Should NXT be a two hour show?

[Dave]

Pretty simple question really.

I don't think I am alone when I say that NXT is a little gem in the play book of the WWE. It's superstars are talented, it's storylines are worth watching and the overall product just seems like a better "wrestling" show than Raw or Smackdown.

But with NXT only being a one hour show, I don't think it gets to showcase everything that NXT superstars have to offer. Sure, the top stars are getting their fair share of the time but what about people lowed down the card? You often hear about the likes of Balor, Owens, Zayn and Neville. But I think there is a lot more room to talk about those further down the car, if NXT were a two hour show.

The advantage of a two hour show is obvious, it gets the superstars used to working longer matches and gives everyone a better chance of getting some air time. But the downside is that it might dilute the product. Or it might even show some of the gaps in the NXT roster.

What do you think, should it happen? Could it?

 

[MCMG]

Part of me says yes, part says no. Firstly, I love the current format. It doesn't take up too much time and the show doesn't drag on. The counter to that is, of course, that I enjoy watching wrestling so more of it can't be a bad thing.

The problem that could arise from two hours is the show falls in quality. Or, indeed, some of the wrestlers become overexposed. Now we see the right amount of each. I think Enzo and Big Cass are an example of that. Going two hours, however, may give opportunities to wrestlers who have never wrestled before. For example, I'm interested in seeing Hugo Knox (the guy who used to be a professional footballer) but what chance does he have against guys like Owens, Zayn, Balor, Itami and co. Two hours might let him appear once every so often.

Then if NXT did go two hours, what happens when this (golden) generation goes up. Owens, Zayn, Balor, Itami, Neville, Charlotte, Banks among others all leave and, very quickly, two hours might seem torturous. Then the WWE and Triple H would have a huge problem in growing NXT as a brand.

While I do enjoy watching NXT, one hour a week is the right amount. It ensures everything is done with precision; there is absolutely zero filler and it is easy/enjoyable to watch.

 

[Navi]

Part of the reason NXT works so well and the flagship show doesn't is the amount of TV they have. You might think that only having an hour would make NXT a crappy show, but it outshines RAW almost every week.

On NXT the matches including the Diva's are given the time to showcase their talents, and while it may limit some wrestler's getting air time it's okay right now. The wrestler's we see the most are the ones who hopefully will move up sooner rather than later. Then the next batch will be able to show what they have.

Someone once actually timed the wrestling that happens on RAW, and it turned out to be just over an hour. The rest was filler. I would much rather have a one hour show totally dedicated to good matches, than watch 2 hours of promo's for an upcoming B PPV.

The only issue I have is the length of time it takes for wrestlers to move to the main roster. Neville should have already gone, Charlotte, Lucha Dragons, Zayn and maybe Owens might be next. I can understand Itami staying in NXT until he gets the language down. If they can move some up then we'll get to see what the others have to offer.

 

[HBK89Bill]

I've thought about this before.

I think the fact that it is only an hour every week is actually it's biggest strength in presentation. The roster is a decent size and I have no doubt that it could make a two hour show. The strength of it only being an hour is I want more of it at the end of that hour every week. Only having an hour gives it focus on specific things for that week. Having all these alternating stories on different weeks is perfect because when a PPV, or a Special finally happens it feels big. It feels great because we get that two hour fix and pay off of the stories. I think it being two hours every week would change that. Not to mention that the powers that be want to give NXT the "development" feel so having it at an hour makes sense.

 

[@smarkmouth]

With NXT touring out of Full Sail this coming year, I see this as a very real possibility. The problem now is they batch 2-4 tapings together, so they can't plausibly ask fans to watch 4-8 hours of wrestling. I don't know if they will continue batch tapings outside of FSU, or if each NXT will be in a different venue. If the latter, I expect NXT will pull the two hour trigger.

Of course, that's not the topic. I'm not worried for NXT if they go to the two hour format. You could argue that talents might get over exposed, but right now a huge part the critical success in NXT lies in it's creative. Personally, I think that NXT creative would be able to keep up with the two hour format, not being bogged down by some of the challenges major network TV faces (such as segments devoted to product plugs).

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Someone started a thread like this a few months back, maybe right about the end of the year.

On one hand, the NXT formula for 1 hour seems to be working just fine. Triple H has shown that he knows how to consistently use the limited time that he's got and makes the most of it. That's not to say that every single segment is gold or every match is an epic of course, but everything that happens actually has a purpose instead of filling up air time. Even if it's a squash match, it serves to put over a guy to make him look dominant, the promo segments don't drag on for 20+ minutes at a time, the commentators continuously put over NXT talent and hype the product rather than bicker with each other, etc.

On the other hand, I think everyone is at least curious to see if Triple H can maintain the focus with more time to work with. Earlier this week, both he & Stephanie were elected to the WWE Board of Directors, meaning that neither of them are just high level executives, they're among THE highest level executives in the company and it's a step forward for them ultimately taking over for Vince at some point. Since we all have an idea that Triple H will probably take Vince's position as CEO at some point, we're all left to wonder if Triple H can do what he does in NXT with the main roster. I think in order to definitively answer that question, we'd need to see NXT go to 2 hours. I think that IF Triple H does take over, we'll see Raw going back to 2 hours based on what he said during the podcast interview with Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Personally, I'm opinion that Triple H would be able to continue his working formula with an additional hour and I think it'll be necessary at some point. If he can't do it with NXT, I don't see how he can do it if/when he's ultimately the one making THE final creative decisions on the main roster. After all, if the plan is to eventually make NXT its own touring brand, I think it'd just be the next logical step. Again, IF he takes over, he might even be able to apply it to Main Event and Superstars and make them actually relevant shows that accomplish a purpose instead of featuring throwaway matches featuring lowcard wrestlers.

 

[MC_Live]

The beauty of NXT is its simplicity. The more product you put out, the less impactful it will be. I think one of the best parts of the show is that you can go several weeks without seeing certain guys. One week we'll see Adrain Neville and Kevin Owens, and the next we get Itami and Bálor. Expanding the show I think would be detrimental. Just look at RAW and SmackDown. 5 hours of TV a week and its 5 hours of shit a week. Making NXT longer would just devalue everything we see. Also, it's much easier to digest 1 hour a week. It's quick and easy. Even two hours a week is a lot to commit to for some people. I say if it ain't broke, don't fix it. And NXT may be the only thing in the entire WWE that isn't broke.

 

[PeterSellersSTL]

No, 1 hour is fine. RAW should be 2 hours. Smackdown should be 1 hour. My argument is always going to be you're on tv 52 weeks a year why do you need more hours?

 

[oldschool123]

No, NXT shouldn't be two hours. The main reason it is so good is that one hour doesn't allow for a lot of fluff that doesn't contribute to the product. NXT is great but if it goes to two hours they'll end up with a lot of the same problems that the main roster product has.

 

[Dagger Dias]

NXT in its current form, as the developmental territory for WWE, should NOT go to a 2 hour format. The roster is not large enough to justify having it go 2 hours. Part of what makes NXT so great is that they provide you with good content then keep you wanting to see more. Raw and Smackdown keep getting stuck showing similar matches so often due to how long the shows are. They run out of potential matchups making no potential match really feel as special anymore. Do you really want to see NXT end up like that? I don't. If it ever does becomes its own brand equal to Raw yet separate, then yes it should go to 2 hours. Until that happens, NXT is 100% fine the way it is. 1 hour weekly leaving you always wanting more, and 2 hours for the special TakeOver events.

 

[TheICChampion]

Someone started a thread like this a few months back, maybe right about the end of the year.

Yeah, that was me.

Look, I'm still all for the two hours. Sometimes I find myself forgetting about certain superstars, and with the recent additions as of late of Rhyno and THE Brian Kendrick, I don't see why they shouldn't. Or how about the time getting split with the first hour showcasing just the "rookies" against each other and the second hour features main roster or former main roster talent against the NXT superstars? I know we kind of see that already but not a whole hour dedicated to it. What about some NXT alumni like Rusev or Bo Dallas coming back every now and then? I know the argument that there's way too many hours of WWE during the week anyway but I think it's a good way to see if Triple H can handle consistently running a 2 hour show a week for when he takes over.