The Nexus, 3 years later

[Raven]

Ladies and gentleman let us take a trip into the past. Three years ago on an episode of RAW, the main event is CM Punk versus John Cena. All of a sudden we see a man standing in the crowd with a bandanna over his face, then we see 7 more, then all seven jump into the ring and destroy Cena and punk and destroy the ringside. Who are these 8 guys? They are the seven NXT rookies Wade Barrett, David Otunga, Michael Tarver, Skip Sheffield, Darren Young, Heath Slater ,Justin Gabriel and Daniel Bryan. Now we all know the story with D Bry and choking Justin Roberts and getting fired etc. etc.

Jump Forward a few months and two more superstars join the nexus, two more NXT Guys Michael McGillicutty and Husky Harris.

Jump forward a few more months and The nexus is under new management, CM Punk and has added the help of batis- er I mean Mason Ryan. Albeit they lost Gabriel, Slater and wade but I digress.

The point of this is to take a look at all the young superstars who were in the nexus and see how far they have come, or how far they have fallen in just 3 short years.

Wade Barrett- Ahh wade, he went on to form the Corre and then when that died he won the IC title, then he was scheduled to win the Money in he bank, then he was injured then came back sporting a beard and a new "Bare knuckle brawler" gimmick. Now he's still in the mid-card and competing in the MiTb this year. I'd say wade was a somewhat success, he never made it to heights that he could have, but he's been somewhat successful

David Otunga- Otunga, I never really liked him that much but others loved him, no idea why. After the nexus he didn't do much. He became the legal advisor to John Laurinaitis, then to Alberto Del Rio. Then he lost the rumble and kind of faded away. I'd say Otunga took a very long fall

Michael Tarver- I'm not going to lie guys, I LOVED Michael Tarver. HE was my second favorite Nexus guy besides Barrett. HE just had that look about him. That bandanna, those boxing gloves. It was all perfect. BUT Cena beat the hell out of Tarver one night and Barrett confessed that eh would have kicked Tarver out anyway if Cena didn't do that. Then in 2011 Tarver was shown watching some matches mysteriously backstage at RAW and randomly showing up in backstage segments. But nothing evolved form this and Tarver was released. Sad to say but Tarver was a failure.

Skip Sheffield- Or should I say Ryback? I'd say Skip was a huge success. He came back form an injury as an absolute beast. The Ryback, a the human wrecking ball. He has had multiple feuds for the WWE championship and although he has lost all of them he has proven that he can hang with the big boys in the main event. Hel at MiTb he is going to be fighting the best in the world at what he does, Chris Jericho. Definitely going to be a good match. Skip Sheffield, I consider him a success.

Darren Young- The South Beach Party Boy, Black Cena, Mr. NO Days Off, whatever you want to call him you have to give him props. HE chose to fight Cena one on one with the stipulation that if he lost he was out of nexus, well he lost and was kicked out. HE floated around in limbo for awhile before finding his niche with Titus O'neil in the Prime Time Players, They were laced in controversy at first with Abraham Washington but they dropped him like a bad habit and haven't looked back. One of the best tag teams in wwe at the moment no doubt. I'd say Darren young is well on his way to being a success.

Heath Slater- I just don't even know. HE left Nexus when punk took over, joined Barrett with the Corre then after that floated around getting beat by legends and then finally forming 3MB with Jinder and Drew. Not much to say about this guy. I guess he's funny sometimes. I consider him successful in a santino sort of way.

Justin Gabriel-"The South African Sensation""The Cape Town Werewolf""The Daredevil". Justin is probably my 3rd favorite out of all the nexus guys, just because he is straight up awesome. He’s innovative, high flying, and amazing. After Nexus and Corre he's another guy that just kind of floated around until he found a niche with Tyson Kidd in International Air strike. They were doing pretty good until Kidd got injured putting Air strike on hold. Gabriel won a battle royal to fight Wade for the IC title but lost and not much has been seen of him since. Hate to say it but a failure

Daniel Bryan- Does this even count? I mean he was in nexus one night, but whatever. HE was the standout of the group no doubt, after being fired that first night he has excelled. He has won multiple championships, had many wonderful feuds and is in the middle of being pushed to the damn moon. A definite success

Michael McGillicutty- This guys. This fucking guy...amazing. After Nexus didn't do much but just a few weeks ago he was repackaged as Curtis Axel, the newest Paul Heyman guy. Curtis has wins over Triple H and john cena, albeit in a very controversial fashion they are victories non the less. HE went on to win the IC title from former Nexus leader Barrett and is the current IC champion. HE is scheduled to team with CM Punk on the next episode of raw to take on the Prime Time Players (More nexus guys!) And will without a doubt have a match with either Barrett or Miz at MiTb for his title. All in all...a Success

Husky Harris- From "The Army Tank with a Ferrari Engine" to "The Eater Of Worlds". Very interesting jump. Bray Wyatt is one of the most talked about superstars on the roster right now, and he hasn't even debuted yet! With the help of Dusty Rhodes he found his niche in a gimmick that he has taken and ran like Usain bolt. With the Wyatt Family behind him I see a very bright future for Bray. Definitely on his way to becoming a success.

Mason Ryan- This guy gets shit on a lot for looking like Batista, in-ring and in physical appearance. After the nexus he had a short lived feud with Dolph Ziggler, then he went to the new NXT and has a bit of a winning streak going on, not much has been seen since. If he continues his winning streak and improving I see a successful future for him.

CM Punk- Gain do I really have to do this? Lead the new nexus then did his infamous speech and nexus kind of died after that but he went on to become HUUUUUGE. Do I even have to tell you that CM Punk is successful? He was before the nexus and will continue being successful until he quits wrestling.

OK so do you guys agree with me? Disagree with me? have anything to add? I would like to hear how you think each member of the nexus has done wince leaving the nexus? As you can tell three years is a long time for someone to make it or break it. Thoughts?

 

[MCMG]

The debut was terrific and this stable should have achieved so much more. There was so much potential and they could have done better.

Wade Barrett- The leader of the original Nexus. I still feel he has a great future and he will be a top star in the WWE. A future world champ there is no doubt. His time since the end of Nexus has been generally good. A solid Intercontinental champion who has put on several terrific matches and he will hopefully improve on that.

David Otunga- I really liked him with Johnny Ace. He is very good on the mic and is being underused. He is, of course, never going to be a world champ but he can be of use to the WWE.

Michael Tarver- Didn't achieve much at all. Clearly the least successful out of everyone.

Skip Sheffield- I actually like Ryback. His return has been of good quality. I realise that he isn't the lovechild of HBK and The Rock but he can put on some fairly entertaining matches and has a solid place on the roster.

Darren Young- The Prime Time Players has really saved his career. Being part of a decent tag-team is far better than just being another jobber.

Heath Slater- I like his gimmick. It works well because he is a goofy guy.

Justin Gabriel- He has been a failure thus far but there is still time for him to rise the ranks and be a star in the WWE. His matches are very good, indeed, he is capable of putting on some of he most entertaining matches in the WWE.

Daniel Bryan- Former World Champ, Tag Champ and potential WWE champion. Incredible success.

Michael McGillicutty- Up until a month ago it was easy to class him as a failure but Curtis Axel is doing well so far. Being involved with Chris Jericho, HHH, John Cena, CM Punk and potential Brock Lesnar can never be a bad thing and the future will be good for Axel.

Husky Harris- Just have to wait and see how he does when he returns. There is a lot of hype which means I am optimistic.

Mason Ryan- Failure.

Three years is plenty time to become a star; with the correct booking and direction. Look at Sheamus. He was a WWE champion almost instantly without doing the dirty work that Axel, Slater, Gabriel are currently doing. You can be the most talented man on the planet but if you are not given the opportunity, in a very competitive roster, than it is impossible to be a success. Of course the very best will rise to the top but not everyone can do that.

Bryan has been the most successful so far and Barrett and Ryback have also done well. Most of these guys are just waiting on the right story-line to elevate them to the top.

 

[MizMark11]

That's about the time when I couldn't watch wrestling. Could someone tell me the time periods from when the Nexus first arrived please? Just so I can catch up haha.

The original Nexus last from June 2010 to the end of December 2010. That's when CM Punk took over took over and created the New Nexus. The last time New Nexus was every really mentioned was right before Punk dropped the pipebomb in June 2011. They weren't really mentioned after that, unless you count when Otunga and McGillicutty stayed together with the tag team titles.

Anyways, it seems topics about the Nexus are created every few months, so here is exactly what I posted a few months ago.

Wade Barret: They really crapped the bed with this guy. They kickstart him in the main event and while he's very over as the top heel, they don't even give him a championship run. Now he's a gimmickless joke who is a waste of an IC champion. How many theme songs is he on now? 5? 6? How many IC reigns has he had? 3? 4? He's not going to get over with the crowd on his own so take him off TV. Let him help train with developmental talent. He can teach mic skills, in-ring fluidity, and the importance of creating a gimmick - through struggling to find a good one of his own.

Daniel Bryan: After his feud with The SHIELD is through, take him out of the Tag Team division. (Where he's only started to help recently) Push him back into the WHC scene. Del Rio is not interesting to the crowds so put his ass in the midcard or the TT scene (where he may find success as a heel) and give that WHC main event spot to Bryan.

Ryback: Eventually have him win the WWE title at a big PPV. He's supposed to be this generation's Warrior/Goldberg/Batista clone so just let that happen when the moment arrives.

Curtis Axel: If his main event push is for real, let him feud with Daniel Bryan for the WHC title. Bryan is beloved and it would be easier for Axel to get over as a power-tech heel by going against someone as universally liked as Bryan.

Bray Wyatt: Since his gimmick is very much based on American stereotypes (Cajun hick, religious enthusiast, southern bred etc) put him in the US title scene and let him run with it.

Heath Slater/Justin Gabriel: Break-up 3MB but keep Jinder and Drew McEntire in "JTG Jobber Hell". Repackage Heath Slater with Justin Gabriel since they're familiar with each other. And give them the Odd Couple comedic schtick since Team Hell No needs to break up eventually. Heath can remain the over-zealous trash talker who always bites off more than he can chew and Gabriel is the high-flying babyface who bails them out of trouble in their matches.

David Otunga: Either go back to using him as a henchman for the managers and higher-ups or get rid of him. His best role in the WWE is as a prop. (much like Ricardo Rodriguez)

Darren Young: He's the weaker half of Prime Time Players but at least he has a solid gimmick with them and is being used logically at the moment. Eventually PTP will have to win the TT titles and have a nice long run with them. Mainly for Titus O'Neil but if Young learns how to be a comfortable yet effective heel, then it'll benefit him greatly as well.

 

[eaterofdonuts]

My personal thoughts on each one:

Wade Barrett - I personally don't like him. He can work a good match, but he hasn't done anything really impressive. He's really basic, and his current finisher is one of the worst and least believable in WWE history. He's absolute gold on the mic IMO, but in-ring he's just very basic; it's like 95% of the WWE roster could do exactly what he does as well or better as he does.

David Otunga - Strong dislike for him. Other than Hornswoggle (who I don't even consider a wrestler) and The Great Khali, Otunga's the worst wrestler on the roster. Very poor at executing moves, and horrible seller. I honestly think the only reason they haven't fired him is because he has Hollywood connections. He's of no use to the WWE and I doubt there's any fan who'd miss him if he left.

Michael Tarver - I might have been one of the only people that liked him. Sure, he was no Daniel Bryan in-ring, but he was solid and had the look. Sad to say, but failure.

Skip Sheffield - Gonna get hate for this, but I can't stand Ryback. Didn't like him as Skip, don't like him now. I can count on one hand the number of good matches he's had. One of the most limited superstars in-ring. Stupid catchphrases. I honestly think he won't be in WWE two years from now.

Darren Young - Big fan of the love child of Buckwheat and Cena's mom. IMO he's better than Titus O'Neil and should get the singles push when PTP breaks up. Unfortunately, I think Titus will get pushed and D-Young will fall into low-card oblivion a la JTG. Actually, I think whenever that happens they should have D-Young and JTG tag team.

Heath Slater - Huge fan of Slater, BAYBAY! I don't like that they've got him with this gimmick (same with McIntyre), but at least he gets regular TV time. I'd put him as the fourth best seller on the roster (behind Ziggler, Bourne, and Rollins), and he's solid in-ring. I think he'll eventually win a mid-card title.

Justin Gabriel - Like him, but not as a singles wrestler. I think he would succeed much more in a tag team. IMO they should team him up with Evan Bourne when Bourne gets back.

Daniel Bryan - The real Best in the World. Enough said.

Michael McGillicutty - Huge fan. Love that he got repackaged, put with Heyman, and now on a big win streak.

Husky Harris - Can't wait for the debut of Bray Wyatt and The Wyatt Family. Hopefully WWE won't drop the ball with them, because they could take the WWE by storm.

Mason Ryan - Not a fan. I've heard he's gotten better in NXT since he left the main roster. He wasn't great during the Nexus run.

CM Punk - Not much to say. Best all-around performer in the company.

 

[Mac Attack]

In general when looking at all the members I'd rank them in the following order with their respective reason.

Don't believe the OP included John Cena but storyline wise he has only gone up and is by far the greatest member of nexus ever. However on to the main members.

Daniel Bryan-only one from the group to be a world champion. He has risen so much over the years and quite frankly probably the most "over guy." Ironically was also in the group the least.

CM Punk-he's the best in the world, but ur rebels Bryan has just been given more time to shine. Still way up high.

McGillicutty-He's a Paul Heyman guy. He's going to go far. That's pretty much all there is to know.

Ryback-He also wasn't in Nexus very long however I rank him second due to the fact that he is constantly on PPV, has a decent gimmick and I think will win at MITB against Jericho, so also up in my standings.

Slater-yes I know I have him over Barett and the truth is he is extremely over, has great charisma and by far someone who I see doig whatever it takes to get up in the ladder. He's in the top as well.

Barett-Nexus devalued him to me. He needed to win that title when the Nexus leader and he did not. He's been on the decline and I think needs a radical change. He has gone far down but still mid pack.

Darren Young-PTP could be really big. At least he's on T.V consistently and has some character but still nothing to write about here.

Everyone else on the list can be moved around wherever. I say Definetly Tarver came out the worse but the rest only went down after Nexus. They're no longer seen. I think Bray Wyatt could be something scary good but until he's seen I'm not saying anything about him.

 

[Alastor]

The original Nexus was always a vehicle to get Barrett to the 'Superstar' level. The rest of them were there for the ride to get them familiarised with TV and for them to make an impression on the fans. I'll only include the original 8 in my grading here

Wade Barrett - He has been hampered by injuries and now has fallen out of the spotlight. He has the look and is decent on the mic. Has been a solid mid-card wrestler biding his time again after getting injured at the wrong time. I wouldn't class him as a failure but he has disappointed in failing to establish himself as a regular main event player after the heavy push.

Daniel Bryan - Definite success. Held the world title. Got into main even spots. Revitalised the tag team division for a while.

Ryback - Another one hurt by injuries. Came back with a new identity and slowly worked his way up the ladder. Got a lucky break with Cena's injury to main event agains Punk and never looked back. Has delivered on PPVs with little experience even though his win-loss record on PPVs have been horrible. Success.

Heath Slater - Got the best spots in Nexus tag matches. It showed how much faith WWE has in him being a long time contributor. Sure he won't be the next main draw, but he has been doing well in his role as comic relief. A success in my eye.

David Otunga - He exceeded my expectations in staying on TV for so long. He appear rather limited and has no impact in his moves at all and he was billed as a power wrestler. Take my hat off for him to being able to staying on the card still with his limited range.

Justin Gabriel - Hasn't made much of an impact after Nexus. Not good enough for singles competition and got strung along to be part of generic tag teams #1 #2 #3 but never made a deep impression with any of them due to injuries or injuries to his partners. Needs to have at least one sustained and memorable run with a regular tag partner on TV.

Darren Young - Faced the same predicaments as Justin Gabriel but has found a stable tag team in PTP to stay on the air.

Michael Tarver - Got injured. Got released. Only one that didn't make it.

We can't realistically expect all 8 of the original Nexus debutants to all have main even status in the company. No draft/talent pool is that deep. Seeing as how 7/8 of them are still with the company and in prominent spots on the roster in every level after their Nexus stint, I say it has been a success.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Everything proceeded according to plan. As much as some fans wanted the group to stay together longer, there's an effective shelf life for this type of program. Personally, I felt Nexus did everything they were supposed to do, which encompassed functioning as a team at the beginning, then showing their stuff as individuals, and finally breaking up. It's accepted that a group that large will have some of them succeed and fail once they go out on their own. Really, I'm surprised everyone but Tarver is still around; that's quite a success rate for a faction that started out as rookies.

If anything, they were kept as a unit too long, imo. The formation of The Corre was a lame attempt to keep together a concept whose time had passed.

Predictably, the guy who led Nexus from day one, Wade Barrett, has had the most impact as an individual performer, although I expected better things from him.

And no, I'm not forgetting Daniel Bryan; but he can hardly be counted as a member of Nexus since he lasted only one week. I'd still love to know whether his firing was real or a nod at political correctness; WWE having to take a position against whatever Daniel was supposed to have done.....and possibly banishing him for awhile as if they canned him....while actually paying his full salary with the assurance he'd be back once the heat died down (a la Pat Patterson).

In all, Nexus was a great idea that made the Summer of '10 very exciting. It was fine when they existed....and fine when they folded.

 

[Dagger Dias]

Excellent topic. I'll throw my in my thoughts on the careers so far of each member of both Nexus factions.


Wade Barrett
Had a WWE Championship feud and 3 time Intercontinental Champion. Barrett has the potential to make it to the World Heavyweight Championship someday but these pointless midcard title reigns that the federation does absolutely NOTHING with are not helping him. Maybe if he wins Money In the Bank like he was rumored to last year....


CM Punk
Punk had success before The Nexus as well as after. His version of the Nexus was an absolute failure. With that being said he has had a great career. ECW Champion, 3 time World Heavyweight Champion, 2 time WWE Champion with the latter being the longest since Hogan, Tag Team Champion with Kofi, Intercontiental Champion, 2 time Money In the Bank winner. CM Punk has done very well. None of that success had anything to do with Nexus though.


David Otunga
2 time Tag Team Champion with John Cena and Michael McGillicutty. Otunga has seen a little bit of success but I doubt he will ever be great in the ring. He's more of the managerial type. I would really like to see his lawyer character become GM or somebody's manager, he can then work the occasional match here and there.


Michael McGillicutty
Tag Team Champion with Otunga and current Intercontinental Champion. He is on his way to success now that he is under the Axel persona. The ridiculous name he had at first did him no favors, but his new name and the help of Heyman will get Michael/Curtis to realize the potential he has. It depends on how this push goes. World Heavyweight Championship perhaps, but I am not sure yet at this point. At the least he can be the king of the midcard once all is said and done, the belts need more attention anyway.


Michael Tarver
The least successful of the group. If he ends up in TNA maybe he will see some type of push there.


Husky Harris
I hated him as Husky Harris. His future depends on how the Bray Wyatt character does. I do not watch NXT so outside of the hype videos they have shown on Raw, I literally know nothing else about this character. I will withhold any predictions on his success until he has had a chance to show what he can do in his new character.


Skip Sheffield
As Ryback he can be WWE Champion and/or World Heavyweight Champion someday. Despite his initial push ending disastrously when he was promoted to the world title scene too soon and then losing too much, he still has the potential to be a top monster heel. He's come a long way, honestly. I detested his NXT character.


Darren Young
His success will depend on the future of his tag team partner, Titus. The Prime Time Players could be future Tag Team Champions and it would be great to see them hold the giant pennies. If they ever split up, Young will be in trouble. I'd see them trying to do the comedic angle again between him and Cena where they make fun of their similar appearance. Then he'd get future endeavoured. Other than Tarver he is the least successful of the group and that likely won't change.


Heath Slater
This is an unpopular opinion around here, but Slater CAN be a World Champion someday. I've seen similarities to a young Edge in him ever since day one in NXT. Most might disagree there, but I see a ton of potential in him. 3MB has turned into the biggest joke since Santino and I fear Slater will be the next in line to be what Santino was, but things could be worse. He's a 3 time Tag Team Champion with Justin Gabriel so they could always get back together in the future. Heath has far more potential than most realize though, and unfortunately he might never reach it. Fingers are crossed. A more serious character would help.


Justin Gabriel
3 time Tag Team Champion with Heath Slater. He could possibly be Intercontinental or US Champion someday if he remains a singles wrestler. He could see a great deal more success in the tag team division if he and Slater ever got back together though. I don't see him ever making it further.


John Cena
Do I even need to say anything here? Cena is one of the biggest names of all time in pro wrestling. That had NOTHING to do with Nexus. He had more success before and after than every other name in this list put together. 11 time WWE Champion, 2 time World Heavyweight Champion, 3 time US Champion, Money In the Bank, 2 time Royal Rumble winner, 4 time Tag Team Champion with Miz/Otunga/Batista/Michaels. Aside from a random Intercontinental Championship win someday, Cena has literally won every single thing in WWE that they have available for him to win. I'm hoping for a feud with Undertaker at Wrestlemania and for him to break Flair's world title win record. Otherwise, his future should be more of the same unless the heel turn fans are literally BEGGING for happens. Whether he turns or not, I'm happy with the success he has had and how good his future looks.


Daniel Bryan
He was in Nexus for one night so his success had nothing to do with the stable. With that being said, he has done the best so far out of the NXT season 1 group. World Heavyweight Championship, US Championship, Money In the Bank, and Tag Team Championship with Kane. Daniel Bryan has done very well and his career is nowhere near its end. I see him having accomplished more than Punk has by the time all is said and done. Multi-time world champion at the very least, who knows what else. Bryan's future looks VERY good at the moment. The YES/NO chants will be around for years to come.


Mason Ryan
Mason was only in Punk's version of the Nexus, and that remains his most successful moment. I saw a little potential in him at the time, but that is all gone now. He is awful in the ring and he needs more in-ring work. Until he can improve significantly he would be a waste of a roster space. As negative of an analysis that is, I do legitimately want to see him succeed. He was ok on the mic and has the look needed for a monster heel push, so if WWE can work with him and help him get better, he might see a small bit of success. He won't ever be like Ryback though. As long as he's a heel. His face turn was a colossal failure!


Ezekiel Jackson
He was only in The Corre, but I'll go ahead and include him. Intercontinental Champion and the final ECW Champion. If they ever decide to retire another belt then they could have Jackson be its last champion. He should have bragging rights as the final ECW Champion but the federation has done next to nothing with him. At the moment I don't see him having much more success other than maybe another midcard title win. He could always be a bodyguard again like he was for Brian Kendrick. Imagine an arrogant heel having Zeke as his bodyguard, that would be cool. I'd put him with Slater in this type of role after 3MB split.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

Barrett was unlucky and has more than a little right to be very bitter towards Ziggler, as his attempt to make it look like his head hit meant Wade nearly lost his career to save him... Wade was getting that briefcase and push till that happened. I have a strong feeling he will win this years MITB and get his chance against Ziggler around Summerslam or on the UK tour... a cash in/win in the UK would be a big moment for him. He is definitely still in the top 5 potential wise, but he could still be the "Razor" of today, never actually moving up.

Bryan clearly is the most successful, but he was always going to be. For all the necktie choking stuff I think he really got "let go" cos they realised Nexus would be bad for him and they could bring him back later as the "underdog" he was. That being said his success has been the most organic of anyone since Austin. He hasn't needed to be pushed, the fans chose him and WWE literally has had no choice but to acknowledge it and run with it, they deserve some credit for doing so cos it probably goes against everything Vince ever believed about his business.

Ryback to me is a dud, this is the guy who spent nearly 7 years in developmental on and off. He was always intended to be where he is, but with that amount of prep and slack for injury he still didn't get the job done. He's the opposite of Bryan, forced push that was stilted and didn't suit him. I actually think his time is up and by all accounts it's Mason Ryan's turn next.

As for Ryan, they botched by not giving him the "kicked out rugby player" gimmick that Cesaro got...being Welsh and the size he is he was perfect for it. Failiure so far, but many including JR are praising his "massive improvement" so there is hope.

Slater is interesting and is basically the next Honky Tonk Man. I could see a big push down the line but he's a fun guy to watch getting beat up and WWE can always use those. 3MB is a dud though and a criminal waste of McIntyre.

Gabriel would be the guy I would love to see bring back the Cruiser belt, it won't happen but I could see he, Bourne, Kofi and Rey doing some real good stuff given that chance. He has had tag success and some singles push and he is a joy to watch in brutal truth though the main reason he is there is his nationality, WWE want's to be able to tour Africa and he fits that bill.

Husky Harris - the other "Next Big Thing" right now is Bray Wyatt, from what I have seen of his promo work and matches in NXT he has improved greatly. He suffered from being a 3rd Gen guy who they didn't push as such in nexus. Had they used the Rotunda name he might have done better off the bat but it was worth it, cos his Wyatt character is the most interesting thing WWE has done in years...if any foe should end the streak, someone like Wyatt would fit the bill.

Same applied to McGillicutty till a few weeks back, he was Curt's kid, but not given his name and it was jarring. Whatever you think of Curtis Axel, he is now the guy he should have been even back in the Nexus, those 3 years in the wilderness probably made him the man he is today but the potential is still huge for him.

Otunga has fallen off the radar just when it seemed he was in line for a big push. He clearly has improved in the ring but is still far short of what is really required. I was interested that A-Ry is apparently in line for commentary cos I thought Otunga would be very good at it. He's never gonna win the world title but I think he'll be around for a while yet, just not as an active wrestler.

Darren Young has a much better position than may thought he would ever hold. PTP are a solid, part of the furniture team now, even though losing AW probably cos them that top tag spot, they just weren't the same after... But Cena's doppleganger was the one many thought would be long released by now, that he is still there and doing ok if not spectacularly is encouraging for many.

Tarver was the one I thought would be a big star, he looked the part and the face rag was a great touch but he fell foul of the Cena monster much the same as Riley did.

Ultimately the Nexus did it's job, it started the formula and proved that "paying dues" is not always as important as showing faith in young talent and letting the cream rise. Bryan clearly did, Barrett has to a lesser extent, he is still one of the better workers WWE has and will come good in time, some like Ryback are still in "jury's out" mode while Slater, Young and Gabriel are solid midcarers and Husky is in 2nd chance heaven, with a character that is over before it debuts. That's a pretty good return from the initial idea of NXT and the Nexus and they have used it since with the Shield and no doubt will continue going forward.