NXT Takeover: Brooklyn III and ROH War of the Worlds UK feedback
Thumbs up
Best Match: Aleister Black vs. Hideo Itami
Worst Match: Bobby Roode vs. Drew McIntyre
Gargano/Almas was excellently performed. Getting distracted by a shirt is the dumbest distraction I’ve seen in a while (I don’t watch Raw or Smackdown.) Gargano is a superstar while he’s down here and the main roster is going to fuck him up.
AOP vs. SAnitY: Well performed match, good spots structured to perform to AOP’s strength. I enjoyed the action but I came in thinking AOP were the faces considering the times they’ve played face against other heel acts. Instead, they did the reverse and booked SAnitY as faces cold. Run in by Red Dragon afterward was awesome.
Aleister Black vs. Hideo Itami: Excellent match. Told a good story, Itami & Black played to their strengths, finish was excellent. In any just world, Black and Balor get a main event level feud at a Summerslam one of these years.
Asuka vs. Ember Moon: Asuka is the only wrestler who’s aura gives me chills. She should get down ballot votes for most charismatic. Her matches carry a certain gravity that only the best of the best can give. Match was awesome. Good WWE matches are usually paced well but they have a problem where someone will pop out with their finisher for a false finish too early and I’m never ready for it. I’m worried about Ember as a character because she’s got nowhere to go. The next champion is going to have to be one of the new ladies coming in from the MYC. I’m of the opinion that Asuka should be called up undefeated and drop the title after she makes her main roster debut.
Bobby Roode vs. Drew McIntyre: Video package before the match was great. Match not so much. Both guys did everything well, but I didn’t like the layout of the match. Flying clothesline and finisher kickouts had just been done the previous match. McIntyre should be a star on the main roster. Roode has been a good throwback champion. His physique is phenomenal for a man his age. I’m pretty hyped for Future Shock.
– Brady Childs
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Thumbs up
Best match: Asuka vs. Ember Moon
Worst match: Bobby Roode vs. Drew McIntyre
A surprisingly strong show given the weak appearance of the card going in. The Adam Cole debut & elevation of reDragon was a great way to close the show and made me genuinely interested in what comes next for NXT for the first time since Nakamura left.
I’m thrilled they put the title on McIntyre as I find Roode’s matches to be solidly worked but usually a bit on the boring side. A new face on top is quite welcome. McIntyre had some truly great matches before coming back to NXT and I hope he can get back to that level with more exciting opponents.
– Nick Randall
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Thumbs Up!
Best Match: Asuka vs. Ember Moon
Worst Match: None
Just finished the NXT show, really enjoyed the card top to bottom and thought the pacing made it an easy watch (as usual) and was a very well executed and logical professional wrestling product. I didn’t think anything came close to Bate/Dunne from earlier this year, but this was another NXT big show that didn’t disappoint.
Personally, I think that Asuka is so stellar and has been established as such a legit killer, that she’s reached a point where they should be putting her title match on last on the big shows and I thought her match with Moon was another example of how much of a complete package and “superstar” Asuka really is, from presentation and character to in-ring work. She’s so impressive.
Gargano has awesome fire as a pure, old school babyface and really stood out from the pack tonight. With the babyface passion he exudes and his shredded physique, I think he’s upped his overall stock as more than just a great worker.
All of Itami’s stuff looked very realistic and snug and I felt he did excellent in his role as the arrogant, smash mouth heel tonight. Itami’s aggression really made the match and helped Black come across as a tough SOB for withstanding the onslaught.
SAnitY had a good showing in the tag match, although some of those AOP double team moves still look a bit scary. Given their relative experience, I thought they did a great job in emphasizing the AOP’s strengths and covering their weaknesses with some fun spots with Nikki Cross and Damo.
I felt as though the main event started off a bit flat/lacklustre following the hot Asuka match and maybe on account of fans not being as familiar/invested in McIntyre as a challenger to Roode, while also cheering Roode (the heel) as well. However, the last two thirds of the match picked up greatly and Drew got the fans buying into his stuff as it progressed with his more notable highspots (which were very impressive looking). Overall, I thought they had a very good main event-style match once they put things into a higher gear.
I especially appreciated the pre-match video packages for these bouts, which presented the matches as all having significant “stakes” to them. For myself, the individual personalities of the talent stand out far greatly here, than they do on the main roster and it makes the workers feel more special.
Flipside, on the negative, I could definitely live without WWE ever having another live band playing walkout music again, it always looks and sounds so amateurish regardless of who they have playing.
The Adam Cole debut to close out the show left me with a smile on my face and had me intrigued for “what’s next?”, which is an awesome way to end a major show. Really felt there were mostly positives on the show and kinda dread that Summerslam runtime by comparison.
– Jeff.Parker
**********
Thoroughly enjoyed Almas vs Gargano. It was far better than it really had business being. I’m glad to see that they had more for Gargano than just a showcase win.
Thought the booking of AOP vs SAnitY was very odd. I guess they’re not using the reDragon name. I must’ve heard “Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish” a dozen times in that little beatdown. Are SAnitY the faces now by default? Where do you go with AOP? Smackdown could use some legit non-comedic muscle.
The story told for Asuka vs Ember was excellent. Is Ember’s character just a shitty cosplayer though?
I was underwhelmed by Drew vs Bobby. The beat down of Drew must signal that Roode is headed up. Which is glorious. (Apologies)
Upon further reflection, it’s a solid thumbs up show. It just has the dubious distinction of having to carry the monikers of “TakeOver” and “Brooklyn”
– Ian Gooda
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Thumbs way up!
Yet again a tremendous NXT TakeOver event, this truly shows that Brooklyn is NXT’s Wrestlemania.
Starting off with Gargano vs Almas which i think was a fine match, but I expected just a bit more from these guys because both of them are really really good wrestlers, maybe their styles don’t match as well or maybe they are saving out on a rematch since Ciampa won’t be back soon. match was fine but it could have been better and it was outshone by the other stellar matches on the card.
Moving on to AOP vs SAnitY, an unexpected outcome and i didn’t expect Eric Young to wrestle, now i’m a big fan of Young but i was really exited for 4 big men to just pummel each other until one of them fell down (or two in this case). it was a really good match and would have stood out on any main roster PPV. Alexander Wolfe also showed he might just be one of the best big men in WWE right now (after Harper).
Aleister Black vs Hideo Itami was also really good and the first match where Black actually had a lot of trouble putting his opponent away. I still think Black should go on to the NXT title but that chance seems slim (more on that later) maybe they should call him up to the main roster right now because i truly think he can be a future world champ. Also Hideo has really nowhere to go from here and maybe its best if he goes to 205 live because what is there to do for him down in NXT anymore?
Whereas I found their first encounter a bit underwhelming, Asuka and Ember Moon made up for that by having a really solid match which, again, would have been match of the night on any main roster PPV. Ember Moon’s eclipse is still a thing of beauty and Asuka looks so dominant for all I care she can go and break Bruno Sammartino’s record because i don’t know who is going to beat her for that belt (maybe the winner of the Mae Young Classic?)
Then finally in the main event of the evening, Galloway beat Roode for the NXT title in, for me, match of the night on a TakeOver that had so many amazing matches (we really are spoiled today, so much good wrestling). and of course it saw the ‘debut’ of Adam Cole, BayBay! While i am absolutely so happy that he is here and is forming a ROH stable with O’Reilly and Fish, i don’t see a bright future in NXT for a lot of guys in NXT at the moment, like where does Roode go from here if he isn’t called up? same with AOP and Aleister Black. and with rumors of some people being sent down from main to NXT i am really excited for the following weeks and i can only hope that SummerSlam will be just as good as this TakeOver. I also hope that the main roster writers will handle all of these people with care because there is gold in here.
– Jelmer van Riet
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Thumbs Up
Best Match: Hideo Itami vs Alistair Black
Worst Match: SAnitY vs Authors of Pain
Good show, not on the level of TakeOver Chicago or any of the major NJPW shows this year, but still good show.
Itami vs Black was my MOTN. SAnitY vs AOP was better than I expected (especially Wolfe), but I thought it suffered when it was Eric Young in the ring. Asuka vs Moon was on a similar level as their last TakeOver match, I’d love for Asuka vs Kairi Sane to happen in Japan as unlikely as that is.
The main event was a good match that went a little too long. Very confused by the build to this match, if they wanted great crowd heat maybe don’t have the champion feud more with someone else in the build up.
Also NXT needs to start shooting the angle before they display the ending insignia, their tricks are predictable now.
– Kevin Chiat
**********
I missed the opener, but I really enjoyed NXT. The tag match was way better than expected.
Match of the night was Asuka and Ember. The whole thing went perfectly. I understand why Roode/Drew had to go last, but really, Asuka/Ember could’ve main evented. Asuka is the best character they have on all brands… by a lot.
The main event was perfectly fine but… not that interesting. Still, they managed to make you excited about what is to come, so that’s good.
– Steve Khan
**********
ROH show. Cool crowd but nothing really all that great here. Def. could have skipped it all together. I am not as high on ROH as some nowadays. If you take away the NJPW guys it’s a pretty boring product.
Thumbs in Middle
Worst Match: Kenny King vs. Adam Page
Best Match: 4 Way for TV title.
NXT. This show I loved. Best WWE PPV/Special this year in my opinion.
Gargano vs. Almas: Awesome match. Had super high expectations after Dave’s reviews from live show and it was even better with the crowd.
SAnitY vs. AOP: Way better than expected. Felt real WWE-ish at times but had enough moments in it. ReDragon run in at the end was awesome. Woulda been better had they not debuted and lost in singles but still very cool.
Itami vs. Black: Loved this. Total change of pace and variety. Black is such a star and by far best Itami has come across. I think this was smart as you have to condition the audience to watch longer Black matches as he can’t just win in a minute as he climbs the ladder.
Asuka vs. Moon: Really really great. Best women’s match I have seen in awhile. Great storytelling and drama. Right call having Asuka win and keep streak alive as Moon never felt like the right person to dethrone her.
Roode vs. McIntyre: Great straight forward pro wrestling match. These two are terrific. Roode has to be headed to the main roster after this. Even in the world of pro wrestling still was a cool moment to see McIntyre come back and win.
Ending with ReDragon and Cole was terrific. Made Cole look like a star from day one and gave NXT a direction.
Thumbs way up.
Best Match: Gargano-Almas
Worst Match: Wasn’t one but out of them I would say the tag match.
– Mike Flynn
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Thumbs up on the show. All the matches except the main event were great.
Best match: Asuka/Ember
Worst match: Roode/McIntyre
I’ve been watching WWF/E for over 30 years. That was by far the best women’s match I’ve ever seen. Might have been my favorite WWE match of the year so far as well.
No way Summerslam isn’t going to be able to top tonight’s TakeOver.
– Mike Askounes
**********
Thumbs way up for NXT.
It was exciting, unpredictable, and left the crowd happy, everything you could want. Each match on NXT was different, but exciting. The reDragon appearance and ultimately Adam Cole was exciting and was an unexpected grouping.
Ember Moon and Asuka surpassed any expectations I had. Ember Moon walked away from that looking like an absolute star. She did great expressing frustration and pulling out everything she had. It was a different women’s match than I remember seeing in a long time- tons of mat wrestling with exciting aerial moves.
Black and Itami looked tough. Every strike looked stiff, and the blood on Black’s face made him look so tough. The match was hard-hitting and exciting.
The tag match was wonderful. SAnitY looked great, AOP looked strong and it took everything to get the win. Nikki Cross taking the hit was exciting.
The best match for me was the first match. The false finishes felt real, the match told a story, and ultimately there could be more of a story between Gargano and Almas but it furthered the DIY story without needing Ciampa there. Overall a great show.
– Andrea Carricato
**********
One of the best all-around WWE shows I’ve ever seen. Definite thumbs up.
Best match: If I was forced to pick one, it would probably be Itami vs Black. It’s everything we want in a match. Fast-paced, hard-hitting action between two guys clearly willing to beat the absolute crap out of each other for us.
Worst match: The opener, Gargano vs Almas. The match itself wasn’t bad at all. In fact, it was quite good and picked up a ton of steam towards the end and got the crowd involved at the right time. Unfortunately, Almas just isn’t over enough to get folks immediately excited like everyone else on the show.
Of course, every single match on this show was nothing short of excellent. An absolute must-see for any wrestling fan, and I haven’t been so satisfied after a WWE show in a VERY long time.
– Lucas Franco