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[NXT] Feb 14, 2018 TV SHOW


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WWE UK Title Match: Pete Dunne retained over Roderick Strong

TM61 beat John Skyler/Andrew Duckworth

NXT Women's Title: Shayna Baszler defeated NXT Women's Champion Ember Moon by DQ (Kairi Sane attacked Baszler which is what caused the DQ)

Next Week: Gargano vs. Almas - Career vs. Title

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I'm not saying anything that anybody who reads this board doesn't already know, but Pete Dunne and Roderick Strong are really, really good at professional wrestling. 

They took a throw-away title defense (because nobody believed Roddy was walking out with the title) and had the crowd at Center Stage eating out of their hands.  Dunne working over Strong's hand and arm to weaken his grip pays off in the end when Dunne breaks the Stronghold by practically snapping his fingers and takes the match with the Bitter End.

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If one holds Dunne/Strong to the same expectations of Dunne/Bate then they're losing sight of what a great match this was.  Strong's struggle with doing certain moves due to his arm/fingers was really well done and it didn't hurt him in losing.

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Dunne has been doing a great job of working his finger breaking spots into the story of his matches. The way he uses it here is different from his matches with Bates and Austin Aries, although I guess most of you will have to take my word on that last one. I haven’t seen a Marty Scurll match in a while but that was always one of my biggest gripes with him.

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1 hour ago, Godfrey said:

Dunne has been doing a great job of working his finger breaking spots into the story of his matches. The way he uses it here is different from his matches with Bates and Austin Aries, although I guess most of you will have to take my word on that last one. I haven’t seen a Marty Scurll match in a while but that was always one of my biggest gripes with him.

I love Marty Scurll a ton but if he's going to break the finger and doesn't play into the match then there's no point in doing it.  But agree on your post, Dunne's been great at doing them and it adds an interesting element to his matches.

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Ironically, Scurll was better receiving the finger-break spot at Wrestle Kingdom--rolling out of the ring, taping his fingers together as an improvised splint--than he typically is at deploying it. You could criticize others for not selling it well, but he's the constant and they're the variables, so the reasonable conclusion is still that he uses it for a good pop, and not much else. (I still mostly enjoy Marty, but his use of that spot bothers me, so Dunne's finger manipulation is even easier to appreciate by comparison.)

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I already buy Baszler as more of an intimidating badass than Ronda "point and smile at the WM sign" Rousey, so I would be cool with Baszler eventually turning on her.

I'll echo the love for Strong/Dunne and also the working in of the finger break spot being fantastic. 

Strong's work is very solid, but I really miss the added edge of his complete bastard heel persona in PWG. 

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Not sure what the plan is with Baszler, but it felt like a mistake to not give her the title here. I get that Ember didn't really get a fair shake with Asuka on the roster, but it's also pretty clear that Shayna has a lot more potential than Ember. Ember has a Becky Lynch ceiling, where she'll always be good but not the top star or most interesting talent. They'd also be smart to keep Shayna and Ronda away from each other for quite a while.

Dunne/Strong was the best NXT match in a while. Really smart use of the arm work, good selling by Strong, good pace, crowd-popping counter spots, and a great finish.

Aleister Black always delivers in his matches, but man, his promos are brutal. Bad writing and bad delivery. They really need to re-evaluate what they want to accomplish with his character if he's gonna make it big.

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Man I thought Moon was the star of the match. Her crazy aggression to get on Shayna's level, the table tope, injuring herself, top level selling, the crazy fucking bump on the shoulder post spot.

I STILL think she's the right one to end Asuka's streak.

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3 hours ago, Brian Fowler said:

Man I thought Moon was the star of the match. Her crazy aggression to get on Shayna's level, the table tope, injuring herself, top level selling, the crazy fucking bump on the shoulder post spot.

I STILL think she's the right one to end Asuka's streak.

I disagree with that last part, but this was the rare WWE grudge match where one side actually felt like they were trying to get revenge, not just wrestle a match.  That was due to Ember’s fire in the ring.

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I love Pete Dunne. He's one of the most interesting performers in years. There's an old adage that villains have to believe they are doing the right thing in order for them to work. Pete Dunne feels like he knows everything he does is wrong but loves it. I don't remember the last time someone gave off such a menacing, chilling darkside in his matches. I love watching him perform so much. 

Aleister Black on the other hand... I love him in the ring. I love his presentation. I loved that fat slob screaming all of his lyrics when he came out. But he's really not there at all on the mic. I really don't get what he's trying to be. He came in with this mysterious, brooding air. But mysteries need pay-offs. Black coming out with a nicely pressed goth cosplay suit and mumbling some dumb stuff doesn't do anything. If he does end up feuding with Almas, Zelina Vega is going to do a lot of work to make him interesting.

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12 minutes ago, MORELOCK said:

Yeah, the biggest problem with Black's promos is that he's talking. He shouldn't be. 

My biggest pet peeve with WWE's presentation of wrestling is that everyone has to talk no matter how terrible they are at promos.  

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12 hours ago, Greggulator said:

I love Pete Dunne. He's one of the most interesting performers in years. There's an old adage that villains have to believe they are doing the right thing in order for them to work. Pete Dunne feels like he knows everything he does is wrong but loves it. I don't remember the last time someone gave off such a menacing, chilling darkside in his matches.

I do. The gentleman's name was Johnny Valentine and if you had told me a couple of years ago that I'd be comparing a 24 year-old kid with one of the greatest heels of all time, I'd have laughed. I'd also have been dead wrong to do so. Pete Dunne is my favorite wrestler in the world not named "Naito". He really makes you believe that he's there just to fuck people up. Winning is all well and good, but leaving a trail of broken bodies is what winds his clock.

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On 2/18/2018 at 10:42 AM, supremebve said:

My biggest pet peeve with WWE's presentation of wrestling is that everyone has to talk no matter how terrible they are at promos.  

It's a combination of this plus giving people scripted promos that don't play to their strengths or fit with their characters.

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