‘WWE NXT’ Review (Jan 9th 2019)
Welcome to this week’s NXT review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have an interesting main event between a Ring Of Honor top draw and an Impact/Total Non-Stop Action Wrestling World Champion that still has a lot to prove as a draw. Let’s get right to it.
Match #1: Bianca Belair def. Nikki Cross
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
After closing out 2018 on an un-de-fea-ted note, Bianca Belair continued business as usual in her first in-ring outing of the new year. But it was no easy task, seeing as how it involved the queen mother of chaos, Nikki Cross. Setting spark to the powder keg that was their pair of disruptive battles last year, the two forces took it to one another with pure intensity. At one point, Belair lugged Cross from the top of the turnbuckle and dropped her with an awe-inspiring gorilla press. But NXT’s Twisted Sister endured, and rechanneled Belair’s hard hits with sadistic offense. When Belair attempted a suplex, Cross slithered out of the maneuver with an out-of-nowhere DDT. As she enjoyed the “playtime” brutality, Cross connected Belair with The Purge, only to have The EST of NXT roll out of the ring to avoid a pinfall. Engrossed on protecting her perfect win streak, Belair stopped at nothing as the match entered its final stretch. After avoiding a high cross body attack from Cross, The EST of NXT wrenched her opponent with the K.O.D. for the three-count.
My Take: 3 out of 5 – This had its faults, but the attitude from Cross coupled with Belair’s athletic skill made this match a fun little thrill. Belair’s winning streak is a nice thing to have and I hope that it’s going some-where besides just ending at some point. Cross would do really well as the NXT Women’s Champion at this point, but it doesn’t seem that Triple H is going for that quite yet. Over-all, this match may prove to be important later on in the year, but as of now it simply felt like an opening match that you didn’t mind sitting through.
Match #2: Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel def. Stanley Watts & Hector Kunsman
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
Fabian Aichner & Marcel Barthel added more stock to their tag team offense, defeating the auspicious tandem of Stanley Watts & Hector Kunsman. Though the treacherous duo dominated most of the match, their work was assuredly cut out for them against the quick and agile Watts & Kunsman. Combating the brute strength of the “European Union” with lightning quick speed and slippery counters, Watts & Kunsman looked to be one move away from sending the NXT UK tandem packing. However, Aichner & Barthel unleashed a vicious double-team attack on Kunsman to earn the pinfall.
My Take: 2 out of 5 – This was, by and large, a squash match, but it looked good for what it was. The wrestling was just spaghetti chucked at the wall, but for a squash, I guess that’s about what we’re all expecting.
Match #3: (Main Event) Adam Cole def. EC3
The following is courtesy of WWE.com:
After crossing out Bobby Fish from his redemption list, EC3 looked to administer more dents in the Undisputed ERA armor by waylaying Adam Cole in one-on-one action. As Cole’s black-and-gold attired comrades circled around the ring like sharks stalking prey, The Top One Percent maintained tunnel vision on The Panama City Playboy as he tossed him around like a handball. Yet, Cole found an opening after targeting the left arm of EC3. The former NXT North American Champion tossed EC3 into the steel steps, right before laying a dropkick onto the tenderized limb.
It was almost déjà vu when the other Undisputed ERA members interjected late in the contest. Though EC3 disposed of them, Cole capitalized on the distraction with a thunderous superkick and the Last Shot to pick up the three-count. As the entire Undisputed ERA pounced on the battered EC3, they received a true shock to the system when The War Raiders swooped in. Pulverizing the foursome with back-to-back tandem attacks, the modern-day Vikings left a crystal-clear warning ahead of their NXT Tag Team Title matchup at NXT TakeOver: Phoenix.
My Take: 3 out of 5 – This was pretty good, but it was a bit off due to EC3 being in charge of much of it. It’s hard to buy EC3 as being more powerful than Adam Cole, due to the latter being the bigger star between the two, but since NXT is still the WWE, the size preferences of Vince are still the law of the land. EC3 is getting better, but he is still missing that extra bit of talent that separates the top draws from every-one else. Adam deserved to win and ought to be wrestling for a title at some point this year.
News Of The Night:
- Johnny Gargano is challenging for the NXT North American Title.
- Aleister Black confronted Tommaso Ciampa in anticipation of their NXT World Title match at the next Takeover.
- The War Raiders attacked the Undisputed ERA at the end of the main event.
Final Verdict: 3/5
This was a simple show with simple pleasures and that’s about that. I wish NXT was a more interesting league, but the Takeovers always end up a success, so that’s some-thing.
