SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)...
RHEA RIPLEY (w/ Judgement Day) vs. ROXANNE PEREZ
NXT Kicked off this week with The Judgement Day accompanying Rhea Ripley to the ring to square off against Roxanne Perez in this “Pick your poison” match. Cora Jade named Ripley as the opponent, and Roxanne Perez named Raquel Rodriguez to face Cora Jade later in another “Pick your poison”.
With AEW Dynamite opposing NXT tonight, WWE absolutely stacked tonight’s card. I wasn’t expecting to see Damian Priest, Finn Balor and Baby Mysterio on the show, but it was a pleasant surprise.
Such a treat to see Ripley back in an NXT ring. As good as she was when she left NXT, she’s that much better in her current incarnation. Roxanne Perez, and I’m surprised I’m saying this, looked like a rookie in comparison. Perez does only have a few years in the ring, but she usually feels a lot more polished to me. Tonight, her offense looked very weak in comparison to Ripley. Perhaps Perez isn’t used to facing someone of Ripley’s size? She looked like she didn’t quite know how to dance with opponent that much larger than her.
Where this match is a continuation of the feud between Jade and Perez, I really appreciated them bringing Raquel Rodriguez (I’ve typed Gonzalez every time…) and Rhea Ripley. Rhea and Raquel had a very similar story where they were a tag team, and became mortal enemies. You gotta love a good call back.
While the match wasn’t bad by any stretch, it wasn’t as good as I hoped it would be. Ripley picked up the win with a Rip-Tide after some Baby Mysterio interference. I feel like this was the right decision. It builds heat on Cora Jade, but more importantly, it keeps Ripley strong. Ripley is in one of the biggest factions on the main roster and is booked as a powerhouse. If she lost to Perez cleanly, there goes her credibility.
Verdict: HIT
STACKS vs. SHINSUKE NAKAMURA
Stacks lost the last couple of his matches, so Tony D’Angelo told Stacks last week that he’d be facing someone tonight so he could earn some respect. D’Angelo built some suspense before Shinsuke Nakamura made his triumphant return to NXT!
The crowd went absolutely wild for Nakamura, as did all three of us on PWT Talks NXT. Our three-way chat lit up when Nakamura’s music hit. Best surprise of the night.
But man, you felt bad for Stacks. You knew Stacks had little to no chance here. D’Angelo basically just took a rookie and put them in a home-run derby against Babe Ruth. If.. Ruth was still alive… But you know what I’m sayin’.
Tony D’Angelo watched on as his boy was decimated by the former two time NXT Champion, presumably wondering why he chose such a tough opponent. Shinsuke wins. Main Roster -2. NXT Roster – 0.
Verdict – HIT
ALBA FYRE vs. SONYA DEVILLE
Last week, we saw Sonya Deville come down from the main roster and align herself with Toxic Attraction and Mandy Rose. Toxic Attraction and Deville ambushed Fyre, leading to this match tonight.
Sonya Deville is an underrated talent, I think people forget how good she is between the ropes. Especially after her time as an on-air authority figure, not a competitor. Alba Fyre is arguably the best female wrestler on the NXT roster.
Fyre got a quick win after Gigi Dolan and Jacy Jayne tried to help Deville out and had it backfire. Fyre was able to fend off all three of them and also fend off Mandy Rose who came out later. With this strong of a win… no chance in hell is Alba Fyre going to win at Halloween Havoc and dethrone Mandy. Traditional WWE booking shows that who gets the big win on the go-home show will statistically lose at the PPV. Or PLE. Or whatever the heck you wanna call ’em.
Verdict: HIT
WES LEE & ORO MENSAH vs. TRICK WILLIAMS & CARMELO HAYES
Lee and Mensah were just minding their own business backstage when they were attacked by Hayes and Williams. The action made its way ringside. The NXT Brass apparently decided to scrap whatever the next scheduled match was, and allowed these four men to have a sanctioned tag team match.
And the match was just as good as you’d think it would be with these four men. Oro Mensah is still new, but he’s more than impressed each time I’ve seen him in the ring. Tonight was no exception.
Melo and Williams picked up the win, weakening two of Melo’s opponents at Halloween Havoc this Sunday.
Verdict: HIT
SCHISM vs CAMERON GRIMES & THE GOOD BROTHERS
A month ago, I wouldn’t have thought we’d see Gallows and Anderson back in the WWE, let alone making their NXT Debuts. But here we are!
Cameron Grimes has been feuding with Schism for a number of weeks, with Joe Gacy trying to get him to join their ranks. Grimes needed two people to help him tonight, and he paid off the Good Brothers to be his muscle.
This was a pretty chaotic six man tag, as they tend to be. Cameron Grimes should be happy in his choice of partners, as he and the OC brought it to Schism. It was great to see Schism get their comeuppance.
Verdict: HIT
XYON QUINN vs. QUINCY ELLIOT
Shotzi Blackheart was named the host of Halloween Havoc, and as she was in the ring making that announcement both Xyon Quinn and Quincy Elliot made their way to the ring to make their case to be the host. She said that they should have a match, and the winner can be her co-host. Que the bell ringing.
Quincy Elliot is one of my favorite things in NXT as of late. The gimmick is incredible, and for a big guy, he’s pretty mobile in the ring.
Elliot picked up the win after Hank Walker from “security” spooked Quinn and took him off his game. Quincy Elliot and Shotzi hosting Halloween Havoc??? YES Please!
Verdict: HIT
CORA JADE vs RAQUEL RODRIGUEZ
Earlier in the night we saw the first Pick your Poison match where Rhea Ripley faced Roxanne Perez. Raquel Rodriguez was Perez’s pick.
Great to see Rodriguez back in an NXT ring, though she didn’t seem to get as much fanfare as Rhea Ripley did. Which isn’t surprising, nothing against Rodriguez, but she never did get to the same level as Ripley did during her time in NXT.
I’d like to say they had a good match, but the match barely got started before Jade tried to hit Rodriguez with a kendo stick. Rodriguez then took the kendo stick and beat Jade with it, disqualifying herself.
I think this match was a waste of a flight to Florida for Raquel Rodriguez with how it was booked. It didn’t do anything to build sympathy for Perez. At least the match between Ripley and Perez got a ton of heat on Jade. This match was just… there.
Verdict: MISS
KO SHOW
Kevin Owens was the final main eventer to make his way to NXT tonight. Owens welcomed Bron Breakker, JD McDonagh and Ilja Dragunov to join him for the KO Show.
KO is the ultimate host, as far as I’m concerned. He started the segment by calling out JD McDon’tGoogleMe, possibly calling attention to the allegations against him that surfaced during the SpeakingOut movement. That verbal jab was just real enough for the fans who know will take it as a “Ohhhh snap!” moment, while the fans who don’t know just think it was great banter.
Dragunov and McDonagh held their own on the mic opposite Kevin Owens. Bron Breakker, the NXT Champion, barely spoke during this segment. And when he did, boy did he stand out against the three better talkers. Breakker might be the dumbest name in the company, but there is no denying that Bron Breakker is a great talent. His mic skills are going to be his downfall.
The segment devolved into a brawl, as all KO Shows do. Ilja Dragunov wound up holding the NXT title high overhead, and we thought we were about to go off air… when Money In The Bank holder, Austin Theory, came out and held the briefcase up. Will we see the first ever MITB cash-in for the NXT title?!
Verdict: HIT
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