American Alpha vs Enzo Amore and Colin Cassady
Well, this was a disappointment! It’s possibly Amore and Cassady’s last match in NXT. It’s two babyface teams colliding to show who’s the best. So why did it seem so half-hearted? By the time the match got going, American Alpha hit their finisher and it was over. It followed the usual AA template: Gable gets beaten down for the middle of the bout, until he makes the hot tag to Jordan, and shortly after that they win. There was nothing unique or memorable about this match. It was watchable, but not one I would ever watch again. What a shame!
WINNERS: American Alpha
VERDICT: 5/10. Merely average and a disappointment. I expected so much more from these two teams!
INTERVIEW: Apollo Crews said that he followed Samoa Joe…that’s creepy! Watch your back Joe…or get a restraining order!
Alexander Wolfe vs No Way Jose
Just when you thought NXT was free from comedy gimmicks, here comes No Way Jose! First of all, it’s a stupid name. Second of all, didn’t they try the partying, dancing man gimmick with Adam Rose? And look how that turned out. Most of Jose’s offence was laughable, in a bad way. Not only that, but a big punch was his finishing move? What a joke! I give the gimmick a month or so…
WINNER: No Way Jose
VERDICT: 3/10. A ridiculous debut from ridiculous gimmick. I can’t see No Way Jose lasting long…
Interview: Austin Aries said that luck is a by-product of hard work and skill. It wasn’t luck that gave him a victory over Baron Corbin. Aries offered Corbin a rematch. He also said that he was at the A-Double Level…didn’t he mean the Double-A level?
SEGMENT: William Regal told The Drifter that on the next episode of NXT, he would face Shinsuke Nakamura. Good luck, Samson! Hopefully the defeat will give him a change of gimmick…
Nia Jax vs Deonna Purrazzo
Yay! After a long absence, the squash matches of Nia Jax are back! I had missed them so much…To be fair, Jax put more effort into this match than she usually does, but it didn’t increase the quality a great deal. It was an easy victory for her, and a boring one for the viewer. Are they building her up to face Asuka for the NXT Women’s Championship? Asuka’s future opponents seem thin on the ground, and Nia Jax is one of the few contenders.
WINNER: Nia Jax
VERDICT: 3/10. A little more entertaining than the average Nia Jax squash match, but not much. Will she ever show potential in the ring?
INTERVIEW: Bayley gave her two cents about Eva Marie vs Asuka on the next episode of NXT. She said that Marie is tougher than we think. I think she meant worse, not tougher. However, maybe the bookers should have saved Asuka vs Eva Marie for a Takeover event? Like I said above, opponents for Asuka are thin on the ground.
Samoa Joe vs Apollo Crews
An above-average main event closed the show. Joe and Crews appeared to be going through the motions, unwilling to do anything more. The closing moments of the bout were exciting, but the preceding ten minutes or so were decent. Couldn’t they have been given give minutes more? They could have told a better story over that period of time. Instead, they were given just over ten minutes. Not only that, but the finish came out of nowhere: Joe locked in the Kokina Clutch for the tap-out victory. No build up, no suspense. Was it Crews’ last match in NXT? If so, he could have tried harder to leave on a positive note!
WINNER: Samoa Joe
VERDICT: 6/10. Like the opening match, the two wrestlers only increased the momentum of the match in the closing moments. It wasn’t enough to enliven the match much, as the finish came out of nowhere.
OVERALL VERDICT: 5/10. A wholly average episode of NXT. The opening and the closing matches were merely decent, when they should have been good or very good, considering the talent involved. The two squash matches were terrible, including a debut of a comedy gimmick that is bound to fail. Since Takeover: Dallas, NXT’s quality has been dipping…
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Click here for my review of WWE NXT Episode 330 (13.4.2016)
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