WWE NXT Recap (on WWE.com)
August 30, 2011
Report by: Gregory “Grash” Walek of Wrestleview.com
Matt Striker is the host. Tonight’s show is a recap of what WWE Superstars have done since they were once NXT Rookies. Matches from the past month, including the Smackdown Money in the Bank Match, are shown. Recaps of these matches can be found in the recap of the show they are from.
“I said we are wild and young!”
Tonight’s NXT opening credits is a roll of past NXT stars as well as our current rookies. Matt Striker is standing on WWE’s Pre-PPV Hype Set. Tonight, we are going to check in with previous NXT rookies who have gone off to be stars. Featured is Justin Gabriel, Brodus Clay, and “NXT’s Pride and Joy” Daniel Bryan – Smackdown’s Money in the Bank Winner.
We start with a bio of Wade Barrett. We cut to video from last Friday’s Smackdown. Wade Barrett talks about how he has shaken the WWE with attacks on everyone. He then walks out on the local jobber of the night.
AD: Night of Champions.
PACKAGE: Brodus Clay, full of Fat Man Rage. Oh Yea.
We return to Striker. He puts over Brodus Clay and his rage of chaos. He moves on to the Diva’s season of NXT. Akasana’s marriage is brought up. AJ is then featured and then we cut to video from Smackdown two weeks ago with a match between Nattie and Fox versus AJ and Kelly Kelly.
Justin Gabriel is up next.
AD: OMG!?!!!! WWE’s top 50 crazy moments.
We return to the Package of Justin Gabriel when he returned to his native land of South Africa for the first time as a WWE Superstar. We cut back to Striker. He tells how his sister called multiple times on his phone on who is Justin. His 450 splash is featured before we go to a match from 2 weeks ago from Smackdown between Justin Gabriel and Tyson Kidd.
Next: Looking at Season 5’s Redemption Rookies
Later: The Smackdown Money in the Bank Match
AD: RAW SUUUPPERSHOW! (Okay, I’m no Tony Chimmel doing Edge’s introduction)
Package: A-Ry
We come back to Striker who starts to talk about A-Ry and how he was mentored by the Miz. Bryan’s mentoring by the Miz is mentioned. Bryan would later take Miz’s US Championship and then win Smackdown’s Money in the Bank Briefcase. This is a match also featuring Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, and Wade Barrett. Cody Rhodes is in this match and was previous an NXT rookie. Sheamus is also in the match, whom is an ECW Alum. Sin Cara and Kane fill out the field. We are then shown the Match from last Month. Just as Sheamus breaks Sin Cara over a ladder for ads, we cut to an ad.
AD: Night of Champions
We continue with Smackdown’s Money in the Bank match. Daniel Bryan, as mentioned several times, would go on to win the match and claim the blue Money in the Bank Briefcase.
Next up is a look at Redemption Rookies.
AD: Inside Out with HHH.
We come back to Striker explain that the rookies on Season 5 all have previous failed to win. It is why the season is called “Redemption”. We do a rundown of all of the Rookies. Novak vs. Regal angle is featured. Novak would be cut from the WWE. Bryon Saxon breaking from Tatsu because of Maryse is featured as well as Lucky Cannon stealing the Force of Nature. “The Russian Kid” Connor O’Brien is show before he get a look at Titus O’Neil. Eliminations are recounted. Novak, Bryon, Lucky Cannon, and then O’Brien. We are shown Striker’s “Anything Can Happen” Moment when he announces the return of Derrick Bateman to NXT. The show moves on with cuts between clips and sound bites of Titus, Darren Young, and Bateman on why each one should win this season of NXT.
The NXT Logo Runs in the Corner, and the show is over for this week.
Grash Says…
We got a clip show hosted by Matt Striker tonight. Before anyone reads more into this and they should, you need to realize that a live “Super” Smackdown show aired right on the heels of this episode. WWE was in an all hands on deck scenario. We’ve seen NXT take a back seat to other WWE events, as we saw with the Pre-Wrestlemania NXT show for example. We’ll be back to action next week.
Tonight’s show purpose was to go back and look at the stars that have gone through NXT. For anyone who’s had the stance that “Because Tough Enough is here, NXT is obsolete”, tonight’s show is the pin to the balloon that is your argument. NXT and Tough Enough deal with two different talent groups. Tough Enough’s goal is to find diamonds in the roughs that will be the future talent of the WWE. From the original Tough Enough we’ve gotten The Miz, Morrison, and even Josh Mathews. But it’s taken years for them to develop. NXT deals with talent that is almost ready for primetime, but needs polish in front of the arenas crowd before hitting the main roster. A-Ry, Justin Gabriel, AJ, and Brodus Clay are the examples here. All of them were on the main roster shortly after their season of NXT ended. This is why NXT exists. It gave them time to develop to get there. If you go back further, one can see that this is the same role the relaunched ECW had. It gave time to Punk, Sheamus, Swagger, and even Zack Ryder to get them going. And there’s only one thing left to say about this: “Woo Woo Woo, You Know It”.
I’m out Bros!
– Grash