‘WWE NXT’ Review (Feb 26th 2020)
Welcome to this week’s NXT review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have Gwen Gwiz kissing her roommate. That’s right. I have references for 21st Century stuff. There’s lots of good wrestling here, but is the show worth watching? Here comes the sun…
Match #1: Cameron Grimes def. Dominik Dijakovic
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Dominik Dijakovic isn’t done pursuing Keith Lee’s North American Championship, but he’s not the only one with his eyes on the gold. Thanks to Damian Priest, Cameron Grimes staked his claim as a potential title contender with a win over The Rare Breed. Dijakovic was seemingly poised to finish The Technical Savage following a second-rope moonsault to the outside, but Priest arrived to strike Dijakovic in the leg with a steel pipe before quickly making himself scarce. The Rare Breed barely beat the count of 10, though he was met with a decisive blow when Grimes hit his vaunted Cave-In as soon Dijakovic got back in the ring. The Archer of Infamy may have done more than cost his target the match, however, as Dijakovic had to be helped to the back by officials while nursing a possible left knee injury.
My Opinion: 3.5 out of 5 – This turned out really well and made Grimes look tough. No offense to DD, but Grimes is the money guy. That being said, DD isn’t too far behind in terms of drawing ability. As far as wrestling goes, this was a real humdinger. Hachachacha! Every-thing was meaty like a sausage…a thick, smoked sausage. MMMMMMMM…sausage. I could go for a match like this all day…like sausage…thick, smoked sausage. MMMMMMMM…sausage.
Match #2: Xia Li def. Mia Yim
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
We still might not understand the new alliance between Dakota Kai and Raquel González, but there’s no questioning the impact they’ve made in short order. The devious duo interrupted a bout between Mia Yim and Xia Li, grabbing The HBIC’s attention long enough for Li to roll her up for the three-count. Not satisfied with just costing Yimthe bout, González took to the ring to outmuscle Yim as well as Li, who tried to defend her opponent from the assault before also succumbing to González’s wrath. Kai watched gleefully as her intimidating associate carried out her dirty work, leaving Yim lying after a massive modified chokeslam.
My Opinion: 2.4 out of 5 – This had potential, but just two or so minutes is not enough to make a real impression.
Match #3: Tommaso Ciampa def. Austin Theory
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Austin Theory was looking to gain retribution from his painful run-in with Ciampa a week earlier. As he has in every previous bout, the 22-year-old blue chipper impressed, with Theory even controlling much of the action against the significantly more experienced Ciampa. The Blackheart regained control by spiking his foe with Willow’s Bell before planting him with the Fairytale Ending for the win.
My Opinion: 3.5 out of 5 – I really liked this. Ciampa and Theory worked well together and had a unique dynamic. There was some-thing of a Rappaport between the two that made the action kinda, I won’t say kooky, but it was just different. I’m not selling you on a bizzaro-fest here, but Ciampa and Theory have something between the two of them. If you want hard-hitting, lightning-fast, balls-to-the-wall wrestling action, then you could much worse than this.
Match #4: Killian Dain def. Bronson Reed
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Chalk up a victory for The Beast of Belfast in a battle between two of NXT’s most fearsome mastodons. Killian Dain faced off with Bronson Reed in a bout that was as hard-hitting as you’d expect, as evidenced by their simultaneous cross-body blocks in a scene that resembled two semitrucks colliding. Reed flexed his uncanny agility, unleashing moves like a tope suicida, but Dain prevailed after a superplex, a trio of running sentons and a devastating Vader Bomb.
My Opinion: 3.3 out of 5 – This was a good match that had enough big hunks of hunks of big to make an elephant jealous. Dain and Reed were like mirrored parallels here and I didn’t mind losing track of who was who, because they are both talented. This was just a good old-fashioned fight and I wanted it to go a lot longer. This is one to invest more bookings into.
Match #5: The Grizzled Young Veterans def. The Forgotten Sons
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
The Grizzled Young Veterans aren’t endearing themselves to anyone since arriving in NXT, but that hasn’t mattered much in the ring. Zack Gibson & James Drake prevailed again Wednesday, this time knocking off The Forgotten Sons. After spending several weeks disparaging the black-and-gold brand’s tag team division and Americans in general — especially the NXT faithful at Full Sail — The Grizzled Young Veterans escalated their war of words on the United States before competing against The Forgotten Sons, who were ready to defend the stars and stripes. But Gibson & Drake continued their winning ways despite a furious late rally from Wesley Blake & Steve Cutler, dropping Blake with the Ticket to Mayhem.
My Opinion: 3 out of 5 – This was fun and it made the winners look good. This was nothing special, but it did make a case for these two teams being on TV more often.
Match #6: (Main Event) Charlotte Flair def. Bianca Belair
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
NXT was once again The Queen’s castle for one night, but The Nightmare wasn’t far behind. Charlotte Flair returned to the black-and-gold brand for her first NXT in-ring action in more than four years, defeating Bianca Belair in a thrilling main event. The EST, who clearly had a chip on her shoulder entering the biggest test of her young career, went step-for-step with the second-ever NXT Women’s Champion, even overwhelming The Queen at times with her athleticism. But thanks to her veteran in-ring savvy and a few crafty tricks, Flair reigned supreme, pinning Belair after a spear and Natural Selection. After claiming the win, Charlotte locked Belair in the Figure-Four before NXT Women’s Champion Rhea Ripley, whom she’ll challenge for the NXT Women’s Title at WrestleMania, arrived to chase her out of the ring before she could inflict more damage.
My Opinion: 3.3 out of 5 – This was a good match that saw Flair carry a somewhat lethargic Belair to a fight with a focus on technical wrestling. There’s nothing in here I’d call terrible, but the match needed some more life in it. Flair won and should have won, but Belair failed to make her part exciting, which is quite different from what she’s been doing recently. Overall, this was a good main event, but it wasn’t quite what I was hoping for.
News Of The Night:
- Charlotte Flair attacked Bianca Belair’s leg with a chair.
- Johnny Gargano attacked Tommaso Ciampa.
- A Ladder Match at TakeOver: Tampa will decide the next challenger to the NXT Women’s Title.
Final Verdict: 3.5/5
This felt like a good show looked like a good show, but NXT just has this aura of “indy-lite” that just rings true too often.
