3 Things We Hated & 3 Things We Loved

Welcome friends to a different edition of Wrestling Inc.’s retro review, where we take an event from years passed by and break it down into individual pieces to see what we loved and hated in equal measure. For this edition, we’re celebrating the indisputable fact that WWE NXT Vengeance Day 2026 is happening this weekend and thought it could be an important idea to shine a highlight on the inaugural Vengeance Day Premium Live Event, one which type of bridges the gap between the “WWE NXT” of old and latest.

On Valentine’s Day 2021, “NXT” held its first TakeOver event of the yr, NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day. The Vengeance name is one in every of many retro event names that has brought back in the course of the in “NXT” alongside the likes of In Your House, Halloween Havoc, and Heatwave, but with the show happening on probably the most romantic day of the yr, it needed a spin of some sorts and as an alternative of Valentine’s Day, we got Vengeance Day, despite WWE literally holding an event called St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in the course of the “Attitude Era.”

By the point this event took place, the world was deep into the COVID-19 pandemic. The one yr anniversary of when the whole planet went into lockdown was just over a month away, and while the wrestling business soldiered on within the state of Florida as wrestlers had been deemed “essential employees,” it was tough for some people to look at. The dearth of crowds meant a definite lack of energy, the failings in some people’s work was on full display in a world of piped in crowd noise and fans being displayed on monitors, and for some people it was difficult to be as engaged as they were pre-COVID. 

It’s due to pandemic that a show like TakeOver: Vengeance Day doesn’t get talked about as much because the shows that took place in front of a capability crowd. On the time it took place, TakeOver: Vengeance Day was seen as top-of-the-line WWE shows of the COVID era, but does it delay over five years later? That is what we will speak about today. Listed here are three things we loved and hated about WWE NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day!

The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic, how we miss you. The annual tag team tournament was one in every of the primary selling points when it got here to the construct up for NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day, and in 2021 we had a double dose of two-on-two motion. Not only did the lads’s tournament return for its sixth instalment, but we also got the first-ever women’s tournament, with that final being the match to kick off the show.

The ladies’s final saw the team of Ember Moon and Shotzi Blackheart face off with one in every of the one established duos in the whole field, Dakota Kai and Raquel Gonzalez, and with it being the primary women’s tournament final, all 4 ladies had some extent to prove.

Kai and Gonzalez clearly had more chemistry as a team, finding an important balance where Kai could withstand lots of punishment based on the indisputable fact that Gonzalez could are available with the recent tag and clean house. In the opposite corner you had Moon and Blackheart who just had natural chemistry based on how insane they each were presently. Blackheart was flying across the ring like a lunatic while Moon, who was the MVP of the match for me personally, glued every thing together very nicely. This opening match was lively, filled with color, filled with energy, and while it did get slightly sloppy towards the tip because of fatigue, the indisputable fact that Blackheart needed to have each Kai and Gonzalez pin her to place her away shows just how much each teams desired to make history. A terrific opener.

Then you have got the lads’s side of things. The Grizzled Young Veterans fell at the ultimate hurdle in 2020 losing in the ultimate to The BroserWeights, they usually weren’t going to rest until that defeat in the ultimate was officially rectified. Nonetheless, they’d to take care of an unknown entity as MSK’s Wes Lee and Nash Carter, formerly generally known as The Rascalz, made their debut within the Dusty Rhodes Classic and made it all of the method to the ultimate on their first attempt.

This was a classic clash of styles that worked brilliantly. The no-nonsense toughness of GYV doing every thing of their power to maintain the high-flying MSK grounded, with all 4 men working with a chemistry that “NXT” didn’t really capitalize on within the months following this match. These two teams could have had a lengthy rivalry that sat alongside The Revival’s battles with #DIY and American Alpha, but to at the present time this stays the one two-on-two encounter between these 4 men. With that said, in the event that they never have one other match after this, what a one-off match this was. 

I do not know the way over and over now we have to say this in these reviews, but when done right, tag team wrestling is just awesome and these two tournament finals delivered in every respect. Someone tell Triple H or Shawn Michaels to bring back the Dusty Rhodes Classic since it rules.

I feel as if enough time has passed that we are able to finally all have an honest conversation about Johnny Gargano and his run of NXT TakeOver matches. “Johnny Wrestling” is one in every of the performers that within the moment, you may wander off within the hype of every thing, especially in “WWE NXT.” With that said, I can completely understand why Gargano falls into the category of wrestlers who’ve a match catalogue that have not aged in addition to you’d originally expect. A variety of them are way too long, lots of them have so many finisher kickouts that you simply reach the purpose of diminishing returns, and the entire presentation of some matches are so bloated that you simply see him rallying for a comeback and you are like “Please, would you stop doing that? I’m drained.” 

So you may imagine my fear after I checked out the cardboard for NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day and noticed that his NXT North American Championship match with Kushida had a runtime of just below 25 minutes. Thankfully, this was not a slog to get through and is definitely one in every of my favorite Gargano matches from his time in “NXT.” 

The story going into this one was quite simple. Gargano found a brand new lease on life together with his latest faction, The Way, and was able to have an extended title run which he had not been in a position to enjoy towards the tip of the 2010s. Kushida then again had a slow begin to life in “NXT” but found his footing by the beginning of 2021 and desired to turn into the first-ever Japanese born NXT North American Champion. Gargano would do every thing in his power to avoid a one-on-one encounter with the NJPW star, but after the match was made official, Kushida would goal Gargano’s arm to offer him a bonus heading into TakeOver.

The damaged arm was the driving force behind this match as Kushida, known for his Hoverboard Lock and with the ability to secure an arm submission from any possible angle, was like a moth to a flame when it got here to Gargano’s arm. I feel that is what made this match so great and distinct from the entire other Gargano epics in “NXT,” he was wrestling a Kushida match which forced him to vary his style. He couldn’t spam finisher kickouts and high spots, he needed to work for them in order that they really meant something. The arm selling is not all the time consistent, in any case “Johnny Wrestling” has to flee at the very least one in every of Kushida’s signature submissions, but he does an important job at maintaining with Kushida who’s a firecracker on this match. Easily the very best performance of Kushida’s “NXT” profession who can also be incredible at selling the fatigue of wrestling someone who just is not going to go down, and the entire thing is only a boatload of fun. Definitely value trying out if you have got never seen it.

Finn Balor’s second run in “WWE NXT” was one where he could rejuvenate his image after his primary roster run went off the rails almost immediately. After getting injured at WWE SummerSlam 2016 within the match where he became the first-ever WWE Universal Champion, the subsequent two-and-a-half years ended up being a little bit of a multitude for Balor as he all the time looked like he could break back into the primary event scene but was never given the possibility, and needed to accept two reigns with the WWE Intercontinental Championship as an alternative. 

Once he returned to “NXT” and tapped back into elements of the Prince Devitt character from this NJPW, it added an additional edge to his overall presentation that made you do not forget that he was the creator of the Bullet Club. Heading into TakeOver: Vengeance Day, Balor had held the NXT Championship for five months and showed no signs of slowing down. Nonetheless, Pete Dunne was also showing no signs of slowing down either having turn into a primary event player in “NXT” throughout the pandemic. He wanted to steer by example in “NXT,” and after Balor had spent a while away recovering from a broken jaw he suffered against Kyle O’Reilly in October 2020, Dunne thought that “NXT” needed a champion that was tougher than someone like Balor.

With each guys being from Europe, Balor and Dunne leaned heavily into making this one a technical showcase where they each tried to focus on specific body parts as a way to gain a bonus. Dunne was known for being very aggressive on the bottom, and knowing that Balor wasn’t at 100%, he would wrench the arm of the champion at grotesque angles, bending and snapping the fingers as he did so. Dunne also targeted the weakened jaw and chin of Balor, making it difficult for him to remain composed and focused. As for Balor, Dunne looked as if it would jam his knee early on and went to town on the injured leg, with each men keeping the selling up right until the very end of the match.

I’m being deadly serious after I say that this is perhaps top-of-the-line matches Balor has had in a WWE ring, and the identical goes for Dunne. Keeping the match grounded in a setting where there was no crowd added to the intensity of things, think the primary match between Ilja Dragunov and WALTER, a match that benefited from having no crowd available to witness it. Balor and Dunne worked their butts off on this one to create something different to what would have worked in a full arena, and it turned out to be top-of-the-line matches on a card filled with great stuff. 

As for The Undisputed Era angle to shut out the show, I feel the group had rans its course and it was the best time for Cole to show heel again, it’s only a shame that the eventual Cole/O’Reilly storyline didn’t live as much as the hype.

We won’t all the time be positive around these parts, and one match that I had lots of expectations for heading into NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day was this one. Io Shirai defended the NXT Women’s Championship in a Triple Threat Match against each Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez, and it was positive. That is it, it was positive. I do know a number of individuals who love this match and do not get me fallacious, I can understand the appeal especially when you have got three women as talented as these attending to go at it, but I used to be type of left wanting more from it knowing what they’re all able to.

Truth be told, I didn’t hate this match so the “Hated” within the title seems a bit harsh, but what this match didn’t profit from is the indisputable fact that it was within the dreaded death spot. MSK and Grizzled Young Veterans was great, as was Johnny Gargano and Kushida, and the show’s opener was filled with energy as well, so once you get to the penultimate match of the night and you recognize the primary event is next, one match must be the one to offer people a breather and this was it.

In hindsight, the one thing that this match could have really benefited from can be making it a straight singles match, and for my money, it could have been Martinez who didn’t make the cut. That is to not say Martinez is bad on this match, removed from it, but the cash was in putting Storm and Shirai in a one-on-one contest given their history. The 2 women had numerous great matches against one another in STARDOM where they’d quite a bit more time to work, so giving them 15 to twenty minutes on a TakeOver to prove why so many individuals called Shirai and Storm two of the very best on this planet at the moment would have been a a lot better solution. As an alternative, Martinez was inserted to suit one other body on the cardboard and the match, for as positive because it was, ended up falling wanting the mark for me. 

It was a shame that whatever planned announce table spot they’d went fallacious because Storm was a bit too heavy handed getting every thing cleared, but Shirai salvaged it by climbing one in every of the trusts and hitting an enormous crossbody in what was probably the most memorable spot of the match by a long way. Overall, it was a match that may have stood out quite a bit more had it been on every other show, and if it was only a match between Shirai and Storm. Funnily enough, Shirai and Storm did have a singles match on TV a month later, but that was handcuffed by the very fact it was only a TV match, so if you need to see these two wrestle, just go and watch their STARDOM stuff.

As a result of the restrictions in place because of COVID-19, there weren’t lots of people within the Capitol Wrestling Center to witness NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day. There have been some extras, trainees, wrestlers who didn’t make the cardboard, and a few select fans, however it wasn’t exactly a packed house especially when everyone had to maintain their distance. With that said, the group did its best to generate an environment, and I truthfully think that it could have been ok to act as the general sound of the evening, versus what we actually got, which was the piped in crowd noise, which was horrendous.

Oh my days it was bad. I get why WWE did it during this time, especially within the Thunderdome because that was still set as much as appear like a normal WWE arena so it doesn’t take you out of it an excessive amount of, but on “NXT” it is actually unbearable. You’ve gotten the audio track of what’s probably a crowd from an episode of “WWE Raw” or “WWE SmackDown” layered excessive of the particular audio, so your ears are hearing 1000’s of screaming fans, but your eyes see the true people in the group not moving and it’s like why even trouble? Like, we all know there aren’t 1000’s of individuals on this constructing, just turn off the group noise because it will make it a far more nice experience.

There was truthfully some extent in the course of the opening stages of Kushida’s match with Johnny Gargano where I needed to mute the audio. I could not do it guys, it was an excessive amount of. The “boos,” in the event you could call them that, directed at Gargano seemed like the group track that was playing was running out of battery. It seemed like a bunch of ghosts in pain. It seemed like the group was melting and I’m not even sure how that is possible but that is the very best method to describe it. Only a chorus of grief that was throughout this show.

The cheers weren’t a lot better as they were just bland, and the piped in “That is awesome” chants were hilarious because for one, nobody in attendance is even remotely in time with the track, and two, you may’t even tell in the event that they were chanting because they’ve all got facemasks on. You might hear the actual crowd chanting for the babyfaces, chanting “NXT,” pounding on the steel fencing and plexiglass to separate them from the motion, just boost the amount on those guys! Give the audience a voice, that is one in every of the one escapes they’ve from the twenty first century hellscape that was the pandemic, allow them to be heard! But no. As an alternative you have got this constant wave of drab noise which incorporates some noises I do not even think real people can actually make it is so weird. I comprehend it sounds nit-picky to hate the audio of a wrestling show, but watch it for yourself and you may understand it immediately.

Overall, NXT TakeOver: Vengeance Day is one of the vital underrated “NXT” events from the “Black and Gold” era. There really is not a nasty match on the show despite a number of gripes with certain things, and everybody who was on the cardboard gave it their all for the minimal crowd that was available to see it live. Which brings me on to the largest hate of all, one which I feel we are able to all agree with especially with a card like this, I wish this show didn’t happen in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The issue that we have had quite a bit when covering TakeOver shows for this Loved and Hated series is that it’s genuinely difficult to seek out things to complain about. The cards are so tight and concise that you simply aren’t feeling burnt out by the tip of them, the five match structure actually works since the shows are short and never full of at the very least two weeks value of commercials like now we have today, and since it was the style on the time, the in-ring motion was the main target which meant that it needed to be great and more often than not it was. Vengeance Day follows that very same formula, however the only thing missing is the rabid TakeOver audience we used to get at every show.

Props need to be given to those in attendance as they made their very own noise, but you may just tell that a match like Kushida vs. Johnny Gargano was made to be wrestled in front of a molten hot capability crowd. A moment like MSK winning the Dusty Rhodes Classic would have been one in every of the texture good moments of the “Black and Gold” era had Nash Carter and Wes Lee had people to rejoice with apart from one another, and the Adam Cole heel turn at the tip of the show would have probably helped him turn into more detestable than what he ended up being in his feud with Kyle O’Reilly. A variety of wrestlers make the claim of being the center and soul of “NXT,” but its when the brand lost its voice that the decline really began to be noticeable.

Some people wish to say that it was AEW that killed the unique incarnation of the “NXT” brand, but while that company’s success didn’t necessarily help, it was removed from the largest reason why “Black and Gold” didn’t make it to the tip of 2021, it was the pandemic. Forcing a brand that had such a loyal and vocal audience behind closed doors was the move that needed to be made at the moment, however it was the death blow for “NXT” as a brand. “NXT” in the course of the 2010s was the show that the fans would rant and rave about, the group took characters into their arms and made them superstars, and had this show happened in front of 1000’s it could be heralded as an all-time classic. But as an alternative, it’s just lots of great wrestling happening in a near-empty constructing.

In the event you’re one in every of the individuals who dipped out on wrestling in the course of the pandemic, go and watch this show, because even a worldwide pandemic couldn’t stop skilled wrestling from being great on tonight.