-Overall, this was an awfully flat episode of NXT coming out of a solid Vengeance Day PLE on Saturday night.
Paxley shines
-The best part of the show was the opening victory promo by Tatum Paxley. She’s really figured out how to leverage the audience’s investment in her for a reaction. She’s very comfortable talking with the crowd and they can feel that. Like at Vengeance Day when she won the NXT Women’s North American Championship, the crowd was behind her and even more passionate for her when Izzi Dame walked out and demanded a title rematch. Next week, it’ll be the blowoff match between the two women. Steel Cage Match. A suitable gimmick match to end the feud with.
-Hey, Sean Legacy got a win. Miracle? The triple threat between Legacy, Eli Knight, and Jasper Troy wasn’t great, but then made worse with an all-time bad finish. Both guys pin the same third guy and at the same time? How easy is it to just roll the other guy off and keep the match going for yourself? Very silly and not at all thought through.
-So, Charlie Dempsey is aligned in a faction with all the bad second generation wrestlers NXT has to offer? I mean, Dempsey is going to get television time out of this group, but not a lot of focus. They are a jobber heel tag team at best. Shows need that type of talent, but this turn wasn’t a Dempsey elevation.
The next budding NXT babyface
-Short, but sweet on the microphone for Tony D’Angelo this week. Less is more for him and he stated his goal to win the NXT Championship before moving on. It captured the audience’s attention. A potential budding NXT babyface is right in front of everyone’s eyes.
-Sol Ruca got a nice win over Lainey Reid this week, but the match was ho-hum. Lainey isn’t a strong dance partner for Ruca, so much of the Ruca high-flying stuff had to be tempered. Surprised that their wasn’t some sort of encounter between her and Zaria ahead of next week’s triple threat along with Jacy Jayne for the NXT Women’s Championship. A missed opportunity to give that rivalry more heat.
-Dear god …. Booker T Appreciation Night is next week on NXT? Send beer my way.
The tables have turned
-Not much to the tag team main event between the teams of Myles Borne/Joe Hendry and Ricky Saints/Ethan Page. The angle at the end was the story. Page did what Saints couldn’t do, which was pin Hendry. Simple and not flashy at all. The awkward Page and Saints dynamic will continue moving forward. As for Stand and Deliver, it seems like we’re destined for a multi-person NXT Championship match. Joe Hendry vs. Ricky Saints vs. Ethan Page. If that’s the case, that match isn’t the main event. Whatever match that Zaria and Sol Ruca do could easily grab the show’s top spot.
What did you think of this week’s episode of NXT? Let us know in the comments!
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