wrestling / TV Reports
Zen Arcade Reviews: NXT Takeover: Back 2 Brooklyn
Loading...Some days I feel like it’s just me, but for what it’s worth, I think the build to NXT’s second Brooklyn special has been nothing short of great. Actually, for most of the summer, I have consistently enjoyed NXT more than I have since before Takeover: Respect last year. The wrestling has been incredible (American Alpha/Revival III, Nakamura vs. Balor), the character development has stepped up (Austin Aries, No Way Jose, Samoa Joe, Asuka) and the show itself has just flowed better than it has at any other point in 2016. Sure, there are DUD weeks where not much happens, but that’s the nature of the beast with NXT. But, in our return to Brooklyn, we have one of the most mouth-watering matchups NXT has ever given us; Samoa Joe vs. Shinsuke Nakamura. Now Joe hasn’t really lit the world on fire in the ring since entering NXT – mainly due to his incredibly underwhelming series with Finn Balor – but he’s easily the most convincing champion they’ve ever had in terms of sheer brutality. And there’s not much I can say about Shinsuke Nakamura that hasn’t been said by literally any other message board or website, so really the names say more than I ever could. Add that on with the enticing Asuka vs. Bayley rematch, The Revival vs. Ciampa and Gargano, and the debut of both Ember Moon and Bobby Roode? This is yet another NXT Takeover card I would beg even the most casual of fans not to miss.
We are LIVE from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY.
Your hosts are Tom Philips and Corey Graves. May God have mercy on the man who eventually replaces Corey on NXT.
No Way Jose vs. Austin Aries
No Way Jose is probably one of the greener acts NXT has let into a Takeover spotlight, but it’s against a ring general in Austin Aries who you couldn’t have a stinker with if you tried. It helps that Jose is over beyond conventional wisdom, so everything adds up into what should at least be a very fun opener.
Aries is cocky to begin with, tooling Jose on the mat with an added hair tussle. Aries offers a smirking handshake, which proves foolish as Jose smacks him and gives him a taste of his own medicine. Jose winds up his baseball punch, but Aries gets the fuck out of Dodge. A-Double gives chase, but in the end runs right into that same punch and finds himself working from the bottom. Jose goes up top for something, but Aries hangs him up in the ropes and finally gets a head of steam going. Jose finally creates some separation by throwing Aries to the outside, before bringing him right back up to the apron to slam him into the turnbuckles. The crowd is distracted by something, but quickly returns its attention to the match as Aries manages to lock in Last Chancery, only for the Dominican to get to the ropes. Jose catches a rolling elbow and turns it into a TKO for a nearfall. Aries escapes Jose’s ripcord Half Nelson Slam by shitcanning him to the outside, followed by a Lope! Aries follows right up by giving Jose a neckbreaker in the second rope, but Jose hits a Falcon Arrow! HE DID THE DEAL~! But Aries kicks out! Aries hits another rolling elbow, but Jose rebounds with a nasty lariat. Aries latches himself onto Jose for a Crucifix Bomb, followed by a corner dropkick for two! Aries looks for a 450, but Jose uppercuts him from the mat and attempts a superplex… only for ARIES TO COUNTER INTO A SUNSET POWERBOMB… INTO LAST CHANCERY! Austin Aries picks up the win in 11 minutes. ***1/4 It’s still pretty clear that Jose has a ways to go in terms of really getting good, but I still think he did a great job keeping up with an elite worker in Austin Aries. He’s so charismatic that his babyface comebacks are hard to not get invested in, but even so his timing and general awareness of where he was showed me that he was further along than I’m sure a lot were willing to believe. I thought it was the right booking decision to have Aries go over too, as Jose got more out of keeping up with Aries and losing than he would have with a win, so this was a success on pretty much every front.
Aries isn’t done, attacking Jose after the match for another Last Chancery… but here comes Hideo Itami! HIDEO HITS GO 2 SLEEP~! I’m sold!
Ember Moon vs. Billie Kay
Ember Moon of course, is the former Athena, one of the more lauded women’s wrestlers on the independent circuit. Odds are you’ve at least seen her O-Face finisher, and from what I’ve seen and/or heard of her, I think the NXT women’s division will be in good hands.
I swear that Billie Kay’s music has changed three times since they started pushing her on TV. But to be fair, it’s gotten less awful every time. Ember gets a few hope spots early, but Billie has the debutant’s number in the early going. Ember pulls off a nice springboard crossbody, but Billie fights right back with Sole Food as Chuck Taylor smiles. Billie bungles a Gory Special, but gets Ember up the second time for it, soon transitioning into Chavo’s old Gory Bomb finisher. Billie Kay hoists Ember up again, but Ember fights out and makes her comeback with a cartwheel Stinger Splash. Ember goes up top for O-FACE! Ember Moon debuts successfully at the 4 minute mark. *1/2 Luckily for Ember Moon, the only thing people are only going to remember her finisher, but this was not a great match to debut with. Billie Kay just wasn’t over enough to provide a satisfying foil for her, and the sloppy heat segment didn’t exactly improve their standing. But, as I said, the finish is what everybody wanted to see and they got it, so there comes a point where criticizing only does so much.
Bobby Roode vs. Andrade Almas
One of NXT’s bigger blunders in recent history was their handling of the former La Sombra. They put him in a position to fail by debuting him against the already-popular Tye Dillinger, who ended up looking better in that match anyways, making his situation worse. Then they continued putting him in front of people with his Magic Mike entrance get-up that screams midcarder rather than adjusting accordingly. And it’s not like his performances sucked either! Put that against Bobby Roode, who came off as a complete and utter superstar from the moment he stepped into Full Sail. Sure, he had help with probably the most over-the-top theme song we’ve heard in years, but a lot of it has to do with how much the guy really GETS being a top pro wrestler. I know a lot of people won’t like to admit it, but his TNA title reign in 2011-2012 is a huge reason why TNA started actually gaining momentum after years and years of mediocrity, actually turning into the best product on TV in the summer of 2012. And it seems as though his aspirations are unlimited in the universe of NXT where he has huge fan support and a ready-made top guy gimmick.
Andrade actually gets BOOED after one of the most ridiculously great entrances I’ve ever seen from Bobby Roode. They’ve gotta do something with this guy pronto, because he’s sinking fast. Roode dodges a dropkick from Almas, who fights back with his little rope-laying trick. Almas sends Roode packing with a double jump rana, but Roode does his damndest to prevent a dive. Almas dodges a clothesline and does this hilarious shrug before Bobby goes haywire and crotches him on the top rope. Andrade hits the Chris Jericho dropkick to send Bobby Roode outside before hitting a BEAUTIFUL corkscrew plancha! A corkscrew crossbody in the ring gets a two count for Cien, followed by a Casadora Bulldog for another nearfall. Andrade feeds for something, but runs right into a clothesline that sends him inside out. Almas flips out of a superplex and hits a nice arm-capture German for a close two, but Roode gets his knees up on the Kota Ibushi follow-up moonsault deal. A Capo kick from Andrade sends Roode into the corner for the running knees, but Roode escapes the Hammerlock DDT and hits a running Andrade with a beautiful Spinebuster! Glorious Bomb gets the win in 10 minutes. *** I am so not a fan of the Pumphandle Drop as a finisher for Roode – or really anyone who wants to be a wrestler – but otherwise this was great fun just as most expected it to be. Bobby Roode is beyond over already and I don’t think it’s a stretch to predict that he’s going to be wearing the NXT title by the end of the year. Almas actually came through with his most impressive performance yet, working through the boos enough to get at least some of the mostly pro-Roode crowd on his side. If NXT gets that atrocious entrance gear off of him, Sombra has a chance to salvage his poor first couple months and turn it into a positive. As for Roode? He’s a superstar and even though he’s on the wrong side of 35, the sky is the limit for him.
Some weird vignette airs, but the announcers feign ignorance.
Triple H unveils the Cruiserweight Classic trophy made by the guys from Orange County Choppers. It actually looks pretty cool. That’s all I’ve got.
Tommaso Ciampa gives his partner Johnny Gargano a snazzy new shirt as we head into their match…
NXT Tag Team Titles: The Revival © vs. Tommaso Ciampa & Johnny Gargano
The Revival have had a sensational year as champions, having a beautiful trilogy of matches with American Alpha before entering themselves in this feud which I wouldn’t have thought in a million years was even possible. Gargano and Ciampa have slowly but surely built their resume on NXT (Ciampa vs. Joe, Ciampa/Gargano vs. American Alpha, etc) and their fabulous Cruiserweight Classic match, and with the reports of these four’s showstealers on the NXT house shows, you’d have to be a fool not to be excited for this.
Ciampa and Dawson start things off, but referee Drake Younger (!) has to break them up almst immediately. Ciampa nearly gets the upperhand, but Dawson dips before he finds himself in any real trouble. Ciampa fires off some nasty chops on both Dash and Dawson before tagging in Gargano, who gives Dawson knees in the corner before throwing him into a lariat from the Psycho Killer. Dash tags himself in, but falls victim to Gargano… only to use his power to bodyslam him and tag in a fresher Scott Dawson. Gargano slides under a Revival double team, and Tommaso backs Johnny up as we have a Pier Six Brawl in the ring. Johnny and Tommaso measure Dash for the Knee/Superkick, but Dawson pulls Dash to safety… only for The Revival to eat a Tope Suicida and a diving knee from Gargano and Ciampa respectively. The Revival is eventually able to isolate Ciampa and give him a furious barrage of double teams as it spills back into the ring. Ciampa tries to fight his way out and get the hot tag, but Scott Dawson cuts Gargano’s feet out from under him before Ciampa can get to him. Beautiful assisted Gordbuster scores for Dawson, but gets 2. The Revival’s teases of giving up the hot tags are fabulous. Ciampa tries to muscle to the tag, and Dash hilariously tumbles into the ring to distract the ref so that Drake doesn’t see the tag! I LOVE THE REVIVAL. Ciampa eats a pair of forearms and tries to rally out, but Dawson drops him with a stiff shot before knocking Johnny off the apron. Dash and Dawson try a last ditch effort to prevent the tag, but here comes Johnny Wrestling! Johnny hits the rolling kick to a kneeling Dawson, followed by a neckbreaker for 2! Johnny superkicks Dash from the apron and hits Dawson with a slingshot spear! Dawson hits the Arn Anderson fakeout DDT, after tagging in Dash, but it only gets 2! Johnny nearly gets the win with a schoolboy, but CIAMPA COMES IN WITH A BRIDGING FUJIWARA~! DASH BREAKS IT UP! JOHNNY BREAKS UP A DOUBLE SUPLEX WITH A SPEAR! SMALL PACKAGE BY CIAMPA… FOR TWO! Dawson and Ciampa throw leather in the middle of the ring until CIAMPA KILLS DAWSON WITH A KNEE! RIGHT HAND FROM DAWSON! SHATTER MACHINE COUNTERED INTO A CRADLE! DAWSON KICKS OUT! PRELUDE TO THE END! DAWSON PUTS DASH’S FOOT ON THE ROPES! Dawson breaks up Project Ciampa and posts Tommaso, but Dash chopblocks Gargano! TRAILER HITCH/STOMP TO THE KNEE! INVERTED FIGURE FOUR! The Revival pick up the win in a sensational 20 minutes. ****1/2 There might be a day where I look back on this rating and think I went overboard. As many of us are, I’m prone to giving too much credit to a match when I see it live. Emotions and all. But at this moment? This is one of the most incredible tag matches I’ve seen under the WWE umbrella and if Zayn and Nakamura never happened, it’s NXT’s Match of the Year. This is as close to a perfect tag match as you can get without truly being there. With the context of Tommaso Ciampa’s leaving ROH and steering into the world in uncertain terms, or Johnny Gargano finally leaving his Ace role in the WWN universe, all to finally have a showstealer at one of NXT’s biggest shows ever? That’s one of those organic feelings in wrestling that so many promotions try to manufacture. They try to tell you how hard so-and-so has worked to get to this big stage, but can’t let the people figure it out for themselves and create their own vision of the context. They force it down your throats and make you sick of the journey before you even see its next chapter. Every single fan in that Brooklyn crowd knew of Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano, and just how good they were. They saw the fantastic Cruiserweight Classic match. They’ve seen their NXT output, and they’ve seen their independent work whether it be from EVOLVE, DGUSA, or ROH. And while I’m sure many of those same fans would have loved for Ciampa and Gargano to win the titles here, I’m not sure that was necessary. The fact is – much like Chris Benoit at Royal Rumble 2003 – the losers here got more over by having an incredible match than they would have winning the belts. Now I might be wrong in that instance, but the fact of the matter is this; Tommaso Ciampa and Johnny Gargano are STARS because of this match. The Revival were stars already, but tonight again cements them as the best tag team in the company… and at this point, perhaps the best in the world. Their heel tactics, mixed with their surprisingly high workrate, makes them easily the highlight of any card they’re on and it’s so great to see such old-school work be so rewarding all these years later. Their matches against American Alpha opened a lot of eyes, but tonight reassured a lot of feelings I had about Dash & Dawson. This match was a beautiful piece of tag team wrestling and required viewing for a fan of NXT, a true Match of the Year contender if there ever was one.
NXT Women’s Title: Asuka © vs. Bayley
These two had a tremendous outing in Dallas that was slightly overshadowed by the Zayn vs. Nakamura match before them, as well as the surprising result in Asuka choking Bayley out. While Bayley’s road to redemption isn’t quite as compelling as it was leading into Brooklyn last year (and really, that’s not a storyline you can do twice to such magnificent results) it’s still provided some really fun interaction between her and the increasingly violent Asuka leading into this show. Asuka’s badass presence lends so much credibility to her cause, that when put against a white meat babyface like Bayley, her stock rises that much more. Just like the last match, I don’t know how you can’t be hyped beyong belief for this match.
Asuka’s entrance is that of a complete and utter STAR. Her music is the best in the company, Nakamura be damned. Bayley’s speed gives her the upperhand in the earlygoing, but she jumps right into a nasty knee from the champion. Asuka is in firm control afterwards as you could imagine, toying with Bayley in pretty heelish manner. And it’s AWESOME. Bayley dodges a hip attack on the apron and goes wild on Asuka with shots before hitting a Twist of Fate on the apron. A double jump crossbody scores for Bayley, but only gets 2. Bayley manages to get Asuka in the Tree of Woe for the jumping elbow, but Asuka is able to kick out once more. Asuka is able to trip up a running Bayley, putting her in a Stretch Muffler, but Bayley is able to roll out and get a European Clutch for 2… only for Asuka to counter into an Ankle Lock. Bayley catches an Asuka kick and defies Asuka to hit her in the face, but she counters a backfist into a backslide for a nearfall. Bayley throws elbows and elbows and elbows, but she runs into a backfist. Bayley bungles something, but manages to hit a Dominator of all things for a two count. Asuka puts in the Asuka Lock, but Bayley is able to power out and HIT THE BAYLEY-TO-BELLY! Asuka kicks out. BAYLEY RUNS INTO THE RUNNING CROSS ARMBREAKER… INTO THE ASUKA LOCK! Bayley rolls out once more for a close nearfall, but Asuka kicks her! BAYLEY DOESN’T SELL IT! SPINNING BACK KICK! ROUNDHOUSE! Asuka retains her title at the 13 minute mark. ***3/4 This was a bit shorter and less impactful than I was hoping it would be, but nitpicks aside, this was still an incredibly satisfying match from the two best women’s workers in the company. I loved the story of Bayley having to up her intensity to even attempt to compete with the machine that is Asuka, taking shots that would have knocked her out even a couple months ago and asking for more. But like last time, Asuka was just the better competitor with no bones to be made about it. Bayley was perfect – as always – at being the fighting babyface from underneath, trying her damndest to make everyone in the crowd happy… but Asuka had her number yet again and beat her clean in the middle. Sometimes that’s the story you’ve got to tell and with two of the premier workers in women’s wrestling doing it, it’s hard to tell it much better. Great stuff.
Asuka helps Bayley up after the match to much applause, and Asuka leaves Bayley to soak in the ovation.
NXT Title: Samoa Joe © vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
I don’t know what the correct level of hype is when it comes to a full grown male wrestling fan, but I think I’ve long exceeded that point.
I know wrestling and its “writers” give out their fair share of hyperbole, but I don’t know how one man can watch Shinsuke Nakamura’s entrance here and not get chills. I love professional wrestling. HERE WE GO~! Joe throws a paintbrush slap at Nakamura, who responds with a kick and a double leg. It’s a pretty tentative start as you’d imagine with neither man wanting to get into a slugfest from the jump. Shinsuke gets the upperhand early, hitting the shaking boot in the corner. That only pisses Joe off, who drags Swagsuke outside and gives him a good chop to the chest. Joe crumbles the challenger with an enzuigri, getting his first modicum of control in the match, dodging the knee on the apron sending Nakamura crashing knee first to the floor. Joe slows the pace down before destroying Nakamura with a powerbomb into the inverted Boston Crab, then into the STF… THEN into the crossface! Nakamura finally starts fighting back, dropping the champ with his front enzuigiri for a double down. Nakamura steadily starts building a head of steam before setting Joe on the top and hitting the knee to the gut. Nakamura looks for the reverse Suplex, but Joe counters out only to miss the back senton! Nakamura jumps onto a front facelock, but Joe flips him out of it… only for Nakamura to hop right back on him with knees to the head. Nakamura looks for a running kick, but eats a sloppy ST-Joe. Joe looks for a Musclebuster, but he runs into a second rope dropkick from the challenger. Joe throws a couple hard slaps before MURDERING NAKAMURA WITH A LARIAT~! Jesus CHRIST. Joe looks for a discus lariat, but NAKAMURA COUNTERS INTO THE CROSS ARMBREAKER! Shinsuke transitions into a Triangle, but Joe counters into a Texas Cloverleaf! Nakamura is able to find the ropes. Joe tries for the Coquina Clutch, but Nakamura rolls out of it… and RUNS RIGHT INTO A DISGUSTING KNEE! COQUINA CLUTCH! Nakamura is able to find the ropes again. Nakamura MURDERS JOE WITH A GERMAN~! KINSHASAAAAAAA… COUNTERED INTO A POWERSLAM! This RULES. Joe sets up for the Musclebuster again… and HITS IT! SHINSUKE KICKS OUT! Joe measures for a second one… BUT NAKAMURA HITS A FLASH KINSHASA~! JOE KICKS OUT! KNEE FROM THE SECOND ROPE! YEEOH! KINSHASA~! ONE, TWO, THREE! Shinsuke Nakamura wins the NXT title in 21 minutes! ****1/4 It’s times like this when I realize that there is probably no wrestler in the world as amazing in every aspect of the game than Shinsuke Nakamura. There is no man more charismatic, and based on what I saw from his entrance, no man who can make a match feel as big as it truly is. Now that’s not to take a damn thing away from Samoa Joe’s performance in this match, because the former champion was in perfect form himself. He was back to his ROH best from 11-12 years ago, blending the line between badass, fluid, and fiery in ways no monster in the wrestling world truly can. He threw some of the hardest strikes this side of Shibata at Nakamura, who gave him many an exciting receipt en route to the most exciting NXT Title change since Sami Zayn defeated Neville nearly two years ago. Was this a Match of the Year contender? Not quite. There were points in this match I felt they brought the crowd down a tad too much to keep the intensity going, but when they turned it on, they had an incredible strong style fight that blended Japanese, American, and WWE style to end at the right time, and with the right winner. It may not have been the greatest thing I’ve ever seen, but after several Takeovers with underwhelming main events, I’m glad to report Shinsuke Nakamura and Samoa Joe broke that trend in spectacular fashion.
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