Some big moments have occurred at the Takeover specials over the past 15 months. We've seen the debuts of Hideo Itami and Kevin Owens. We've seen fantastic matches and titles change hands. Nothing, though, compared to Samoa Joe coming out at the end of the night on Wednesday night.
Yes, arguably the biggest fish in the independent pond, Samoa Joe, has finally made his way to WWE. He showed up at the end of NXT Takeover: Unstoppable, to confront Kevin Owens. Owens, who once again had injured Zayn and caused a non-finish in their match, had continued trying to go after Zayn. This brought out several refs, and eventually NXT GM William Regal to try to stop him. It looked like nobody would until an oddly distorted version of the Godzilla theme played over the loudspeakers, and Samoa Joe came out. Joe made his way to the ring and stared down Owens, who was forced to back his way up the ramp as chants of "Joe's gonna kill you" rang from the crowd.
Arguably the biggest part of Joe showing up was that he was able to keep his name. No wrestler since CM Punk was able to keep his name from the indies, and it shows how important bringing Samoa Joe in was to the WWE. Any fan who, rightfully I should add, was wary of how he would be treated should be at least somewhat less concerned now that it's apparent how badly the WWE wanted him. To let him keep his name, even if he had to sign over the rights or something similar, shows that they are willing to run with him, and run hard.
I doubt we're going to see Joe in NXT very long. He's already 36, and the company knows the clock is ticking on how long he has left. He will probably have the feud with Owens and then make his way to the main roster. It wouldn't shock me if he debuted at the RAW after Summerslam, or even at Summerslam itself. The match possibilities seem endless. He can have new matches with the likes of John Cena, Randy Orton or Roman Reigns, or face wrestlers he has in the past on a bigger stage, like Seth Rollins or Cesaro. If Joe is motivated, he could get a great run in a short time.
With Joe now in the fold, the only question besides how he'll be used is who is next to make the jump to WWE. Adam Cole, AJ Styles, Young Bucks, Briscoes ... that question turns to you now.
The rest of NXT Takeover: Unstoppable
-Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch put on what might have been the best women's match in NXT history. For anyone who has been paying attention to NXT, that's a lofty statement. They meshed perfectly in the ring. The match was also something that is rare to see from women, a combination of high impact moves and submission tactics. The match flowed very nicely, and both women came off looking like stars. Adding the little bit of walking backstage before they got to the entrance was an extremely nice touch. Put everything together and you get what was unquestionably the match of the night, even if it was upstaged by Joe's appearance at the end.
-Blake and Murphy retained their tag titles against Enzo and Cass. It was a back and forth match and it looked like the Realest Guys in the Room would pull out the win. Then, in a rather surprising turn, Alexa Bliss came out and attacked Carmella, distracting Cass and allowing Blake and Murphy to take advantage to pin Enzo. While they had set this up in prior episodes, I think most people, myself included, expected Carmella to be the one to turn. Alexa going heel and joining Blake and Murphy was a surprise, though one that should help everyone involved in the long run.
-Finn Balor beat Tyler Breeze to become No. 1 contender. Of course, Balor's entrance was a highlight, though I don't think many expected that Breeze's entrance would nearly equal his in entertainment. Balor once again one in a good match, which puts him yet again in an awkward position. Just like when he won at the last Takeover, the champion Owens has a feud already. If Balor gets his shot, it's hard to see it getting the attention it deserves, especially if it will be conducted like it was last time where he just got a match midway between Takeovers. It's why I'm a little surprised he won here, just because it was lining up to be so similarly. I wonder if Hideo Itami was supposed to win before his injury. Speaking of his injury, they did add a storyline dynamic to it, where he was found in the parking lot after being attacked. Kevin Owens walked by and said, "That's a shame." While they're alluding to Owens being the guy, I'm not sure if that's the way they'll go, as Owens will likely be on the main roster by the time Itami returns.
-Charlotte and Bayley beat Dana Brooke and Emma. The finish of this was a little awkward, both because it was a little convoluted, with Bayley sliding under Charlotte and Dana while Dana stood there waiting, and also because the finish involved Charlotte and Emma. The match was built around the feud between Bayley and Emma, so for Charlotte to carry the match and the finish for that team felt odd. It wasn't a bad match by any stretch, it just didn't feel like the grudge match it had been built to up to this point.
-Baron Corbin beat Rhyno in a hard-hitting match. There was nothing overly notable about this match, except that the fans have started to turn on Corbin, chanting in support of Rhyno and including "Corbin sucks." It was only a matter of time before his squashes wore thin, and it seems like Corbin is going to have to work through that now.
Thoughts? Questions? Leave them in the comment section, email me or find me on Twitter: @TheAOster. You can also hear me on my podcast, Jobbing Out.