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NXT fans around the world understand that Takeover events are something special. The atmosphere and emotional draw at these arena-sized shows (which happen just five times a year) are pretty much always electric.
While it's easy to credit the excellent matches as the sole reason for the excitement behind these pay-per-view style spectacles, the characters, production and ring entrances are just as important as they create a sense of theatrics that carries out WWE's sports entertainment mission.
Leave it to Triple H, arguably the king of creative entrances, to solidify this idea by working with the NXT production team to craft these special moments in time, which exist in the annals of WWE history right along with all the so-cherished WrestleMania Moments.
As the road to WrestleMania and Takeover: New York loom, it's fitting to take a moment and reflect on some of this legacy. These are the top 10 NXT Takeover entrances of all time.
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#10 Aleister Black (Takeover: Brooklyn III)
The enigmatic Aleister Black, a Dutch martial artist and former indie wrestler who's graced NXT for the past two years, has such an affinity for Black Metal music that WWE hired the band Code Orange and the lead vocalist from Incendiary to perform his theme music, titled "The Root of All Evil", live at the Barclays Center in 2017.
With darkness falling over the arena, lit candles shown scattered around the stage floor and fog permeating the air, the mood in Brooklyn was perfectly set during the middle of the biggest NXT show of the year, and the live performance brought the overall entrance to the next level.
Coming into view on a lifting ramp, then gradually making his way to the ring for a match with Hideo Itami, Black's backup band made him look like a complete star. The hard-hitting Rage Against The Machine-style tune was a great complement to the stoic, emotionless demeanor of the Dutch Destroyer, who slowly walked to the ring as if every step was part of some larger meaning in his own personal wrestling narrative.
#9 Andrade Cien Almas (Takeover: Philadelphia)
In what became perhaps the greatest match in the relatively short history of NXT, Andrade Cien Almas and business partner Zelina Vega made their way into the Wells Fargo Center for the main event NXT title match against Johnny Gargano at Takeover: Philadelphia, and gave the City of Brotherly Love a taste of what it's like south of the border.
Flanked by a decked-out Mariachi band fitted in traditional Mexican garb, Almas proudly sported the colours of his home country for his big match. As NXT champ, he even paid homage to his days as La Somba in CMLL and NJPW by sporting a traditional Lucha Libre mask when initially walking through the curtain.
Vega, for her part, looked stunning as well and perfectly complimented Almas as an associate. The overall entrance enhanced his credibility and made Almas look like an absolute star, foreshadowing his eventual and much-deserved main roster call-up.
#8 Shinsuke Nakamura (Takeover: Brooklyn II)
Stepping square foot into the Barclays Center for the first time ever in his main event NXT title match against Samoa Joe, the King of Strong Style Shinsuke Nakamura walked through the curtain in just one of several classic entrances he'd make during the single year he spent in the gold and black brand.
Backed by violinist Lee England Jr., who briefly performed a solo introduction, Nakamura pranced down the aisle in his usual snazzy red leather suit, which directly hinted at the strong Michael Jackson influence in his approach to pro-wrestling showmanship.
Incredibly, the 15,000 plus NXT enthusiasts in attendance chanted along to the orchestral-style music note for note as Nakamura posed in and out of the ring with his patented arm gestures. Fans then wildly erupted when the Japanese sensation did his signature collapse next to the ring ropes. This was a WrestleMania moment within a developmental brand.
#7 Finn Balor (Takeover: Dallas)
During his time in NXT, Finn Balor regularly utilized an alter ego known as The Demon, which he signified with morbid-looking body paint and dreadlocks. At certain specific events, he'd also take the liberty of tailoring ring entrances to fit the history of the location.
Case in point: Balor's entrance at Takeover: Dallas. The reigning NXT champion came to the ring sporting a brown jacket and a loud, buzzing chainsaw as a tribute to the classic 1974 American horror film, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
The entire entrance had the feel of a theatrical performance, but it was this small bit of detail that made it stand out. The referencing of good ole' Leatherface in the state where the character originated was a clever idea on the part of the NXT production team.
Consequently, Balor's Demon character was left to its devices and initiated its own massacre against Samoa Joe, helping Balor to retain the NXT title.
#6 Tomasso Ciampa (Takeover: New Orleans)
Entering the main event of Takeover: New Orleans as perhaps the most hated man in all of sports entertainment, the Sicilian Psychopath Tommaso Ciampa returned from nearly a year on the injured list in the eeriest and most ominous way possible - without any entrance music whatsoever.
The despicable Ciampa, decried and jeered by fans for his surprise attack on Johnny Gargano after their tag team loss to the Authors of Pain at Takeover: Chicago, was returning for his very first match since that sinister act of betrayal happened eleven months earlier.
Rather than commissioning a new theme song or using the old #DIY music he and Gargano previously shared, Ciampa and NXT officials smartly made the decision to have him enter the ringside area without music.
The loud chorus of inevitable and well-deserved boos would undoubtedly act as his de facto theme song instead, which the dastardly Ciampa practically seemed to relish in.
#5 Shinsuke Nakamura (Takeover: Toronto)
Building on his previous Takeover entrance three months earlier in Brooklyn, NXT champion Shinsuke Nakamura entered the Air Canada Center in Toronto for Survivor Series weekend in true style.
Replete with his own personal string chamber ensemble, Nakamura's backing violinists surrounded the charismatic champ and joyously played his catchy, hummable theme song, aptly titled "The Rising Sun", in and around the ring like festive servants during the coronation of a king.
Technically, they were performing for a king as Strong Style's master sensei was in the midst of expanding the reach of his throne from Japan to North America through various critically acclaimed Takeover performances in 2016.
Canadian fans in attendance sang along to Nakamura's theme, as their Brooklyn counterparts had in the Barclays Center, and NXT proved once again it could outdo itself every time by producing an entertainment atmosphere that's both encapsulating and timeless.
#4 Finn Balor (Takeover: London)
Similar to his entrance at Takeover: Dallas in 2016, Finn Balor's earlier main event introduction at Takeover: London in December 2015 borrowed from the cinematic history of the city in which the event took place.
Personifying his alter ego The Demon, Balor took his ring entrance a step further by donning the attire of Jack The Ripper, a real-life late 19th century English serial killer who became immortalized when fused into fictional works of film and literature in successive years, as in the 1959 film Jack The Ripper.
With a top hat and cape added to The Demon's routine body paint and dread locks, Balor emerged from a blood red cloud of fog and eerily crawled to the ring like a shadowy figure determined to inflict harm (most likely on his NXT title match opponent Samoa Joe).
This was more than just a simple stage entrance. This was practically a concept, a work of art.
#3 Bobby Roode (Takeover: Toronto)
At Takeover: Toronto in Fall 2016, Bobby Roode faced off against Tye Dillinger in an illustrious homecoming that made for one of the top moments of the night and one of the greatest pro-wrestling entrances ever. With both superstars having been raised within an hour of the Air Canada Center, this opening match had a special feel for the crowd in attendance.
Roode exploited this by making his way to the ring flanked by a large choir from a local performing arts school, who passionately sang his infectious Glorious theme with the fervour of an Easter service in a large Cathedral. With lights overhead, jumbotrons featuring clouds in the background, and an alleyway filled with fog, Roode entered the arena in an almost messianic fashion, sporting a lavish robe while making his signature arm gestures.
Fortunately, he also won the match and went on to become NXT champion at the following Takeover in San Antonio. But only Toronto can claim the bragging rights for his most divinely-inspired entrance.
#2 Sasha Banks (Takeover: Brooklyn)
Coming into the very first Takeover: Brooklyn as NXT women's champion, Sasha Banks was determined to retain her title against the scrappy hugger known as Bayley. Already having contrasted her serious, self-important persona against what she saw as Bayley's petulant childishness, Banks decided to showcase her demanding demeanour even more by entering the Barclays Center in true Legit Boss fashion.
She rolled into the venue chauffeured in a black SUV and was then escorted directly to the ring by her own personal security, who then physically lifted her onto the apron. The stylish sunglasses, four-finger rings and championship strap around her waist further solidified her heel, Hollywood-esque character, which she fully played up by walking with the body language of arrogance and entitlement.
Unfortunately, Banks was inevitably humbled after she and Bayley made history with their classic match, but the sight of The Boss coming down the aisle like an A-Lister on an award show red carpet was an absolutely fantastic touch, one which foreshadowed other great NXT entrances that were soon to come.
#1 Shinsuke Nakamura (Takeover: Dallas)
Having been signed to WWE in the immediate aftermath of his classic match with AJ Styles at the NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 10, fans eagerly waited for weeks in anticipation for the on-screen arrival of the legendary King of Strong Style. The one and only Shinsuke Nakamura.
Finally, in the days before WrestleMania 32 weekend, William Regal announced on the weekly NXT program that Sami Zayn, who was left without an opponent for Takeover: Dallas after having lost a 2/3 falls number one contendership match to Samoa Joe, would be facing the former IWGP Intercontinental Champion, who then briefly graced the Full Sail jumbotron in a cellphone-recorded video message to Zayn.
The crowd response was an appropriate "Holy $#!%".
Nakamura's entrance was preempted by a chilling feel as the lights faded out at the Kay Bailey Hutchington Center and fans repeatedly chanted his name before he even walked through the curtain. The music began and it didn't take long to realize WWE hit a home run with Nakamura's absolutely incredible new theme song, "The Rising Sun".
The entrance was more than just about music though. One of the greatest international wrestlers of this era had arrived in WWE after being so long awaited. From the time Nakamura walked through the curtain, to the surprisingly impressed look on Sami Zayn's face, to the Dallas crowd chanting "Holy $#!%" before the match even began, you just knew Shinsuke was something special; you knew he was the man to pay attention to.
This entrance may not have been as flashy as the bigger-budget entrance productions that followed at Takeover: Brooklyn II and Takeover: Toronto, but the sheer anticipation and emotionalism alone make it the greatest in NXT history.
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