NXT

[Ira Gaines]

NXT Takeover R-Evolution

This show has a lot of expectation to live up to. Mainly because of a main event which has been building for a VERY long time.

Kevin Owens vs. CJ Parker

Kevin Owens gets a HUGE pop from the Full Sail. They continue to love him as the match continues and he hands out a bit of a pasting here. Always good to see Drake Younger as a referee btw. Making decent money while not killing himself in front of 50 people in deathmatches. To think some people actually bitch about him doing this job. Anyways, this match doesn't get a rating as it's essentially a squash match to give Owens a strong debut, but it's a fun start to his NXT career. N/A

In sad news, we find out that Corey Graves has retired due to concussions. It's always a shame to see that someone has to pack it in through injuries.

Lucha Dragons © vs. The Vaudevillains - NXT Tag Team Championships

The Vaudevillains are pretty popular at Full Sail. Worth noting that there isn't that very many two counts at the start of the match. Pretty much every kick out in the opening minutes are at one. Which makes sense of course given that not much has been taken out of the guys in the match, but you never see it. This isn't a great match by any stretch. Still not sold on The Vaudvillains as a tag team, and I hope that the Dragons finally get to move onto a team who are properly good, and that they get some time with them so as we can see how good they are. **

Tye Dillinger vs. Baron Corbin

The fans of Full Sail decide to count the time on this one, until they get distracted by Bull Dempsey who's at ringside. Anyways, Corbin runs through the guy in double quick time. N/A

The Ascension vs. Finn Balor and Hideo Itami

Jesus. Balor looks absolutely fucking frightening here. If you want to intimidate your opponents, that is exactly how you do it. I don't buy into the hate for The Ascension btw. They're not an amazing tag team but they're really solid, they look the part, and they wrestle basically exactly how two guys who look like they do should. Solid formula stuff here as they play the beatdown on Itami right down to the wire, and when Balor comes in, Full Sail comes unglued. So you know they did reasonably well here. The crowd going MENTAL when Itami was about to land Go 2 Sleep was brilliant. Anyways, yeah, this was really good stuff. ***1/2

Charlotte © vs. Sasha Banks - NXT Women's Championship

The ladies' match at the last Takeover show was a total showstealer. The commentators liken Sasha Banks to AJ Lee and I can see the comparison. She has the same sort of demeanor and carries herself just as well too. This is an absolute stoater of a match. On a par with the Charlotte/Natalya match? I'd say so. And Banks added some big character play to this match, and with Charlotte's aggression when in control, I think that tips this match over that one. Fucking brilliant. ****1/4

Adrian Neville © vs. Sami Zayn - NXT Championship

These two guys have had their battles in NXT, but this is ultimately the big one that we've been wanting to see between them. And my goodness, this feels fucking massive. The crowd is unanimously in the favour of Zayn. This is probably the best one on one match that either of these two guys have had in their entire careers, and that is no mean feat for either man. Absolutely phenomenal match and one of the best of the year for any promotion. ****3/4

In a wonderful moment to end the show, Kevin Owens, after being the first man to hug Sami Zayn post-match hands out a horrendous beating to him and Powerbombs him on the apron, thus giving us the rivalry that we all want to see in NXT.

It's a show of two halfs. The first being shit and squashes. The second half being pretty damn fine, and the main event is a must-see for anybody who even remotely likes their wrestling.

[sonsism]

Absolutely phenomenal stuff in the final three matches. Finn Balor is the coolest man about. Womens match was absolute class and agree that it is up there with Natalya/Charlotte. Main event could be my MOTY purely because it had so much emotion mixed in with the fantastic ring work of both Zayn and Neville.

[JamieStevenson]

That was some top drawer stuff. I quite like The Ascension tbh, the WWE needs a good physical team, too many flyers at the moment. Finn Balor's entrance was absolutely incredible and the match itself was pretty good.

I love how much faith they have in the Divas to put on a great match and once again they've shown why they should be given the time to do so. Charlotte is super impressive and I really enjoy Sasha Banks too, they delivered big time. I might have enjoyed this one more than Charlotte vs Natalya, I'm undecided on that, both top matches.

The build up to this was fantastic and it certainly didn't disappoint. Two of the finest sports entertainers showing us all how it's done. The talent they have is phenomenal. Great early back and forth exchanges between them showing off their technical wrestling. The crowd were excellent for this match and really got behind them. Once the momentum started picking up, there were amazing spots all over the place. Loved the finish and the SCENES when Sami got the win.

Kevin Owens turning on him was the icing on the cake. No messing about here, he's getting thrown straight in at the deep end for what I hope will be another great feud.

[Quentin Taranbino]

Thought the PPV was excellent from start to finish. Even the earlier matches were all enjoyable.

Gotta be up there with WWE PPV of the year.

[Ira Gaines]

I thought all of the early stuff was useless shite.

[Christophe]

- Nice to see Kevin Owens first out, good little semi-squash against CJ Parker. I can't decide whether Owens has lost weight or was wearing some kind of Spanx under his t-shirt. Good intensity, obviously super over with the smarks. Would have liked more of a match, really liked it when Parker stopped Owens dead with a shoten ("palm strike", ugh, f**k off, call the move by its name) but for a debut it was cool.

- Enjoyed Lucha Dragons v Vaudevillians. Two decent-to-good teams playing to their strengths.

- Balor/Itami v The Ascension was cool, best match so far but also because I'm such a fan of the first two I had the most criticisms. Thought Balor over-hammed it a little with the posing - they obviously realise he's marketable and sexy so they're doing that 'gotta keep him strong' thing they started doing to Reigns - and Itami shouldn't be put in the Ricky Morton role. Was probably a little unfair on The Ascension calling them "dreck" before, they don't suck as bad as that, and the match was good.

- Baron Corbin v Tye Dillinger was a squash. Not feeling this Corbin kid, nor his feud with Dempsey. Shittest 'hoss' guys ever.

- Sasha v Charlotte was legit great, Banks was way better than I expected and i already rated her and Charlotte is one of the best 5 female wrestlers in the world.

- Main event was brilliant, probably the second best WWE main event of the year on the second best WWE card of the year (both behind Wrestlemania). If you can call a Koji Clutch a Koji Clutch then call a shoten by its real name. Also it's HELL OF A KICK not Hell Oooh Va Kick. Loved the storytelling, even when it was lightly hammy, and I loved the OWENS SWERRRRRVE at the end so we're going to get Generico-Steen in WWE straight away. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM.

[Christophe]

NXT Takeover R-Evolution

This show has a lot of expectation to live up to. Mainly because of a main event which has been building for a VERY long time.

Kevin Owens vs. CJ Parker

Kevin Owens gets a HUGE pop from the Full Sail. They continue to love him as the match continues and he hands out a bit of a pasting here. Always good to see Drake Younger as a referee btw. Making decent money while not killing himself in front of 50 people in deathmatches. To think some people actually bitch about him doing this job. Anyways, this match doesn't get a rating as it's essentially a squash match to give Owens a strong debut, but it's a fun start to his NXT career. N/A

In sad news, we find out that Corey Graves has retired due to concussions. It's always a shame to see that someone has to pack it in through injuries.

Lucha Dragons © vs. The Vaudevillains - NXT Tag Team Championships

The Vaudevillains are pretty popular at Full Sail. Worth noting that there isn't that very many two counts at the start of the match. Pretty much every kick out in the opening minutes are at one. Which makes sense of course given that not much has been taken out of the guys in the match, but you never see it. This isn't a great match by any stretch. Still not sold on The Vaudvillains as a tag team, and I hope that the Dragons finally get to move onto a team who are properly good, and that they get some time with them so as we can see how good they are. **

Tye Dillinger vs. Baron Corbin

The fans of Full Sail decide to count the time on this one, until they get distracted by Bull Dempsey who's at ringside. Anyways, Corbin runs through the guy in double quick time. N/A

The Ascension vs. Finn Balor and Hideo Itami

Jesus. Balor looks absolutely fucking frightening here. If you want to intimidate your opponents, that is exactly how you do it. I don't buy into the hate for The Ascension btw. They're not an amazing tag team but they're really solid, they look the part, and they wrestle basically exactly how two guys who look like they do should. Solid formula stuff here as they play the beatdown on Itami right down to the wire, and when Balor comes in, Full Sail comes unglued. So you know they did reasonably well here. The crowd going MENTAL when Itami was about to land Go 2 Sleep was brilliant. Anyways, yeah, this was really good stuff. ***1/2

Charlotte © vs. Sasha Banks - NXT Women's Championship

The ladies' match at the last Takeover show was a total showstealer. The commentators liken Sasha Banks to AJ Lee and I can see the comparison. She has the same sort of demeanor and carries herself just as well too. This is an absolute stoater of a match. On a par with the Charlotte/Natalya match? I'd say so. And Banks added some big character play to this match, and with Charlotte's aggression when in control, I think that tips this match over that one. Fucking brilliant. ****1/4

Adrian Neville © vs. Sami Zayn - NXT Championship

These two guys have had their battles in NXT, but this is ultimately the big one that we've been wanting to see between them. And my goodness, this feels fucking massive. The crowd is unanimously in the favour of Zayn. This is probably the best one on one match that either of these two guys have had in their entire careers, and that is no mean feat for either man. Absolutely phenomenal match and one of the best of the year for any promotion. ****3/4

In a wonderful moment to end the show, Kevin Owens, after being the first man to hug Sami Zayn post-match hands out a horrendous beating to him and Powerbombs him on the apron, thus giving us the rivalry that we all want to see in NXT.

It's a show of two halfs. The first being shit and squashes. The second half being pretty damn fine, and the main event is a must-see for anybody who even remotely likes their wrestling.

Wouldn't go that high on the main event, as good as the G1 Final or Ishii v Naito? Nah.

[Ira Gaines]

I'd say it was better than the G1 Final. As good as Ishii/Naito and Suzuki/Styles.

It was a wonderful mix of storytelling, athleticism, fluidity and a hot crowd all coming together perfectly. I can't justify going lower. I could even justify going higher.

Edited December 12, 2014 by NewDomDom

[Christophe]

I'd say it was better than the G1 Final. As good as Ishii/Naito and Suzuki/Styles.

It was a wonderful mix of storytelling, athleticism, fluidity and a hot crowd all coming together perfectly. I can't justify going lower. I could even justify going higher.

Nah. it was a bit hammy in spots, double ref bump, I think we're just rewarding WWE for doing their job right. Besides all the abovenamed matches had the same things going on too.

[Ira Gaines]

The second ref bump was un-needed which is probably why I knocked a bit off.

And I don't grade on a curve.

[GiGi]

I've never watched NXT. Been following this thread though and had to go and watch REvolution after reading some of the reviews. Not disappointed.

[Waffelz]

- Nice to see Kevin Owens first out, good little semi-squash against CJ Parker. I can't decide whether Owens has lost weight or was wearing some kind of Spanx under his t-shirt. Good intensity, obviously super over with the smarks. Would have liked more of a match, really liked it when Parker stopped Owens dead with a shoten ("palm strike", ugh, f**k off, call the move by its name) but for a debut it was cool.

- Enjoyed Lucha Dragons v Vaudevillians. Two decent-to-good teams playing to their strengths.

- Balor/Itami v The Ascension was cool, best match so far but also because I'm such a fan of the first two I had the most criticisms. Thought Balor over-hammed it a little with the posing - they obviously realise he's marketable and sexy so they're doing that 'gotta keep him strong' thing they started doing to Reigns - and Itami shouldn't be put in the Ricky Morton role. Was probably a little unfair on The Ascension calling them "dreck" before, they don't suck as bad as that, and the match was good.

- Baron Corbin v Tye Dillinger was a squash. Not feeling this Corbin kid, nor his feud with Dempsey. Shittest 'hoss' guys ever.

- Sasha v Charlotte was legit great, Banks was way better than I expected and i already rated her and Charlotte is one of the best 5 female wrestlers in the world.

- Main event was brilliant, probably the second best WWE main event of the year on the second best WWE card of the year (both behind Wrestlemania). If you can call a Koji Clutch a Koji Clutch then call a shoten by its real name. Also it's HELL OF A KICK not Hell Oooh Va Kick. Loved the storytelling, even when it was lightly hammy, and I loved the OWENS SWERRRRRVE at the end so we're going to get Generico-Steen in WWE straight away. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM.

"Palm strike" is what CJ Parker named it, no? And I thought it was "Helluva" as well.

Steen's lost loads of weight and already gaining muscle.

[Ira Gaines]

Definitely Helluva.

[Christophe]

"Palm strike" is what CJ Parker named it, no? And I thought it was "Helluva" as well.

Steen's lost loads of weight and already gaining muscle.

The criticism is that they've taken the reading of the word Helluva (as it is written) and turned it into "hell ooh va" linguistically, when it was always just pronounced "hell of a" by Excalibur in PWG.

It's a shoten, Parker didn't invent it so there's no reason for him, or more pertenently WWE to be giving it a fucking dull, generic name change.

Edited December 14, 2014 by Christophe

[Ira Gaines]

Excalibur did pronounce the "OO" a lot. That's probably where they got it actually. I used to think it was called the Aruba kick or something because of the way he said it.

A palm strike is a shit trademark move. But they gave Big Show a punch. So at least we're moving up.

[djchapsticks]

The shoten legit fucked Steens nose up. For a guy making his debut and having a squash match, he was going to end up with one hell of a (or helluva) sore face the next morning.

Zayn vs Neville was glorious. I haven't watched a lot of American Indy stuff but I've heard Generico vs Steen was the feud that everyone wanted. Also, that bump for the powerbomb at the end. f**k me.

[stumigoo]

Just watched the whole thing and I must say that NXT at its best is far superior to the main roster right now. So many good wrestlers, so many interesting characters and so many decent story lines. Raw and Smackdown need serious lessons from NXT.

I am sad in a way that Zayn will be staying around at NXT for the time being because he is pretty much the best thing in WWE right now but to be honest he would probably get a terrible run in the main roster due to WWE creative not having a fucking clue. Really excited for his next big feud.

Visually I thought Finn Balor's entrance was unbelievable and I was really impressed with Kevin Steen having never seen anything of him.

[Ira Gaines]

NXT doesn't hit that best very often. Infact it only happens on the Takeover nights now. Even Main Event provides a better hour of WWE on a weekly basis.

[stumigoo]

NXT doesn't hit that best very often. Infact it only happens on the Takeover nights now. Even Main Event provides a better hour of WWE on a weekly basis.

Not for me, personally (and I know NXT doesn't get up there every week) I would say that my preferences right now are Raw -- NXT -- Smackdown -- Main Event (I very rarely watch Main Event tbh).

Maybe I was just on a high after watching Takeover (I had watched Smackdown just before it) but it just made me think about how much potential there is and yet WWE don't know the best way to deal with it most of the time.

[djchapsticks]

it just made me think about how much potential there is and yet WWE don't know the best way to deal with it most of the time.

The most maddening thing for me, they have women who can actually wrestle and put a match together and can invest a crowd in their match, as evidenced in NXT. However, they'll sell that down the river in a heartbeat for a 5 minute glorified piss break crammed with 12 women who don't get a chance to shine, so they can advertise Total fucking Divas.

For me, it's not a hard formula to give fans things they care about...good character development and actual promotion of the wrestling aspect of, well, wrestling. Vince confirmed in the Austin podcast when Stone Cold took him to task over this exact thing, that he now considers the term 'pro-wrestling' as a dirty word. And that really, REALLY, has to change if they are ever going to win back that demographic of fans on a large scale.

Also, fans are fickle and become bored of stagnation very easily. Invest in a bit of character development. For example, guys like HHH, Rock, Austin, Taker, Michaels, Foley.....they evolved throughout the course of their careers....guys like Cena and Orton have stayed still for nigh on a decade because they've been allowed to do so and much like early 90s Hogan, fans got very bored. Look at the (admittedly small, but very involved) crowd at R Evolution, they were in someway involved with and cared, in one way or another about almost every single talent on the card.