NXT

[Oliver]

That's pretty cool - Sabin's only 37, too, so could potentially (after he recovers from his injury, fully tore his ACL in January I believe) even be active for NXT.

[PEN15v2]

UE is an odd one - they're only really 'cool', in my opinion, because Adam Cole comes down and makes everyone go 'Bay Bay' and 'Boom' during his entrance. Otherwise they're fucking dirtbag shits that should be booed out of every arena they sit foot in.

Mind you, I hate Adam Cole anyway. Just does nothing for me.

O'Reilly, on the other hand, I love. I think he has a great style that's interesting and different enough in the ring, he's willing to put himself through hell to get a match going (like in the ladder match recently, and is a genuinely interesting in ring presence. Would rather watch him in the ring for thirty minutes than Cole at this point.

Agreed 1000%.

[comfortablynumb]

Enjoyed this hype video. Cole going to Gargano’s parents’ pizza shop and Gargano’s gym was amusing.

[PEN15v2]

20190810_173402.jpg
My seats for the night

[comfortablynumb]

Nice view.

EDIT: That was a real fun tag match.

[LifeLostInRewind]

I tried to watch takeover just now, but audiodesynch ruined it for me. Anyone else have that problem?

[comfortablynumb]

It’s going to be sad watching Gargano chase after the 24/7 title in a couple weeks with all the other jobbers. Not that I think he should be pushed to a world title but they invested a lot of time to build him to where he is, and I doubt that will amount to much on the main roster.

[Oliver]

Man, fuck that Cole/Gargano match. Talk about overdoing it.

I loved everything else on that show, though. I see Baszler/Yim getting some stick today, but I dug it a lot.

[LifeLostInRewind]

I wish they weren't so apprehensive about heel vs heel feuds. I would love to se e Bazler defend against this Shirai so she can finally win the belt.

[Oliver]

Honestly, I think they might do that. It's hard to see anybody other than Io taking that title off of Baszler right now.

[LifeLostInRewind]

Honestly, I think they might do that. It's hard to see anybody other than Io taking that title off of Baszler right now.

I'd like that, but it's far more likely to see a 3 way or 4 way match involving Candice and/or Yim.

[Cult Icon]

Why not just do Candice vs. Bazler? There's time before the next Takeover. Give her some big wins on TV and have her beat the poor woman's Rousey.

[PEN15v2]

Man, fuck that Cole/Gargano match. Talk about overdoing it.

It was fun live, until the cage. For the first 2 falls, I was thinking how they are doing a better job not delivering too much, and having too many kicks outs like their previous matches. Gargano being resilient has been established, so him kicking out is easier to deal with than previous. Again, for the first 2 falls.

The cage was where I felt it went overboard. I'll always hate moves that are ridiculous and involve too much setup to be realistic, such as the Panama Sunrise (and Jay Lethal's Lethal Injection...etc.). I hate it every time, and the one off the ladder leading to the kick out was likely where I officially stopped caring. I also thought the final bump was too staged, obviously. Maybe it was being there live, and the camera angle might have hidden it for those at home, but once they got on that platform, it was way too staged, and the "fall" looked more like synchronized swimming with a leap.

Rest of the show - Preshow stuff that you'll see Wednesday was solid. Standard tag, but I was impressed by the breakout tourny. The crowd was quiet at first, but the competitors won over the crowd. That was one of the best live wrestling


NXT Takeover crowds - It's an experience to be apart of, but I don't know if I could do it again. Smarks in the business to get themselves over ruin the fun for me. They chanted "This Is Awesome" or "Fight Forever" for 5-6 of the 7 matches. I loved most of the matches, but 2-3 of the matches came close to be all time greats, and a lot of that was based on expectations. The NXT Tag title was possibly my fave match of the night, but it's very much influenced by how the Street Profits have improved. They might have faced the best tag team in the world for making everyone look great, but it was still amazing how both Dawkins and Ford looked their best they've ever looked. Then, Io and Candice almost stole the show from all women everywhere. It went from a standard midcard match to a true main event feel, and Io's heel work is tremendous.

Live notes, WWE staff hands out rec cups before the Profits entrance. I didn't see the same thing for the Gargano blinking logo, but I might have missed it. My fiance who came with me loved the Triple Threat (funny aside, she was trying to tell me which match was he favorite on the drive home, but didn't know what the match was called, and was trying avoid saying "the threesome match".), but I felt it looked too staged for my tastes. Fun though.

[Oliver]

I will say, during the first fall, I thought the two were wrestling a lot smarter than in their previous matches, and was really getting into it. It was fall two and, as you say Pen, especially three that I found to be borderline unbearable.

And yeah, the fall from the top looked corny as heck to me as well. I'm not a huge fan of them when it looks like the two have clearly propelled themselves through the air to actually get somewhere, because there's no reason for the propulsion. If they'd just fallen through the tables, basically taking a flat back bump and dropping like a stone, I think it looks better and (I'm sure I'm wrong on this for a myriad of reasons, as I'm not a trained professional) safer. Like, Cole took about 90% of that bump on his shoulder because they were going sideways, I feel. Could have ended in a nasty injury.

Like I said, everything else there I loved, so any ranking of matches is all relative. For me, the triple threat was match of the night, but it was very close to being overhauled by Io vs Candice, which was terrific. So glad Io went and rejoined the Black Lotus Tribe and is now kicking shit.

If I thought NXT would do it, I could see a really good Io vs Gargano match in the near future happening. As long as it's just Io shit kicking Johnny for 15 minutes or so.

[Kleckamania]

Why not just do Candice vs. Bazler? There's time before the next Takeover. Give her some big wins on TV and have her beat the poor woman's Rousey.

Poor woman's Rousey? Jeez.... I normally agree with you on nearly everything, but that assessment is as accurate as a Storm Trooper trying to shoot the broad side of a barn. Not only is Baszler leagues better than Rousey ever will be, but Shayna is easily one of the best female heels in the entire company. I'd rank only Charlotte and Alexa above her in terms of heel work/charisma.


I thought Baszler vs Yim was better than the online critics are saying. I think people watch Takeover and expect every match to have 100 false finishes with everyone kicking out of all the top moves, which is why it is becoming increasingly harder to watch Gargano matches and enjoy them. Though Adam Cole was awesome. Put one slow, methodical match on a Takeover card and watch all the people proclaim it the worst match ever.