Pilot Review - WWE: NXT TakeOver 2 - Fatal 4 Way

Hey everyone! 

As I’ve previously mentioned on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, I’m planning on expanding on the content of this blog. As interesting as following my journey as a quote-unquote “writer” may be interesting to some, I figured I’d try and expand my potential audience and also write on other subjects that are near and dear to my heart. Anyone who knows me knows my passion for professional wrestling from a young age up until present day, so what better way to start things off with a pilot review of sorts of this past Thursday’s WWE event titled “NXT TakeOver 2: Fatal 4 Way”!

NXT is a developmental brand of the WWE, exclusive to the WWE Network, showcasing up and coming talents before they are promoted to the main stage of WWE’s flagship shows RAW and Smackdown. Before this was only available in the state of Florida on localized television, but COO Triple H has since made it his mission to increase awareness of the brand, with NXT TakeOver 2: Fatal 4 Way being the third live NXT special to air on the WWE Network. It’s produced and marketed differently to the WWE’s flagship shows and has been gaining huge momentum in recent months. So without further ado, lets see if this latest special lives up to the lofty expectations of yours truly; with three championship matches on the card, as well as the debut of newest signing KENTA and a rare Hair vs Hair Match, a lot is riding on this event! Let’s get to it!

The show opens with the traditional WWE opening, but seemingly being “taken over” by NXT, with clips of the stars appearing and the usual “Then, Now, Forever” stopping on “Now”. Very nice touch. We throw to the usual NXT intro and then live to Full Sail, with the crowd as passionate and loud as ever.

So the first match on the show is going to be for the NXT Tag Team Championship, with number one contenders Sin Cara and Kalisto going up against the dominate champions The Ascension. Right off the bat, I’m loving the team of Cara/Kalisto – the highlight package showing their journey through the number one contenders tournament showed that the two have fantastic chemistry. Speaking of fantastic chemistry, the commentary team of Tom Phillips, Rene Young and Byron Saxton come off really good so far.

Out next are the champions, Konnor and Viktor, known collectively as The Ascension. We’re informed that the duo have been champions for 344 days, which immediately gives this match a big fight feel. The commentators are pushing that The Ascension have destroyed everyone in their path and that the Lucha Dragons (the new name for the Cara/Kalisto pairing) are the new, vibrant tag team that may be able to dethrone them. The crowd seem fairly split down the middle with their support.

The Ascension work over Sin Cara early on, and whilst the guys are somewhat limited with their moveset, what they do packs a punch and looks damn good. It isn’t flashy, but it’s effective, and more importantly, it’s believable. Sin Cara gains the upper hand momentarily, but the hot tag is cut off, and the fans remain super invested in the match. I get the feeling that Viktor is the more polished of the duo, but Konnor has improved leaps and bounds since his debut way back when.

Kalisto gets the hot tag and the crowd absolutely come alive! This is the first time I’ve seen the masked superstar in action, and he is a house on fire, running circles around both Viktor and Konnor. Viktor bumps like a madman for Kalisto’s offense, and Sin Cara hits a beautiful dive through the middle ropes at the champions. The arena erupts in a “Lucha” chant, and this has been a fine opener thus far. Sound psychology and a great story being told.

Sin Cara interrupts the Fall of Man finishing move of The Ascension, giving Kalisto the opportunity to hit his finisher and just like that, we have NEW NXT Tag Team Champions! The moment feels epic in scale, and the crowd give a fantastic response to the new masked champions. The match itself was a great opener, getting the crowd involved and ready for what is to come.

The commentary team put over the Lucha Dragons strong, and the two give a brief interview with the lovely Rene Young after the match. It’s basically them just shouting about how happy they are, but hey, it feels genuine and is a feel-good moment. So far, so good.

Up next we’re introduced to a promotional video of NXT Champion Adrian Neville. We get Neville talking about how he’s undefeated and a highlight reel of his best moments and moves. His finisher, Red Arrow, is especially impressive. The story is that Neville is walking a thin line between confident and cocky… could be see a heel turn down the line?

Right, here comes CJ Parker out for his match. We’re told he demanded a match from NXT General Manager William Regal, and has now been given one against the debuting Baron Corbin. CJ Parker has a green-peace gimmick which I’m sure irritates many, but hey, it’s original. Corbin however is covered in tattoos and looks incredibly imposing.

Match starts with Corbin throwing CJ Parker to the corner, and following up with a BRUTAL clothesline. He follows that up with an absolutely spectacular finishing move that needs to be seen to be believed. And just like that, Baron Corbin picks up the win! He leaves as soon as the three count hits, and Corbin gives me an Edge-type vibe when he first debuted – silent, mysterious but very intriguing.

Tyson Kidd is up next talking about the main event tonight, where he, Sami Zayn and Tyler Breeze will all compete against Adrian Neville in a Fatal 4 Way for the NXT Championship. Kidd keeps it simple – he’s cocky, arrogant, the grizzled veteran. “Fact!” It does what it needs to, and continues to build hype for the championship match.

Now this should be interesting – a Hair vs Hair Match! A match type popularized in the Memphis territory in the 70’s and 80’s, it is rarely seen these days, which gives this match a creative and unique spin. Out first is the charismatic Frenchman,  Sylvester LeFort. LeFort is flamboyant and loud, and really entertaining. His opponent is the equally entertaining Enzo Amore. The crowd recite his opening speech which is pretty awesome to see. While the match may not be much to write home about due to both guys relative inexperience, their characters and the story behind the match should probably be enough to keep me interested. Enzo describes all the type of haircuts he could give LeFort, and it’s awesome.

The match is fairly basic, and as I suspected, the personalities and storyline are carrying this match far more than the actual work-rate. I can’t fault either Enzo or LeFort however, they try hard with the tools they have, it just isn’t as polished as what we’ve seen so far. The crowd are really into it however, which obviously helps. Enzo picks up the winner with a roll-up, and Sylvester LeFort is getting a haircut!

Or so we think… Marcus, LeFort’s lackey, helps Sylvester escape, and it is LeFort who ends up with a bucket of hair-removal cream on his head. Crowd love it, commentators gush about it… yeah, I’m cool with it.

Tyler Breeze now gets the promo package treatment, and it gets across he’s narcissistic personality and gimmick of taking selfies. Breeze went from a pretty “meh” gimmick but has really made it his own, and his in-ring talent has really gotten better in recent months. Well deserving of his spot in the main event tonight, and has a character that is truly hateable.

The ring announcer introduces NXT General Manager and fellow Brit, William Regal to a great reception from the Full Sail crowd. Regal is an old favourite of mine, and is an excellent veteran. He directs us to a video package of potentially the biggest international signing in WWE history, KENTA. The video shows KENTA signing with WWE at an event in Japan (with Hulk Hogan no less!) and various WWE superstars giving their thoughts on the Japanese sensation.

KENTA comes out and the crowd give him an excellent reception in his NXT debut. A “KENTA” chant starts up, as the superstar says hello to NXT. He’s clearly been working on his promos in English, to ensure he can connect more with the American audience, so kudos to him for that. He tells us that being in NXT and WWE is a dream come true. He announces that as a tribute to one of his heroes, he will now be known as Hideo Itami. The name change is obvious for WWE to copyright the name – which I’m fine with. Jon Moxley changed to Dean Ambrose, Tyler Black changed to Seth Rollins, Claudio Castagnoli changed to Antonio Cesaro, Bryan Danielson changed to Daniel Bryan… so, I’m cool with the name change.

Before Hideo can continue, The Ascension come out and quickly boot him out the ring to a chorus of boos! They demand a rematch for their NXT Tag Team Championships, but are quickly stopped in their tracks by an enraged Hideo! The crowd go nuts as the new NXT superstar begins to take care of both members of The Ascension! WWE could not have put Hideo over any more than have him roll over both members of The Ascension, and in convincing fashion too. To ensure the odds are even, Hideo grabs a steel chair, sits in the middle of the ring and dares them to enter. Rene Young on commentary says it best when she tells us that “this is his house now.” Great call, and fantastic segment, which ends with William Regal raising Hideo Itami’s hand.

Bull Dempsey vs Mojo Rawley is up next and honestly, this is a match that absolutely nobody wanted to see. It couldn’t have gone more than two minutes, and in all honesty, that’s a really good thing. Dempsey pretty much ran over Rawley, finishing him off with a Diving Headbutt for the win. I’d be surprised if Rawley remains on the roster by the end of the year – it would appear that management may be giving up on him.

It's now time for the second of our three championship matches on the card, as Bayley challenges Charlotte for the NXT Women’s Championship. This has been built as even more of an underdog story than the opener, but the crowd are completely behind Bayley. We cut to an excellent video package highlighting Bayley’s character, and I have to give props to the production team led by Kevin Dunn – all their video packages look brilliant.

The match, whilst not as good as Paige/Emma and Nattie/Charlotte from the previous NXT specials, is still really solid and told a fantastic story. The usual loveable, sweet-hearted Bayley has gotten serious, working a stiff style with Charlotte with the fans firmly behind her in her quest to become the new champion. It's formulaic but very enjoyable. There was an unfortunate flub near the end of the match where Charlotte over-shot a moonsault, but luckily this wasn’t the finishing sequence. Charlotte picked up the victory with her finisher Bow Down to the Queen, and retained her championship.

In after-match shenanigans, Sasha Banks marches down to attack Bayley (the two have been feuding in the middle of this rivalry, and if I’m not mistaken, Bayley defeated Sasha to earn this championship match). Charlotte however comes to her aid, putting over the fact that Bayley has earned Charlotte’s respect. Does this mean a babyface turn for Charlotte? Time will tell.

In the words of Jay Hunter from OSW Review, it was then time for our MAAAIIINN EVVVEENNT, as Adrian Neville defended his NXT Championship against Sami Zayn, Tyler Breeze and Tyson Kidd in a Fatal 4 Way Match. As expected, the match is a flurry of high impact and spectacular moves. I can’t truly do this match justice by just describing it – I would urge that if you are a wrestling fan to watch this match, as it is a definite Match of the Year contender. A slow starter that built into an absolutely excellent final 10-15 minutes, with the ending sequence having the crowd on the edge of their seat. The match put across all four stars strengths and everybody had their chance to shine and opportunity to score the win. In short, they all looked equal, which is how a match like this should be booked.

Zayn looks poised to finally win the “big one”, taking out Kidd and Breeze, but his three-count is interrupted by champion Neville pulling the referee out! Whilst not a clear-cut heel turn, this certainly was a dastardly tactic, and may lead to Neville turning to the dark side down the line. Neville takes out Zayn with a brutal kick to the head, and hits the always awesome looking Red Arrow finisher on Tyson Kidd for the win, with Zayn just a second too late to break up the pinfall. The show concludes with Neville celebrating his dubious win, with Zayn looking just absolutely crushed.

Overall, the show was fantastic in my opinion. In contrast to a usual 3-hour edition of Monday Night RAW, where there is filler and useless segments all over the place, EVERYTHING on this show mattered. We had a hot opener crowning new tag team champions, an impressive debut from Corbin and the newly-christened Hideo Itami looking like a bonda-fide badass, a fun Hair vs Hair Match, Bull Dempsey working his way up the card, Charlotte retaining her Women’s Championship over the immensely popular Bayley, and a high-octane main event that delivered on the hype and then some, with storyline progression from the champion Neville and the crowd’s favourite Sami Zayn.

The future is in safe hands. More exciting is Hideo Itami’s in-ring debut next week, plus the impending debuts of Fergal Devitt and Kevin Steen from the indie circuit, not to mention the fallout from TakeOver. NXT will certainly be a show to keep your eyes on in the coming weeks.

That does it for me, but I thought I’d quickly let you know the plan for the blog going forward. The writing is in its editing stage so there isn’t too much to discuss, so I’ve worked out the following schedule starting this coming Monday:

Movie Monday – I will review a movie of my choosing either from my childhood, one I’ve recently seen in the cinema, or from my collection of all-time favourites.

Wrestling Wednesday – With the WWE Network at my disposal, I will be reviewing some of the best, and worst, wrestling events in history. Some may be ones I remember from my childhood, or events I’ve never seen before.

Fun Friday – A mix of everything else that I enjoy, this category could be a review of a videogame I’ve recently played or used to growing up, or perhaps a review of a YouTube series or general thoughts on a news item that is making the rounds that interests me.

As always, thank you for reading, and I’ll see you back here Monday for the first edition of Movie Monday!

Will