![]() Honorable Mention: Zayn’s championship decision is still one of my favorite NXT moments, as it proved that you ultimately don’t have to sell your soul to succeed. Kevin Owens debuting early on the card as a happy-go-lucky babyface, showing up to congratulate his best friend Sami Zayn on “doing the right thing” and winning the NXT Championship fair and square instead of taking shortcuts, then taking the ULTIMATE shortcut and turning on him to get an instant title shot is one of NXT’s defining moments. Why This Moment? It’s crazy to see NXT go from Arrival’s meek offerings to the debut of Kevin Owens, a banger card, and a hugely important and controversial ending in just 2014. NXT Championship Match: Adrian Neville (c) vs. ![]() NXT Women’s Championship Match: Charlotte (c) vs. NXT Tag Team Championship Match: The Lucha Dragons (c) vs. The debut of the Carmella character, the TakeOver debut of Baron Corbin … what, no need for more Baron Corbin content in 2019? NXT TakeOver: R Evolution WWE NetworkĢ. Honorable Mention: Lots of history in this one. Tyler Breeze’s flourish during the Fatal 4-Way match is one of the most exciting shines ever shone at Full Sail. ![]() Why This Moment? This might’ve been the easiest pick on the list for me. Fatal 4-Way for the NXT Championship: Adrian Neville (c) vs. NXT Tag Team Championship Match: The Ascension (c) vs. He’s the most important uncrowned name in NXT history. Honorable Mention: The first TakeOver with the TakeOver name might be the weakest of the bunch, based on two things: Tyler Breeze and Sami Zayn botching the big El Generico Orange Crush (still sad about that), and Tyson Kidd never getting to be NXT Champion. It’s the single moment that informs the rest of Charlotte Flair (before she even had the “Flair”) character: she wants to be seen as better than everyone else, and the only way she can do that at her job is to defeat everybody else and get the most prizes. Why This Moment? The first crowning of Charlotte Flair, by the main roster veteran Natalya, while legendary champions Bret Hart and Ric Flair clap for her in the ring. NXT Championship Match: Adrian Neville vs. NXT Women’s Championship Match: Charlotte vs. NXT Tag Team Championship Match: The Ascension vs. The card doesn’t look as good as modern NXT shows on paper, but it was everything it needed to be in 2014.Ģ. Honorable Mention: Both Paige and Emma actually starting the Women’s Revolution by having the first really good marquee women’s match in WWE in years and Neville (who’d go on to be one of my favorite NXT Champions ever) being crowned champion in the main event ladder match. Zayn lost, but won Cesaro’s respect, and the different set of priorities for the NXT quadrant of the WWE Universe became apparent. Sami Zayn matches on NXT TV, particularly their 2-out-of-3 falls match, were the first NXT matches that got people “talking.” Their brilliance brought more eyes to the product, so opening the first “pay-per-view” with your two best wrestlers and hottest stars paying off a long respect angle with a great match and a hug was perfect. Why This Moment? The first live special couldn’t have started out with a better or more important match for its time. Ladder Match for the NXT Championship: Bo Dallas (c) vs. NXT Women’s Championship Match: Paige (c) vs. If I missed anything or got anything horribly wrong - keeping in mind the entire thing can’t just be Gargano and Ciampa GIFs - drop down into our comments and let me know.Īs for now, here are my personal picks for the most important and best GIF from every NXT TakeOver.ģ. Bigger and better things may have happened, but I looked to build a cohesive narrative from Arrival to TakeOver: New York, touching on the feuds and division that were most popular at the time, and the *moments* that pop into your head when you hear that show’s name. ![]() What do we consider the best GIF? Of course it’s completely subjective, but for this feature I tried to capture the single most memorable, talked-about, and historically important moment from each event. That’s 24 TakeOvers and Arrival, if you’re keeping score. In celebration of the event (and to avoid just copy-pasting in a bunch of stuff from the Best and Worst of NXT weekly TV column), we’ve decided to dig back into the archives and present the best GIF from all 25 NXT live specials. On Saturday night, NXT TakeOver XXV airs live on WWE Network, and what a long, strange trip it’s been. Three months later, they’d follow it up with NXT TakeOver. Arrival, the first live special for WWE’s developmental brand turned super popular critical darling NXT, aired on February 27, 2014.
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