Io did the Rock & Roll hand sign which was pretty much the highlight of the show nothing else matters after that, the obvious scoundrel Ridge Holland assaulted folk hero Cameron Grimes (FOR NO REASON, THE MONSTER), The Garganos showed that love conquers all and Kyle O’Reilly did great impressions of both Finn and Cameron.
IT’S NXT TAKEOVER 31 Y’ALL! It was a stacked card filled with amazing matches so let’s see how it all shook out. (Maybe even some returns of some beloved NXT legends!)
POP: The LightningDome
Turns out Full Sail is letting students back on campus (judging you, Full Sail), and NXT wants to bring some fans back (more judging) and Full Sail said “UH UH” so now NXT is being moved back to the PC the brand-spanking new Capitol Wrestling Center (its namesake coming from the Capitol Wrestling Corporation created by Jess McMahon and run by Vincent J. McMahon in 1953 and was basically what eventually became the WWF, so it gives the place a real using the past to help the future kinda vibe.
The design is pretty cool. The chain-link fence covering the plexiglass gives it that underground feel Triple H clearly wants NXT to have. I love how they’re sticking to the whole “X” motif of their set-up lately, they got the video wall from their Big Brother, along with plexiglass safety pods filled with fans, wrestlers, and family who according to Triple H:
“…will be PCR tested, taken a questionnaire and be medically screened….Everyone will wear masks, and each group will never be near anyone else.”
So while I still have some concerns, at least they appear to be doing this safely (although I question the point of the video wall if you have people, and vice-versa, you’d think they’d do one or the other).
It’s a huge step up from the Full Sail set up, which was already great to begin with, and if this is what the show will be looking like during “these uncertain times”, I have no complaints.
POP: Power Outage
You always wanna start out hot and NXT certainly did here by having Johnny TakeOver and NXT North American Champion Damien Priest open the show. They had a real nice back and forth here with some magnificently scumbag actions from Gargano here such as pulling the security guards in the way of Priest’s dive, followed by a blatant low blow that I really thought was gonna wind up being the finish, but Priest was able to turn it around by reversing a One Final Beat into a Reckoning. Definitely check this one out.
Seeing as how these two matches are connected, I’ll also discuss the Women’s Championship match here. Candice LeRae finally, truly got to be Candice LeRae. Sure, she had a great showing at War Games, but that was still a team match. Here, she really got to show people who only know her from NXT what she’s capable of, and honestly, she’s capable of even more.
For a while, she kinda just felt like Johnny Gargano’s wife who also happened to be everyone’s best friend and a wrestler but (ironically while they’re full on acknowledging the relationship onscreen) she’s starting to break out of that a little bit. Io Shirai of course is Io Shirai so she was flawless in this match.
Now, when Johnny came running down to the ring in a ref shirt to make the count after a ref bump I kinda got scared they were gonna do a “Main Roster” kinda schmozz finish, but it came together when Johnny Genius argued with the ref while dropping the title to Candice for her to use which obviously did not wind up working because Io Shirai is Io Shirai.
This was a great way to wrap up the story of Io becoming such a popular badass that she wound up turning Candice heel because of it. Now it’s time for Io to move on to…
POP: Toni Time to Go TO THE MOOOOOOOOON
Toni motherfucking Storm is coming to NXT domestic baby! Oh, and also…
Bo Dallas EMBER MOON’S BACK FROM INJURY! AND BACK IN NXT! Turns out she was the mystery motorcycle person in night vision. It’s looking good for the future of the NXT Women’s division.
If you #BOlieve … anything can happen! https://t.co/NOg71p5UU8
— Ember NXT Moon Palmer (@WWEEmberMoon) October 5, 2020
Ok Ember, no need to rub it in.
I Like Kushida
You know, it took awhile for me to really get into Kushida but I think I’m coming around on him. He beat up a guy dressed like a man who’s best friend is a high school kid (h/t to JohnnyIced). If you’d rather watch another Kushida match, check out his triple threat with Drake Maverick and Jake Atlas from the NXT Cruiserweight Championship Tournament.
POP: NXT Halloween Havoc
Kinda wish they went with this one.
WHO MADE THIS? pic.twitter.com/UR3giDY2uY
— #SuitManStone (@RobertStoneWWE) October 5, 2020
POP: 205 Lit
Man, you ever watch a match that exhausts you just from watching it, but in a good way? These two guys have been killing it in the ring everytime they go at it, I almost wish they could go at it forever. Imagine what they could do in a ladder match or a 2 out of 3 falls match.
For me this was the “edge of my seat” match, where the longer it went on, the more I just kept leaning forward. Swerve kicking out of the Phantom Driver made me stand up. That last 2.9 count where Escobar kicked out put me on the floor. Swerve especially really got to show how great of a high flyer he is with all kinds of dives and corkscrews and a House Call Kick that was probably the best it ever looked.
Near the end of the match, Legado Del Fantasma shows up to help Escobar (furthering the idea that he can’t beat Swerve without help), and Ashante “Thee” Adonis (again, amazing name) shows up to help out Swerve, so we’ll probably wind up seeing them team up together in the near future.
The finish comes when Escobar is able to shove Swerve back and he whacks his head on the exposed steel of a turnbuckle, then follows up with a Double Underhook Face Buster. It’s some real heartbreaking stuff because you get the feeling that Swerve was *this* close to getting the big W. Maybe next time. I was really expecting the title to change hands here, but both of these guys are really good at what they do so I’m fine with the result. This seemed pretty definitive to me so I’m excited to see what’s next for both of these performers. Also, major heel move from Escobar to try to spit in Swerve’s face during a pandemic.
Later in the show, Ashante explains why he helped out Swerve and basically he just wanted to help. Now, he’s got his eyes on the Cruiserweight title. I love that he got to show his personality here and bro is a hell of a talker. Shit, he made me wanna see more of him in like 1 minute. I might even bother to remember to watch 205 Live one of these days.
POP: The Stiff Business
This is the match I was the most excited for. Finn Bálor has been the man on these streets ever since he came back to the Black & Yellow. Anyone who’s been paying attention knows how good Kyle O’Reilly is, but he’s still mostly unproven as a singles competitor in NXT. No one could’ve predicted that we’d be getting this match, but I’m glad we did.
Even though Finn said he would be taking Kyle seriously as a competitor because he knows “exactly how good he is”, it’s clear in the opening minutes of the match that he’s messing with him at least a little bit. He even apes Kyle’s air guitar taunt with Kyle’s own arm while he’s got him in an armbar.
Kyle of course responds in kind with a flurry of offense, but the match really takes a turn with a well placed LIVER KICK (according to Beth Phoenix). Kyle is still able to fight back a little, but it’s clear the wind has been taken out of him.
Now at some point he starts BLEEDING FROM THE MOUTH, which kicks this match into another level. It really brings you in as an audience member because odds are you love both of these guys, but you really wanna see Kyle somehow get the W and get the NXT Championship. If the image of Kyle, blood around his mouth, struggling to get to the ropes to get out of the Sharpshooter doesn’t move you, you might be dead.
These two don’t let up on each other for a second in this match. They stiffed each other HARD to make sure their moves had an impact and you really felt them not just wrestling, but fighting for that NXT Championship. Kyle is able to fight back by targeting Finn’s left knee, but Finn actually uses that to his advantage by playing sort of Half a Possum (knee was hurt but not as bad as he was making it look) by luring in him to eventually set up for the Coup de Gras and get the win. I highly, highly, highly recommend you watch this match if you haven’t. It’s been a good time for tag team guys showing they can also be solid singles wrestlers.
After Finn hit his finish, you can see his mouth bleeding quite a lot, and following the match, Finn seemed like he might legit be hurt from the way he was moving. Turns out he has a Jaw injury and at the time of this writing is getting an X-Ray to see how bad it may be. Reportedly, he even had to rush the finish of the match. Hopefully it’s not an injury that he has to take time off for.
Having a show of respect between the two competitors was a great touch, and was immediately followed by…
THAT SCOUNDREL RIDGE HOLLAND! And what’s this? He’s beaten up Adam Cole for seemingly no reason? Intrigue!
The show ends with the UE coming out to help their fallen leader (Even hilariously asking Finn if he knows what happened. How the hell would Finn know Roddy? He’s been in a match for like the last 20 minutes. Also nice touch with the old fake ending production bug again Hunter. Legit love it anytime NXT does that).
NXT TakeOver 31 was great. Every match was at the very least good. We got the ending to a number of stories, and the beginning of others. It was everything you could want from a TakeOver. Plus Halloween Havoc is back!
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Peace.
