-Well, I’m not sure what exactly the NXT audience was waving around during week one of the Gold Rush TV special this week, but they sure looked cool when they came on the air.
Classic opener
-A really fun opener with the lovable babyfaces in Joe Hendry and Thea Hail losing to the heel team of Chelsea Green and Ethan Page. This hooked the crowd from the beginning and the match built off itself after that. Hail and Hendry don’t have great chemistry. The pairing feels forced — so much so that Hail couldn’t get her timing right with the Hendry pose on multiple occasions. I wouldn’t be investing money into this team, but on this night it was fine for what it needed to be.
-Joe Hendry just signed a contract with WWE, but I think we’ve already seen him at his peak popularity. The act is a bit. It’ll play well in the middle of the card, but Hendry won’t be wrestling in the main event of WrestleMania anytime soon.
John Cena is NXT
-John Cena is picking the Iron Survivor Challenge participants this year? Makes total sense. Cena is doing a full-on WWE blitz in his last month and choosing the participants for this match is an easy way to get him involved in NXT for a hot second.
-A clever finish to the Blake Monroe vs. Sol Ruca Women’s North American Championship match. Zaria tossing in the towel! Gotta love it. This worked very well on all fronts. It painted Monroe as lethal in the ring because she was relentless with the attacking of Ruca’s injured knee. Ruca looked like a fighter trying to mount a comeback and not tap, Zaria came across as a reasonable friend who was trying to do the right — but hard — thing, and now there is thick drama between Ruca and Zaria that can be played off of until their inevitable split.
-Quick thing regarding Monroe. The split personality thing can work for her, but it’s already a little ill-defined. She’s got to shore that up so it doesn’t feel hokey every week. She has to convey the perception that there is a real killer inside The Glamour personality.
We see you Oba
-Oba Femi brought it on the microphone. Sucks for you Ricky Saints. Saints looked like a child out there compared to him. Femi was adult, poised, confident, and totally believable with everything he said. I don’t know if Femi will win back the NXT Championship at Deadline, but he’s ready for the main roster. So, if he doesn’t win, that’s why.
-DarkState vs. Je’Von Evans and Leon Slater had all the action you’d expect. A fast-paced match, but one that was well wrestled. Evans and Slater weren’t on the same page in the end and that led to the loss. There doesn’t seem to be an attempt to show discourse between them, though, and that’s smart. You don’t want to tell the exact same story with them that they’re telling with Ruca and Zaria.
-Shiloh Hill got my attention. Interesting gimmick idea. I’m in for now.
Checking boxes
-A good main event between Jacy Jayne and Tatum Paxley. Jayne is the new NXT Women’s Champion after Paxley’s Culling faction turned on her and cost her the match. Look, you could see that outcome coming a mile away, but that doesn’t mean it’s the wrong one. The finish checks boxes. Sympathy on Paxley as a babyface? Check. A heelish win for Jayne? Check. Heel turn for The Culling? Check. Paxley with a clear opponent to chase? Check. Well done.
What did you think of this week’s episode of NXT? Let us know in the comments!
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