By Darren Gutteridge
WWE NXT Hits
Sami Zayn vs. Samoa Joe – The Match: Reports from the tapings had this pegged as a boring slog of a match. Obviously, we saw a cut down version, but I don’t echo that sentiment at all. Whilst I admit to being daunted by the runtime, the content was great when it needed to be. And whenever the pace slowed, storytelling took over. Watch this in a vacuum more so than I did (I came into NXT having already seen an hour of ROH), and you may be surprised at how much you enjoy it.
WWE NXT Misses
Sami Zayn vs. Samoa Joe – The Winner: It’s one thing to call it ballsy to have a heel come out on top of a 45-minute match. I’d go as far as to call it insane. You felt Full Sail deflate as Zayn tapped for the decisive fall, and that doesn’t bode well for the rest of the taping if they end up tired and grumpy after show No. 1. Also, Joe vs. Bálor again doesn’t do much for me. Their Takeover: London match was enough. I know the one resounding positive of the decision, that will be shown in a few weeks, but Zayn vs. Bálor at this point would be more appealing to me.
Sami Zayn vs. Samoa Joe – The Execution: Something really bugged me during the match, so much so that it deserves repeating here. Right up until the final 10 minutes, Phillips and Graves on commentary were promising American Alpha vs. the VaudeVillains, and appearances from Bayley and Asuka. They knew full well the show wasn’t going to deliver that, so why promise it so consistently? You would want to protect the Zayn vs. Joe match, perhaps masking the length in fear of it scaring fans off, but why not open the match by saying it will have as much time as is needed? That way, you are leaving the door open to matches, without overtly stating false promises.
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