There has been a glaring exception to the weekly Wrestling Inc. "Loved and Hateds." We talk about "Raw," and "SmackDown," and "Dynamite," and we even talk about "TNA Impact," and now, finally, we are talking about "WWE NXT."As always, there was plenty to love and plenty to hate from the show, and we'll get into all of it. Obviously, results will be kept to the results page, while we break down the good, bad, and the downright ugly of "WWE NXT." Dizzying highs like the 8-Man Tag in the middle of the show, and drizzling lows like whatever is going on with Blake Monroe's vanity title belt.Enough bloviating though, it's time for the first ever "WWE NXT" Loved and Hateds column, so let's get into it.
Hello, it's me, the guy who keeps voting Booker T for "Best Commentary" every year. In a business where everyone sounds the same, no one sounds like Booker T. His chemistry with Vic Joseph is so cold that it is incredibly funny.Joseph essentially does play-by-play, while Booker interrupts him by shouting ad-libs. It's the most fun I have every week, listening to Booker yell stuff like "CARVING HIM UP! HE'S CARVING HIM UP! HE'S A HUMAN MOLOTOV COCKTAIL!" while Vic Joseph does his best to maintain some kind of composure and professionalism. Booker T singing along to Joe Hendry's theme is the only way that I will listen to the psuedo-Christian Rock that Hendry calls a song. In a business full of robotic commentators, talking in soundbites, Booker is human and downright messy.I get that he's not everybody's cup of tea, but this is one of those areas where WWE has poisoned people's brains to what's possible on commentary. I don't need someone to explain wrestling to me. It's an embarrassingly simple genre. What I do need is a wrestler from days gone by, getting as hyped up by the developmental talent as Booker does every week.Written by Ross Berman
If Saturday's Stand & Deliver was supposed to be the WrestleMania equivalent for the developmental territory, then Tuesday's "WWE NXT" fell just a little short of following up on it when it came to its top champions. Now, obviously, the tag line for next week's show is Revenge, so it would feel a little disingenuous for that not to be delivered on in some form and WWE would never be disingenuous. But at the same time, all this week's show managed to accomplish on that front was establishing rematches from the show just gone.Tony D'Angelo kicked things off as the new NXT Champion, running through his opponents Ethan Page, Ricky Saints, and Joe Hendry, which of course meant the former champion came out (it's his thing) and all but asked for a rematch. That then prompted Page to come out and quite rightfully point out that Hendry was the one pinned on Saturday, blaming Saints for his loss to precede his entrance to also make a claim for a rematch. It felt like the obvious direction to have Saints and Page continue their pursuit of the title. It's not as though the main roster is crying out for roster depth, or anything. But Hendry was a bit of an odd inclusion since he literally lost the match.Sure enough, Dark State came out for their pound of flesh against D'Angelo, bringing everyone else in as collateral. And Robert Stone decided to book a four-on-four tag match. Outside of storyline, it was a bit of a flat decision to just throw everyone together. Myles Borne came out and cost Dark State with an attack on Dion Lennox, allowing Page to steal the win from beneath D'Angelo. Which one would assume is to say Page will be the one getting the next shot. But there were just so many more plentifully interesting avenues to go down to get to that destination.Then, in the main event, Lola Vice came out for a promo as the new NXT Women's Champion, only to be interrupted by... the former champion who was also pinned in a multi-person match to lose her title on Saturday: Jacy Jayne. The segment ended after Stone made a rematch official for next week, and that just feels a little weak, all things considered. Kendal Grey would have made a lot more sense, given that she didn't actually factor into the losing decision in the title match. Sol Ruca might have made more sense given that she beat Zaria in a feud predicated by their shared pursuit of the Women's title. But when all was said and done, this show just felt a little flat in terms of forward direction.Written by Max Everett
Was the Eight Man Tag Team Match pitting NXT Champion Tony D'Angelo, Ricky Saints, Ethan Page, and Joe Hendry against DarkState the best Eight Man Tag Team Match in the history of Eight Man Tag Team Matches? Certainly not.In fact, I would call it pretty standard as far as this match type goes, and I found some of the pacing to be just a tad bit awkward in the early stages of it for my taste. There was one thing that did make this match for me, though, and that was the storytelling that it did.This match told stories on both sides of the ring. Dion Lennox and Saquon Shugars had a clear miscommunication as to who was calling the shots at the top of this match, with commentary putting extra emphasis on it. Myles Borne also specifically chose to attack Lennox on the outside in the midst of everything and brawl to the back with him. All of this ultimately worked to bring attention to the ongoing dissension between Lennox and the rest of DarkState after the Stand & Deliver backstage segment, where Lennox was told by his stablemates that they thought he was focused more on himself than on the good of the group. It may have been pretty subtle, but it still accomplished what it needed to in a manner that wasn't as in-your-face as WWE can often tend to be.On the other side of the ring, you had the four men who had just squared off in the main event of Stand & Deliver forced to work together in an effort to take down DarkState. Now in full honesty, I would've preferred that we had wrapped up the storyline between D'Angelo, Saints, Page, and Hendry at Stand & Deliver, but with the speculated "NXT" Revenge two week special coming up, I can understand why "NXT" would want to keep things going between them for at least another week or two since it's in the name. Page also stealing the pin from D'Angelo with Twisted Grin was the perfect setup to have him challenge D'Angelo for his NXT Championship, and was the perfect fit for Page's character.Written by Olivia Quinlan
Alright, hear me out. There's no doubt that Kali Armstrong, the inaugural Women's EVOLVE Champion and three-time NCAA All-American, has a bright future ahead of her in WWE. The circumstances surrounding her imminent "NXT" debut, however, don't make the greatest of sense.As confirmed by "NXT" General Manager Robert Stone, Armstrong will mark her "NXT" arrival during the two-week television special, titled Revenge. The majority of matches already announced are infused with the element of vengeance. Sol Ruca vs. Zaria comes as a rematch of their Stand & Deliver affair, which arose from the latter turning on the former. Ethan Page will have an opportunity to reclaim the NXT Championship when he challenges the new champion, Tony D'Angelo. Similarly, former NXT Women's Champion Jacy Jayne will challenge the very woman who dethroned her at Stand & Deliver, Lola Vice.Kali Armstrong, on the other hand, will compete at "NXT" Revenge with no real sense of urgency or revenge for that matter. After all, she's a fresh face amongst the "NXT" brand, so what "revenge" could she possibly be out for? The only logical possibility lies in Kendal Grey, the woman who unseated her as the Women's EVOLVE Champion back in October. In any other case, though, Armstrong's debut match wouldn't truly fit the vibe of this TV special.Aside from its outlier feel, I fear that Armstrong's debut may also get lost in the shuffle amongst the bigger matches on the card. And for those reasons, I argue that it would have been better suited in another place and time.Written by Ella Jay
As previously stated in our "NXT" Stand & Deliver predictions column, I am firmly under the belief that Zaria needs a victory over her friend-turned-foe, Sol Ruca. Much to my surprise and disappointment, though, she took a loss at the event, with Ruca then declaring her intentions to move on from Zaria.Given that Ruca has long outshone Zaria, the outcome of Stand & Deliver left me scratching my head, especially as it pertained to Zaria's future on the "NXT" brand. How do you bounce back from a loss to someone who's arguably held you back and occupied your singles spotlight? Where is the closure? And most importantly, why should I, as a viewer, consider you, Zaria, as a legitimate force in WWE then?Based on tonight's events, the first question has already been answered. Amidst Ruca's singles match on "NXT," Zaria laid her out with a spear on the outside floor, allowing Izzi Dame to follow up with Dame Over in the ring for the win. From there, Zaria told an exhausted Ruca that she'd say when their feud ends.Zaria's vengeful actions and words give me hope that she will finally get the closure that she needs and deserves from this storyline, specifically in a rematch against Ruca. Assuming that they do indeed meet for a rematch, WWE then has the opportunity to course-correct with an image of Zaria standing over Ruca in triumph.Zaria came into "NXT" with so much potential as a powerhouse. 18 months later, I'm now confident that we are on the cusp of her properly being able to showcase it.Written by Ella Jay
The way "NXT" handled Blake Monroe losing the Women's North American Championship the entire way back in December seems to still be having effects at this point in April. Sure, the title was good to have for Tatum Paxley's feud against Izzi Dame, but it really seems now that Shawn Michaels and the powers that be in "NXT" really want to put the title back on Monroe, but they're just not sure about her main roster status after WrestleMania.The second Paxley solidified her status as champion, defeating Dame in a steel cage main event match on the March 17 edition of "NXT." Monroe appeared through a trap door on the stage and "dragged Paxley to hell" and posed with the title. "The Glamour" would carry the gold around straight through until their Stand & Deliver match, despite Paxley's best efforts to get the title belt back in her possession.Now that Paxley defeated Monroe in a really solid match at the premium live event, Vanity Project gifted Monroe a custom Women's NA title backstage to help cheer her up. And, while it's a really cute belt, it now feels like the shine is being taken away from Paxley. I figured that these women would be set for another match if Monroe was going to be sticking around "NXT," and it seems to be the case now with Revenge announced to get "NXT" through WrestleMania.I really like both of these women, and I thought their Stand & Deliver match was phenomenal, but when you have Monroe, of all people, carrying a belt around, she sincerely looks like a champion. She just carries herself like one. Even I forgot for a moment ahead of the PLE that she wasn't champion, and it wasn't Paxley facing her for a shot at the gold. While that's of course all on me, I'm sure I'm not the only one who got a bit confused. Carrying around a title that wasn't hers was pretty meaningless, and now, Monroe carrying one that resembles the real title just seems silly.Vanity Project gifting Monroe another belt to carry around just isn't it for me, as I really want Paxley to have a solid reign and be able to shine with the Women's North American Championship. What happens next remains to be seen after Revenge, and more importantly, after post-WrestleMania call-ups, if those are even happening. Right now, "NXT" is stuck in a holding pattern, and I guess I do respect them for attempting to come up with new angles to keep old stories fresh.Written by Daisy Ruth
