Last Month in NXT: NOVEMBER
Standout Superstars
Velveteen DreamI'm pretty sure that I have featured the Velveteen Dream in these posts throughout its existence but the fact is he really has been one of NXT's biggest standouts of the past few months. His feud with Aleister Black has been noted in previous posts to be one of my personal favorites of twenty seventeen and at NXT Takeover: War Games this past month the two competed in what was a standout of the year. One of the strongest matches of the weekend these two raised the bar and took part in what was one of the most gripping, entertaining and interesting matches of twenty-seventeen. Now, it was Black who took home the victory but there was no denying that it was Dream whos tole the show here. His all-around performance of the night was fantastic delivering in all aspects. from wrestling skill, match quality, character, and intensity bringing story and passion to a unique competitive bout. The crowd was fully invested in all he had to offer and backed him from start to finish showing just how over he is right now. It was the build-up to this match and what he did on the night that earned the rest of Aleister Black, everyone in the back from roster members to higher-ups and of course the fans. The Velveteen dream made his mark this month and has become a true standout in NXT!
Peyton Royce
I know I mentioned in the intro that I didn't want to focus too much on NXT Takeover but it appears as though that's going to be far more difficult than expected as Peyton Royce is next to be featured in today's blog post mainly for her performance at this very event. Royce has been someone I have always been interested in. Her passion and drive for all things pro wrestling are very clear and from day one she has shown great potential. It's only now, however, the WWE has really given her the time to show just how good she actually is. Peyton and Billie Kay make for an excellent duo and I can honestly say that I don't want to see the WWE separate them anytime soon. Both very talented it was, however, Royce given the push recently and competed at NXT Takeover in a fatal four way alongside Kairi Sane, Nikki Cross, and Ember Moon. Now, Royce didn't get the victory but it was made clear very early on that she was a massive fan favourite! If you took a look online on the night of the show twitter was so clearly bombarded with support for the Australian superstar and even though she wasn't crowned the new NXT Women's champion she did make a huge impact competing in what was so clearly her best in-ring performance to date. The live crowd was strongly behind her and the time provided meant that she got to show far more of her move set, however, I do still believe there is plenty more to see from her. Throughout the month Royce has been apart of many segments, interviews, and promos that have shown more of her character and when you pair that with her performance at takeover it's very cleary Royce is a standout of the month!
Roderick Strong
I know I usually only write about three standout stars of the month but I just had to include an extra name this time around as there really is no denying that Roderick Strong has been one of the biggest standout stars of NXT throughout the past month. His work with Adam Cole has been a highlight of Strong's NXT career once again bringing that personal intense feel we saw during his feud with Bobby Roode and once again delivered in the ring. His singles match against Cole was one of the best matches of the month and he again impressed massively at NXT Takeover: War Games where he stood out greatly having possibly the best match of his WWE career so far. While I haven't always been his biggest fan it looks as though things may just be changing.
Andrade Cien Almas
If I had to name one superstar I have been totally obsessed with this month and rank as my superstar of the month it would most certainly be Andrande Cien Almas. Apart of NXT for a while now, we have all seen Andrade compete in some pretty epic matches proving time and time again he is a truly fantastic in-ring performer, however, his push is something that has been massively delayed. This month he was finally given the opportunity he truly deserves, competing at NXT Takeover for the NXT Championship against Drew McIntyre. Now, I mentioned in my prediction post for this match that I strongly believed Andrade was going to have another excellent performance but in the end, it would definitely be McIntyre that walked out still champion. However, in a shocking twist, Andrade was able to pin Drew to become the brand new NXT Champion and boy was I and the rest of the NXT universe surprised. I honestly did not see this coming at all but I could not have been happier with the result. It's very very rare we get such a surprise in the main event championship scene on this scale but it worked and I was very satisfied with the result Throughout the month it has been interviews, promos, and other matches that have shown just how strong of a superstar Almas is and how worthy he truly is of being champion and I have to say I'm very excited for his future.
Standout Matches
Pete Dunne vs Johnny GarganoI've already mentioned that my match of the month was, in fact, the Velveteen Dream vs Aleister Black and Andrade Ciena Almas is my superstar of the month but coming in the list of time five matches of the month just has to be Pete Dunne VS, Johnny Gargano. Filmed before NXT Takeover: War Games, Dunne, and Gargano went one on one for the United Kingdom championship in about that was highlighted as another standout of not only the month but an NXT standout match of the year. The first time I personally have seen these two go one on one they delivered to the high standard I was expecting. Both hugely talented and massively over it was amazing seeing a wrestling masterpiece and every fan in attendance completely invested and hooked on every piece of the action. The two may not have had the best chemistry or told a fantastic story but this was a brilliant bout between of the best wrestlers in the world today and the match itself was rated very highly in my books!
Adam Cole vs Roderick Strong
On the eighth of November Leader of the Undisputed Era, Adam Cole went one on one with Roderick Strong in what was one of my personal favorite bouts of the month for a number of reasons. Throughout the year NXT has done a brilliant job creating personal storyline's that have allowed fans to become emotionally invested and genuinely interested. I've mentioned in the past that I'm not the worlds biggest fan of Roderick Strong, while it is clear he is a fantastic in-ring competitor I've never really been this biggest fan of his character even before he arrived in the WWE. He has however been apart of some brilliant matches that really have shown just how passionate he is and everything he stands for. Throughout the past two months, Adam Cole has focused strongly brining Roderick over to the undisputed era, however, after rejecting the faction a match was set up between Cole and Strong and would deliver to the standard expected by many fans. Sure this could have been ten times stronger but it worked and the involvement of the Authors of Pain and Sanity made this a true standout of the month.
Pete Dunne and Mark Andrews vs Tyler Bate & Trent Seven
And finally, we have the last match of the month entering next as one of the best NXT matches of November, tag team action from the UK division as current United Kingdom Champion Pete Dunne teams up with Mark Andres to take on former Trent Seven and former Champion Tyler Bate. Here we have four standout stars in the UK division competing in what was always sure to be a standout matchup. All four men were shown fantastically throughout and it was a brilliant way of showing the standards of the UK division. These are four superstars that all are at the top of their game and for Seven and Andres there is no denying that both men in the future could and would make fantastic champions. This match, in particular, was full of brilliant athleticism, fast-paced action, ring psychology and bags of character. The crowd were into it, everyone at home was invested and also, I have to mention that it was yet another excellent showing for Mark Andrews. Now, the champion did take the pin with Bate picking up the victory so it does make things very interesting and with more TV time being given to the division I'm really excited to see where things are set to go in the future.
Final Thoughts
Overall it has been a pretty big month for NXT. The women's division suffered the loss of five women with three going over to Smackdown LIVE while the other two headed over to join the RAW roster. We saw new champions crowned in Ember Moon and Andrade Cien Alams, plus the tag team division was made the centre of attention throughout the month of November. Many stars stood out and come the end of the month I'm left feeling very positive and excited about the next chapter for NXT and what is to come in the coming months as we build up to the next Takeover event set to take place the weekend of the Royal Rumble.Now, as I've touched on in previous posts I am planning on writing RAW and Smackdown LIVE versions of this post may be in the new year along with outside WWE promotions so if that is something you would be interested in do let me know! For now, however, any recent blog posts will be linked below including my NXT Takeover: War Games and Survivor Series review! Finally, you can have your say and let me know what you thought of last month in NXT by leaving a comment below or by tweeting me over at @TezangiVictoria
Recenent blog posts
This weeks RAW and Smackdown LIVE Highlights
5 Wrestlers Outside the WWE You should be Watching
Last Week in Wrestling
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