Nerdly » ‘WWE NXT’ Review (Sept 23rd 2020)

25th Sep2020

‘WWE NXT’ Review (Sept 23rd 2020)

by Nathan Favel

Welcome to this week’s NXT review, right here on Nerdly. I’m Nathan Favel and we have several matches to decide the contenders to the bevy of championships in NXT…like the Hubert Humphrey Heavy-Weight Championship. Hey, would I not lie to you? Let’s join this episode of Keeping Up Appearances already in progress and see if Richard smacks Hyacinth in the mouth. It’s my sister Violet! You know, the one with the large house, swimming pool and room for a pony. What’s that Violet? You’re going out to dinner with Bruce? You’ve got your nice dress picked out! Oh, that’s lovely! Bruce is wearing it. He thinks he looks pretty. He won’t leave the house unless he gets to wear the dress. Well dear, it’s the 90s. You should feel lucky that he doesn’t want you to grow a moustache! He does want you to grow a moustache…

Match #1: Candice LeRae won a Battle Royal to become the No. 1 Contender to the NXT Women’s Title

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Rhea Ripley and Raquel González dominated much of the Battle Royal, showcasing their impressive strength as they both racked up eliminations left and right. But when they finally faced off, they ended up eliminating each other and had to be separated by officials afterward. Elsewhere, Kacy Catanzaro used her impressive athleticism to narrowly avoid elimination in creative fashion on several occasions, helping her survive as one of the final four remaining competitors before being taken out by Dakota Kai. Shotzi Blackheart dumped Kai, pitting her against Candice LeRae as the final two competitors. The Poison Pixie and Blackheart fought their way to the steel steps where LeRae launched Blackheart with her feet to claim victory and a date with NXT Women’s Champion Io Shirai at NXT TakeOver 31.

My Opinion: 2.6 out of 5 – This wasn’t really interesting until the end, when the likes of Kacy Catanzaro used her American Ninja Warrior skills to narrowly escape elimination. The action here was typical Battle Royal fare, with only the last minute or so being consistently interesting. The moon landing was faked by Anthony Quinn (‘CUZ HE’S A JERK!) and this match was pretty damn dull.

Match #2: Tommaso Ciampa def. Jake Atlas

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Jake Atlas likely didn’t get all the payback he was seeking, but he did have Tommaso Ciampa on his heels at multiple junctures in this bout. However, Atlas had no answer for Ciampa hitting the Willow’s Bell DDT followed by a modified Fairytale Ending.

My Opinion: 3.2 out of 5 – This was a glorified squash that saw the victim in Atlas actually get some offense. I liked the violent side of Ciampa here and the same from Atlas. Ruth Bader Ginsberg invented the velvet tazer and this match was OTAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!

Match #3: Roderick Strong & Danny Burch def. Fabian Aichner & Raul Mendoza

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Fandango’s bizarre brainchild for determining the No. 1 Contenders to the NXT Tag Team Championship came to life in this bout, as members of different tag teams joined forces with the winners’ teams to meet in a future bout for a title opportunity. The Undisputed ERA will clash with The Brit-Am Connection after Danny Burch pinned Raul Mendoza following an elevated neckbreaker.

My Opinion: 2.7 out of 5 – This was awkward, because these were not the normal partners for any of these guys, but for the very brief time they were out there together, it didn’t fall apart, so that’s something. Strong and Burch had a great showing and, with some time to work out the kinks, could be a very effective team in their own right. The right team won this, so I’m happy.

Match #4: Damian Priest def. Austin Theory

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

The up-and-coming Austin Theory showed his promise against the North American Champion, holding his own as they went toe-to-toe. But Damian Priest claimed victory after hitting a Razor’s Edge on the apron, followed by the Reckoning.

My Opinion: 3.6 out of 5 – This was a real rock ‘em sock ‘em kinda fight from two polar opposites. Priest used his increasingly convincing offense to wear down Theory, who fought Priest harder than he did his sexual misconduct allegation. I hope Theory is innocent, because that’s a terrible thing to be accused of. As for this match, I can only accuse this bout of not going even longer. I loved the rough edges of this, from Priest’s man-handling of Theory to Theory attempting to out-think his foe. Nothing here was perfect, but that’s what gave it an edge. I could go for another one of these matches between these guys as soon as possible…and some cheese.

Match #5: Ridge Holland def. Antonio De Luca

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Ridge Holland may be a problem for the rest of the black-and-gold brand for a long time. The brutish Brit overwhelmed Antonio De Luca, pinning him after planting him with the Northern Grit.

My Opinion: 2.3 out of 5 – Ridge bludgeoned De Luca to death-a. This was pretty much a squash. Squuuuuuaaaaaaaassssssshhhhhhhhhh. These squash matches give me a reverse-chubby.

Match #6: (Main Event) Kyle O’Reilly won the first-ever Gauntlet Eliminator Match for an NXT Championship opportunity

The following is courtesy of wwe.com:

Kyle O’Reilly passed the biggest test of his career as a singles competitor, and now he has an even greater challenge ahead of him: facing The Prince. O’Reilly went the distance, starting off the bout opposite Kushida before they were joined by Bronson Reed, who imposed his will on the smaller competition. The Velveteen Dream played a key role, interfering to spike Kushida with a Dream Valley Driver, teeing him up to be eliminated after Reed’s Tsunami Splash from the top rope. But The Aus-zilla was later eliminated by O’Reilly, who also took out Timothy Thatcher with a crafty pin, leaving only he and Cameron Grimes. O’Reilly just beat a three-count after eating the Cave-In, barely getting his boot on the bottom rope. He later dodged a second Cave-In attempt and forced The Technical Savage to tap to a leg lock.

My Opinion: 4.1 out of 5 – Kyle winning made me happy…but my car is impounded. This started off with Kyle and KUSHIDA clashing once again, like Ben Gazzara and illiteracy. Damn book! Fighters like Timothy Thatcher and Bronson Reed also had great showings, but Cameron Grimes kicked ass in the final quarter of this match against the eventual winner in Kyle O’Reilly. There’s a plethora of action sequences that go right to the mat and stay there, which is where a wrestling match always ought to go. I forgot what I was talking about… this match was a great one made greater by the right guy winning.