So another week of NXT and Worlds Collide has come and gone. Where Worlds Collide will lead seems to be toward... something, but NXT is always at work building its world, and this week was no exception, even if I have exception with what's being built.
So let's kick off with what didn't click for me with NXT.
I know that Jaxson Ryker is the heir apparent to the monster heel role that was vacated by Lars Sullivan, but I don't care about Ryker. He's big and scary, and I know sometimes that's all you need, but he's a monster that's flanked by two teammates. He had a match with 205 Live-r Humberto Carrillo that went to No Decision when the ref called for a stoppage because of how badly Ryker was wrecking him, and that led to Danny Burch and Oney Lorcan running in to make the save. So I don't know if they're setting up for a 6-man tag between Forgotten Sons vs Burch, Lorcan and Carrillo, but I just don't care. If you really want me to be scared of Ryker, drop him from Forgotten Sons and let him go solo, because right now, NXT isn't doing anything to invest me in Ryker being a threat.
Let's move on to what did work, because it's very rare that NXT is in the swirl area.
I really liked Io Shirai getting jumped by Shayna and her goons before she could even begin to discuss her issues with them. It's a good indicator that they're getting ready to get Shirai in position for a one-on-one for the Women's title. As to whether or not she'll win it, time can only tell. I think that she has a good chance, but I think they're still looking to keep Shayna in NXT for a while, and keeping the belt on her is the best way to do that.
And we're back to Kassius Ohno wanting to be the guy who wants to wreck all of Mr. Regal's shiny new toys, since he's asked to be Kushida's first NXT opponent. I like Kassius in this role. He'll a really terrific performer and he's been fitting the role of the veteran that puts the newer talent over, and I think that's where he belongs on the US side of things. In the UK, he could have a strong singles run and walk away with some solid wins, and that's good for him there. The UK branch might have a more stacked roster of non-developmental talent than Full Sail does, so Ohno doesn't need to put over new talent as often as he has in NXT. And that's not that Kushida is a new talent; he's just new to WWE. This guy's a six-time Junior Heavyweight champ in New Japan. I'm just really curious if they're going to let him keep any part of his "Back to the Future" gimmick. Either way, I'm really excited to see what Kushida can bring to WWE.
The backstage segment between Adam Cole (BAY BAY) and Matt Riddle was gold. I love how committed they are to their characters, and that's going to eventually be a fucking great match between those two. And the idea that Cole was jealous that Roddy Strong was going to be in the main event against Johnny Five-Star was a great way to set up what's been happening within the group and what's to come later.
The tag match between Vanessa Borne and Aliyah vs Candace LeRae and Kacy Catanzaro was really fun. The main point of this match seemed to be to see how well Kacy sells, because she was the one who had to eat most of the damage until she could get Candace the hot tag. Candace picked up the win with her off-the-rope moonsault and looked good while she did it. This was a fun match for Candace and her fellow "lower" Kacy, but I'm looking forward to actually seeing Kacy win one under her own steam. I know that the suspension of disbelief of the rather diminutive size and stature of Catanzaro defeating a larger opponent is not exactly in her favor, which is why it'll be that much sweeter finally seeing her pick up a good win, because her physical prowess is remarkable. And it's also nice to see Candace starting to get some TV time. I'd rather people didn't know her simply as "Mrs. Wrestling" and more as Candace LeRae.
The non-title match with Street Profits vs The Viking Experience The Viking Raiders War Raiders was also a metric fuckton of fun. It started off hot with Dawkins and Ford getting the jump (literally) on the Raiders. I'm always impressed with the athleticism of Montez Ford. And like I stated before, these are two teams who are dedicated to their gimmicks and characters. And it's a good match to have because the Profits are looking for their title opportunity and War Raiders are looking for competition. But I would be remiss if I didn't at least mention the very best part of this match. There was a moment where Rowe threw Hansen ass-first at Ford who was downed in the corner, and as he saw the massive gluteus of Hansen coming directly at his head, he had a look of abject fear and let out an ear-piercing scream that was a thing of true comedic beauty. War Raiders ended the match by hitting Thor's Hammer (which is the same finisher that the main roster refers to as the "Viking Experience"... goddamn you, Vince) and getting the pin, but this match was just really entertaining from even before the bell.
And now we need to talk about the main event, which was Johnny Gargano vs Roderick Strong. I referred to Gargano above as Johnny Five-Star because he never ever ever lets the crowd down, and even with just a 10-15 minute match, he's going to put it all out there. And can I just state that Roddy has been one of the best unsung talents in NXT? He's just fantastic. This match was just as hard hitting as it needed to be, and it needed to be. It also had a lot more saliva than expected, which they worked into the match in a really funny way. And it was only a matter of time that Cole and the rest of Undisputed Era decided to insert themselves into the match, but it would be Riddle who would provide Johnny with help but a miscommunication would have Cole hit a jump-up enziguri on who he thought was Johnny, but instead hit teammate Roddy. Riddle with rid Gargano of the distractions and Johnny hit the slingshot DDT for the win. This is what I've been hoping for; some discord within Undisputed Era and Strong being the odd man out, because Strong is a really good babyface as well, and that could help build the next big story for The Era as well as Johnny furthering his rivalry with Cole.
So let's move on to Worlds Collide where it was all about the Women's division across the brands! Sadly, this wasn't the best showcase for a lot of them, so let's start out with what was not so great.
We had Io Shirai vs Sonya Deville, and this should have been a really strong match on paper, but the execution just wasn't really there. The match started off hot and I really wished it had kept that pace because when all is said and done, this is still just a house show for the Mania Axxess crowd. The real problem was the lack of chemistry between the two. It just seemed sloppy. And I do not like Deville's super-bedazzled newer ring gear. I like the rainbow flag in her back pocket, letting us know she's out and proud and here to represent, but that's the only part of the ring gear I like. They just couldn't get into a good rhythm, and I just found myself tuning out. Deville picked up the upset win by hitting Shirai with what could be either a botched spear or a very fast double-leg takedown and stacking Io up. I was really surprised they booked it this way, but Sonya deserved a win.
And there was one match that was definitely in the good/bad swirl zone for me, and that was the triple threat between Nikki Cross, Bianca Belair and champ Toni Storm for the NXT UK Women's title. First off, you know that Storm is retaining. She's not going to drop the title at Axxess. Second, it was clearly a match between three performers who have barely worked together, and it just lacked that next-level chemistry you want to see from these three performers. However, it did have my single favorite moment of the episode where Nikki got both Toni and Bianca hung up in the ring apron and beat the hell out of both of them. Nikki is always a fun chaotic force of energy, and I'm hoping they start to give her some actual matches on the show where she's, you know, actually employed. It had a lot of potential, but it just didn't quite get there. And of course, Toni hit Storm Zero for the win.
Now for the goodies!
The match between Piper Niven and Zelina Vega was something that I didn't think would work at all because of the incredible size mismatch, but Vega and Niven really made this work by having Zelina rely on speed and shortcuts, which had the larger Niven fighting from underneath for most of the match. I was really impressed by Vega here, and even though she ate the pinfall, she just looked terrific throughout the match. Niven is going to take me a little more time to warm up to, but she's definitely a talented performer.
But it was the match between Candace LeRae and Kay Lee Ray that really had me invested, and it's not just because of my personal bias for loving Candace, but they had that next-level chemistry that most of the other matches were lacking. Both performers looked fantastic throughout as they had a lot of terrific back-and-forth and the crowd was also really into it as well. It's the strongest case I've seen yet in WWE for pushing Candace as a babyface contender for the NXT Women's title, but that doesn't mean that Ray was a slouch in any way. I could easily see her as being the next main contender for the UK Women's title as well. It's a shame that this match was in Worlds Collide rather than a NXT or UK show, but it made the show worth watching even though it was the very first match of the broadcast. And again, Candace came out on top with her moonsault, but take nothing away from Kay Lee because they're both legit.
So that's it for this recap of this week's episodes of NXT and Worlds Collide! After Worlds Collide is over, I'm looking at adding NXT UK to this recap column, because I've been watching it on the regular, and there are a lot of extremely talented performers there that could easily be some of my new favorites, so keep an eye out for that in the coming weeks. And as always, keep an eye out for my recaps of Raw and Smackdown Live every week, and of course this column every weekend! And go see AVENGERS: ENDGAME.
Until next time, kids...
Comments
Post a Comment