Wade Keller, Torch Editor (7.5)

Good start to the new season. They focused on a few key season two contestants and their personalities stuck. They also built up some dynamics between Pros and Rookies that should be fun to watch over the next 12 weeks develop. I don't get at all acknowledging the family lineage of Hennig and Rotunda while not addressing the proverbial pink elephant which is why they don't use those names but instead are using cartoonish names... The handling of the previous night's big angle on Raw gets an A- from me. They made it seem like a big deal, as out of the ordinary week to week typical WWE happenings. I wasn't crazy about the Pros beating down the Rookies at the end as some sort of message tied to how the season one Rookies acted the night before. But there were no high-crimes that hurt the angle the night before, and largely what they did really sent the message that there's a huge buzz and pending major fallout from their actions. Let's see what they have in store for us on Monday. There's pressure to deliver right now because fan expectations are high that the next chapter is a good one.

Dominick Mayer, PWTorch.com Contributor (6.5)

It feels a little strange to start a new season using the end of Raw as a major prompt. The problem is that audiences are now going to wonder if all the NXT people are fated to become heels, or at least their own faction, despite the feuds established on the show. This having been said, this is a good start. The focus on characters is a major change needed from season one. Then again, they started strong then, and we know how that turned out.

The big thing is going to be eliminating the Legends of the Hidden Temple games and actually establishing the Rookies as legitimate wrestlers deserving of a roster spot. It'll be interesting to see in the first few weeks how much crossover is done with the season one Rookies and their storyline. A twelve-week season is also another really good step; there's legitimate drama when from week three onward, people are getting eliminated. One last note: Kaval could be awesome, but I really worry about where the LayCool storyline is headed.

Greg Parks, Torch Columnist (6.5)

The introduction of the rookies by the pros to start the show was a good way to kick off season two, but too many of the rookies had that "too excited to be here" air about them, jumping up and down like they were wrestling on their first indy show. The opening tag match was what it was, but what really stood out for me was just how limited Eli Cottonwood is. I get that they want to bring up a guy like him for his size, but they're going to have to mask his lack of ability inside the squared circle.

Alex Riley looks like a star in the making, and he has a good gimmick. I wonder why they didn't bring him up when he was doing house shows and dark matches at TV tapings a year ago. The second tag match was slightly better than the first, though you could tell the rookies were experiencing some nervousness. The pros beat-down at the end adds another layer to the season one mystery and raises a lot of questions for the immediate future of the pro-rookie relationships in season two.

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