Best shows to watch on the WWE Network: December 23rd-December 30th

#1 NXT: December 26th, 2018

Four of NXT's best and brightest opened the year-ending show

Just like NXT UK, NXT avoided having a best of show that 205 Live opted for. Instead, we were given an NXT Tag Team Championship match, along with Fatal-4-Way Match to determine the next challenger for Shayna Baszler's NXT Women's Championship.

We opened the show with the Fatal-4-Way, which featured four stars who have yet to face off against Baszler. Mae Young Classic finalist Io Shirai looked to make her mark at the end of the year in order to start off 2019 on top.

Lacey Evans, soon to be called up to the main roster, attempted to cement her NXT run with a title reign before debuting on Raw or SmackDown Live next year.

Mia Yim, another signee from the Mae Young Classic, has had a great run thus far in NXT. Yim has quickly become a fan favorite of the NXT Universe. Shockingly enough, she already holds one loss on her record thanks to the final competitor in the match, NXT's Est. Bianca Belair.

Belair is perhaps the most beloved female competitor on NXT. Between her great entrance song and her undefeated streak, fans have gravitated towards her.

This match featured a great mix of styles. The high flying ability of Io Shirai was incredibly eye-catching, while Mia Yim's technical prowess and Bianca Belair's impressive strength helped keep her in the game, even against more experienced foes.

Lacey Evans proved just how maniacal, yet methodical, she could be here, proving just how great of a villain she could be. Evans took all the shortcuts possible here, attacking enemies from behind and using distractions to her advantage. This Fatal-4-Way was a great representation of what the future holds for the WWE's Women's division.

We got a break in between the two big matches with a bout between Mitch Taverna and the leader of the Forgotten Sons, Jaxson Ryker.

Ryker ran through his physically impressive foe here and was just too much force for Taverna to handle. A pop-up one-handed spinebuster took Taverna out early, allowing Ryker to play with him for a few minutes. The slingshot powerbomb finished Taverna, leaving Ryker successful yet again.

The main event between the Undisputed Era and Heavy Machinery was fantastic. Really, both of these teams are just incredible in their own rights. Heavy Machinery may not be technically superior to most teams they'll face on the main roster, but my God are they entertaining.

Though they were definitely the underdogs in terms of size, the striking prowess of Kyle O'Reilly and Roderick Strong never put them in a disadvantageous situation. Tucker Knight and Otis Dozovic were huge tanks that the Undisputed Era needed to chip away at, and that meant winning the battle mentally.

NXT ended the year right here, with an impressive fight between UE and Heavy Machinery. Heavy Machinery will be moving up to the main roster soon enough, and with a match like this, we saw why they were called up.