Following Monday Night Raw, WWE broadcast the next episode in the WWE 24 series on the WWE Network. Following the Wrestlemania 30 episode and the Roman Reigns episode, WWE based this episode around NXT, and more importantly, their TakeOver show in Brooklyn the night before SummerSlam. It’s always refreshing to see backstage footage of superstars, especially for a big show, and this episode showed that whilst always taking the audience through the emotional rollercoaster that the talent on screen have been through.
The opening section of the show focused on the history of NXT and how it has got to where it is today. There was brief footage of Triple H addressing the NXT talent in a meeting, looking like he was giving them a lecture of sorts, which was pretty cool. We then see more of the history and they then play up to the fact that this is the last NXT show for big talent such as Kevin Owens, Charlotte and Becky Lynch. They surprisingly included Sasha Banks in this list, only surprising because she is back for the next TakeOver episode for her rematch with Bayley.
[adinserter block=”1″]Throughout the show, we get different interviews at different points with the NXT talent. We get Sasha speaking passionately about growing up and wanting to become a wrestler and not one of those ladies in Bra and Panties matches that she saw growing up. We see Balor makes a few jokes including him saying he woke up and saw it was a beautiful morning and then he realised he had a ladder match that night. For these interviews alone, the show was a good watch, because it saw a side to these people we watch and love that we don’t necesarrily see on TV. It almost felt like they were genuinely speaking as their own person and not a character they’ve created for entertainment.
For a solid five minutes, there is a video package about women’s wrestling that contained the four horsewomen of NXT. The package was dedicated to their desire and dedication to transforming women’s wrestling in WWE and wanting to be the best. The whole time watching this moment, I couldn’t help but wonder why this wasn’t used to promote the NXT divas from the start. Instead of having them just randomly turn up on an episode of RAW, they could have used this video package and promote their future arrival. It would have generated so much anticipation.
We then arrive to the show night. We get a glimpse of the superstars running through their entrances before the show. We see Finn, Breeze, Bayley, Banks, amongst others practice their walk outs. This was pretty cool to see, and was very strange to see the entrances done without all the ring attire, as they were all just casually dressed. Seeing Breeze walk out in a t shirt and joggers instead of the glamorous coat and trousers was rather amusing.
The show then runs through the Brooklyn show and we get action from both in the ring and outside. The aspect that the show highlighted the most was emotion. The emotion of the superstars to be part of the biggest NXT show to date, given most of them have been on the journey most of the way. During the Bayley and Sasha Banks highlights, we see the emotions of both their mothers who were at ringside for their match. We see both ladies tear up in their interviews as they speak of their journeys as well as the future. We even cut to the crowd to see the WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins shedding a little tear! What was most powerful and emotional about this moment was an interview with Sasha Banks after the match. She says during the embrace between her, Bayley, Charlotte and Becky Lynch, Bayley says “I don’t want you to go” in reference to Sasha’s transition to the main roster. This was a really sad moment because they’ve all been on this journey together and now Bayley is almost left on her own as the other three move up for now.
[adinserter block=”2″]For me, and probably for any fan who has been through the journey with the NXT superstars, this was a brilliant watch. It was heartfelt, and the emotions as well as the pride we saw throughout was genuinely felt watching it. I could feel the sadness of Bayley at the end, I could feel the pride of Triple H as he watched what he has developed do something so special. There was a solid mix of action from Brooklyn and backstories and build up. The only thing I felt was missing was any mention of Jushin “Thunder” Liger and his involvement at the show, but I suppose the show was only meant to be about the NXT talents and their remarkable journey. Which I’m more than happy about. Definitely recommend watching it if you haven’t already.
Did you watch it? Do you agree with how I felt about the show? Or do you think it lacked in certain areas? Comment below or contact me on twitter: @carlo_george
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