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WWE TLC Disappoints, Cannot Match NXT Takeover

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By @sdmeyers1

Dolph Ziggler Luke Harper

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Last Thursday, NXT hosted its pay-per-view style event, titled Takeover: R Evolution. Just three days later, WWE presented its annual pay-per-view, TLC. Despite the best efforts from many of the performers, TLC failed to match up to the NXT offering.

While Takeover: R Evolution lived up to the hype as one of the best wrestling shows of the year, TLC must be considered among the biggest disappointments of 2014, in large part due to the mediocre storylines and overbearing impact of the creative team.

Throughout the event, the performers put their bodies on the line in a number of brutal matches. The competitors did everything in their power to provide an entertaining show, but many of the matches lacked a big fight feel. This stems from the very limited time from Survivor Series to TLC to build rivalries and garner the interest of the WWE Universe.

Additionally, with WWE World Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar again absent and top stars like Randy Orton and Daniel Bryan out of action, star power was sorely lacking for TLC. Even though the WWE has been slowly elevating individuals like Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Erick Rowan, Bray Wyatt and Ryback, many of them cannot match the appeal of established main-event stars at this juncture. Subsequently, neither of the two main events, John Cena against Rollins and Ambrose versus Wyatt, truly felt like contests deserving of top billing.

Furthermore, several of the matches at TLC were subjected to overbooking. This means that the creative team used too many twists and turns, such as outside interference, to determine the outcome of a match. Conversely, Takeover: R Evolution was comprised entirely of bouts with clean finishes, where one superstar or diva proved superiority without outside factors.

Unfortunately, these issues often counteracted the efforts of the competitors. Dolph Ziggler and Luke Harper both risked their health as they battled in a brutal ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship. Ambrose and Wyatt did the same in their tables, ladders and chairs match, as did Rollins and Cena in a tables match. Even less skilled in-ring performers like Rowan and The Big Show endured a beating in their stairs match, as did Ryback and Kane in a chairs match.

The frequent use of weapons, though, did not compensate for the weak build-up to the event, and the disappointing finishes to many of the matches.

Next month, the WWE begins the road to WrestleMania, starting with the Royal Rumble. In order to avoid another letdown, the WWE should look to NXT for a blueprint of how to deliver a tremendous show.

Sean Meyers is a professional wrestling writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter and “Like” him on Facebook.

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