WWE NXT 6/20/2012

WWE NXT 6/20/2012

This is the first episode and debut of the second version of NXT. The first version was when they had the various classes with wrestlers paired with vets. I call this the 2second version because it featured mostly all newcomers at the time and some vets and it was only a one hour show. In 2021, we are now on the 3rd version of NXT, with a 2 hour live show often with little to no developmental talent.

I didn't quite love my first review of this as it had no pictures and no play-by-play of the moves. I wanted to preserve it though and so will add an "additional comments" section where applicable.

"NXT is the gateway to the future and the future begins right now."

Additional comments: They had a nice little video putting NXT over as future of wrestling and how a lot of the guys were young and aiming to be stars.

They have a new nice looking stage along with a nice arena. Dusty is announced as the interim GM and JR/Regal are on commentary.

Additional Comments: Bo talks about his family history and says he is ready to go. He said he is non-stop and he will get right back up. 

Rick Victor vs Bo Dallas

Bo is the son of Mike Rotunda and grandson of Blackjack Mulligan. I think that pretty much explains why he's on this show. He had a really basic WWE style match with Rick Victor. He's still green and nervous on the mic. I don't like his long term chances as he's too small for Vince. Rating: *

Additional Comments: This was a short match with the announcers really putting over Bo. Bo hit a few armdrags and a spear for the win. They put over Victor as basically a gatekeeper guy but he got nothing in here.

Additional Comments: Bo was interviewed by Briley Pierce. Bo said he came in with a gameplan and the gameplan paid off with a win. He told people to keep watching and said "You will know Bo". This wasn't very good and it is clear he is being pushed as a generic whitemeat babyface.

Tyler Black promo

Additional Comments: I initially wrote that I had no idea what Rollins was talking about. I stand by those snetiments. Rollins said everyone was lost waiting on a second wind. He said he always believed even when nobody believed in him. He said "we are the solution and the time to move: now".

Damien Sandow vs Jason Jordan

Sandow is really good on the mic, but he refuses to fight Jordan, so no match. I don't know if he will get over or not, but the talking helps

Additional comments: Sandow said Jordan was an ignoramus and in the benefit of all of these people, he would not be fighting Jordan. Then he left. This was a really ballsy thing to put on the debut episode of a show and buried Jordan. This was stupid and I can't believe they booked this. What I can say is that Sandow was really comfortable on the mic and was very believable.

The Ascension promo:

I think they stole their promo background from the new Spiderman movie. They look to be interesting from their promo but Connor O'Brien has been in development for years, which should tell you something about his ability.

 

Additional Comments:  Kenneth Cameron said while we hold things like smiles and laughter dear in our hearts, they do not. Connor said they were the gateways of the future and said they will rise. This was a short teaser promo. It didn't tell you a lot about The Ascension except that they are some sort of futuristic night creeper type of team.

Ascension vs Mike Dalton and CJ Parker

 

Ascension has an Undertaker style entrance. They got a quick squash in and won by lifting their opponent up and then falling back. Not that impressive.

Additional Comments: Cameron spears Parker and pounds on him at the bell. Then The Ascension stomps him in the corner. Regal calls them ferocious and JR calls them enigmatic. The Ascension hits a bunch of elbows. Then they win with the downcast, which is a spinning jawbreaker and a flapjack. This was a very quick squash.

Bray Wyatt Promo

He's supposed to be some kind of religious/conspiracy wacko from the South. He talks about how children should look under their bed and how they should believe monsters are real. He comes more across like Herbert the Pervert than anything else. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up getting pulled quickly.

Derrick Bateman meets up with Johnny Curtis in the men's john. Where's Dusty to call this when you need him? The crowd noise piped in from this promo was hilarious. They challenge each other for next week and Curtis tells him to stay out of the bathroom. He then wipes his hands on Derrick's shirt.

Michael McGillicutty vs Tyson Kidd

 

This was good but this is Michael McGillicutty. He had his chance on NXT 2 and blew it and it's going to be super hard to recover from it. He also doesn't have WWE on his side, so he's stuck. Tyson Kidd has great skills, but he's a small guy and WWE has alot of those already. Kidd won with a Dungeon Lock in a very good match  Rating: **3/4

There you have it. The commentary throughout this was absolutely excellent. Everyone got put over and JR/Regal made everyone seem worthwhile. Regardless of the talent, this is still NXT and being on NXT is probably more of a blemish than a good thing on your record. I feel bad as anyone who is on this show is basically going to have to re-debut on SD/RAW, making this mostly a waste of time.

If you want to see what WWE could be like if all of the egos were gone, this is your show. There was some good wrestling and no one was made to look like a fool.