NXT 2013/14 Thread

The Ayatolla

Interesting to see

Brian Kendrick

perform in a dark match at the recent NXT tapings. Is he back?

rovert

The Ayatolla wrote: »

Interesting to see

Brian Kendrick

perform in a dark match at the recent NXT tapings. Is he back?

Posted about it elsewhere here:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=93417923&postcount=4536

Stereomaniac

rovert wrote: »

It is on technically in the early hours of Friday morning at 01:30.

For some reason I thought it was on Wednesday. But I had to work Thursday anyway.

The Ayatolla

rovert wrote: »

Posted about it elsewhere here:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=93417923&postcount=4536

Ah, thought he may have just been in town and they stuck him in a dark match. Good to see! Hopefully he's cleaned up his act.

rovert

The Ayatolla wrote: »

Ah, thought he may have just been in town and they stuck him in a dark match. Good to see! Hopefully he's cleaned up his act.

The reason why I found out was that a friended offer him a jazz cigarette :P and Brian just told him he is off the weed and why. No news site seemed to know Kendrick was even coming to NXT. Finding it out was a total fluke.

Brian is sincere in the extreme in making this work.

The Ayatolla

rovert wrote: »

The reason why I found out was that a friended offer him a jazz cigarette :P and Brian just told him he is off the weed and why. No news site seemed to know Kendrick was even coming to NXT. Finding it out was a total fluke.

Brian is sincere in the extreme in making this work.

You never know, he could get on TV a bit more if he shows a bit of dedication.

Furious-Red

The Ayatolla wrote: »

You never know, he could get on TV a bit more if he shows a bit of dedication.

Maybe Rollins will need a 3rd member of his squad

Ridley

Man, I'd love that gimmick to come back.

rovert

Shaul Guerrero and Aiden English announced their engagement:
https://twitter.com/VickieGuerrero/status/545047754183950336

DM_7

Kendrick is only two years older than Devitt.

Seems like he is around forever.

Stereomaniac

I was thinking, he is still of the age that he could make a comeback and be a decent player. He's younger than Brock Lesnar and John Cena. Bret didn't hit the main event til he was 35 even.

Pentecost

Good show again. Owens/Neville was great until the finish which, while I understand the reasons for it, was still a bit of a let down. Owens is coming off like a beast though.

rovert

WWE.com finally added a profile for "Killa Barbie" Dana Brooke

Dana Brooke’s road to NXT began at the tender age of 6, when she began watching WWE with her father. A self-professed Army brat, Brooke has incorporated that military-style discipline as a cornerstone for her life. After obtaining success in the fitness world as an IFBB bodybuilder, she now turns that same determination towards the squared circle.

Driven by competition and armed with uncanny athletic ability, Brooke believes in fighting for what you believe in and teaching a lesson to anyone who tries to steer you otherwise. In her own words, “No one is a leader besides you.” She believes she’ll be leading NXT’s Divas division for a long time.

Never got the full 411 on her beyond Nice girl, good worker. Works heel and babyface on live events. Was signed at same time as Lana and Devin Taylor among others.

I am hearing Solomon Crowe will finally debut at the next set of TV tapings.

rovert

Braun Strowman finally made his in ring debut:



Strowman vs Reigns at Extreme Rules 2017 will be awesome.



Also on the comeback trail:

CastorTroy

So is NXT on this week? I know it's recorded anyway.

rovert

CastorTroy wrote: »

So is NXT on this week? I know it's recorded anyway.

Yup. Christmas day.

On a cool Irish note Becky and Balor both feature. There's two R Evolution rematches. Sasha w/Becky vs Charotte w/Ric Flair and Balor/Itami vs Ascension.

You are right to ask as last Christmas was a NXT Year in Review show headlined by a new match. The rather memorable Cesaro vs Regal match. Which will likely be Regal's last ever match given he is 46 and since then had level three neck fusion surgery. The ending of the match seemed like a "killing off" of Regal as a wrestler too:

Eire-Dearg

How the crowd don't chant "****" after "Bull" in the Bull Dempsey entrance, I'll never know.

brianregan09

Bull ....A fatter whitter version of Tazz

Stereomaniac

The first time I saw Bull Dempsey, and any time I've shown him to anyone since, Rhyno is mentioned.

rovert

CastorTroy wrote: »

So is NXT on this week? I know it's recorded anyway.

Actually it looks like the Christmas Day NXT is the Best of 2014, plus Charlotte/Sasha 2.

You'd assume Balor/Itami vs The Ascension and a few other matches will be on the New Years show.

A normal episode is being spilt into two episodes essentially.

rovert

NXT this week is kind of a sneaky episode. The Neville homecoming feature is pretty good but beyond that there's a few "Easter Egg" type interviews between the clips of old matches. There's a sinister Owens interview and just before the brand new Charlotte/Sasha match there's a Bayley interview that I won't spoil but it is so cute and seems to point to NXT rehabbing the Bayley character.

I hope Charlotte/Sasha II doesn't become an overlooked match as it aired on Christmas day. To me a better match from a cohesive standpoint and it is very stiff in parts. However it is less dramatic and highspot based also it is a very transparently a taped match it terms of atmosphere and presentation. Both Wrestlers were really good but Sasha's performance are what makes belts Championships.

Don't get it mixed up or anything Becky Lynch was essentially wallpaper cornering Sasha but still even as her biggest booster I never thought Becky would oppose Ric Flair let alone on Christmas Day.

rovert

Check this out if you haven't already:

The Ayatolla

rovert wrote: »

Check this out if you haven't already:

Nikki Bella at the end, nice :cool:

Stereomaniac

Nikki Bella would be far better suited to just appearing in those vignettes than being Diva's champion.

rovert

Stereomaniac wrote: »

Nikki Bella would be far better suited to just appearing in those vignettes than being Diva's champion.

Nikki is a pretty decent wrestler these days to be honest.

Stereomaniac

Brie is better than Nikki, in my opinion. She seems to resemble John Cena (Nikki). Makes sense.

Pentecost

Stereomaniac wrote: »

Brie is better than Nikki, in my opinion. She seems to resemble John Cena (Nikki). Makes sense.

Yeah they probably practice the bodyslam and five knuckle shuffle quite a bit. Ahem.

Stereomaniac

Bless you. That sounds like quite a nasty cough you're developing there. Have you taken anything?

rovert

I saw a couple of sites doing 2015 WWE departure pool. You know like a Death Pool but with departures. Not really a fan of these lists from a “karma” point of view but they are an interesting intellectual exercise as there’s various types of departures, people and management perceptions. There’s always a random referee, announcer and Diva that leaves however when roster cuts come up derpy fans online tend focus on who they hate or can't "work" you know like adding the likes of R-Truth and Hornswoggle year after year for example.

What will be interesting in 2015 is that on July 11, 2013 the Performance Center opened. Due to the extra capacity the Performance Center offered and a bigger talent budget WWE went on a huge signing spree. A lot of talent signed 2 year deals in the run up to the Performance Center opening and so obviously those deals will come due in the first half of 2015. Becky signed with WWE in April 2013 for example. Hopefully she will be NXT Women's Champion by then!

So there’s a lot of people’s contracts that are most likely up the first half of this year from Solomon Crowe to Kalisto to Devin Taylor to Alexa Bliss to Dana Brooke among many others.

This is just something I though of today and I messaged a few people about it and to state the blindly obvious people in NXT are well aware of the situation as it is their job.

Hope no one loses their job but it will be an interesting insight into Triple H’s thought process and the set time horizon for improvement. So far NXT has been very patient and hasn't churned talent at the rate of FCW.

Stereomaniac

There have been some surprises in the last couple of years though, haven't there? Briley Pearce was a bit of a shock to see go, I thought. I know that they have had his brother in a stop/start situation for years, but I really thought that he had what it takes. It is amazing the length of time between when some of these people sign and when they first show up on NXT T.V. I really forgot that Kalisto had been with the company that long, and was totally amazed that Alexa Bliss has been there for that length. We have only seldom seen her on NXT, even though she first appeared on it quite a while ago if memory serves me correctly. As much as it pains me to say it, Zack Ryder seems to be one for the bin next year. It looks like Curtis Axel is going back to NXT for a while again though.