NXT TakeOver: New York
I'm sorry, but I have to ask: why is this show TakeOver: New York when the four previous TakeOvers in this building have been labelled as "Brooklyn?"
NXT TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH:
The standard tag team insanity. I even gave them an extra .25 because they actually managed to make me bite on the possibility of a double-count-out.
POST-MATCH SEGMENT - Black and Ricochet get their goodbye moment. The fans chanted "YOU DESERVE IT!" at them, which was a really mean thing to say. No one deserves the career death sentence that is a main-roster call-up.
NXT NORTH AMERICAN TITLE MATCH:
Even more insanity and drama. This was just two guys who both wanted to leave with the title and were pulling out all of the stops and willing to take any risk to ensure that they did so. This built tremendously well and was extremely exciting.
WWE UK TITLE MATCH:
THIS WAS A F*CKING WAR! An absolutely BRUTAL contest of wills that built up to a huge climax and what feels like a major moment in NXT UK history.
FATAL FOUR-WAY MATCH FOR THE NXT WOMEN'S TITLE:
Another AWESOME match. This one was built around the idea that the Sky Pirates would have to fight each other and some point and they built it up wonderfully, then gave us just enough to whet our appetites for a singles match and to leave us wondering where they now stand, but they didn't do it in an overdramatic way where you want to scream at them "it's every woman for herself! You two knew this was coming and you should be able to be professional enough about it to not take it personally!" Bianca looked great as always and Baszler sneaking in at the end and breaking up her pin and choking her out was infuriating in all the right ways, but the Sky Pirates were the real stars here.
2 OUT OF 3 FALLS MATCH FOR THE VACANT NXT TITLE:
The usual awesomeness with great build and exciting false finishes and all of that. They paid off the stuff that needed to be paid off and had an outstanding world title match. The only two strikes against this match for me were the fact that the 2 out of 3 falls stipulation didn't feel very relevant to the story and the inclusion of the frustrating NJPW-style "fight on the outside forever with no count-out, then do a big spot on the outside and have the ref start counting once the heels gets back into the ring even though everyone knows the match isn't going to end on a count-out.
POST-MATCH SEGMENT - huh. Candice comes out to celebrate with Johnny. They eventually make it up to the stage… and then Tommaso Ciampa comes up behind them in a neck brace. And then they all hugged. So Ciampa is fully a babyface now, huh? I don't buy it. I doubt I will ever fully trust him again. Which just means he has been a fantastic heel.
Final Thoughts
Blah blah blah another fantastic TakeOver, blah, blah, blah Show of the Year, etc. You've read this all many times before. Just go watch the damn show.
NXT TAG TEAM TITLE MATCH:
War Raiders(c) vs. Aleister Black & Ricochet - 8.75/10
The standard tag team insanity. I even gave them an extra .25 because they actually managed to make me bite on the possibility of a double-count-out.
POST-MATCH SEGMENT - Black and Ricochet get their goodbye moment. The fans chanted "YOU DESERVE IT!" at them, which was a really mean thing to say. No one deserves the career death sentence that is a main-roster call-up.
NXT NORTH AMERICAN TITLE MATCH:
The Velveteen Dream(c) vs. Matt Riddle - 8.75/10
Even more insanity and drama. This was just two guys who both wanted to leave with the title and were pulling out all of the stops and willing to take any risk to ensure that they did so. This built tremendously well and was extremely exciting.
WWE UK TITLE MATCH:
Pete Dunne(c) vs. WALTER - a PERFECT 10/10!
THIS WAS A F*CKING WAR! An absolutely BRUTAL contest of wills that built up to a huge climax and what feels like a major moment in NXT UK history.
FATAL FOUR-WAY MATCH FOR THE NXT WOMEN'S TITLE:
Shayna Baszler(c) vs. Kairi Sane vs. Io Shirai vs. Bianca Belair - 8.5/10
Another AWESOME match. This one was built around the idea that the Sky Pirates would have to fight each other and some point and they built it up wonderfully, then gave us just enough to whet our appetites for a singles match and to leave us wondering where they now stand, but they didn't do it in an overdramatic way where you want to scream at them "it's every woman for herself! You two knew this was coming and you should be able to be professional enough about it to not take it personally!" Bianca looked great as always and Baszler sneaking in at the end and breaking up her pin and choking her out was infuriating in all the right ways, but the Sky Pirates were the real stars here.
2 OUT OF 3 FALLS MATCH FOR THE VACANT NXT TITLE:
Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole - 9.25/10
The usual awesomeness with great build and exciting false finishes and all of that. They paid off the stuff that needed to be paid off and had an outstanding world title match. The only two strikes against this match for me were the fact that the 2 out of 3 falls stipulation didn't feel very relevant to the story and the inclusion of the frustrating NJPW-style "fight on the outside forever with no count-out, then do a big spot on the outside and have the ref start counting once the heels gets back into the ring even though everyone knows the match isn't going to end on a count-out.
POST-MATCH SEGMENT - huh. Candice comes out to celebrate with Johnny. They eventually make it up to the stage… and then Tommaso Ciampa comes up behind them in a neck brace. And then they all hugged. So Ciampa is fully a babyface now, huh? I don't buy it. I doubt I will ever fully trust him again. Which just means he has been a fantastic heel.
Final Thoughts
Blah blah blah another fantastic TakeOver, blah, blah, blah Show of the Year, etc. You've read this all many times before. Just go watch the damn show.