NXT returned last night (July 31) as they make their way towards TakeOver: Toronto in a week and a half. You can find the results at the live blog here.
Tyler Breeze def. Jaxson Ryker
Ryker and the Forgotten Sons immediately attack Prince Pretty afterwards... until Fandango makes the save!
Even though the Fandango save was not the biggest surprise, it was still a great moment. Seeing a beloved tag team reunited is always entertaining.
However, it’s what’s next that’s really interesting here. Breezango were wildly entertaining on the main roster, but they were also quickly type casted in their cute but dumb personas. NXT is going to give these talented wrestlers more room to maneuver their characters. Let’s see a more serious side of these two. It’s never going to be completely serious, but it’ll be nice to see what else they can do outside the fashion police.
First in line is a feud with the Forgotten Sons. That’ll be a high profile feud for the anarchist bikers. I’ll be looking to see if they continue the story of Breeze trying to find himself in the new NXT or if that’s going to be let go now that he’s teaming again with Fandango. It was an interesting thread to follow that really only worked with a guy like Breeze, so it’ll be just slightly disappointing if that isn’t alluded anymore.
Cameron Grimes def. Bronson Reed to advance to the Breakout Tournament finals
Relatively, this was one of the less exciting matches in the Breakout Tournament. I say “relatively” because all the matches have been really good and this match was also perfectly fine.
But the crowd wasn’t there for it, which detracted from it. That could be because Grimes was playing the heel against a much bigger guy, which is hard to pull off without any real history to back up those alignments. It could be because some of the more exciting guys, such as Angel Garza and “Swerve” Scott were already eliminated. Or it could just be because this was later on in a long set of tapings.
The match set up Jordan Myles vs. Cameron Grimes in the Finals. That should have a better dynamic as Grimes can slot back into the heel role now that he’s not fighting such a larger opponent. That will allow him to use his shortcut tactics to get the advantage and allow Myles to sell that until he has his hot fire up.
Should be a good final match.
Shayna Baszler walks out alone to address Mia Yim. She tells her opponent that this isn’t the street. This is professional wrestling. And because of that, Mia has already lost. She’s going to put her to sleep because street rats don’t last long in her world.
She’s interrupted by the Blasian Baddie. Mia tells the champ that this street rat is going to bring a fight she can’t train for. Baszler tells her challenger that under the bright lights, she’s going to show the world that Yim is just street trash.
This was a feud I wasn’t sold on when they started it. But they did a pretty good job building it up.
They used the beatdowns to frame Mia Yim as a tough, no nonsense fighter. Someone who will attack preemptively instead of waiting to get attacked. They used the word “street” a lot tonight, and they have certainly been framing Mia as street tough. It’s been short, but the last few weeks has been the best showcase of Mia’s character.
This segment laid out the story of their title match. It will be a trained fighter like Baszler against the street fighting style of Mia Yim. Shayna claims that’s not going to work under the bright lights of TakeOver. Mia claims Baszler can’t train for what she’s going to bring. It’s the story to watch for in that match.
It still doesn’t feel like a major feud for Baszler. It feels like more of a transition feud, and I’d be surprised to see a title change. But that doesn’t mean it’s not a good story and won’t help Mia moving forward, even if she doesn’t win.
Candice LeRae is in the parking lot waiting for Io Shirai. William Regal comes and tells her that Io isn’t allowed in the building tonight. Candice says that she wants Io at TakeOver instead, which Regal grants.
I appreciate Candice waiting in the parking lot, itching for a fight. I wish there was more to this story to really sell how much animosity there is between these two, though. It still feels too rushed.
But they get their TakeOver match and hopefully will put on a show there.
Pete Dunne def. Roderick Strong via submission
After the match, Velveteen Dream sneaks into the ring and is about to hit Pete with the title when Dunne turns around to catch him. Instead, Dream does his pose, but Dunne grabs his fingers, snaps them, and hits the Bitter End!
This was a good main event, though the crowd does seem to be losing energy in general. They made noise for it, but you could also tell they were getting tired. But it wasn’t anything that detracted from the match.
The bout felt like it was one big TakeOver implication. Both men were sustaining injuries that they’ll going to have to deal with in less than two weeks in the North American title match. Roddy’s left arm was worked over so much that he had to tape out to a submission targeting it. And Pete’s back took plenty of damage.
Even with the post match incident, Velveteen Dream is the man who really came out on top.
That post match angle was so good and really showcased the personalities of all three men. Dream with the attempt to sneak attack but with a great “Who me?” response when he was caught. Then of course goes right into his pose. The obnoxious Roderick Strong took some time barking at the men right after losing a match. And Pete Dunne just snapping the fingers of Dream.
This match has potential to steal the show.
Solid episode this week, but you can feel the crowd getting tired.
Grade: B
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