Trying to keep to my word by reviewing every NXT. This might be a wee bit late but it's been a hectic few days of lying in bed and watching a whole load of wrestling and other such combat sports, then being undeniably raging because I fucking hate Jon Jones. Prick. Anyway, here's a review of the New Year's Day episode of NXT. Happy New Year and aw that patter.
The Lucha Dragons vs Tye Dillinger & Jason Jordan
I don't know why I've developed into such a fan of Dillinger and Jordan. I like when wrestlers, clearly being put in matches that everyone knows they have zero chance of winning, and still being able to show exactly what they're all about. Dillinger and Jordan are like that for me, they seem to have all the tools, and given some time, may be a couple of top quality talents. We kick this one off with Kalisto trading some chops with Dillinger, who looked ecstatic at how well his were connecting. Kalisto tried to rally with a springboard armdrag, but he gets put back on the defensive, eating a fallaway slam, and just getting his shoulder up at 2. Jordan and Dillinger dominated momentarily, keeping Kalisto off his game, but when he lands on his feet from a backdrop, Kalisto manages to tag in Sin Cara, who went a bit bananas. A springboard crossbody brings Dillinger off his feet, while Kalisto takes care of Jordan. Sin Cara then gets Dillinger on the top rope, and hit an enziguire before putting Dillinger away with a top rope sunset bomb to give the tag champs the win. That wouldn't be all though as the Vaudevillains would interrupt the post-match celebration, attacking the Lucha Dragons and posing with the NXT tag team championships.
- Backstage, CJ Parker is getting ready for his match with Baron Corbin, when Bull Dempsey comes in and tells him that he doesn't need to worry about beating Corbin, but instead he should aim to hurt him. Parker insists that he must beat Corbin.
- Starting in 2 weeks time, NXT will be moving to Wednesday nights, probably to accommodate Smackdown taking their spot on Thursdays. Good things.
Carmella vs Blue Pants
The phenomenon that is Blue Pants returned to NXT this week to try her hand against Carmella yet again. Seriously man, this lassie is more over than anyone, and it's absolutely hilarious. Enzo and Cas arrive first to introduce Carmella, with the crowd making it clear who they wanted her opponent to be. The fans erupt as Cas sings Blue Pants to the ring, and we've got us a match. Carmella starts off strong and disrespectful, standing on Blue Pants' hair to show her who's in control. Enzo seemed to get a bit caught up though, as he jumped on the apron to show how buzzing he was, distracting Carmella long enough for Blue Pants to roll her up and strike her first win in NXT! Really short, but a crowd pleaser nonetheless, the Blue Pants bandwagon rolls on. Title shot coming her way? Carmella wasn't impressed though, flying into a rage and attacking Enzo. He only fancies ye darling, give the poor guy a break.
CJ Parker vs Baron Corbin
Baron Corbin and Bull Dempsey really don't like each other. Whether it's just healthy competition or a genuine distaste for one another, it's making for some decent telly. Dempsey was of course stood at ringside for this, and it didn't go unnoticed. In an almost incredible feat of awareness, Corbin grabbed Parker from the bell, hitting Snake Eyes and a big boot, followed by End of Days for the win... without his eyes leaving Bull Dempsey for a split second. Everyone in Full Sail gasped in disbelief as Corbin grabbed a mic, stared straight at Bull Dempsey, and softly said "are you just gonna stand there looking scared... or are we gonna do this?". It was on. Fucking finally. Corbin pulled Dempsey over the barricade and they started laying haymakers on each other. About 15 refs came down to separate them, and everyone went home a wee bit pissed off. These two in a sanctioned match will be some hard-hitting stuff, and I can't fucking wait for it.
- William Regal makes a backstage announcement that Sami Zayn will make his return next week on NXT to comment on the events of NXT Takeover: R Evolution. He's interrupted by none other than the Axe Man himself! There's Curtis Axel! He asks Regal why he hadn't been answering his calls or texts. Axel wants to kickstart his career again, and Regal seemed impressed at his enthusiasm. So much so, that next week on NXT, it'll be Curtis Axel vs Hideo Itami. Good things, Axel on NXT is something that should have happened a while back, and here's hoping he can eventually put all his potential to good use.
- Charlotte gets interviewed in the ring. The fans are still cheering for Blue Pants, and the Women's champ is not impressed. No chanting while the most genetically superior diva in NXT is talking pls. Thank you. She says that Sasha Banks is the toughest diva she's ever faced, but that she's now beaten her twice. Game's a bogey Sasha. Not that it would matter, because Sasha and her best pal Becky Lynch came out to give her a tankin'. Or will they... there's Natalya. Evening the scores and making sure her good pal Charlotte won't be losing any teeth for the time being.
- Renee Young was supposed to be holding a sit-down interview with Kevin Owens, but upon asking why he stole Sami Zayn's moment at R Evolution, he gets awfully angry and storms away, insisting that 12 years knowing someone when he's 30 years old doesn't merit Sami being considered a "lifelong friend".
The Ascension vs Finn Balor & Hideo Itami
No face paint this time round from Balor, but it seems that the red lighting and smoke is going to be a mainstay of his entrance from now on, and that is fine by me! Balor and Itami go for their bread and butter early on, but Ascension manage to dodge the seated dropkicks in the corners. Balor looks up for the fight once again, sending Viktor to each corner and delivering some devastating chops in the process. Itami gets in to a huge pop, and begins to send kicks flying in all directions. A quick tag sees Balor back in and delivering some more chops, with Itami coming back in and dropping a knee onto Viktor for a near fall. Balor gets back in and builds more momentum, kicking Konnor off the apron, and attempting a springboard, only to be caught coming off the top rope with a huge uppercut by Viktor, sending Balor down to the floor. The Ascension begin to take control, using quick tags to their advantage, and wearing Balor down slowly. A big backbreaker from Konnor brings a two count, before they begin to stomp Balor into their corner. Konnor connects with a massive uppercut to get another near fall, before Viktor locks in a full nelson, continuing to wear at the stamina of Balor. The thing about Balor's stamina is that it has no limits, and Konnor got too cocky, leading to him being Pele kicked into next week. The hot tag finally arrives for Itami as Full Sail give him another mighty ovation, hitting a Busaiku knee kick and taking out Konnor. Off the distraction though, Viktor hit his running STO and looked to put Itami away. Itami managed to kick out though, and for the second time had everyone screaming at the prospect of a GTS, hoisting Viktor up. Konnor to the rescue though, as he drags Viktor down, only to be taken out by Balor, who hits Konnor with a vicious double foot stomp on the outside. Back in the ring, Itami hits Viktor with a rolling enziguire to pick up the win. You'd imagine this may have been the last time we see Ascension on NXT, what with them being moved up to the main roster, where their gimmick is simply awful, and I want it to fuck off in so many directions. Should have stayed at home boys. The rise of Balor and Itami continues.
- Another quality episode. Next week will be even better with Sami Zayn returning and that Axel vs Itami match already getting me excited. As for this episode, a solid 7/10. Very good stuff, but what else can be expected from NXT at this point. (While on the topic, I've started writing for a website called Top Rope Press, and my first piece for them was a list of the top 5 matches in NXT during 2014, which you can read riiiiight here.)
Au revoir mes amis.