1. After a nice intro from Triple H, we quite literally kick off with Asuka vs Emma with Dana Brooke. Solid match with Emma holding her own, an amusing Asuka soccer-style chant from the hot London audience and some super stiff strikes from the crowd favorite. The Eddie Guererro style use of a foreign object was also a nice touch.
2. Enzo and Cass are pretty over, with frequent How U Doin chants through the match. Wait, what the hell is Enzo wearing? Are those leather dungarees with a Union Jack lining? Sweet. Decent but not outstanding match, with D&D retaining the titles and keeping them warm for Jordan and Gable.
3. Corbin vs Crews was good for a Baron Corbin match despite a couple of clumsy spots and Corbin’s offense still being as boring as hell. Crews looked good as usual but would benefit from working with more experienced opponents. The Corbin win came out of nowhere and pretty much killed the crowd dead – barely any booing.
4. I like how they’re giving the matches time to breathe, and it’s nice not to be interrupted by constant ad breaks.
5. The Sami Zayn video package was well done, and he’s apparently returning next week, not tonight, okay? So remember to look surprised.
6. Good interview from Nia Jax, with a tease of a feud with Asuka. Yes, that might work. The bar has been set pretty high for this match, as shown by the footage from the Bayley/Sasha Banks classic.
7. The expected power vs speed and spirit story, with both wrestlers playing their roles perfectly. Plucky Bayley worked hard and took every bit of punishment Jax dished out, eventually locking in a submission that gained her the victory! Good match.
8. Cool Jack the Ripper inspired entrance and body paint from Finn Balor, and it seems he might have listened to Stone Cold’s advice about losing the crowd if the entrance takes too long, no matter how cool it is the first time around.
9. Excellent, hard hitting match from Joe and Balor, with a constant feeling that either man could win at any time. Joe’s suicide dive was a thing of beauty, and he laid a heinous beating on the champ who refused to give up, finding reservoirs of strength and stamina beyond the ken of mortal men. These wrestlers are the future of WWE, I just wonder if Vince has to die before that happens…
10. Another excellent special from NXT, and it’s remarkable how much better this show was than anything on the main brand in the last year.
