NXT
Date: December 18, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Byron Saxton, Tensai

Tonight is the 200^th episode celebration and believe it or not, that’s actually an accurate count for a change, assuming you consider this the same show as the original competition show. The main stories tonight are an appearance by HHH and an NXT Title defense with Bo Dallas defending against Adrian Neville in a lumberjack match. NXT has a good history of making their big shows work so this has good potential tonight. Let’s get to it.

Here’s HHH to open the show instead of Welcome Home. The boss says he loves hearing those NXT chants. We’re here to celebrate the 200^th episode of NXT which has seen people like Damien Sandow, Shield and the Wyatt come through here. The fans chant FIVE and HHH adds Big E. Langston to the list. With the new Performance Center, the next two hundred episodes are going to be even better. HHH tells the fans to give themselves a standing ovation because this is their house. The question now: are we ready?

Welcome Home.

Sami Zayn/Tyson Kidd vs. Leo Kruger/Antonio Cesaro

Leo’s Real American trials continue. The bell rings twice for some reason before Kruger knees Kidd in the ribs to start. Tyson comes right back with an armdrag into an armbar Sami gets the tag and Kruger runs straight to the corner for the tag to Cesaro. The fans immediately chant MATCH OF THE YEAR until Cesaro grabs a top wristlock. Sami shoves him into the corner but the referee pulls him down because he loves AMERICA.

Kidd comes in with a quick rollup for two but Cesaro catches his cross body in mid air and puts Tyson down with a backbreaker. We take a break and come back with Kidd fighting out of the heel corner and getting two off a rollup on Kruger. Leo stops the hot tag with a spinebuster for two of his own though and it’s back to Cesaro. The gutwrench suplex gets two and we hit a quickly broken chinlock. Cesaro kicks Sami off the apron to give Leo a two count and a chinlock of his own.

Back up and Tyson low bridges Kruger to the floor and avoids a charging Cesaro in the corner. Sami finally comes in off the hot tag to clean house and gets two on Leo off a high cross body. The Slice is countered into a sitout powerbomb for two but Cesaro makes the save. Kidd dives on Cesaro and Sami hits a running boot in the corner to pin Kruger at 8:17 shown of 11:47.

Rating: B-. Did you really expect anything other than a good match here? Sami getting a pin on Kruger is a good thing as he’s been losing way too often lately. Kidd and Cesaro could have some awesome matches if given the time, which keeps my head shaking at how Cesaro is used on the main shows.

Emma does her dance in the back and nearly pokes Natalya in the eye. Natalya gets annoyed and Emma accuses her of going Hollywood and forgetting the little people down here in NXT. Natalya says Emma got her title shot through a dance off so she has no room to talk. Emma says wrestling brought her to the dance so Natalya offers to let Emma tango into the Sharpshooter. A #1 contenders match is made and both girls walk off.

We get a clip from the first episode of NXT. Daniel Bryan used to be even smaller than he is today. That match with Jericho he had on the first show was great stuff.

There was a special meet and greet for the first 200 people at the taping. That’s a cool idea.

Sasha Banks vs. Paige

Non-title. Sasha slaps Paige into the corner to start before slamming her face first into the mat. Paige gets stomped in the corner and Banks throws in a mockery of Paige’s scream. Off to a chinlock with a bodyscissors on Paige until the champion fights up and wristdrags Sasha off the top. Summer tries to get involved but Banks accidentally kicks her in the chest, setting up the Paige Turner for the pin on Sasha at 3:38.

Rating: D+. Paige was on defense for most of this match and it didn’t work very well. She’s still miles ahead of most of the girls on Raw or Smackdown though, meaning she isn’t going to see a main show for a long time. After all, she’s not even dating one of the top guys in the company so why would the fans want to see her?

Enzo Amore (YES!) and Colin Cassady are talking lawsuits against a parking lot without handicap accessibility (Enzo is in a wheelchair due to a leg injury) when Aiden English interrupts. Enzo says Colin can out sing Aiden and an argument over the meaning of the word moi. A singing competition is set between English and Big Cass. English: “Mi-mi-mi-mi-mi-mi-mi.” Cass: “Sa-sa-sa-sa-sa-SAWFT!”

Ascension vs. ???

This is the open challenge for a non-title match. The opponents are the American Pitbulls: Derrick Billington (originally John Cahill) and John Cahill (originally Eric Philbin), more famously known as Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards respectively. Thankfully their new names aren’t horrible. The fans are entirely behind the Pitbulls and actually don’t call them the Wolves. Billington grabs a wristlock on Viktor to start before it’s off to Cahill for more arm cranking. Ascension drags him into the corner and brings in Konnor but the Pitbulls take him down with a double Japanese armdrag.

Viktor is sent to the floor but Konnor takes Cahill’s head off. We get a mild Davey Richards chant as Ascension takes turns destroying Billington. Derrick backflips out of a suplex and kicks Viktor in the chest to make the tag to Cahill. A running knee to Victor’s chest gets two as everything breaks down. The champions are sent to the floor for stereo dives by the Pitbulls for a near fall. Billington goes up and howls before hitting a flying headbutt for two. Viktor will have none of that though and blasts Cahill in the head, setting up Fall of Man for the pin at 4:22.

Rating: C+. This could have been a lot worse. First and foremost, this was not a squash. The Pitbulls got in a good amount of offense and got a near fall towards the end. I’m not a fan of Richards at all and Edwards is only tolerable (I’m not big on indy wrestling at all for the most part) but they deserve jobs after this match, or at least more appearances.

Hunico and Camacho come out to talk trash so Ascension beats up Cahill a little more.

Kofi Kingston is rocking a suit and is happy to be here. Lana comes up to speak some Bulgarian before challenging Kofi to a match with Alexander Rusev for next week. One minor note here that makes NXT that much better: Kofi was shown as part of the meet and greet earlier so he has an actual reason for being here tonight instead of just showing up because the script called for him to.

Next week is a year in review special plus Regal vs. Cesaro.

NXT Title: Bo Dallas vs. Adrian Neville

This is a lumberjack match with Dallas defending. As a special treat, THE FINK does the announcing. The fans think Breeze is gorgeous before shifting to a Let’s Go Neville chant. Dallas has some awesomely evil pure white gear this week. Bo is quickly sent to the floor but runs back inside to avoid the lumberjacks. A rollup gets two for Neville but Dallas sends him outside. Breeze gets in Adrian’s face and earns a slap, sending the crowd into a quick freazy.

We take a break (including another NXT moment with Rollins becoming the first NXT Champion) and come back with Neville taking Dallas down for some kicks to the chest. Dallas gets in a shot to the ribs and drops some knees for two. Tyler Breeze is seated next to the barricade and looks livid. A cravate keeps Neville on the mat and a kick to the head gets two. The fans chant DROP THE TITLE as Bo drives elbows into Neville’s head. A hard clothesline flips Neville inside out for two and Dallas is frustrated.

Adrian escapes the bulldog out of the corner and scores with a running forearm. Some kicks get two on Bo and an enziguri sets up a standing shooting star for two. The fans threaten to riot if Bo wins but the champion bails to the floor before the Red Arrow launches. All of the lumberjacks stop him so Adrian dives on EVERYBODY in a great visual. Back in and Adrian loads up the Red Arrow but Breeze pulls Dallas out of the way, giving Bo the pin at 9:50 shown of 11:50.

Rating: C+. I like the story here as it keeps the belt on Dallas and sets up Breeze vs. Adrian down the line. Again, it’s the difference between booking and writing with the former almost always being better. The pop when Dallas finally loses is going to be nothing short of unholy.

Overall Rating: B. Another great show here with everything fitting perfectly and putting together an entertaining hour. As usual, NXT knows how to build to a big show and then actually deliver on the payoff, which is more than you get from any major wrestling show at the moment. Good stuff.

Results

Sami Zayn/Tyson Kidd b. Leo Kruger/Antonio Cesaro – Running big boot to Kruger

Paige b. Sasha Banks – Paige Turner

Ascension b. American Pitbulls – Ascension

Bo Dallas b. Adrian Neville – Pin after a missed Red Arrow

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NXT
Date: December 4, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Byron Saxton, Renee Young, Alex Riley

Tonight is one of their bigger shows as we have Dallas vs. Neville for the title, Natalya challenging Paige for the Women’s Title and possible Rega vs. Cesaro or at least some development for the feud. NXT has been able to pull off the big shows quite well in the past so hopefully they keep that streak going tonight. Let’s get to it.

Welcome Home.

Women’s Title: Natalya vs. Paige

Paige is defending. This is a result of Natalya being all whiny on Total Divas and Paige accusing her of going Hollywood. We get a rough handshake before Paige takes her down with a headlock. Natalya grabs the leg to counter but Paige reverses into a wristlock. Natalya rolls through into one of her own but Paige breaks it up with a headbutt. They trade rollups for two each before Paige catches Natalya’s kick to the ribs.

Natalya rolls through into a leg lock on the mat as the chain wrestling continues. Off to a headlock on the mat by Natalya but Paige gets to the ropes before the Sharpshooter goes on. Back from a break with Paige stomping away in the corner. Apparently Natalya tried to get in a cheap shot during another handshake during the break which set Paige off.

Paige puts on an abdominal stretch but is reversed into the same hold by Natalya. The blonde enhances it a bit by lifting Paige’s leg up for more pressure. Saxton: “Natalya putting some more twerk on Paige.” Paige fights out but gets leg dragged to the mat. Natalya stomps away but Paige fights up, only to have both girls try cross bodies at the same time to give us a stalemate.

Natalya is all fired up now and gets two off a snap suplex and a hard slam. Now it’s Sharpshooter time but Paige crawls over to the corner and through Natalya’s legs, sending Natalya head first into the buckle. Natalya goes for the legs again but Paige counters into the Paige Turner for the pin at 10:16 shown of 13:46.

Rating: B-. The fact that Paige isn’t on Raw is becoming more and more of a crime every day. The girl is good looking, young and can go in the ring but for some reason (allegedly age, even though JoJo is a year and a half younger than Paige) she’s stuck here while we get True Divas vs. Total Divas. The match was what we’ve come to expect from the Divas and the chain wrestling was a very nice treat.

Cesaro imitates Regal, telling him not to stick his nose into Cesaro’s business. Kruger comes in and says Cesaro took him to a place he hadn’t been in a long time. Cesaro: “A shower?” Kruger thinks he can be a Real American and Cesaro says he’ll talk to Zeb if Kruger does him a favor. It’s something related to Sami Zayn, who faces Kruger tonight.

Aiden English vs. ???

The jobber isn’t named so we get the LET’S GO THIS GUY chant. Renee talks about all the organizations Aiden is a part of, including various mime and opera groups. I love little details like that which enhance a character far better than saying the same stuff over and over again. Imagine that: making stuff up to make a character better. Total squash with English throwing the jobber around and ending him with the Director’s Cut at 1:18.

The fans chant for and receive an encore. The ring is filled with roses after English finishes in a nice touch.

Here’s Cesaro in a suit to apologize to Byron Saxton for what happened last week. We get a clip of Regal saving Saxton last week before Saxton comes up onto the stage to talk to Cesaro. They shake hands and Cesaro invites Byron to do the Real Americans pledge but Saxton isn’t too thrilled. Cesaro grabs him by the neck and slaps Saxton down before fixing his suit. No Regal.

Sami says last week was tough but if anyone is going to take the title from Bo, he’s glad it’s Adrian. Either way, he’ll get it eventually. Leo Kruger jumps him from behind to set up their match.

Tyson Kidd vs. Leo Kruger

Didn’t they say Kruger was facing Zayn tonight? Either way, this was set up when Kruger kicked Kidd’s crutches out back in February. Tyson stomps him down in the corner to start and a belly to back suplex gets two. Renee enjoys looking at Kidd’s toned body as Kruger takes him down into the corner and chokes with his boot before hitting a kind of Stunner onto the recently repaired knee. We take a break and come back with Kruger still on the knee and even putting on the Sharpshooter. Kidd is in trouble but Sami Zayn comes out for a distraction, allowing Kidd to get a rollup for the pin at 4:46 shown of 8:16.

Rating: D+. This needed a break? The match was nothing to see as it was supposed to be about revenge but I need more than a rollup for revenge. To be fair though this was hardly a feud and was really just tying up a loose end from February. It also sets up Zayn vs. Kruger even more so good booking but bad action.

Camacho and Hunico want the tag titles.

NXT Title: Bo Dallas vs. Adrian Neville

Neville quickly takes him down to start for two but Dallas bails to the corner. A cross body out of the corner gets the same and Dallas heads outside for another breather. Back in and Dallas takes off a buckle pad behind the referee’s back before taking Neville’s head off with a forearm for two. We hit the cravate from the champion before a corner clothesline and the bulldog gets two on Adrian.

Dallas drives some knees into the head for two more but misses a middle rope knee drop to give Neville a breather. Some running forearms to Dallas’ head have him in trouble and a big shot sends Dallas out to the floor. A huge Asai Moonsault takes Dallas out but he kicks out at two. Adrian loads up the Red Arrow but Bo bails to the floor before it can launch. Instead it’s a cross body to the outside to crush Dallas again but only Neville beats the count back in for the countout at 7:38.

Rating: C. The match was decent while it lasted but the ending was just a way to extend the feud. To be fair though this match wasn’t built up nearly as well as the Zayn vs. Dallas match so it’s not as much of a drop. This could be leading to Dallas vs. Neville vs. Zayn which could be very entertaining if given a good amount of time. Not a great match here but it did its job.

The announcers talk about Dallas being champion for nearly 200 days to end the show.

Overall Rating: C+. This was a middle of the road show for NXT but it was still entertaining. It set up some stuff for the future which continues to be one of NXT’s strong suits, but it didn’t give us anything we really needed to see tonight. The fact that this was a show to get us to the next show and was still entertaining is a really good sign though. The future is bright for these guys.

Results

Paige b. Natalya – Paige Turner

Aiden English b. ??? – Director’s Cut

Tyson Kidd b. Leo Kruger – Rollup

Adrian Neville b. Bo Dallas via countout

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NXT
Date: October 30, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: William Regal, Renee Young, Byron Saxton

We’re still in the Abu Dhabi era, meaning it’s still time for the lower level guys to shine on this show. That opens up a lot of doors as it’s hard to tell what the show is going to focus on. The strength of NXT has always been its ability to put the focus on anything at any time though, so hopefully this show holds up well. Let’s get to it.

Welcome Home.

Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady vs. Alexander Rusev/Sylvester LeFort

Enzo and Big Cass think LeFort and his Legionnaires are just like chicken tenders: SAWFT! I believe this is Sylvester’s in ring debut and the guy is in great shape. Rusev plows through Cass to start and hits a standing splash (think Vader) before pulling Enzo in as well. Sylvester wants a tag but Rusev runs him over as well before beating Cassady with the Accolade at 1:33.

The mysterious blonde comes back to look at Rusev.

The Raw ReBound is the big ending segment where Big Show returned after that whole two weeks away to have his life ruined.

Aiden English vs. Jason Jordan

English does his song on the way in and Regal admits to having a mancrush on him. Jordan jumps him to start as Renee lists off his other athletic accomplishments. For some reason they’re much easier to listen to coming from her than Cole or JR. Off to a sleeper with English singing a lullaby. Jordan fights up and gets two off a dropkick, only to get caught in the Director’s Cut (sitout cobra clutch slam) for the pin at 1:44.

English gives us an encore and has roses thrown at him.

We look at Corey Graves beating Adrian Neville last week and attacking him post match.

Neville congratulates Corey for last week but it’s just the beginning since Corey went after Adrian’s livelihood.

Video on the Abu Dhabi tour.

Paige vs. Summer Rae

Non-title. Paige stars fast by throwing Summer around by the hair and out to the floor. Summer avoids a baseball slide but hides behind Sasha to stop Paige’s momentum. Back in and Paige gets two off a sunset flip as Regal continues to awkwardly hit on Renee. Regal snaps back into reality as Paige uses a headbutt, thrilling the Brit. Sasha tries to interfere and gets thrown out as we take a break. Back with Summer sending Paige to the apron and having her legs swept out from underneath her to give Summer control.

They head back inside with Rae hooking a leg lock as Regal talks about some old girlfriend of his coming to Orlando next time. Renee goes into girly mode and Saxton reminds them that he’s here. Paige fights up and hits a standing cradle DDT for two. Some clotheslines put Summer down and a running dropkick does the same. Summer comes back with a nice spin kick to the face for two of her own, only to get caught in a quick Paige Turner for the pin at 6:12 shown of 9:12.

Rating: C-. Not bad here as I wonder why Summer didn’t have this match with Natalya on Monday. She’s more than capable of having decent matches like this but I was bored out of my mind from her Raw stuff. This was good enough but they need to mix things up with the title as Paige has held it for months now.

Post match Banks comes back and beats down Paige until Emma makes the save. Emma stomps away on Sasha in the corner and accidentally blasts Paige as the champ goes after Banks as well.

Tyler Breeze says it’s time to send CJ Parker back to the streets where he belongs.

Luke Harper vs. Kassius Ohno and Rusev vs. LeFort next week.

Tyler Breeze vs. CJ Parker

Parker chases Breeze around the ring before sending him face first into a buckle. A nice suplex gets two for CJ and a cross body out of the corner gets the same. Apparently there’s a small community in southeast Asia that worships Breeze’s hair. I’m not sure why but that cracked me up. Parker hooks an airplane spin of all things before headbutting Breeze down. He loads up a big palm strike but Breeze bails to the floor as we take a break.

Back with Parker suplexing Breeze down but getting caught in a quick powerbomb out of the corner. Breeze stomps away but stops for a picture. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Tyler goes up and gets slammed down. Parker hits some shots to the face and a side kick for two before the Third Eye (palm strike) gets the pin at 7:50 shown of 10:50.

Rating: D+. This didn’t do it for me. Breeze is great but Parker is just flat out boring in the ring. I know we’re supposed to get behind him due to the hair cutting thing last week but at the end of the day there’s nothing to him at all. The fans there don’t like him and I can’t say I disagree with them at all.

Post match Parker goes for Breeze’s hair but Tyler bails to end the show.

Overall Rating: D+. If this is as bad as NXT gets, I can certainly live with it. There wasn’t much here but Aiden English is always fun and I can tolerate looking at Summer and Paige for ten minutes if you force me to. This was just a filler episode and that’s fine all things considered. Not a great episode but like I said, if this is as bad as it gets, that’s not bad.

Results

Alexander Rusev/Sylvester LeFort b. Colin Cassady/Enzo Amore – Accolade to Cassady

Aiden English b. Jason Jordan – Director’s Cut

Paige b. Summer Rae – Paige Turner

CJ Parker b. Tyler Breeze – Third Eye

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NXT
Date: October 16, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tony Dawson, William Regal, Renee Young

Tonight is a very big show for NXT as we FINALLY get the showdown between Sami Zayn and Bo Dallas. This is a match that’s been built up for months now and tonight is the blowoff. Imagine that: setting up match and building up to it for months as the fans want to see it more and more. Why is that so complicated? Let’s get to it.

The opening video sets up the title match tonight with Zayn wearing a mask and pinning Dallas a few weeks back.

Welcome Home.

Tag Titles: Ascension vs. Adrian Neville/Corey Graves

Ascension is defending and won the belts from Neville and Graves two weeks back. Corey sends Victor into the corner to start as the announcers talk about how much more aggressive Graves has been since losing the titles. Victor is knocked into the corner before putting on a headscissors choke over the ropes before bringing in Adrian. The Brit loads up a quick Red Arrow but has to kick O’Brien away, only to hurt his leg in the process.

Back from a break with Victor slamming the back of Graves’ head into the mat for two before it’s off to Conor again. Adrian quickly gets over to the corner and dives to Corey for the tag. Graves goes for Conor’s leg and puts on Lucky 13 but Victor makes the save. Adrian is still hurt but Graves tags him back in anyway. O’Brien throws Adrian shoulder first into the post but Neville comes back with a kick to Victor’s face. He goes for the tag but Victor kicks Adrian into Corey which isn’t a tag for some reason. Ascension hits the Fall of Man on Neville to retain the belts at 5:52 shown of 9:22.

Rating: C. This was all about finishing off the Graves/Neville team for good which was the right move. They never felt like anything more than transitional champions and in both matches they’ve looked outclassed by Ascension. It was a glorified squash and there’s nothing wrong with that at all.

Post match Graves yells at Neville for losing their shot before destroying him, turning heel in the process. It takes a little bit before the fans really get onto him but the YOU SUCK chant gets going after a bit.

Cena is coming back in case you didn’t know.

Post break the announcers are stunned at what they just saw.

Tyler Breeze vs. CJ Parker

As usual, the fans are entirely behind Breeze and can’t stand Parker. Renee Young continues to be awesome on commentary by saying she and Breeze get along so well because they both have blonde ponytails, shop at the same stores and are about the same size. Fans: “BREEZE IS GORGEOUS!” Parker hits a hard chop to the chest to start as the announcers debate which kind of cell phone would be the best weapon.

Breeze misses an elbow drop and gets rolled up for two, protecting his face in the process. Parker misses a dropkick and gets kicked in the face but Breeze has to go take a picture in the corner. Breeze pounds away and freaks out when CJ loads up a right hand to the face. Fans: “NOT IN THE FACE!” Breeze uses the distraction to poke Parker in the eye and hit a spinwheel kick for the pin at 3:25.

Rating: C-. If there is a more fun character out there than Tyler Breeze, I have no idea who it is. The match was nothing special but the thing that stood out the most here was Renee Young. She is so perfect as the laid back commentator and actually makes the matches a lot easier to listen to. She’s funny, she adds stuff to the match, she sounds natural and above all else, she isn’t corny at all. In short, she sounds like a normal, bright person talking about what she’s seeing and offering some intelligent thoughts to it. That’s the polar opposite from how forced most commentary is and it’s very refreshing.

Regal praises Tyler for his tactics. Breeze goes to take a picture but Parker hits him in the face and steals the phone to take pictures of himself. Regal has the right idea: “CALL THE POLICE!”

Breast cancer is bad.

Paige/Emma vs. Sasha Banks/Summer Rae

Paige insists that she gets to start and erupts on Summer to start. It’s quickly off to Emma who sends Summer running off to Banks. Emma avoids a charge in the corner and gets a quick sunset flip for two. Sasha takes her into the heel corner and brings in Summer as Renee takes jabs at Tony for calling her the foremost authority on Divas.

Summer hits a faceplant for two on Emma before pulling on Emma’s arms. Emma backflips over into a rollup for two and there’s the hot tag to Paige. The champ cleans house and fires off some knees to Summer’s ribs before getting two off a PerfectPlex. Everything breaks down and Summer hits a quick standing legdrop for the pin on Paige at 5:50.

Rating: C-. The looks of the girls made this a lot easier to get through but it still wasn’t much of a match. Much like earlier, this was there to do little more than stet up a future match, presumably with Summer finally taking the title from Paige. Still though, good stuff here as the Divas of NXT continue to be the best in the business today.

NXT Title: Sami Zayn vs. Bo Dallas

They have a ton of time for this. Bo is defending if you’re new around here. Feeling out process to start with Sami sending Bo into the ropes. Sami gets a pair of rollups for two, sending Bo into the corner. Back up and the champion grabs a headlock to take Zayn down and drops some knees for two. Dallas hooks a cravate for a few moments before Sami comes back with clotheslines and a backdrop. The running boot in the corner…..WINS THE CHAMPIONSHIP AT 4:35?????

The fans are so shocked they forget to cheer but before I can even type Rating:, here’s JBL to say it doesn’t count because Bo’s foot was on the rope, which was clearly before the bell. JBL tells the referee to not make him learn his name so restart the match. Bo elbows Sami out to the floor and we take a quick break.

Back with Sami fighting out of a cravate but getting clotheslined down for another two. Sami fights up again and low bridging Dallas out to the floor. There’s the big flip dive from Zayn followed by a high cross body for two. Dallas blocks the running boot in the corner but gets caught in a spinning blue thunder bomb for two. Bo hits a boot to the side of the head and a bulldog out of the corner for a close near fall.

A reverse DDT gets the same but Sami avoids a powerslam and spears Dallas down for two. Dallas blocks a climbing the turnbuckle armdrag and spears Sami down for two. The fans are losing their minds on the kickouts. Dallas puts Zayn on the top rope for a superplex but gets countered into a great looking sunset bomb for an even closer two. Sami rolls some German suplexes but Bo rips off the turnbuckle pad and sends Zayn face first into the steel to block the last German, allowing Bo to roll him up to retain at 14:26 shown of 17:16.

Rating: B+. Really fun match here where you genuinely didn’t know who was going to win until the end. At this point Zayn shouldn’t be in NXT for awhile as this was his big moment and he came up short. He’s more than ready for the main roster so there’s no need to keep him around in developmental anymore. Dallas’ best match ever by a few thousand miles.

Overall Rating: A. My goodness NXT is amazing. This felt like their biggest show ever and it delivered in spades. We have angle advancement in the tag title match, a challenger for Paige, a fun match with Breeze and a great match with a false finish for the title. This is by far the highlight of my wrestling week and somehow it keeps getting better. Excellent show this week and great stuff all around.

Results

Ascension b. Adrian Neville/Corey Graves – Fall of Man to Neville

Tyler Breeze b. CJ Parker – Spinwheel Kick

Summer Rae/Sasha Banks b. Paige/Emma – Standing legdrop to Paige

Bo Dallas b. Sami Zayn – Rollup

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NXT
Date: October 9, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Alex Riley, Tom Phillips

This is kind of the show before the big show with next week having the showdown between Sami Zayn and Bo Dallas. As for tonight there isn’t anything big announced. We do however have a major guest star in the form of Rob Van Dam. I love how they bring in big names like that to give the fans a treat almost every week. Let’s get to it.

We open with a Rob Van Dam music video, meaning he’s likely the main event tonight.

Welcome Home.

Leo Kruger vs. Antonio Cesaro

This should be good. It’s a result from the Bo Dallas Invitational where both guys fought over a chance at fighting Dallas. Cesaro charges at the bell and hits a running dropkick to fire up the crowd. Kruger loses his shirt but comes back with some loud chops. A clothesline puts Cesaro on the floor and Kruger rakes his back.

We head back inside with Cesaro driving in knees to the ribs to take over, drawing a “Push Cesaro” chant. Kruger gets choked on the bottom rope but comes back with a quick suplex and some choking of his own. A Russian legsweep gets two for Leo but Antonio hits a quick running European uppercut in the corner for two of his own.

Cesaro puts him down with something like a Rock Bottom for two but gets crotched on the top rope. A superplex puts Cesaro down and we take a break. Back with Cesaro being knocked to the floor for a suicide dive from Kruger. They head inside again with Cesaro running away from the Slice clothesline and heading outside again. Cesaro sends him into the steps and drops him back first onto the apron in a bid for a countout. Kruger gets back up so Cesaro gives him a gutwrench suplex on the ramp.

Kruger still makes it back in at nine so Cesaro goes into boxing mode to punch him down again. A fast series of European uppercuts and a second cousin of the Angle Slam gets two but Kruger backdrops out of the Neutralizer. Kruger gets a boot up in the corner but charges into Swiss Death for another near fall. There’s the standing sleeper but Cesaro pulls him down into a bodyscissors. Kruger fights up again but gets his head taken off by a clothesline. Cesaro goes into beast mode and this the Neutralizer for the pin at 11:57 shown of 14:47.

Rating: B. If you give Kruger a near fall here it’s a great match. As it is, it’s only a great way to make Kruger into a face that won’t quit. The thing to see here though was the energy. Both guys were clearly working hard to tell a story out there and it worked like a charm. This is the kind of stuff WWE desperately needs at the moment to break up the stale feeling.

Post match Cesaro drops a top rope knee on Kruger because that’s the kind of guy he is. Kruger seems to have an injured throat.

Breast cancer sucks.

Charlotte vs. Santana Garrett

Bayley is with Charlotte here and Renee Young is on commentary again. Santana fights out of a wristlock to start but Charlotte uses her gymnastic stuff to take over again. A bad looking kick to the face gets two for Santana as Renee talks about an article on WWE.com with Charlotte complaining about being compared to her dad.

Here are Sasha Banks and Summer Rae for some Laycool style applause. Charlotte fights out of a headscissors into a cradle for two before bridging Santana down for two. Sasha’s distraction gives Santana a rollup of her own for the same result but she walks into a reverse F5, setting up a HORRIBLE looking flip Diamond Cutter for the pin at 3:10.

Rating: D. This was mainly about Sasha and Summer, but Charlotte’s finisher looked terrible. Hopefully it’s because Santana took it from her knees, but she barely went down at all and Charlotte didn’t connect for the most part. Still though, Charlotte has a good ring presence which will serve her well later on. Bad night I’m hoping.

Post match Summer and Sasha declare themselves the B.F.F.’s: the Beautiful Fierce Females. They’ve gotten rid of Paige so there’s no one left to do anything about them. Cue Paige but she gets beaten down as well, leading to a save by Emma.

Mojo Rawley wants to motivate you.

Post break Summer and Emma challenge Paige and Emma to a tag match next week.

Danny Burch vs. Mojo Rawley

Rawley’s entrance music starts with “I don’t get hyped. I STAY HYPED!” He sprints around the ring with so much energy that Ultimate Warrior would tell him to tone it down. Burch pounds away on the well built Rawley before putting on a quick chinlock. Mojo fights up and hits a few quick shoulder blocks before finishing Burch with an Earthquake splash for the pin at 2:27. Not a great debut but the entrance told you everything you need to know about Rawley.

Paige and Emma don’t like each other but they agree to team up next week.

Scott Dawson/Alexander Rusev vs. Colin Cassady/Enzo Amore

Dawson and Rusev might be named the Legionaries. Enzo thinks we’re in Cheers right now because everyone knows their names, causing Cassady to sing part of the cheers song. Rusev and Dawson are definitely S-A-W-F-T and the fans let them know it. Cassady and Amore are just so much fun. Rusev starts with Big Cass and pops him in the jaw with an elbow to slow him down.

Off to Amore who has about as much success as you would expect. A series of knees to the ribs put Amore down and it’s off to Dawson for some elbow drops for two. There’s a hard clothesline for the same and everything breaks down. Rusev crushes Enzo in the corner and finishes him at 2:52 with a camel clutch, which is called the Accolade for some reason.

Dawson and Rusev beat up Cassady post match.

Sami Zayn is ready for his title shot next week against Bo Dallas. Bo comes in and says that Sami hurt his feeling last week and that’s it’s certainly not personal. Sami has no problem with Bo other than he’s the NXT Champion. Bo offers a tag team instead of fighting over the NXT Title, which Sami agrees to, after the title match that is. “Un-Bo-lievable.”

Rob Van Dam vs. Aiden English

English, now an Artiste, sings about kicking someone’s teeth in because he’s a sports entertainer. Ricardo does RVD’s entrance but not in song. Aiden takes Rob down with a top wristlock to start but we hit a quick standoff. A quick rollup gets two on English and sends him back into the corner for some finger pointing. The monkey flip out of the corner has English in trouble and a clothesline puts him on the floor.

Rob moonsaults him off the apron and we head back inside for Rolling Thunder but Aiden bails before Rob can start. English kicks the rope to crotch Rob and shouts that it’s his show. A suplex gets two on Rob and we hit the chinlock. Back up and Rob kicks him down a few times before a superkick sets up Rolling Thunder. The Five Star ends English at 5:32.

Rating: C-. This was just a workout for Van Dam but it didn’t need to be anything more than that. English getting this spot is a good sign for him as he debuted the new gimmick just a few weeks ago and is facing a former world champion already. This was just a thrill for the crowd and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Overall Rating: B. Even their filler shows are good. The best thing about NXT though is it’s not just a few guys they have that make an awesome show. Cesaro and Kruger are the only guys here from last week and they were only in action for about 45 seconds last week. NXT changed the entire roster for this week’s show and it was still very entertaining. That tells me it’s the promotion and not the stars, which is a REALLY good sign going forward.

Results

Antonio Cesaro b. Leo Kruger – Neutralizer

Charlotte b. Santana Garrett – Running flip Diamond Cutter

Mojo Rawley b. Danny Burch – Earthquake Splash

Scott Dawson/Alexander Rusev b. Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady – Accolade to Amore

Rob Van Dam b. Aiden English – Five Star Frog Splash

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NXT
Date: September 11, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: William Regal, Tony Dawson

The main story at the moment is Sami Zayn vs. Bo Dallas after Bo cost Sami a match against Jack Swagger last week. Sami is one of the most over guys in NXT and is more than ready for the main roster. Other than that we have the continuing adventures of Mason Ryan vs. LeFort and company which are at least getting Rusev over. Let’s get to it.

Welcome Home.

Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady vs. Alexander Rusev/Scott Dawson

Enzo goes on a rant about how Dawson and Rusev are SAWFT and the fans eat it up. Dawson is now called Captain Roughneck in a nod to Dick Murdoch. Enzo starts with Dawson with Amore hitting a quick let hand and running off to Cassady. The 7’0 Cassady takes over on the 5’9 Dawson and pounds him down before bringing Enzo back in.

Dawson wastes no time in spinning Amore inside out with a clothesline. Off to Rusev to destroy Enzo with pure power. There’s something awesome about a monster destroying a small man. Back to Dawson who knocks Colin off the apron and plays Neidhart to Rusev’s Bret in a Hart Attack (with a spinwheel kick instead of a clothesline), but that’s a DQ on Rusev and Dawson at 3:35 for being in the ring too long.

Rating: D. Nothing to see here but Rusev continues to look good. I still don’t get the appeal of Dawson but he’s much better as a singles guy than he was in the tag team with Dylan. Amore is one of those guys who needs to stay out of the ring as he’s so much better on the mic than he is at wrestling.

Here’s Bo Dallas with something to say. The white pants and black vest with the long hair already make me want to punch him. He thanks all of the Bo-lievers for all of their well wishes have made him believe he can fly. Last week he was just down there to cheer Zayn on because Sami needs a mentor. Bo says he’s medically cleared to wrestle Sami but not for the title because he’s not completely healed up. When in doubt, don’t stop Bo-lieving.

CJ Parker talks about Tyler Breeze hording sticks like a beaver while Parker wants to spread the sticks everywhere. Breeze jumps him and takes a photo. Parker still doesn’t do it for me.

Sasha Banks vs. Paige

Banks is being corrupted by the dark side of the Divas in the form of Summer Rae. I thought this was for the title but it wasn’t announced as such. The fans chant Happy Birthday to Paige in a nice gesture. Paige sends her throat first into the ropes a few times before blocking an attempt at the same thing from Sasha. Nice touch. Sasha comes back with a victory roll for two and a reverse waistlock. Paige drives her into the corner for some back elbows to the face ala Matt Morgan. Banks sends her face first into the buckle as we take a break.

Back with Paige in a reverse chinlock followed by a rear naked choke. Paige fights up but gets caught by a back elbow to the jaw for two. We go back to the chinlock with a bodyscissors from Sasha for a very long time until Paige fights up into a rollup for two. Back to the chinlock which has probably been half of the match so far. Paige gets out again and comes back with a release fisherman’s suplex to put Banks down. Ten knees to the chest put Banks down but Paige misses a dropkick, only to roll through a cross body to pin Sasha at 7:42 shown of 11:12.

Rating: C. This was nothing great but Sasha isn’t the best in the ring. The long stretches of chinlockery here didn’t help much either as the match dragged on way too long as a result. The girls here are still much more interesting than the WWE girls but the division could use some fresh faces.

Post match Paige offers a handshake but Sasha beats her down instead.

In the back, Sasha tells Summer how great that felt.

Xavier Woods vs. Leo Kruger

Woods chases Kruger out to the floor but Leo snaps Xavier’s throat over the middle rope to take over. Back in and Leo hooks an armbar to take over and set up the GC3 later on. Woods finally escapes but and takes Leo down with a headscissors. Kruger bails to the floor, only to miss a dive as we take a break. Back with Kruger stomping away and dropping elbows for two.

Leo pulls at Xavier’s face for a bit before it’s back to the armbar, this time with hair pulling. It’s off to a hammerlock instead now but Woods counters with a Stunner. Back up and Woods hits a dropkick to put Leo down but Kruger comes back with a backbreaker for two. A Jackhammer gets two more for Leo but Woods comes back with some forearms and dropkicks to get a breather.

The Honor Roll rolling clothesline is countered into a nice spinebuster for two. Kruger’s Slice misses and Woods hits an enziguri and Lost in the Woods (running Downward Spiral here, though it used to be the name of Gail Kim’s Eat Defeat) for two. The second Honor Roll connects and Eat Defeat is good for the pin on Kruger at 10:40 shown of 12:40.

Rating: C. This picked up at the end but it wasn’t worth sitting through all that time to get there. The arm work from Kruger didn’t go anywhere and Woods’ arm seemed fine for the Honor Roll. The match was nothing special though and there’s no reason for these guys to be fighting that I can think of. That’s fine if the match is really good but it needs more if a match is just ok.

Overall Rating: C-. I know I asked for a weaker show for a change but I’m kind of regretting it now that I’ve gotten it. Nothing on here was very good, the main event felt like it was thrown together and Sasha is just a placeholder until Summer vs. Paige starts up again. Thankfully this is the last show in a taping cycle so next week should feel fresh. This was their weakest offering in awhile.

Results

Colin Cassady/Enzo Amore b. Alexander Rusev/Scott Dawson via DQ when Rusev and Dawson wouldn’t get out of the ring

Paige b. Sasha Banks – Reversed cross body

Xavier Woods b. Leo Kruger – Lost in the Woods

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NXT
Date: September 4, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tom Phillips, Alex Riley

Things are getting interesting again in NXT as we started a series of new stories last week. On top of the card we have Sami Zayn wanting the NXT Title but having to deal with the other Real American, Jack Swagger. Other than that we have Sylvester LeFort strengthening his stable with the addition of Alexander Rusev. It should be a fun show tonight so let’s get to it.

Welcome Home.

Bayley/Charlote vs. Alicia Fox/Aksana

Bayley starts with Aksana and the WWE chick wants a hug. The gullible Bayley goes for it and earns the kick to her ribs. Aksana crawls around on the mat before covering and drops an elbow for two. Off to Fox for that gorgeous northern lights suplex for two before it’s back to Aksana for some stomping in the corner. The heels continue to tag in and out quickly to work Bayley over until it’s off to a chinlock from Fox.

Aksana comes back in for more choking but walks into a belly to belly suplex, allowing for the double tag. Charlotte comes in with her gymnastic flipping, including rolling out of a slam from the top in a nice nod to her dad. Fox is put in a fireman’s carry but Bayley tags herself in, much to Charlotte’s annoyance. Alicia accidentally kicks Aksana to the floor, allowing Bayley to roll Fox up for the pin at 4:33.

Rating: C. This wasn’t too bad with Charlotte starting to get her style down. Bayley’s overzealous character could work well as she could drive everyone crazy enough that they’ll want to fight her. The fans like Bayley though so it might be a problem to make the other Divas not like her without turning them all heel.

Charlotte doesn’t seem too mad at Bayley.

Scott Dawson and Sylvester LeFort are in the back when Alexander Rusev’s snarling quiets them down. Tonight is about getting revenge on Mason Ryan so Rusev breaks a board with Mason’s name on it.

Rick Victor vs. Corey Graves

Graves has bad ribs due to the attack by Ascension last week. Victor has stolen Graves’ tag title belt so Graves has even more of a reason for revenge. Corey takes him down to start and sends Victor into the corner to pound away. A headbutt knocks Victor into the corner but he kicks away from Lucky 13. Instead Corey puts on a front facelock but gets rammed into the buckles, jarring those bad ribs.

Corey comes right back with right hands and a snap suplex for two. A cross body puts Rick down but it hurts the ribs again, giving Victor the opening he needed. They slug it out and Graves scores with a mule kick, only to be sent into the ropes hard enough to hurt the ribs again. We take a break and come back with Victor pounding Corey down in the corner. Every time I see Ascension pounding beating like that it puts me in mind of Demolition which is never a bad comparison to make.

A backbreaker gets two on Graves and it’s off to a knee in the back to stretch the ribs even more. O’Brien taunts Graves with the title belt but Victor stomps Corey in the ribs before he can start a comeback. Back to the chinlock with the knee in the back but Corey fights up and makes his comeback with as many right hands as he can throw.

A clothesline puts Victor down and Graves drops a fist to the back of Rick’s head. Conor O’Brien gets on the apron but Adrian Neville dropkicks him down and dives on Conor before he can interfere. Victor loads up Graves for a gutbuster but Graves rolls him into a small package for the pin at 9:51 shown of 13:21.

Rating: B-. The match was good but I’m not liking the booking. The champions have now beaten both challengers clean in back to back weeks, so why should I be interested in seeing them in a tag match? Also it goes against the dominance that Ascension has shown in their earlier matches, which almost defeats their purpose as a team.

Sasha Banks is doing her makeup when Summer Rae comes up to start trouble. Summer talks about Sasha’s match with Paige next week and suggests Paige thinks she’s too good to be a Diva like them. Summer says to use the inner rage and Sasha seems intrigued.

Paige doesn’t care what Summer Rae is doing but knows that Sasha Banks is good. She isn’t here to be a covergirl but rather to cover girls in the ring. Paige promises to give Sasha the fight of her life next week. This wasn’t a very good promo at all with Paige sounding nervous and not being sure what to say next.

Alexander Rusev vs. Mason Ryan

Alexander breaks another Mason board before the match. They lock up a few times to start with Ryan shoving him away both times, so Alexander kicks him in the face. Ryan gets in some right hands, only to have Alexander take him down with an impressive spinwheel kick. Some falling headbutts have Ryan in trouble and more headbutts to the chest get two for Rusev. Mason dodges a charge in the corner and comes back with right hands and a big boot but he has to deal with Scott Dawson and LeFort. The distraction allows Alexander to splash him in the corner and a camel clutch makes Mason tap out at 4:00.

Rating: D+. This was a squash for Rusev and the fact that it’s over Ryan makes it even better. Mason has never shown any potential but has consistently been pushed as a monster. Rusev actually looks good in the ring and would have been a top heel in the mid 80s against Hogan. I like what I’ve seen from him so far and I can dig the foreign monster heel idea.

Leo Kruger laughs a lot and looks down at Xavier Woods who is holding his neck.

Sami Zayn vs. Jack Swagger

They have a ton of time here assuming there’s nothing left on the show. Sami stomps him down into the corner but Jack scores with a clothesline. Zayn will have none of this being on defense stuff though and comes back with chops for two. A dropkick sends Swagger to the floor but he moves before Sami can dive. That’s fine with Zayn who catches himself before the dive and flips back into the ring to fire up the crowd even more.

Zeb Colter grabs Sami’s leg, finally allowing Jack to get in a hard clothesline to take over. We take a break and come back with Sami fighting out of a chinlock, only to walk into a belly to back suplex for two. Another suplex puts Sami down before another clothesline turns him inside out. Swagger puts on a double chicken wing for a bit, only to have Sami fight up and send him to the floor for the big flip dive.

Back in and a high cross body gets two on Swagger, as does a sunset flip. Swagger hits something like a running spinebuster to put Sami down again but Zayn escapes an Oklahoma stampede and gets two more off a blue thunder bomb. Jack goes for the ankle but has to settle for the gutwrench powerbomb for two instead. Now the Patriot Lock goes on for a good while but Sami makes it to the ropes for a YES chant.

Sami fights up AGAIN and sends Swagger into the corner for a jogging big boot. Zayn pounds him down before going up top where Swagger crotches him down, only to be caught in a sunset bomb for a VERY close two. The fans are losing their minds on these kickouts. This draws out Bo Dallas, whose distraction allows Swagger to put on the Patriot Lock for the submission at 13:14 shown of 15:44.

Rating: B+. Sami has yet another great match here by putting the fans on the edge of their seats for those kickouts. Thankfully the loss wasn’t clean as Zayn hasn’t won anything major since his debut if I remember correctly. Still though, very entertaining match here and hopefully it sets up Zayn vs. Dallas down the line.

Overall Rating: B. Can we have a bad episode of this so I don’t have to say the same good things about it every week? This was more good stuff from the Florida people as they continue to roll along. The Sami vs. Swagger match was really exciting stuff and they made sure to build more stories for later. These guys know how to run a weekly wrestling show and it keeps me wanting more.

Results

Bayley/Charlotte b. Alicia Fox/Aksana – Rollup to Fox

Corey Graves b. Rick Victor – Small Package

Alexander Rusev b. Mason Ryan – Camel Clutch

Jack Swagger b. Sami Zayn – Patriot Lock

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NXT
Date: July 31, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tony Dawson, William Regal

This is an odd show for NXT as there isn’t anything planned coming into this episode. Last week saw Paige become the first Women’s Champion in a good match and Sheamus defeating Luke Harper in a stand alone match. That doesn’t leave much to build on this week but I’m sure NXT will pull something off. Let’s get to it.

Welcome Home.

We open with Enzo Amore and Colin Cassidy running their mouths. Colin brags about being undefeated as a team and not being soft (“S-a-w-f-t!”). Enzo says he sees NXT as a dance floor and they’re going to dance all over it. Cue Tons of Funk to chase them off in an obvious cameo. Cassidy and Amore talk trash from the floor but here’s Mason Ryan to chase them into the ring. Tons of Funk beat up the annoying ones and we have a referee but no bell. Ryan comes in and plants Amore with a cobra clutch slam before dancing with the fat guys to the only pop of his career.

Dusty is in the back with Emma and Paige when Summer Rae comes in to complain. She wants the title right now but Paige offers to break Summer’s teeth. Emma says she beat Summer fair and that Summer’s dancing sucks. Dusty calls the idea ridiculous but he likes it so the idea is on.

Charlotte vs. Sasha Banks

Sasha hooks a headlock to start but Charlotte rolls away. A dropkick puts Charlotte down for two and it’s off to an armbar. Charlotte fights up and backflips out of the corner before wrapping up Sasha’s legs for a sweet rollup, getting two. A chop (of course) staggers Banks but she easily takes Charlotte down and puts on a camel clutch. Back up and a running knee in the corner has Charlotte in trouble but she comes back with a clothesline. That front flip into a facejam/cutter (like Cena’s Throwback) is good for the pin at 3:19.

Rating: C-. Charlotte isn’t polished yet but it’s clear she’s got a good foundation to start with. I liked this better than her last match as she looked a lot more confident out there this week. It was a good idea to have Sasha control most of the match and just let Charlotte do her gymnastics stuff. Charlotte has a good future it would seem.

Tyler Breeze looks at himself a lot and talks about being breathtaking, magnificent and gorgeous. Someone with long hair is behind him making faces, getting a good reaction from the crowd.

Wyatt Family promo, set to Mary Had a Little Lamb.

Mickey Keegan/Aiden English vs. Wyatt Family

The Family has their full Raw intro now. The fans are going NUTS for the Wyatts which is strange to hear. Luke and Erick clean house and the discus lariat sets up the splash from Rowan for the pin on English at 26 seconds.

Post match bray talks about how there are men that try and fail but then there are men who change the landscape of this world. He’s the second kind of man and now he wants to know what the people around here are like. Today is the day that Bray Wyatt has decided to change the world.

Today is the day when pigs fly because Wyatt has told Mr. Fear that he is a liar. Go and tell all the world leaders because Bray Wyatt is coming to bring down the machine. Today the Wyatts say goodbye to NXT for now, but if you need to find Bray Wyatt, follow the buzzards. He throws in a little Time Is On My Side and drops the mic to chants of THANK YOU BRAY. This was WAY more intense than anything Wyatt has done and it worked very well.

Adrian Neville comes in to say he’s got Corey Graves’ back tonight in case the Wyatt Family interferes. Graves says if the Wyatt Family thinks they’ve seen a war, maybe the new champions should show them what war is.

Corey Graves vs. Scott Dawson

Graves misses a charge into the corner to start but the fans are entirely behind him. Dawson hits an elbow to the jaw for two and he does it again for the same result. Graves comes back with a kick to the jaw and a chop block to set up Lucky 13 for the tap at 2:00. This was nothing.

Post match Corey celebrates with Neville but here’s the Shield to interrupt. Rollins says Graves remembers the Shield for laying him out last time they were here. Graves and Neville are almost like Reigns and Rollins….but not quite. Ambrose says Neville is carrying around a belt because he slid into Kassius’ Ohno’s spot.

That makes him a thief, and that is an injustice. He offers Adrian a shot at greatness in a match but Neville wants the US Title on the line and to do it RIGHT NOW. Dean says Adrian isn’t talking to some NXT chump but rather the US Champion. The title match is on for next week, and Neville says justice is served next week.

Leo Kruger/Antonio Cesaro vs. Bo Dallas/Sami Zayn

Kruger vs. Dallas for the title next week. Something I’ve touched on tonight has been the crowd who will cheer everyone from the bayou religious cult to the paramilitary group to the white supremacist. Bo Dallas comes out and is BOOED OUT OF THE BUILDING. A loud No More Bo chant breaks out as Zayn and Kruger get things going. There’s an Ole chant and Zayn sends Leo across the ring out of a wristlock. Zayn jumps over Kruger in the corner and three straight armdrags set up an armbar on Leo.

Bo tags himself in and you can feel the crowd die. Off to Cesaro as the fans chant WE THE PEOPLE. Dallas snaps off some armdrags of his own but he takes too much time to tag, allowing Cesaro to kick him in the ribs to take over. A big boot puts Zayn on the floor but Dallas dropkicks Antonio down. Zayn gets the tag and Cesaro runs to the corner to tag Kruger who runs Sami over with a right hand.

We take a break and come back with Kruger getting two off a snap suplex to Zayn. Cesaro comes in with a European uppercut for two before putting on the standing chinlock. Back to Kruger who gets two off a headbutt and a double stomp. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Sami fights up and gets two off a sunset flip. Cesaro comes back in before the hot tag can be made and gets two of his own off a powerbomb.

Off to a regular chinlock from Antonio but Sami fights up and kicks him in the face to escape. Bo gets the tag and is booed out of the arena again which I don’t remember hearing on a hot tag before. Everything breaks down and it’s Kruger vs. Dallas in the ring. Bo hits a quick powerslam to send Kruger to the floor but back inside the Slice (running clothesline) is enough to put Dallas down for the pin (and an ERUPTION) at 10:40 shown of 13:10.

Rating: C+. The match was a basic tag team formula to set up the title match next week. The interesting thing again though was the reaction to Dallas. I haven’t seen consistent hatred for a guy like this since probably X-Pac. No matter what the guy does he gets booed out of the building but is still pushed as a face. There aren’t any shades of gray with his character. He’s a face through and through and for the life of me I don’t know why.

Overall Rating: B. Another good show this week for all the same reasons: a lot of stories were covered and those matches were the most important thing on the show at the time. It’s a good sign that this show can come up with a good hour of TV while having nothing set up in advance. Can you imagine Raw trying to be spontaneous like this? Good show this week like almost always, with NXT being the highlight of my wrestling week.

Results

Charlotte b. Sasha Banks – Front flip facejam

Wyatt Family b. Mickey Keegan/Aiden English – Splash to English

Corey Graves b. Scott Dawson – Lucky 13

Leo Kruger/Antonio Cesaro b. Sami Zayn/Bo Dallas – Slice to Dallas

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NXT
Date: July 24, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Brad Maddox, Tom Phillips

The main event this week is Paige vs. Emma for the inaugural Women’s Title. Other than that we have new tag team champions in the form of Neville and Graves. They took the titles from the Wyatt Family tonight, meaning we need to find out what’s next for Bray and company. Let’s get to it.

The opening video recaps Emma beating Summer Rae to set up tonight’s final.

Emma and Paige both say they’ll win.

Welcome Home.

NXT Women’s Title: Emma vs. Paige

The fans are split down the middle here as both girls feel each other out. Paige takes her down with a shoulder block but charges into a boot in the corner. A sunset flip gets two for Emma and she cranks on Paige’s arm. Paige comes back with a heabutt but can’t hook a backslide. Emma walks the backslide over to the ropes and spins into the Dilemma (Tarantula) as we take a break.

Back with Paige holding a chinlock and sending Emma throat first into the ropes for two. Paige is working as a very slight heel here. A PerfectPlex gets two on Emma and Paige stomps her down into the corner for two. Emma takes her down by the hair and hits a corner cross body for two. Paige gets two off a sunset flip but Emma comes right back with a chinlock before riding her with a reverse waistlock.

Paige gets to her feet and drives Emma into the corner for some rapid fire elbows to the face. She takes Emma down by the leg and puts on a kneeling Texas Cloverleaf with her knee in Emma’s back. Emma is in big trouble but she somehow wiggles out and kicks Paige away. A very quick small package gets two on Paige, sending the fans into heart attack territory.

Emma tries a leg lock but Paige gets to the ropes before it’s on. Paige fires off headbutts and goes up top but gets caught in a superplex to put both girls down. The fans rightly say this is awesome. Emma finally covers but Paige gets her foot on the rope. Back up and Paige hits a few kicks to the ribs and the Paige Turner for the pin and the title at 11:13 shown of 14:43.

Rating: B. This was excellent stuff and probably the best female match I’ve seen in WWE in years. Emma came to play here and more than kept up with Paige. Paige looked like she survived the match rather than won it which makes for more entertaining matches most of the time. They had me believing it was over on both that cloverleaf and the small package that followed and the fans bought it too. Outstanding match here.

The other Divas from the tournament come out to celebrate. HHH himself comes out to raise Paige’s hand. This should have closed the show.

Colter and Cesaro video on the topic of Sami Zayn. Zeb thinks Sami isn’t a real American and is in this country illegally. Colter’s background check can’t find any evidence that Zayn has ever existed. There’s reason to believe that Zayn wore a mask at one point, which is the sign of a criminal. Colter promises to have Sami deported and Cesaro says he’s going to make Zayn’s life a nightmare in and out of the ring. This was solid heel stuff.

Tyler Breeze vs. Angelo Dawkins

Breeze is a combination of Fandango, the Narcissist Lex Luger and Rick Martel but with bleach blonde hair. He keeps taking pictures of himself with his phone before the bell, ticking off Dash. The bell rings but Breeze needs to take some more pictures. Dawkins charges at him but gets pounded down with ease. Breeze kicks him in the ribs but stops for more pictures. He puts the camera down and hits a great spinwheel kick to the face for the pin at 1:18. Breeze is fun but I don’t see him having much of a shelf life.

Ascension promo with Rick Victor now on the team.

Ascension vs. Mickey Keegan/Aiden English

They’re still going with the name Rick Victor which doesn’t quite fit the Gothic Matrix look. O’Brien runs English over to start but it’s quickly off to Victor top uppercut and chop Aiden in the corner. Ascension keeps up the quick tags with Victor coming in for a running boot to the chest for two. A double hiptoss into a double powerbomb puts Aiden down and a High/Low (back elbow from Victor and a chop block from O’Brien) is enough for the pin at 1:56. Keegan never got into the match.

Luke Harper vs. Sheamus

They fight onto the ropes to start and Sheamus grabs a quick headlock. Harper actually runs him over with a shoulder and Sheamus isn’t sure what to do. Sheamus comes back with a shoulder of his own to send Harper to the outside before dropping some knees back inside for two. A running ax handle to the face puts Harper down again as Wyatt gets out of his chair to shout. Sheamus sends Harper to the apron for the forearms but Rowan gets some as well when trying a save.

Harper FINALLY gets in a shot to Sheamus’ back due to the distraction and we take a break. Back with Harper in control and standing on Sheamus’ head. We hit the chinlock as Bray is looking much calmer now. The goat mask hanging from the back of the rocking chair is a creepy image. Sheamus gets back up and hits a tilt-a-whirl powerslam to give himself a breather.

They slug it out and Harper hits a modified Boss Man Slam for two. Harper misses a middle rope splash and gets caught in the rolling senton for two. The Brogue Kick misses and the discus lariat gets two for Harper. Sheamus sends Luke into Erick and hits White Noise followed by the Brogue Kick for the pin at 9:45 shown of 12:15.

Rating: C-. Basic power brawl here and a way to make Harper look good. That’s the cool thing about bringing someone like Sheamus in for a set of TV tapings: you can run a short term story like this but it takes so long to air the whole thing that you forget it was taped in one night. Decent match here.

Bray politely claps for Sheamus to end the show.

Overall Rating: B-. As usual with NXT we hit on a lot of stuff here tonight. The big problem here is the order of action tonight. Sheamus is definitely a big deal on the show, but there was no reason to not have the girls close things out here. HHH coming out to congratulate the new champion would have been a great way to end the show but instead we get Sheamus winning a match everyone knew he would win. Odd choice but it’s still a good show.

Results

Paige b. Emma – Paige Turner

Tyler Breeze b. Angelo Dawkins – Spinwheel kick

Ascension b. Mickey Keegan/Aiden English – High/Low to English

Sheamus b. Luke Harper – Brogue Kick

Remember to follow me on Twitter @kbreviews and pick up my book on the History of Starrcade from Amazon for just $4 at:

NXT
Date: May 1, 2013
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Tony Dawson, Brad Maddox, William Regal

After last week’s Clash of the Champions, it’s time to get back to the regular stuff here in NXT. Langston doesn’t have a challenger at the moment and the Wyatt Family is still running around. There really aren’t any stories at the moment other than Shield, which means we should get some interesting stuff tonight. Let’s get to it.

Chris Jericho is here tonight.

Welcome Home.

Epico/Primo vs. Wyatt Family vs. Bo Dallas/Adrian Neville

This is under elimination rules. Bray Wyatt and Rosa Mendes are nowhere in sight here. Dallas and Rowan start things off with Bo pounding away in the corner until it’s off to Neville. Bo and Adrian tag in and out very quickly with both coming in with top rope ax handles to Erick’s arm. Off to Harper vs. Adrian and a rolling cradle gets two for Luke. Apparently Wyatt gets to face Jericho in the main event tonight. That should be awesome.

Harper slams Adrian down but Epico tags himself in to pick Neville’s bones. That goes about as badly as it could for Epico though as Dallas gets the tag and cranks on Epico’s arm. Epico takes him into the corner and channels his inner Arn Anderson by raking Dallas’ eyes across the top rope. We take a break and come back with Rowan working over Dallas until it’s off to Harper for a chinlock.

Dallas hits a jawbreaker to escape and knocks Harper into the corner for a tag to Primo. Primo stomps Bo down in the corner and it’s off to Epico after just a few seconds. Scratch that as it’s already back to Epico as the cousins (Primo is Spanish for male cousin) take turns hammering on Dallas. The fans say NO MORE BO as Epico puts on a bow and arrow hold. Dallas fights up and rolls Epico away, only to get taken down for some near falls. Maddox: “What heart by Bo Dallas! Just like you Regal.” Regal: “I don’t have a heart. It’s a piece of black coal.”

Bo escapes a chinlock with another jawbreaker and it’s off to Primo vs. Neville. A leg lariat and standing shooting star gets two on Primo and there’s a spear from Dallas to Epico. Primo gets a quick rollup on Adrian for two but Neville kicks him in the head, followed by the corkscrew shooting star for the pin to eliminate Epico and Primo. A second later though Harper takes Adrian’s head off with the discus lariat for the winning pin at 9:41 shown of 13:11.

Rating: C+. This was a nice match with the Family finally getting a win to get themselves back on track a bit. Hopefully we get the Brits vs. the Family down the line for the belts with the monsters getting the gold, but until now this is about as close as we’re going to get. Epico and Primo did what they were supposed to do here, but without Rosa shaking her hips there’s nothing interesting at all about them.

We recap Paige vs. Summer Rae. Summer injured Paige’s shoulder and now Paige is back for revenge. Paige issued a challenge and Summer jumped her to accept the challenge.

Paige vs. Summer Rae

Summer jumps her during the entrance again but takes too long, allowing Paige to get the advantage once they get inside. A clothesline puts Summer down and Paige is looking very cocky. Paige smacks her in the face for two and looks to be loving every second of this beating. A fisherman’s suplex gets two on Rae but she rams Paige into the corner to escape. Summer rolls through a rollup and we get a catfight on the mat. Rae rolls to the floor and we take a break.

Back with Maddox accusing Regal of having a thing for Paige. Regal: “Blithering idiot.” Rae drops Paige again for two and she mocks Paige’s scream. Off to an old school Indian Deathlock by Summer as we get a debate over Native American vs. Indian. Paige finally makes the rope and kicks Summer in the ribs. The leg seems to be just fine already. Rae gets stomped out to the floor and starts to walk out, but Paige will have none of that. Summer is sent ribs first into the apron and the Paige Turner (kind of a snap reverse Angle Slam) gets the pin on Rae at 6:44 of 10:14.

Rating: C. The match was nothing special, but think about this for a minute: this was a perfectly logical conclusion to a totally acceptable story from two Divas. There was no stupid bubbly girl, there was no stupid line, there was no embarrassing match. It was a logically built feud with an appropriate conclusion. Now why haven’t the main show girls been allowed to do that in several years now?

Due to the Wyatt Family pinning Neville earlier tonight, they get a title shot next week against Neville and Bo Dallas, who is substituting for Oliver Grey.

Bray Wyatt vs. Chris Jericho

Wyatt talks about being the kind of hero that the world needs and promises to break down the wall tonight. Wyatt gets right in Jericho’s face so Chris pounds him down and hits a quick dropkick to send Wyatt to the floor. Back in and Bray bails to the floor to avoid a right hand so Jericho hits a baseball slide to take him down. Jericho throws him in again and hits a top rope cross body for two. Rowan tries to trip Jericho up and gets himself ejected as we take a break.

Back with Jericho in control but being sent out to the floor. Harper slams him down onto the ramp so Wyatt can stomp away before pounding on Jericho back in the ring. Jericho tries a rollup but gets sent out to the floor instead. Off to a chinlock as the fans are all behind Jericho. Chris fights up but gets caught in a quick suplex to put him right back down. Wyatt misses a backsplash though and Jericho hits a top rope ax handle to take over.

After dropkicking Harper to the floor though, Bray decks Jericho with a clothesline for two. The running enziguri gets two for Jericho as does a running cross body for Bray. Jericho comes back with the Codebreaker to send Bray to the floor. Harper sends Jericho into the post though, giving Wyatt two more in the ring. Bray does the dancing bit but the Downward Spiral is countered into a slingshot into Harper. The Walls make Bray tap at 10:30 shown of 14:00.

Rating: B-. Another good match here with Wyatt getting a solid rub from Jericho. I’m fine with Wyatt losing here given that Jericho is still a big deal on the WWE roster. Wyatt tapping out isn’t something you would expect him to do though and it brings things down a bit. Still though, good match and a good use of Jericho here.

Jericho celebrates with the fans to end the show.

Overall Rating: B. We get storyline progression, a conclusion to a feud, and a visit from a big star. What more can you ask for out of a week long TV show? I like the swapping in of Dallas for the title defense as you can only have Neville holding a belt for so long until it becomes worthless. Good show again, but that’s what you expect from NXT at this point.

Results

Wyatt Family b. Epico/Primo and Bo Dallas/Adrian Neville – Discus lariat to Neville

Paige b. Summer Rae – Paige Turner

Chris Jericho b. Bray Wyatt – Walls of Jericho

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