WRESTLING REVIEW: NXT Takeover XXXVI
Continuing the festivities of SummerSlam weekend arrived the latest Takeover, a few months early this year, yet anything other than dead on arrival.
Starting things off was Grimes v. Knight III in a final blow off to determine who would be the Million Dollar Champion. But stakes were slightly higher this time around as Knight put in the stipulation should Grimes lose, Hall of Famer & Million Dollar title originator Ted Dibia$e will assist Grimes in being Knight’s butler.
The past few weeks were ugly, with promo after promo featuring a seething Grimes in a butler suit instead of wrestling boots; so seeing him back in action was a welcome treat, especially against someone as despised as Knight.
Knight dominated the first half, but made the mistake of taking his eye off the ball and antagonizing Dibia$e outside the ring. Ted retaliated and that spelled doom for Knight’s reign as Grimes moved and flipped around like he was on “205 Live” and became the new rightful champion. The right man went over and the payoff to turn Grimes from a minor annoyance to now a major champion is a Cinderella Story unlike any other. If only the 24/7 title could have been handled with such prestige…
Raquel Gonzalez has been a tepid champion at best. The boos that resounded from the crowd echoed that sentiment as she entered the stadium. Dakota Kai, on the other hand, oddly ended up becoming the obligatory favorite & face of the situation, from expressing exhaustion from living in Gonzalez’ shadow. Though the pre-match vignette showed the story of two women used to stepping on their friends toes who finally ended up stepping on each others.
There wasn’t really too many memorable spots in this match, but every kick Kai delivered could be felt from the other side of the screen. Ultimately Gonzalez overwhelmed Kai, but with Mercedes Martinez cut from the company and Xia Li waiting on the bench, one could only wonder who will be the next competitor. Then as if on cue : the lights dimmed, music hit, and Kay Lee Ray stepped out of the shadows fresh from nursing her wounds after losing her championship in the UK against Satomura. It was cool to see her, but again with Li, Miller, Carter, Hartwell and other ladies in the stacked roster it was in bad taste after Becky Lynch’s return the night before to have another “Irish Lass Kicker” come in and spoil the opportunities for those who week in and out have now been forced to live in the women’s locker room because WWE Creative doesn’t know what to do with them.
Creative issues were not an obstacle for Walter vs. Dragunov. The pre-match promo was great as Dragunov built the imposing Walter to be his worst nightmare. The hits were hard as these men clubbed each other with British strong style expertise. Yet, despite Walter’s nearly 900 day reign, he got lifted of his title like he was back in the Windy City circa 2019 !
The crowd obviously wanted Walter to continue his reign with chants of “Walter’s going to kill you” raining down at the start of the program. But, when the underdog overcame and the torch was passed, the Dragunov-era was ushered in with warmth, because it’s hard to overlook a man who can move a 300-pounder out of his way on his path to victory. Such love for the underdog was not given for Cole vs. O’Reilly III, assumedly because of the rumors of this being Cole’s last match in the promotion. If that is the case – he went out with a bang against the monster he created. The stipulations were A-1 : a traditional match that transitioned into a street fight that culminated into a cage match. It was brutal as ribs were broken, chains were used, Singapore chains were whipped, and chairs were smashed while calls for “tables” from the crowd were thankfully ignored. This isn’t TLC. This isn’t Extreme Rules. This is NXT. And the difference between brands was displayed vehemently throughout the violent match until O’Reilly went over by breaking out of a pair of handcuffs and causing a knee bar submission.
Given the optics of the story, I was happy to see O’Reilly’s face persona go over – but Cole was the one to suggest the street match stipulation. Though I am not supportive of his arrogant persona, his brand of violence (should this have been his final NXT match) will be sorely missed. Earlier this year at “Stand & Deliver” I was disappointed to see Balor drop the belt to Kross. With Kross’ recent jobbings on Raw, I just could not understand why he was given the opportunity. Never would I have thought that Kross’ opportunity would give way to the return of Samoa Joe resulting in a title shot for the main event of Takeover 36.
The main event was brutal with Joe displaying some noticeable ring rust. When Joe got caught in a submission hold and started bleeding from his nose I was genuinely worried he was suffering from an aneurysm, and maybe he should have considered staying behind the announce table.
I am happy Joe did not have such worries. Joe overcame Kross’ onslaught with a Muscle Buster of all moves, something I have never seen Joe do, and became the new NXT champion.
After all the comebacks featured this SummerSlam weekend, this was the one that took the cake. And with Joe hailing from So. Cal, I am eager to this hometown hero enter and walk out to his thunderous theme with the championship held high for more NXT events to come.
Score : 4/5
Location: WWE Performance Center
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