NXT goes into another era as they started on the CW with a great show. Peter Klein explains what he likes and what he didn't from the fresh start for the Silver and Black Brand.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00I need a longer video than that.
00:06I was hoping to have some water there, but nonetheless, it is time for the Wrestling
00:10Talk.
00:11We're going to preview WWE Bad Blood, but first, just a quick look at the week.
00:14I didn't get to the Raw recap that I wanted to on Monday, but to Conrad's question to
00:20start, thoughts on the NXT Black and Silver rebrand?
00:23I like it a lot.
00:24I think it looks very, very sharp.
00:27Anything is better than the 2.0 stuff.
00:29We can all agree on that, right?
00:31But this makes it feel just a little bit, a touch more legitimate.
00:36And I have always had a bit of an issue with NXT because I think that it should strictly
00:43be used as a developmental brand.
00:48And so, like a lot of, okay, well, we have to do it, we're going to take it here, so
00:51we have to do this thing, and we're going to take it here, so we have to do that.
00:54And the slightest amount of times, the developmental part kind of gets lost in it a little bit.
01:00And so, I think they've done a better job of kind of reining that in.
01:03And I think, to Conrad's point, no better example than with Trick Williams, who gets
01:08the championship back in a win over Ethan Page in what was a pretty fun match on Tuesday
01:13night out in Chicago with CM Punk as the special guest referee.
01:17But there would have been some times where Trick Williams, with some of these new guys
01:23coming in, I guess with just the one, with all-ego Ethan Page coming in, and I think
01:29there would have been some times where he would have been either fast-tracked to the
01:32main roster or whatever.
01:33I think Trick Williams is over as fuck.
01:37And I think he is incredibly talented.
01:38But I do think there are some things that need to be rounded out a little bit.
01:42Like, you watch the intro video where he's on this CW local news station, and he's doing
01:52a NASCAR interview or something, no, it's college football, because CW has college football.
01:57He's doing all these things, and it's like, it's just, it's not as polished as you would
02:01like it to be for a guy who, obviously, like, he has charisma, and he has so much talent,
02:07like there is a lot there that still, I think, needs to be harnessed.
02:11And I think you can get a legitimate star out of this kid, no question, and you kind
02:15of already have, right?
02:16Like, whoop that trick.
02:17The chant is over.
02:18People get so excited to see this guy come out, and he has put on some baller matches.
02:22Even if Dave Meltzer didn't like some of them.
02:24He has been really fun to watch in a lot of these.
02:27And so, I like that they are continuing to roll with him, instead of, well, you lost
02:32the title, now you can go up to the main roster and kind of flounder along with Carmelo Hayes.
02:36They, I think, have a real project with him, and I think it's a whole lot of fun.
02:40But overall, like, the whole NXT show was great.
02:43The women's title match, maybe you would have liked a bit more of a legitimate finish
02:49there, but Cora Jade and Roxanne, I think would be an interesting tag team, and provide
02:56a little bit of personality to a tag team division that would need it.
02:59But I think they can be some real good heels on the top of the NXT women's roster for
03:05a bit, and combined with what you have with Julia and Stephanie Vacour, I think that you
03:14can mix and match all of those, and have a pretty good six months to a year with all
03:20of them.
03:21Roxanne, I was skeptical of the heel turn to begin with.
03:25I think that she is perfect in kind of the, I'm just saying as a type, not as a comparison
03:33of their skills, but kind of a Rey Mysterio type, where she's smaller than everyone, but
03:37everyone loves her.
03:39There's just something infectious about her personality, and you just, you fall in love
03:43with this girl.
03:44And she gets, she's so exciting to watch, and so talented to watch, that when they turned
03:48her heel, I was like, that doesn't really fit.
03:50But she has really embraced this heel role, and done a tremendous job of kind of cultivating
03:56that character.
03:57And it's been so much fun to watch her do that.
03:59And now, like, she had a great match, I thought, with Julia.
04:02I think she's going to have some great matches with Stephanie Vacour, when she officially
04:05comes in.
04:06And, uh, adding Cora Jade, who plays that heel role.
04:11To a T.
04:12Right?
04:13Um.
04:14And, I think that having her back now really does add some things.
04:17Like, the NXT Women's Division is, like, right there from having about five or six
04:23extremely talented stars ready to go.
04:27Um, like, they are going to be the Detroit Red Wings of just, like, well, they are over,
04:32um, overdeveloped in NXT.
04:35There's going to be a few that make their way to the main roster and really revitalize
04:39things.
04:40Not that they need it, because I think the main roster women's divisions are actually
04:41okay.
04:42Um, it's kind of the tag team spot where they need the help, and that's why I think Roxanne
04:45and Cora Jade as a tag team is actually kind of interesting.
04:49But they have a lot there that you can really work with, and at the top, I think it's interesting.
04:53The only thing I worry about is NXT Black and Silver killing NXTNA.
04:58Kind of seems like it, doesn't it?
05:01On the last USA one, or one of the big shows they had, Jordan Grace did her open challenge
05:06thing.
05:07Um, but aside from that, like, we had the end of the Rascals MSK thing.
05:15We had that kind of come to an end, and that felt very endy, right?
05:21We haven't seen Joe Hendry in a while.
05:23There's been very little NXTNA involvement over the last little bit.
05:29And I don't think that's a bad thing.
05:31I hope that overall it continues.
05:34But it doesn't need to be an every week, or even every month thing.
05:38It can just be an every once in a while, oh, holy shit, there's Alex Hammerstone.
05:43And he comes in.
05:44Also, how fucking cool is that to see Alex Hammerstone in WWE?
05:47Even if it was just NXT.
05:48I really love his stuff in MLW, and I think there's something there with that kid.
05:53Anyway, but every once in a while, like, oh shit, Moose has popped in.
05:57And I think you can do that a little bit more the other way as well.
06:00Because there's quite a few talented people in NXT right now, but there's a lot of them
06:05that just aren't quite main roster ready just yet.
06:09And so you only have a couple hours of TV every week.
06:13And like, level up is what it is.
06:16But I think having some people go down and do actual two or three month feuds with TNA.
06:24I think that's where the real value of that relationship is.
06:27You only have so much TV time.
06:29If you can use TNA as a little bit more of a developmental.
06:33And then, yeah, like Conrad said, create some dream matches.
06:37Bring in Speedball vs. Trick.
06:39Do that.
06:40That would be so much fun.
06:43Josh Alexander against fucking anybody.
06:47That would be a blast.
06:48Right?
06:49You can do a lot of those things.
06:50And so I think the relationship there is still probably there.
06:55But I do think that you are going to see probably a little bit more of it raining back a little
07:01bit.
07:02And just as a surprise.
07:03Like, oh shit, you said his name and he appeared.
07:04Out comes Joe Hendry.
07:06Right?
07:07I think it's gonna be a little bit more of that.