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NXT Recap and Reactions (October 18, 2022): The Homecoming Theory

October 19, 2022

NXT brings home a lot of favorites this week. It’s almost as if something big was going on in the fight that they were aware of and wanted to look good for a reason. Hmm. Not sure. Anyway, Geno takes care of the blog this week. He’s not Claire but he’ll do.

Let’s talk NXT!

He’s bleeding. we can kill it

Anyone who comes to Bron Breaker is looking for weakness. The problem in his system that gives them an opening for the W. Ilja Dragunov thinks he found it when he accidentally headbutted Bron last week. Of course, it wasn’t meant for Bron, but he’s glad it happened. It showed him that Bron is mortal.

The fact that we’re here where these two are at odds shows that JD’s plan is working, a fact Kevin Owens pointed out while all three were guests on The KO Show. KO is a human, so he’s put off by McDonagh’s creepiness. Even during the segment, JD just scared everyone by his mere presence. Happened to me too and I wasn’t even there.

You watch the fight so you know how it goes. Eventually, everyone involved fought back, despite being told by KO to relax. When does anyone listen to this in wrestling? JD watched for a bit as the two fought – clearly foreshadowing for Halloween havoc— but eventually got in on the action. Well, rather the action involved it.

But none of that is the big story here. None of the interesting characters between the three men or the knockout comedy is the cliffhanger for NXT’s next big event. No, that honor goes to Austin Theory.

The theory emerged, briefcase in hand, hinting at cashing in on that contract for the NXT Championship. It all makes sense in the world based on Theory’s last two weeks on Rawplus the fact that he’s not beating Roman Reigns at any time between now and WrestleMania. Dragunov, the last man standing in the ring, held the belt high and acted like Theory didn’t exist. Which is appropriate based on how both men portray their respective characters and how other wrestlers respond to it.

It’s a beautiful wrinkle that goes into Halloween havoc and really makes one wonder if Bron’s time as champion is up. There are now four threats to his title and those aren’t great chances.

The best segment of the night by far.

Extracurricular activities

close us

Overpowering Rhea Ripley was never an option for Roxanne Perez. Being smarter and faster than Ripley was the name of the game if she was going to have a chance at getting a W. And for a brief moment, she was. Rhea dominated most of the match with her strength. It was the typical David and Goliath story. Of course, in this build, Goliath was equipped with Dominik and the rest of Judgment Day. It was the difference in the game.

Now, analytically, which is why I’m here, WWE has come to an impasse. Rhea Ripley can’t lose to anyone in NXT, let alone Roxanne. But Roxanne can’t look weak walking in Halloween havoc. Logic says a finish filled with shenanigans is in the cards. But that’s not exactly what we have here. Dom distracted Roxanne but he didn’t really interfere. Sure, the distraction proved fatal as Perez looked away from his opponent and grabbed a Rip Tide, but a distraction isn’t actual interference. A DQ finish makes perfect sense in this scenario, but that’s not what we got. Rather than looking like a competitor who gave it her all but was outnumbered, Roxanne looks like a competitor not smart enough to keep her attention on her opponent.

And that.

But there is more…

Cora Jade vs. Raquel Rodriguez got the finish I wanted for Roxanne vs. Rhea. Cora tricked Raquel into hitting her with the kendo stick, the referee rang the bell, and Roxanne attacked her rival, who feasted on the glory of her cheap W. It was fun to see Roxanne get her hands on Cora, if only for a bit.

stack packets

Shinsuke Nakamura returned to NXT for at least one night. And all thanks to Tony D’Angelo. Nakamura served as punishment for Stacks. And yes, it was a punishment. The Don made a meal of Stacks going down after two Kinshasas, but that’s not true either. the first knocked Stacks out of the ring, while the second came when Stacks accepted the inevitable.

Meh.

I have this fire

So, as I always say: stay away from abduction angles, NXT. Mandy Rose came forward this week after Alba Fyre kidnapped her a few weeks ago. We got no explanation, no reasoning or any real resolution. Just Mandy saying Alba made the wrong choice removing her. What? That’s it?

At that point, Alba fended off the rest of Toxic Attraction and Sonya Deville, then got tangled up with Mandy. Something about this feud just isn’t working for me and Alba, who felt like a threat to this championship months ago, now seems like another bump in the road.

As for the match between Sonya and Alba, it went well. But just not enough time. It’s always to the detriment of such packed shows.

The score

Speaking of fast! Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams took on Wes Lee and Oro Mensah in a tag match that apparently lasted 5 minutes. It was truly a snap and you missed the fight that started in the locker room and ended quickly in the ring. But the point wasn’t the match itself; the goal was to gather the ladder match competitors into a ball of chaos. And that’s what we got after the bell rang.

Although the “match” didn’t do anything for me, I’m still high in this ladder match.

Young Gunz

The six-man tag was a lot of fun and really dope. The OC joined Cameron Grimes – for a fee – against The Schism. Grimes worked beautifully with Gallows & Anderson. so much so that they looked like a group of three veterans. We had smooth interactions, smooth teamwork, and a good contrast of styles. The schism also worked well, making it shameful that they’re trapped behind this current gimmick. However, the comment touched on something very interesting for Joe Gacy: he despises Grimes because he can’t control him. Gacy feeds on easily manipulated minds and lost souls. Finding someone who is neither is his kryptonite. I like it a lot and I hope we will have more.

The CO, of course, took the W for their team because no one is showing up from the main roster and taking an L this week.

The host with the most… and a tank

Shotzi is your Halloween havoc host. I thought you should know. Oh and Chucky will be there too. I promise you. And Quincy Elliot is his co-host thanks to a nice win over Xyon Quinn. Quinn continued to use her power to no avail on Elliot, who is just too much for it. Quincy, whether it’s because of the last name or the attire, really reminded me of old school Missy Elliot this week. I enjoyed that very much.

And Hank is still in Quinn’s business. So yeah, that’s something that’s coming very soon.

It was a very average edition of NXT. Especially for a homecoming show. Although they definitely set the stage for Halloween Haven, there were a lot of balls in the air which made for a very tough juggling act. Sometimes it just wasn’t compelling television. That’s not to say it was a bad show, just a bit below average. However, this did not dampen my hopes of Halloween havoc at all. So that’s a plus.

Category B-

This is my note and I stick to it. Your turn.