Csonka’s NXT Takeover: Dallas Review 4.01.16

Csonka’s NXT Takeover: Dallas Review 4.01.16

OFFICIAL RESULTS
– NXT Tag Team Title Match: American Alpha defeated Champions The Revival @ 15:13 via pin to become the NEW Champions! [****]
– Austin Aries defeated Baron Corbin @ 10:45 via pin [**]
– Shinsuke Nakamura defeated Sami Zayn @ 18:55 via pin [*****]
– NXT Women’s Title Match: Asuka defeated Champion Bayley @ 15:25 via technical submission to become the NEW champion! [***¾]
– NXT Title Match: Champion Finn Balor defeated Samoa Joe @ 16:22 via pin [****¼]

NXT Tag Team Championship Match: Champions The Revival vs. American Alpha: The Revival has had high quality outings on the last two shows, and American Alpha has also been very good so I hope for good things here. I can see why some may complain; they worked a formula, a southern tag style that many man not like, but they did it very well. They did have a couple of small rough patches, but they worked through them well and did not allow it to become a problem. I thought that the heat on Gable was well done, as the Revival have gotten that aspect down very well and make the most of their old school tag vibe that just works perfectly for them. They traded near falls late (Gable’s constant desperation pin attempts were great), it broke down and then American Alpha hit grand amplitude and won the titles. Very strong work form all four, and they certainly made the most of their time. The crowd was with them and they wanted the title change so this was well received. This was a great way to kick off the show, and I would have no issue watching these guys feud for a while if they are going to deliver like this. I know that American Alpha is the sexy team to many, but the Revival have been great and deserve the praise.

Austin Aries vs. Baron Corbin: NXT has been slowly bringing Corbin along, and he has improved and his give no fucks/I hate Indie guys gimmick is enjoyable. Aries is a quality guy, and if Corbin is going to shine, Aries is a good guy to give him. Aries got his run early, attacking at the bell and then hitting the double sledge to the floor. We got some walk and brawl, but when they got back into the ring Corbin cut off Aries with the stungun. Corbin then took the heat, it was slow and the crowd slowly died as he worked this extended heat. The longer that Corbin had control, the more momentum they lost and they never really got it back. I didn’t expect a MOTY contender from this match, but I hoped for more and thought that the crowd would be behind Aries more; unfortunately they just did not care and neither did I. It just didn’t click for me on any level, it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t good either. Aries countered the end of days and scored the win with the roll up. I do like the story of the guy that hates the Indie guys that are coming in and taking spots, and this will continue so I hope that they can improve in their next meeting.

Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Sami Zayn: This is such a highly anticipated match; you have Zayn’s farewell along with Nakamura’s WWE debut al in one match. Both men will want to send a message, Zayn a thank you to the NXT crowd and a reminder that he’s awesome and Nakamura wants to let the “WWE Universe” and office know that the buzz is real. Nakamura was on screen for roughly three-minutes and may already be the most charismatic guy in the company. The beginning was simple, but effective as they played off of the crowd and allowed their charisma and selling to carry things early. And they should have because when you can barely do anything and the crowd goes ape shit, you play off of that all you can. So from there, they did a very good job of slowly escalating the action while still playing off of the crowd, which was into just about everything that they did. I felt that Nakamura was able to show off a lot of his game to new fans, and the fans in attendance knew the stuff because they reacted so well to it. Even though this match didn’t have a big story or a traditional heel/face dynamic, Zayn was able to do the things he does so well, the things that allow the fans to get into his matches and just root for him. The gasps from the crowd as Nakamura was destroying him with knees to the head were evidence of that. The fire from both guys and the reaction from the crowd as they went toe to toe with strikes was so great, and Nakamura’s nose even got busted up. It became a battle of who wanted it more, and they did a great job down the stretch of teasing the near falls before they got to the near fall scenarios. The counters to the signature stuff were also so good. The thing that shocked me, and trust me I know how good these guys are, is that they worked together like they have been working the loop for years. But there are times when you can stick two awesome workers in the ring, give them the time and the finish and magic simply happens. And that is what happened here. These guys could have stopped and held the crowd up for all the monies they had to continue the match and they would have given it to them. Nakamura finally hit the kinshasha, and that was the end to that beautiful match. This lived up to my expectations and more; Zack Sabre Jr. vs. Will Ospreay set the tone earlier in the day with an amazing effort, and this just nudged them out of the top spot. You could not have asked for a better match to debut Nakamura to WWE fans or for Zayn to say good-bye to NXT.

– Great post match with Zayn pulling himself to his feet and the two embracing.

NXT Women’s Championship Match: Champion Bayley vs. Asuka: There is a great dynamic here with Bayley as the never quit champion, and Asuka as the silent killer that destroyed previous foes. I think that overall they had a high quality, and well-worked match as far as the work went. I liked a lot of what they were doing, how they got thee and felt both worked very hard to make it work. S they neared the end, I dug the anger Bayley showed. She shows emotion, she shows fire but she rarely gets mad. Bayley also digging deep to escape the submissions and go for roll ups and such to survive and retain was also well done and made sense. Asuka tried for the Asuka lock, Bayley fought, but Asuka spun her and pulled her to the mat and Bayley fought, got to her feet but was pulled back down and while she fought, Bayley passed out and we have a new champion. Bayley is the hero, she should not have tapped, so this was the way to go. I really liked this, it was very good, but just not great; it was missing something to put it over the top for me. I hope for a rematch, because while this was very good, I feel they can do even better.

NXT Championship Match: Champion Finn Balor vs. Samoa Joe : Nice to see Balor stole Ambrose’s official Terry Funk Chainsaw for his entrance. They went right at it at the bell, and in the mellay, Joe got seriously busted open. The ref would check on him, repeatedly, and Joe just wanted to fight and even screamed like a fucking savage at one point as he beat Balor’s ass. Joe came off as a man processed here, working with an intensity and speed that I have not seen in a long time and it was completely awesome to see. The crowd hated them checking on Joe, and Joe looked as if he wanted to kill these medical attendants. I can see why people hate this, and I do as well. I am completely fine with WWE not wanting guys to blade, I am all for that, but if a guy gets busted open naturally, let the match continue. It rarely happens, and it does add to the drama. I cannot compliment Joe enough here, seeing the Joe of old just lighting someone up with so much fire brings back so many good memories. These two had a great gameplan, they worked very well together and Balor’s fire up and comeback down the stretch was great. The good thing I will say is that blood and stoppages actually played well into the match, because while it was frustrating, Joe’s momentum was constantly stopped and it allowed Balor to recover. Also, in real life, the more you bleed, the weaker you get and with Joe going full tilt, I can buy the way he lost because he became weak, Balor had rest periods and it felt legit like a fight in a way (love the Hart vs. Austin finish). All things considered, I enjoyed the match a lot and the performers really made the best of a bad situation. This was the Samoa Joe everyone remembers and loved.

* End scene.

* Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”