WWE NXT Weekly Rankings & Evaluation
By George Chiverton, PWTorch specialist

February 8, 2012 - Week 49

Dear NXT, please keep doing this. I'd really appreciate it.

Rookie: Derrick Bateman
This Week's Performance: 9
Gimmick: 7
Last Week's Rank: #1
Rank: #1

Comments: Yes, Derrick Bateman. That was a very good week. His match with Heath Slater was a fun five minutes and Derrick looked very good with power offense and decent technical ability. William Regal's unfailing ability to lift wrestlers definitely assisted this, as well as Slater's bump-taking prowess, but Bateman was still great. His backstage segment was really good, too, and I mean that from a Raw/Smackdown perspective, not just NXT. I should recognize credit belongs not only to Bateman, as Kaitlyn, Maxine, and Johnny Curtis all pulled their weight to create a great little segment that built storylines and enhanced everyone involved. I know, right? In WWE. Still, Bateman was great and, again, he added to his resume, which should by now be earning him the occasional match on the main roster.

***

Rookie: Titus O'Neil
This Week's Performance: 7
Gimmick: 5
Last Week's Rank: #2
Rank: #2

Comments: Titus is a very interesting wrestler at the moment, perhaps for the wrong reasons, though. For those of you that don't watch NXT, Titus recently turned heel. This week, he was given a classic spot on commentary to explain his actions and to set out his agenda as a heel. However, with everything he said, Titus came across as a face. Yes it may be cliche, but Titus is built to be a face. He does a lot of work for his community, both by helping disadvantaged individuals through his charity work and by making appearances at local events as a recognizable(ish) face to endorse Florida as a whole. Beyond this, he prioritizes his family over everyone else involved in his life. So... erm, you're a heel, right? Titus tried to explain that by prioritizing these people, he was ignoring everyone else in the WWE Universe. But, realistically, who is going to think, "Goodness, what a horrible man trying to provide for his family and the disadvantaged?" Still, I'm interested in where this heel turn goes as I'm genuinely intrigued to see if he can make it work against the odds. Surely this is the measure of a successful NXT roster member?

I should also recognize at this point (and not just because Regal did) that for all I say about Titus as a wrestler, Titus is truly exemplary member of his local community. Regal asked "How do you find time to breathe?" to which Titus answered, "I don't," and I don't doubt that. On the off chance Titus does read this, he should know that I respect everything he does greatly and I believe you should, too. Well done.

***

Rookie: Darren Young
This Week's Performance: 5
Gimmick: 1
Last Week's Rank: #3
Rank: #3

Comments: He had a match. Good job, kiddo.

***

Other Comments: Kaitlyn should definitely marry me. Just saying. We often criticize a commentator for not enhancing a wrestler effectively, but, in Kaitlyn's case, she seems to put herself over better than anyone can. Her power offense is well executed and well highlighted, and it's really great to watch. The Divas division could really benefit from her input.

Furthermore, her promo work, for me, is second to none on any roster at the moment. That may sound odd, and I don't want to appear an NXT fanatic, but please hear me out. Randy Orton, as "The Viper," is clearly working as a wrestler on TV with a gimmick and a persona. These are both great, but they are clearly both still an expansion of truth and demand a suspension of disbelief to enjoy. Kaitlyn on the contrary appears to just be being Kaitlyn by talking normally, interacting normally with other people, and generally just being herself. It's so refreshing to see in the context of WWE. She's not a cartoon, she's not a gimmick, she's Celeste Bonin a/k/a Kaitlyn, and I am impressed at that.

Then, there's William Regal. His elevation of wrestlers is second to none in WWE at the moment and his call of both the Usos vs. Reks & Hawkins and Kidd vs. Trent Barreta proved his talents as an announcer. He also seems to have sorted out his chemistry issues with Josh Mathews, which is for the best of the show.

Curtis also deserves a special mention, as he has really grown since his Johnny Generic days on NXT Season 3. What a really great role as a massive creep he has to work with and what an excellent job he is making of it. Kaitlyn interacted well with him - her line "Why aren't you wearing a shirt, it's 35 degrees in here?" particularly made me chortle - and he is doing a great job at delivering lines like, "It's getting weird," while appearing to be loving everything around him. He's really starting to win me over and I'm enjoying the Beta-Max storyline all the more for his involvement.

Finally, the ever-growing prospect of a Tyson/Barreta tag team has me excited. My goodness, what a pairing they could prove to be with the mentor of Regal, who is clearly strongly invested in both of them as talents for the future. The tag division has been featured less than Brodus Clay recently (with Clay returning to Funk boot camp) and these two could prove a powerful catalyst in the tag team division.

Overall, I thought NXT was really great this week and proved a pleasant surprise for me and my exam-ridden life at the moment. If you didn't catch it, I recommend having a watch. If WWE really wants NXT to be the C show behind Raw and Smackdown, then this week's episode should be the formula to follow. Roll on next week!

[Torch art credit Neal Obermeyer (c) PWTorch.com]

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