NXT Takeover: War Games Honest Review

Last night we saw Survivor Series weekend kick start with NXT Takeover War Games and what a night it was! With surprises from the opening to the closing of the evening, must-see matchups, dream collisions and a match of the year style bouts this was yet another Takeover event you didn’t want to miss out on. The black and gold brand sent out one last final message to RAW and Smackdown LIVE and the star-studded evening is sure to go down as one of the strongest and most memorable Takeover events in history!

History is Made

The opening contest to this year's NXT Takeover War Games saw history made when the first-ever women’s War Games match took place. Ahead of the evening fans saw Mia Yim attacked backstage resulting in Dakota Kai taking her place meaning the match now consisted of Kai, Tegan Nox, Rhea Ripley and Candice LeRae on one team and Kay Lee Ray, Bianca Belair, Io Shirai, and the NXT Women’s Champion Shayna Baszler on the other side of things. Now, I have to say this was a brilliant start to the evening. A risk was taken with Dakota Kai (something we will get into in a second) but overall what we saw was an incredible performance from some of the best female athletes in the industry today. I do believe some huge moments were taken away from the likes of Kay Lee Ray who really could have shined in this match and had a breakout performance! Table spots were also a huge missed factor here that could have changed the game. I would have liked to see things go on a bit longer here but the storytelling was fantastic throughout and Rhea Ripley, in particular, marked her name, worked yet another breakout performance and proved she is the woman of the WWE today.

Dakota Kai’s Heel Turn

One of the most unexpected moments of the evening came from Dakota Kai’s heel turn. Taking Mia Yim’s place after the backstage attack this was an angle that really did write itself. After what fans had seen Kai go through in recent months her heel turn did feel inevitable but her brutal attack on tag team partner Tegan Nox was a huge move and has set up a big-time storyline with very promising work coming up between the two women. Now, this booking decision really did leave me split. On the one hand, I loved the storytelling and enjoyed seeing Rhea and Candice fight against the odds and the extra entertainment it added but I feel as though Nox being out of this match was a big deal and as a result, we lost a great deal! We could have seen some fantastic spots during this match that were missed out on due to the Dakota Kai heel turn which could arguably have been done differently.

Big Opportunities

One of the matches I personally enjoyed the most last night was the number one contenders triple threat between Pete Dunne, Killian Dane and Damien Priest. What we saw here was three very different superstars with three very different in-ring styles from one another. Each of these men represented and brought something different to the table and the blend of styles here made for such a fantastic triple threat match, in fact, one of the best triple threat matches I have seen this year! We had the technical style of Dunne, the power of Killian Dane and the athleticism and experience of Damien Priest. On a night that saw two epic War Games encounters this match managed to have its moment, standout and showcase breakout performances for Priest and Dane in particular.

The build to this match made sense, the huge opportunity on the line was a brilliant touch and the end result seeing Pete Dunne score the wine while didn’t come as a surprise was a popular pick amongst thanks and went down well with the audience but let it be known, Damien Priest and Killian Dane sure did prove a huge point and there is plenty more to come from both men!

Sweet and Simple

Matt Riddle vs Finn Balor is a dream match for so many wrestling fans including myself! As two intense, athletic and passionate superstars not to mention massively popular this was always sure to be a promising must-see collision and the pair did not disappoint last night. In an event that consisted of two epic War Games matches and an intense action-packed triple threat it was great to see a simple one on one match up booked for the NXT Takeover show of November. It was refreshing and equally as exciting and entertaining as those big stipulation encounters of the evening. This was a star-studded match with back and forth action that showcased the very best of both men. This was not only one of my favourite singles matches we have seen from Riddle since he arrived in the WWE but this was also one of the best all-round performances we have seen from Balor in a very long time! Again, the end result didn’t surprise me at all. Balor scoring the win here was an inevitable booking decision, but nothing can take away just how strong this match was living up to the hype without a shadow of a doubt!

Welcome back HOME

The biggest surprise of the evening and the true mark out moment came from the main event, the men’s War Games match up. Now, it was clear from the get-go that Team Ciampa had a disadvantage heading into this War one man down and three against four. Throughout the contest, fans wondered just who could and would take up that fourth spot and names from the likes of CM Punk to Velveteen Dream was mentioned online but when Kevin Owens’ music hit I'm sure it's safe to say there wasn’t a disappointed person watching anywhere! After the segment between Owens and Triple H on RAW this past week Owen’s return to NXT was made even more special. NXT is where Owens’ really does belong, and the crowd reaction spoke volumes. This is a huge return for NXT, a game-changer and made one last huge message and statement to RAW and Smackdown.

Going to War

There hasn’t been a single bad War Games match in NXT and last night didn’t see that fact change. This match kept us all on edge at the start as we speculated who would be the fourth member of team Ciampa and the quality of this match kept everyone completely hooked. Topping last year's War Games match wasn’t going to be easy but the diversity in this year's contest within the members of the group made this so special and so entertaining. Dominik had yet another standout performance that showed just how good he is as well as Keith Lee, two superstars sure to go onto become champion one day. Those final moments involving the tables was a brilliant touch seeing all four members of Undisputed Era going through a table.

I can honestly say I really really enjoyed War Games twenty nineteen. Dakota Kai’s heel turn, the must-see between Riddle and Balor, that brilliant triple threat and Owens return all made this a massively memorable and standout takeover event and kick-started the weekend on a huge high while keeping us thinking about Survivor Series and NXT’s role within it!

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