STEP UP: NXT Takeover, WWE Exposure
WWE did a hard push for NXT Takeover this week. First they brought all four of the NXT world title competitors to Monday Night Raw, and showcased them in a solid tag team match. They also had a surprise appearance by The Ascension on this week’s Main Event, where the NXT Tag Team Champions got a big win over Los Matadores.
What I like about NXT is that Triple H has found a great place for it beneath the huge machine that is the WWE parent company. The venues they perform in are modest, and built for small, intimate crowds. Full Sail has made a great home for the WWE Network weekly product, with dedicated fans that want to be there. The booking has been consistent, with most of their stories flowing from week-to-week and month-to-month, all building towards these big two-hour quarterly events. They have properly exposed NXT talents to the WWE Universe at live shows, Axxess events, and now one-off matches on live television, but it’s not a weekly thing, which keeps them from over-exposing wrestlers before they’re ready.
Kenta will debut this Thursday after WWE has gone out of their way to promote him online. They’ve done the same thing with Fergal Devitt and Kevin Steen, acknowledging their past accomplishments which will help ease the transition for them and the fans. All that to say – you’d have to try really hard to find more than a few minor issues with how WWE is handling their phenomenal developmental program. (My only complaint remains that there’s no consistent concern with tag team wrestling, but even that could change…)
