SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
R-TRUTH vs. GREYSON WALLER
Two weeks of Truth in NXT is a dream for me. His whacky and zany antics never cease to amuse me. Bottom line, Truth can do no wrong in my book. Last week Truth and Greyson Waller got in each other’s faces which lead to tonight’s opener.
Was this a five star classic? Of course not. This match consisted of a lot of headlocks, shoulder tackles, hip tosses and the rest of Truth’s (and John Cena’s) shtick. Was it entertaining? Of course. Truth is such a veteran that he just commands the crowd.
Right before the commercial break, R-Truth unfortunately performed a dive over the top rope and clipped it with his leg. He landed poorly and the match had to be stopped. Waller got on the mic and talked himself up, saying he beat him “on his own” as the crowd chanted “You Got Lucky”.
R-Truth, we hope it’s nothing too serious and we’ll see you soon!!
Verdict: 50/50 – unfortunately there was an injury. But, Waller playing it up like he beat Truth clean does help Waller’s annoying persona.
KIANA JAMES vs. THEA HAIL
Before the match, Thea Hail was asking Andre Chase who was going to carry the flag. Obviously a nod to Bodhi Haywood being released earlier in the week. Duke Hudson, dressed in Chase U attire, burst through a paper thin wall. He grabbed the flag and excitedly lead Chase U to the ring.
I still don’t trust Duke Hudson’s intentions, but maybe that all changed with Bodhi’s release?
James & Hail had a passable matchup. Hail needs to work on her in-ring, though she’s improved significantly since her debut. That said, her character work and charisma are already going to take her far in this business. She has plenty time to master the actual wrestling.
Duke Hudson put Hail’s foot on the rope when she was getting pinned and was scolded by Andre Chase. “We don’t do that here!”, and he sent Hudson to the locker room. James capitalized on the distraction, as expected in wrestling, to pick up the win.
You know. I think most of Chase U’s losses take place after an inadvertent distraction from their teammates. Maybe they should just go solo to the ring? How’s that for a teachable moment, Andre?
Charlie Dempsey attacked Andre Chase and Thea Hail after the match, and Hudson still made the save for Chase U. Maybe he has had a change of heart after all?
Nah. He’s up to something.
Verdict: HIT
ODYSSEY JONES vs. JAVIER BERNAL
Poor Javier Bernal. Earlier in the night he was seen dressing down Malik Blade and Edris Enofe and texting HBK for a match tonight. HBK granted him the match, alright. A match against a returning, walking, talking beast of a man. Odyssey Jones
Jones has been on the injured list for quite some time, returning in a backstage segment last week. Great to see him back and healthy!
Before his injury, Jones was not impressing me as much as I had hoped. His character and charisma? Off the charts. His in-ring work definitely needed improvement. And improve it did as far as I’m concerned.
Bernal did get quite a bit of offense on Jones to start the match. However they played it off as ring rust on commentary. Jones made his comeback and eventually delivered a massive Spinning Sidewalk Slam for the win.
I think Jones should have won a bit more decisively considering the size difference and this being his return, but that’s more of a nitpick than anything. Bernal could potentially be getting a minor push based on his new gimmick and how strong he looked during the start to this match.
Verdict: HIT
INDI HARTWELL vs. ZOEY STARK (w/Nikkita Lyons)
Earlier in the night, Stark and Hartwell got into an argument backstage over Hartwell not being deserving of title shots. Hartwell took exception to this and challenged for a match.
This match looked physical and came across as personal. I don’t know if they legitimately don’t like one another, or just worked very snug. Whichever it was, it made the match feel more like a fight than a match.
Stark seemed to play the heel in the match, playing up some of the anger that we saw after she and Lyons lost their match for the NXT Tag Titles last week. Commentary also played up how brutal that the match was, and how brutal Stark was in particular. She went to put Hartwell through the announce table and Lyons had to back her off. Hartwell capitalized on Stark being distracted and picked up the win.
After the match, commentary kept talking about how unhinged that Stark looked. It showed in her eyes, she was absolutely livid after yet another loss.
Verdict: 50/50
CORA JADE vs VALENTINA FEROZ
Before the match, Feroz was backstage asking her buddy Sanga to come to the ring with her. Sanga refused as he said he couldn’t now that he’s aligned with Veer Mahan. Feroz hit the ring looking upset and sad that she came to the ring alone. Jade kept asking “Who are you?”, making fun of Feroz’s place on the card.
While Feroz got her stuff in here and there, this match just served as a reminder to the crowd that Cora Jade exists and is still relevant.
Wendy Choo came out to save Feroz from a beating after the match, alluding to a potential feud between Choo and Jade in the near future.
Verdict: 50/50
PRETTY DEADLY vs. BRON BREAKKER & WES LEE – NXT TAG TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS
Bron Breakker kicked the show off talking about the success of Halloween Havoc. Pretty Deadly interrupted him which devolved into them barking at Breakker while he mocked their accent. Wes Lee then came out and Breakker and Lee challenged for PD’s tag titles. Wes Lee said that he missed tag team competition, and Breakker just wanted to collect more gold. If NXT Champ, Breakker and North American Champ, Lee, win the titles then they would be the first two men to hold all four titles at once.
Going into the match, I figured that PD would retain. Yet how could two singles champions lose? I was ready for shenanigans so neither Breakker nor Lee lost cleanly.
The match itself was just as good as you would expect out of these four men. Breakker looked great after his hot tag, double suplexing both members of PD on his own. Once Breakker entered the match, Pretty Deadly looked like they were all but finished. That is until Carmelo Hayes pushed Wes Lee off of the top turnbuckle without the ref seeing it. That caused him to lose and then fight with Melo on into the back.
Breakker tried to celebrate in the ring when Von Wagner attacked and laid him out. Apollo Crews and JD McDonagh looked on from the back on a monitor as the show faded to black.
Verdict: HIT
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