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WWE NXT TakeOver: XXV Preview/Predictions
Photo courtesy of Deviantart.
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
All Elite Wrestling grasped the wrestling world after their first Pay-Per-View last week, topped off with a Five-Star Rhodes Brothers match, Awesome Kong, a tag team classic between The Young Bucks and Fenix/Pentagon Jr. and of course, Jon Moxley (the former Dean Ambrose of WWE fame) at the end.
Anybody who looked to WWE for an answer was left hopeless on Raw and SmackDown, side for a surprise mention by Sami Zayn on Raw.
The only true competitor with WWE’s name is its NXT brand, spearheaded creatively by Triple H. The 25th TakeOver event celebrates all that has happened before while also giving us another five-match standout card to feast on.
The essence of TakeOver is the heart of NXT itself – it’s where the up-and-comers showcase their true potential. Who knows where we would be if we didn’t get Zayn-Shinsuke Nakamura, Bayley-Sasha Banks, Johnny Gargano-Adam Cole and The Revival-#DIY, amongst other countless memorable bouts? It’s matches like those that have elevated NXT to the bar that has been set for wrestling expectations in 2019.
TakeOver has become more than a live event. It’s a movement. Beyond that, it has happened in America, United Kingdom, Canada and other places. It has brought NXT to the conversation of actual world domination.
Triple H’s formula to build stars, sign big names, focus on wrestling and characterization is one for success. It’s hard to believe there have been 25 TakeOvers, but we don’t think anybody will disagree that NXT can make 25,000 more TakeOvers for all we care.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 10/12/16: Joe Gets What He Wants
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at then bottom of the post.
(Aired 10/12/16)
Joe Gets What He Wants
– Another week of NXT TV was here and the good thing was that we’d finally get Sanity’s long-awaited debut and the first match of “The Glorious 10” pair of Tye Dillinger/Bobby Roode. It’d also happen under the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Tournament First Round. This was a smart way to blend programs. Needless to say, Sanity’s entrance was unique, yet left us unsettled. This was reliant upon flashlights in the dark, smoke, brick walls and heavy metal music as four denim-jacket clad figures stood with masks. Two of them were revealed as Alexander Wolfe/Sawyer Fulton. It had been a while since we seen them, so we were all for this. They were big in stature and powerful, so smart idea. A man and woman remained masked outside for the match. The duo worked over Dillinger extensively as they mauled him to no limit. Roode watched from afar and wanted no part of them, to the point where he teased a step-in, but walked away, as Dillinger reached out for help. It became apparent that Roode had no interest in a team with Dillinger and was only concerned about himself. Then again, at the same time, we wouldn’t to step in against those guys either. Their finisher was like a Magic Killer variation as they turned Dillinger over for a powerslam to get the win. The reveals of Eric Young/Nikki Glenncross as the last two members was well-done, especially on EY’s part. The crowd let loose a “Holy shit!” chant and rightfully so. We’ll see what promos they give us to establish who they are, but so far, this was a hot debut. Their entrance and look almost rivals The Wyatt Family.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 8/24/16: Stick To The Plan
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 8/24/16)
Stick To The Plan
– To nobody’s surprise, NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II stole SummerSlam weekend in all its goodness. In line with highlight videos of past TakeOver events, we saw the cool slow-motion effects as everything newsworthy from the event was covered, from No Way Jose’s conga line, Hideo Itami’s Go To Sleep on Austin Aries, Ember Moon’s finisher to Bobby Roode’s “Glorious” entrance and the fantastic NXT Tag Team Championship match where Johnny Gargano/Tommaso Ciampa fell short against Champions The Revival to Bayley’s failure to regain gold and Shinsuke Nakamura’s fulfilled mission to win it. We came out of this with the idea that a “new chapter was written” and how right they were.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 7/27/16: Flipping The Switch
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 7/27/16)
Flipping The Switch
– The Shinsuke Nakamura-Wesley Blake match was an easy way to keep the undefeated Nakamura just that while we also saw a quarrel between Blake and Buddy Murphy, who were convinced that one could upstage the other. Blake challenged Nakamura, while Murphy claimed he could beat “a favorite to win the CWC.” As for Blake, his new theme music was eh and commentary mentioned a “new look,” but he still looked the same to us. Anyways, this was reminiscent of Nakamura’s squash over Murphy and didn’t give us anything new, but Nakamura’s always a treat to watch. The follow-up was also fun since we saw NXT General Manager William Regal come out and formally announce that Nakamura would face NXT Champion Samoa Joe at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II. Oh, snap.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 7/29/15: Dominance Is Bliss
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 7/29/15)
Dominance Is Bliss
– NXT seemed to do a decent job in straying from the norm, at least in terms of how the tag team division is presented. Sure – they’ll always have the over teams like Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady to fall back on, but we’re beginning to see an emergence of other teams. This show saw matches and segments dedicated to Dash Wilder/Scott Dawson, Jason Jordan/Chad Gable and then the main event was a Tag team Championship match between The Vaudevillains and the Champions Wesley Blake/Buddy Murphy. It’s a slow start, but if they stick by them enough, they can pull out something decent. For Blake and Murphy’s sake, they need some form of competition and they’ve been running strong as Champions for six months now. Has it really been that long now? As far as the Amore/Cassady-Dawson/Wilder match, it had the look and feel of a Team SAWFT victory from how we got the full SAWFT routine treatment and they worked in their usual spots to the hot tag. Even if they hadn’t won the match, Dash/Dawson worked in a lot of offense and hard strikes to be past what we’d consider a lopsided victory. The fact that they got out of Cassady’s hot tag offense and overpowered Amore to get the win came off like a major upset and a full confirmation that the format was indeed being changed. Got a negative reaction but one nonetheless. You get the feeling there will be a rematch and with Enzo/Cass recently working main roster shows and Main Event tapings, will this be their last big “rivalry”? It’s still baffling that they never had a run with the Tag Titles, but that’s just us.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 7/22/15: Reign Of The Demon
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 7/22/15)
Reign Of The Demon
– The opening video highlighted NXT Champion Finn Balor pulling off his biggest accomplishment to date and it was proclaimed the “Reign Of The Demon.” Rightfully so. Balor leads NXT as it is somewhere between an era of new blood and main roster call-ups. It’s a perfect balance.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 7/15/15: Ladies Show How It’s Done
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 7/15/15)
Ladies Show How It’s Done
– For what it’s worth, this episode of NXT had its share of new blood, old faces and a sense that a “new era” was indeed upon us. We had a little bit of everything here and maybe it’s an awesome thing that the NXT Divas can main event a show and it doesn’t feel like “big news” but rather the norm. The rematch between NXT Divas Champion Sasha Banks and Charlotte had a big amount of hype the week before when the challenger agreed to team up with the Champion to fight Emma/Dana Brooke for the favor of a Title match. The other half of the hype came in the fact that everybody pretty knew this would be quality from the bouts we’ve seen before and the timing couldn’t be better what with the Divas segment from Raw. Not to mention with the main roster transition, this was probably the last time we’d see a one-on-one match between these two on NXT.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 6/17/15: Summer Brawlin’
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 6/17/15)
Summer Brawlin’
– That Dusty Rhodes tribute video seems to get better and better every time it’s shown.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 6/3/15: Too SAWFT For The BAMF
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 6/3/15)
Too SAWFT For The BAMF
– Rightfully so, the opening video highlighted NXT Champion Kevin Owens’ stellar match with United States Champion John Cena at Elimination Chamber. Disappointingly so, besides the mention of Owens’ NXT Championship open challenge on Smackdown, he was nowhere found on the show he currently represents. Hell, even a backstage promo would suffice.
Notes In Observance – WWE NXT 5/27/15: Solomon Eats Crowe
By Nicholas Jason Lopez
“Notes In Observance” features random thoughts and analysis on recent television shows. Quick results can be found at the bottom of the post.
(Aired 5/27/15)
Solomon Eats Crowe
– WWE’s utterly slick video production made TakeOver: Unstoppable look like even more of a spectacle than it was; showcasing the athleticism, excitement and unpredictability. Loved the slow-motion capture here.
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