*MERGED* NXT Season 4 Discussion

[The Doctor]

Jacob Novak - I enjoyed his opening promo, but I don't really think he'll be going very far. He's not great in the ring, and he's kind of generic-looking.

Brodus Clay - I was pleasantly surprised by his presence and persona and mic skills. I thought I'd hate him, but his promo was not bad at all, and I liked his vignette and story. Of course, I've heard only bad about his ring skills, but if he can pull a Zeke and do what few moves he knows with impact and MAKE them exciting, he could go far. Unique look, with mounds of potential.

Byron Saxton - A big standout. The way he moved and acted during that challenge last night was brilliant. He was milking us for all we had. I mean, he's not perfect yet, and I still don't know if he can wrestle, but I enjoyed his attitude and mic skills.

Conor O'Brian - I think he has potential as a sympathetic face, shockingly enough. When he told us people thought he looked like a rat and did the funny voice, he was hard to hate. People felt sympathy for him and even thought he was amusing, in the good way! He's not great by any means, but the potential is there and I look forward to seeing him hopefully improve throughout the coming weeks.

Derrick Bateman - Love this guy, and so did everyone else. I counted four Derrick Bateman signs last night, not including my own. He's funny, he can wrestle - if he doesn't get stale, he's going to the top. It helps he has Bryan as his pro. That's another thing, Bryan is mad over. He asked us to chant "Bateman" and clap, and we did. With Bryan on his side he has a great secret weapon that he could use to ride all the way to the end.

Johnny Curtis - I completely disagree that this guy is the clear winner. Good wrestler? Yes, but his promo was probably the worst one. He did some good mugging to the crowd, though. I just think he's generic in character RIGHT NOW. He has potential to really make it, though.

Overall, a good batch of rookies. I think overall they may seem weaker than any previous class, but they're all better than Lucky Cannon and each has something to offer and each has the opportunity to win this thing.

 

[MisterRob]

I've seen countless people here say that Johnny Curtis is the clear winner. Huh? From someone who has no knowledge of him and hasn't seen a thing of him before the first episode of NXT season 4, based solely on what he did in that first episode he's near the bottom of the list if anything. His promo at the start of the show was the worst of ALL the rookies, his match was okay but nothing at all stood out about him. He's entirely forgettable right now, so I really don't see how he's anywhere near the clear winner. To compare him to Wade Barrett or Kaval from the first two seasons makes no sense based off the first episode.

I think the top three so far are Brodus Clay, merely because he stands out as at least something to watch. Derrick Bateman is another; he had a fine promo at the start of the show (compared to everyone else), he had a good match in the main event and despite losing he still got to show a lot of his ability and he has Daniel Bryan as his pro and was getting over with the crowd. The third is Byron Saxton who I think is the best of the bunch so far and if anything should be the leading candidate after the first episode. He's great on the mic, has great charisma and presence, and has a character that can actually go somewhere unlike others like Curtis, O'Brian and Novak who were entirely forgettable and did nothing memorable at all as characters go. The only thing holding Saxton back might be his in ring ability which I haven't seen yet, but if he's even average then he should be the front runner. It's a shame he's a heel character and that might hold him back with the voting from the WWE Universe, because he's clearly leaps and bounds better then everyone else based off the first episode of NXT.

 

[Mike D]

I agree about Clay, sound of madness.. The guys fcw work is terrible.. His opening promo had one of the most famous lines from Pulp Fiction, " I'm bringing razor blades and lemon juice, ya dig", hahaha.. I mean seriously this is PG wwe and your bringing razor blades??? Maybe others feel differently but I think Saxton is the only interesting guy there. I came across this you tube video from a former WWE developmental guy and I agree with him. He actually beat Regal in a dark match and was gonna be a bodyguard for santino. It seems to be directed at WWE higher ups.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyQfjcSFWh8

Sound, Brodus Clay has been with WWE developmental for roughly 5 years - his short release. He tried out at Deep South wrestling in summer 05 and got hired soon after. Performed under G rilla there.

 

[MoneyMack]

OK- so im kinda disappointed that NXT4 isnt getting much love here on the WZ forums. Looks like anything and everything "NXT4" has been mereged into one thread. Im hoping maybe this could get some discussion on its own. I understand that its a pain in the ass to watch, now that its not on TV anymore. But hopefully some of you watch the show on Youtube like I do.

We've seen 2 weeks of NXT4, and I think there is some real potential on this show, honestly. I really am sick of some of the "challenges" & I wish there was more wrestling- but I dont make the show, I just watch it. The Kareoke thing was horrible, considering "the song" won the challenge- NOT the singer. But whatever. I do like the obstacle course challenge- since it does show actual agility. I digress.

What I want to know is this: Who's gonna win? I'm curious as to who everyone thinks will win this show. Is there someone on the show that you like, but for some reason dont think they can win? Is there someone that you would just like to go away quickly? Basically: Give me some of your predictions on the season.

As for me: I honestly like 5 out of the 6 guys on this show & think they could very well have a future in WWE. I liked the NXT2 guys more then the NXT1 guys & I think the performers continue to get better, as the seasons go by. Not counting the females- sorry. This is obviously MY opinion only.

My favorite to win the show(tho I do like a few of them) is Derrick Bateman. The crowd seems to love him & I think DB being his pro is one of the main reason why. Seems to work the stick pretty well & has charisma & in-ring work to boot! Sure he's pretty small also, but we're seeing more and more of that in WWE recently. I personally think he won the god-awful Kareoke contest AND he also should have won the obstacle course also! Ohhh...the controversy! A re-do? Really?

As for the others:

Johnny Curtis- I think the guy oozes charisma! You can see its in him, I just think he's tryin too hard ritenow & he hasnt shown it ON the actual show yet. Not a fan of his pro tho, unfortunately. But I cant hold that against him. Plus: I can feel his back-story...as I also lost a good friend way to early. The dog-tag tribute on his tights to his fallen friend, actually brought a tear to my eye when he talked about it. Go get 'em Johnny!

Byron Saxton- Like Curtis...tons of charisma in this guy! Obviously has good mic work, seeing as he was a announcer at different times in his career already. Seems to be pretty good in-ring also. Almost is to Masters- what Darren Young was to Cena. See it? I do!

Jacob Novak- Im not sure about this guy just yet. But he obviously has the size that VKM likes. They paired him up with Ziggler(Vickie) so you know he's already got something going for him. Appears he's already tryin to steal the cougar away from Dolph. The seed was planted anyway...

Conor O'Brian- This is the guy I have no love for. When you come out on day one & try to get over as a Rat...you lost me already!! I'm not sure if thats really how he talks- or if he's really running with this "ratboy" type gimmick. Either way- he MUST be eliminated 1st!

Brodus Clay- My goodness! For some reason (havent figured it out yet) I love this big M- F'r!! His "singing" was actually much better then I expected & it was pretty much a guarantee that the big man wasnt hopping over those walls on the obstacle course! I think if they just let this guy suplex the shit out of people in his matches- he could go a long way. Havent gotten much mic-work out of him, but he didnt completely suck, from what I remember in week 1. Definite Nexus Material IMO!

OK- WOW! I took this alot further then I had planned at the start. So- tell me: Who do you love? Who do you hate? Who do you think wins and WHY? Who do you see on RAW or Smackdown after its all said & done. If you have "creative ideas" for people already (Clay in Nexus) please feel free to share

Ready...Set...GO!

 

[Hawkeye]

After the first two episodes,I'm picking Johnny Curtis and not changing my mind. I'm just drawn to him for some reason and want to see him on WWE TV. Everyone else is just eh. Byron's hilarious though. How bout that Brodus Clay? CHEEE!!!!

 

[LSN80]

I think it will come down to Saxton and Bateman. Bateman channeled his inner Kenny Powers beautifully in the backstage submission promo with Bryan, and he seems like a fun loving face. Saxton looks to be a decent heel with a lot of charisma and obvious mic skill, and a good build as well. I think Curtis is a nice dark horse, but the guy with the best pro will win this season. Im saying Bateman wins this because of Bryan's "mentorship."

 

[Parkur]

I'm gonna go ahead and give my pick to saxton, he's very impressive, the only thing I don't like is the fact that he's a face, while his personality screams heel

 

[Darin Zion]

Well since two faces have won back to back; I cannot see Bateman winning NXT. Something tells me that Conor O' Brian will win NXT. IDK why, but something about him screams Wade Barrett winner to me. He oozes charisma (shockingly) and he has the best pro (status wise) with him. However, if I had a random pick, it'd be Jacob Novak. They seem to be using Novak as Vickie's eye candy. If they do this; they could have a Novak/Vickie relationship and give Dolph Ziggler an easy way to break free of Vickie and fall in love with Katlyn from Season 3. But IDK yet. I see the elminations as follows:

Saxton (they don't seem to be taking him seriously)
Johnny Curtis (another one they don't seem to be taking seriously and could do the Husky Harris elmination in anger)
Brodus Clay (Ted will probably hire him on as a body guard)
Connor or Jacob (whoever's not going to win NXT will get axed here)
Derrick Bateman

 

[cm ben]

Well, I hope I don't get in trouble for this post, because it might not be a useful addition to this discussion. Then again, this is NXT we're talking about, so I don't see the mods being too stringent...

On nxt.wwe.com I cannot see any videos with Conor O' Brian. Does this happen to anyone else? Every other video will load except for ones in which he is fighting a match or talking backstage. Is this a cOnSpIrAcY? Does WWE not want us to see O' Brian's videos as a way to fool us not into voting for him? Or... is it a glitch in the website?

The only video of him that will load for me is his very first introduction video. He actually seems pretty cool and imposing there, and he only briefly and jokingly talks in that rat voice. Why, oh why, did he decide to start doing that full-time? Very peculiar...

 

[Serious Jones]

Jacob Novak's on his way out next week. If everything stays the way it's been going, Conor O'Brien is next. That gets rid of the dead weight, as any of the other four could possibly win. I think by then, the rookies will have established themselves more, so I don't feel like I can accurately predict past the second cut. I'll guess that Byron Saxton will be the third guy eliminated, but I think he'll establish his character more by the time the third round of eliminations come around, which might stave off his elimination until later. It'll be interesting to see who goes after Novak and O'Brien are gone.

My personal favorites are Derrick Bateman and Brodus Clay. Clay's got the look, and he seems like he might be able to be a convincing monster in the ring. We saw the crowd tonight on Clay's side against DiBiase, so I won't say monster heel. He could definitely be a face. He seems to enjoy being in front of the audience, so that will work in his favor. Derrick Bateman seems to enjoy himself out there too, and that's infectious. He has that Santino quality, where he doesn't take himself too seriously, but can still get it done in the ring. I wouldn't be surprised or upset if these are the last two.

 

[Mike D]

I'm picking Johnny Curtis for the win. At roughly 6'7" I believe wwe is behind Novak so I don't see him going too soon. Saxton is ok, but just too ordinary for WWE to be that interested in pushing. Clay seems to have the fans behind him. I don't see much and having the weakest or second weakest punch out of the group destroyed any credibility as a bodyguard, to me. Why would anyone fear him? Saxton hits harder, lol...and he's obviously faster. The guy uses lines directly from movies.. Just not special..and if you can't stand up and go your self then what's the sense of another bodyguard? Bateman is just very ordinary to me too.. Lots of these guys just look like indy wrestlers.. O brien with the rat voice or act just falls flat.

 

[Darin Zion]

I'm picking Clay to win the entire thing now. The way WWE pushed him at the end of this last episode and the way they're pushing him with his suplexes; he's the only one of the rookies that'll benefit from winning because it could give him a nice heel run over on Raw. Johnny Curtis (provided he doesn't get immunity next week) should be the first to go. He's just seemed like he's not there (like Lucky was in Season 2). He has the talent, but honestly, the kid needs to get the crowd behind him. Novak's the guy that'll get an instant job. He may not have charima, but shit, Vickie's getting her retribution. He'll be one of the last four in the competition. Byron Saxton's probably going the second elmination. Connor O Brien seems to me good in the ring and would be a good Nexus recruit, but he's too corny. I see nothing but an elmination from him next week. And finally, I expect Bateman to pull off MANY immunity wins this season. Why? I think Bateman's gimmick's going to be the same as Daniel Bryan's. He'll pull off the "shocking rise to the top" gimmick and win immunity, but lose challenges. This'll allow him to get to the final two, but ultimately he'll lose to Clay.

 

[The Eighties]

First elimination this week, my money is on either the rat guy or Novak. Regardless of what happens though I reckon Brodus, Curtis and Bateman will make the main roster in 2011.

 

[#Britton#]

My thoughts on the rookies so far

Jacob Novak- Glad this guy is gone tbh, i never really saw much in him, just another generic big guy, except he didnt look intimidating. He was poor on the mic and sloppy in the ring, he needs to go back to fcw and sharpen up

Conor O'Brian- I'm on the fence with this guy, up until last week i didnt care for him one bit, i found the rat gimick annoying and cheesy (no pun intended). But he entertained me this week, he did well on the mic and the crowd got behind him. I dont see much in his future as he's average in the ring and average on the mic, but to be fair he has his moments. I can see him being a comedy mid carder perhaps with a tag title reign

Byron Saxton- I'm quite fond of him, whilst he isnt the best in the ring he is still put on a half decent match and he has lots of time to improve. However his mic work is very good, he comes off naturally cocky, and seemed over with the crowd. Switching pros will do him the world of good.

Johnny Curtis- All I see is McGillicutty version 2, A nice look, good in ring work and average on the mic. (also he's very good at the challenges but thats a moot point). But he lacks the IT factor, until recently he had no crowd reaction what so ever, and i find he cant get me to care about him. (if someone here feels differently please speak up, i would like to here what you have to say) But he just needs to find a gimmick that suits him. Like Cody Rhodes i found him bland and unintresting until his dashing gimmick.

Brodus Clay- I can easily see him in the final. For a big guy he has good in ring work, his moves look impactful and he looks scary as fuck whilst doing it THe crowd doesnt know how to react to him either, one week there cheering for him to kick teds skull in, next the're booing the shit out of him as he's ploughing Curtis threw the table. Once again he is average on the mic, but he keeps me intrested and doesnt bore me.

Derrick Bateman- Now this guy i am high on, im a sucker for a funny guy. Bateman is very good, very natural and very funny on the mic. His backstage segments with Bryan are brilliant. Clearly the wwe likes them as they are happening every week. Batemans is good enough on the mic to win nxt and move on up the card. But his in ring work could use some work. Now im not saying that he is bad, there is just room for improvement. The one thing i want to see from Bateman is a serious side, if you look at the main event over the years. You will see very funny guys like Y2j, Hbk, hhh, the rock so on and so forth. That have the crowd in stiches, however they are always able to get serious when the time calls for it. And if Bateman wants to reach main event (in the years to come, he is very green at the moment) he needs to have a serious side.

I either see bateman or Brodus winning nxt this season, but both need a bit more character development if they want to make it in the wwe