I am going to use this space right here on Kayfabe Kickout to give WWE props for how they have presented their developmental brand. If you haven’t already, you should start watching NXT either on Hulu or WWE Network. You know what it reminds me of? It’s like an independent wrestling promotion with a WWE finish over it. You know what I mean? If you don’t, let me explain what I am saying. When I watch NXT, it is like watching that perfect indy fed with all of your favorite indy stars all under one roof. Sure they all had to go through the WWE Superstar name generator, but if you are more than a casual fan you watch NXT and see guys that you remember from places like Ring of Honor, CZW, and so on and so forth. The shows are done at the same venue each and every week with a taster’s choice crowd who likes to come up with silly chants. That is all fine with me, plus the are already better than the TNA crowd at the Impact Zone…actually let’s be honest it is probably some of the same people. Not that there is anything wrong with that. In that hour of NXT, you actually get a nice amount of wrestling to go along with promos and segments that are brief and to the point. Everyone who was in the ring was talented and knew how to get the crowd hype. The women actually wrestle in NXT instead of the lame Diva’s matches we are all used to when watching Raw or Smackdown. Charlotte Flair is gonna be awesome. Very athletic and not hard to look at even if you can definitely tell that she is Ric Flair’s daughter. I like how former ROH star El Generico has transitioned so well into his NXT gimmick as Sami Zayn, and his match with Corey Graves was very good. Corey Graves is another guy I want to speak on. I remember seeing him wrestling locally out here in the Pittsburgh area as Sterling James Keenan, and it’s good to see that he is doing his thing in NXT! He even to go get a win over Yoshi Tatsu earlier in the night proving to everyone that Yoshi Tatsu still has a job in WWE. The news coming out of WWE is that they plan to truly invest in NXT as a pure wrestling product. They explained that while guys might not get called up as quickly as before, these guys are still getting exposure thanks to the WWE Network which is a good point. I don’t think NXT needs to have guys get bumped up quickly anyhow. They are also starting to do merch sales for the NXT guys. I think this is a good way to see who is over and who is popular. As long as the NXT guys are getting their cut for any merch that is sold with their name on it, then it there is nothing wrong with that either. Some of these guys are already internet sensations, and thanks to WWE Network they can truly be that for a global force in sports entertainment! I feel that WWE has another revenue stream with NXT. They have something that keeps the internet fans happy, but also has the WWE fingerprints all over it. All you have to do is look at the WWE logo on the turnbuckles to show everyone who is really in charge. We also have WWE names on commentary which is actually a good thing too. Who wouldn't want to hear praise from a master ring technician like William Regal? Byron Saxton sounds like a tool, but so what. Wrestling has always had at least one tool on commentary. NXT is not only a place to make future stars, but it is also another way for WWE to make a profit. It is the perfect farm system in my opinion. I don’t expect NXT to get more popular than Raw or anything, but it is a darn good show. As long as they keep the booking and the story-lines logical, they should be fine. I also think that NXT can benefit by doing some shows outside of Full Sail University with some of their own “house shows”. It would be another good measuring stick for who is over and who isn't. In conclusion, I want to give WWE and the production team big ups for putting together a fine product with NXT. As long as people aren’t brought up too quickly and NXT in some ways can keep its own identity then it will be fine. I feel that it could also be a place where guys on the main roster who aren’t getting that much TV time and get some matches in. It gives some of the newer NXT guys a chance to get experience against some veteran hands, and it gives the veteran a chance to show people that he can still be relevant. *Holds up sign that says “JTG for NXT Champ!”* We can complain about WWE all we want, but I don’t complain about NXT! It’s good to see that WWE is putting their state of the art training facility to good use. Oh and PS, I want to give a shout out to Adam Rose. That entrance that I saw where you appeared to leave a club and a herd of partiers to come wrestle was the coolest thing I had ever seen. Folks, if you haven’t seen it yet go on YouTube and find it! This beats that lame Leo Kruger gimmick any day of the week. I hope if he ever gets called up to the main roster that they bring that herd of partiers with him. It would be like a PG version of The Godfather and his ho’s and I can dig that. As always, you can follow me on Twitter @whosantcox or you can email me your thoughts to invidwarriorz@gmail.com. Catch ya next time, wrestling fans!
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