5 Ups And Downs For WWE NXT Takeover: Rival

By Scott Carlson /

3. Joey Styles He Is Not

By and large, NXT€™s announcers are head and shoulders above those on WWE Raw and Smackdown. They are younger, convey stories more clearly and focus on the action in the ring, getting the product over rather than themselves. It€™s a breath of fresh air to listen to NXT after hearing JBL and Michael Cole argue for three hours about stupid things and make dated references about television shows and music that came out before most of the talent was born. NXT€™s lead announcer Rich Brennan does yeoman€™s work calling the action. He does an admirable job calling the moves and drawing attention to the significance of each situation. However, one thing that can easily take fans out of the moment is a poor, overused catchphrase, and Brennan has two. During most broadcasts, he€™ll belt out, €œMy God!€ or €œOh my goodness!€ after a high-impact move. Wednesday, he used both so many times that if someone was playing a drinking game, they would€™ve passed out by the time the Zayn-Owens match was over. It might go unnoticed on first viewing, but if you rewatch Rival having it now pointed out, it will start to grate on you. It€™s something small, and it€™s exactly the reason you have a developmental system €“ to work out kinks like that.