Jump to content

NXT in talks to move to the USA Network! (against AEW)


IANdrewDiceClay

Recommended Posts

Corbin was absolutely mint as a top heel on the 2015 NXT tour! He’s worn out his welcome on Raw, give him a few months off and get him back in NXT, I reckon.

I’d also be up for at least one hour of the show going back to the original NXT format, only with people who have been sacked as the contestants. Big Cass, Chris Masters, JTG, there’s loads knocking about who are still fairly young.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looking at the main roster at the moment, there's plenty of guys they could afford to lose to NXT who would offer something. Thing is you don't want it to end up as a shit pile for those people that no one gives a fuck about. It's a fine line.

Say someone like Chad Gable. He's decent but hasn't ever really had a chance on the main roster. Give him the opportunity to get a prolonged push in NXT and then bring him back and hope they're capable of keeping up the momentum.

Maybe even guys like AOP who I don't think would be hurt by a return to NXT.

Even Ziggler wouldn't be a bad shout at the moment after his Goldberg showing. Or someone like Sami Zayn or Cesaro for a short stint to use as guys to get the best out of existing NXT talent.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members
3 minutes ago, DavidB6937 said:

Looking at the main roster at the moment, there's plenty of guys they could afford to lose to NXT who would offer something. Thing is you don't want it to end up as a shit pile for those people that no one gives a fuck about. It's a fine line.

Say someone like Chad Gable. He's decent but hasn't ever really had a chance on the main roster. Give him the opportunity to get a prolonged push in NXT and then bring him back and hope they're capable of keeping up the momentum.

Maybe even guys like AOP who I don't think would be hurt by a return to NXT.

Even Ziggler wouldn't be a bad shout at the moment after his Goldberg showing. Or someone like Sami Zayn or Cesaro for a short stint to use as guys to get the best out of existing NXT talent.

But all those guys have had “good” stints in NXT. Chad and Jason Jordan were super over a couple of years ago. As was Sami. AOP and Baron played their heel roles to a tee. Sending these guys to NXT for a few months is no good if when they go to the main roster again, they’re put in stale programmes.

It’s amazing WWE are signing every wrestler who’s mentioned in the same breath as AEW, and have however many hours of programming to fill, yet don’t seem to be able to cultivate stars out their roster.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members
25 minutes ago, Supremo said:

Thinking about how long this has likely been in the pipeline, I wonder if it’s got anything to do with Jim Smallman leaving Progress and working for WWE full time? 

I was thinking about this. As much as it seems like the obvious catalyst is AEW, truth is that TV deals take a long time to finalise, and while the Wednesday night timeslot is likely AEW-influenced (and I'm sure WWE had inside info to know the start date before the general public), I wouldn't be surprised if the general idea of moving NXT to the USA Network has been in the works for a long time - maybe since the FOX deal was signed.

There's a lot of other moving parts at play here - the (long-term) growth of NXT from a development territory into a "third brand", the introduction of international NXT sub-brands (starting with NXT UK), indie promotions starting to air on the Network, the long-rumoured roll-out of tiered pricing...I don't think is all as simple as "counter-programming against AEW".

What I'm curious about is what it means for the Network. NXT is the most watched show on there, but that'll take a massive nosedive if episodes aren't uploaded as they air - and I can't see USA agreeing to that - so they might take a major hit in Network subscriptions. And are they looking at international TV deals for NXT, or will it continue to air on the Network in other territories, or just not air live for us at all?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 minutes ago, Your Fight Site said:

But all those guys have had “good” stints in NXT. Chad and Jason Jordan were super over a couple of years ago. As was Sami. AOP and Baron played their heel roles to a tee. Sending these guys to NXT for a few months is no good if when they go to the main roster again, they’re put in stale programmes.

It’s amazing WWE are signing every wrestler who’s mentioned in the same breath as AEW, and have however many hours of programming to fill, yet don’t seem to be able to cultivate stars out their roster.

Chad has never had a decent singles run. Sami was never a heel in NXT. Corbin is a million miles away from the character he was in NXT. And AOP haven't even really had a chance on the main roster. I get what you're saying though. Obviously it doesn't help anyone if they're then just fucked over once moved back.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Paid Members

You have to assume the happiest man in the business right now is Marty Scurll. Contract coming up just as it all kicks off, I bet WWE would love to have him show up on the new NXT on USA Network. I wonder how much they’d be willing to offer him just for the perception of one of, “The Elite,” choosing NXT over AEW. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 8/18/2019 at 2:50 PM, Devon Malcolm said:

NXT has been the third brand for a while though, surely. Raw is for kids, NXT is the MOVEZ show for barricade slappers, and Smackdown's the best of both worlds.

I love this description. 

Anyway, the above news is crazy! It's made the NXT project a point of interest to me again, temporarily at least. I know I'm in the minority but I've never really been on board with it as a week to week product despite its much trumpeted 'wrestling done right' status. 

It's always felt like an overly streamlined, meticulously managed sandbox with no spontaneity. Being in the same venue each week definitely reinforces that. I know I'm one of those dudes who needs to just get over the Monday Night Wars in 2019 but I like a sense of grit and chaos in my wrestling.

Five star matches on a loop mean sod all to me on their own merits, so to me NXT is as routine and sterile as your average Raw in its own way. It always looks the same, there's never any storylines, and most of the talent go through that exact same exhausted progression that's telegraphed and gentrified most Raw/Smackdown call ups for years now. 

Sign on as an indie prospect to much fanfare. Have a few weeks of cool vignettes. Do your big debut with the ~reveal! entrance that has angry CFO$ music, powerpoint tron and entrance choreographed down to each individual camera shot. You get the picture. 

And yeah, there's never any storylines. How many genuinely creative long term angles have they had over the last few years? I know there's been a few, but most of them equate to "I'm better than you, look at me standing over you in the beat down montage!". It's fashionable to dick on ECW now but they had a bunch of memorable creatives in a two year period for their top guys. 

I'm down on it, I know, but it's just never been for me. And I very rarely see that sentiment echoed. ECW on Sci-Fi was a far more entertaining watch. Realistically its giving its audience exactly what it wants, so whatever about what I want. That being said it'll be interesting to see what happens with it now. 

Edited by Gay as FOOK
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...