8 Ups & 2 Downs From WWE NXT (Jul 13)
Samoa Joe is well and truly provoked and more on this week's WWE NXT.
One week removed from NXT's biggest party of the summer, the black and gold brand decided to spoil us with a mouth-watering NXT Championship main event; boasting none other than everyone's favourite enforcer as the special guest referee, no less.
If that wasn't enough to glue your eyes to your TV/Laptop/Phone/Neighbour's window, this Great American Follow-Up also came equipped with some vibrant, new - yes, new - feuds to get our teeth sunk into as a former North American Champion locked eyes on the brand's golden baybay boy. Recovering from numerous names being suddenly drafted up to the blue show, last night also gave us an inkling as to what is on the horizon for the best women's division on the planet. Fresh stars being given the ball to run with, top-level partnerships threatening to combust, and a first-time challenger for the most prestigious belt in the division all suggest that a new phase of the cycle is upon us.
Of course, it was still business as usual when it came to mind-numbing love angles and an over-reliance on certain tropes, but the good far outweighed the bad overall - and how can we complain about the sight of a million dollar butler?
It was a 'breakout' night in more ways than one, in the end. The first round of the titular tournament did not disappoint, tired stables were broken, and a main event scene threatened to smash out of its recent slump too. All in all, the CWC-era may not be over by a long-shot, but at least the time of rotten Tuesday nights seems to be dead and buried...