19. Emma vs. Paige - NXT Woman's Title (NXT Arrival)
The spotlight shown on NXT did more than just allow WWE fans to get a look at the stars that will one day grace the main roster; it also showed what a basic wrestling show with top level production values can still look like. For years, WWE has been inconsistent with their booking across the board for various, most likely business related reasons. NXT follows the KISS formula. Wonderful in all its simplicity, NXT offers even the historically underutilized women a chance to steal the show. Though there were several options from which to choose a representative of the last graph's final statement, Emma vs. Paige was the chosen one. On the inaugural NXT special event on WWE Network, the two had arguably the most fundamentally sound women's match in the history of the company. It was that good. The antithesis of what fans have come to expect from the main roster's female matches, the match did not suffer from a lack of time, a lack of pre-match creative effort, or an air of unimportance from the announcers. In fact, it made the women one of the main reasons to consistently tune in for NXT.
"The Doc" Chad Matthews has written wrestling columns for over a decade. A physician by trade, Matthews began writing about wrestling as a hobby, but it became a passion. After 30 years as a wrestling fan, "The Doc" gives an unmatched analytical perspective on pro wrestling in the modern era. He is a long-time columnist for Lordsofpain.net and hosts a weekly podcast on the LOP Radio Network called "The Doc Says." His first book - The WrestleMania Era: The Book of Sports Entertainment - ranks the Top 90 wrestlers from 1983 to present day, was originally published in December 2013, and is now in its third edition.
Matthews lives in North Carolina with his wife, two kids, and two dogs.
