MATCH I — SAMI ZAYN vs. CESARO

The first live match on the WWE Network, the first NXT live special match, was a hit. Like, a real, mother-fudging hit. I know Cesaro is underrated, but I think we forget just how good he can be sometimes; and we all know Zayn is love.

What followed their entrances were brutal Polish hammers, devilish European uppercuts, outlandish high-flying, and fantastisch story-telling. This was the first chapter of Zayn’s NXT story, and I’ve yet to see a character on the black and yellow brand be introduced better. The match seemed spotty, but story-telling plugged the gaps, it was filled with spots that I had never seen at the time, and it got me into the show in a big way. Speaking of story-telling, yeah, Zayn went on to do some cool shit with it, but it concluded Cesaro’s story that (in kayfabe) he was better than the developmental brand. Stunning.

The only thing going against this one were their previous matches; the two-out-of-three falls match they had was a NO-BRAINER INSTANT CLASSIC (henceforth known as a NOBIC), but even then they inverted some spots and kept us on the very extremity of our seats.

Best of all? It made sense. Just enough extreme push-back from Zayn, but in the end, no chance he was beating Cesaro after that much punishment. When that makes sense to an audience, the psychology is on point, mate.

RATING: 8/8

MATCH II — CJ PARKER vs. MOJO RAWLEY

Maybe this doesn’t sound like the kind of match that belongs on an NXT live special… And that is correct. Used as a way to facilitate the push of Mojo, these two gents had a fairly basic squash match. A positive about this and NXT as a whole at this time, was that Mojo and the current Juice Robinson had their characters on form and were having fun playing them by the looks of their performance. Gimmicks were in abundance and I will always miss them.

Credit to William Regal on commentary as well, feckin’ hilarious, and the less said about Mojo’s butt-drop finish at the time, the better.

RATING: 2/8

MATCH III — THE ASCENSION vs. TOO COOL — NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ah, The Ascension in NXT…. Big men who could move as smooth as butter, bad-ass, non-illuminati entrance, future tag-team legends. Love ’em with Breezango, doing nowt else nowadays… Darn.

Too Cool are always spot on though, right? Love seein’ ’em, and they knew not to overstay their welcome. A swift match was polished off with a necessary retention, and a short trot down memory lane with a dance and a worm.

THEY’RE STILL THE LONGEST REIGNING NXT TAG CHAMPS FOR JESUS CHRISTING SAKE.

Sidenote: The ‘AH’ chant from the crowd whenever Ascension did anything is one of the most underrated chants eeeeeever.

RATING: 3/8

MATCH IV — PAIGE vs. EMMA — NXT WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP

Is this the match that started the Women’s Revolution? It’s the one that a lot of folk associate with it, so, yeah, I guess it is. And awarding it that title cements it in history no matter the quality of the match, which was lower than what it should have been.

Emma was already well on her way to the main roster, she won the number one contendership in a dance-off, and Paige had already beaten her. Plus, Steph McMahon came out at the start and tried too hard to make it feel like a big occasion. The in-ring aspect was the best thing about it, and while decent, it wasn’t the duo’s best outing. Emma showed a welcome new tenacity, and Paige showed flashes of what would’ve made her a sure-fire future hall-of-famer, but neither of them could bring the match to the highest level. The biggest shame here is that neither of these lasses are doing the graps in WWE today.

Sweet-ass Scorpion Cross Lock, mind, right?

RATING: 4/8

MATCH V — XAVIER WOODS vs. TYLER BREEZE

Such humble beginnings…

Woods and Breeze had mild issues, so were set for a match, which never got started as Aleksandr Rusev wandered in to foop it all up. Breeze would (obviously) recover, and Woods would attempt to, but never really did in NXT… (Thank Jeebus for The New Day).

Worked to sell Rusev as a monster, but didn’t need to shove Breeze under him on the way, as the model was on the rise on black and yellow.

Woods has obviously made it these days, and Rusev looks to be on the right path again after a few (assisted) wrong turns, but Breeze can go and should come back up as a major player. Over time, tone down the male model shtick, evolve it into a narcissistic heel and you got a class character. Go from Martel to Michaels, and ya got a hit. From when I saw Mike Dalton in FCW, I reckoned he could be the next HBK. Ooo, big call. QUOTE ME

RATING: 1/8

MATCH IV — BO DALLAS vs. ADRIAN NEVILLE — LADDER MATCH FOR THE NXT CHAMPIONSHIP

The crossover of the two best NXT Championship reigns ever. The holder, Bo Dallas, with one of the most fluid heel turns you’ll ever witness, with a grating character that could legitimately get everyone to hate him. Bo was money. Then the champion come the end of the match, Adrian Neville. A subtle story had been weaved from when before Dallas was champion, that Neville should be the one the dethrone him, and so it was. The betrayal of friends, followed by the fall of the cocky upstart, and the simply more talented challenger. Once these two met in NXT, everything they touched was gold, Dallas was a must-watch week-in week-out, and Neville would continue a journey that unfolded his own anthology.

The first main-event of an NXT special, was just that. Take everything mentioned above and add in a high-quality match with luffly character nuances and extraordinary skill. The spots weren’t overpowering, but still impressive, and the result was exactly what it needed to be. Dallas is great at putting aside his jokey side and being vicious and merciless, while Neville has a (now-proven) mean streak for those who have wronged him.

While an absolute classic to moi, and the story alone aces it, the shames are the length (same with me, to be honest); it could’ve gone a shade longer with a few more revenge shots, and the occasional excution. Some spots were stunted, some moves a bit off, but only just. That being said, I was watching this with baited breath about four years ago, and now when I watch, I sit and admire.

Seriously, go back and watch Dallas’ reign and Neville’s reign, I don’t think either of them have touched the quality they reached since then. Bar perhaps evil Neville… I luff evil Neville… Please come back evil Neville… It’s been so long, come back to me…

Cracking match.

RATING: 7/8

NXT is what I bought the Network for. I’ve never missed an episode, and this era was by far my favourite. From when they started shooting at Full Sail, I got a whole new taste of wrestling. It wasn’t ruled by politics in my eyes, and I could decide my opinion on a whole new host of wrestlers; my favourite activity. For the first time, it felt like fans decided what went well. Dallas wasn’t working as a face, so they kept giving him to them, but as an annoying doooooooooouche. Breeze climbed to the top with his shtick that could’ve flopped if it went straight to the main roster, but at Full Sail, it was, and is, legendary.

Whether it was J. Bronson or Leo Kruger, Dante Dash or Raquel Diaz; these weren’t stars brought in on big contracts, they were just guys and gals starting from the bottom, living the dream. Ricochet is already a king, Aleister Black already a destroyer, but what was Aiden English? And what is he now? Aiden, and folks like him have a lot further to go. Started from the bottom, but where they gonna go?

OVERALL RATING: 4.2/8

Keep it streets ahead,

CLR