This week’s episode of NXT was an average show. Starting with the match quality, and it was clear that the brand tried to fit on as many matches as they could to advance as many stories as they could. With matches like Sol Ruca vs Jazmyn Nyx and Fraxiom vs Swipe Right not getting as much time as they probably needed. The opener between Jordynne Grace and Jaida Parker showed both women have great chemistry together, while showcasing Parker’s vast improvement in the ring. While the main event served as a good way to make DarkState feel like a true threat to the NXT roster, by beating the NXT Championship match at Stand and Deliver. Storytelling was up and down, it felt like some stories are being more complicated than they needed to be. Ricky Saints and Ethan Page for example there is an easy layup for a singles match, yet Ethan has to go through a contenders match to face Ricky. While the Giulia heel turn has been made official, they could’ve done it a lot better and made it more brutal. The commentary team unusually didn’t make the moments feel bigger than they were, which was evident with the Giulia turn as the commentators failed to establish how big of a moment it is that she turned on her best friend in NXT for the NXT Women’s Championship. So although there were some problems when it came to storytelling, the show ended up advancing the build to Stand and Deliver well and we now have a clear pathway to the show.
We are two shows away from NXT’s biggest show of the year in Stand and Deliver. This week on the show, Jordynne Grace battles Jaida Parker. DarkState makes their NXT in-ring debut together, as they take on the NXT Championship match of Stand and Deliver. Let’s get into the review!
GREAT Jordynne Grace vs Jaida Parker
These two worked extremely well together to put on a hard-hitting opener. Jaida Parker continues to show just how much she has improved in the ring, with her phenomenal microphone skills she is looking like the complete package in wrestling. Jordynne Grace at this point can have a great match with pretty much anyone on the roster. She’s that good and although there was a slight mistake at the end of the match with the dive, everything else came off swiftly and effectively. The match ended with Jordynne, Jaida and Stephanie brawling as Giulia made her return. But the Beautiful Madness has her eyes on one thing, and that’s the NXT Women’s Championship as she took out Vaquer and turned heel in the process.
Result: No Contest
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: 3.75 Stars
GREAT Fraxiom vs Swipe Right
This was a really fun sprint. Swipe Right, as mentioned on NXT multiple times, comes from the newest show Evolve. They were impressive against the tag champions, they didn’t look out of place at all. Baylor and Smokes could end up being regulars on NXT TV before the year is up.
Result: Fraxiom by Pinfall
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: 3.50 Stars
GOOD Sol Ruca vs Jazmyn Nyx
Jazmyn Nyx called her shot, and decided to take this opportunity to qualify for the Women’s NA Ladder Match herself instead of letting one of her teammates have it. She impressed against Sol Ruca, she carried herself as a heel very well and most of her moves came off smoothly. Ruca got the win in the end and rightfully so, as I really think she would be the best option to win this match.
Result: Sol Ruca by Pinfall via Sol Snatcher
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: 3.25 Stars
SQUASH The Culling vs Hank and Tank
The story continues of Hank and Tank trying to find themselves as a team. It’s getting a bit repetitive each week though, as it’s more of the same thing. We’re gonna have to see some development of this story sooner or later.
Result: The Culling by Pinfall
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: Too short to rate
GREAT Ricky Saints Segment
The new NXT North American Champion made an appearance. Ricky Saints talked about how he backed up what he said when he first arrived in NXT, and called out Ethan Page. Instead he was greeted with Lexis King, Eddy Thorpe and Wes Lee. They all tried to make a case to get a title match at Saints, but Page made the biggest impression as he hit Ricky with another Twisted Grin.
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: 3.50 Stars
GOOD Wes Lee vs Yoshiki Inamura
This is a match that I was extremely intrigued by when it was announced, I thought Wes Lee and Inamura’s styles would merge well together and I was right. Wes as the smaller opponent was able to do what Fraxiom did, which is make Inamura look like a beast. While Wes’ heel work was also something that we could appreciate coming out of this match. Josh Briggs tried to help his tag team partner pick up the win, but unfortunately Wes Lee’s backup was too much for Briggs.
Result: Wes Lee by Pinfall
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: 3.25 Stars
SQUASH Izzi Dame vs Wren Sinclair
This was a short and quick match which saw Izzi Dame qualify for the Women’s NA Championship Ladder Match. The match was mostly fine, other than the mistake with the pinfall at the end where Izzi broke the pin before the 3 count. Dame was the right winner here, as they need to better establish The Culling as a genuine threat to NXT.
Result: Izzi Dame by Pinfall
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: Too short to rate
GREAT DarkState vs Je’Von Evans, Trick Williams and Oba Femi
The debut of DarkState and my verdict is that we know who should be pushed as the leader and star of the group, which is Saquon Shugars. He has bundles of charisma in the ring when he’s selling, or even when he’s doing a simple wrestling hold. He understands the little things extremely well, which should take him really far. Oba Femi and Trick Williams obviously ended up fighting, so that just left Je’Von Evans to fight the group on his own. Unfortunately the numbers game was too much for Je’Von and he took a loss right before his match at Stand and Deliver. I’m not sure how I feel about DarkState winning this match, on the one hand it’s pretty annoying your NXT Championship match got beat a couple weeks before Stand and Deliver. But on the other hand, it makes the faction look incredibly strong straight away.
Result: DarkState by Pinfall
Archie Carter WR Star Rating: 3.75 Stars
Overall…
This week’s episode of NXT was an average show. Starting with the match quality, and it was clear that the brand tried to fit on as many matches as they could to advance as many stories as they could. With matches like Sol Ruca vs Jazmyn Nyx and Fraxiom vs Swipe Right not getting as much time as they probably needed. The opener between Jordynne Grace and Jaida Parker showed both women have great chemistry together, while showcasing Parker’s vast improvement in the ring. While the main event served as a good way to make DarkState feel like a true threat to the NXT roster, by beating the NXT Championship match at Stand and Deliver. Storytelling was up and down, it felt like some stories are being more complicated than they needed to be. Ricky Saints and Ethan Page for example there is an easy layup for a singles match, yet Ethan has to go through a contenders match to face Ricky. While the Giulia heel turn has been made official, they could’ve done it a lot better and made it more brutal. The commentary team unusually didn’t make the moments feel bigger than they were, which was evident with the Giulia turn as the commentators failed to establish how big of a moment it is that she turned on her best friend in NXT for the NXT Women’s Championship. So although there were some problems when it came to storytelling, the show ended up advancing the build to Stand and Deliver well and we now have a clear pathway to the show.
Matches: 0.5/1 Stars
Show Structure: 0.75/1 Stars
Atmosphere/Crowd/Commentary: 0.5/1 Stars
Storytelling: 0.5/1 Stars
Production/Theme: 0.75/1 Stars
Overall Rating: 3/5 Stars
Photo Credit: WWE
For inquiries about the rating criteria check out the article announcing the new system here:
