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Top 20 NXT Characters


Greggulator

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I decided to come up with this list because most of you have better memories of matches and dates than I do. And, frankly, better analysis. But I also think that maybe NXT's greatest strength (especially when it gained traction) was in its characters and their development. That component really goes a long way in making the matches feel even more special. But it also makes people who are not great in-ring performers important to the show as a whole. Bo Dallas and Summer Rae were two of the most important performers in NXT history. But neither of them had any great matches. This is obviously highly subjective and I reserve the right to adjust as need be since this is all off the top of my head. And this only counts for what these characters did in NXT.

1) BAYLEY. NXT's most important development was treating women's wrestling seriously. And that went well beyond "WOW WOMEN ARE GOOD AT WRESTLING!" There was certainly some of that. But the women have also emotionally connected in a way no one would have ever predicted or guessed. Bayley was the best at that. The entire NXT Women's Revolution boiled down to "who is going to turn on Bayley next?" Usually, that's just bad writing and you wonder why this tough guy (like Sting) is willing to put his guard down so much. But it makes sense with Bayley's character, and it also makes sense why so many people would turn on her. She is a good person in a world where bad people get ahead. She created a fan avatar in Izzy. I paid money to wear a shirt that says "I'm A Hugger." Her winning the title and finally Overcoming The Odds made many, many, many people cry. After she was the only Horsewomen left, she had a whole bunch of really great matches with Asuka, Nia Jax, Carmella and even friggin' Eva Marie. And those matches were that great because of Bayley's ability as a performer. 

2) SAMI ZAYN. He was the emotional anchor for the men's side of things for a really long time. In many ways, NXT was told through his eyes. His commitment to Doing The Right Thing gave Neville an actual character beyond "amazing high flyer" since Neville was willing to go into a gray area that Sami wouldn't. Sami was also so good at the role that he could lose matches and still look strong. He got knocked out by Corey Graves at one point. The match against Neville was an emotional high-point about a good person finally getting his due and it ended with the most disgusting act of treachory in NXT history in a story still being told to this day. Also, Sami's initial chemistry with Renee made her really stand out as an awesome person who enhanced the show. 

3) THE WYATT FAMILY. Bray and the gang bounced before any of the Takeovers. But hearing about Bray's crazy ass promos is why I checked out NXT to start. The Wyatt Reign of Terror was some next level Kevin Sullivan-style madmen stuff. Bray's "goodbye from NXT" promo when they returned as conquering heroes is one of the best promos in wrestling history. I truly mean that. He really hit a whole lot of home runs and made a lot of people want to watch the show. Luke and Rowan also played their monster roles to perfection in the early sketches of what they would later become. 

4) RENEE. Her interview ability added so much to so many characters. Amazing reactions and storytelling. She was also really good at her spots at commentary with a terrific chemistry with Regal.

5) ENZO/CASS/CARMELLA. These guys were rock stars and magnetic. They were never great workers. None of their matches came close to anything The Revival did, but they owned Full Sail and the touring shows like no one else. I'm adding Carmella in with them because she debuted in an amazing "hair cream" bit with 'Zo and Cass. BLUE PANTS.

6) SASHA BANKS. It's crazy to think she's not in my Top 5. She was the first women's wrestler to be corrupted by Summer Rae (via the MIRROR). But Sasha ran with The Boss character and kept bringing it to new levels. Her ramming Bayley's wrist at the Brooklyn match and her tormenting of Izzy in the Iron-woman match are two all-time great character moments that showed what a terrible person she was. And her rolling out to Brooklyn in that hooked up car with those bodyguards, too. She's down just a little bit because I think her interview and promo work was a little rough for a bit, but they improved so much. 

7) COREY GRAVES. Best heel announcer of his generation. He was actually really figuring out his character as a wrestler until his concussion issue started. But his heel pretty boy punk act was amazing and told the story from the heel POV better than anyone since Heenan.

8) BOBBY ROODE. I can't believe he's down at 8. I fell in love with fake fighting because of Ric Flair and the Horsemen. Rich dickhead heels will always be my favorite template of wrestler. Roode had the act down perfectly and from the start. His "debut" promo doing the generic "NXT IS THE PLACE TO BE!" and then flipping it to tell the fans he wanted to replace them with corporate executives was amazing. Him toasting his victory while rewatching his matches. The great "wrestling is ridiculous" moment of him walking in his palatial estate and bossing around the help. He is exactly what I want pro wrestling to be.

9) KEVIN OWENS. Machiavellian mastermind bully trash person extraordinaire. The jumping of Sami and his cold, distant stare into the abyss was the best "evil wins" moment. I also loved his destruction of that turd Alex Riley so much.

10) BO DALLAS. Ingenious character. He was a failed face who became hated and didn't realize it. They actually set that up really well with him acting slimy towards Neville during their brief tag partnership. And Bo did all this sneaky stuff as champion by messing with turnbuckles on the sly. His cookies and his PowerPoint presentation and the audience turning their back to him completely. The single best moment in NXT history, IMO, was him wearing a mask as "Mr. NXT" and getting de-masked by Sami and then chased around Full Sail for like 30 minutes. "I HAVE ASTHMA!"

11) VELVETEEN DREAM. He's been the best part of NXT the past few months. He has become a hell of a worker, but it's because of his commitment as a weird Goldust-meets-Raven thing. I loved Patrick Clark since he first broke out the Prince-As-Chapelle act and then seeing it become this has been a blast. He could end up as the best home-grown NXT talent ever. SAY MY NAME.

12) SUMMER RAE. Great mean girl and captain of the BFFs. Her character was the catalyst for Sasha to become THE BOSS and for Charlotte to turn heel. She was great at being a coward. Someone also pointed out on here that she made some great "Eww, no, I will not have sex with you" faces. 

13) EMMA/DANA BROOKE. Dancin' Emma broke out huge. Her lovable dunce work led to a cult following. And that led to her match with Paige for the NXT Women's Title. That was such an important match because their feud was treated seriously (even though Emma's character wasn't). Dana Brooke as her lackey added so much to her act, too. Dana's really rough in-ring but she is such a hilarious performer.

14) THE REVIVAL. Amazing sneaky cocky heels. Great matching jackets. Great theme music. Good promo guys. They are actually really underrated in that department because their in-ring work is so spectacular.

15) FINN BALOR. A lot of Finn's stuff at first was pretty much "I sometimes wear face paint." But they did a great package explaining his history (and anchored by Becky, who never had a good NXT character until she broke out the steampunk look against Sasha) and backstory and why he wears the paint at the end. That style of promo was later used to repackage Roderick Strong. 

16) AMERICAN ALPHA. Chad Gable's early debut stuff as a SMW Al Snow type was great. He and Jordan had great out-of-the-ring chemistry immediately. They had a great sit-down package with one of their matches against The Revival where they talked about failing to win the gold at the Olympics and all of that, which added so much to their depth as characters. READY. WILLING. GABLE. 

17) SAMOA JOE. Surly-ass Joe just destroying dudes and bullying people and whining to Regal and etc. I have him down a little bit too far, maybe. 

18) ALEXA BLISS. Heel Alexa with her claw glove. All-time great expressions. She really came into her own during her heel NXT run.

19) NIKKI CROSS. Pure commitment to the psycho street crustpunk act. I absolutely can see her sponging for change with some hobo boyfriend and a vegan dog outside of a Wawa before she gets up and spits in the face of a "norm" for no reason whatsoever before punching a police horse. 

20) TYLER BREEZE. Fuck. I don't feel like re-ordering this list. The selfie stick. Fringed boots. Models posing on their way to ringside. THEME SONG HE SANG HIMSELF. Great ridiculous and absurd disgust in his face. I love him so much. Best guy in NXT to not win the title maybe.

NOT ON THE LIST:

TYSON KIDD. Can somebody please tell me who to boot off so I can include him? Please? Man, I totally forgot how great he was as a semi-delusional asshole. I loved the whole "I have to check on the cats" stuff and saying "God bless" sanctimoniously to people. He got so good in NXT and it was a real loss that he got hurt.

GARGANO. He's in arguably the two best matches in NXT history. But his promo stuff with DIY was pretty much unwatchable. It was such awful forced attempts at comedy. I did like it when they returned with the belts and went into the crowd. But other than that, they were really awful. His mannerisms improved a lot. But him making the squint face doing the "I can't believe how many people are here!" thing was so terrible. Dude, there's like 400 people at most at Full Sail. The playground across the street from my house is bigger.  Ciampa "WHY TOMASSO WHY" heel promo was absolutely awful to sit through. That feud is going to be hot with the crowd because it's a great story, but it's being told by two guys who aren't so hot at that stuff.

ALMAS/VEGA. I had to boot them because I forgot to put on Breeze. Almas was a snooze for ages but blew the f up the past few months, especially with Vega added to the act. I think he's probably a few weeks away from making the list.

ASUKA. I loved arrogant Asuka sitting poolside. Great facial expressions. WHO IS READY FOR ASUKA is an all-time great catchphrase. But I don't know who I'd bump off for her.

CHARLOTTE. Really rough promo for a lot of her tenure. She did have a great bad-ass vibe. She's so so so much better now than she was in NXT. 

BECKY LYNCH. No character worth talking about at all until her breakout match with Sasha when she became a steampunk art girl. She's a really great babyface on Smackdown. 

PAIGE. I wish I could find a spot on the list for her. Great badass face. She was so incredibly important to women's wrestling, despite being absolutely lapped by everyone.

STREET PROFITS. They should get on there in the next few months. Love those guys. Montez is hilarious. 

THE UNDISPUTED ERA. Adam Cole has grown on me a lot. Fish and especially O'Reilly are awful at what they're trying to do. O'Reilly doing the air guitar thing with the belt looked like such a geek, and not in a heel way.

RUSEV AND LANA. They never had any promo work. Just shot right from NXT to the WWE with an act we never got to see on-screen in NXT.

DREW MCINTYRE. Maybe the single most boring guy in NXT history to have a huge push. Total paint-by-numbers "FACE IN AN INDIE" thing. So lazy.

ALEISTER BLACK. I love the look and he's awesome in-ring. I still don't know exactly the dark vibe he's going for. He had a promo against Dream that was awful. It was him in the gym.

RODERICK STRONG. Those backstory packages were awesome. But anything he does without that packaging is brutal. 

LARS SULLIVAN. He'll be on the list soon enough. Great bully.

NEVILLE. I should have found a place for him. He became a really good face-with-an-edge. And that really showed itself in the classic against Sami. 

ADAM ROSE. One of the most fun characters in NXT history. Not having him really shows how great NXT is at characters.

NO WAY JOSE. Another really fun character. He's a pretty solid promo, too.

BARON CORBIN. Heel Baron Corbin really became something great. Really awesome on the main roster.

MOJO RAWLEY. Goofy, lovable Mojo with his endless energy was really solid. He lost a lot of points for his tie-in with Gronk.

CJ PARKER. Hilarious heel character.

TYE DILLINGER: So incredibly over with such a simple act. I really wish he had an upset run with the title so we could see some more out of him.

BLUE PANTS. Hahaha

VAUDEVILLAINS. I neeeeeed to redo this list to put Aiden English in there. His singing stuff with roses tossed at his feet... 

ELIAS SAMSON. I saw NXT live in Asbury Park. As soon as The Drifter's guitar lick started, he was being reigned down on with boos. He started to sing a song and he had such ridiculous hatred sent his way. The neckbeard next to me was awful. "He has NO CHARISMA at all!" Dude, he got the best reaction all night maybe.

NIA JAX. I really liked her muscle work for Eva Marie.

SHINSUKE. I'm so torn on Shinsuke. He has maybe the best theme music and entrance of the past 15 years. I love his whole Michael Jackson tribute act a lot. Moves with such grace and finesse. But I somehow never got into him as much as everyone else.

THE ICONIC DUO. Crap. I wish I could slide them on that list. Peyton has one of the best temper tantrums of all-time. Billy's Cruella look is wonderful. Great comedy heels.

EMBER MOON. No idea what she's supposed to be yet, although she's really likable.

SHAYNA BAZLER. She's amazing for the one month she's been on TV. She's going to be on this list in like six weeks.

AOP. Crap. I really wish I could put them on here. Ellering and them are great. Playing monster heels like them is really hard. But they did that so well and turned into good monster faces the past few weeks.

SANITY. I like the act a lot. Nikki's the star of that team, though.

KASSIUS OHNO. He does no thing for me. I hate the basketball jersey look. I hate the theme music. 

HIDEO ITAMI. Heel surly bastard Hideo was really fun. MY STYLE IS KICK.

 

 

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Ill have a go at a top 10 -

10 - Bo Dallas - He was the embodiment of what NXT should be: A developmental brand that lets younger guys find their groove before being exposed.

9 - Elias - The Drifter wasmoney from day 1. It just took everyone a while to notice. In a time when everyone was cheered in NXT he got incredible heat.

8 - 'Evil' Emma - Hitting a reset on her character gave her a few extra years of work. Another example of what NXT should be doing: Get stale performers a new look/gimmick & reset.

7 - Sasha Banks - The Boss was the best in ring performer in the womens division and in NXT for a time. The perfect foil for Bayley & half of 2 of my top 3 NXT matches.

6 - Samoa Joe - Nobody made winning the title feel like more of a goal. Others wanted to win but Joe HAD to win and was running through everyone to do it.

5 - Johnny Gargano - The new Sami Zayn. Built himself from a name in the midcard to part of the 2nd best tag team in NXT history and has just had an incredible main event run.

4 - The Revival - Rebuilt tag team wrestling IMO. These guys were a level above anything else going on in terms of character work and in ring performance. So many insane finishes and all pulled off perfectly.

3 - Sami Zayn - We all fell in love withthis guy, exploded when he won the title and looked on in horror as Owens put him on the shelf. Not gettting proper revenge was a mistake but Zayn was the soul of NXT for a long time.

2 - Bayley - Might be a suprise but Bayley was the female Sami Zayn and the real heart of NXT. The Horsewomen, Izzy, Takeover Brooklyn, Ironwoman, the Nia match, the Asuka match... Mishandled on the main roster but perfect in NXT.

1 - Asuka - Could anyone believe that someone on a WWE brand going unbeaten for 2 years, breaking Goldberg's record, destroying the competition and vacating the title would be so damn entertaining? Oh, and it would be a woman. Oh and she is Japanese and doesnt speak great English? Yeah... She was PERFECT!

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Not a 20 list (I suck at those) but....

The Wyatts: even with their limited time in NXT, they were such a huge impact. They didn't lose any of that momentum going over to Raw either, if anything they picked up the pace... until the grind hit :\

Bo Dallas:  he told his full story in NXT. It was like a fantastic parody version of Rock's early career. He really helped bring the crowd into it, forced them to participate.

Corey Graves: he was the voice of NXT and played a major role in selling NXT to the audience. He was there from the beginning and helped us get committed to the characters on screen, its really amazing how he wove a story with practically every wrestler. His unfortunate in-ring career and Hollywood story-ish discovery of his true calling is inspiring.

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3 hours ago, odessasteps said:

I'd think Regal himself would warrant being on the list, even if he is no longer an active competitor. 

He gets often overlooked simply for the fact that when he's on, its usually in service of some other character. He's been a fantastic GM.

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For a few of the slight knocks on the list: 

I'd go as far as Enzo, Cass, and Carmella at number one:

Forget about what ended up happening and how controversial Enzo would be right now. If we're focusing on what NXT was, solely as NXT, these three would have the case for the top spot. NXT's biggest benefit during the glory days was that all three divisions- the women with Bayley, the men with Sami Zayn, and the tag team division with Enzo and Cass- each had their own "Screw the titles, this person/people are the heart and soul of this division" and every fan kind of knew it.

What makes Enzo and Cass number one, though, was the fact that Enzo and Cass actively sucked in the ring, and people inherently knew this. In an NXT where fans were engineered to prefer great wrestling, and a division filled with great tag teams throughout the division who could actually wrestle, Enzo and Cass came in with two strikes against them in the NXT style as "Performance Center students with no particular run on the indies, let alone being indy darlings" and managed to not only hit a home run, but hit a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth with two outs to win the World Series.

In a NXT where Full Sail was actively ready to despise anyone who didn't come from "muh indies", they managed to make Full Sail fall in love with them, EVEN WHILE KNOWING they were actively terrible in the ring. Even with the great character of Sami Zayn, there'd always be that question of "Did they love Sami Zayn, Moral Compass of NXT, or did they love El Generico (TRAINER IN AN ORPHANAGE OF! Sami Zayn!)"- and the same thing could be said for most of the women who were behind the Women's Revolution (with only Charlotte being a Performance Center graduate of the core "Women's Revolutionaries"). 

What Bayley and Sami Zayn did was a chemical reaction and made NXT so great- but if Bayley's biggest reason she would go above Sami Zayn would likely boil down to "Bayley made herself a star wholly in NXT", then it also had to be mentioned Enzo and Cass did it all in the tag division, without even getting to win the big one like Bayley or Zayn did, and did it without any indy cred at all to speak of (where even Bayley had a run in SHIMMER- and with how few indy women WWE hired until the Women's Revolution took, even that small run would be enough to say "Did they love Bayley, or did they love Davina Rose (NOT! Bayley!)" 

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A challenge, this.

10. Samoa Joe. My most anticipated arrival into the promotion. Gave Balor his peak NXT match. Shame the matches with Nak’ didn’t click as I thought they would.

9. Asuka. The most dominant woman to come from NXT stopping all challengers and vacating the belt to move up to main roster.

8. Kevin Owens. One of the shortest NXT runs but a notable one for WWE tapping into the Owens vs. Zayn rivalry on the independents and as NXT Champion beats John Cena clean at WWE Elimination Chamber 2015.

7. Bayley. The huggable one is right. Thinking back to her NXT booking and booking on the main roster since losing to the WWE Raw Women’s Championship to Alexa Bliss. Sigh.

6. Cesaro. A notable entry into NXT while on the main WWE roster, he added to NXT as a guest attraction by the awesome match with William Regal and the feud with Sami Zayn too.

5. William Regal. Regal vs. Cesaro needs more love and what a match for Regal to go out on. Can do it all in ring, on commentary, promos and as the NXT General Manager.

4. Johnny Gargano. The successor to Zayn’s babyface in NXT, his selling, and took part in the two greatest NXT matches.

3. The Revival. My favourite tag team in WWE for a long time with their cheating, a throwback team and the matches with American Alpha and particularly against Ciampa/Gargano.

2. Sami Zayn. The fans favourite torn between whether to take advantage or not of a downed Adrian Neville in their NXT Championship match, winning it without compromising. Zayn loses the NXT Championship quickly to Kevin Owens and signs of his run on the show by giving Shinsuke Nakamura his best match in WWE by far.

1. Sasha Banks. The Boss character and the best woman to ever wrestle in NXT. I’d argue Banks has THE calendar year of all to come into NXT, her 2015. My favourite NXT moment was Sasha Banks taking Izzy’s bow and taunting her with mock tears at NXT TakeOver: Respect 2015.

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Top 10.

 

Asuka - NO ONE was ready for how well she transitioned from her independent career to her NXT career. She worked perfectly.

Bo - he just worked perfectly - he viewed himself as a white hat while viewers saw him as a black hat. His obliviousness added to the charm.

Enzo and Cass. They (alright, Enzo) just had charisma - in spaaaaaaaaades. They weren't the best when it came to actual wrestling, but people believed in them (well, Cass) as a dominant team (individual) and it worked.

Bayley - character progression, the look, the appeal to younger audiences, she has it. 

Sami - everyone wanted him to be generico, but he took his own character and soared with it. I loved the El Generico character - I fucking adore Sami Zayn.

Revival. old school is cool. Nuff said.

Elias. Admittedly, the rumble was the first exposure I've had to watching Elias live - but Jesus that dude was over with the philly crowd.

Charlotte - arguably has had more character progression in NXT than Sasha. 

Aleister Black - 2019 post mania raw (cos Almas has to go up in the post Nawlins mania raw, right?) is going to explode, when he rises up from the side of the stage. This guy will be huge.

Velveteen Dream - if he can tailor his dress/look/package to each opponent in takeover matches, he'll be a made man. It's about innovation, standing out. And Dream has it oozing out of every pore.

 

Honorable mention.

Corey Graves. As good as these people are in the ring, they've been ably helped by the hardest working man in the company at the moment. Who'd have thought that sterling fucking james keenan would be the most used prospect to come out of NXT? How does he hold in his piss for four/five hours at a time during big ppvs?

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Re: SorceressKnight’s post: I’d quibble with NXT (especially early NXT) being a place where the fans were “actively ready to despise” non-indie talent. Most of the tag team division back then were relatively homegrown (Ascension, Vaudes, BAMF, Revival, American Alpha) and there were the occasional indie flops (Callahan) where they didn’t connect much with the crowd despite the hype.

Other than that, I agree that Enzo and Cass would be pretty high up there.

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Oh Jebus, I totally overlooked Regals brief but glorious stint on commentary. Those fantastical, self deprecating stories (most of which involved his family) really drew you in and help look past some green talents in ring. I swear Graves took that ball and ran with it.

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1. Sasha Banks - The 1/2 decision was a very tough one for me and I could probably argue with myself all day on it. In the end, though, I think the biggest contribution from NXT is its impact on women's wrestling. In the wake of an all-woman Royal Rumble closing out WWE's second biggest show of the year, something unimaginable even 5 years ago, it's clear to me that women's wrestling will be NXT's biggest legacy, and that legacy runs through Sasha Banks. While not following the tried and true babyface underdog path, no one embodies the true pioneering, visionary, land-of-opportunity spirit of NXT quite like Sasha. In retrospect, her character was rather meta. She was a very effective heel in practice, but her rise up the card and in the eye of wrestling critics was as heart-warming as any babyface arc under the surface. The "four horsewomen of NXT" all have much-deserved acclaim, but the other 3 made their careers by working with Sasha. The whole women's operation, and in fact NXT's greatest accomplishment, simply doesn't work without her.

2. Sami Zayn - Due to NXT's multi-year sustained run of above average to all-time great weekly wrestling show, it's easy to forget the times before all the hot free agents wanted to work there and it actually resembled a developmental promotion. Before NXT could coast on the talent of established indy stars, securing a guy like El Generico was a huge coup for the brand, not just a given. Still, this wasn't just taking and using what a guy had been doing on the indies or overseas for years, he had to ditch his signature mask, take on a WWE-sounding name (albeit one of the better ones), and start as if nobody knew who he was. However, it didn't take long for Sami's talent to shine through and he quickly became one of the most beloved figures in the company. Only Sami and Neville could work at the level NXT fans are accustomed to today when the show launched with the WWE network. While Neville would go on to develop a good character, Sami's combination of in-ring ability, relate-able personality, and ability to make everyone around him better made him the heart and soul of NXT during its critical early stages. Sami was the foundation that important figures like Kevin Owens and Shinsuke Nakamura were built on, and Sami Zayn is basically synonymous with NXT.

3. Corey Graves - While not being blessed with the longevity to make his mark in the ring, it's impossible to say that Corey's announcing didn't embody the NXT spirit in exactly the same way Sami and Sasha did in the ring. Corey was a natural when he first sat in the booth and became the stable figure in a sea of rotating mediocrity that was early NXT announcing. Corey's intimate knowledge and passion for the brand was essential in putting over the sensational rise of the company. Often times we get so caught up with what we see, we forget what we hear, but we all know NXT wouldn't (and indeed hasn't) sounded the same without Corey in the booth.

4. The Revival - Even when NXT was solidified as a must-watch brand with all the hottest talent, it still had a rather lackluster tag team legacy. The Ascension had been shoved down everyone's throats despite being awful, the Lucha Dragons failed to take off, Blake and Murphy wouldn't be remembered were it not for them being Alexa Bliss' stepping stone, and the Vaudevillains, while a neat niche gimmick, were unbecoming as a top act given where NXT was at as a brand. Thankfully a concentrated effort was made to remedy this situation in the form of the Dusty Rhodes Classic. While the flashy cool team of Samoa Joe and Finn Balor won the event, the big find were semi-finalists Dash and Dawson, two lower key signings that hadn't amounted to anything in singles. In a time all the hottest indy talent was coming in and the women were breaking new ground, Dash and Dawson went back to the basics and ended up being the central pillar in making the NXT tag division mean what it should. Their old-school, no-frills approach was balanced with a modern pace and just enough cool limb-destroying moves to fit in to modern NXT, while using classic methods of getting themselves and everyone they worked with over.

5. Kevin Owens - While a babyface like Zayn was essential to establishing NXT as a promotion, you could tell they made it when they were ready for a dominant heel on top. After debuting to hot face reaction in a surprisingly heated battle with CJ Parker, he became the most hated man instantly when he ruined Sami's big moment later that night in dramatic fashion. Being able to destroy the ultimate sympathetic face as his first feud certainly helped, but you can't ignore what he brought the table. This is a guy who could work a fast pace at a very high level, and had all the quick wit on the mic to become a cool heel, but he didn't. He stayed, weasely, smarmy, and obnoxious, but had the mean streak of a true ace. He worked main roster ppvs with Cena as NXT champ and didn't miss a beat. Though his run was short, he was a key in continuing the upward trend of the brand's credibility while the company depth piled up behind him.

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I was watching Sasha/Becky last night, and it got me thinking about how many of the greatest women's matches since the Revolution have contained Sasha. 

  • Sasha/Becky
  • Sasha/Bayley x2
  • Sasha/Charlotte 2016 feud

And there's the 3-ways and 4-ways. Even Sasha/Asuka this year. 

I see at least three RAW matches with Bliss on the network. I need to watch them, but I wouldn't be shocked if they're Bliss's best, too. 

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I'd like to throw out Alexa Bliss as low key one of NXT's biggest success stories. Inexperienced, tiny, horrible original gimmick but managed to turn into one of the most entertaining parts of the NXT tag scene with Blake and Murphy and then on her own on the main roster. Her match quality is pretty hit or miss, but in terms of character she's fantastic.

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4 hours ago, Captain Kronos said:

I was watching Sasha/Becky last night, and it got me thinking about how many of the greatest women's matches since the Revolution have contained Sasha. 

  • Sasha/Becky
  • Sasha/Bayley x2
  • Sasha/Charlotte 2016 feud

And there's the 3-ways and 4-ways. Even Sasha/Asuka this year. 

I see at least three RAW matches with Bliss on the network. I need to watch them, but I wouldn't be shocked if they're Bliss's best, too. 

Sasha Banks is the best women's wrestler in WWE and gives her opponents their best matches: Bayley, Charlotte, Becky Lynch, Asuka, Alexa Bliss (check out the SummerSlam 2017 and rematch on RAW two weeks later) and Nia Jax (RAW gauntlet and then a singles for #1 contender status).

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Thread says top 20, so I need to continue.

6. Finn Balor - Part of a loaded signing spree at the end of 2014, Finn was brought in as an equalizer for the much more hyped Hideo Itami who was being tormented by the Ascension. When it was time for the tag team blowoff match, Finn promised he would show them something they've never seen before. Out came the demon, and the equalizer had instantly become the next obvious future star of the brand. The whole demon gimmick could've been way too campy by itself, let alone with Finn's natural dorky personality, but he established himself as the most over act on the show at a time when NXT was going through its growth spurt. From charming bookworm and lego enthusiast to unstoppable warrior, Finn established himself as a guy that was ready to win a major title his first month in WWE when his highly successful NXT run concluded.

7. Bayley - As the other key component to the NXT women's revolution, her story arc necessitated her being out of the spotlight while everyone else was established. However, when it was her time to shine, she was blinding. Her redemption arc concluded with two of the finest matches in NXT history opposite #1 Sasha Banks. Then she had several months of an underappreciated ace run, making next-gen mainstays like Nia, Alexa, and Carmella look great before she succumbed to Asuka, who needed no introduction. Bayley will always be known as the huggable underdog, but she had the range and talent of a complete superstar.

8. Enzo Amore - Recent flame-out aside, you have to give him his just due when it comes to all-time NXT characters. First, he unquestionably had the most over catchphrase in NXT history. Second, he provided a vehicle to get generic big-man-project Colin Cassidy off the ground, which was definitely not happening before hand. You could definitely draw some parallels between them and the New Age Outlaws, though Enzo was never the worker Road Dogg was. The biggest parallel is that they were a generational tag team act in terms of overness, and it was on the back of Enzo's mic work. Enzo's template was so successful, they tried to copy it with Carmella, only to find that his charisma was truly unique.

9. Bray Wyatt - It's tough for pre-network era NXT guys to get a lot of credit here due to lack of exposure, but to me, Bray stands out as the early successful experiment that showed the true future potential of the new developmental system. After floundering as the horrendously-named Husky Harris, Bray was able to fully reinvent himself at the performance center, taking advantage of increased emphasis on character development and increased production capabilities. While most of his success would come from transferring his act to the main roster, the credibility it gave to the new system and proximal benefits it provided to Harper and Rowan earn him a spot on this list.

10. Shinsuke Nakamura - Nak is a tough to rank because you want to honor the people who carved out identities from scratch and developed along with brand, while there's very much a "this is just Shinsuke being Shinsuke" thing going on with him, especially coming in when the brand was at its peak. Ultimately I came to the conclusion that over is over, though, and you just can't ignore what Nak brought to the brand, even if he was bringing the same thing to NJ for years prior. His charisma goes without saying, and he was one of the most over guys in the company the second he walked in. His first entrance was legendary, and his one uniquely NXT thing was the fact that he had the most over theme song in company history (edging out Glorious). While Nakamura would easily be over anywhere he goes, that should reflect positively on him, thus he rounds out my top 10.

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11. Andrade 'Cien' Almas - Almas is another guy with sort of a meta character arc. He was supposed to come in and get over doing what he had done elsewhere and be a low-maintenance star. He didn't pan out right away, though, and ended up being used to put over hot free agent signings brought in after him. So, what did they do? Incorporate that into his character of course. Use his aura of entitlement to make him heel, and explain his poor record as a result of not taking his job seriously. Then fix him by pairing him up with a manager who channels all his talent and turns him into the superstar he was supposed to be when came in. Even if his story arc ended now, he would've had a great run, but his excellent ring work and the fact that he's in position to put people over now are only going to improve his standing as time goes on.

12. Asuka - An undefeated gimmick is a pretty easy one to work with if you have even a small amount of talent, so needless to say, Asuka crushed it during her time in NXT. She was more of face due to the inherent appeal of an ass-kicker, but she never adhered to too many babyface conventions. At times, she was arrogant, relished hurting inferior opponents, and mowed down other babyfaces. Other times, she did play it straight, fighting off cheaters, hanging tough with larger opponents, and showing gratitude the fans. She was simply Asuka, and everyone had to respect her.

13. Chad Gable - The dorky guy who put his name on his towel was easy to like the first time he was on camera. As he recruited a struggling Jason Jordan, you could see big things ahead for both of them. Chad took one of the long-forgotten pre-network home-growns and got him out of his shell and into one of the most successful tag teams in NXT history. In the ring, Chad could play a sympathetic babyface with the best of them and had no shortage of crafty amateur-based offense to balance the suddenly explosive Jordan. Along with the Revival, American Alpha opened the floodgates for the NXT tag team wave.

14. Bo Dallas - While mostly a pre-network success story, this generic blue-chipper babyface finding himself as the all-time great "heel who thinks he's a face" was sign that NXT was moving in the right direction. He put Neville over strong to kick off the network, and provided some quality stooging heel work as the product began to take on a new direction.

15. Johnny Gargano - Somehow, Johnny Wrestling turned a generic look and even more generic promos into being one of the iconic underdogs in NXT history. In the ring, his passion shines through, and it's hard to not pull for the guy. His underdog work highlighted the premier tag team feud in NXT history and has translated nicely to singles. As time goes on and he potentially completes a title chase and vanquishes his jealous former partner, he could see himself as high as #4 on my list, but that's still to be determined. As is, he has nothing to be ashamed of with a very successful NXT run that has likely exceeded just about everyone's expectations for him.

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And to finish the list...

16. Tyler Breeze - The gorgeous one perhaps took off a year too late. He could've found success if NXT went the direction of Bo Dallas, but when Tyler caught on, it was clear the Cesaro/Zayn/Neville wing was the future and Breeze, though solid, was not at that level. Still, not many took ownership of their character quite like Tyler. He made a hokey early 90s style gimmick work in the 2010s. And he performed his own theme song, that counts for a lot. While the comparisons to 92 HBK were absurd even at the time, he did manage to create a memorable character that walked the fine line between comedy and a credible upper midcarder.

17. Adrian Neville - For most of his tenure, his character was "good wrestler with cool finisher," but the importance of that role can't be understated for early NXT. Between the transition from Bo and the Sami feud, Neville had to work title programs with Titus O'Neill and Brodus Clay and made the most of it, likely giving each their best career matches. He kept the credibility of NXT's wrestling up while the brand took shape. Then he had that awesome tweener run in the Sami feud that catapulted NXT in to the stratosphere.

18. Samoa Joe - Fans had been clamoring for Joe in WWE for over a decade, but his age and excessive time spent in TNA had people wondering if this was just going to be more "what could've been." It took a couple months to get his feet back under him, but it wasn't long before Joe was the same ass-kicking fire-promo that everyone knew and loved. It wasn't 2005, but he worked briefly as a face and mostly as a heel as a central figure in the third wave of NXT dominance.

19. Emma - Emma was certainly one of the more underrated figures in the women's revolution, despite never getting the top. Instead of one dominant run like many of the memorable NXT superstars, she had two distinct supporting runs. Her first tenure as a face followed the classic making something out of nothing model and her comeback heel run was a polished example of how to elevate people as a midcard heel. Both times around she didn't reach the top, but she definitely helped those who did around her.

20. Sanity - I was trying to avoid a cop-out group shout here, but other than Sawyer Fulton, it's tough to say anyone hasn't contributed significantly. My main issue is that I couldn't pick between Nikki Cross and Killian Dain who both seem to have lots of untapped potential yet. Nikki sells the "craziness" of the gimmick better than anyone in the group, but Dain certainly has the appropriate wildman look and most importantly, sells it in the ring. Still, Young has provided acceptable promos and some decent babyface work in tag matches, and Wolfe is the unappreciated workhorse who has shown a lot of fire when given a chance.

Waiting in the wings: Adam Cole, Shayna Baszler, Velveteen Dream, Lars Sullivan

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So I'm basing this on going to shows for years and seeing these acts grow. My list is probably a bit different than others.

1. Bayley: The queen of Full Sail. She carried the brand after Sasha and Charlotte left after Sami left and after Finn left. I remember her first appearance when she got booed off the screen. She along with the other horsewomen and women like Emma and Paige changed everything. Just a great character and story.

2. Sami Zayn: They call him the heart and Soul of NXT and it's true. I remember when his first appearance after he won the title at Full Sail. It was just nuts. A part of NXT died when he left and it will never return.

3. Emma: Yeah Emma is gonna be very high on my list. And not Evil Emma but dancing Emma. That character was perfect for NXT. It got people to react and felt organic at the time. I say this a lot but Emma/Santino vs Fandango/Summer is still the best match I've seen at Full Sail. I figured the character would die a death on the main roster but it was perfect for pre-touring NXT. 

4. Enzo and Cass: Two guys that made each other better and were lost without each other. I remember when Cass was in FCW doing a Brooklyn gimmick and thinking "why is he even signed except for that he's tall?" When Enzo came in, it was like a spark hit his brain and it got the ball moving. Adding Carmella with them made it even better. They were the ultimate opening match guys on NXT live events. Kinda like what No Way Jose is now but better.

5. Finn Balor: Just an incredible run in NXT. Had great matches,  was treated like a superstar in a era where only guys from the main roster that came down were and carried the brand for months after others left. I'm not a big fan of the demon character but regular Finn was cool.

6. Bo Dallas: An important character in the early days of NXT. He was so hated in Full Sail that it was like Roman today. The Mr. NXT angle was so simple but worked masterfully. Another highlight was his segment with Big Dave Batista.

7. Adam Rose: I liked the Leo Kruger gimmick but I loved the early Adam Rose gimmick. Sure it was basically just a entrance and he wasn't that great in the ring but he was over. Plus, the gimmick brought us plenty of other people like Becky and Braun.

8. Tye Dillinger: An example of what a crowd can do for a person. Tye was dead in the water after the failed team with Jordan. He tried so many gimmicks like the time he did a ballet gimmick and gymnastics during dark matches. The 10 gimmick is so simple but he got it over by never quitting and the crowd got him noticed. Then it just spread like wildfire.

9. Sasha banks: She might be a little low on my list but man the Boss Character was so great. Her with Summer Rae going after women like Emma and Bayley was just perfect for the time. The zenith of the character was the ironwoman match with Bayley and the time she scared Izzy.

10, Tyson Kidd: I loved Tyson's run in the NXT. Especially his matches with Curtis Axel in the early days of Full Sail. Some of the best matches of the time. He's a good example of a guy that got rehabbed in NXT after a run on the main roster. I wish they would do that with other guys these days but I guess the roster is too bloated these days to do that.

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  • 5 months later...

Update:

10. Asuka. The most dominant woman to come from NXT stopping all challengers and vacating the belt to move up to main roster. Shame to see Asuka's booking since she lost to Charlotte Flair at WrestleMania XXXIII.

9. Kevin Owens. One of the shortest NXT runs but a notable one for WWE tapping into the Owens vs. Zayn rivalry on the independents and as NXT Champion beats John Cena clean at WWE Elimination Chamber 2015.

8. Bayley. The huggable one is right. Thinking back to her NXT booking and booking on the main roster since losing to the WWE Raw Women’s Championship to Alexa Bliss. Sigh.

7. Cesaro. A notable entry into NXT while on the main WWE roster, he added to NXT as a guest attraction by the awesome match with William Regal and the feud with Sami Zayn too.

6. William Regal. Regal vs. Cesaro needs more love and what a match for Regal to go out on. Can do it all in ring, on commentary, promos and as the NXT General Manager.

5. The Revival. My favourite tag team in WWE for a long time with their cheating, a throwback team and the matches with American Alpha and particularly against Ciampa/Gargano. Injuries to both after getting called up to the main roster didn't help nor post injury booking either. Papa H must despair.

4. Sami Zayn. The fans favourite torn between whether to take advantage or not of a downed Adrian Neville in their NXT Championship match, winning it without compromising. Zayn loses the NXT Championship quickly to Kevin Owens and signs of his run on the show by giving Shinsuke Nakamura his best match in WWE by far.

3. Johnny Gargano. The successor to Zayn’s babyface in NXT, his selling, and in three of my top five NXT matches ever. The tag team with Ciampa and now rivals has brought the best out of one another in ring and as characters. At NXT TakeOver: Chicago II, Ciampa pissed Johnny off by spitting on his wedding ring. Johnny Wrestling wanted to hurt Ciampa for it and doing so cost himself the win.

2. Tommaso Ciampa. Turns his back on #DIY  and the most popular wrestler in NXT, Johnny Gargano and briefly ended his NXT career. Fans let him have it when he makes his entrance to no music, just boos. Memorable chants during his match with Gargano at NXT TakeOver: New Orleans 2018 "Fuck you, Ciampa", "You're a wanker" and "You deserve it" when he was powerbombed on the concrete floor. Fans were pissed again at Ciampa winning the NXT Championship on NXT TV defeating Aleister Black. I placed Ciampa #5 but that was too low.

1. Sasha Banks. The Boss character and the best woman to ever wrestle in NXT. My favourite NXT moment was Sasha Banks taking Izzy’s bow and taunting her with mock tears at NXT TakeOver: Respect 2015.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Gargano and Ciampa are gonna push a lot of people down a spot when their NXT runs are over. They have become the NXT's iconic feud, at least on the men's side.

Really, a lot of wrestlers we're seeing right now in NXT are going to re-shape this list in a couple years. NXT is the strongest it's been since Dallas, and it hasn't been bad at any point in between. The Ciampa injury might have been one of the luckiest breaks for NXT, since it has stretched out the Gargano/Ciampa run much longer than it otherwise would have gone, and it feels that much more integral to the brand because of the extra burn.

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The fun thing about NXT is the natural turnover, so it’s very rare that people get stale. That said, they’ve really good at long term stories about the babyface triumphing. First Sami, then Bayley (and arguably Sasha as well if you start with her debut as a babyface who ultimately gains redemption in her last match), and now Gargano (presumably). Even Almas’s arc had many of the same beats.

 

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