunity.




Between Io celebrating Candice beating up Duke & shafir instead of focusing on Shayna; Mia acting all arrogant when she had Shayna to herself not realizing that Shayna was already highly successful on her own long before Duke & Shafir arrived; and Rhea intentionally getting herself DQ'd. Why does everyone who wrestles Shayna Baszler always end up looking like they have an IQ of 10?


----------



## M1M2M3M4M5M6M7M8




----------



## Asuka842

They made Rhea look like a total imbecile with that finish. But then again, pretty much all of Shayna's opponents seem to lose about 50 IQ points at least just so she can win.

Now IF Rhea gets into the title picture anyway, then ok. but if this is it, then wow was that a lame "payoff" to that confrontation that everyone was hyped for.


----------



## TD Stinger

New Show Review:

*I like Priest's look and in ring style, but something's not clicking right now in the ring. I think we need to see more vignettes with the guy. That's what got me initially interested in NXT.

*We all knew Gargano's decision like a month ago so this didn't have too much of an emotional impact. Though I do appreciate his passion for NXT and you see how much the crowd respects him.

Thorne has to work on his promos. Felt like he mumbled through half of it. And with Gargano sticking around, he should work with guys like Thorne and help elevate them. Just keep him away from the title.

*Garza vs. Dunne was pretty good. Dunne is just so good, and Garza just has this charisma about him, he instantly connects with the crowd. Kind of felt like the guys got lost a couple times, but a solid match that I want to see more of in the future.

*Grimes vs. Mendoza was fine. I'll be interested to see how Grimes sticks out in NXT with everyone else already there.

*The stuff with Regal and Candice really didn't make sense. Candice storms in, saying Io shouldn't be given this opportunity given the stuff she's pulled. Which is right to an extent, but Io did beat her at Takeover, which is why she's in this match, right?

Well, than Regal says she can't disagree with her. So.....why did you put Io in the match to begin with? And then he puts Candice in the match next week. So.....why didn't you just put her in there from the beginning?

Again, didn't make sense.

*I liked Rhea vs. Shayna for as short as it was. I liked the spot where Rhea got caught in the ropes and Shayna attacked her leg. And one thing I really liked was how much Rhea sold Shayna's choke. Made that move feel dangerous.

The finish was made so no one took a pin yet which kind of sucks. But it does look like Rhea will be a fixture in NXT for good, which is great to see. And despite the underwhelming finish, the crowd was hot for Rhea at the end. She's still a work in progress, but she's already got a star quality to her.


----------



## Mordecay

Kinda underwhelmimg episode to finish the NXT run on the network (at least exclusively). 

Missed the Priest match because stream was fucking up, 

Gargano staying was expected, but Thorne wouldn't be my first choice of guy he can work to elevate, Thorne is really not that ionteresting and he is too low on the totem pole, feels more like a demotion to Johnny than a promotion to Thorne. 

Garza/Dunne was fine, although it felt a little messy, like their styles didn't mixed well at points. And I am sorry but I am not buying the finger snapping as Dunne's finisher submission now, I've seen him use that too much with no effect that it costs me buy it as a finisher. 

The whole Candice/regal stuff was just a clusterfuck, just like the match will be. I kinda lol'd a bit at Regal having no problem in making it a 5 way, like, this is not the NXT of old :lol. 

Shayna/Rhea didn't do anything for me and the finish, as many pointed out, was dumb af. I wish that commentary at least would have tried to play it like Rhea's inexperience and youth made her cost herself a chance for a title match, but instead they were kinda praising her actions. 

Finally, I don't know if it was a coincidence or not but I found funny that Nigel called Rhea "a paradigm shift" with NXT facing AEW soon.

Also, I liked the UE promo at the end, making fun of VD's burned couch


----------



## Alexander_G

Already don't like this idea of Gargano not going anywhere. No, it's time for him to go. He'd be perfect for Smackdown and I really think it's time for a major position shift on faces for NXT. I'm already getting tired of not seeing Keith Lee enough on this show, and he's the one I want pushed the most.

Gargano has done enough. Don't make him the face of NXT when NXT should always have a constant transition.

I expect a 3 way or 4 way for the women's title sooner or later. It's going to come down to multiple contenders all wanting it at the same time.

Didn't expect Rhea to win anything as I already had a feeling it was too soon and sudden to think that would happen. So I'm actually not surprised at all. Shayna also gave her more trouble than she'll get credit for.

I get the feeling Roddy is actually going to beat Dream for that NA title. It may help Roddy only a little, but I think it definitely would get everyone begging that someone beat him as soon as possible. I doubt Roddy would be a popular champion.


----------



## WindPhoenix

Why are babyfaces in NXT portrayed as so dumb? Shayna's last few feuds feel inspired by the Spaceballs quote "evil will always triumph, because good is dumb".


----------



## lee20794

had to request a new password so i can log in to say this. cameron grimes is shit.


----------



## Speedjuh

Watching last week’s episode, there are a few things I need to get off my chest.
1: Maybe it’s me, but I really don’t understand the Damien Priest character. He looks like a washed-up 
rocker combined with some satanic priest and is booked really strong, but I just can’t connect with the 
guy. Anyone else has the same problem?

2: Angel Garza got his fair share of attack against Pete Dunne. I think he is fun to watch, but he looks 
like someone who will be booked a comedy act in the near future, even though he has reasonable talent. 
Only one person could make ‘Latino Heat’ work and unfortunately he died a few years ago. Garza, in his 
current gimmick, won’t make it.

3: The whole Rhea Ripley vs Shayna Baszler match was… weird. Rhea, with her screaming, selling and 
emotions looked like she really tried to make this match work, while Shayna… Well… Let’s just say her lack 
of wrestling ability really showed. It almost looked like Shayne was constantly thinking what to do next, like 
a dancer practicing the Cha-Cha for the first time. 

The finish of the match was complete rubbish. The match should’ve ended before Rhea got the DQ because 
of outside interference. Shafir attacked Rhea, but got knocked down. That should’ve been a DQ already, but 
for storyline purposes (probably), they just ignore that part.
This was probably done to display Rhea as a badass MoFo, who doesn’t care to get disqualified as long as she 
can fight, but to me it completely misses this point and simply made her look like a complete dumbass since it 
costs her a shot at the title.


----------



## Asuka842

Also with Candice being added to the #1 Contender's match, you have FOUR women who've already lost repeatedly to Shayna, but not Rhea? Umm, WTF?


----------



## Buhalovski

Rhea is legit as hell. If they actually start to pay attention about other women that division has so much potential with Io, Candice, Bianca and now Dakota being back.

Still cant see the hype around Trevor Lee.


----------



## Piers

Nice episode, I enjoyed everything before that terrible finish for the main event followed by another useless UE video.


----------



## SAMCRO

I really don't get what they're going for with Trevor Lee in that top hat and leather vest with the country bumpkin music, i just don't get the look or character they're going for. And he needs to change his finisher, doesn't Kofi do that leaping double foot stomp as a comeback/setup move? He needs to go back to using the small package driver.

And Priest again that rolling cutter is shit, tall wrestlers shouldn't use moves like that, they look awkward, he needs to be using a high impact slam, his South of heaven Chokelsam is perfect. 

For some reason guys in NXT can't pick good finishers anymore, i mean Dunne is now using a finger snap submission as his finisher? Garza has this weird butterfly sitout ass buster thing where the guy doesn't look like he takes any damage, and Cole uses that anti climatic Last Shot/Shining Wizard to the back of the head. Just so many guys in NXT needs new finishers.


----------



## rbl85

Am I the only one that the think that the conversation between Candice and Regal did not make any sense ?


----------



## gl83

rbl85 said:


> Am I the only one that the think that the conversation between Candice and Regal did not make any sense ?


Almost sounded like she was trying to blackmail Regal into adding her into the match. Complaining about Io attacking her and being rewarded a possible title opportunity and threatening that Io may not even make it to her match next week if he doesn't do anything about it.


----------



## Piers

SAMCRO said:


> I really don't get what they're going for with Trevor Lee in that top hat and leather vest with the country bumpkin music, i just don't get the look or character they're going for. And he needs to change his finisher, doesn't Kofi do that leaping double foot stomp as a comeback/setup move? He needs to go back to using the small package driver.
> 
> And Priest again that rolling cutter is shit, tall wrestlers shouldn't use moves like that, they look awkward, he needs to be using a high impact slam, his South of heaven Chokelsam is perfect.
> 
> For some reason guys in NXT can't pick good finishers anymore, i mean Dunne is now using a finger snap submission as his finisher? Garza has this weird butterfly sitout ass buster thing where the guy doesn't look like he takes any damage, and Cole uses that anti climatic Last Shot/Shining Wizard to the back of the head. Just so many guys in NXT needs new finishers.


It's even worse in NXT UK


----------



## Pizzamorg

I don't think I have commented on the NXT thread in a little while, I am kinda meh on the whole show right now. None of the title pictures really interest me at all and the very few non title based stories around the title pictures are pretty bad as well. Like what was the deal this week with all that build up just for Gargano to say "NXT 4 Life" like a 12 year old on Xbox Live and to start a feud with Thorne? Also, what was the deal with Thorne's presentation, the weird elevator music theme he has, coming out shirtless in his jeans with his bum cloth hanging down. Weird energy. Total cringe. 

One cool thing about this episode was seeing fresh matchups even if none of them were exactly earth shattering. The less said about Ripley/Baszler the better, but I thought Grimes/Mendoza and Garza/Dunne were fine. I guess we'll have to see what happens when the show goes two hours but NXT certainly has the depth, no questions. 

Does anyone know yet if NXT Live will be on the Network the day after it airs, or four weeks after it airs?


----------



## Mordecay

Pizzamorg said:


> Does anyone know yet if NXT Live will be on the Network the day after it airs, or four weeks after it airs?


24 hours later yes


----------



## SAMCRO

They Call Him Y2J said:


> It's even worse in NXT UK


I know what you mean, Noam Dar and Travis Banks essentially have the same finisher, they're both just kicks to the head, Banks just springobards to hit his while Noam just runs. Joseph Conners does some weak flatliner, and Dragunov's is just some weird running spinning headbutt.

And it looks like WALTER can't make up his mind what he wants his finisher to be, one week its a diving splash, next its a powerbomb, next its a clothesline.


----------



## Piers

SAMCRO said:


> I know what you mean, Noam Dar and Travis Banks essentially have the same finisher, they're both just kicks to the head, Banks just springobards to hit his while Noam just runs. Joseph Conners does some weak flatliner, and Dragunov's is just some weird running spinning headbutt.
> 
> And it looks like WALTER can't make up his mind what he wants his finisher to be, one week its a diving splash, next its a powerbomb, next its a clothesline.


Dragunov's finisher is actually a Running Uppercut. And it's awful.

Mastiff uses a Cannonball (Kevin Owens has it as a regular move). 

Storm and Bate use the same move (and Toni's version doesn't go high enough to look painful).

Piper Niven has a Michinoku Driver some people use as a random strike halfway through their matches.

Kay Lee Ray has a Gory Bomb that looks weak as hell.

Devlin had the coolest finisher in both NXT shows called Ireland's Call and they had to ruin it and give him some lame ass back suplex.

I could go on and on


----------



## Alexander_G

SAMCRO said:


> And it looks like WALTER can't make up his mind what he wants his finisher to be, one week its a diving splash, next its a powerbomb, next its a clothesline.


WALTER's finisher is the golden star powerbomb, just like Kota Ibushi's.


----------



## SAMCRO

They Call Him Y2J said:


> *Dragunov's finisher is actually a Running Uppercut. And it's awful.
> *
> Mastiff uses a Cannonball (Kevin Owens has it as a regular move).
> 
> Storm and Bate use the same move (and Toni's version doesn't go high enough to look painful).
> 
> Piper Niven has a Michinoku Driver some people use as a random strike halfway through their matches.
> 
> Kay Lee Ray has a Gory Bomb that looks weak as hell.
> 
> Devlin had the coolest finisher in both NXT shows called Ireland's Call and they had to ruin it and give him some lame ass back suplex.
> 
> I could go on and on


Pretty sure its a headbutt, i mean look at 6:01 here and he clearly strikes them with his head


----------



## Death Rider

Torepdo Moscow is great :armfold


----------



## Piers

Very serious question : Why hasn't anyone punched that woman in the NXT crowd who is always screaming her lungs out? It's annoying as hell. Every time someone comes out, it's like she's having an exorcism or someone is putting spiders in her hair.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

lee20794 said:


> had to request a new password so i can log in to say this. cameron grimes is shit.


Agreed completely talentless and a charisma vacuum.

These Trevor Lee fans boggle my mind.


----------



## MC

Chris JeriG.O.A.T said:


> Agreed completely talentless and a charisma vacuum.
> 
> These Trevor Lee fans boggle my mind.


Imagine judging someone based on so little matches. Since when is that a proper and fair way to cast judgement on someone. If a government sent out a questionnaire/census and then only looked at the votes from a small town, not even looking at the rest of the country, it wouldn't be a very accurate questionnaire, would it? No, you need a pretty big amount to fairly judge someone's ability, especially when 99% of their career isn't what you have seen. But no, let's throw a logical conclusion out of the window because of 3-5 matches, because that make sense. 

Geez. All you have to do is ask what are his best matches but no, let's write him off because he was thrown into the deep end debuting with no background or reason to care and then given a silly gimmick that's the total opposite of what he is or has done before. That seems like something a reasonable person would do. 

Talentless is just an odd way of describing someone that hasn't botched, or has displayed an inability to do wrestling in a safe and logical manner, btw. 

I'm not even sure why I'm replying because you wrote him off as soon as he beat Strickland so you've already made up your mind, clearly. :lol. Oh well.


----------



## Chris JeriG.O.A.T

MC said:


> Imagine judging someone based on so little matches. Since when is that a proper and fair way to cast judgement on someone. If a government sent out a questionnaire/census and then only looked at the votes from a small town, not even looking at the rest of the country, it wouldn't be a very accurate questionnaire, would it? No, you need a pretty big amount to fairly judge someone's ability, especially when 99% of their career isn't what you have seen. But no, let's throw a logical conclusion out of the window because of 3-5 matches, because that make sense.
> 
> Geez. All you have to do is ask what are his best matches but no, let's write him off because he was thrown into the deep end debuting with no background or reason to care and then given a silly gimmick that's the total opposite of what he is or has done before. That seems like something a reasonable person would do.
> 
> Talentless is just an odd way of describing someone that hasn't botched, or has displayed an inability to do wrestling in a safe and logical manner, btw.
> 
> I'm not even sure why I'm replying because you wrote him off as soon as he beat Strickland so you've already made up your mind, clearly. :lol. Oh well.


The fact that I'm still watching this guy's matches is me giving him a fair shake, I don't watch people that I don't like but I'm trying to figure out why this guy has fans or even got signed.

I don't need to watch a wrestler's entire career to determine if they have any talent, I don't even need to see a person have a good match to figure it out. I watch wrestling matches on a micro, moment by moment basis, I look for things like how believable their striking looks, how they sell, how they work their characters during the match, the creativity of their spots. 

When I say talent I'm not talking about technical ability or crisp execution, I'm talking about their ability to make me buy into the fiction, doing things that looks like it hurts, doing things that make sense to their character's psychology and from everything I've seen he seems like a bog standard "wrassler". His look is generic, his character is non existent, he has no charisma, he hasn't even attempted to work the crowd, and from the couple of pre-tapes I've seen he's not even a good promo. I know they said he's been wrestling since he was 13 but he's so basic and lacking in identity he reminds me of those guys in the PC from non wrestling backgrounds.


----------



## SAMCRO

Trevor Lee's gonna have to change his look up now that he's in WWE, that look was fine for the indies and TNA, but he's in a national televised billion dollar company now, small plain black trunks and kickpads and being hairy aint a good look, Vince wont take him serious at all. 

He just has a very indy look to him, he's gonna have to upgrade like Rollins did, Rollins ditched his indy look and it worked out great. Colorful weird trunks and band t shirts didn't exactly scream main eventer or top guy, getting a more polished and put together slick look helped him.


----------



## Alexander_G

delete


----------



## hgr423

I read on Twitter that there was a great match between Roderick Strong and Kushida at a house show recently. Do they tape and ever release the Florida house show matches like this that sometimes get highly praised?

Thank you


----------



## gl83

hgr423 said:


> I read on Twitter that there was a great match between Roderick Strong and Kushida at a house show recently. Do they tape and ever release the Florida house show matches like this that sometimes get highly praised?
> 
> Thank you


Nope. Maybe if you're lucky a Youtuber who was at the show will upload a match, but other than that no go.


----------

