NXT Takeover: In Your House Review

Who doesn’t love a good throwback? Well the WWE had us sorted this weekend with NXT Takeover in Your House. Bringing back to life the nineties favourite for so many the WWE presented fans with a special live takeover over for the black and gold brand taking us back to the days of the in Your House! The night presented must-see matchups and title bouts you did not want to miss out on and with a show so stacked it showcased the depths of the NXT Roster today but was the night a success? Well today we are going to be reliving the action and discussing the highs and lows from NXT Takeover in Your House, so grab a snack and lets dive into it!

Shotzi Blackheart, Tegan Nox & Mia Yim vs Candice LeRae, Dakota Kai & Raquel Gonzalez

This was a decent basic opening to a live show. There wasn’t much memorable about the bout and I do believe it could have been better however, saying that, the match showcased perfectly just how strong and deep the NXT Women’s division is for you could honestly tell that each one of these women could one day go on to become Champion. We saw a few explosive spots that made things more exciting here and we had some great storytelling throughout! Candice and Mia heading to the back and taking their brawl away from the cameras towards the end of the match was a great little moment that made sense and allowed the closing moments to work and come together well (we can also expect more between them two go down). As the action in the ring continued there was some great tag work between Nox and Blackheart (get them working together more please!) and we witnessed Nox finally pin Kai in what was a perfect booking result that gave Tegan the momentum she needs and the win she’s been chasing for months!

Damien Priest vs Finn Balor

After attacking Finn Balor several weeks back and effectively removing him from a title opportunity The Archer of Infamy came to blows with the NXT veteran this past weekend! As two experienced men and a basic storyline attached to their bout, there was potential here for this to be a dark horse match of the night and career turn around for Priest in particular. A former Universal Champion and multi-time title holder Balor made for Priest’s biggest challenge to date and after not having the best win/loss record it was an important match and night for Damien. In the early stages here, Balor looked to get an early advantage heading straight for Priest before the bell had even rung, however, the much bigger Priest was able to turn things around quickly and take control.  Throughout the contest, we did see Priest continue to use his height and size advantage to exactly that but the speed and experience of Balor did come into play and as a result, kept Damien on his toes and provide him the with the opportunity to show a different side to his move set. Kicks, hard strikes and shared intensity this match provided! It was great to see Priest showcase his athleticism and dominance and for the first time I think so many fans truly saw him as a future champion here and it was also clear just how evenly matched the two were which I’m sure coming as a surprise to some. As for the end result, I will admit I wasn’t a happy bunny. This in my opinion was so important for Priest to score the win and while Balor picking up a historic eleventh Takeover victory was great It was a shame to see Priest take another loss.

Johnny Gargano vs Keith Lee

Next up we had the first title match of the night as Johnny Gargano looked to become the first two-time North American Champion. There is of course a huge size difference here but with both men so talented as pro wrestlers, both so athletic and experienced the two were pretty evenly matched and this was one of the most unpredictable bouts of the evening. In the early stages of this match we saw Lee showcase both his strength and power as well as this athleticism but Gargano focusing on the injured eye of the champion at times allowed him to escape what could have been devastating spots. What was also interesting here was how much Gargano focused on slowing down the pace. We’re so used to seeing a more fast-paced Gargano but in this bout against lee Gargano focused in on keeping the action at a slower pace and punishing his opponent in a brutal and basic way different from what we are used to seeing which I was all for! The match did slow down to the point where I did lose a little bit of interest in the middle but the two brought it back and Gargano being sent flying into protective barricade sure woke me up (even though the spot was expected). Gargano’ new character and persona was on clear display throughout this match and we did see him pull out everything he had in an attempt to get the win here but in the end it was Lee who picked up the win and retained.

Adam Cole vs Velveteen Dream (NXT Championship Match)

Well here is something a little a different! Adam Cole and Velveteen Dream has come to blows several times throughout their NXT careers but this weekend the pair collided in a backlot brawl. In recent months we have seen these special matches take place and this was another to add to the list and while I was surprised it didn’t conclude the night it was a very exciting match to have in the middle of the evening. Now, as a Walking Dead fan, I must shine a little light on Dreams Negan cosplay because…wow! Now as the action began, I can honestly say I was not sure what to expect here but everyone knew this was going to be an entertaining bout and the pair did not disappoint there! Cole did a lot of running throughout this especially at the beginning and Dream dominated the action in full using the surroundings perfectly. The involvement of the Undisputed Era and Dexter Lumis, of course, came as no surprise but added to the entertainment factor. Now the match was, of course, full of epic sots and generally was very entertaining, the end result of Cole scoring the win did not surprise me, but I would have loved to have seen Dream get the win. What awaits Cole in the future should be interesting and where we see Velveteen go next is also sure to be exciting.

Tommaso Ciampa vs Karrion Kross

Now, this right here is a dream match! The two rather similar stars in Karrion Kross and Tommaso Ciampa were sure to provide the NXT universe with a must-see and this was by far one of the matches I was most excited for this past weekend. We have seen a basic build but with the two men being so identically intense and dangerous Ciampa makes for the perfect first NXT feud for Kross. There was an instant intensity the moment the two shared the ring here and Ciampa looked to gain early control but the dominance of Kross saw the former NXT Champion struggle to gain momentum and control of the bout. Kross appeared as an intimidating figure from the jump and as he continued to dominate one of the most successful NXT stars of all time it was a strong insight as to what Kross is to bring to the WWE and the black and gold brand. The match was much shorter than I was expecting! I would have loved to have seen more from these two and I do believe we could have got something even stronger but this was an incredibly dominant performance from Kross and he has set the tone for what is to come and we are looking at a future champion and face of NXT. Ciampa didn’t tap out he passed out and so we could see more between them down the line but what a showing from the newcomer!

Charlotte Flair vs Rhea Ripley vs Io Shirai (NXT Women’s Championship)

In all fairness, this match truly did deserve to main event this special NXT Takeover event. As three of the best female superstars in the WWE and pro wrestling as a whole we had yet another dream match that had potential to be a standout of not only the night but of the entire year and I was very excited for this huge triple threat match up. What was great about this match was how each woman was so different yet so similar. All three are powerful yet athletic stars but were all bringing something unique and different to each other. From the get-go, Charlotte was bringing g the character work and doing so incredibly well! She was the cocky veteran and played the role she does best perfectly. Timing everything right and allowing herself to gain an early upper hand the champion showed off her dominance as both her opponents kneeled. I’ve said before but it can be so hard for triple threat matches to truly have an effect at times but here we did see everyone get in their best moments and each woman felt like they belonged there and could have walked out as champion. The match and the win meant something different to each woman which was also evident and contributed to why this was such a great main event. The viciousness and desperation from Ripley, the athleticism from Io and the power, dominance and veteran energy from Flair were all on clear display. This match gave us a bit of everything and I honestly enjoyed it so much! By far my favourite match of the evening but also how brilliant was it to finally see Io walk out as champion!

What a night this was! While a couple of the end results to some matches did leave me disappointed and frustrated we had so many incredible moments and matches that I can’t complain too much! It was great to see Priest have such a strong showing, the women’s division was on fire, Kross had a brilliant takeover debut and the main event will go down as one of my favourite matches of twenty twenty . There were some matches I can see myself rewatching over the coming weeks and I’m excited to see what is to come for our new champion Io, newcomer Kross and the likes of Adam Cole, Dream and Dexter Lumis as the weeks and months progress.