Would more NXT television mean better NXT television? If you’re WWE, the answer is reportedly, “probably.”
While the conversation’s been happening internally for a while now, Ye Olde Observer is reporting that there are now serious talks about expanding NXT’s one-hour weekly television show into something more; either as a 90-minute show, a full two-hour show, or two one-hour shows if NXT gets a one-hour spot on broadcast TV if the Fox deal turns out to be as good as they’re hoping.
Most of the expansion talk has to do with how many people NXT currently has signed to its roster, which seems to go up by at least a handful every time there’s a TakeOver. There are even angles on NXT TV right now about there being so many new stars, the guys who were signed too early have already been pushed to the back of the line.
As a longtime NXT fan, the “pro” column for an expanded broadcast is that I’d get more of the thing I like.
NXT does an incredible job of packing material into its one-hour show, so I’d be hopeful that a 90-minute or even two-hour version wouldn’t see a notable decrease in quality. That said, they already do such a good job with the one-hour that expanding could ruin their whole “necessity is the mother of invention” vibe, as time expansions rarely go over well for wrestling shows. Nitro going to three hours certainly wasn’t necessary and hurt the product, and Raw clearly has no idea how to fill three hours with one of the most packed and talented rosters in the history of the sport. I think two one-hour shows is the best idea, as it would give us more of the product without making us have to see the same characters and stories on every episode.
You’d be surprised how much taking a week off from an angle or persona can help you enjoy them when they show up again.
What do you think? Is the NXT expansion a good idea, or a bad one? Has NXT earned our good faith and optimism? I think so. Has WWE? Probably not.
