NXT Quick Takes 2/17/21

We want answers, of course we don’t get any. Kyle O’ Reilly’s acting isn’t quite good enough for me in this segment but the dialogue was there.

Dunne and the tag team champs jump Roddy, Finn and KOR knowing that they have a match and unfinished business later.

The Way vs Shotzi & Ember Moon

Great, we get this match again with the same kind of finish. Hartwell works so slowly but she is doing better by working closely with LeRae. Right as I give Hartwell credit she drops Shotzi, real amateur stuff. Shotzi and Hartwell should never work together, I sound like a broken record by now.

Lumis shows up in a van during the match

Gargano takes the bait and Austin Theory is bound and gagged in his drawls. Hartwell is rolled up from the distraction…

Build the way up if you want me to care about them, stupid decisions in their booking is making me hate everyone in the group.

Swerve vs Ruff

Leon Ruff is cool, he just hasn’t really earned anything convincingly. Wade doing good work saying Ruff is being handed opportunities. I agree with Wade and the booking needs to be fixed so that he can start to earn things instead of being gifted wins over NXT veterans. A big upset victory by Ruff sends Swerve all the way to the dark side as he beats the shit out of Ruff. Swerve works very well as a heel, glad to see him in a role that works for him, babyface worked for him but not as well as what he’s doing now.

Kayden & Kacy vs Kamea & Aliyah

A good matchup with some developing talent that has lots of upside. Jessi Kamea has a bright future, she gives me Victoria vibes. Her strength and size will certainly look good against a Charlotte or a Nia Jax. The Robert Stone brand almost had one but Kacy and Kayden are a really good tag team. I would like to see them with the belts, that would showcase NXT’s talent on every brand.

Xia Li made her way to the ramp to challenge Kacy to a match next week.

Dusty Cup winners

MSK are special, they have the total package, they remind me a bit of American Alpha. They used their time wisely but did not overshadow their female counterparts. Baszler and Jax surprise Kai and Gonzalez with a visit.

The popcorn was a nice touch from MSK and Beth and pretty accurate. The dialogue was a bit too rehearsed and drawn out but it was done well and they got their points across. I’m excited for this tag title match. Jax is terrible in a lot of ways, I’d like to see Baszlwr break away from her and dominate on her own while being reunited with the other Horsewomen. Jax needs to perfect her craft, going back to NXT would be best.

Kushida vs Tyler Rust

I thought Rust was gonna get the win here, I think that he should have. Rust could have won this one then lost the next two against Kushida. Rust has a long way to go but this was a damn good start for him. Not sure what the win does for Kushida, Rust is unestablished so it’s just a random win.

Zoey stark debut

Video package before debut was cool. Valentine Feroz was her opponent which was fine I guess. The jobbers should look a lot tougher if you want the person going over to look like a badass. Zoey Stark looks fine, she needs to fine tune her look and have a distinctive moveset though. I hope she does well and adds even more depth to a stacked roster, she already looks more polished and trained than more than half of the division.

6man tag alert

We know what this was gonna be:

1. Adam Cole interferes as expected,

2. Balor kicks Strong on accident,

3. Balor pinned by Dunne,

4. Cole came back to kick Balor and hold up the title.

Honorable mentions

1. Dexter Lumis kidnapped Austin Theory.

2. Pat McAfee chimes in on Adam Cole.

3. Toni Storm attacks Io during photoshoot.

4. LA Knight promo from home.

5. Scarlett and Kross promo on Escobar.

Final take

So many developments it’s almost hard to keep up with. Undisputed Era is what’s best for business, the Cup winners are HUNGRY; March 3rd its going down.

#petedunne #AdamCole #FinnBalor #NXT #DexterLumis