-So, a pretty strong babyface promo by Ricky Saints this week to start the show. Saints being the guy to challenge Trick Williams is a nice touch and gives him an alpha aura. Here is the thing, though, Saints didn’t come across as edgy as he usually does inside of this mic work. That edge is the best part of his character. His charisma is rooted in it. Saints has to find a why to maintain that even when working to be a sympathetic babyface.
Briggs = Baron
-Josh Briggs looks more and more like Baron Corbin every single week. He has yet to tap into a meaningful character as a singles star and redoing the Corbin gimmick certainly isn’t the solution. If I’m him, I’m asking for that babyface country guy gimmick back again.
-Cool seeing Matt Cardona wrestle in NXT. Cardona has such a vast history in WWE at this point that it wouldn’t be unusual to see him get a little run of some kind to give him his flowers.
-Lyra Valkyria comes across like the college kid returning to the high school football game when she shows up in NXT. She’s got the history with Tatum Paxley — I get it — but in the backstage segment that involved some undercard developmental talent, she came across as more unpolished than some of them.
A good match
-Lainey Reed in Fatal Influence makes a lot of sense. Glad to see her involvement in the group not only come with a storyline purpose, but a focused vignette too. Clearly Shawn Michaels has big plans for her at this point.
-El Hijo Del Dr. Wagner Jr. against Lexis King was what it was — a building block to Wagner vs. Ethan Page. Like most AAA talents, WWE hasn’t done an effective job in establishing who Wagner is and why fans should care.
-Ok, Trick Williams! That was a pretty vicious beatdown he gave to Ricky Starks backstage this week. Williams is at his best when he finds that viciousness in what he does out there. Kinda seems like they are moving fast on Saints vs. Williams, but Williams may have some main roster plans sooner than later.
Too much Zaruca drama
-A good match between Blake Monroe and Zaria this week. More Zaria and Sol Ruca drama, though. Too much. Look, the turn is coming. Zaria is going heel. When she does, Ruca needs to still be likable. The more she’s mean to Zaria — even indirectly, it hurts that endgame mission of being a likable babyface opposite the evil Zaria.
-OTM is still a team? Fine, they can’t be in and out of the tag division, though. Either give those guys a consistent push or don’t at this point.
Paxley’s time to step up
-Tatum Paxley is the new number one contender for the NXT Women’s Championship at Halloween Havoc. Not surprising given what we saw between her and Lyra Valkyria earlier in the night. Paxley is going to be at odds with The Culling over this. As for Paxley, kind of a rough spot. She’s getting a big match here against Jacy Jayne, but it’s all to serve a low card angle.
What did you think of this week’s episode of WWE NXT? Let us know in the comments!
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