NXT TakeOver: WarGames (November 2019)

 

Original Airdate: November 23, 2019

From Chicago, Illinois; Your Hosts are Mauro Ranallo, Nigel McGuinness, and Beth Phoenix

Opening WarGames Match: Shayna Baszler, Kay Lee Ray, Bianca Belair, and Io Shirai v Rhea Ripley, Candice LeRae, Tegan Nox, and Dakota Kai: Kai is a last minute replacement for Mia Yim, who was mysteriously attacked backstage before the bout. I like Rhea Ripley a lot, but I just don't see her as a babyface. She seems like she was designed in a lab to be a heel. Io and Candice start, and it's a slugfest right away. Io gets the better of it, but Candice blocks a toss into the cage, and tries a headscissors takedown, but Io lands on her feet. Enzuigiri, but Io ducks, so Candice goes to a butterfly facebuster instead. Io bails into the other ring, so Candice tries a tope, but gets blocked, and left dizzy in the gap. Io nails her with a tiger feint kick over there, and Candice is on dream street as she crawls away. Io follows with a double jump springboard dropkick, and she cranks on a headvice to ground Candice. LeRae fights free, so Io corner dropkicks her instead, and uses a boot choke to send Candice bailing to the gap again. Io follows with a drop-toehold on the steel bridge (covering the gap between the rings), and then grinds Candice's face into the cage. Ooh, Johnny ain't gonna like that. Candice fights back with a chincrusher, but Io isn't having it, and turnbuckle smashes her anyway, then adds a snap suplex. I like this moody Io. She's like a Hawk on a pissy day in 1987. The period ends to bring Belair into the match, and she immediately drops Candice with a butterfly facebuster to set up a running shooting star press. Powerbomb, but Candice counters with a rana, and she stacks both heels up in the corner for a flurry of fists. She gets overwhelmed fighting a two front war, however, and Belair gives her a three-alarm no-release powerbomb - with the third alarm right into the cage! Belair hooks a camel clutch to hold Candice in position for Io to charge with a kneesmash, and thankfully the period ends before they can mess up poor Candice's face any more. In comes Ripley, and believe it or not, she's bringing trash cans with her! And kendo sticks. Can't forget those these days. And chairs. I don't get the point of loading the ring up with weapons. Bring one in for yourself. Why are you helping to arm your opponents. Anyway, after Rhea spends the bulk of the period filling the ring with plunder, she comes in to actually... you know... help her partner. She wrecks Belair with trash cans, but Yim stops an attempt at a suplex onto a pair of chairs, and all four slug it out until Kay enters. She also brings a few chairs in, which also makes no sense considering there are already a bunch of unused ones right near the door to the cage. Just grab one of those! Help your partners! Unless maybe is a germaphobe thing? She takes Ripley and LeRae (that sounds like an 80s buddy cop movie) out with her chair, allowing Belair to go to the top rope, but Candice follows, and then eventually everyone follows so we can get the obligatory tower of doom superplex spot. I'm so sick of that bit. And then Belair just does a 450 splash off the top anyway, onto Ripley. Kai is next in, but instead of heading to the ring, she beats up Nox on her way - wrecking her inside of the little holding cell while Baszler laughs her head off. The beating draws General Manager William Regal out to eject her from the match - which thankfully has totally stopped so Ripley and LeRae can watch the beating from afar while the heels just quietly chill, braiding each other's hair, or whatever it is girls do in their quiet time. If you're so concerned, just climb out of the cage, and go help! Maybe grab one of those 5,000 chairs you've got scattered around. The heels finally wake up and attack as Baszler enters the match, Shayna strutting down with complete confidence. She, Bianca, and Kay triple team Rhea, as Io holds Candice in a submission hold in the other ring to keep her out of it. That goes on for a bit, until the babyfaces manage to arm themselves with weapons, and start making comebacks. Ripley gets Io in a submission in one corner, so Baszler responds by putting Candice in one in the other for a neat Mexican standoff. Though, not really, since the heels have two extra people, and they quickly break up Rhea's hold. And then Belair press-slams Candice into Ripley, followed by Io adding a flying moonsault for two. Wait, pinfalls count? Belair whips Ripley with her ponytail, but LeRae responds by caning her with a kendo stick to stop that, but Io saves. Io goes to the top of the cage for a flying moonsault, but takes forever getting up there, and Candice follows. That prompts Kay to follow - resulting in LeRae giving Kay an inverted rana off the top rope for two - saved by Belair. Io is still at the top of the cage, and she's just chilling, apparently. She waits until Candice and Belair are slugging it out in her vicinity, and does a flying moonsault press off the top of the cage - though she hits Belair more than LeRae. Meanwhile, Ripley beats on Baszler with some weak ass chair shots, but a distraction from Kay allows Baszler to slap on the Clutch! And with Candice down, it looks like she's finished... only for Rhea to lock a set on handcuffs on Baszler to force a break, and then Riptide her onto a pair of chairs for the pin at 27:25. I really enjoyed the early portion of the match with LeRae fighting the heels, but once it turned into people just filling the ring with weapons, I started losing interest. And then they kept it going for too long past the dramatic high point of Kai's turn, which didn't help things either. **

#1 Contender's Triple Threat Match: Pete Dunne v Killian Dane v Damian Priest: Well, Dunne should feel right at home in Chicago at least, along with the rest of the cast of Shameless. Everyone trades off to start, until Priest gets knocked to the outside, and Dunne takes Dane down for some joint work. He gets too into it, however, and doesn't notice a recovered Priest coming in to knock him out. Priest sends both guys to the outside, but an attempt at a tope on Dane backfires when Dunne decks him. Inside, Dane gives Dunne a Michinoku driver ONTO Priest for two, then to the outside, where he hits a Samoan drop on Priest WHILE giving Dunne a fallaway slam! I'm digging these combos better than even the pizza flavored ones. He takes Dunne inside to focus on, and hits a corner whip, but Pete slips out of a Samoan drop attempt. Dunne with a German suplex and a roundhouse kick to put Dane down, and he tries to polish off an incoming Priest with a cross-armbreaker, but Dane saves before Pete can get it fully applied. That results in Dane and Priest working together to powerbomb Dunne, but once that's out of the way, it's slugfest time in Chicago! Dunne gets pissed that there's a slugfest going on without him, however, and comes over to put his two cents in. By winning it. And then we get a cool bit where all three guys decide to throw enzuigiris at the same time for a triple knockout spot. I'm digging Priest's Diesel meets Shawn Michaels meets Nakamura look. Priest hits both guys with a dive off the top as they recover, and he slams Dunne onto Dane to take Killian out of the match for a bit. Priest goes for the kill on Pete, but can't quite put him away while he has the advantage, so he dumps him to the outside but a crucifix powerbomb onto an announce table. His celebration is cut short when Dane dives out with a tope, however, and Killian adds a somersault bodyblock to take out a guardrail. Inside, that gets Dane two, so he adds a slam, and follows with a senton splash. That allows him to go upstairs, but Priest hooks the ankle before a dive can occur, and he brings Killian off the middle with a crucifix powerbomb for two - saved by Dunne. Pete stomps the shit out of Priest, but gets into trouble in the corner, and Priest takes a moment to dive onto Dane with a suicida while he has a second. Pete responds by diving onto both with a flying moonsault press on the outside, but Priest somehow recovers first anyway. That leads to a slugfest with Pete inside of the ring, which leads to a reversal sequence that ends in Dunne slapping on the cross-armbreaker. Priest can't make the ropes, but Dane saves him in time... and then drills him with a falcon arrow for two. Dane stacks both guys in the corner for a somersault bodyblock, and he adds a pump-splash on Priest, but Pete breaks the count at two. That allows Dunne to hit Dane with the Bitter End, but Damian breaks the count at two. He drills Pete with a roundhouse kick, and then takes him up for a rana off the top - Dunne crashing right into Dane on the way down! Priest adds the Reckoning on Dunne for the pin, but Dane breaks the count at two. Dane manages to clip Pete's knee before knocking Priest to the outside with a running dropkick, and he goes up top to finish Dunne, but Pete pops up with an enzuigiri before Dane can dive. Pete follows for a superplex, but Priest joins them up top, so Dunne breaks his finger to send him right back down! That allows Pete to finish his superplex on Dane, and the Bitter End looks to finish Priest, but Dane manages to save at two. Dane grabs Dunne for a Samoan drop onto Priest, but this time the combo backfires when Pete has the presence of mind to land with his weight distributed better, and he hooks Priest's leg for the pin at 19:56 before Dane can realize what happened! This was a fun little triple threat, with all three guys working hard, logical spots/transitions/motivations, and a good finish. I do wish they took advantage of the two ring layout, though. *** ½

Matt Riddle v Finn Balor: Riddle tries to shoot for the takedown early, but Balor stays on the ropes. Matt tries to grab a submission, but Balor is able to roll it into a cradle for two, and they go back to neutral positions. They keep feeling each other out, with Riddle trying to hook a hold or a big strike, but Finn managing to slip away each time to frustrate him. Matt manages to pull out his rolling gutwrench suplex, but Balor comes out of the final alarm with a schoolboy for two, so Matt tries a sunset flip, but Balor comes out of it with a seated dropkick for two. Finn grounds him with a chinlock, but Riddle starts to escape, so Finn puts the boots to him in the corner instead. Back to the chinlock, but Riddle starts to fight free again, so Balor dumps him to the outside for a baseball slide. Back in, that gets two, and he unloads with stomps, but Riddle gets a second wind. Big strike knocks Balor goofy to set up a suplex, and Matt adds a senton splash for two. Riddle unloads in the corner, but ends up missing a big charge, and Finn takes his head off with a clothesline. Bulldog, but Riddle blocks and throws a roundhouse kick, then down into an anklelock. Finn makes the ropes, so Riddle tries a German suplex, but Balor holds the ropes for dear life to block. Matt manages to pry him off, but then Balor blocks the suplex anyway, and he fires off a running dropkick to knock Riddle down. German suplex, but Riddle pops right back up, and throws a kneesmash to set up a bridging German suplex for two. Ripcord sets up a powerbomb, but Balor slips free, and lands a quick double stomp. He adds a sling blade, but a charge is blocked with a spear, and Riddle adds a jackhammer for two. Makes sense. Most bros love cold beer. Tombstone, but Balor blocks, and turns it into the inverted 1916 for two. Again, but this time Matt counters with a fireman's facebuster, and he goes up with a flying corkscrew senton splash - only for Finn to lift his knees to block. That allows Balor to strike with a running dropkick, but the Coup de Grace misses, and Riddle is ready with a bodyscissors submission! Balor manages to escape, and a reversal sequence ends in Balor hitting the 1916 at 14:07. A good match that didn't quite find that next gear, but also felt like it was at exactly the level it needed to be for its place on the card. Sometimes you don't need every match to go twenty five minutes with multiple finisher kickouts (like they tend to on the main roster) to deliver a satisfying match. ***

Main Event: WarGames Match: Adam Cole, Roderick Strong, Bobby Fish, and Kyle O'Reilly v Tommaso Ciampa, Keith Lee, Dominik Dijakovic, and Kevin Owens: Owens is a hyped mystery partner, though he isn't revealed until later in the match. Strong starts with Ciampa, but Strong is apprehensive about getting into the cage with him, so Ciampa offers up his crutch as bait. Strong takes it and disposes of the weapon, but Ciampa still destroys him right out of the gate anyway. Strong tries fighting back, so Ciampa starts kicking him in the balls in response, so Strong goes to plan B: straight up running away. Unfortunately, he's in a cage, so that doesn't really go too well for him. Ciampa tries a pedigree, but Strong manages to counter with a gutbuster, and here comes Kyle into the action. Ciampa tries fighting them both off, but that falls apart pretty quickly, and Kyle unloads on him like a proper heel. Double teaming commences for the rest of the period, until Dijakovic enters like... whatever 90s Mortal Kombat character he thinks he is. He gives Kyle a nasty suplex-slam onto Strong (he just CHUCKED HIM there - like I think Hogan gave Virgil more support in the aisle at WrestleMania IV), and then is equally vicious as he chucks Kyle into the cage. I feel bad that I made fun of this guy's Mortal Kombat cosplaying - he's pretty cool. And Kyle is campaigning for mayor of Bump Town to get him over here. Fish is next in, and he takes out a recovering Ciampa first, then starts pounding down Ivan Drago. Dijakovic tries fighting him off with a chokeslam, but that 3-on-2 advantage fucks that plan up, and the Undisputed Era work them over. Lee is in next, and you know the drill. Much like the Royal Rumble, WarGames can be really fun with the right booking... or really formulaic without. Cole is in to anchor for his team, and he brings tables in with him. Hey, at least it's different weapons than what the women were using. I imagine it like that scene in The Wrestler where they debate what parts they're going to work in the locker room before the show. "Oh, you guys are working the neck? Okay, I got arms then." The babyfaces manage to hold their own even while down a man, and here comes surprise partner Kevin Owens! He does Kevin Owens stuff! But, by surprise! Stunner on Cole gets two, and everyone starts scattering tables around between chucking each other into the cage walls. This thing is kinda done, and I want it to end. Like, it's not 'bad' bu any means, but it just feels so predictable, like they're checking off boxes with various spots they have to work in for this type of match. Like Lee going to the top, and diving on everyone with a flying bodypress for a dog pile spot. Or everyone taking turns hitting signature moves at center stage. Owens tries to give Cole a package piledriver on the partition, but Adam fights him off with a superkick. Cole tries a Canadian destroyer on the partition, but Owens halts it mid-way, and delivers a nasty looking backdrop driver instead - looking like he nearly broke his own neck on the landing there. Ouch. "There are no victims, only volunteers," note the announcers. I actually like that one. All the Era guys (save Cole) get put through tables, as Adam spends his time slugging it out on top of the cage with Ciampa. Ciampa gets the better of it, and he uses an Air Raid Crash off the top of the cage and through a table to put it away at 38:30. That's a hell of a bump to finish things off! This did not need to be forty minutes, though. I get that they want to get all the crazy multi-person stuff in and not short-change anyone, but it's too much. Like, I was pretty much done with this thing at about when Owens came in, and then it just kept going for another fifteen minutes anyway. I liked the women's version better, but I think it's also safe to say that I'm not as big a fan of the match type in general as most fans are. * ¾

BUExperience: Depends on how you feel about the two WarGames matches. If you loved them (as many have), then this is a great special. If they left you cold, like they did me, it’s one of the weaker specials in quite a while.

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