NXT
Date: September 18, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Renee Young, Rich Brennan, Alex Riley

We’re past Takeover II now and the main story seems to have been Adrian Neville teasing a heel turn by pulling the referee out of the ring to retain his title. Other than that we saw the debut of Hideo Itami and what looks to be the start of a feud with former NXT Tag Team Champions the Ascension, who lost their belts to Sin Cara and Kalisto. Let’s get to it.

We open with a recap of Takeover.

Opening sequence.

Here’s Titus O’Neil as your WWE Superstar for this taping cycle. He tells the fans that they’re lucky to be in his presence (“WE WANT DARREN!”) and complains about people like Sami Zayn and Adrian Neville taking up his time on Raw last week. Now he’s going to take up our time and just stay out here for awhile. Now this show will be called NXTITUS but here’s Sami Zayn to cut him off.

Sami says we need someone like Titus here who can’t win a match to save his life. While Titus is getting beaten up by a bunny, NXT is stealing the show. A fight is teased but here’s Adrian Neville to interrupt. The champ says he’s the man that stands up for NXT, but here’s Tyson Kidd with something to say.

Kidd says it’s a fact that Titus and Sami are both losers but at least Adrian is a champion. Tyson praises Adrian for doing what he did last week, which Sami says he’s cool with. Titus cuts them off and says he’s here to make a statement, but GM William Regal comes out and makes Titus/Tyson vs. Adrian/Sami for later. NXT does NOT need these long talking segments to start the shows.

We look back at Hideo Itami debuting and taking out the Ascension.

Charlotte vs. Emma

Non-title and of course the fans welcome Emma back. Emma knocks the belt out of Charlotte’s hand so the champ knocks her down and ties Emma up in the Figure Four headlock. She even mocks Emma’s dance with the hold on. That’s the kind of thing that elevates wrestlers just a step above the rest.

Emma rolls back for a cover and breaks the hold but Charlotte runs her over with a shoulder. The moonsault is broken up though and Emma grabs a rollup (after missing on the first try). A few running forearms drop Charlotte and there’s the Emma Sandwich. Emma gets two off a high cross body but gets caught in a neckbreaker and Natural Selection gives Charlotte the pin at 4:10.

Rating: C-. This was sloppier than I was expecting but it continues to amaze me how much more polished these girls look than the regular WWE girls. They look like wrestlers who happen to be women instead of the Divas who are bad actresses who try to have a match every now and then. The fans don’t seem to care about Emma anymore.

Justin Gabriel vs. Hideo Itami

Feeling out process to start until Hideo kicks him in the face to block a leapfrog. Gabriel bails to the floor and snaps Hideo’s neck across the top rope to take over. Off to a double chickenwing but Itami fights out with strikes and even taunts Justin a bit. A running boot to the face and kick to the chest have Justin in trouble before a springboard kick to the ribs drops Gabriel. Itami mostly hits a top rope double stomp for the pin at 3:35.

Rating: D+. Oh I hope there’s more to him than what I saw here. I know I’m going to get yelled at for this but I really do not care for wrestlers with such one dimensional offense. I don’t think Hideo used anything but kicks here and that’s going to get old in a hurry if it’s all he’s doing. That being said, this was just a three and a half minute match so it’s way too early to pass judgment on him yet. I haven’t seen much of his Japan work so I don’t know if this is what he’s like most of the time, but I really hope not.

Post match Ascension comes out and destroys Itami with the Fall of Man.

CJ Parker vs. Baron Corbin

Baron looks to be a biker. Parker gets shoved into the corner and is dropped by a right hand. The same snap Downward Spiral, now called End of Days, takes out Parker at 34 seconds.

We look at Marcus Louis getting his hair removed last week.

The girl (Carmella) that gave Enzo and Big Cass the hair cream comes into the gym to yell at them for getting her fired. She wants a job as a fighter and smacks Enzo down to the floor. I like these videos where they take things out of the arena. It’s a nice change of scenery even if it’s something as basic as a gym.

Tyson Kidd/Titus O’Neil vs. Sami Zayn/Adrian Neville

Kidd and Sami get things going but it’s off to Neville before there’s any contact. Adrian jumps over Kidd in the corner and gets one off a hiptoss. Sami tags himself back in and hits Adrian’s standing moonsault (Fans: “BETTER THAN NEVILLE!”) for one of his own. Adrian comes back in and does a standing corkscrew moonsault onto Tyson’s legs for two. Neville dropkicks Tyson to the floor but Sami tags himself in. The champ doesn’t notice and loads up a dive but Sami hits a springboard moonsault to take Kidd out again as we take a break.

Back with Tyson driving Sami into the corner for the tag off to Titus. O’Neil hits two backbreakers in a row before just throwing Sami away. It’s already back to Tyson who gets a TYSON CHICKEN chant. A chinlock slows things down a bit until Titus comes in with a hue uppercut. Off to an abdominal stretch before a hard slam drops Sami again.

A legdrop to the back of the head sends Zayn crawling for the corner where he avoids a charging Titus. The hot tag brings in Adrian to clean house with kicks and a standing moonsault for two on Tyson. Everything breaks down and O’Neil breaks up the Red Arrow by shoving Adrian onto Tyson’s knees, giving Kidd the pin at 11:30.

Rating: C+. Basic tag match here but you can see the seeds being planted for the eventual full heel turn by Adrian and the showdown with Sami. That story could take months to set up and the blowoff match could be a classic. Good match here though it was much more about setting stuff up for the future.

Sami is annoyed but says it’s ok to end the show.

Overall Rating: C. This was a very basic but still entertaining show. They’re clearly setting stuff up instead of focusing on what’s going on right now and that’s a smart move. It gives the fans a reason to come back, but the good thing is NXT can keep things interesting on the way to the big stuff later on. Corbin could be a big deal in the future, Carmella can restock the Divas division and Itami is going to be a main event player soon enough. Couple that with the build to Neville vs. Zayn and things are looking up again for NXT.

Results

Charlotte b. Emma – Natural Selection

Hideo Itami b. Justin Gabriel – Top rope double splash

Baron Corbin b. CJ Parker – End of Days

Tyson Kidd/Titus O’Neil b. Sami Zayn/Adrian Neville – Kidd pinned Neville after a missed Red Arrow

Takeover: Fatal Four-Way
Date: September 11, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

For once I’m actually looking forward to a WWE special. This is the third two hour live event that NXT has run and the first two were knocked out of the park. The main event tonight is a four way with NXT Champion Adrian Neville defending against Tyson Kidd, Sami Zayn and Tyler Breeze in what should be a classic. Let’s get to it.

The regular WWE video plays but an NXT video hacks in. You might even say it takes over.

Opening sequence with only shots of people appearing tonight.

Tag Team Titles: Sin Cara/Kalisto vs. Ascension

Sin Cara and Kalisto won a tournament to get this show. They also now have their own music which starts with someone shouting LUCHA LUCHA LUCHA! Ascension has held the titles for nearly a year and have barely ever broken a sweat in a defense. Viktor knocks Sin Cara up against the ropes but gets caught by a standing Lionsault for two. That’s fine with Viktor though as he sends Cara out to the floor so Konnor can drive him back first into the apron.

Back to Viktor for a hard slam for two as the champions are already dominating. We hit a double chickenwing before Cara escapes a powerbomb. Konnor knocks Kalisto off the apron though and Cara can’t make the tag. An enziguri stops Konnor but he puts on a front facelock and just drives Cara back into the corner. That’s fine with Cara as he flips over and makes the tag to Kalisto.

Everything speeds up with a spinning slingshot plancha. A semi-botched sunset bomb gets two on Viktor as Cara dives on Konnor. Both champions go outside and catch Kalisto in mid air. Sin dives on both of them for a huge crash and the fans are WAY into this. Back inside they load up the Fall of Man but Cara trips up Konnor. Kalisto rolls out of the way and hits Salida Del Sol (standing sitout Sliced Bread #2) on Viktor for the pin and the titles at 7:48.

Rating: B-. Power vs. speed is something that is going to work no matter how many times you try it. They had to get the belts off of Ascension at some point and putting them on Lucha was as good of a way as they could have done it. This frees up Ascension to go after the Usos, which makes sense given that they already debuted on Main Event this week.

The new champions dub themselves the Lucha Dragons.

We get a quick pause in memory of 9/11.

Video on Adrian Neville about how tough a year it’s been for him but he hasn’t lost a single match. Everyone will remember that he’s the man that gravity forgot. He’s beaten all of his challengers and now he has to beat them at once.

CJ Parker vs. Baron Corbin

This is an added match. The much bigger Corbin shoves the Eco Warrior Parker into the corner….and then plants him with a very powerful one armed Downward Spiral for the pin at 32 seconds. He made it look even better by rocking Parker forward and then snapping him back. That’s a good way to start a push.

Video on Tyson Kidd where he lists off some of his facts, mainly talking about each man in the main event tonight. He will walk out as champion. Fact.

Enzo Amore vs. Sylvester LeFort

Enzo has new music which he might sing himself. This is Jersey Shore vs. France in a hair vs. hair match. Amore even has “hair cream” to get rid of Sylvester’s hair. Before the match, Enzo suggests a few hairstyles for LeFort, including a combover and a mushroom, complete with the fans shouting HOW YOU DOIN after every suggestion. According to Cass, after the match, Sylvester’s hair will be S-A-W-F-T.

Enzo grabs a headlock to start and ruffles LeFort’s hair to really mess with him. A shoulder puts Sylvester on the apron but he snaps Enzo across the top rope to take over. We hit the chinlock on Enzo followed by a hard kick between the shoulders. Amore fights back with some stiff punches but a Marcus Louis distraction lets Sylvester nail a clothesline for two. Cass takes out Louis, allowing Amore to grab a rollup (and tights) for the pin at 5:46.

Rating: D+. The wrestling was bad but what are you expecting from someone like Enzo? He’s a comedy character and has never had a match go more than a few minutes. This was a way to give the fans a good laugh and there’s nothing wrong with that. Cass and Amore are just a loveable team and they beat up the snobs. What more can you ask for?

Sylvester is being taken to the chair but Marcus makes a save. Amore and Cass get up though and LeFort runs off, leaving Marcus to take the cream on the head.

Tyler Breeze says the new champion will be gorgeous. Every outfit he wears goes with gold.

Here’s General Manager William Regal with something to say. He talks about how great it is in NXT right now and introduces the biggest international signing in NXT history. We get a video on Kenta, with various WWE wrestlers talking about how awesome he is. Kenta comes to the ring to a VERY strong reaction and he gives a brief welcome in English before going into Japanese. He says this is a dream come true and he’s starting over with a new name: Hideo Itami, a tribute to one of his heroes. His goal is to be NXT Champion….and here are the Ascension to interrupt.

Itami is thrown to the floor and Konnor demands a rematch for the titles. Hideo gets back in the ring and takes off his jacket. A kick and forearm put Ascension down and a double dropkick does it again. Itami gets a chair and stands….well not that tall actually but it’s a good debut.

Bull Dempsey vs. Mojo Rawley

Not much to this one as they were in the tag team tournament and lost, causing Dempsey to destroy Rawley. Dempsey hammers him into the corner to start as the fans want Kevin Steen. Mojo spears him down and hammers away but Dempsey runs him over with a splash. A top rope headbutt ends Mojo at 1:07. If Rawley wasn’t finished before, he certainly is now.

Dempsey adds another headbutt for good measure.

Enzo and Cass want to see someone bald. They see Marcus with a towel over his head and carry him into the arena for the big reveal. Enzo rips off the towel, revealing little bits of hair on Marcus’ head and no eyebrows. Nice touch. Enzo says he is B-A-W-L-D.

We recap Bayley vs. Charlotte. It’s another simple story with Charlotte being the girl that feels she’s here by birth and Bayley being the biggest fangirl in the history of wrestling who just loves to be here.

Women’s Title: Charlotte vs. Bayley

Bayley now has streamers on her arms. Charlotte offers a handshake to start but Bayley drives her into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs. A quick cross body gets two for Bayley but Charlotte counters a backslide with a neckbreaker. We hit the figure four headlock on Bayley and Charlotte even flips forward a few times and slam Bayley onto the mat. They trade a few rollups with Bayley countering a Figure Four attempt for two. Charlotte dropkicks her back down and nails a hard knee to the ribs.

Bayley comes back with a hard series of forearms, only to miss a charge into the corner and get slammed down onto the mat for two. Charlotte goes up top but gets caught in a top rope hurricanrana to put both girls down. The delayed cover only gets two but the Belly to Bayley is countered into a rollup. Charlotte nails her in the face, knocking Bayley head first into the bottom buckle. A moonsault doesn’t quite hit as Charlotte landed on her legs instead of on Bayley and only gets two. Natural Selection (the new name for Bow Down to the Queen) is enough to retain the title at 11:55.

Rating: C+. This was a far cry from Charlotte vs. Natalya but they had to have a heel win somewhere in there. I’ll give them this though: they had me wanting to see Bayley suplex Charlotte through the floor and take the title. The story was perfect here though and that’s as good as they could have hoped for. The match wasn’t bad at all either and that hurricanrana looked great.

Post match Sasha Banks comes out to beat on Bayley but Charlotte makes the save. Bayley is confused.

Sami Zayn talks about having to be ready for his opponents. He and Neville are friends, but he wants to beat Adrian to become champion.

Hideo Itami makes his in ring debut next week.

NXT Title: Tyson Kidd vs. Sami Zayn vs. Tyler Breeze vs. Adrian Neville

Neville is defending and this is one fall to a finish. After the big match intros, they have about half an hour for this if necessary. Kidd’s trunks now say FACT. The fans start their dueling chants and aren’t sure who they like best so far. After a minute of circling each other we’re ready to go with all four heading to the floor. That goes nowhere but they do tease Neville vs. Zayn to a BIG response. They head back to the floor with Neville kicking Kidd and Sami chopping Breeze.

Sami and Kidd go back inside with Zayn grabbing the Koji Clutch until Tyler makes a save. Now they head to the stage where Adrian’s knee is taken out and a double suplex plants him on the stage. Sami picks off Kidd but gets a double suplex of his own on the ramp. Back to the ring now with Sami getting double teamed by the villains. The fans tell Kidd that Nattie is better as Adrian gets knocked off the apron.

Sami gets stomped in the corner and Tyler covers after a suplex, triggering the brawl with Kidd. Tyson sends him to the floor and gets two off a neckbreaker to Zayn. Off to a chinlock on Sami but he quickly jawbreaks his way to freedom. Kidd puts him in the Tree of Woe though as Adrian is knocked to the floor again, followed by a kick to the face from Tyson.

Zayn tries to get back up but Kidd just pounds him down in the corner and puts on the chinlock again. Neville finally gets back in but Tyson sends him to the floor for about the fourth time. Adrian pops back in though and backdrops Kidd down. Breeze returns from the dead, only to get clotheslined down by Sami. Zayn loads up a dive to the heels but Adrian hits a HUGE top rope Asai moonsault to put them both down.

That leaves Neville vs. Zayn and the fans get even more into this all of a sudden. A big kick to the champion’s head gets two as Kidd is back in for the save. Kidd throws Neville into Sami to knock the champion to the floor and the Moss Covered Three Handled Family Credenza gets two on Sami. Tyson can’t get the Sharpshooter on Sami and the springboard elbow hits knees. Sami loads up the Helluva Kick but Tyler nails the Beauty Shot to knock him down. Neville tries to come in off the top but gets dropkicked out of the air for a VERY close two. Tyler gets two on Kidd as well and frustration is setting in.

Adrian goes up top but Breeze and Kidd load up a double superplex. That’s not enough for Sami as he makes it a HUGE Tower of Doom. Kidd somehow gets up at two and Breeze falls out to the floor. Sami punches Tyson into the corner and gets all fired up but charges into a boot from Neville. A Shooting Star from Adrian crushes Sami but Breeze comes in to steal a two count and make the fans gasp.

Tyler misses a Beauty Shot to Sami and gets caught in the Sharpshooter. Tyson drags him back to the center of the ring and Tyler loads up his hand to tap but Adrian grabs his hand to hold it up in a great move. Sami makes the save and the fans are very thankful. Sami and Adrian finally get to slug it out until Neville gets backdropped to the floor.

An exploder suplex puts Kidd in the corner and Zayn dives through the ropes to take out Adrian. In an even better move Sami dives from the floor, over the bottom rope and into a tornado DDT on Tyler on the floor. The Helluva Kick looks to finish Kidd but Adrian pulls the referee out of the way. A superkick drops Sami and the Red Arrow to Kidd retains the title at 23:58.

Rating: A-. If Sami had won the title there it’s even higher. I’m not wild on Adrian seemingly turning heel but in theory this sets up Neville vs. Zayn in the big showdown for the title. Thankfully Sami didn’t get pinned here and the huge spots worked really well, especially that Tower of Doom and the diving tornado DDT. This was more than worth the wait and now it looks like Sami is getting his chance very soon. Notice that they didn’t really let Sami and Adrian fight other than a brief exchange, even though the fans were begging for it. That’s a sign for the future.

Sami looks at Adrian with frustration on his face to end the show.

Overall Rating: B+. This wasn’t quite as good as Arrival and Takeover but these things are still as good as anything else you’re going to see in wrestling today. NXT has mastered this idea of setting something up and then executing it rather than meandering forever until they figure out what they want to do and expecting us to keep watching. I love this promotion and it holds up incredibly well week after week. Zayn vs. Neville is going to rock and the future looks bright with some major debuts on the horizon.

Results

Sin Cara/Kalisto b. Ascension – Salida Del Sol to Viktor

Baron Corbin b. CJ Parker – Downward Spiral

Enzo Amore b. Sylvester LeFort – Rollup

Bull Dempsey b. Mojo Rawley – Top rope headbutt

Charlotte b. Bayley – Natural Selection

Adrian Neville b. Sami Zayn, Tyler Breeze and Tyson Kidd – Red Arrow to Kidd

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of ECW Pay Per Views at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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And check out my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

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Alternate title: I Love NXT.

http://www.wrestlingrumors.net/kbs-review-cure-common-raw/28640/

NXT
Date: September 4, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Renee Young

It’s the go home show for Takeover II next week and we now have a main event set. This week we’re likely going to be setting the stage for the fatal fourway next week with Adrian Neville defending against Tyler Breeze, Sami Zayn and Tyson Kidd. We also have the finals of the #1 contenders tag team tournament. Let’s get to it.

Before the opening sequence we hear about the card tonight, which will see the tournament finals and all four men in the fourway in singles matches.

Opening sequence.

Alexa Bliss vs. Charlotte

Non-title. Charlotte takes her down with a headlock but Bliss goes to the middle rope for an armdrag followed by a headscissors. That’s enough for Charlotte as she chokes Bliss on the middle rope to take over. Bliss rolls through a powerbomb into a sunset flip for two but walks into Bow Down to the Queen for the pin at 2:22.

Bayley comes out post match and says it’s time Charlotte took her seriously, because she’s seriously taking the title at Takeover. She offers a handshake but Charlotte shoves her instead. Charlotte walks over to her and gets caught in a bad looking Belly to Bayley.

Breeze says he’ll win the title because he looks better than everyone else.

Kenta debuts next week and will be wrestling under that name.

Sin Cara and Kalisto say they have a great opportunity tonight and have the heart to beat the Ascension.

Tye Dillinger vs. Tyler Breeze

Dillinger jumps over Tyler in the corner to start and runs him over with a shoulder. Breeze gets all aggressive and stomps Tye down in the corner before putting on a front facelock. Back up and the Beauty Show is good for the pin at 2:40.

Kidd says he’ll win the title because he’s been around the world and is cocky and arrogant, but he’s earned the right to be.

Enzo and Big Cass at a beauty salon and goes in to see a friend of his to get some hair removal cream (I hope it’s Freebird brand) for the hair vs. hair match against Sylvester LeFort next week. A very effeminate man comes in and freaks them out so they get in an argument over who should test the cream. They spill it on a dog and the stylist freaks out as they look in shock and say the cream really works.

Tyson Kidd vs. Adam Rose

There are far too many people here with names that start with Ty. Kidd takes him into the corner for some knees to start. Rose comes back with elbows to the face, only to walk into a suplex. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Rose fights up with forearms and elbows to the jaw. Kidd dropkicks the knee out and puts on the Sharpshooter for the submission at 4:11.

Rating: D+. This was a glorified squash and Kidd looked good throughout. The fourway next week is going to be awesome and this was a good step to get us to that match. Rose is done at this point save for comedy and that’s all he was ever going to become. Then again, it’s not like any of this matters on the main show as NXT is in its own world.

Sami Zayn says he wants to beat Neville because Adrian is the champion.

The Vaudevillains, in black and white of course, promise that they’ll win the tournament. Aiden insists that Gotch can move mountains and Simon adds a hearty EXCELSIOR!

Sami Zayn vs. Marcus Louis

They trade wristlocks to start until Marcus gets him down into a chinlock. Sami finally fights up with a kick to the ribs and a clothesline followed by a nice dropkick. He easily takes Louis down and puts on the Koji Clutch for the tap at 2:59.

Enzo and Big Cass run out and try to use the cream on LeFort’s hair but Sylvester escapes.

Adrian Neville knows he doesn’t have to be pinned or submit to lose the title and he loves the challenge.

CJ Parker vs. Adrian Neville

Non-title again. Renee accuses Parker of using REGULAR gasoline recently. Neville spins around to start and takes Parker to the mat with a headlock. Parker fights back up with a spinwheel kick for two but misses a top rope splash. Adrian scores with some kicks of his own and the Red Arrow is good for the pin at 3:21.

Rating: C-. Neville has been a really good champion so far but I have no idea if he holds onto the belt next week. That’s the best thing you could ask for going into a big match as it really could go wither way. I love that Parker is now a lowly jobber as the fans absolutely could not stand him and he didn’t have the skill to stay at the level he was on.

Tag Team Title #1 Contenders Tournament Finals: Vaudevillains vs. Sin Cara/Kalisto

The Vaudevillains beat Bull Dempsey/Mojo Rawley and Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady to advance while Kalisto/Sin Cara defeated Wesley Blake/Buddy Murphy and Adam Rose/Sami Zayn to get here. Kalisto spins English around to start and Aiden is quickly frustrated. It’s quickly off to Sin Cara vs. Gotch with the masked man being dropped ribs first onto the top rope and out to the floor.

English comes back in to hammer away in the corner, only to walk into a cross body. A double tag brings in Kalisto for a headscissors to Gotch. Something like the La Mistica faceplant gets two and everything breaks down. Cara dives over the top rope to take out English, sending him head first into the stge. Gotch catches Kalisto’s cross body but walks into the Salida Del Sol, followed by the Swanton from Sin Cara to give them the title shot at 5:50.

Rating: C. This didn’t have time to go anywhere but it did exactly what it was supposed to do. I don’t think anyone expected a different outcome and that’s the right way to go. The luchadors are on a roll heading into the title match next week and there’s a chance the titles could finally change. Basic power vs. speed match here but it was fine.

Ascension comes out for a staredown to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This was one of the best go home shows I can remember in a very long time. Almost every Takeover match got some time and it set up the fourway perfectly. I can’t wait for the show now and based on the house show reports, the fourway has the potential to be a classic. Throw in the fact that all three titles could easily change hands and Enzo vs. LeFort could be a very solid comedy match and Takeover II is shaping up great.

Results
Charlotte b. Alexa Bliss – Bow Down to the Queen
Tyler Breeze b. Tye Dillinger – Beauty Show
Tyson Kidd b. Adam Rose – Sharpshooter
Sami Zayn b. Marcus Louis – Koji Clutch
Adrian Neville b. CJ Parker – Red Arrow
Sin Cara/Kalisto b. Vaudevillains – Swanton bomb to Gotch

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my new book of on the History of ECW Pay Per Views at Amazon for just $3.99 at:

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Time for a rather funny Diva in Kaitlyn.

Kaitlyn would spend a little time in FCW before debuting on the third season of NXT as the rookie of pro Vickie Guerrero. Here’s her first match from September 14, 2010.

Primo/AJ vs. Kaitlyn/Dolph Ziggler

The boys start us off which lasts about 20 seconds. AJ used to be homeless and according to Cole she’ll be homeless again in about three weeks. Cross body by AJ for one before Kaitlyn takes her head off and tags out. Men vs. women is illegal here but we get it for a second anyway. AJ can’t get by Dolph so she slaps him in the face.

Again I would often advise that as a solution to a problem: when all else fails just HIT THEM IN THE FACE. Primo comes in and has about 20 seconds of offense, cementing his jobber status before the Zig Zag ends it. Kaitlyn and Dolph celebrate, making Vickie jealous.

Rating: D+. Really more about storyline tension between Kaitlyn and Vickie rather than the wrestling. Given the short amount of time in the season this time they needed to get things moving and this is probably the highlight of the angles. It’s not much but it’s probably the best they’re going to get and if it gets Ziggler on his own I couldn’t be happier. Ok I could but you get the idea.

Here’s a six Divas tag from November 30, 2010.

Naomi vs. Kaitlyn

Let’s get this over with. I’m having some connection issues so the times might be off a bit. Kaitlyn busts out a giant swing as Matthews says DOZENS are tuning into WWE.Com for this. Gah my stream keeps freezing. Kaitlyn is in control because that’s the most illogical thing we could have. Cole apologizes to Harley Race for forgetting him last night in former kings.

The pros don’t seem interested. Kaitlyn throws her over the top and we get like a 7. My screen is frozen so I’m doing what I can to keep up with this. Cole isn’t really helping but he’s making me laugh at least. Cole gets in a great line on a cover by shouting: “if you shout faster it’ll be over!” So true good sir, so true. Kaitlyn blocks a suplex into a rollup and gets the pin. Well of course she did. No clue on the time due to the freezing.

Rating: N/A. With all the choppiness and the freezing I can’t really give a fair grade of it but it didn’t seem all that good from what I could tell and the crowd definitely wasn’t into it. Seemed to be about a D. Oh and of course Kaitlyn wins because she has no experience and isn’t the wrestler of the final two so Naomi has lost at least two in a row.

Kaitlyn would win the season of NXT and debut on the WWE roster (along with multiple other Divas). Here’s a main roster match on Smackdown, January 28, 2011.

Laycool vs. Kaitlyn/Kelly Kelly

Striker sings Laycool’s song which is rather disturbing. The non-Flawless ones jump Laycool during their entrance and the beating is on in the aisle. Is this Kaitlyn’s non-NXT debut? She starts with Michelle and is clearly green. Layla distracts Kaitlyn though and Michelle kicks Kaitlyn’s head off to end this at 43 seconds. AWESOME kick and if that hadn’t ended it there was no way I would have believed it. The replay makes it look even better as that kick was spot on.

From Raw on June 13, 2011 in the required mess.

Tamina/Alicia Fox/Rosa Mendes/Maryse/Bella Twins/Melina vs. Kelly Kelly/Eve Torres/Gail Kim/Natalya/Beth Phoenix/AJ/Kaitlyn

If this goes past two minutes I’ll be stunned. Kelly and Brie start but it’s off to Melina or Rosa and there’s the big brawl almost immediately. Kelly hits the K2 on Rosa and we’re done at 1:25. Three out of the fourteen were actually legal.

We’ll go to another country now for NXT on October 19, 2011.

Kaitlyn vs. Maxine

Both of them look good but Kaitlyn looks better with darker hair. She has great legs though. Maxine is in essence in a swimsuit. Here’s your Maxine fact: her aunt is a careless maiden from Guadalajara who is engaged to a one legged Elvis impersonator who does a great version of Blue Suede Shoes. The match is your usual basic stuff here that isn’t very good.

Maxine hooks something like a dragon sleeper but Kaitlyn falls into the ropes. The fans here do not care at all. All Maxine so far but I’d rather look at Kaitlyn in gold so I’m not paying attention to the match here. Kaitlyn takes over with her horrible looking offense. She hits a Bubba Bomb and then a full nelson with her legs to make Maxine tap (with her foot) out at 4:48.

Rating: D. It’s your usual bad Divas match and more proof that AJ was the best choice for the 3rd season winner. Kaitlyn looks great in tight gold shorts and other than that, she’s about as worthless as anyone else you’re going to find on the roster. Not much here overall and the girls just aren’t that good. Granted this is on NXT so it’s not like anyone is watching them.

Kaitlyn would be back for a guest spot on NXT Redemption, April 4, 2012.

Natalya vs. Kaitlyn

New music for Kaitlyn and Kidd is on commentary. Nattie takes her down and Kidd says there’s nothing going on with them. Bridging rollup gets two for Natalya. I think Natalya is a face here but I really have no idea. Kidd admits that he isn’t a Hart, which ticked him off when McGillicutty rubbed it in his face weeks ago. Natalya works on the arm and uses more holds on whatever part of the body she picks. Kaitlyn’s first offense is a cross body but Natalya laughs it off and the Sharpshooter gets the submission at 3:30.

Rating: C-. This was a squash for Natalya as she picked apart Kaitlyn with ease. I’m so glad they’ve dropped that idiotic gimmick she’s been using for the last few months as she’s very talented and can make even someone like Kaitlyn look good. I’m still not sure if she’s a face or a heel though, but I doubt WWE has put any thought into it either.

Back to the big shows with Smackdown on August 31, 2012.

Kaitlyn vs. Natalya

Eve is on commentary. Nattie takes her down with a headlock to start and the place is eerily quiet. Kaitlyn shoulder blocks her down and they head to the floor where Kaitlyn gets her head slammed into the floor. Natalya hooks an abdominal stretch and slaps Kaitlyn’s side which has to hurt bad. Kaitlyn comes back with some armdrags but Natalya clotheslines her down. The Canadian runs her mouth and gets small packaged for the pin at 2:45. Getting extra time is helping the Divas a tiny bit but this was more about Eve, who spent the whole match being the corporate suckup, which does nothing for me at all.

Kaitlyn would start going after the Divas Title, starting on Raw, October 8, 2012.

Divas Title: Eve Torres vs. Kaitlyn

Layla is on commentary as she always is anymore. Apparently she gets the winner of this. Eve is champion coming in just in case it’s like 2031 or something. Kaitlyn takes over to start and suplexes Eve down a few times followed by a fireman’s carry into a kind of Torture Rack. Eve rakes the eyes and kicks out the bad ankle to take over. Kaitlyn hits a backbreaker but it hurts her ankle again. Eve goes after the ankle by standing on it before putting on a heel hook for the tap at 2:54. This wasn’t terrible at all.

Another title shot at Hell in a Cell 2012.

Divas Title: Layla vs. Eve Torres vs. Kaitlyn

Kaitlyn was attacked at Night of Champions and Layla had to defend against Eve instead of Kaitlyn. Eve won the title and was accused of attacking Kaitlyn, setting up this. The challengers double team Eve, argue a bit, and then double team Eve again. Eve and Kaitlyn finally start fighting and we get a pinfall reversal sequence. Eve comes back in and knocks Layla to the floor so she can beat on Kaitlyn a bit.

Eve works over Kaitlyn’s leg with a long hold until Layla finally gets back in. A hard kick to Eve’s face slows her down and Layla pounds away in the corner. A cross body gets two for Layla but Eve throws her into the splits. Eve gets thrown into the splits as well and Kaitlyn gives us a DOUBLE NOGGIN KNOCKER!!! Kaitlyn puts Layla in a Fujiwara Armbar but Eve makes the save. The crowd dies as the match starts to drag. Kaitlyn hits Stratusfaction on Eve to send her to the floor and powerslams Eve down. Eve hits a middle rope Swanton to break up the pin and covers Layla to retain the title at 6:39.

Rating: C-. The girls are getting better and they have an actual story anymore, but the fans still don’t care. This is MILES better than they were having a few months ago, but at the same time it’s still nothing to write home about. Kaitlyn appears to be the future but I’m still not sold on her at all. Decent match that ran too long.

Kaitlyn would get another shot at Survivor Series 2012.

Divas Title: Katilyn vs. Eve Torres

Eve is defending. Kaitlyn jumps her to start and pounds away in the corner before sending Eve out to the floor. The champion is sent into the barricade and apron before heading back inside for some hair pulling. Eve kicks her in the ribs and slams Kaitlyn’s head into the mat over and over for two. Off to the corner for some choking and an elbow to the back gets two on Kaitlyn.

Eve puts on a figure four choke before clotheslining Kaitlyn down for no cover. Kaitlyn pops back up to break up the moonsault, sending Eve out to the floor. Back in and Eve is tossed around by the hair followed by a fireman’s carry gutbuster for two. Eve comes right back by sweeping Kaitlyn’s legs out and finishing her with a swinging neckbreaker.

Rating: D. As is the case with the Divas around this time, there isn’t much to brag about other than the girls looked good in their outfits. Kaitlyn just wasn’t that good in the ring and hasn’t gotten much better ever since. Eve was good but her character had hit a ceiling around this time. It’s no surprise she was gone soon after this.

One more shot in Kaitlyn’s hometown of Houston on Raw, January 14, 2013.

Divas Title: Eve Torres vs. Kaitlyn

If Eve gets disqualified or counted out she loses the title. Kaitlyn sends her to the floor to start so the champ hides a bit. Kaitlyn is the hometown girl tonight so it’s pretty clear what’s going down here. Eve knocks her down and hits her running flip splash as we hear about Lamb Chop for no apparent reason. Off to a triangle choke from Eve but Kaitlyn makes a rope.

The reverse DDT gets two and Kaitlyn seemingly dives onto Eve’s knee. The spinning neckbreaker gets two for Kaitlyn so Eve pounds away a bit. Kaitlyn’s gutbuster hits but it sends Eve to the floor. The challenger follows her out and gets whipped into the barricade. Eve puts her over the barricade but Kaitlyn sneaks back in and spears Eve for the title at 5:35.

Rating: D+. This was better than any of their other matches but at the end of the day I have no reason to care about either of these girls anymore. Word on the street is that Eve is gone after this so I guess this is the passing of the torch. Am I supposed to care more now because Kaitlyn wins after not being able to win the title after like four tries? At least they finally did the freaking switch.

Time for a PPV title defense at Elimination Chamber 2013.

Divas Title: Tamina Snuka vs. Kaitlyn

Kaitlyn is defending and this match was set up on the WWE App on Monday. The crowd is silent for Kaitlyn’s entrance so we get a quick promo from her about how scary Tamina is. Tamina shoves Katilyn around a bit to start but gets caught in a rollup for two. A backslide gets two more for the champ and Tamina is knocked to the floor. The other Divas are watching in the back. Kaitlyn goes to the apron, only to be rammed into the buckle and knocked out to the floor. Back in and a Samoan drop puts Kaitlyn down but the Superfly Splash misses. Kaitlyn spears her down to retain at 3:15.

Rating: D+. Did we really need this? No? I didn’t think so either. When your match is set up on the WWE App, it’s pretty clear that it’s not needed on the card. For about two weeks there were no Divas mentioned anywhere on WWE TV and it was a very nice break. Why did they need to come back again?

And another at NXT Clash of the Champions.

Divas Title: AJ Lee vs. Kaitlyn

Kaitlyn is defending. The fans chant YES at AJ before we get going. Kaitlyn runs her down to start but Kaitlyn shoves her into the corner to take over. Off to a Fujiwara Armbar by the challenger and she even throws in a Dolph Ziggler handstand. A hammerlock suplex puts Kiatlyn down and AJ is in full control. Kaitlyn gets in some right hands before rolling through a top rope cross body for two. A reverse DDT gets two on AJ but she sends Kaitlyn to the floor for an eight count. Back in and AJ puts on a sleeper followed by an enziguri for two. Kaitlyn pops up and spears AJ out of nowhere to retain at 5:06.

Rating: D. Again, the WWE Divas show that they have nothing on the NXT girls. I have no idea what the appeal of Kaitlyn is as her two moves are both terrible and she can’t work a match to save her life. AJ was fine with the Ziggler impersonations being a nice touch. Anything from Kaitlyn was just dreadful though.

Kaitlyn would be in a six Divas tag on Raw, June 3, 2013.

Kaitlyn/Funkadactyls vs. AJ Lee/Bella Twins

Kaitlyn and AJ start things off. AJ backs into the corner and elbows both dancing chicks before bringing in Brie. Off to Naomi for the Rear View and a rolling senton from Cameron for two. Naomi hits the ropes with a crossbody and the Bellas take over on her arm. Nikki stays on the arm until Naomi slugs her down and brings in Kaitlyn. The reverse DDT only gets one on Nikki but AJ drops to the floor instead of tagging. The spear finishes Nikki at 4:32.

Rating: C-. That’s on the Divas scale so this wasn’t half bad at all. The arm work went nowhere but when is the last time you remember psychology in a Divas match? They’re to the point where they can get through a match without looking completely horrible which is at least progress. The camera shots of the girls didn’t hurt either.

AJ Lee would take the title from Kaitlyn, triggering a long feud between them. Here they are on Raw, July 29, 2013.

Kaitlyn vs. AJ Lee

Non-title. AJ takes over to start and has that insane look on her face the entire time. Katilyn throws her off and loads up the spear but a running knee to the head puts her back down. An armbar doesn’t get AJ anywhere as Kaitlyn comes back with a backbreaker. AJ comes back with another armbar as we hear about Tweets from Vickie. Kaitlyn fights up and hits the spear out of nowhere for the pin at 4:51.

Rating: D. You remember those matches between these two that had a ton of heat and were awesome? This is the total opposite at it was just there to fill in a few minutes and set up yet another rematch. They took out all the good parts of this feud and turned it into the same exact thing that plagued the division for years.

One last match from Raw, December 30, 2013.

Total Divas vs. True Divas

It’s the Bellas/Funkadactyls/Eva Marie vs. Rosa Mendes/Summer Rae/Alicia Fox/Kaitlyn/Aksana. Eva and Kaitlyn get things going with Eva elbowing her in the face and blowing kisses to the crowd. Kaitlyn is staggered by a kick to the chest but none of the other Total Divas want to deal with Eva. Eva finally tags Cameron in but Alicia makes a blind tag and cleans house.

Summer Rae and Rosa (dressed almost identically) take turns stomping on Cameron in the corner before it’s off to Aksana for some choking. Cameron finally crawls over for a tag to Nikki who puts Aksana in the rack (get it?). Everything breaks down and Aksana hits a reverse Eye of the Hurricane for the pin on Nikki at 5:10.

Rating: D-. Yeah it sucked, but it was a bunch of good looking women in tiny outfits. That’s more than the Tribute to the Troops show managed to pull off. They need to figure out where this division is going though because it’s getting even worse. From what I can find, that’s Aksana’s first pin on TV in nearly two years.

Kaitlyn is a case of someone trying to be different than most Divas and succeeding to a degree. She was gorgeous and looked great in the outfits but that was rarely her focus. If nothing else she could spear AJ in half and make it look better every single time. She didn’t really stand out but her stuff worked when she had a decent opponent.

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NXT
Date: August 28, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Rich Brennan, Alex Riley, Jason Albert

We’ve got something to look forward to now with Takeover II just a few weeks away. All of the titles will be on the line but the champions need some challengers. As for tonight, the main story is the debut of the new General Manager to replace JBL who left for undisclosed reasons. Let’s get to it.

Opening sequence.

Ascension vs. ???/???

If the jobbers have names they weren’t mentioned. Fans: “LET’S GO JOBBERS!” Konor runs over Jobber #1 with a shoulder before Viktor launches #2 in over the top rope. Fall of Man ends #2 at 1:06.

Post match Ascension says the tournament ends next week and they’ll find their latest victims. Konor says they will rise.

The new General Manager is……WILLIAM REGAL! He says he’s been here since the beginning and as his first action, he’s going to name the main event of Takeover II. First up though, he’d like Adrian Neville to come down to the ring. Neville congratulates him on his new job and asks who’s next. Fans: “GOLDBERG! GOLDBERG!” Regal is about to announce the opponent but Tyson Kidd (in a Mike Tyson hoodie) interrupts.

He accepts the title shot but before Regal can confirm it, here’s Tyler Breeze to interrupt as well. Breeze: “Are you serious? This uggo? Everyone deserves a title shot before him. EVEN HIS WIFE!” This brings out Sami Zayn to say that he deserves the shot above Kidd and Breeze. Neville wants to face all of them because this is NXT. Regal approves and we have a main event.

After a break, Regal makes Zayn/Neville vs. Kidd/Breeze for tonight.

Sasha Banks vs. Bayley

We immediately get the best chant ever: “BAYLEY’S GONNA HUG YOU!” Sasha sends her into the buckle to start and drops Bayley with a knee to the ribs. We hit the chinlock and get yet another awesome chant of “LET’S GO BAYLEY! CENA SUCKS!” Back up and Sasha chokes away in the corner, only to walk into the Belly to Bayley for the pin at 3:16.

Rating: C-. The match wasn’t much but it’s hard to not like Bayley. She’s got this sweet innocence about her and it’s like watching an eight year old in an adult’s body. The awesome belly to belly helps as well as it makes her almost like Eugene: she’s so happy to be here but can be deadly when she gets the chance.

Bayley says she’s like kitten stuck on a branch that tells you to hang in there. She’s going to turn her dream into a reality and win the Women’s Title at Takeover. This brings out Charlotte to say that she would laugh at a kitten stuck on a branch. She tells Bayley to stick to hugs because she’s going to destroy her at Takeover. Bayley doesn’t want a hug (Fans: GASP!) because she’s going to take the championship. Charlotte leaves and says she warned her.

Bull Dempsey vs. Angelo Dawkins

Dawkins is still a nerd. Dempsey takes him into the corner to start and drops a bunch of elbows for two. Some knees to the ribs have Dawkins in trouble as this is totally one sided. Dawkins gets in some jobber offense before the Bulldozer gets the pin at 2:50.

The Legionnaires laugh about shaving Enzo’s beard and speak a lot of French.

Tyson Kidd/Tyler Breeze vs. Sami Zayn/Adrian Neville

Neville and Breeze get things going with the champion grabbing the arm for early control. Adrian and Sami start cranking on the arm until Sami stays in for a wristlock. Neville uses Sami’s back for a corkscrew splash and the heels bail to the floor. Kidd comes back in but it’s Breeze superkicking Neville as we take a break. Back with Kidd getting covered for two before Kidd puts on a chinlock.

Breeze comes in again and stomps on the champion before putting on a chinlock of his own. Kidd gets the tag but Neville dropkicks the knee out, setting up the hot tag to Sami. Everything breaks down and Zayn cross bodies both opponents down at the same time. A Michinoku Driver gets two on Breeze but Kidd fights out of the Blue Thunder Bomb and gets two off a DDT.

Sami suplexes Breeze into the buckle and crawls over to Adrian for the slightly cooler tag. A dropkick followed by a standing shooting star gets two on Breeze. There’s a kick to the gorgeous head but Breeze breaks up the Red Arrow. Sami accidentally kicks Neville off the top but the heels argue over who comes in. The Blue Thunder Bomb plants Breeze and Kidd pins Neville at 9:58.

Rating: B-. Oh man the fourway is going to be awesome. Sami could still pull off the big win but any of the other three are solid options as well. They’ve built Neville up enough so that the pin on him is going to mean something. This was a good tag match with the ending setting up a few more stories for the main event of the big show. Good stuff.

Sami gives Kidd the Helluva Kick post match and holds up the title to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. This is the kind of show that NXT has been needing for a long time. It was the kind of fun that I’ve been missing from this promotion and it made me want to see the Takeover show more than ever. The main event is going to rock and Bayley winning the title could be amazing. Really fun show this week that flew by.

Results
Ascension b. ???/??? – Fall of Man
Bayley b. Sasha Banks – Belly to Bayley
Bull Dempsey b. Angelo Dawkins – Bulldozer
Tyson Kidd/Tyler Breeze b. Adrian Neville/Sami Zayn – Kidd pinned Neville after a kick from Zayn

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Time for Nattie’s husband Tyson Kidd.

Kidd started as a young teenager in 1995 but we’ll pick things up somewhere in Canada in 1999 with Kidd wrestling under the name TJ Wilson. Here’s a match from the revived Stampede Wrestling when Kidd is REALLY young.

TJ Wilson vs. Dwight Douglas

Douglas sends him hard into the corner to start and man alive do these guys look skinny. Even the announcers call this a thin man’s match. A hurricanrana gets two for Davis but Wilson counters the second into a big powerbomb. Wilson DDTs him down and scores a hard clothesline for two. Davis slams him down and drops an elbow for two of his own, but Wilson snaps off a backbreaker for the pin.

Rating: D+. Man alive it’s amazing to see two guys this small in a match. They look no older than maybe sixteen and even the announcers were cracking jokes about it. Wilson would get better in time of course but I have no idea what happened to Douglas. He didn’t do much for me anyway but Wilson was nothing of note at this point either.

We’ll skip over a long and uninteresting stretch in Japan and elsewhere. Kidd would sign with WWE in 2006 and be sent to developmental. Here he is in Deep South in March 2007.

Kofi Kingston vs. TJ Wilson

Interestingly enough, Nattie Neidhart is the backstage interviewer and says she’s VERY familiar with Wilson’s work. Well they had been living together and dating for years at this point so that’s no shock. Kofi cranks on the arm to start but gets cradled for two. Wilson grabs some headlock takeovers but Kofi keeps nipping up and we have a standoff. Another standoff gets us nowhere until Wilson grabs a quick suplex for one.

Some more covers get two each for TJ as this is really basic stuff so far. We hit a chinlock on Kofi until TJ sends him into the corner. Kofi grabs a sunset flip for two and a bad looking dropkick puts Wilson down. TJ comes out of the corner and walks into Trouble in Paradise (Cool Runnings here) for the pin.

Rating: D. Kofi clearly couldn’t do much at this point and the match suffered as a result. To be fair though, Deep South Wrestling really doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to training so their TV wasn’t the best stuff either. Wilson would get better once he started flying around a bit more.

It was off to FCW soon after this, including this match on October 5, 2008.

Tyson Kidd vs. Shawn Spears

Kidd still has tassels on his boots. Feeling out process to start with both guys trying to work on the arm. Spears tries to spin out but gets caught in a hammerlock followed by an armbar. Back up and Spears hides from a Sharpshooter attempt before picking Tyson up for a belly to back suplex onto the top turnbuckle for two. A backbreaker gets the same and Kidd is bleeding from the mouth. We hit the chinlock on Tyson but he fights up and sends Shawn into the corner with a dropkick. Another series of kicks to the ribs gets two but Spears avoids a top rope elbow. Spears pops up and hits a neckbreaker for the win.

Rating: D+. Dull stuff here for the most part but that could be the title for every Shawn Spears match I’ve ever seen. Kidd wasn’t really into the WWE style at this point but he was getting better. The ending coming out of nowhere didn’t help things either. At least it wasn’t all that long.

Kidd would make his WWE debut on ECW on February 10, 2009.

Tyson Kidd vs. Bao Nguyen

Kidd takes him into the corner to start and kicks Bao hard in the back. A spinning kick to the face and we hit the chinlock. More kicks have Bao in trouble and a springboard elbow drop scores the pin. Total squash.

Kidd would team up with David Hart-Smith as the Hart Dynasty. They would be on the Smackdown team at Bragging Rights 2009.

Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown

HHH, Shawn Michaels, Kofi Kingston, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Big Show, Cody Rhodes
Chris Jericho, Kane, Matt Hardy, R-Truth, Tyson Smith, David Hart Smith, Finlay

The intros here could take a LONG time. Seriously who thought 7 on 7 was a good idea? DX and Jericho/Kane are the co-captains. Hmm, I wonder if anyone is going to make a BIG jump and work with his Smackdown buddy. Oh good only the four captains get intros. The original Smackdown team (minus the two captains who were always the same) were Drew McIntyre (totally unproven), Eric Escobar, Shad, JTG and Dolph Ziggler.

Man Raw is more stacked than Smackdown. I think Kofi got introduced twice. Oh man we’re going to have to put up with the announcers being stupid aren’t we? And they’re staying in their shirts. Cody and Truth start. I expect a lot of tags. It’s amazing that Truth has a much better position right now than Rhodes.

We get Show vs. Kane. Good to see WWE going with those brand new and fresh feuds! I’m not even going to bother trying to tell you who is fighting who for the majority of this match as it’s just a waste of my time if I do. There’s a big staredown on the floor. I wonder if they’ll sing. Shawn and HHH of course have to be dicks and wear their DX shirts but then their Raw shirts around their waists.

Sweet Chin Music lands on Finlay. Oh hey the Hart Dynasty are in this match. Seriously, WHY ARE THERE 14 PEOPLE IN THIS? It’s just a stupid idea all around. Jericho hooks a choke which isn’t actually a choke as his arm isn’t over the you know, throat? Shawn is getting the tar beaten out of him for the most part here so at least they’re going with the right guy to do that. I mean it’s not like there are other young guys on his team that need the PPV experience or anything.

Oh look it’s HHH beating up tag team jobbers. And there’s Kane with the chokeslam. He’s messed up HHH’s grove. Time to be thrown out of a window. The announcers are REALLY annoying here as they’re acting all goofy and talking about how this is about them and all the rest of the roster.

No one buys that and no one cares but whatever. Kofi gets the hot tag and cleans house. Jericho finally counters the Boom Drop, since that’s so hard right? It’s a melee with everyone beating on everyone and apparently it’s Vintage Bragging Rights. Yep, Show “turns” and Jericho pins Kofi off his chokeslam.

I think that might have been the most shocking thing ever. I mean really, WHO WOULD HAVE THROUGHT the guy that has turned on people more than anyone in history turns here? I for one am shocked.

Rating: D. This did not do it for me at all. It felt like a TNA broadcast as you had guys just popping into the thing over and over again but there were so many people you would just forget about that it was too hard to keep up with it. I have NO IDEA why they went 7 on 7 as this should have been DX vs. Jerishow or 3 on 3, with 4 on 4 being the ABSOLUTE highest this should have gone.

The team would win the Tag Team Titles in April and defend them at Over the Limit 2010.

Unified Tag Titles: Hart Dynasty vs. Chris Jericho/The Miz

There’s not much to say here at all. It’s not bad but it’s ok I guess. Natalya is solid as a manager. They say that on Monday when Hart won the US Title he was in his homeland. They make it sound like he came from an island nation with like four people on it. It’s a very standard tag match which is both good and bad I suppose. Kidd takes the Walls and the Codebreaker off a springboard. It just wasn’t a very good one. Somehow that only gets two. Wow.

Jericho goes off and yells at Kidd to stay down. That was kind of amusing. We’re getting a lot of near falls here. Miz and Jericho yell at the referee A LOT. Natalya trips Jericho and Smith hits the powerslam for the LONG two. This started slow but has gotten a lot better.

Skull Crushing Finale is blocked but Miz gets a rollup and the tights for two. VERY good match here. I’m very surprised. Miz does his running clothesline into the corner but Smith catches him to set up the Hart Attack. NICE match with a SWEET ending.

Rating: B. I liked this a lot more than I expected to. Like I said it started slow but it picked WAY up soon after that. The clean retaining surprised me very much actually but it’s certainly a good thing. They needed that for some credibility and I’ve very glad they didn’t do the switch to another random tag team. Nice match and a very pleasant surprise.

And again at Money in the Bank 2010 in a six person tag.

Unified Tag Titles: Uso Brothers vs. Hart Dynasty

Given the fact that we haven’t seen anything from the Usos other than 6 man tags and a squash win on Superstars, I can’t picture them winning yet. The Uso in shorts starts vs. David. We go through the list of guys from the Hart Dungeon and barely scratch the surface. That’s Jay apparently and the crowd is somehow even MORE dead for this. Wow this is basic stuff.

We get the Umaga hip smash of death to the face of Smith as this is more or less just a Raw match. They mention the taped up thumb which is a tribute to a fallen Samoan who they don’t name. That would be Umaga but he never existed. Kidd makes what is supposed to be a hot tag but might as well be in Siberia. Kidd hits a SWEET sunset flip into a rollup but gets caught in an Alley-Oop Samoan Drop.

The top rope splash from Jimmy gets knees though and David gets a small reaction on a tag. The girls go at it for a bit as Kidd beats up Jay. The Sharpshooter on Jimmy ends this fairly easy. Just a somewhat longer Raw match. Cole says this could elevate them to a new level. Uh, what level is that? Venezuelan tag champions?

Rating: D. This should have been on Raw and that’s all there is to it. Ok apparently there’s more to it than that. This was just the definition of average and there was nothing to it at all. The Harts look strong though which is the most important thing as they continue to establish themselves as a solid team.

Here’s a singles match from Raw, December 6, 2010 because of course the team had to be split up to find a singles star.

David Hart Smith vs. Tyson Kidd

Wasn’t this the main event of Superstars a few weeks back? This is quite the upgrade. Kidd brings out a big man with him that I don’t recognize. He’s huge though, towering over Smith who is a big guy in his own right. This guy is at least 7’0. They start fast with Kidd stomping away and beating down Smith in the corner.

Smith shrugs those shots off and gets an overhead belly to belly but runs into an elbow. Apparently being hit in the face by a grown man’s elbow doesn’t hurt Smith as he gets a delayed vertical suplex off the middle rope for two. Kidd gets caught in the powerslam position but reverses into a rollup/victory roll for the pin at approximately 2:15. Not long enough to rate but it wasn’t terrible.

Kidd would become a big deal on NXT: Redemption, including this match on July 26, 2011. This was the culmination of one of the rare feuds on this show.

Tyson Kidd vs. Yoshi Tatsu

It’s a necklace on a poll match. Tatsu’s song is catchy I must say. On the necklace is the leg of the action figure that Tyson broke. Kidd goes for it immediately but Yoshi makes the save. They go back and forth a bit but Yoshi hits a spinwheel kick so he can go for the pole. Tyson hammers him down and we hit the formula for this match: one person beats someone down then climbs, the other person hits them in the back and we switch.

They go to the floor as I’ve never seen a crowd sitting so still. Snap suplex on the floor puts Tatsu down but Tatsu strikes back and a double knee smash sends Kidd into the post. Not the pole, the post. Another attempt eats steps though and back inside we go. Tyson stomps a mudhole and shouts a lot. Double clothesline puts both people down and Kidd goes for the corner. Yoshi tries to catch him and they both fall off.

We take a break with both guys down. You know, the match itself isn’t all that bad, but they’re fighting over a piece of an action figure. You couldn’t make this a bit more personal? Like a piece of jewelery that Yoshi’s family gave him? Something that somebody might see as valuable perhaps? Back with Kidd working Yoshi over and they’re outside almost immediately.

Regal tries to tell us that this isn’t to be taken lightly. I get that they’re trying and at least it’s not a totally cliched storyline, but this feud (which hasn’t been bad) is on NXT. Neither of these guys are on the show anymore as far as rookies go, so why are they here? Kidd puts on a Boston Crab on Yoshi using the bottom rope. Think of a Tarantula kind of. Grisham screws up and says Daniel Bryan is Tyson Kidd’s pro until Regal asks what the heck he’s talking about. I needed a bad flub like that.

Kidd goes for the corner but Yoshi saves (of course) and kicks Kidd upside his head to put him down. Yoshi can’t follow up though so it’s time for the slow climb. Isn’t it always convenient that the people climbing things in wrestling are REALLY FREAKING SLOW? Yoshi almost gets it but gets crotched. Both guys are standing on the top and Yoshi grabs the necklace to win but the Canadian hits a German to the Japanese to put him down. Yoshi wins though at 10:15.

Rating: B-. Not a classic or anything but this was a pretty solid back and forth match. At the end of the day though, these young guys that are having solid matches are fighting over a piece of plastic from an action figure from a shrine which hasn’t been explained on an internet show about rookies that these two aren’t associated with anymore. It’s a bit hard to get into it you know?

Here he is against a rookie on Redemption, September 27, 2011.

Percy Watson vs. Tyson Kidd

Regal talks about how Punk winning would mean he has no more worlds left to conquer because he’d be WWE Champion. My face actually scrunched up and I looked up from my computer in a state of confusion over that one. Kidd speeds things up to start but Watson (much better without the glasses and OH YEAH) hits a dropkick for two. Korpela says everyone is talking about Watson’s vertical leap. Today I talked about how the Monopoly game is back at McDonald’s which means the McRib is back soon, but that’s just me.

Back in after a quick bit on the floor and Tyson hooks a chinlock. He shouts to the crowd and they don’t shout back. A belly to back breaks the hold up and both guys are down. Watson hits another dropkick and a clothesline in the corner. A spinning splash gets two as Regal makes fun of JTG a little more. Kidd hits something like a spinning neckbreaker that has a long name including the word moss that I don’t feel like typing and a springboard elbow for the pin at 4:12.

Rating: C. Kidd is getting better and better every week and thankfully he’s regularly appearing on Smackdown because of it. However, I’d like to see him doing something more than just appearing on NXT beating up random former NXT rejects. They need to just turn this into its own independent show and make an NXT Champion already so Kidd can challenge for it.

Kidd would hook up with Justin Gabriel and open up Wrestlemania XXVIII.

Tag Titles: Justin Gabriel/Tyson Kidd vs. Primo/Epico vs. Usos

Primo/Epico have the titles and have beaten the Usos about five times already. Kidd and Gabriel are teaming for the first time after Kidd asked Gabriel if he wanted to be a team. Gabriel said yes, and apparently that qualifies you as deserving a title match. New tights for the Usos here. Josh and Striker are doing commentary for this match. This is under WCW rules as in three in the ring at once, but in a twist you can only tag your own partner.

Jey, Tyson and Primo start things off. Primo is sent to the floor and Tyson gets two off a sunset flip. Primo comes back in with a missile dropkick as Jey gets beaten down. Kidd makes the save but gets DDTed for two. Primo loads up a superplex on Jey but Tyson springboards up to make it a Tower of Doom in a cool twist on the traditional spot there. Tags bring in Epico and Jimmy but I think Kidd is still legal for his team.

Jimmy comes out of the corner with a spinning cross body and a Bubba Bomb for two. Tag to Gabriel who jumps over Jimmy but walks into a Samoan attack. Back to Jey who hits an assisted Samoan Drop. Jimmy tags in quickly for a double Rikishi attack to Epico and Gabriel. Epico gets dropped onto Primo so Jey can hit a HUGE dive onto both of them.

Kidd pops up on the apron but Jimmy launches him to Jey for a Samoan Drop. Gabriel sets for a top rope Asai Moonsault and hits it on his second attempt. Better safe than sorry on that spot. He tries the springboard 450 but (mostly) hits knees. Backstabber by Epico pins Jey at 5:05.

Rating: B-. Really fun opener here with the six smaller guys being thrown out there to fire up the crowd. That’s what cruiserweights and hot Latin women that can shake their hips were made for so you can’t ask for much more than that. I’m a big Uso fan so seeing them on Wrestlemania was a cool thing to see. Very good start to the night.

Another match for the team on Main Event, October 3, 2012.

Tag Team Tournament First Round: Santino Marella/Zack Ryder vs. Tyson Kidd/Justin Gabriel

Santino and Gabriel get things going with Gabriel grabbing a quick headlock. The winners of this get the Rhodes Scholars. Gabriel tries a leg sweep but Santino jumps over it and tries one of his own in slow motion. Off to Ryder and Kidd which goes nowhere so it’s back to Gabriel who double teams with his Canadian buddy. A kick to the face gets two on Ryder and it’s back to Kidd. Kidd and Gabriel work very well together. Kidd launches Ryder over his head and into a kick from Gabriel for two.

Everything breaks down and Santino has issues getting thrown to the floor. Kidd gets a spinning rollup for two but charges into the knees in the corner. Tyson crawls into the corner and looks painfully obvious doing it for the Broski Boot. Ryder hits a good looking flip dive to take Gabriel out and the Cobra advances Santino and Ryder at 4:03.

Rating: C. Gabriel and Kidd looked like a polished team here while Santino and Ryder looked like a pair of comedy guys who got thrown together into a tag team because the fans love both of them. It wasn’t a bad match or anything but it’s really just kind of there, which is the problem with most tournament matches you’ll ever see.

Kidd would be added to the opening match of Survivor Series 2012.

Team Clay vs. Team Tensai

Brodus Clay, Justin Gabriel, Tyson Kidd, Sin Cara, Rey Mysterio
Tensai, Primo, Epico, Prime Time Players

This is a bonus match to fill out the card. Nothing wrong with that at all. Apparently this is the debut of the three man booth so we’re getting a bit of history here. Why anyone would care about that is beyond me but I need something to talk about during these long entrances. This was also back when Tensai was all evil but was a total joke by this point, just as he had been all along. If nothing else we get to see Rosa Mendes with black hair and those hips of hers.

Kidd works on Epico’s arm to start before taking him down into a headlock. Epico is sent to the floor but manages to send Kidd face first into the apron to take over but it’s quickly off to Gabriel. A sunset flip gets two for Justin and he cranks on Epico’s arm as well. Back to Kidd for a headscissors before putting on another armbar. That doesn’t last long as Mysterio comes in with a low dropkick for two.

Young gets the tag and is almost immediately sent face first into the middle buckle, allowing for a tag off to Sin Cara. The masked men hit a combination wheelbarrow slam/X-Factor for two on Young, sending him over to the corner for a tag off to Primo. Cara hits a quick cross body for two and a sunset flip gets the same as this is a very fast paced match. Tensai gets the tag and runs over Cara with a few slams as JBL lists off Tensai’s Japanese accomplishments.

Off to Titus as Sin Cara is in a lot of trouble. Another slam puts Sin down and it’s off to Primo for a camel clutch. Tensai comes back in to work over the downed Cara but goes after the rest of the team instead of covering. Sin Cara gets up for an enziguri, allowing the hot tag to Clay. Brodus cleans house and the Players, Epico and Primo are sent to the floor. Kidd and Gabriel hit stereo dives to take out the cousins followed by Asai moonsaults from Cara and Mysterio to take out the Players. Awesome sequence.

The monsters are going at it back inside and Clay botches his high collar suplex, making it into more of a lifting downward spiral. Tensai avoids a charge in the corner and shoulders Brodus down, setting up a backsplash for the elimination. Gabriel comes in with some kicks to the side but gets taken down by a big shoulder block. Off to Titus for an abdominal stretch followed by a backbreaker. Back to Tensai for two off a backsplash but he misses a second one, allowing Gabriel to get a quick rollup for the elimination.

Titus comes in to stomp on the spent Gabriel before it’s back to Epico for a chinlock. Epico misses some elbow drops, allowing Gabriel to make the tag off to Tyson. Kidd heads to the apron but gets sent to the floor where Primo gets in a cheap shot. Back inside with Primo now legal but getting forearmed in the face. Cole says Primo has been a general out there. I’d go more like a lieutenant at best from what I’ve seen.

Back to Titus who crotches himself off a missed big boot, allowing Tyson to kick him in the side of the head, setting up a rolling cradle for the pin and an elimination. Young comes in to keep the pressure on Kidd before it’s back to Epico for some rolling belly to back suplexes. Not that they matter though as Kidd sweeps the legs and puts on the Sharpshooter to get rid of Epico. Cole of course talks about Montreal.

Primo comes in now but gets elbowed in the ribs for his efforts. He comes back with a quick belly to back suplex, only to go up top and dive into a dropkick to the ribs. The hot tag brings in Mysterio who rolls through a sunset flip and kicks Primo in the face for two. A seated senton looks to set up the 619 but Primo moves to the side, only to get caught in La Majistral for the pin. Darren Young is left all alone and it’s finishers a go-go until Rey finishes him with a top rope splash for the win.

Rating: C. The winners were never really in doubt but this was the right way to get a show going. The fast paced stuff worked very well here with all of the smaller guys hitting their dives to wake the crowd up and give them a fun match. It’s no masterpiece or anything but it did exactly what it was supposed to do. A little trivia for you: that loss makes Tensai 0-5 at Survivor Series, which I’m pretty sure is the worst record ever.

Kidd would miss nearly a year due to tearing his knee to shreds. He would return in late 2013 and here’s one of his first matches back on Raw, November 4, 2013.

Fandango/Summer Rae vs. Natalya/Tyson Kidd

Naturally we get to look at a clip from Total Divas before the match starts. The guys get us going with Fandango getting kicked in the ribs. Off to the girls with Summer slapping Natalya in the face and catching her in a body scissors. The announcers spend part of the match reading Tweets, including one from Natalya.

The hot tag brings in The guys with Kidd flying around and pulling Fandango to the floor. A HARD kick to the face from the apron drops Fandango again but a Summer distraction lets Fandango drop Kidd onto the apron. Back in and the guillotine legdrop is countered into the Sharpshooter on Fandango for the win at 3:43.

Rating: D+. Kidd looked good and Summer’s legs were as amazing as ever, but this was a four minute ad for Total Divas and nothing more. That’s been the theme tonight: what can we showcase with wrestling as a backdrop? We’ve gotten plugs for the reality show, the video game, the App, and any other WWE product they can think of other than focusing on the stories.

We’ll wrap it up with Kidd challenging for the NXT Title at Takeover.

NXT Title: Tyson Kidd vs. Adrian Neville

Neville is defending. Big match intros are done and we’re ready to go. They shake hands and talk trash to each other until Tyson takes him down with a headlock. Adrian spins up and Tyson shoves him down to annoy the champion. Back up and this time it’s Adrian taking Kidd down and into the ropes for another staredown. The champion grabs an armbar (Fans: “ARMBAR! ARMBAR!”) but Kidd is quickly up and things get faster. Neville flips over to escape a backdrop but Kidd does the same, leading to another staredown. This time though Kidd blasts him in the face and kicks away, giving us a mid match heel turn.

Kidd puts him into the Tree of Woe before lifting him up for a kick to the back. A running dropkick has Adrian in trouble and we hit the chinlock. Neville fights up but Kidd sends him to the floor and hits a big flip dive for two back inside. Adrian is back up again and they hit cross bodies at the same time to put both guys down. Now they trade kicks to the ribs but Adrian hits a sliding kick to the head to take over. Now it’s Kidd put in the Tree of Woe for the same kind of kicks that he threw earlier.

A running delayed dropkick knocks Kidd senseless but it’s only good for two and the champion is getting frustrated. Kidd comes back with a pair of kicks to the head but Adrian kicks out at two. Tyson goes up but Neville blocks the Blockbuster with a forearm to the jaw. Adrian’s superplex is countered into a powerbomb but Adrian flips out and hits a sitout powerbomb for two.

Adrian loads up what looked to be a Lionsault press but Kidd runs at the ropes for a middle rope Russian legsweep for a close two. Kidd dives into knees but gets rolled up for another near fall. The champion tries a suplex but they both fall over the top rope and crash to the floor. Both guys slide in to beat the count and they’re spent.

Kidd loads up the Sharpshooter but leans forward to put on the Dungeon Lock (instead of turning over he grabs Adrian’s arm and leans back for a choke with a leg lock). Adrian is in the ropes, so Kidd ties him up in those ropes for a top rope flip legdrop and two. Kidd loads up the Blockbuster but Adrian counters into a gorgeous top rope hurricanrana. Kidd is almost out cold and the Red Arrow is enough to keep the title in England at 20:00.

Rating: A-. Take two guys and let them fly around the ring for a long time. Again, Kidd winning wasn’t likely at all but that doesn’t mean he can’t go out there and tear the house down like he just did. Neville is getting a huge star rub, even though he doesn’t seem to be the longest term solution as champion.

Tyson Kidd is a guy that can fly around very well but isn’t the most interesting guy in the world. That being said, he’s in a great spot on the card and plays his role very well. The real life marriage to Natalya helps him too as it gives him a built in story whenever one is needed. The Blockbuster is a great finisher for him and he can fly with the best of them. I like the guy but his size really holds him back.

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NXT
Date: August 21, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Renee Young, Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton

The show has changed timeslots for the first time ever and is now airing at 4pm EST on Thursdays. Things picked up for the first time in a good while last week with an awesome Tyler Breeze vs. Adrian Neville title match, ruined by Tyson Kidd interfering. Sami Zayn made the save and in theory it’s time for a big tag match. Let’s get to it.

Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Tournament Semi-Finals: Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady vs. Vaudevillains

Cass throws English around to start and nails him with a big boot to the jaw. Off to Simon vs. Enzo with Amore nailing some fast punches to the ribs for two. Cass throws Amore into the corner to crash into Gotch but Simon catches Enzo’s cross body and That’s A Wrap sends the Vaudevillains to the finals at 1:47. That was really quick.

The Legionnaires attack Cass post match and shave half of Amore’s beard.

Here’s HHH to make an announcement. He talks about how important NXT is to the WWE Network and thinks it’s time for NXT to take over again. On September 11, it’s Takeover II, airing live with all three titles on the line. In addition, there will be a new NXT General Manager named next week.

We look back at Kidd costing Breeze his title match last week.

Breeze is ticked off at Tyson Kidd and says Tyson Kidd is going to find out why Prince Pretty is more than just a pretty face.

Tyson Kidd vs. Tyler Breeze

Breeze is much more aggressive this week and goes off on Tyson in the corner. Kidd comes back with forearms and a hard kick to the back. A suplex into a neckbreaker puts Tyler down and there’s a hard dropkick to the side of the head. Breeze gets to the ropes to avoid the Sharpshooter and bails to the floor, walking out for the countout at 1:46.

Breeze says he’s fine with walking out because his attention is on the title match at Takeover.

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch

Non-title. Becky has no green in her attire anymore. Charlotte takes her down into a front facelock but Becky takes her down by the leg. They stay on the mat with Becky getting a few rollups for two each but Charlotte kicks the redhead into the corner. Charlotte hooks the figure four neck lock for a bit before getting two by just shoving Lynch to the mat. Back up and Lynch nails some clotheslines but walks into a kind of t-bone suplex. Bow Down to the Queen gets the pin at 4:10.

Rating: C-. Not much of a match here for the most part with Lynch not looking all that comfortable on the mat but trying her best. Charlotte continues to look good in the ring and has a good finisher to go with the attitude. That puts her way ahead of a lot of female wrestlers so she’s got the first major steps down.

Amore and Cass come out and make Star Wars references while challenging the Legionnaires to a hair vs. hair match. If they don’t accept, they must be S-A-W-F-T!

We look back at Bull Dempsey beating up Mojo Rawley.

Mojo Rawley vs. Steve Cutler

Mojo takes him into the corner to start and gets two off a shoulder block. Cutler is sent into the corner and crushed by a few splashes. Hyperdrive gets the pin for Mojo at 1:34. This is what he should have been doing for since he debuted.

Post match Rawley says he’s still standing here and can take everything Bull can throw at him.

Tag Team Titles #1 Contenders Tournament Semi-Finals: Sami Zayn/Adam Rose vs. Sin Cara/Kalisto

Rose and Kalisto get things going and we’re already prancing. They trade wristlocks until Adam tags in Sami to a very nice ovation. Sin Cara comes in and they hit the mat with Sin grabbing a headscissors. Cara quickly sends Sami out to the floor and the luchadores tease dives as we go to a break. Back with Kalisto headlocking Rose for two. Adam powers up and tags in Sami as things speed up. Kalisto avoids a clothesline, lands on his fingers and crawls across the ring without using his feet.

Sami is rightfully freaked out and it’s off to Cara for a kick to the chest. A hiptoss gets two on Zayn and we hit the chinlock. Back up and Sami nails a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two of his own. Rose comes in again and puts on a chinlock of his own. Kalisto gets the tag and walks into a powerbomb for two. It’s quickly back to Cara who cleans house and nails a Tajiri elbow for two on Rose. Everything breaks down and Cara dives out onto Sami. Rose gets all fired up but walks into the sitout Sliced Bread #2, followed by Cara’s Swanton Bomb for the pin at 10:10 shown.

Rating: C. This was just a step above a squash with the luchadores running circles around Rose and Zayn. This is the kind of win that they need to establish themselves as a big tag team. Sami not taking the pin was a good idea and he didn’t look horrible throughout the match. Nothing all that interesting but it sets up a good match in the finals.

Overall Rating: C+. I’m not wild on the matches ending so fast but they kept this show moving. A lot of stuff has been set up for the coming weeks and we finally have something to build to at Takeover II. The three title matches and presumably a hair vs. hair match should make for a good card with a few other surprises through in. Good but not great show this week.

Results
Vaudevillains b. Colin Cassady/Enzo Amore – That’s A Wrap to Amore
Tyson Kidd b. Tyler Breeze via countout
Charlotte b. Becky Lynch – Bow Down to the Queen
Mojo Rawley b. Steve Cutler – Hyperdrive
Sin Cara/Kalisto b. Sami Zayn/Adam Rose – Swanton Bomb to Rose

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NXT
Date: August 14, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Renee Young, Byron Saxton, Tom Phillips

Things really need to pick up around here soon. I can’t believe I’m saying that but it’s the absolute truth right now. The lack of anything to build towards is hurting things, as we’re just spinning in circles instead of actually setting up a show or a match. Last week Breeze implied that he was cashing in soon but I didn’t hear a date. Let’s get to it.

Clip from Takeover of Tyler Breeze beating Sami Zayn to become #1 contender and Tyler taunting NXT Champion Adrian Neville ever since.

Opening sequence.

Tag Team Title #1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Mojo Rawley/Bull Dempsey vs. Vaudevillains

Big ovation for the Vaudevillains. Mojo cranks on English’s head to start but Aiden comes back with an uppercut for two. Off to a hammerlock from English, including a bow down into a tag to Gotch. Simon puts on a hammerlock of his own and does Hindu Squats to crank on the arm. Dempsey comes in and pounds Gotch to the mat but it’s quickly back to Mojo as he tags himself back in. This doesn’t go well for the makeshift team as Gotch catches him in a rolling fireman’s carry, followed by a middle rope Swanton Bomb from English for the pin at 3:07.

Rating: D+. That was far shorter than I was expecting. I’m glad they pulled the plug on the makeshift team before it went on forever, given that this was the obvious ending. Mojo has fallen through the floor in NXT and to be fair I can’t say I disagree with the way his push has gone. Ever since that beating from Rusev it was almost impossible for him to get back up.

Post match Bull destroys Mojo, drawing a big THANK YOU BULL chant.

Sasha Banks doesn’t like Bayley thinking she’ll be the next Women’s Champion. Bayley says Sasha doesn’t get a hug tonight.

Breeze is cashing in tonight. They didn’t do a great job of making that clear last week.

Bayley vs. Sasha Banks

#1 contenders match. They trade headlocks to start with Sasha taking over with a knee to the ribs for two. Bayley takes her down with some rollups for the same as they trade near falls. They stay on the mat with Bayley grabbing a headlock, only to have Sasha fight up and nail a dropkick. Back up and Bayley gets aggressive, sending Sasha out to the floor for a breather.

We take a break and come back with Sasha getting two before putting on a chinlock. She stretches Bayley across the knees before ramming her face first into the mat. Back to a double arm choke on Bayley but the happy one fights up and nails some forearms, only to get her throat snapped across the top rope. A slap to the face looks to set up Belly to Bayley but Sasha counters into a Backstabber. Sasha puts on a Crossface but cranks on it too much, allowing Bayley to roll on top for the pin at 8:50.

Rating: C-. The match was pretty dull stuff but Bayley got to be a bit more aggressive which is a nice change of pace for her. Bayley vs. Charlotte will be a better option than Sasha getting the shot as you can only do Charlotte vs. BFFs for so long until it gets really old in a hurry.

Tag Team Title #1 Contenders Tournament First Round: Kalisto/Sin Cara vs. Wesley Blake/Buddy Murphy

Cara and Blake get things going for some fast paced running before it’s off to the partners for some hard shots from Kalisto. Cara launches Kalisto into a backsplash onto Murphy for two. Murphy is sent to the floor and Blake gets taken down by a top rope cross body from Cara. A dropkick from Kalisto sends Murphy into a Cara powerbomb. Sin takes out Blake and Kalisto hits a standing sitout sliced bread #2 for the pin at 2:42. This was a fast paced squash and the masked guys looked really good.

The Legionnaires don’t like Enzo and Big Cass making the semifinals and speak a lot of French.

NXT Title: Adrian Neville vs. Tyler Breeze

Adrian is defending and takes Tyler down to the mat to start. Some kicks to the ribs have Breeze in early trouble but he sends Adrian out to the floor in a big crash. Tyson Kidd comes out to commentary as Neville gets back in. We take a break and come back with Breeze still in control and Kidd not saying a word. Breeze puts on a front facelock before sending Neville out to the floor again.

A whip into the steps gets two for the challenger and it’s back to the front facelock. Adrian finally shoves him off to escape and hammers away in the corner. There’s a running boot to the face and a standing shooting star for two. Neville goes to the corner but dives into a dropkick to change momentum again. Breeze misses a charge into the corner and gets superkicked for a very close near fall. Both guys are spent but Breeze is able to break up the Red Arrow.

A sunset bomb plants Tyler but he rolls away before the Red Arrow can be launched. Breeze comes back with an INSANE tornado DDT to plant Neville for two. Neville counters a German suplex into one of his own for two more and both guys are down. Breeze rolls outside and takes a big suicide dive, which finally draws Kidd out to the ring. Fans: “NO! NO! NO!” Neville blasts him in the face with a superkick before Tyson can do anything. He kicks Breeze in the head as well and goes up for the Red Arrow, only to have Tyson break it up for the DQ at 14:46.

Rating: B. This was getting really good in the middle but took a breather and toned down a bit near the end. It seemed like a way to set up another match and that might be the best possible option. Breeze wasn’t the best option to take the title but he’s FAR better in the ring than anyone would have given him credit for.

Breeze goes after Kidd but eventually they team up on Neville. Sami Zayn runs in for the save and checks on Neville to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. This was much better than what they had been doing in recent weeks but it’s still not as good as the show had been for weeks now. You can see the fourway coming from here but that’s not the worst idea in the world given how insane a match between these four could be. Good show here and a lot of stuff is set for the future, which is NXT’s specialty.

Results
Vaudevillains b. Mojo Rawley/Bull Dempsey – Middle rope Swanton Bomb to Rawley
Bayley b. Sasha Banks – Rollup
Sin Cara/Kalisto b. Wesley Blake/Buddy Murphy – Standing sitout sliced bread #2 to Murphy
Adrian Neville b. Tyler Breeze via DQ when Tyson Kidd interfered

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It’s official and I’m thrilled.  This makes Thursdays WAY easier for me as I was doing NXT and Impact at the same time so now I can actually breathe a bit.  This is going to take some getting used to but I’ll deal with it.  Tonight is the last night for Impact on Thursdays.