‘WWE NXT’ Review (May 27th 2020)
Welcome to this week’s NXT review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and Johnny Bababooey can kiss my ass. That little prick has been nipping at my heels since he learned that you can order pizza over the phone. His momma stuck her stomach in the microwave to make the third trimester go faster. If I have to listen to him talk about Grease 2 anymore I’m gonna hurl. Son of a b—-! I…am writing the wrong thing to the wrong people. I really wish this delete button worked. I wrote my parole officer about a new job opportunity and she said “Blow-jobs are not real jobs.” I asked her why she said that and her reply was “I think your pimp and I have the same last name.” Now, I’m under house arrest. Well, at least it’s more time to review wrestling.
Match #1: Drake Maverick def. KUSHIDA and Jake Atlas – Finalist For The Interim NXT Cruiserweight Title
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Drake Maverick again stunned the NXT Universe, albeit this time with some controversy. Replays revealed that Maverick pinned Kushida for the three-count a split-second after Jake Atlas tapped to Kushida’s armbar, but the original ruling stood. Later in the evening, Kushida showed Maverick his respect, urging the underdog to go win one more and become champion.
My Opinion: 3.3 out of 5 – This was a real snappy sort of scrap. There were several instances in this match actually having action sequences where this trio fought each other simultaneously. It’s hard to think of a Triple Threat match and not compare it to the Unbreakable X-Division Title match, but seeing that this match began to touch that benchmark on a few occasions was pretty cool. Drake winning was great, considering that he was fired (then again, maybe not).
Match #2: Johnny Gargano def. Adrian Alanis – Johnny Gargano Invitational
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Johnny Gargano offered up-and-comer Adrian Alanis what he called a golden opportunity, but it proved to be little more than an opportunity for Gargano to bully the young Superstar. But Johnny Wrestling didn’t have the last laugh, as Keith Lee and Mia Yim poked fun at the Garganos with a dinner party of their own.
My Opinion: 1.6 out of 5 – This was a f—— squash. Patrick McGoohan looks good with a beard.
Match #3: Raquel González def. Shotzi Blackheart
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
What was supposed to be a one-on-one encounter nearly devolved into an all-out melee between multiple adversaries. Tegan Nox came to ringside to try to thwart Dakota Kai’s attempts to interfere on her enforcer’s behalf, but Kai still left her mark, assisting in Raquel González’s victory while the referee was distracted by Nox’s confrontation with Candice LeRae.
My Opinion: 2.8 out of 5 – There were things in here I liked, little things, but the match suffered from over-booking and the like. Shotzi is great at fine details, but her speed is something she either needs to increase or she needs to change her offensive approach (the WWE house style made her look a bit inept at times). Raquel was a mean sucker here and with a bit more time, she might be someone to get thrilled about. For a match that felt like a velvet thumb-tack in the eye, this was about as good as a Velcro stalk of celery that gets stuck in your throat, but with a bit of peanut butter to make it go down smooth.
Match #4: Charlotte Flair & Chelsea Green def. Rhea Ripley & Io Shirai
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Choosing Chelsea Green as her partner paid off for The Queen. Green sacrificed herself in service of Charlotte Flair, pushing her out of the way to eat Io Shirai’s springboard missile dropkick before Shirai inadvertently struck Rhea Ripley moments later. The NXT Women’s Champion pinned Shirai with use of the ropes for leverage, stealing victory in a way that would make The Dirtiest Player in the Game proud.
My Opinion: 2.7 out of 5 – This was not one of the best women’s matches NXT has ever produced, but at least these fighters were not booked to be a joke either. As far as action goes, nothing really stood out, but nothing was bad either. I’ve used “either” too damn much. I used to be a singer named Shot-Gun Stevie, but I used forks instead. This whole match felt like we were just spinning our wheels until the next big title match for Flair comes around.
Match #5: Tommaso Ciampa def. Leon Ruff
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
The Blackheart made short work of Leon Ruff in his first action since One Final Beat against Johnny Gargano, but he wasn’t alone. Scarlett came to ringside to get a closer look at Tommaso Ciampa, who also received a stern message from his NXT TakeOver: In Your House opponent afterward.
My Opinion: 1.8 out of 5 – Yet another squash match on a two-hour wrestling show. I feel like it’s 1986. Do you know what I was in 1986? …d— cheese. Why in the hell would I wanna get anywhere near feelin’ like I’m back in the toothpaste tube again? I…that damn delete button needs to start working
Match #6: (Main Event) Timothy Thatcher def. Matt Riddle – NXT Fight Pit
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
The first-ever NXT Fight Pit played host to a barbaric showdown between the former tag team partners with WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle as special guest referee. Matt Riddle landed a massive blow when he launched himself off the side off the cage for a kick that knocked Timothy Thatcher’s teeth loose. After Thatcher assured the doctor at ringside that he could continue, he and Riddle eventually took their clash to higher ground atop the scaffolding surrounding the ring. The Original Bro sent Thatcher crashing to the ring below with a ripcord knee before dropping jaws with a Floating Bro from high above. But Thatcher claimed victory, refusing to relinquish a rear-naked choke and rendering The Original Bro unconscious, despite Riddle’s best efforts.
My Opinion: 4 out of 5 – This was the Lion’s Den match and it was really good s—. They had a scaffold surrounding the top so they could screw around on that thing. Riddle really took to this version of the cage, doing some wild s— that I wasn’t expecting. Thatcher treated this like he was in a prison fight and I liked it. Everything here felt like a low-down, dirty brawl stuck in the middle of a tight-as-hell grapple-fest and that ain’t bad. I think you’re gonna like this.
News Of The Night:
- Adam Cole has to fight Velveteen Dream in an un-disclosed location for the NXT Championship in order to be rid of him.
- Chelsea Green ditched Robert Stone after winning the tag match from earlier in the night.
- Mia Yim and Keith Lee wanna fight The Garganos in a tag match.
- Candice LeRae fights Mia Yim, next week.
- Drake Maverick fights El Hijo del Fantasma for the Interim NXT Cruiserweight Title, next week.
Final Verdict: 3.3/5
Don’t I sound like a d— when I say “Final Verdict”? The beginning and end of this was good and great, in that order. Matt Riddle might be on his way to SmackDown real quick (based on rumors), so this could be his swan song from the brand he’s called home for a little while. I wish NXT would be more like the main event was, in terms of the way things are promoted and competed. Hey, this wasn’t bad for an average show that leaned on one match.
