Emma vs. Charlotte w/ Sasha Banks – Winner: Charlotte
The match seemed to go out of its way to hide the inexperience of Charlotte. That is all well and good until you consider the push that Charlotte is getting and the seeming desire to make her the focal point of NXT women’s division 2.0.
Seeing Emma with the cobra never fails to make me sad inside.
If Charlotte is going to be the second ever women’s champion in NXT then nothing about this match demonstrated her being ready.
The Legionnaires vs. Kalisto and El Local – Winners: Kalisto and El Local
Tag teams in NXT that aren’t jobbing to The Ascension!? It’s only took about a year but we’ve had 4 new teams in the last few weeks.
For those that don’t know, Kalisto is the former Samuray del Sol. Some may worry about him being thrust into a tag team with Ricardo Rodriguez (El Local) but I would argue it takes the pressure off him and allows him to adjust to appearing on WWE TV. Wasn’t that long ago that Adrian Neville was in a tag team with Corey Graves. Cream rises to the top, as they say.
I thought this was a really good debut for two new teams in a division that is in desperate need of them.
The heels played their part well, as did Local, but Kalisto stole the show in his brief but impressive cameo.
Given the E’s disappointment of Mistico not working out for them, could they have found their Rey Mysterio replacement? Only time will tell on that one.
Camacho vs. Captain Comic – Winner: Camacho
I’m surprised Camacho seems to be getting a bit of a push at the moment, even if it is just building him up before feeding him to Adam Rose. I’ve always liked Camacho in the ring but he just has the personality of a sponge.
The ironic chant for match of the year gets a big thumbs up from me.
For what it was, this match went way too long.
Alexa Bliss vs. Alicia Fox – Winner: Alexa Bliss
Before she even got in the ring I could recognise that Alexa is, erm, very talented.
I can see that entrance becoming annoying after a while though.
Alexa has that athletic ability that can make somebody look like they are more skilled than they actually are, which is no bad thing.
Her inexperienced showed but that is no less to be expected and is the very purpose of NXT. She is, at the very least, a prospect going forward.
20-man Battle Royal – Determines the No. 1 Contender to the NXT Championship – Winner: Tyler Breeze, Sami Zayn and Tyson Kidd in a draw.
Is it just me that doesn’t like the idea of battle royals setting up number one contenders?
I love Bo Dallas’ new entrance/music. For all you Disney Parks fans, it reminds me of Soarin’.
It was pretty standard fare until Bo got eliminated and things livened up a little.
The ending was different to what I was expecting and I enjoyed it.
I got excited for a four-way including Neville until Triple H set-up a triple threat decider for number one contendership. Here was I thinking that JBL was the GM of NXT.
Even if it isn’t what I wanted, that is going to be a main event to look forward to next week.
Overall Show
NXT was far from perfect this week but I enjoyed it all the same.
I’ve expressed concern about Charlotte, not about her potential but whether she is ready to be on top of the pile just yet. I think there is more to play out in my predicted final of her and Sasha.
The two tag-teams looked promising and are a huge step in the right direction. WWE have a huge star in waiting in Kalisto.
Camacho and Captain Comic will soon escape my memory, as I imagine will the feud with Rose.
Alexa Bliss had a decent debut but her inexperience was clear for all to see against Alicia Fox.
I liked the finish to the battle royal and I cannot wait for the resulting triple threat next week. A match involving any of these and Neville is also something to greatly anticipate.
I feel like NXT is exciting again after a formulaic few months since Arrival.
– By Richard Thompson | AnacondaVise88