This episode of NXT was a story building episode for sure. We started getting the Iron Survivor matches. We are seeing feuds growing between Lyra and Xia Lia and Alpha Academy vs Meta-Four & Gulak’s Group. Both the womens and the mens Iron Survivor qualifying matches delivered something special; with hard bumps and innovative spots, respectively. The women’s division has several little rivalries growing that continue to show that NXT’s women’s division is incredibly deep with great characters. Then we get to the main event segment. The fantastic story-telling from Carmelo and Trick was great and when Lexis King came out and blue-balled everyone in the building and everyone watching at home; it was so funny. As I said earlier, I was disappointed that we left this show with more questions than answers for the Hayes/Trick storyline but I feel like a run in the Dusty Cup would make this story that much sweeter. Using tournaments or gimmick matches to advance stories is always a slam dunk in my book.
WWE NXT November 7 2023 has the aftermath of Halloween Havoc and begins the road to NXT Deadline with two Iron Survivor Qualifying Matches: Fallon Henley vs Tiffany Stratton and Tyler Bate vs Dijak. Will Akira Tozawa claim the Heritage Cup from Noam Dar? We get the grudge match between Von Wagner and Bron Breakker. Finally, we get a face to face between Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams.
GOOD Akira Tozawa vs Noam Dar – NXT Heritage Cup Championship Match (WWE NXT November 7 2023 Opening Match):
The match starts with chain wrestling but then Tozawa gains the advantage with a superplex. Dar wins the first fall with a rollup with a handful of tights. Dar then hits a forearm after the bell. The heel tendencies continue with Dar hitting ground and pound elbows after the bell. Dar teases Alpha Academy by using an Ankle Lock but Tozawa counters and hits back-to-back dives on Dar and Mensah and then puts Dar in the Ankle Lock for the equalling fall. Tozawa goes for the Senton but Mensah distracts the ref and Legend drags Dar out of the way and Dar hits the Nova Roller to win. NXT Heritage Cup rules matches are always fun and this one was a blast. Meta-4 and Alpha Academy are similar silly factions and I think a little faction feud would be fun.
Results: Noam Dar by Pinfall via Nova Roller
Austin Knight WR Star Rating – 3.25 Stars
ABOVE AVERAGE Lyra Valkyria Promo:
This promo starts off with Lyra Valkyria ignoring several “You Deserve It” chants to get to the promo. Lyra puts over Becky Lynch and their match from Halloween Havoc Night 1. Lyra seems to be calling out to the locker room for a challenger when Xia Lia comes out of the crowd. Xia jumps the barricade and asks if Lyra saw what Xia did to Becky on Raw. Lyra says that Xia needs to win her own title. Xia kicks a security guard in the face and Lyra and Xia stare down. This promo did kind of feel a bit awkward from Lyra ignoring the “You Deserve It” chants to the weird ending. However, Xia Lia could be a good first major feud for Lyra in her reign.
Austin Knight WR Star Rating – 2.5 Stars
GOOD Tiffany Stratton vs Fallon Henley – Iron Survivor Challenge Contender Match:
This match starts hot with Henley on top. Henley hits a massive superplex that looked kind of rough on Stratton for a nearfall. But that bump was nowhere near what Henley took next. Stratton had Henley in the World Strongest Slam position and dumped her outside of the ring through the ropes. That fall looked so brutal and caused Holy S*** chants and several shocked faces. Stratton uses the ringpost to damage the knee of Henley and works it over for a little bit. Stratton hits a chop block and a Prettiest Moonsault Ever for the win. This match started kind of uninteresting but the bump that Henley took was so rough looking it really injected this match with excitement. Statton winning was the right call but Henley certainly looked tougher than nails from taking that bump and continuing the match.
Results: Tiffany Stratton by Pinfall via Prettiest Moonsault Ever
Austin Knight WR Star Rating – 3.0 Stars
GOOD Bron Breakker vs Von Wagner:
Before the match, we see the ref leaving Shawn Michaels’ office saying that Michaels told him to be lenient on the rules in the upcoming match. As Von makes his entrance, we see the scar on Von’s head from Bron’s attack. Von starts out on top but starts to sell a concussion and then Bron takes over with multiple suplexes and the Steiner Recliner. Von’s comeback is met with muted cheers until Von goes to put Bron through the announce table but Bron hits Von with a low blow to get away. Bron then goes after Mr. Stone but Von gets in his way. Bron hits a spear on the outside and another one inside the ring to pick up the win.
After the match, Stone hits Bron with a chair to the back and Bron no-sells it. Bron goes to put Stone through the table but Von appears and powerbombs Bron through the table to a big pop. Stone offers Von a handshake but Von brings him in for a hug. I think they wanted the crowd to be more behind Von Wagner than they were but it didn’t take away from the match too much. Bron still looks like a killer and Von can go into a different feud with Robert Stone as his mouthpiece and storyline fodder.
Results: Bron Breakker by Pinfall via Spear
Austin Knight WR Star Rating – 3.0 Stars
SQUASH Lola Vice & Electra Lopez vs Roxanne Perez & Kelani Jordan:
Before the match can begin, Arianna Grace comes out and does her Beauty Pageant winner speech. She sits ringside on a throne throughout the match. Perez and Jordan both do crazy acrobatic arm drags at the start of the match. Vice and Lopez take control with a double hip attack. The finish comes with Perez hitting Pop Rox and Jordan hitting a split legged moonsault to pick up the win. After the match, Grace tries to announce the victor but Petrovich comes out and beats her down and tells her to “shut up”. This match was fairly short and didn’t serve much of a purpose but it advanced all of the characters involved and started a couple of mini-feuds in the process.
Results: Roxanne Perez & Kelani Jordan by Pinfall via Split Legged Moonsault
SQUASH Otis vs Drew Gulak:
This match just sort of happened but the crowd were super excited for Otis. As the match begins, Otis is driven into the post and Gulak takes control with wear down submissions. Otis then “Otis Ups” to hit a true one-armed powerbomb and a series of lariats and power moves. We get the Worm followed by an emphatic pop up powerbomb for the win. This match was not very long but the crowd loved Otis and Gulak bumped his butt off for him. The Alpha Academy would work really well in NXT and I hope that they can be a more permanent addition to the regular NXT roster.
Results: Otis by Pinfall via Pop Up Powerbomb
AMAZING Dijak vs Tyler Bate – Iron Survivor Challenge Contender Match:
Throughout the night we get segments hyping up this match from each participant. The match begins with a bang with Bate hitting a corner springboard European Uppercut to take control. Bate dives onto Dijak but Dijak throws him over the barricade. Back in the ring, Bate hits Dijak with a stalling super-plex after dead-lifting him once already. Bate follows this up with two Bop & Bangs but Dijak goozles him on the third and hits High Justice for a nearfall. After this, Bate hits the airplane spin on Dijak with at least 15 revolutions (probably more) and gets another nearfall. Bate lands the rebound lariat but Dijak hits a suplex throw for another nearfall. As Dijak is on the top rope, Bate goes for a back suplex but Dijak flips out and lands on his feet. The crowd is chanting “This is Awesome” as Dijak counters a top rope move by Bate to hit Feast Your Eyes for the win.
This match was fantastic. Both men went above and beyond for a huge showcase of each other’s strengths. Dijak hit acrobatic moves and Bate hit power moves. Both competitors came out of this match looking better and it makes me sad that both can’t be in the Iron Survivor match cause I know these two can come up with even more crazy spots. However, I do agree that Dijak has a little bit more momentum at the moment so I understand the choice of winner.
Results: Dijak by Pinfall via Feast Your Eyes
Austin Knight WR Star Rating – 4.25 Stars
MUST WATCH Carmelo Hayes/Trick Williams Promo (WWE NXT November 7 2023 Main Event Segment):
Hayes is in the ring and immediately asks Trick to come out. Trick Williams appears to a raucous crowd response. Hayes says he understands why Trick was upset but he thought that his success would be their success. Trick is claiming that Hayes is jealous of the individual achievements Trick is getting. The crowd is more on the side of Trick throughout this exchange. Trick keeps trying to ask the question if Hayes attacked him but Hayes keeps avoiding saying he knew Trick would be great. It’s revealed that Trick doesn’t know who attacked him and right when we are about to learn if Hayes was the culprit, Lexis King appears. King is antagonizing both men and Trick swings at him but hits Melo instead. Trick helps Hayes up but Hayes looks furious as the show fades to black.
This segment was a great little piece of wrestling storytelling. The promos from both men were very believable and the emotions were very realistic in the way that you understand both sides. I am fully invested in this story because I don’t want to see Trick and Carmelo fight and that is exactly how NXT wants you to feel. Ultimately, I am disappointed that we didn’t get a true reveal but I think the breakup angle can take some more time to cook and then the feud will be that much better.
Austin Knight WR Star Rating – 4.5 Stars
Overall – WWE NXT November 7 2023
This episode of NXT was a story building episode for sure. We started getting the Iron Survivor matches. We are seeing feuds growing between Lyra and Xia Lia and Alpha Academy vs Meta-Four & Gulak’s Group. Both the womens and the mens Iron Survivor qualifying matches delivered something special; with hard bumps and innovative spots, respectively. The women’s division has several little rivalries growing that continue to show that NXT’s women’s division is incredibly deep with great characters. Then we get to the main event segment. The fantastic story-telling from Carmelo and Trick was great and when Lexis King came out and blue-balled everyone in the building and everyone watching at home; it was so funny. As I said earlier, I was disappointed that we left this show with more questions than answers for the Hayes/Trick storyline but I feel like a run in the Dusty Cup would make this story that much sweeter. Using tournaments or gimmick matches to advance stories is always a slam dunk in my book.
Matches: 0.5/1 Stars
Show Structure: 0.75/1 Stars
Atmosphere: 0.75/1 Stars
Storytelling: 1/1 Stars
Production/Theme: 0.5/1 Stars
Overall Rating. 3.5/5 Stars
Photo Credit: (wwe.com)
For inquiries about the rating criteria check out the article announcing the new system here:
