‘WWE NXT’ Review (June 10th 2020)
Welcome to this week’s NXT review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we’ve got the fall-out from NXT Takeover: In Your House, so don’t go anywhere, except if it’s to watch John Wayne’s “Dick Butch, Dentist Of The West”- John Wayne as Dick Butch: “Have you been to the dentist lately…(fires gun into man)…’cuz you’ve got a lot of cavities?!” NXT is a hip-hap-happening right now…pilgrim!
Match #1: Johnny Gargano & Candice LeRae def. Keith Lee & Mia Yim – Mixed Tag Team Match
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
The Johnny Gargano way was once again ethically questionable, but its effectiveness can’t be disputed. Johnny Gargano hit Keith Lee with a slingshot DDT, which wound up with Lee crushing Candice LeRae. While Lee appeared more concerned with LeRae’s condition than her own husband, Gargano capitalized by rolling up Lee for the victory.
My Opinion: 3.1 out of 5 – The wrestling was a little bit lazy in parts, but there was some fine double-team maneuvers that kept the whole thing from getting dull. The finish was clever and actually added to the heel turn that the Garganos have been stuck with for a while now. All in all, this felt like a nice tease for what these two teams will do later on with each other, but it would have been nice to get a full meal.
Match #2: Indus Sher with Malcolm Bivens def. Mikey Delbrey & Mike Reed
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Another match for Indus Sher ended in yet another lopsided victory. From the match-opening massive big boot from Saurav to Mikey Delbrey, to the swift end with a devastating legdrop-sidewalk slam combination, Indus Sher were completely dominant.
My Opinion: 1.2 out of 5 – Ow, my balls! This sucked! Actually, this squash match wasn’t very good, but Indus Sher is just not ready for TV yet, so what should you expect? IS has potential, but they need a lot more time to get that potential ready for big matches. I look forward to the day when Indus Sher can wrestle, but that time has not come yet.
Match #3: Finn Bálor def. Cameron Grimes
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
With one feather in his cap already against Finn Bálor, The Technical Savage was up to the challenge of taking on The Prince a second time, but the result was different this time. While Cameron Grimes countered the Coup de Grace and 1916 DDT at early junctures, Bálor got payback for his only loss of 2020, pinning Grimes after hitting both in succession.
My Opinion: 3.5 out of 5 – Now this was some good sh*t. They got close to thirteen minutes here and really knocked this sucker out of the park. When I think of NXT, this is what I wanna think of. This whole match had that intensity that you want from fight, especially on between two known fighters. I don’t always like the 50/50 booking, but Grimes was booked well since he last beat Bálor, so perhaps this means we’re getting a rubber match down the line. I loved this and I bet you may just go for it too.
Match #4: Dakota Kai def. Kacy Catanzaro
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
Kacy Catanzaro attempted a furious rally but succumbed to Dakota Kai’s Go To Kick. Catanzaro’s tag team partner, Kayden Carter, arrived afterward for backup when Raquel González continued the assault. While Carter momentarily fought off González, González eventually overpowered her with a massive chokeslam.
My Opinion: 2.3 out of 5 – Kai did well here and Kacy showed more of her potential than she has in some time. While going too short to truly offer the goods, this bit of window-shopping did have a couple of interesting items on display. In any case, the right person won, although you could convince of doing an angle where Kacy kept beating Kai (driving Kai insane and pursuing Kacy until she won [the Eddie/Rey 2005 angle]).
Match #5: (Main Event) Adam Cole def. Dexter Lumis
The following is courtesy of wwe.com:
It took everything Adam Cole had — plus some help from The Undisputed ERA — to finally put Dexter Lumis away. The NXT Champion pinned the black-and-gold brand’s most bizarre Superstar after hitting the Last Shot, which was teed up when Roderick Strong delivered a kick to Lumis’ head while Bobby Fish distracted the referee.
My Opinion: 3 out of 5 – Cole didn’t get quite as close to a good match as Roderick Strong did a few weeks back, but not for a lack of trying. Lumis let Cole run the show and the show got all the better for it. That’s really all that there is to it. Cole made Lumis look good and Cole made himself look great, with a focus on swift transitions and snug locks to give this the appearance of being a wrestling clinic. Overall, this was not too shabby at all.
News Of The Night:
- El Hijo del Fantasma, un-masked, revealed himself as Santos Escobar and attacked Drake Maverick, while the luchador thugs un-masked to reveal themselves as Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza.
- Karrion Kross challenged Adam Cole to an NXT Championship match.
- Velveteen Dream and Dexter Lumis seem to be at war with The Undisputed Era, thanks to the pair attacking the latter after the main event.
- Dexter Lumis is being pushed as a bizarre creature that lurks in weird places to watch Roderick Strong.
- Robert Stone tried to recruit Rhea Ripley and she whooped his ass.
Final Verdict: 3.2/5
The Finn/Grimes match was fabulous, but the rest was just…the rest. There’s nothing wrong with being solid, but given that this is a two hour show with a huge budget and a great roster, I expect this show to play to its strengths, rather than trying to be a more subdued version of SmackDown (needs less comedy and more wrestling matches with longer time limits).
