5 Biggest Takeaways from NXT 2.0 (September 28th, 2021)
I like to keep things as positive as possible.
I like WWE.
I like AEW.
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NXT 2.0 week three is now in the books and the overall feel of the show has officially molded itself into what this new version will be. The characters have begun to settle in and the fans are becoming familiar with all of the new faces.
Last night’s episode saw a very healthy dose of the women. The Women’s NXT Title main evented the show, the women’s tag titles were finally defended in a great match and one of the new comers even had their own talk show. If women’s wrestling is your thing, NXT 2.0 might be the place you want to be on Tuesday nights by the looks of last night. On top of that, we had some better in-ring product than the previous two weeks and the Bronn Breakker push continues even when he’s not at the show as he delivered a fantastic video promo, putting Ciampa on notice that he wants that NXT Title.
What else happened? Ask and you shall receive. Here are the 5 Biggest Takeaways from last night’s episode of NXT.
#5: Age is Just a Number
One of the biggest changes that was supposed to come with NXT 2.0 is the youth movement. “Nobody over the age of 30…” was the rumor and with all of the new talents being shown, that might seem like the reality. But after last night, we had 3 successful title defenses with two of them having victories over that said younger talent. Roderick Strong(38) was able to defeat Grayson Waller(31). Io Shirai(31) and Zoey Stark(27) were able to outlast Gigi Dolin(24) & Jacy Jayne(n/a) and Raquel Gonzalez(30) was able to easily defeat her toughest opponent in Franky Monet, and looks to not be losing that title any time soon with no true credible threat on the horizon. On top of that, MSK is within the age range they are looking for and Ciampa(36) is our NXT Champion. It appears that at the very least, they are going to ride these older talents for the time being until some of the talent can become more established and able to carry the brand. I think a Takeover event that sees the new blood literally “taking over” before taking all of the old yellers to the woodshed.
#4: Tag Team Turmoil
If one thing has come out of this relaunch that I am happy about, it’s that tag team wrestling has returned to NXT. What once was a staple of the brand and would kickstart every Takeover as the pace setting match, tag team wrestling had become a distant memory. Not only did we get the women’s tag team titles defended last night but MSK was presented with three challengers for their own belts. Grizzled Young Veterans are not new, but have been on the back burner as of late. But they are too talented not to be getting highlighted on a weekly basis and treated as a true threat for the championship.
Carmelo Hayes and his new friend Trick Williams also made their presence felt. Carmelo is teasing the potential of using his contract to cash in on the tag titles. This is a theory I thought would happen when he won the tournament, as it would be different and it doesn’t thrust Hayes into a position to fail as the top guy too soon. This team has a lot of charisma and would be very ideal to take the titles into this new NXT.
If it won’t be Hayes and Trick, Josh Briggs & Brooks Jensen also have thrown their hats in the running for the title of new tag team champions. Two big boys who like to fight and have the size to cause damage. They made it very clear that they don’t want to be overlooked in this division. So in one night, NXT was able to revive that dead tag division and stir up some excitement for the first time in a long time with it.
#3: A Fatal Makeover
Fatal Attraction has come out of the first few weeks as a big time player moving forward. They have eaten up a lot of segments, interacted with multiple talents throughout the shows, had a Tag Team Title match in which they pushed Io & Zoey to the limit and have also made it very clear to the world that Mandy Rose has her eyes set on Raquel Gonzalez and her championship.
Jayne & Dolin might have come up short in their quest for gold, but alongside Mandy they made quite the impact at the closing of the show. Raquel was hardly able to celebrate her most recent victory before trying to fight off the new trio. The scuffle would end with Gonzalez out and Fatal Attraction standing over her with Mandy holding the title up high. Expect to see this faction sprinkled throughout the shows for the foreseeable future.
#2: Joe Gacy Has Not Been Canceled
Joe Gacy debuted last week with a very interesting character. He made headlines after his promo in which he “didn’t need to use his male privilege to get what he wants” and the ring was his safe spot. The media outlets referred to the character’s promo as “WWE body slamming the woke left” and it caused enough of a stir that they removed all video and reference of Gacy from their social media pages.
I have not been Canceled pic.twitter.com/zcqq1GDIwb
— Joe Gacy (@JoeGacy) September 29, 2021
So with that news coming last week it was a big surprise when Joe Gacy found himself back in the middle of the ring, similar to last week. He let the world know he wasn’t canceled and he was able to create a bigger buzz than anyone else on the show without even having to throw a punch. He is there and will continue to speak for a misunderstood generation. The character is by far the most interesting new talent on the show, and it will be fun to watch him develop over the weeks and find his place in the ranks.
This is the kind of stuff that will help bring new eyes to NXT. The re-branding, colorful arena and fresh faces are a good start but in the end what will really help make it more successful than its predecessor is characters that connect with the fans and are interesting. In one week he was able to do something nobody else has done in wrestling in a long time, creating buzz in the outside world. It may have been minimal, but it’s a good start and it would not surprise me to see Joe Gacy get a good push towards the main event scene.
#1: WWE, You Are on the Clock
With NXT still having a few of the older talents throughout their show, the question is:
Will they use those established names to build the young guys up? Or will they take those stars and add them to the draft for new beginnings on Raw and Smackdown?
You have names like Cameron Grimes and LA Knight who are full of charisma and almost seem tailor made for what Vince McMahon wants on his main shows. They are very good talents in the ring and could greatly increase the quality of the mid card scene on Raw or Smackdown.
If you were a Superstar, which @WWE brand would you like to get drafted to? #WWEDraft pic.twitter.com/Ngu8SDYimU
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) September 28, 2021
You have more names like Kyle O’Reilly, Tomasso Ciampa, Johnny Gargano, Dexter Lumis and Franky Monet who are all in their mid to late 30’s but are all currently tangled up in storylines at the moment. Ciampa as the champ, probably isn’t going anywhere. Johnny has a contract situation coming up, I’m sure that will play a role in what happens next. It’s not impossible to have them drafted before finishing up angles on NXT, but it does make me skeptical about the possibility of any of them making the jump.
The rumors are out there that NXT will be included this year. We can pretty much guarantee that none of the new names are going anywhere. This is just a matter of who gets to stay and who is next to have a chance on the main roster.
What did you think of the show? Are you a fan or do you hate the new direction? Are you a returning viewer? New viewer? I am very interested in hearing from you about your opinions on NXT 2.0. Tell me what you think. You can either comment below or find me on Twitter.
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