TAKEOVER: FATAL 4-WAY

September 11, 2004


Kalisto . . . returns with a better partner, and ends the era of the Ascension.

Baron Corbin . . . makes his NXT debut with a bang, but don’t blink, or you’ll miss it.

Sami Zayn . . . finally gets an opportunity to challenge for the NXT Title.


KONNOR/VIKTOR © vs. SIN CARA/KALISTO (NXT Tag Team Titles)

It’s a bit disappointing to see the Ascension’s eleven-month reign end in a seven-minute sprint, but, then again, it’s just as well, since they haven’t exactly been stealing the show. This really isn’t all that much different than their previous matches, aside from the result. They’re far from interesting at working over Sin Cara, although Konnor living up to his ‘bulldozer’ nickname by pushing Sin Cara away from the corner was nice. Kalisto really is a human pinball, he’s literally everywhere that he needs to be, and, as bland as they were while in control, the heels do an admirable job of stooging for him. If Kalisto can stay healthy, he may very well be the WWE’s next Rey Mysterio. Viktor surprises Kalisto with an STO, and they up the Fall of Man, but Sin Cara intervenes, and Kalisto counters Viktor into the SDS to give them the titles. It’s nice to finally see the babyfaces win, and, even nicer to see Sin Cara stay in the background and let Kalisto have the spotlight.


BARON CORBIN vs. C.J. PARKER

Corbin Squashes the hippie and wins with the (then unnamed) End of Days.


ENZO AMORE vs. SYLVESTER LEFORT (Hair vs. Hair)

This isn’t a complete waste, although it’s really close. Lefort catches Amore with a huge kick to the back, and also a decent lariat, but, other than that, there is nothing to see. A five-minute comedy match is a waste of a stipulation that should have serious ramifications.


BULL DEMPSEY vs. MOJO RAWLEY

This is another one that’s over as soon as it begins, but, Mojo and Bull show some intensity and anger before Bull finishes things with the headbutt.


CHARLOTTE © vs. BAYLEY (NXT Women’s Title)

While this is fun at times, it ends up being disappointing, because it should have been so much better. Bayley is the spunky underdog that’s just happy to be in NXT, who lucked herself into a title shot, and Charlotte is the champion that is determined to stay on her pedestal. But, that story tells itself before the match even begins. It’s fun to watch Charlotte work Bayley over, especially the spots when Charlotte has her trapped in the head scissors, but, there’s no moment when it seems like Bayley is going to pull off the upset. Bayley gets two near falls one from a cradle counter to the figure four, and a rana from the top. Bayley doesn’t even get to pull off her belly to belly. Thankfully, they execute the finish flawlessly, so the match ends on a good note. Charlotte gets a near fall from her moonsault, and the look on Bayley’s face says that Charlotte will have to kill her in order to keep her down, so, Charlotte obliges with the Natural Selection. For all the attempts by the announcers to play this off as Bayley coming so close and falling short, this looks much closer to Flair vs. Pez Whatley than this does Flair vs. Magnum.


ADRIAN NEVILLE © vs. TYLER BREEZE vs. SAMI ZAYN vs. TYSON KIDD (NXT Heavyweight Title)

While this has its share of fun moments, especially the final stretch when it looked like Sami was going to pull off the win, this is structured just like every other match of its kind. There's no real overarching story or theme to the match. The only storyline implication is the finish, with Neville stopping Sami from pinning Tyson, and then pinning Tyson himself with the Red Arrow. It shows that Neville isn't above taking shortcuts to keep his title, and sets up Neville vs. Sami. But, the rest of the match isn't anything that hasn't been seen before. Sami and Kidd will be working a segment, and when it seems like Sami is about to win, Breeze shows up to stop him. Then it's Breeze's turn to almost win, and here's Neville to stop him. Mix up the names any way that you'd like. And, it' s not a four-way match without the powerbomb/superplex spot. Again, there are some fun moments, like Neville stopping Sami's dive and then doing a moonsault of his own, and Neville's intervention to prevent Breeze from tapping out to the sharpshooter, so, this isn't actively bad, but it's just another four-way match, nothing more and nothing less.


Conclusion: This is easily the worst of the NXT specials so far. The only match that was able to deliver was the tag titles match. The other two title matches were both disappointing affairs, and the rest of the undercard was unremarkable.