NXT Review: 29/04

Joe Hendy Starts the Show, Ricky Saints VS Lexis King: NXT North American Championship

NXT kicked off this week with Joe Hendry as the TNA World Champion wanted to address Trick Williams’ attack from TNA Rebellion this past weekend! Joe said Trick has changed a lot, and that his lack of being able to win back the NXT Championship has resulted in him taking shots at the TNA World Championship! Hendry then called out Williams, demanding him to come down to the ring, but this call was instead met by DarkState who laid out Hendry to stand tall! I thought Joe’s promo was pretty solid, even though I’m not sure this segment needed DarkState!

Credit: WWE

Grade: C+

Credit: Tuttowrestling

Jordynne Grace agreed to be Iyo Sky’s Tag Team partner for the Main Event before Ashante “Thee” Adonis disrespected Gigi Dolin and Tatum Paxley on his way to telling Karmen Petrovic that he’d gotten her a match with Sol Ruca! Karmen didn’t seem happy by any of this! It was then time for the first match of the night as Ricky Saints put his NXT North American Championship on the line against Lexis King! This was a totally fine match for what it was, I never expected it to be a classic, but both guys are good in their roles. Ricky Saints is particularly doing well right now, he feels like a star on this brand, and Saints’ reign continued after he nailed The King with Rochambeau!

Grade: C+

Tony D’Angelo Calls Out Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo, Sol Ruca VS Karmen Petrovic

Shawn Spears made it clear that he was disappointed with every member of The Culling’s recent efforts, but he also believes he knows how to help turn things around! Tony D’Angelo then came out to the ring alone to address what happened at Stand and Deliver, and Tony was very clear in that he never expected Channing “Stacks” Lorenzo to turn on him like that. D’Angelo then went on to say that Stacks’ impulsivity put The Family in harm's way, that’s actually the main reason why Tony D is The Don, but this led to Stacks appearing on the screen and getting into the head of his former Family member as to who he can actually trust right now! Security guards then tried to jump D’Angelo, but The Don fought them off before he told Lorenzo that if he wants to become The Don, he has to take it from D’Angelo! This was another solid segment!

Grade: C+

Meta-Four had a bit of a sad segment backstage as Lash Legend felt like it was time for everyone to go their separate ways. This surprised me, especially with Lash and Jakara, but it’s also a shame because I enjoyed this group early last year! Sol Ruca was then heading down to the ring next as she was ready to go one-on-one with Karmen Petrovic. This was a decent little contest, Sol is a very talented performer whilst Karmen can also hang too, so I thought they did a decent job. Petrovic tried her best to nail Ruca with strikes, but Sol was almost too agile for that as the NXT Women’s North American Champion nailed KP with a Sol Snatcher to get the win! After the match, Ashante “Thee” Adonis seemed annoyed by the result so Petrovic nailed him with a kick! They didn’t last long!

Grade: C+

Trick Williams Promo, Hank and Tank VS Josh Briggs and Yoshiki Inamura: NXT Tag Team Championships

Trick Williams was out next to talk about his attack on Joe Hendry at TNA Rebellion, and Trick was pretty clear in his disdain for the TNA World Champion! Trick also talked about starring in an upcoming TV show episode, and this resulted in the crowd chanting “Hollywood Trick”! I’m telling you, that should be Williams’ gimmick going forward! Trick Willy then continued his great promo by saying he is bigger than NXT (which is a bold statement) before Ava came out to announce that there will be a 25-Man Battle Royal next week with the winner facing Oba Femi for the NXT Championship at NXT Battleground! I really liked this whole segment, I thought Trick was great throughout!

Grade: B+

Credit: WWE

Giulia and Roxanne Perez seemed to be getting on the same page backstage before Oba Femi had another interaction with The Undertaker as Taker wanted to show off some of his “LFG” students! Okay! It was then time for the second Championship match of the night as Hank and Tank put their NXT Tag Team Titles on the line against Josh Briggs and Yoshiki Inamura! Hank and Tank had new gear so they spent their Championship earnings well, and this was the best match up to this point! Both teams are pretty good, I enjoy watching all four men, so this worked well for me! It was also quite fast-paced at times which is impressive given the size of each man, but a little bit of miscommunication late from Briggs and Inamura opened the door for Hank and Tank to retain their NXT Tag Team Titles! It’s a shame Inamura’s heading back to Japan soon because I happily would’ve watched this match again down the line!

Grade: B-

Wren Sinclair and Tavion Heights told Myles Borne that Charlie Dempsey wasn’t happy about him teaming up with Je’Von Evans last week before DarkState cut a promo on Joe Hendry! Chase University was then back with its first class of the new semester, and I still don’t understand how and why they’re back, and that’s coming from someone who loves the idea of Chase U! Kelani Jordan then wanted a shot at Sol Ruca and the NXT Women’s North American Championship, and whilst Sol Ruca was fine with the idea, Zaria was not! Joe Hendry then agreed to team up with Hank and Tank to face DarkState next week, and that could be the greatest trio ever!

Iyo Sky and Jordynne Grace VS Giulia and Roxanne Perez

And in the Main Event, Iyo Sky teamed up with Jordynne Grace to take on the duo of Giulia and Roxanne Perez! This was a really good TV match, one of the best of the year so far, and that’s mainly because all four women here are absolute stars! Iyo Sky, Jordynne Grace, Giulia, and Roxanne Perez have all been World Champions in the past 6 months, and Iyo recently walked in and out of WrestleMania as the Women’s World Champion, a feat I expect the other 3 women in this match to achieve down the line! In the closing phases, Jordynne and Giulia brawled to the back, meaning we got a straight singles match between Iyo and Roxanne which is also cool because that’s kind of a dream match of mine! In the end, it was Sky who came out on top as she nailed Perez with Over the Moonsault, and The Genius of the Sky standing tall on NXT just feels right!

Credit: WWE

Grade: B