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NXT - April 15, 2015

NXT
Date: April 15, 2015
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Rich Brennan, Corey Graves

Reviewed by Tommy Hall

NXT is back home tonight after last week's show took us to Axxess weekend. Things are starting to get back to normal around here and there are some interesting stories at the moment. Kevin Owens needs a new opponent for the NXT Title, Blake and Murphy are on a collision course with Enzo and Cass, Dana Brooke debuts tonight and we have Sami Zayn vs. Rhyno. Let's get to it.


Opening sequence.

CJ Parker vs. Solomon Crowe

I'm pretty sure this is Parker's last appearance. The fans are behind Crowe as Parker hammers on him in the corner. I love that Crowe has said he wants to be NXT Champion. Even if that's not a realistic option (at least not yet), it's what a wrestler in NXT should want to be. Crowe takes Parker down in the corner and threatens a charge, sending Parker out to the floor. He settles for a suicide dive and Parker is in pain on the ramp.

Back in and Crowe charges into a pair of boots in the corner to put him down for the first time. A backsplash gets two for CJ and we hit the chinlock, completely with a few LET'S GO CJ chants. Crowe fights up with some right hands but gets turned inside out by a clothesline. A side kick gets a near fall on Solomon but another backsplash hits feet. Crowe goes up for a splash onto the leg, setting up an old Brock Lock (bending Parker's knee around his neck) for the submission at 5:09.

Rating: C-. I'm not sold on Crowe yet but I like the idea of him using a submission instead of a pin. He's built a bit like Taz and it's kind of hard to buy him throwing punches and coming off the top as a result. This worked well enough though as he wrestled a scrappy style and found an opening to win. I'd like to see more development from him though as there's something in that hacker character. If this is Parker's last appearance, I'm going to miss him. You need jobbers like him who are over with the fans no matter how many times he loses.

Post match, Crowe says the show is just beginning.

Baron Corbin vs. Steve Cutler

I had been wondering what happened to Corbin. He was one of the hottest things on the show and then he was jobbing in a highlight package. Cutler eats an early clothesline but gets his days ended at 25 seconds.

Sami Zayn isn't surprised that he still has a target on his back. Kevin Owens used him to get to the top but Rhyno isn't going to do the same.

Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady vs. Sawyer Fulton/Angelo Dawkins

Carmella is back and still loathed by the fans. Enzo says he has a spectacular vernacular and the Michael Jordan of Jargon. Cass says they are who they say they are and they aren't gonna fake it. Blake and Murphy have something they want so they're just gonna take it. Enzo grabs a headlock on Fulton to start and takes him down for a walk over his back. Fulton gets hold of Enzo's wrist though and hooks a fireman's carry takeover. That's fine with Enzo who brings in Big Cass for a beating.

It's quickly back to Enzo but Fulton crotches him on top. Cue Blake and Murphy with flowers for Carmella, who seems impressed despite the NO chants from the fans. Back inside, Fulton goes old school with an abdominal stretch to Enzo. He's too close to the ropes though and Amore escapes, followed by a Downward Spiral Stunner to get a breather. The hot tag brings in Cass to clean house with the East River Crossing, setting up a Rocket Launcher to pin Dawkins at 3:48.

Rating: C. This is one of the things that I love about NXT: they take a really basic idea for a feud like this one but execute it well enough with characters that the crowd cares about that it's easy to get into. There's nothing revolutionary here but the fans love Cass and Enzo so they're easy underdog challengers. Carmella turning heel seems to be the next step, but maybe the champs are just using her and both teams dump her?

Cass and Enzo aren't happy with Carmella taking the flowers.

Alex Riley says he isn't going away that easily. Not after all those years of fighting for every inch, because Owens has painted a bullseye on his back for the rest of his career. He has nowhere else to go, so he'll be waiting for Owens in the ring next week.

Blue Pants vs. Dana Brooke

Blue Pants has a recorded version of Cass' da-da-duh da-da entrance and is introduced from the clearance aisle. The fans still love her too and it's one of those things that can only work here in NXT. Brooke is a former bodybuilder with a decent rock song for her entrance. She shoves Blue Pants down and hammers in some slow right hands.

The fans don't seem to like Dana, but it might have something to do with her being billed as the Total Diva. Graves sounds like he has a big crush on her for a bit of flavor. Brooke sends Blue Pants into the corner and stands on her head to choke Pants with her boot. Blue Pants comes back with some jobber offense but walks into a forearm, setting up a Whiplash for the pin at 2:04. Total squash.

Charlotte vs. Becky Lynch vs. Bayley in a #1 contenders match next week.

Sami Zayn vs. Rhyno

Sami dodges a bit to start but gets caught with a right hand to the face. A headlock works a bit better for Zayn until Rhyno shoves him away and shoulders him out to the floor. The fans are split about 60/40 in Sami's favor but the Rhyno cheers are certainly there. Back in and Sami grabs a headscissors to send Rhyno outside for a second. It just seems to make Rhyno angrier though so he pounds Sami into the corner and chokes with the boot.

A stiff SHUT UP to the fans get the cheers more in Sami's favor (at least they're obedient) and Rhyno chokes on the ropes. Sami comes back with forearms and a dropkick but Rhyno takes his head off with a clothesline. Back from a break with Sami fighting out of a chinlock and bobbing and weaving to stay in a slugout. That's fine until Rhyno plants him with a spinebuster for two.

Sami can barely get to his feet as Rhyno hits him with a running shoulder in the corner. Fans: “BETTER THAN ROMAN!/NO IT'S NOT!” With the wrestling not working, Sami gets up and starts firing off right hands before the Blue Thunder Bomb gets a close two. Rhyno catches the high cross body and muscles Sami up into a TKO for a near fall of his own.

Barely on his feet, Sami slaps Rhyno in the face, earning him a bunch of right hands to the head. Rhyno goes up for some reason and gets punched in the jaw, knocking him down to the floor. There's the big flip dive from Sami but Rhyno throws him down with a belly to belly inside. The Gore misses though and the Helluva Kick gives Sami the come from behind win at 15:16.

Rating: B. They had the right idea here by having Sami get a warmup for Owens by facing someone who wrestles a very similar style and with a similar body type. Sami is back to form here and the fans are going to be ready for his rematch. That being said, hats off to Rhyno here, who hasn't been around the big leagues in a while but he put on a solid performance here. Getting veterans here who can put over people like Zayn while still looking good in the ring is invaluable for a place like NXT, or any wrestling organization actually.

Overall Rating: C+. This was back to form for NXT as they have a solid show with a good main event and story advancement coupled with some quick matches to help fill things out. The key to this show is that it doesn't do a lot of stupid things that drag the product down. They let the wrestling do the talking and the stories tell themselves naturally. In other words, they don't shove things down your throat and beat you over the head with them. Those key differences are why NXT work so well and I hope they don't change anytime soon.

Results
Solomon Crowe b. CJ Parker – Brock Lock
Baron Corbin b. Steve Cutler – End of Days
Enzo Amore/Colin Cassady b. Sawyer Fulton/Angelo Dawkins – Rocket Launcher to Dawkins
Dana Brooke b. Blue Pants – Whiplash
Sami Zayn b. Rhyno – Helluva Kick


Remember to check out my website at kbwrestlingreviews.com and head over to my Amazon author page with wrestling books for under $4 at:

http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Hall/e/B00E6282W6

Comments

  1. I can't take Solomon Crowe seriously. He looks like a Chinese knockoff toy version of Blanka from Street Fighter.

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  2. Saw him at a house show recently and he had shorter hair and it suited him much better.

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  3. Dana's theme song confuses me. "I'm Not Your Enemy"--as a wrestler in general and especially as a heel, should she she not be trying to be an enemy?

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  4. Another question...I only started watching NXT again 2 weeks ago when my Canadian satellite company finally got the Network. So I've seen the last 3 episodes and in the first 2 , Corey Graves seemed either face or neutral but tonight he seemed to be leaning toward the heel side of things. Does he shift from week to week or is he usually heel and I just haven't heard enough of his work to know that yet? I really like him and Otunga on the RAW preview show and I wouldn't mind if he found his way to commentary on RAW someday.

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  5. Good show tonight.


    Some Thoughts.


    Enzo and Cass are growing on me in a big way. And weirdly enough, the flower segment worked for me way more than it should have.


    I hope that CJ Parker figures out some stuff while touring the world. Kid's got heart and if he went to Japan for two years then spent a year in ROH and THEN came back? he might have something good. I feel like this is the wrong gimmick for Crowe though. Any of the...ahem...hackers that I know aren't weird Mad Max punk types. So I guess I don't believe that Crowe is a hacker...which. Does anyone remember Van Hammer? I didn't believe he was a metal god, either. And in the end, it didn't work out super good for him.


    I'd have had Rhyno win here I guess? Then lose to Owens, and THEN lost to Zayne on his way out. But it's not my book and I'm not privy to Rhyno's contract.


    All in all, a good show. I skipped Raw and this gave me my fix.

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  6. This was taped back in the middle of March right?

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  7. Blue Pants is her name? Haven't watched tonight so I don't know who that is.

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  8. Her name outside of WWE is Leva Bates. Yeah that's her name in NXT and she's a crowd favorite.

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  9. He's heel more often than not but it's not full blown.

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  10. Solomon Crowe needs a repackage in the worst way. Its just the wrong look and wrong guy for that gimmick

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  11. He was a heel when he last wrestled...and then he got some face reactions when he announced that he'd have to retire from wrestling. He came to the booth as "the voice of the guy who has worked with a lot of the current roster" as he got his feet wet as an announcer.

    The best NXT announcers were Regal & Young...everybody else is still learning.

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  12. When Carmella debuted (having gone from hairdresser to wrestler, kayfabe, thanks to a couple of work out sessions with Enzo & Cass), E&C called for any jobber to come out and face Carmella. Out came a jobber in blue pants...and since they didn't know she was, they called her Blue Pants. Blue Pants ended up showing some decent offense.

    Carmella faced Blue Pants again and E&C gave her a joking introduction (complete with the Price Is Right theme as badly sung by Cass) that the crowd totally got into--making Carmella mad. I believe Blue Pants won that match...and she's been totally over with the fans ever since.

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  13. I thought the name was good, the build (with glitches and stuff) had my interest piqued...and then when I saw the guy who showed up, he was all wrong. Couldn't agree with you more, Scott.

    Wasn't there some fight with WWE Creative who didn't think the hacker stuff was a good idea or that it didn't seem to be working in non televised try-outs...but Triple H convinced them to go forward with it anyway? I seem to remember that news nugget from just before Crowe debuted on NXT.

    They should have let him debut and then immediately ditch the hacker stuff.

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  14. Yeah I pictured someone more like, I dunno, Scotty Riggs or something.

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  15. Dana Brooke looked kind of sloppy out there. Maybe it was first match jitters. And personally she seems like she'd be better as a heel.

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  16. Just gonna say it: Cass is my early pick for "NXT guy the WWE pushes hard at the next level for the wrong reasons." I like him, but he fits Vince's fetish for big guys who can move WAY too well, and I can totally see a scenario where guys like Zayn and Neville are in the midcard and Cass gets a rocket push.

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  17. She most definitely is a heel. She has some really good spots, so hopefully she is learning.

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  18. I thought she was awful and I have no interest in seeing her improve.

    I'm biased, because I simply want more Blue Pants.

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  19. Yeah, he seems like he has all the charisma that Baron Corbin naturally doesn't - but I wonder what happens when he gets pulled away from Enzo. Most of his stuff plays off of Enzo, including his ringwork. I think he gets exposed big time when that happens.

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  20. I think you guys are both wrong. On the face side, him and Zayn will be huge once they get called to the main roster.

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  21. He looks like a short Michael Madsen.

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  22. Bringing the clap to NXT

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  23. Graves, and people may disagree, seems to get better each week.

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  24. Zayn, of course. My issue is that Cass already had a singles run and it didn't go that great; at least, I didn't think so. He's REALLY good at reacting to and playing off Enzo, but he's no great shakes as a worker. Of course, your mileage may, indeed, vary

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  25. Yeah two months ago. Pre-San Jose, pre-Ohio and before Demott was fired.

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  26. I can't believe Dana Brooke kicking Blue Pants right in the vagina hasn't been mentioned

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  27. I have a crush!

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  28. Lmao...yeah, that was funny.....Seriously though, I think Dana Brooke will be the NXT Divas Champion within a month or two...She had one of the most impressive NXT debuts of all time....

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  29. She wasn't bad...I thought she did good in the match...If anyone made the match sloppy, it was that stupid Blue Pants chick

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  30. Solomon Crowe = Eric Young with dark hair, a bald spot, and bad hacker gimmick

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  31. Oh he's totally improving. There were just some weird pauses in the commentary at the wrong times I guess.

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  32. Rhyno has looked excellent since coming in. It'd be great if he answered Cena's open challenge on Raw one week.

    Man, Soloman Crowe has the worst gear I've seen in years. The women's bathing suit with that hair. Gross.

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  33. At least they're working on a different finisher, it seems. That slingshot headbutt deal was one of the most unimpressive looking moves I've ever seen.

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  34. It actually was the opposite, Triple H didn't like it, but someone convinced them to give it a shot anyway.

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  35. He seems to be terrible from the little I've seen. That hair though and why is he orange?

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  36. I'm looking forward to when Blue Pants is revealed to be Enzo and Cass' partner to challenge Blake, Murphy and Carmella after she turns.

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  37. Brooke looked awful and I guess the caressing herself stuff was supposed to be make us boo her or something. As debuts go, it was no Charlotte.

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  38. "Yep Mode" Abeyance Brown ©April 16, 2015 at 8:22 AM

    He must be tanning at a salon run by Hogan.

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  39. Invites guys to use it and tries to pin them when they're on the bed.

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  40. and it look like he have a shit stain on it. His look was so much better before he actually debuted on TV : http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRj6adU0C1Q0efcnltFyne3nUK1aHNf5mrzlUuYztfUIuytrMR6M7mZThMP

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  41. Its a cool character he just isn't the guy to play it. He's got that East Ohio-Kentucky mushmouth dialect so he doesn't sound smart enough to be a hacker. They should have stuck with him as a Little Nicky style demon.

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  42. Too bad Parker quit, I'd have liked to see the smug hippie and the subversive hacker square off in an Occupy NXT Iron Drum Circle match.

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  43. "Yep Mode" Abeyance Brown ©April 16, 2015 at 8:56 AM

    Because you know Hogan won't want to put people over, not even in real life.

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  44. The hacker gimmick is just lame, but that gear is an improvement, definitely.

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  45. Dana's finisher was cool, the rest of the match, and basically everything she did was dog crap though. Plus she was only about as tall as the top rope. That was a weird visual.

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    ReplyDelete
  47. Yeah I remember Regal on commentary and he was awesome--I wish they'd turf Booker and move Regal into his spot on RAW and/or Lawler's spot on PPVs.

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  48. I've only seen her one match so I don't know--is Leva that bad outside of NXT or does she just look bad because she's playing a jobber in NXT?

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  49. What is it about Baron Corbin I'm not getting? Is he -supposed- to be devoid of charisma or is it just me not seeing what I'm supposed to be seeing, whatever that is?

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  50. Thanks, RC. I remember that there was an issue but I couldn't remember the details...

    And my grudging respect for Triple H (at least for how he's guiding NXT) continues to grow.

    (Again...I like the hacker idea but this ain't the guy for it.)

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  51. He's supposed to be a giant that stares holes through you, but he just looks like a deer in headlights most of the time.

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  52. Total WTF? moment.

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  53. Agreed on Rhyno winning. I was thinking that having Owens actually beat up a guy his own size would have done a lot for Owens (showing that it's not just smaller opponents that he can bully and decimate), and was hoping for Rhyno to win either through cheating or Owens-ference.

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  54. No great shakes as a worker hasn't hurt people before if they are charismatic enough or booked like a monster. See Warrior, Ultimate.

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  55. One of the worst Wrestlers on the indie given her experience and how much promotions push and book her.

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