If it’s a Saturday night in June, NXT is In Your House! Claire is here, providing all your blogging needs, while I’m here doing all the other stuff she isn’t doing.
Let’s talk In Your House!
It’s Like That
I always look at a match with an eye on the main character. Ultimately, it’s their journey and their opponent is merely a part of that story. For the longest time, it looked like this was Cameron Grimes’ story. Cameron has the emotional hook, he’s the babyface, and he has a lot to prove.
But then Melo entered the match flanked by cats with custom made shirts for the occasion, along with the pomp and circumstance befitting a main character. In hindsight, Melo reclaiming the North American championship was an obvious call. I sound like a broken record each time these two wrestle in the same vicinity because they put on yet another great match.
There are two big points here so let’s take them in sequential order. Cameron Grimes started the match on fire like he made three straight jump shots. He didn’t miss anything and put Melo on his heels. Literally. Melo didn’t believe his eyes and regrouped. Grimes noted repeatedly that he knows Melo like the back of his hand. The early returns proved he wasn’t just running his mouth. After battling to a stalemate, Melo turned up the aggression. Meaning, for those of you who missed it, he hit a nasty looking DDT on the apron after floating over the top rope. Seriously, it was a thing of beauty and Grimes sold it like the most devastating move known to man.
The second big deal was Trick Williams. Trick interfered multiple times, either through annoying Grimes or just outright cheating. Williams tried tying Grimes’ hand to the ropes, and he threw hands a couple times. But the point was never to truly do anything but distract. Trick saved his best distraction for last.
After Grimes countered Melo’s signature springboard attack—once again proving his point—they battled to the outside of the ring. Grimes took out both men with a dive because, again, Trick is just as much a part of Melo’s matches as Melo. Melo knows this, so he took his time getting back in the ring. Meanwhile, Trick did what he does best, which is talk a lot of trash and take a hit for his man. Grimes, finally done with Trick’s foolishness, laid Williams out flat with a Cave In. Melo looked on, waited, and baited Grimes.
And yeah, you know the rest from here. Ding, ding, ding, Carmelo Hayes is the A champion once again.
These two just know how to tell a story. Grimes is so focused on one-upping Melo while also dealing with Trick Williams, that he loses sight of what really matters. And it’s all perfectly executed.
Extracurriculars
The World is Yours
The best thing about this match, which was a very good match. was the story. After teasing a Santos Escobar and Tony D’Angelo pairing very early, the match built to the eventual clash. While the match didn’t suffer when their capos wrestled. In fact, the goons brought a lot of energy to the proceedings. They took the highest risk, and truly brought the “war” aspect to the match.
However, every time we got Tony D and Santos, the drama ratcheted up exponentially. Eventually, both men resorted to their usual tricks and that’s where the match was won. Tony and the Family were a step ahead of Legado del Fantasma for most of this feud. That continued at In Your House.
Ms. Lopez handed Santos some brass knuckles. Two Dimes hands Tony another lead pipe after the ref found and discarded one prior to the start of the match. Joaquin Wilde takes said pipe and leaves Stacks reeling in the corner. Because turnabout is fair play, Tony steals Santos’ brass knucks and knocks Wilde two weeks into the future. Dimes pushes his partner onto a laid out Wilde, and LdF is now a part of The Family.
Tony D won this match for his team because he outsmarted Santos Escobar. Great way to start the show and a fantastic way to make the story much more interesting.
Your Winners, and NEW...
The Creed Bros. were fed up. Tired of Pretty Deadly, tired of Roderick Strong, and just exhausted with all the drama surrounding their names the past few weeks. That frustration boiled over during this tag team title match. Julius and Brutus clearly wanted nothing but death for Elton Prince and Kit Wilson multiple times throughout the match. There was the Ankle Lock/Stretch Muffler tandem in the middle of the ring. There was the Brutus Bomb with rage. Oh, and the time Brutus threw a grown man at another grown man. Like he was a child. And then, finally, the time Julius almost gave the whole thing away.
With his family at ringside, Julius almost threw away his team’s shot at the title and their Diamond Mine membership. Julius picked up one of those tag titles, and almost used it as a weapon against Kit. But he didn’t. After looking at his dad and his brother. Julius gave the belt back to the ref, mustered his rage, and the crowd went into Berserk Mode.
Brutus slammed Kit. Julius hit Kit with a gorgeous Shooting Star Press, and then the patented lariat.
That was all she wrote for a very good and very physical tag team match between two teams on opposite ends of the spectrum.
The Message
Katana Chance and Kayden Carter lost to Toxic Attraction because they’re not dirty. That’s it. They weren’t outwrestled, just outsmarted. This is the story for Toxic Attraction since their inception: They work just as hard as everyone else but have no problem cutting corners to get the job done. While I liked the match, I’m not wild about the decision here. If we’re not giving Katana and Kayden the belts now, then when? And what is the endgame for Toxic Attraction? There aren’t many women left for them and a story needs both peaks and valleys to keep the audience hooked. And by audience, I mean me.
Respect
Mandy Rose came in wanting respect on her name and that’s what she got. The champ successfully defended against Wendy Choo in a match that, while lacking chemistry between the two women, did have moments. Both women started the match angry, which I always love. They despise each other so this is exactly what we deserve. Mandy’s Spinebuster to Wendy near the ring entrance was the best type of violence and showed Mandy’s nasty side. And Wendy’s comeback moment where she opened her jacket revealing a desecrated Toxic Attraction shirt was a dope moment. For a few seconds, it looked like the end for Mandy as she struggled to stay awake in Wendy’s sleeper. But, like usual, she survived.
Mandy took Wendy by surprise and got another W for herself and her squad.
Champion Sound
Bron Breakker and Joe Gacy are very good wrestlers. Unfortunately, this story weighed down their In Your House match. Both men were crisp, fluid, and executed everything. Gacy took a mean table bump, Bron hit an incredible dive over the top rope, and at times, it looked like a real fight. That’s what we want, right?
But the mechanics in the story got wonky towards the end. The men in robes made their presence known. The first made sense: One of them handed Bron a chair while he and Joe wrestled outside. The move not only works with the stipulation that Bron loses if he’s DQ’d, but it distracted the champ long enough for Gacy to capitalize.
Then there was the last moment, that ultimately made no sense. Gacy low blows Bron and almost gets the W. Bron, justifiably pissed, goes for a chair. The ref does his best to talk Bron down but the man wants to swing. Gacy, looking like Castor Troy from Face/Off, says he’s ready for the big ride. Then...one of the men in robes hops onto the ring apron. Why? Bron will swing. Gacy will win. The title is his. So why is this minion possessed with the idea of getting on the apron now? Bron takes out his aggression on the minion, which is perfectly legal, and finishes Gacy to retain the title.
This wasn’t a bad match by any means, but the storytelling just kept rearing its misshaped head. I hope this is the end of their feud, although I’m not sure what one does with Gacy at this point.
I enjoyed this show quite a bit. It didn’t overstay its welcome, we got good matches, and a couple surprising outcomes. Well, at least I was surprised. Much like NXT’s weekly television, Gacy and Bron were the one thing that didn’t quite work as well as hoped. But everyone else propped them up.
Grade: B+
That’s my grade and I’m sticking to it. Your turn.
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