 Natalya def. Sarah LoganLogan's new look makes her look like one of those hippies from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood who has taken a shower in at least a week. In short, I'm not a fan of whatever this gimmick is supposed to be. Natalya doesn't interest me much, either, so I can't say I found this match terribly exciting. It was well wrestled and I liked Logan's intensity, but it was a fairly basic bout otherwise. I assume both of these ladies will go back to trading victories on Main Event now that Survivor Series season is over. No Way Jose def. Eric YoungYoung's pink gear was... interesting. Nothing against the color pink, but it felt like a weird fit for Young, unless he was paying tribute to his fellow Canadian Bret Hart. At any rate, I didn't have high hopes for this, but they wound up surprising me by producing a fun little match. The crowd was into it and they made the most of the time they had. Jose's victory won't amount to anything, of course, but I appreciated that they exceeded expectations.
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 Seth Rollins Addressed the Raw RosterRollins ran down everyone who represented Raw at Survivor Series and sparred no one. What's funny is that he acted exactly the same way he has on social media and in interviews for months. Crowds have been booing him for a while, so it's great WWE seems to be finally taking the appropriate steps toward turning him heel at long last. It's the role he's most comfortable in. Owens hitting him with a Stunner successfully set them up to do battle later on in the evening. Bobby Lashley def. Titus O'Neil by DisqualificationI honestly forgot O'Neil was a member of the Raw roster. I can't remember the last televised match he had (random Battle Royals aside). Thankfully, the match was a minute long and ended once Rusev interfered. I've wrote many times about how much this storyline with Lashley, Lana and Rusev sucks, but this was the easily the best angle they've run yet. Rusev came across as intense and the crowd was hot for his attack on Lashley.
 Kickoff: Robert Roode and Dolph Ziggler Won a Cross-Branded Tag Team Battle RoyalThis was basically the Battle Royal equivalent to the Gauntlet match we got with most of these same teams for the WWE World Cup at Crown Jewel three weeks ago. In other words, it was completely pointless. NXT didn't have the strongest showing, as The Forgotten Sons, Imperium and Breezango were eliminated fairly quickly, but at least Street Profits lasted until the end. I would have liked to see them win, but I assume Roode and Ziggler will be challenging SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day soon enough. Kickoff: NXT Cruiserweight Champion Lio Rush def. Kalisto and Akira Tozawa in a Triple Threat MatchNo reason was provided as to why Tozawa and Kalisto were randomly put in contention for the NXT Cruiserweight Championship, aside from how all three are from separate brands and WWE needed another match on the Kickoff show. That said, this was a treat while it lasted. Rush, Kalisto and Tozawa delivered and obviously there was no reason for Rush to drop the title to either of them (even though I'm sure Kalisto and Tozawa both wish they were back in NXT with him).
 Kickoff: Angel Garza def. Isiah "Swerve" ScottInterestingly enough, in the five-plus years TakeOver specials have been a thing, we have never gotten a match on the Kickoff show until now. Maybe because they felt four matches on the card was too little and wanted to include the Cruiserweights? Regardless of the reason, this was fun. Both guys have been killing it lately on NXT TV, so I was surprised it was as rough as it was at certain points. Garza winning was the right call as his feud with NXT Cruiserweight Champion Lio Rush clearly isn't over yet. Team Ripley (Rhea Ripley and Candice LeRae) def. Team Baszler (NXT Women's Champion Shayna Baszler, NXT UK Women's Champion Kay Lee Ray, Io Shirai and Bianca Belair) in a WarGames MatchI loved almost everything about this as I don't think it could've been executed any better. The early goings were solid, but once it was Dakota Kai's turn to hit the ring, she instead turned on Tegan Nox and viciously targeted her previously injured knees. We all saw the heel turn coming from a mile away (especially after Mia Yim was found laid out backstage beforehand and had to be replaced by Kai), but I was shocked it happened when it did. The rest of the match saw the babyfaces battle back successfully while taking a ton of punishment from heels. These ladies did some insane spots and further proved why NXT has the strongest women's division of any other at the moment. It was slightly unrealistic that they'd overcome the four-on-two odds, but it didn't bother me that much. Plus, Ripley pinning Baszler should set her up for a shot at the NXT Women's Championship sometime soon. My only other nitpick of this was that I would preferred to see it slotted as the main event of the show (though I understand why it wasn't due to the reveal of Team Ciampa's fourth man). What a fantastic piece of storytelling this was.
 Rhea Ripley def. Charlotte Flair and Sasha Banks in a Triple Threat MatchSmackDown and Raw's female Survivor Series teams encountered each other, only for Team NXT to join the fray. By the way, we now know Team NXT will officially consist of Ripley, Tegan Nox, Mia Yim, Candice LeRae and Toni Storm. Yes, Storm randomly returned after months of inactivity and is apparently apart of NXT despite still being a member of the NXT UK roster. It was pleasant surprise to see her, but I just think Dakota Kai would have made more sense, especially since she's been a regular on SmackDown as of late, anyway. The match wasn't as great as it had the potential to be due to all the shenanigans going on around ringside, but it was solid for what it was. I loved that Ripley pinned Flair for the victory and the finish was creative. Undisputed Era def. SmackDown Tag Team Champions The New Day and Heavy MachineryBefore this bout, Undisputed Era confronted Shinsuke Nakamura and Sami Zayn, who revealed the brand-new design for the Intercontinental Championship. It's a beautifully looking title, but I'm heartbroken as I've always been partial to the classic white strap. The eight-man tag team match that followed was fun and received an ample amount of time. Undisputed Era going over was the right call and I loved that the AJ Styles vs. Nakamura vs. Roderick Strong Triple Threat at Survivor Series received some extra attention afterward with their brawl. I was looking forward to it regardless, but there had been zero build to it prior to this point.
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