Yo-Yo's Roomie

Seeing Mandy and Sonya's acting here, maybe it's for the best if they don't do that romance angle with them.

Absolutely dire show. Just a pretty much unbroken stream of embarrassing shit. Melina still does it for me, so there's that, I suppose.

NXT Takeover: Unstoppable Finn Balor Vs Tyler Breeze: We start the show by seeing video of Hideo Itami laying injured in the parking lot, apparently the victim of some attack. Kevin Owens walks by and says 'that's a shame'. We're told Itami has a torn rotator cuff, and thus, the triple threat is now a one-on-one match. Breeze gets an awesome entrance with a bunch of female 'models' taking selfies with him. Balor does the shitty Demon entrance. He looks like a kid playing fancy dress when he does this, but the crowd eats it up every time. The crowd is crazy hot in general for this match, and the match itself is very fun. Both guys are working really hard to steal the show it seems. Balor dives off the entrance set onto Breeze, and then finishes him off with the shotgun dropkick and Coup de Grace. I feel like Itami was probably going to go over here to give Owens a different challenger. Owens is watching in the back and doesn't look impressed. Charlotte and Bayley Vs Emma and Dana Brooke: This crowd is great. This is the most over Charlotte has ever been in NXT. Loud Emma chants too. Bayley, of course, is the most over person in the match. The match itself was fine, but nothing special, until a bit of a botched finish left a bad taste in the mouth. Charlotte had Emma in the figure 8 and Bayley was supposed to stop Dana from breaking it up, but she was late (or Dana was early), which left Dana just standing there in the position to deliver a double ax handle for several seconds. Charlotte pinned Emma with Natural Selection. Emma really needs a win. The new NXT class is shown at ringside. I think this show marks the debut of the 'looks who's in the crowd' shots, as we saw Stephanie with some Game of Thrones dude earlier. Anyway, the Iiconics are there, and there's a big pop for Apollo Crews, who gets 'Uhaa' chants. I don't recognise the other guy. Baron Corbin Vs Rhyno: This is exactly what it should be- short, intense, hard-hitting. Corbin gets the win with the End of Days. Interesting to see Corbin start to transition into a heel character. Blake and Murphy Vs Enzo and Big Cass: Tag titles on the line, finally, between these two teams. I know Blake and Murphy got quite a bit of stick for being unworthy champions, but I really like these guys. Nice commitment to being heels with their ridiculous hair styles (Blake has his hair in bunches). Enzo and Cass (and Carmella) blow the roof off with their entrance. Pretty basic match, helped once again by he hot crowd. The challengers look to be closing in on the belts, but Alexa Bliss comes out and attacks Carmella, which is enough of a distraction for the champs to retain. That cements Bliss's heel turn and relationship with Blake and Murphy, which seems like a good fit. Sasha Banks Vs Becky Lynch: I'm excited for this one. I see a lot of hype for it, and now I see why. This is pretty awesome from start to finish. Becky debuts her steampunk look, which automatically makes her way cooler to me. A lot of gritty grappling to start off. Surprisingly, it's Sasha who is busting out the best armwork here, really punishing Lynch with some wrenching submissions. Becky settles into an underdog role, fighting from underneath. This is another awesome display of heeling from Banks, from her nasty ringwork to mocking Becky's mannerisms to trash talking. Crowd is great again, and is probably 60-40 for Sasha. I like the 'Sasha's ratchet- no she's not' dueling chant. I like when wrestlers have a signature chant. Becky makes her comeback and locks on the Dis-Arm-Her, but Sasha gets to the ropes. Becky goes up top, but Sasha leaps up and hits an over the knee armbreaker, transitioning into the Banks Statement, and Becky has no choice but to tap. Sasha wins my heart forever by refusing to let the referee raise her injured arm, but then smugly approving when he goes to the other side to raise her other arm. Best NXT women's match to date. After Sasha leaves, Becky rises to her feet and they play her music as she is warmly applauded. Kevin Owens Vs Sami Zayn: Lots of build-up throughout the night for this one, with video packages and the like. As there should be for your main events. NXT always does a great job of making their big matches feel special. Of course, the story is Zayn's shoulder injury. Owens comes out wearing a John Cena shirt, a nod to his attack on Cena on Raw, and also to Zayn's match with Cena where the injury occurred. I didn't know what to expect here, as I didn't even think this match was going to happen. They worked around the injury really well. Zayn was on Owens from the get-go, in contrast to their last match, when Owens really dominated from the start. They do some brawling around ringside, and Owens is really on the back foot throughout. Then, out of nowhere, Owens catches Zayn with a pop-up powerbomb onto the ring apron, and that ends up resulting in a no-contest as Sami is unable to continue. I like how protected that move is. The no contest might have pissed some people off, but I thought it was a good finish. And, as always it seems with these shows, there is a sting in the tail. Owens looks like he's going to continue the assault on Sami, so William Regal comes out and ends up dragging him off by his nose. Owens headbutts Regal, which Regal sells like death. That might be a big enough angle to end the show on, but we're not done there. Owens grabs a chair to do more damage to Zayn, but Samoa fucking Joe's music hits, and the crowd loses their shit as Joe walks out menacingly. Joe and Owens have an intense face-off, before Owens backs away. That was awesome. I was expecting Balor to come out, so Joe was a huge upgrade. I have to note, Joe's music was a bit late in playing so, instead of just standing there like a lemon with the chair, Owens did get one shot in on Zayn. The difference between a seasoned wrestler like Owens, and a rookie like Dana Brooke. It's funny, WWE could run Owens Vs Joe tomorrow and I probably wouldn't give much of a shit, but I really want that match to happen in 2015 NXT now. Episode MVP: It's Sasha. It's always Sasha. She pretty much been stealing every show she's on this year. 3 3/4 star match: Sasha Banks Vs Becky Lynch. Show rating: This might be my favourite Takeover yet actually. Every match, apart from the women's tag I guess, had purpose, meant something and was at least fun. The crowd was the best I've seen at an NXT show. They were just rabid all night. The women's match was excellent, and the show-ending angle was awesome. Another home-run. 4 stars.

I'm a bit disappointed that here, of all places, everyone is acting like X-Pac was no good and just a moves guy. The guy was an awesome pro wrestler, even during the years when he had become stale and the fans had completely turned on him (which, when going back and watching that stuff, I found to be a bit overstated anyway- sure, no-one is extolling the virtues of X-Factor, but as the cocky little shit in D-X feuding with Kane and Chris Jericho, he was still very effective and was able to get a lot of heat). He was one of a small handful of guys who was still able to have good matches during the Attitude Era, and was probably the #2 most popular babyface in the company for a period in 1999. Waltman also seems a pretty cool guy in general, who genuinely loves pro wrestling.

5/13/15 The big story going into this show is that Sami Zayn hurt himself on Raw answering John Cena's open challenge. We'll see hwo that effects the Takeover main event. Baron Corbin Vs Solomon Crowe: It tells me that they've already lost interest in Crowe if they're putting him in against Corbin. Actually, this is the best Crowe has looked so far to me. He took the fight to Corbin throughout this short match, and took a wicked End of Days to end it. The height difference stood out here too. Rhyno makes his way out and asks Corbin if they're going to do this, and they immediately start throwing hands. Officials rush in to separate it, a couple of them eating gores. Nice little pull-apart to set up their match at Takeover. Sasha Banks Vs KC Cassidy: Okay, i thought this was Peyton Royce on job duty, and wiki confirms that it was. Billie Kay also worked a dark match on this episode apparently. Could we be get the Iconic Duo soon? Devin interviews Charlotte and Bayley about their issues with Dana Brooke and Emma. They challenge them to a tag match at Takeover. Another hype video for Apollo Crews. Alexa Bliss Vs Carmella: There's something so weird about the way Carmella moves when she comes out. I can't put my finger on it, but all her movements are kinda robotic in a way that reminds me of an 80s fitness video or something. This match is pretty rough. Carmella is in control, but Blake and Murphy come out and cause a distraction, allowing Alexa to win. Alexa blows the tag champs a kiss. Devin is with Dana and Emma now, who accept the challenge. Dana actually uses the term 'jelly', as in "Charlotte thinks I'm jelly of her?" Dana is the worst. She also has this thing she does where she pats Devin patronisingly on the head after all of their interviews. DON'T TOUCH HER, YOU WHORE. Sorry. Tyler Breeze and Adam Rose Vs Finn Balor and Hideo Itami: Pretty fun tag match. Breeze is pretty awesome in this with his character stuff, making nice to Rose's face, but clearly being disgusted by him behind his back. Itami and Balor are at odds with one another, and finally it costs them, as Breeze picks up the win. Breeze once again lays them both out. I know he isn't winning the match, but he's looked great in the build-up. There were little interviews with each of them interspersed throughout the show, and Breeze came off by far the best in those too. Although, he should really, given that Balor and Itami aren't really known for their strong promo work. The main event segment was the promised face-off between Zayn and Owens. Zayn addressed the injury he got on Raw, and said that the match at Takeover is still on. He then asks Owens to tell him why he attacked him. Owens, thankfully, didn't answer. Zayn tried to goad him into it, by talking about how KO's kid would rather wear a Sami Zayn shirt than a Kevin Owens one, and wonders if it's simply about jealousy. Owens just walks away, and, when he's at the top of the ramp, tells Zayn that at Takeover he's going to put him out again, but this time Zayn won't be coming back. Nice effective angle to end a nice effective go-home show. Episode MVP: Tyler Breeze.

5/6/15 Charlotte Vs Emma: Emma is still wearing Bayley's stuff, and is a clear-cut heel now, emphasising the fact by refusing to do her classic ring entrance. Charlotte wins the match with Natural Selection. Emma could have really used the win here, since she hasn't won since being back on NXT, and certainly wasn't winning much on the main roster. But, I guess Charlotte always has to be kept strong. Yawn. Bayley comes out and confronts Emma. Emma wants to hug and make up. Bayley obliges but turns it into a Bayley-to Belly, before retrieving her belongings. There's a long video package on Becky's journey, and it seems they're framing her as a babyface now, which makes sense. We get a sit down interview with Kevin Owens conducted by Michael Cole. There's some pretty good stuff here with Cole trying to find out Owens's motivations for his attack on Zayn. Owens maintains an air of detached professionalism and doesn't give anything away, reiterating again that he's just trying to be a good family man and provide for his wife and kid. Rhyno Vs Bull Dempsey: Rhyno pretty much runs through Bull, who has been reduced to jobber status now. He then cuts another promo saying he wants Corbin. In the back, Regal is with Apollo Crews, who is signing his NXT contract. I've never seen anything in Crews that really impressed me, but we'll see. They air a video for him afterwards, so they're clearly giving him some hype. The Mechanics Vs Enzo and Big Cass: Oh shit, I forgot the Mechanics existed. Now, we just need the Vaudevillains to come back from whatever dimension they got lost in. This match never happens as we see on the tron that Blake and Murphy have left Enzo and Cass lying. Michael Cole also sat down with Sami Zayn, and we see that now. Zayn says he needs to know why Owens did what he did and that, since the match is already signed, next week he's going to ask Owens for the answer, and Owens should just tell him. I'm not really seeing Zayn's logic now. If Owens has this thing hanging over Zayn, that is clearly bothering him, he'd be a fool to relive that burden from him. Next is the contract signing for the women's title match between Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch. Becky cuts her standard promo about travelling the world to get to this stage. Sasha has a custom stamp of her signature with which to sign the contract, which gets a pop from me, and a 'like a boss' chant from the crowd. Sasha attacks Lynch and stands on her head while standing on the table and holding up the belt. Lynch fights back though and ends up locking on the Dis-Arm-Her which sees Banks tap. Good segment. A video airs showing Alex Riley cutting a promo about how he's having a surgery. He says his whole career has been about taking risks (has it really?) because the rewards were worth it (were they really?), but after hearing the fans chant 'thank you Owens' when Owens powerbombed him on the apron, he wonders if it's worth it anymore. He says the fans won't be seeing him for a while, which is apparently what they want. Dana Brooke is interviewed by Devin Taylor, and cuts a promo on Charlotte being chosen for a Tapout commercial over her. So, this is the modern day shampoo commercial feud? She also calls Devin's body 'whack'. Dana Brooke, you, madam, are the whack one. She should come out to the 'Whackaday' theme song (reference for the Brits). Hideo Itami Vs Tyler Breeze: What is this? The fifth match they've had on NXT TV since this rivalry started? I'm over it. Finn Balor is sitting at ringside to get a closer look at his Takeover opponents. To be totally fair, this is probably the best match they've had against each other. Itami letting a bit of his inner-dickishness come out here, including setting up for a a big knee drop after taking off his knee pad, but lazily kicking him in the head instead. At one point, Itami goes for a big kick on Breeze on the outside, but Breeze moves and Balor takes the shot instead. Could have seen that one coming. Itami ends up picking up the win with the shotgun kick. Balor gets in the ring to confront Itami, and Breeze drops them both to stand tall. I liked that. Breeze needed that after dropping the fall. Okay, maybe NXT can get me interested in this triple threrat afterall. Episode MVP: Hideo Itami. 3 star match: Hideo Itami Vs Tyler Breeze.

4/29/15 We start with Kevin Owens coming out and calling out Sami Zayn. William Regal makes his way out instead, but Owens says, with all due respect, he has nothing to say to Regal and wants Sami. Sami finally does come out and Owens demands a match with him. Regal makes the match for the title at the next Takeover. Owens says he wants the match, but Sami doesn't deserve a title shot. This is when the segment gets good, as Sami totally goads Owens into putting the belt on the line by using the same tactics Owens used against him, saying that he (Zayn) is a prize fighter, and that Owens isn't the prize, the NXT title is. Owens, despite his assertions, has clearly got a personal issue with Zayn, so he gives Zayn what he wants. More good work on the mic here from these two, and more good storytelling from NXT. On the flip-side of that, the Enzo/Cass-Blake/Murphy angle doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. We see a backstage skit with Blake and Murphy trying to hit on Carmella, with her basically telling them to fuck off. Alexa Bliss comes in and tries to comfort Carmella, but 'Mella pie-faces her. This is obviously foreshadowing Bliss's alliance with Blake and Murphy. In Regal's office, Zayn is signing the contract for the NXT title match. Alex Riley barges in and starts begging for another shot at Owens. Zayn acts a bit condescendingly to Riley and Riley goes off on him. This sets up a Zayn/Riley main event. Enzo and Big Cass Vs Blake and Murphy: Now, for some reason, these two teams are facing off in a none-title match. Enzo and Cass win clean. I just want to get this feud over with. I actually hate Enzo and Cass. Blake and Murphy's shitty entrance theme is a total ear worm. Bayley is in the back all concerned because she can't find her headbands. It is revealed that Emma stole them. Dana Brooke Vs Bayley: Bayley is in control until her music plays, and Emma comes out wearing her headbands and t-shirt. The distraction allows Dana to pick up a big win. Dana and Emma high five afterwards. Regal in his office announces Finn Balor Vs Hideo Itami Vs Tyler Breeze in a number one contenders match at Takeover. I don't really need to see any iteration of these three again. Hideo Itami Vs Adam Rose: This is post-Adam Rose heel turn. Pretty much a squash win for Itami. Becky Lynch Vs Sarah Dobson: Becky wins a squash with the Dis-Arm-Her. In the back, Rhyno challenges Baron Corbin to a match. Sami Zayn Vs Alex Riley: Kevin Owens joins the commentary team for this one. The match doesn't go too long before he heads to ringside and attacks Zayn, after Zayn had hit a dive on Riley. He lays Zayn out and then finally hits the apron powerbomb on Riley, letting out a hearty laugh afterwards. Is that the end of Riley in NXT? I feel like he hung around as a pre-show guy for a while after this, but not sure. Episode MVP: Very angle-heavy episode this week, which I'm okay with. It would have been nice to have one longer match though. I'm gonna give the nod to Owens here.

So, if your wrestling name is a mash-up of character from favourite film and character from favourite book, but from like 15 years ago, who would you be? The best I can come up with right now is Nate Kilgore (Nate taken from Nately from Catch-22, Kilgore taken from... well, you should all know what Kilgore is taken from).

4/22/15 Finn Balor Vs Tye Dillinger: Standard win for Balor, but the notable thing here is Tyler Breeze popping up on the tron afterwards and basically calling out Balor. Dana Brooke cuts a pretty bad bitchy promo with Devin in the back. Next Devin interviews Kevin Owens about his rematch with Alex Riley tonight. Owens is pretty much looking past Riley. Becky Lynch Vs Bayley Vs Charlotte: Number one contenders match for the women's title. Corey Graves is really laying it in to Becky. He says she's the kind of person who thinks that Avril Lavigne invented punk rock. I have to say, Becky does indeed come off like a massive tool in NXT, and I'm dying for her to dump this rock chick shtick and bring out the steampunk. Bayley is the big fan favourite here, but Becky gets some chants too. No bus bringing in the Charlotte fans must have broken down on the way to the arena. Solid enough match, with a nice finish. Charlotte has Bayley in the figure 8 (dubbed as such for the first time by Corey), but Becky crawls over and, almost without realising it, pins Bayley. Yeah, it kind of makes Becky's win look like a fluke, but I thought it was creative. Hideo Itami Vs CJ Parker: Parker back on job duty. I should apologise to Solomon Crowe, who I kinda bagged on because Parker was getting cheered against him last week. Well, Parker gets some chants here against Itami too, so I guess it's just that Parker has his fans in the crowd. Parker is definitely getting better in the ring. There's a little backstage bit between Sasha and Becky. Basic stuff with the two of them throwing some jabs at one another. I'm looking forward to their match. I know it was well-received. Rhyno Vs Jesus De Leon: Didn't Rhyno already squash this dude? (checks notes) Yes, he did. Kevin Owens Vs Alex Riley: This is probably a little better than the last match they had. Riley receives a warmer welcome at Full Sail, although Owens always has his fans. We also see Riley get in a little more offence. It ends the same way though, with Owens winning with the pop-up powerbomb. Once again, Owens goes for the apron bomb, but this time it is Zayn who makes the save. Sami and Owens have a big brawl to close out the show, with Owens retreating in shock. Episode MVP: Sami Zayn.

4/15/15 Solomon Crowe Vs CJ Parker: I kinda thought they'd given up on Crowe already. At any rate, it's not a good sign when you get dueling chants in a match with CJ Parker. Crowe wins with a stretch muffler. This is better than the Dempsey match, at least. Baron Corbin Vs Steve Cutler: The standard Corbin squash win. They need to do something different with Corbin, because crowd reactions are way down for him for these squashes. Enzo Amore and Big Cass Vs Angelo Dawkins and Sawyer Fulton: Dawkins and Fulton have their own entrance now. Carmella was with Enzo and Cass, and Blake and Murphy came out to give her flowers. Enzo and Cass picked up the win, but were mad at Carmella for accepting the flowers. I don't really like or dislike this angle. It just seems kind of lazy. Alex Riley with a promo in the back. I guess he has another shot at Kevin Owens next week. Dana Brooke Vs Blue Pants: Blue Pants is cute as a button. Expect me to say that whenever she shows up. Let's see what Dana Brooke's got then. I always thought she was pretty worthless, but I'm open to being proved wrong. Well, this is basically a quick squash, so not many conclusions to be drawn here. Sami Zayn Vs Rhyno: It's good to have the NXT MVP back, doing what he does best- giving someone a much better match than you would think they could have. Not that I think Rhyno is bad. I like Rhyno quite a bit. But this match is better than any match I've seen Rhyno have since probably 2001, and by quite a bit too. Standard immovable object vs underdog babyface match, but Sami does these so well, and Rhyno is good in his role too. Sami picks up the win with the Helluva kick after avoiding the gore. Episode MVP: Sami Zayn. 3 star match: Rhyno Vs Sami Zayn.

4/8/15 This episode is a WrestleMania Axcess special as we get the semi-finals and final of the tournament to find which NXT competitor will take part in the Andre battle royal at Mania. Some odd booking in the first round matches as Neville beats Kalisto, Balor beats Corbin, Breeze beats Dempsey and Itami beats Jordan. Hideo Itami Vs Adrian Neville: So, I realise during this that what puts Itami and Neville above Balor to me is the fact that both carry themselves and come across like actual badasses, and guys who aren't afraid to get in someone's face. Neither are perfect wrestlers, by any means, but they at least have that going for them. Balor just seems like a nerd who can do some cool stuff. Anyway, this match is pretty good, and Itami picks up the win. Finn Balor Vs Tyler Breeze: Balor picks up the win with the Coup de Grace. Hideo Itami Vs Finn Balor: I had no idea who was going to win this, and can't remember either of these guys showing up in the Andre ever. I figured Itami might get his win back though, and I was correct. They then show a nice little package highlighting Itami's WrestleMania experience (including him getting eliminated by Big Show). This is actually a nice video, showing him with his kids, and interacting with some of the other wrestlers backstage. I get the feeling this is going to be Itami's WWE highlight. I don't like these 'non-canon' episodes though, and am looking forward to getting back to the real stuff next week. Episode MVP: Itami. Duh. 3 star match: Adrian Neville Vs Hideo Itami.

4/1/15 The show starts with the return of Sami Zayn who cuts a promo saying that his first order of business is to kick Kevin Owens' ass. Crowd is happy to see him back, and so am I. Balor and Riley weren't really doing it for me as the babyface focal points. Rhyno Vs Jesus De Leon: De Leon is AKA Mr 450. He doesn't get a name here though, and is squashed by Rhyno in seconds. Rhyno cuts a promo saying he came to NXT for the NXT championship, and says it doesn't matter who gets in his way. Rhyno Vs KO could be interesting. Bayley Vs Emma: I'm enjoying this storyline so far. Emma comes out very half-heartedly dancing. Rich Brennan describes it as her almost making fun of herself, which is a good way of explaining it. NXT has gone to a two-man booth now, and it's so much better. Brennan and Graves are pretty good together. I can see why Graves was so popular in NXT (I think he's garbage on the main roster, for the record). So, this match is a pretty fun taster of what these two could do if they really cut loose, but it's more advancing the story. Emma is being very derisive towards Bayley, and trying to get her to lose her temper. Bayley ends up surprising Emma with a sunset flip for the win, and Emma's reaction is great. She's clearly super-pissed she got beat, but is still trying to act above it all. Bayley helps Emma up, and seems to think that's the end of their differences. I'm willing to bet it isn't. Blake and Murphy Vs The Lucha Dragons: I feel like I've seen this match a million times. This is none-title, and ends with Blake and Murphy picking up the win. Devin interviews Sami Zayn in the back, but Rhyno interrupts. He says he doesn't care about Sami's personal vendettas, and that the line for the NXT title starts behind him. Jason Jordan Vs Tye Dillinger: Remember when these two were a team, and then Jordan walked out on Dillinger, and said he'd explain his actions when he's good and ready? What was that, a year ago? Seriously, I'd forgotten all about it. Jordan picks up the win here. It seems like Jordan's a guy they've been wanting to push for a while now, so we'll see if this leads anywhere (other than the team with Gable). Tyler Breeze Vs Hideo Itami: 2/3 falls match. Well, there's only about 10 mins left in the show, which doesn't bode well for this 2/3 falls match. Sure enough, the first fall comes right off the bat with Itami hitting his flying boot thing. Breeze catches him with a Beauty Shot out of nowhere to win the second fall shortly after. So far, so lucha, but if this were lucha they'd have about 20 mins for the 3rd fall now. Announcers putting over the exhaustion levels 5 minutes into the match. I'm legit shocked as Breeze wins this clean, catching Itami with another Beauty Shot as Itami goes for the flying boot. This was an okay little match but a big disappointment as a hyped main event. The booking of Itami continues to be a headscratcher. Episode MVP: Emma. I'm liking what she's doing with her character.

Punk's matches with Show and Henry were bangers.

3/25/15 Sasha Banks Vs Alexa Bliss: Women's title match. This is the best Alexa match so far, mainly due to Sasha continuing to be the MVP of NXT. The crowd is split at the start, but gradually get more and more behind Alexa, who does a pretty good job playing the underdog here. But this is the Sasha show really, and she wins via tap-out with the Banks Statement. Decent match, but not in the league of the best NXT women's matches. In a backstage promo, Owens tells Balor to bring the demon tonight. Backstage segment with Emma and Bayley. Emma again tells Bayley to stop listening to the fans, but Bayley replies that it's because of the fans that she's got as far as she has. Emma responds to this by slapping the shit out of Bayley and walking away. I'm liking this development. Tyler Breeze is being interviewed by Devin. Hideo Itami walks in and challenges Breeze to a 2/3 falls match next week. Balor says that he doesn't need the demon to beat Owens. Another backstage bit sees Enzo, Cass and Carmella chilling, when they are approached by Blake and Murphy. Blake and Murphy give Carmella some jewelry to make up for her getting hurt last week. Carmella likes the gift and complains that Enzo and Cass never get her jewelry. Not sure where this is all leading. Kevin Owens Vs Finn Balor: A lot of time given to this match. 20 mins plus. And for most of that time, it's pretty dull. Not bad, but it just seems like a lot of killing time. It finally picks up in the last 5 mins or so, when Owens starts working over Balor's leg. Fuck Balor for no-selling the legwork to deliver the shotgun dropkick though. But it does play into the finish when he hits the Coup de Grace, but is too hurt to make the cover. Owens has time to recover and hit a desperation pop-up powerbomb to get the win and retain his title. The last portion of this saved the match for me. Episode MVP: Sasha Banks.

3/18/15 This episode was taped at the Arnold Sports Classic in Columbus, Ohio, making it the first time NXT had gone on the road. Tyler Breeze Vs Kalisto: This was a much better match than the last time they faced off. Breeze wins with the Beauty Shot. There was a backstage bit with Finn Balor warning Alex Riley not to take Kevin Owens lightly in his match tonight. This was a really weird promo from Finn, who was taking a sharp intake of breath before every line he delivered. Finn would be better served not talking. Wesley Blake Vs Big Cass: Carmella takes a bump off the apron, which allows Blake to roll Cass up for the win. I've been impressed by Blake. Most of my focus has been on Buddy Murphy, but Blake has quietly shown a lot of promise. We get a hype video for Dana Brooke (!), I guess to tie in with the Arnold Classic. She's coming soon. Alexa Bliss Vs Sasha Banks: Non-title match. A lot of to-do made of the fact this is Alexa's hometown, but the crowd is 50/50 at best, which the announcers point out. Short match with Bliss winning by count-out. In the back afterwards, the two argue, and William Regal makes a title match between the two for next week, to go with the Owens/Finn NXT title match. Kevin Owens Vs Alex Riley: This is a bit of a disappointment. Owens pretty much crushes Riley, and the fans are overwhelmingly pro-Owens too, which hurts the storytelling aspect of it. Not that I'm advocating a Riley win, of course, but maybe another hope spot or believable nearfall would have vindicated Riley a bit. Owens continues to beat Riley down after the match, before Balor makes the save. The highlight of this whole show is Owens giving the prone Riley another quick stomp as he runs away from Balor. I do wonder what's next for Riley, as that was a pretty damp squib ending for what has been a well done angle. Episode MVP: Kevin Owens.

We all deserve a friend like Mella.

So Stomping Grounds has to end with EC3, Eric Young et al coming out and giving Seth Rollins his comeuppance, right? I mean, heels still get their comeuppance in modern WWE, right. My main takeaways from this show are that I'm excited for the live debut of the new Bray Wyatt, and Cesaro really needs to be pushed into the world title scene before it's too late. Or at least give me a competitive Cesaro/Strowman feud.

My take on/explanation for the top rope move/move to a downed opponent instead of just pinning them has always been that wrestlers are intrinsically conditioned to kick out of any pin attempt, so just because they're laying on their back for 3, 5, 10 or more seconds, it doesn't mean they're not going to kick out of a pin attempt. That's why the kill shot makes sense to me.

Happy Father's Day, DVDVR dads. What are the best father-son/daughter moments in wrestling? Surely nothing tops Dusty's "the view never changes" promo.

3/11/15 Enzo and Big Cass Vs The Lucha Brothers: This is a number one contenders match for the tag titles. It follows the usual Enzo and Cass formula of Enzo getting his ass kicked, and Cass bailing the team out. Enzo and Cass pick up the win. Alexa Bliss Vs Carmella: This lasts longer than I'd like it to, but both these girls need the ring time. Maybe not against one another though. Carmella is so annoying on the mic. Bliss debuts the Twisted Bliss, which is billed as the Sparkle Splash here, to pick up the win. I don't know if this is just how I've been conditioned, after watching her on the main roster for so long, but I just can't see Bliss as anything other than a heel. She just looks so bitchy. Alex Riley Vs CJ Parker: Riley gets a nice pop for his in-ring return. He cuts a nice promo in the back before this match too, talking about how he still has a lot to offer in the ring, and saying he feels like he's been in a cage for 2 years. He's performed really well in this angle so far. It's a shame that, in the ring, he's still bland as hell. He picks up the win with a top rope blockbuster. Kevin Owens comes out and says Riley is the dumbest man in NXT for quitting his announce job to fight him, because he's going to end his in-ring career too. What I like about this angle so far is the realism with which it's been presented. They're not making out Riley is some retired legend or anything like that, and Riley is acting suitably pissed off that he got shunted to the announce table while he, in his mind, was still in his prime. Tyler Breeze Vs Hideo Itami: Breeze really needed to win this match to have any credibility going forward, and he did so. The problem is, it's just another nail in the coffin of Itami being seen as anything special. The match is fine. Episode MVP: Pretty low key ep. Actually gonna give it to Riley for his promo and his intensity.

3/4/15 We start with Riley in Regal's office demanding a match with Kevin Owens. Regal says he's an announcer now, and that he can't do both. Riley, quite rightly, points out that Regal did just that, and Regal replied that he did, but that resulted in the end of his career. He says you can't prepare to be a wrestler while you have the responsibilities of an announcer, and that Riley has to make a choice. I really liked this. Good fire from Riley, who acted exactly like you'd expect a real person to act in this scenario, and good attention to detail bringing up Regal's history and the potential pitfalls of what Riley is requesting. Stuff like this is why NXT is so good. Tyler Breeze Vs Adam Rose: Rose is back on NXT to do a quick job to Breeze. Alexa Bliss cuts a promo in the back saying she's recovered from her broken nose at the hands of Sasha Banks, and is coming after Banks to show who's really in charge. I barely noticed she was gone. Wesley Blake and Buddy Murphy Vs Angelo Dawkins and Sawyer Fulton: How come they never did anything with this Fulton chap? He's massive and has amateur credentials. Standard win for the tag champs. There's a backstage bit with Bayley and Emma. Bayley is all happy to see Emma, but Emma kinda makes fun of her, and says being nice didn't get her anywhere. This looks like the start of heel Emma. I'm looking forward to this. Baron Corbin Vs Tony Briggs: It doesn't look like Briggs really achieved much in wrestling. The standard quick win for Corbin here. Kevin Owens comes out and is trying to intimidate Riley by staring at him. Riley tries to no sell it, so Owens pours water over his head. This time Riley jumps up and has to be held back by Albert. Another good segment here. Owens is great in the bully role, and Riley is showing good fire. Shortly after this, Riley storms into Regal's office, and quits as an announcer. CJ Parker is with Regal, and laughs at Riley. Regal says Riley has to prove himself before he gets a match with Owens, so Riley asks for one with Parker instead. I guess that's next week. Sami Zayn has sent in a promo from the streets of Montreal. He talks about how NXT seems to have changed since he's been gone, with new champions and new number one contenders, but he'll be back soon, and he can't describe what he's going to do to Kevin Owens. Solomon Crowe Vs Bull Dempsey: Crowe's in-ring debut. The guy just looks weird. Stupid hair, his face is a different colour from the rest of his body, he looks like a midget who's been kind of stretched to full size, and the singlet isn't doing him any favours either. Just essentially having him come out as a normal guy having normal matches doesn't help. They should have worked with the gimmick a bit more. And he gets mostly dominated by Bull before putting him away. Not the right opponent. So, pretty much a failure all around I'm afraid. Sasha Banks Vs Charlotte: Sasha's first title defense is a good one. Sasha is pretty much the MVP of the show whenever she's on these days. Dueling chants from the fans for these two. Finish has Charlotte going for the super Natural Selection she used to beat her in their first match, but Banks holds onto the ropes, and then pins Charlotte with her feet on the ropes. Good stuff. Episode MVP: Sasha Banks. 3 star match: Sasha Banks Vs Charlotte.

2/25/15 Hideo Itami Vs Bull Dempsey: You wonder what Bull's role in NXT is, now that he's no longer the undefeated wrecking ball. Well, for right now, at least, it's putting over Itami in a short match. Tyler Breeze lays Itami out with a Supermodel Kick at the top of the ramp, but Itami recovers and chases him off. The Lucha Dragons Vs Tye Dillinger and Jason Jordan: This match is more of an angle to break up the Jordan/Dillinger team. Tye is having his problems in the ring, but is too proud to tag out. When he finally does reach for the tag, Jordan has had enough and walks off. This allows the Dragons to pick up the win. The Dragons have to be getting called up soon, right? I think they debuted the night after Wrestlemania. Dillinger grabs a mic and demands Jordan come out and explain himself, and says he doesn't care whose match is up next, because he will fight that person. I think I know who's coming out. Yep, Corbin's music hits. Baron Corbin Vs Tye Dillinger: No mention of who Corbin's original opponent was, as this is quickly made a match, and quickly finished off by an End of Days. In the back we see Jordan walking out the arena, and he says he'll explain himself when he's ready. Not sure who's supposed to be the babyface in this situation, if anyone. Becky Lynch Vs Bayley: Decent match, which sees Becky debut the Dis-Arm-Her to pick up the tap-out win. I guess they're building Becky up for a title shot now. Finn Balor Vs The Brian Kendrick: I wasn't aware Kendrick made any returns to WWE prior to the Cruiserweight tournament. They give him a nice build-up for this match, with a video package, and the crowd pop for his return. I always liked Kendrick. This match isn't particularly good though, and the real story develops on the commentary desk. Kevin Owens joins Graves, Riley and Rich on commentary, and Riley asks him about what he did to his friend, Sami Zayn to become champion. Owens says it's because he'll do anything that he is the champ, and that Riley wouldn't understand because he (Riley) has never been a champ. Riley says that as a man he wouldn't have done what Owens did. Owens leaves saying he doesn't want to do something he'll regret. After Balor puts Kendrick away with the Coup de Grace (not the coup de gras), Owens comes back out and throws Riley across the announce table. It's not exactly Regal feuding with Ohno or Cesaro, and kind of came out of nowhere. Getting me to care about Alex Riley is a pretty hard sell, also. But we'll see where this goes. Episode MVP: Kevin Owens.

When you're in your late 30's, 'like 30 years' can be anything from the beginning of documented time to the year 2000, where my pop culture references go up to. So, I think I'm good.

The hierarchy is: 1. Be the chosen one and be accepted as such (this hasn't happened in like 30 years). 2. Be the chosen one and rejected by the fans (because they're still gonna spite push you to the top). 3. Be Daniel Bryan (he has his own rules that apply only to him). 4. Be over commensurate with your push (if they push you and you get over, you can make a career out of being the fall-back guy). 5. Not be over. 6. Be over but not one of their guys (you'll get constantly forgotten and treated like shit, because they know the fans will always cheer for them anyway). 7. Get over on your own (the cardinal sin). 8. Be Rusev.

The second worse thing you can do in WWE, after getting over without permission, is being over when they like you, and see value in you, but don't have any real plans for you. Because those are the guys and girls that just have to go long periods with bad booking on the basis that they'll always be over anyway. And that must be incredibly frustrating.