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I'm guessing that WWE wants to leave all of the action for the actual show. Which is why the episode of NXT before TakeOver: Toronto wasn't all that good, in my personal opinion.
There were only three major segments including one real match. The video packages that played were nice, but this was little more than a precursor for the show that will kick off SummerSlam weekend in just a few short days.
As always, I invite you to share your thoughts and leave a comment in the section below, if you have any comments about the show that is. There was frankly little to write home about with regard to this particular show.
Do you think that TakeOver will be better than the main show, or will NXT not be able to compete with the main roster on SummerSlam weekend?
#5 A reboot for Breezango?
The Fashion Files were the most entertaining thing about SmackDown Live not long ago and then they were shelved for no reason at all, completely out of the blue. Now Breezango has reunited in NXT, and they have a new intensity as well as a new outlook. So much so, that they are teasing a change in gimmick for when they compete next.
Fandango informed Breeze that they'd spent so much time policing others that they'd stopped policing themselves in the process. Fandango and Tyler Breeze will probably showcase a new side to their persona when they take on Breezango on next week's big show. This is likely to happen in Toronto, outside the TakeOver card.
What do you guys think that their new persona will be when these two beloved superstars make their re-debut of sorts, against the Forgotten Sons? Will this get over when they transition to the main roster in due time?
#4 A contract is signed without any violence
The majestic and regal William Regal started NXT on the right note this week, with a contract signing segment. Usually, all of these segments lead into a flurry of fists or a broken table by the end. This week, there was none of that but a lot of strong words were exchanged for sure. That was undoubtedly a refreshing change.
Ford and Dawkins have made RAW and the main roster their home in the past few weeks. They even had a very interesting segment with Kurt Angle in the main roster with all of them chugging down a shot of milk. But it is clear that they do have some unfinished business in NXT.
However, this could be a giveaway that they're losing the titles at TakeOver. The Undisputed ERA will clearly be the bigger deal, in the upcoming weeks on NXT TV.
#3 The main event match is canceled
Honestly, the only draw for the show this week was the match between the original bro, Matt Riddle, and Killian Dain, who's returned to the brand that he calls home after an ill-fated main roster run with SAnitY. Unfortunately, Dain took Riddle out even before the bell rang.
I do understand why this happened from a storyline perspective, but in a show that did not really have any matches to speak of, this was quite disappointing. But it lays the seeds for a feud down the line, which could potentially be quite intriguing and could stretch out over a month or even longer.
Dain is probably the most agile big man in the whole business. He can do things in the ring that people his size should not really be able to do.
We know that Riddle is incredibly gifted as well, at competing and at dissing Goldberg.
#2 Shane Thorne reveals a nasty side
Shane Thorne was a part of TM-61 if you remember the team. Now, his partner is gone and he's on his way to becoming a breakout heel in his own right. It was only fair to see what he had in store for Joaquin Wilde, one of the stars in the NXT Breakout Tournament, who had a fairly decent match against Thorne.
But Thorne was clearly the talking point coming out of this match. He showed a nasty side to him, pummelling Wilde with blows both in the ring and even outside the ring, where he rammed the former DJZ into a variety of foreign objects. It was a pretty brutal affair in every sense.
It turns out that Thorne's new moniker may be 'the worst', judging from what WWE.com posted about him. This is a pretty interesting new gimmick and I'm intrigued to see how far he can potentially go.
#1 Seth Rollins and Finn Balor make surprise cameos
There is no company in the world that makes video packages like WWE does to hype an event up in the best manner possible. This week, we saw previews for all of the matches at TakeOver from a back-story to the road leaving up to each and every match.
And when we finally arrived at the video package for the main event, we saw Johnny Gargano converse with both Seth Rollins and Finn Balor, two men who have been Champions in NXT before. Gargano spoke about Rollins' match with Brock Lesnar and also teased breaking Finn Balor's long-standing NXT record as well.
This was a genuine surprise because nobody expected these two former NXT Superstars to show up. It also lent credence and credibility to the Gargano vs. Cole match, because two bigger stars were invested in it.
How pumped are you for TakeOver?
