By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
NXT Hits
Giulia and Bayley vs. Roxanne Perez and Cora Jade: A hot show opening tag match. The wrestlers were given plenty of time and they made the most of it. Jade taking the pin was the right move given that the other three will meet in a Triple Threat for the NXT Women’s Championship at Vengeance Day. Jade was upset about not being included in the match and was shown meeting with Ava, so this may become a four-way. I hope not because her character hasn’t done enough to earn a spot in the title match. Then again, neither did a couple of the men in the NXT Championship match at Vengeance Day, but more on that later.
Bianca Belair and Naomi vs. Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson for the WWE Women’s Tag Titles: There were some clunky moments, but there was more good than bad. Legend hasn’t put it all together yet, but she’s come a long way and showed off her athleticism. I’m not sure why the live crowd took a page out of Jesse Ventura’s playbook by blaming the referee for something that didn’t happen. On Saturday Night’s Main Event, Ventura accused a referee of making a three count even though his hand clearly stopped short of the mat. In the cage of the tag match, the referee stopped his count when Naomi kicked out at the last moment, but the fans acted like Naomi didn’t kick out in time. Based on his report, even our own John Moore seemed to be suffering from what I can best describe as Ventura-itis.
Trick Williams vs. Wes Lee: The idea that Williams was still selling Oba Femi’s powerbomb after a full commercial break and a backstage segment was a bit much. Don’t get me wrong, I’d probably be hospitalized for a month if I took the same move from Femi, but we’ve seen Williams kick out of moves that look just as punishing. That said, the storyline injury put Williams in position to work from underneath during his match with Lee. Williams looked impressive by overcoming the injury and then fighting off outside interference from Tyson Dupont and Tyriek Igwe. The DQ finish worked in this case because it protected Lee and created the need for a rematch, while also spotlighting the growing frustration of the Williams character.
Cedric Alexander vs. Ethan Page: A quality match with Alexander trying to avenge Page’s attacks on Je’Von Evans. Alexander is so consistent in the ring in that the guy just doesn’t have bad matches. But it was the right call to have Page beat him to maintain his heat. The post match angle with Je’Von Evans returning from a broken jaw to save Alexander was a nice way to set up his expected match with Page for Vengeance Day.
Fallon Henley vs. Shotzi for the NXT Women’s North American Championship: A credibility building win for the talented Henley. Jacy Jayne and Jasmyn Nyx fought to the back with Gigi Dolin and Tatum Paxley early on, leaving Henley to go it alone for a change. The creative forces have gone overboard with the interference in Henley’s matches, so it was nice to see her get a clean win. I still don’t see much on-screen chemistry between the Fatal Influence trio, so I wouldn’t mind if the friction between Henley and Jayne led to a breakup.
NXT Misses
NXT Vengeance Day main event: It’s currently billed as Oba Femi vs. Grayson Waller vs. Austin Theory in a Triple Threat for the NXT Championship. One can only assume it will become a four-way when Trick Williams earns a spot in the match. Williams asked the obvious question of what Waller and Theory did to earn a title match. Ava’s character failing to understand why he wouldn’t think they are worthy was baffling. Apparently, if you get called up to the main roster and lose as many matches as you win (and I’m being generous in this case), that’s enough to be granted an NXT Championship match.
Ava: Is there a storyline reason behind Ava flexing her power during segments with Oba Femi and Trick Williams? Ava is fine when it comes to making basic announcements and rulings, but she struggles when she’s asked to do more. The creative team isn’t helping by having her character use bad logic to justify many of her decisions.
Wes Lee is the other one who always has good matches.
Off topic, but can anyone tell me where to watch the full library of Raw? Looks like Peacock removed it when the change happened and Netflix doesn’t have em either.
There’s a Raw Vault on YouTube. I’m not sure how much they have, but I would try there if you can’t find something on Netflix.
Good to know! Appreciate it