The Rundown Slam: WWE NXT TakeOver 36

09/05/2021 03:42:01 PM

Samoa Joe hoisting the NXT Championship (Phoot from WWE. Obtained via Wrestling Inc.) 

The NXT we know seemed to reach its end. As I write this, a new era has ushered and following the actual event. NXT taped its last few episodes. Reports also stated that this coming NXT is not what Triple H has been producing for years — Vince McMahon and Bruce Pichard will now handle that (or at least, reportedly).

But that's a topic for another day. NXT TakeOver has reached its era of being the super indie-slash-third brand. Despite failing the Wednesday night wars, NXT has been WWE's best brand—with no apologies for RAW and SmackDown for that remark. And even if the black-and-yellow brand has been on a slump in recent years, NXT TakeOver 36 is probably the fitting culmination.  

Talk about ending with a bang with the Kyle O'Reilly winning the finale against Adam Cole. The n]ight also saw Samoa Joe being the first-ever 3-time NXT Champion and handing Karrion Kross his first loss ever for this brand. Meanwhile, Cameron Grimes dethroned LA Knight to become the last-time Million Dollar Champion (thus far). Then, Raquel Gonzalez withstood her former best friend for the women's championship; and another NXT UK Championship became a timeless classic—plus its first title change after 870 days.

Even with the progressive slump, safe to say this is how this phase of NXT would end with a bang. The million-dollar saga between Grimes, Knight, and Ted DiBiase hooked me up for quite some time.  The clash between Walter and Ilja Dragunov was another standout. Don't sleep on this match, no matter how long and brutal they may be.

Well, the Undisputed Finale had its share of brutality, but obviously, they were overshadowed, and let's face it—this rivalry has reached its saturation point. Perhaps, this is just the proper send-off to Adam Cole, who departed the company and became a free agent because his contract expired.

Samoa Joe's ascension to the throne is another story to tell of a long road to redemption. Come to think that he last stepped in an NXT ring four years ago, and his actual last match under the WWE umbrella took place a few months before the world-imposed lockdown. It seems that he didn't lose a step. Meanwhile, we can only hope that Karrion Kross will not be treated like a joke on the main roster.

As for the women's championship, I kind of wish they pulled the title switch trigger on Dakota Kai; I mean, it's about time. But, with Kay Lee Ray entering the brand, oh well, there's another contender to make Raquel greener than the time she won the title from Io Shirai.

Probably it was the best decision by the E to close SummerSlam weekend with that TakeOver.

The Verdict: 8.5/10

Author: slickmaster | © 2021 The SlickMaster's Files