‘WWE NXT’ Review (Dec 12th 2018)

Welcome to this week’s NXT review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have an apple, an orange and a banana. Also, we have some wrestling.

Match #1: EC3 def. Bobby Fish

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

With redemption on the brain, EC3 doubled down on the warning he issued last month and undisputedly came at Bobby Fish in ways the latter couldn’t fathom. After Fish and his Undisputed ERA comrades opened the show by boasting about their plans for “a decade of undisputed dominance” and a championship-ridden 2019, EC3 stepped in with a rude awakening for the infamous foursome. Going one-on-one against the man responsible for tenderizing his right knee with repeated chair blasts two months back, The Top One Percent returned the favor with a drubbing. The presence of Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly and Roderick Strong failed to deter EC3’s laser focus, as he tossed Fish around like a ragdoll. At one point, he landed a thunderous powerbomb on Fish that elicited a “good lord!” response by NXT announcer Nigel McGuiness. But the Undisputed ERA technician wasn’t going down without a fight. With a sixth sense for punishing holds, Fish targeted his opponent’s bandaged right knee to gain leverage – albeit not for long.

Once EC3 bounced back and landed the Namedrop on Fish, the other Undisputed ERA members jumped in with a distraction that left room for Fish to chop-block his opponent’s battered knee. But when Fish attempted to further abuse the injured limb, EC3 mustered enough strength to roll him up for the pinfall – much like he did in his victory over Cole two months ago. As the Undisputed army attempted to ambush EC3, their new foes Heavy Machinery made a beeline for the ring, hauling a few heavy haymakers. Once the dust settled, EC3 put a lid on his retribution plans with a One Percenter on O’Reilly before Otis Dozovic closed out the melee with the Caterpillar. How’s that for a lasting impression?

My Take: 2.5 out of 5 – Fish sold very well for EC3, who is good in the ring, but has no imagination yet. This was a WWE match in most respects, but it got the job done, so it wasn’t the end of the world.

Match #2: Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch def. The Mighty

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

The last time Oney Lorcan & Danny Burch crossed paths with The Mighty, they were left sprawled out on the canvas. This week, the bruisers-in-arms weren’t having it. Almost immediately after the opening bell, Lorcan & Burch blasted Shane Thorne & Nick Miller with nonstop strikes. It soon became an all-out brawl, as both teams pounded on each other with complete power. At one point, a fervid Lorcan launched himself out of the ring like a torpedo, squashing Thorne & Miller on the outside. After a dizzying exchange of offense, Lorcan & Burch pulled out a Wheelbarrow DDT on Thorne to carry out the three-count.

My Take: 2 out of 5 – This was a nice taste of what these four can do, but the match was a disappointment. I would have loved to have seen how far these guys can really go with each other, but I’ll take what I can get.

Match #3: Mia Yim def. Reina González

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

Mia Yim picked up a ticket to the high-stakes NXT Women’s Championship No. 1 Contender’s Fatal 4-Way Match, but it was no easy task. Standing in her way was the intimidating Reina González, who pushed Yim to her limit. González muscled The Head Baddie in Charge around the ring with a range of dominating maneuvers, including a punishing backbreaker rack that nearly forced Yim to submit. But against her opponent’s brute strength, The HBIC relied on her superior speed. After breaking out of the grueling submission hold, Yim found an opening to strike González with an assortment of knife-edge chops and kicks before serving her with a plate of Sole Food to go.

My Take: 2.5 out of 5 – This was a quick match to make Yim look good and give Reina a shot at showing what she can do. There’s some nice action here and this was a good match for both of them.

Match #4: Ricochet def. Tyler Breeze

The following is courtesy of WWE.com:

Fresh off a breathtaking performance at NXT TakeOver: WarGames II, reigning NXT North American Champion Ricochet stepped foot inside the yellow ropes and put on a spectacle against NXT General Manager William Regal’s handpicked opponent, Tyler Breeze. Breeze’s shocking return to the black-and-gold fortress came after Ricochet called on NXT management to find a challenger for his NXT North American crown. Adding value to Regal’s rolodex, Breeze proved to be the competition Ricochet was waiting for. Minutes into the match, Prince Pretty wrapped The One and Only with a pinning predicament that fluidly turned into a knee-bending leglock. From there, as “Breeze is gorgeous” chants filled Full Sail Live, it was clear the gritty effort by Breeze would push Ricochet to his limits, forcing the latter to fire on all cylinders.

Late in the contest, Ricochet’s attempted springboard moonsault was met by a superkick from Breeze, leaving him room to pull off an upset. When The Sultan of Selfies tried to go for a Beauty Shot, however, The One and Only wrenched him midair and applied a fireman’s carry into a Michinoku Driver to earn the win. After the bout, both men stood in the middle of the ring and shook hands, while the NXT Universe showered them with praise.

My Take: 3 out of 5 – This was very easy to watch and I really enjoyed seeing Breeze back in NXT, where can make a difference. Ricochet worked hard here and made Breeze’s excellent performance worth both their times. I could go for another fight of two of these guys together.

Final Verdict: 3/5

Apart from the build toward the cage match between Aleister Black and Johnny Gargano, this was a pretty standard show. Every-thing here was enjoyable, but it wasn’t very ambitious.