Welcome to the NXT recap for this week’s episode (Oct. 24). You can find all the results at the live blog here.
EC3 interrupted an Undisputed ERA promo which led into a match between NX3 and Adam Cole.
EC3 def. Cole with a roll up despite distraction from Bobby Fish, Kyle O’Reilly, and Roderick Strong. After the match, they beat EC3 down four on one. This included Fish hitting EC3’s knee with a chair.
It was surprising to see this match actually happen. EC3 vs. Adam Cole is a marquee match (even though I find myself often forgetting Carter is on the main roster). So after their promo to start it up, I expected them to advertise the bout for next week. But instead, it was a nice little surprise.
I’m paying closer attention to EC3’s matches in NXT. I’ve been a huge fan of the former Carter from the beginning of his TNA/Impact run, but I’m hard pressed to remember an EC3 match that I thought was really great. With the increased resources of NXT and, more importantly, some of the most talented dance partners in the world, could that change?
While he hasn’t had any five star classics, his matches have been a step up on the yellow brand compared to his time in Impact. Having an opponent like Adam Cole certainly helps, as does better production and better crowds.
Carter was able to overcome multiple attempts at distraction from Fish, O’Reilly, and Strong to pick up a roll-up win. But he soon paid for it.
After the bout, he was beat down by all four members of the ERA, including a chair shot to his historically bad knee from Bobby Fish. To which I believe the crowd chanted “Thank you, Bobby” which didn’t make any sense at all, but for the rest of it, they booed these villains.
Getting fans to boo is an impressive feat for Undisputed. They’re so easy to like much of the time. They walk out to some sweet riffs oozing swagger and charisma as bad boys you just can’t help but like. But by the end of their segments, they’ll have the crowd booing them. It may take a dirty 4 on 1 attack on a fan favorite, but they get it done. Targeting the knee of that fan favorite, a knee that has given him much trouble throughout his career, helps. It also helps that the man who targeted it just got back from a knee injury himself. He knows how bad it is and doesn’t care.
With War Games around the corner, I now expect to see EC3 on a team of probably the War Raiders and Ricochet. (I didn’t read the spoilers - that’s just a guess.)
Mia Yim def. Aliyah with Seoul Food
Mia Yim is officially in NXT!
In her debut match, she faced Aliyah, who it seemed has been in this role for years now. Mia will be fine, but at this point, will Aliyah?
They’ve tinkered with her character (cat ears or no cat ears) for awhile now, and she hasn’t gotten past this spot of losing to newcomers. And she hasn’t done it as well as others in that role have. With NXT always signing more women (like Mia), you’d think Aliyah will have to find her groove sooner than later if she wants a better place, or any place, among a field of talent that keeps getting more crowded.
Kassius Ohno def. Justin Xavier with an elbow to the back of the head
After the match, Nikki Cross walks to the ring and tells Ohno, “He’s coming” and laughs as she walks off.
Even in a squash, Ohno is so damn good. He’s smooth and hard hitting at the same time. It’s always a pleasure to watch the knockout artist.
His new attitude is welcome, even if it looks like it’s just setting up another loss to a newcomer when he eventually faces Matt Riddle (who got a video package in the following segment hyping up his debut next week). Part of me wouldn’t mind seeing them flip the script and have Ohno go over Riddle when they first meet, even if it’s by some very nefarious means to protect the newcomer. That’d make these matches less predictable, give Ohno more of a story, and vault the Bro right into a feud.
William Regal was set to announce his number one contender for Tommaso Ciampa’s title, but he was soon interrupted by Ciampa, then Velveteen Dream, then Lars Sullivan. Obviously Dream and Sullivan wanted title shots. When Dream told Sullivan to not talk to the Dream without pants on, Lars grabbed him by the throat.
Suddenly, Nikki ran out to tell them all “He’s here.” Aleister Black was outside just beating the hell out of Regals security (surprise!). He made his way to the ring and delivered a Black Mass to Lars before getting in Regals face demanding to see “him.”
That was when Johnny Gargano superkicked Black and said “I’m here,” literally dropping the mic on him.
Listen, this was a very filler episode of NXT. A couple squashes. Many video packages. But if they spent 40 minutes with the less impactful events, the last five minutes had 40 minutes worth of story to make up for it.
We got a great over the shoulder stare from Regal when his champion entered the ring, a champion he’s surely not proud of. Must be tough to have to deal with someone so nasty as your champ. He’s probably so busy dealing with it that he can’t afford to get halfway decent security.
Regal stare.#WWENXT pic.twitter.com/1Ovy0HWJcI
— Joshua Gagnon (WrestlingInc.com) (@HeelDoors) October 25, 2018
They then delved into the #1 contender issues. It seemed like it was going to be Velveteen Dream, but Lars threw his hat in the ring after a recent win over EC3. It looks like these men are going to have to try to go through each other if they want to get a chance at the Blackheart.
It’ll likely be Dream since that was what they were setting up and the fact that Lars had a recent title attempt. But making them earn it will add to the climb for whomever gets there. (Again, it’ll be Dream.)
Also, Velveteen told Lars to put some pants on, which was worth the price of admission alone.
Then there was Nikki, who doesn’t just know everyone’s secrets but also acts as the harbinger of Aleister Black. (Or was it Johnny Gargano?) She’s just perfect in this role and it’s much better than her being on SmackDown with SAnitY doing (checks notes) nothing.
This story has given Black a fire he didn’t have prior. He was a fine champ, but now he’s a raging badass. Whether it be kicking the crap at Regal’s sorry excuse for security or delivering a Black Mass to Lars for getting too close, he feels like a dangerous man. Injuries are never good, but this may end up pushing Black to that next level when it’s all said and done.
That brings us to the reveal - that it was Johnny Gargano who attacked him.
I thought Johnny was trying to get better in the last few weeks, and maybe he was. But his sins have returned to collect and it looks like he’s decided to lean into it. If he’s going to be treated like the villain (because he acted it), may as well continue to play that role.
Gargano needs to find his way back from the depth he traveled when chasing Tommaso Ciampa. Paying the piper in the form of Aleister Black could be his first step in finding himself, or losing himself for good. It’s an intriguing arc with many possibilities, all which have their merit. This should be an exciting leg of Johnny’s journey.
This closing segment was packed and saved a show that was rather underwhelming after the opening match.
To enjoy this show, you really just needed to watch the opening and closing segment. The rest was video packages (about the women’s title match and one concerning the Roman Reigns situation) and rather inconsequential squash matches.
Grade: B
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