So, Kevin Owens Happened…

Alright, if you followed my EOTR predictions for last night’s NXT Takeover: R Evolution PPV (God, what a convoluted name. So many acronyms), you’ll noticed that I went 5-1 (with my only loss being the Charlotte/Sasha match). But, one thing I didn’t see coming–even though I still did–was the “heel turn” by Kevin Owens, the former Kevin Steen. Now, earlier in the night, we saw Owens face off against CJ Parker, a now-jobber who I despise (seriously, what is with WWE and their Russell Brand-mimicking foolishness? First, Adam Rose and his Forgetting Sarah Marshall Aldous Snow-like character, now Parker and his “we gotta do something” Snow-like character from Get Him to the Greek).

The match featured blood, stiff hits, and even a psuedo-package piledriver. In other words, it was the thing indie nerds dreamed about when Owens was announced as the newest NXT signing. I mean, look at this and tell me you didn’t mark the hell out. If you said “no,” you’re lying to yourself.

After the Hideo Itami/GTS tease, we knew that all bets were off for the rest of the night. However, when Owens started beating the crap out of Zayn (the new NXT champion), I lost it, and I don’t tend to lose it for much in wrestling.

GIF credits: Damiensantadow on Tumblr

Like, we knew it would happen, but I don’t think anyone imagined it happening that soon. If you’re a wrestling fan, NXT is the place to be. Hell, even if you’re not, do yourself a favor and check out NXT. It’s less theatric than main-roster WWE tends to be (so, if you’re one of those “aw, wrestling looks so ‘fake'” types, you’ll have less of that here), less convoluted than TNA, and features a lot of talent from ROH, PWG, and so on. Of course, I still recommend the indies over WWE a lot of the time (even if some matches do become spot-fests after a while). But, that’s only because I identify more with a guy who’s still trying to make it versus a guy who, even if he’s a jobber, probably makes twice as much as I make a year*.

*Even if a “jobber,” wrestlers probably should be paid more. They go out and bust their asses on a weekly (sometimes nightly) basis, risking injury in crazy spots (and even mundane ones). I’m sure they at least get residuals from merch sales and television contracts and all that jazz, but I’m not in the business. So, I’m legitimately speculating. Sorry if I offended anyone.