The Day WWE NXT Died

As for the specific day, there is more than one flashpoint moment. The formation of AEW is itself one because AEW is the true modern alternative. This is simply the reality of the situation; Triple H himself is on record talking about WWE's mandated "playbook," where AEW is a collaborative playground of ideas. The third or fourth botched main roster promotion didn't help, either. Investing in NXT as a genuine talent development vehicle became pointless years ago. That AEW later proved no such vehicle was required, again, undermined the very purpose of the brand.

Johnny Gargano ac-ting on a bridge - playing a tortured tweener months removed from his seminal peak as a super-working babyface - is another. He had begun to "like the dark," which was unfortunate, since he was unconvincing in a pretentious reach for "inner conflict". In parallel, the excesses of the in-house style felt more glaring with each passing TakeOver. In 2018, with critical acclaim an increasingly profitable currency as NJPW expanded into the U.S., those main events went longer and longer with more and more false finishes and near-falls.

All of this heart and whatever else that explained the indulgence had to be sold, and, via the direction of Shawn Michaels, it was sold with a certain melodrama that drew derision. The shocked faces. The disbelief, manifested in soul-searching via hand-staring, that a wrestler was capable of such violence.

NXT died as a potential competitor on night one of the head-to-head Wednesday Night War.

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