NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn II (2016): The Night NXT Proved Its First Brooklyn Show Was No Fluke

Aries gives No Way Jose his most substantial TakeOver test by forcing the energetic character into a more serious match than his entrance suggests. Jose uses the crowd well and finds enough athletic offense to create several believable openings, while Aries repeatedly slows him with sharper positioning and veteran aggression. The Last Chancery becomes the obvious danger throughout the closing stretch, and Aries eventually secures the submission cleanly. The match itself is good rather than remarkable, but the post-match angle adds value when Aries reapplies the hold and Hideo Itami arrives. Itami finally hitting the GTS in an NXT ring produces a huge reaction and instantly creates a new direction. As an opener, the segment succeeds by establishing stakes, giving Jose credibility, and moving Aries toward something more important.

The match exists to introduce Ember Moon, and it wisely does not pretend to be more complicated than that. Billie Kay gets enough early control to keep Moon from looking like she is simply performing a move exhibition, while Moon's speed and body language establish a different presence from the rest of the women's division. The audience is waiting for the finish from the moment Moon climbs the ropes, and the Eclipse immediately delivers the visual WWE wants. The bout is too short to develop a real competitive story, which limits the score, but it succeeds completely as a debut vehicle. Moon leaves with a signature move, a distinctive presentation, and a strong crowd reaction. That is more useful than forcing ten minutes of artificial drama into her first major appearance.

Roode's entrance nearly overshadows the match before the bell, which is both a blessing and the central challenge of the bout. The crowd sings along with "Glorious" and treats him like an established superstar, while Almas has to win attention back through increasingly athletic offense. Almas' springboard movement and corkscrew dive create the most dynamic sequences, and Roode responds with veteran timing, a spinebuster, and a more deliberate pace. The closing pumphandle slam gives Roode a clean victory without requiring Almas to look overwhelmed. As wrestling, it is a good midcard match rather than a TakeOver classic. As a star introduction, it is highly successful. Roode's presentation is instantly clear, while Almas shows flashes of the talent that will become much more effective after his later character change.

The Revival, Gargano, and Ciampa build a tag match around increasingly desperate attempts to make one clean tag or one final save. Dawson and Wilder control with classic heel positioning, cutting off the ring and repeatedly punishing Gargano's leg, while the challengers use speed and explosive combinations whenever they escape. The crowd believes multiple false finishes because every near fall follows a logical breakdown rather than random move trading. A missed tag, a foot on the rope, and frantic saves keep the tension climbing without making the referee look incompetent. The finish is perfect for the champions: Wilder attacks Gargano's injured leg, Dawson traps him in the inverted figure-four, and Gargano finally submits. The Revival retain while the challengers leave feeling like inevitable future champions. It is elite tag-team wrestling.

Asuka and Bayley improve on their Dallas dynamic by making Bayley far more willing to meet the champion's aggression directly. Bayley survives the Asuka Lock, answers the champion's strikes with increasingly defiant offense, and creates a believable moment when the Bayley-to-Belly nearly produces the title change. Asuka never loses her aura, however, and the final sequence turns into a striking exchange that ends with repeated kicks and a clean pin. The result is decisive without making Bayley look diminished. What follows matters almost as much as the match: Asuka leaves, and Brooklyn gives Bayley a prolonged standing ovation as she embraces familiar faces at ringside and says goodbye to NXT. The wrestling is excellent; the farewell transforms it into one of the show's defining emotional moments.

Nakamura's violin-assisted entrance gives the main event enormous atmosphere before Joe even reaches the ring. Once the match begins, Joe tries to ground the challenger with submissions, power, and increasingly violent strikes, while Nakamura keeps returning to knees and sudden bursts of offense. The pace is deliberate early and grows more compelling as both men survive signature attacks. Joe's Muscle Buster produces the best near fall, and Nakamura's first Kinshasa fails to finish the champion, forcing another escalation. A final sequence of knees ends with Nakamura landing the decisive Kinshasa and winning the title cleanly. The match is not as intricate as the tag-title bout, but it delivers the championship moment the show needs. Nakamura's celebration feels like the arrival of NXT's next central star.