[ad_1]
NXT goes pretty well at this: who beat up who? Whether in a parking lot or backstage, we usually see someone lying with no attacker in sight. It’s a trope that Shawn Michaels clearly loves. He loves it so much that he sometimes uses it multiple times in the same show. While we normally wonder who did it and why, what they’re doing with Trick Williams, Lash Legend and Noam Dar sounds a little different because of the other drama.: Whiplash and trick.
Did Trick do it? Did Lash do it? Nothing about Trick points in her direction, but as shown later, Lash is a strong possibility since Trick clearly has her wrapped around his finger. Add that to the fact that we know she’s probably just as powerful as Noam. I mean, she lifted Otis’ power.
Wrestling is full of tropes and each territory relies on certain ones. The execution is what takes an angle from meh to memorable. I’m not saying this is automatically the latter since it’s just started, but this love story gives it a different feel. Not for nothing, but if Lash did it, that also makes it different since we rarely get an angle where a woman hits a man. What if she did it without Trick knowing? How would he feel about it? And of course, what if she didn’t do it at all? No one likes to be accused of her, so if she gets all this pressure from her crew for nothing from her, she’ll surely say something about it.
I hope they keep the emotion at the center here. Lash is clearly torn, while Trick apparently loves controlling the situation. Oh, and we still don’t know exactly what happened between those two and when. Crafting an interesting mystery is easy when it comes to people the audience is already interested in. There’s something here with Trick & Lash, which makes NXT going down this path for what seems like the umpteenth time, a little easier.
B-sides
America
- Interesting formula for the first game of the North American women’s championship. Izzi Dame dominated most of the match, which I understand given that she is stepping out of Kiana James’ shadow. Sol didn’t get the win anywhere, establishing that she can hit anyone with that Sol Snatcher in the blink of an eye. She is the top seed in the tournament, so considering her dangerous is appropriate. Plus, she just defeated Blair Davenport, which was no easy feat. However, good performance by Izzi.
- Lash Legend came into this match frustrated. So that frustration, along with a little help from Jakara, helped her make quick work of Ivy Nile. They established Lash as a powerhouse who can deal major damage when she’s motivated.
Lucien’s Luck
Nice way to make the losses of Edris Enofe and Malik Blade mean something. They go with the bad luck angle. It’s a bit silly though. it is at least something. These cats keep flirting with the idea of moving up, but they can’t get there. Chalking it up to bad luck gives them a story that will hopefully resolve itself with a big win.
They almost achieved it this week against OTM, but Edris’s bad luck extended to his boots. The man’s left boot came loose during the match and ultimately prevented him from gaining momentum during the turning point of the match. I can’t speak for everyone, nor do I ever try to, but I sympathize with them. It sucks when you feel like nothing is going your way, which makes them emotional favorites. Maybe, hopefully, this will get the audience even more on his side.
This was a fun feud that even included some North American tournaments, where Jaida Parker and Brinley Reece faced each other several times. Things got so heated between those two that it took several referees to separate them.
Can not buy Me Love
Let’s start at the beginning: Noam Dar was attacked. And no, it wasn’t in the parking lot. With Jakara and Oro Mensah present, it became clear who wasn’t. When Lash arrived, they wondered aloud about his absence. Remember, Lash didn’t leave the building with the Meta Four last week. Was he with Trick? Was he plotting? That’s the mystery.
And I mentioned all of that above, so here’s how it affected Main Man Mensah’s match with Je’Von Evans. First of all, Oro looked great. He rarely gets the chance to break out on NXT TV, but here he did. And the match came with the added advantage that he wanted to win this match against Noam, who is out indefinitely.
Meta Four did his usual tricks. Then this happened:
Trick has that woman hypnotized. The saga continues and Meta Four takes a fun L. game with an intriguing ending that advances the story in multiple ways. I like it.
Don’t get angry, get even
A lot happened in Carlee Bright’s debut match in NXT. She begged Ava to give Lola Vice a chance. She understood it and looked good, but she also showed us Nattie and Karmen Petrovic waiting. Why is that important? Well, Karmen took Nattie’s advice to heart. She showed some aggression this week and attacked Lola during a backstage interview, while Lana went after Shayna Baszler. If you’re new to professional wrestling, welcome! But also, those are signs that Lola’s match would not last long and that those two would make an appearance.
Carlees showed a fun offense and great sales ability. She is great in dangerous situations, which works perfectly with Lola, who always looks aggressive. Lola got the W, because of course she got it, but it made Nattie and Karmen closer to the two women they hate. I liked that Karmen took the microphone away from Nattie mid-speech and got straight to the point:
I love the fire, I love the character development and everything about this bloody feud.
good friends
I didn’t expect Tony D’Angelo to perform well in a Heritage Cup game. Granted, we have a lot of different setups in these matches with different styles, but Tony rarely fights on the mat. This showed that he can be, if not with the best, at least good enough to look like he belongs. In fact, his first victory came by countering Charlie Dempsey in a victory roll. That’s different for a guy who normally focuses on power and hitting cats.
Tony was the story here for me. Charlie is not new to this place and delivered as always. But Tony really surprised me. Not only with his counterattacks, but also with his Suplexes, takedowns and his ability to change styles impressed me. He is the new Heritage Cup champion after five rounds and defeating Charlie 2-1, so the match went a long way to making him credible. I liked that he went to what he does best in the last round. He told the story of a man who can do anything, but don’t forget, he is still a gangster.
BUT WAIT, that’s not how NXT closed its show.
Previously, Wes Lee, Josh Briggs and Ivar made their intentions very clear for the Oba Femi North American Championship. Oba, as always, told everyone to fight for it and that he would take the winner.
What’s better than a triple threat? A 4-way fatal. But who occupies that fourth place? While Tony D was celebrating his big victory, the cameras show this:
And so, we have a fourth. That’s a big return and an even bigger statement. Oba needs rivals and I like the team in front of him. This is also a very interesting cliffhanger leading up to next week.
It was a solid two hours of wrestling. Lots of new features in the story, significant coincidences, surprises and a mystery! NXT had great success this week.
But let’s get to the point: who do you think hit Noam and why? Let me hear it, people!