NXT recap & reactions: Do you believe?

Joe Hendry came to Trick Williams’ side on this week’s NXT.

Believe Me

The All Ego era is off to an auspicious start. Before I get there, I gotta give Ethan Page props for how he started this week’s show. He talked his trash while security flanked him around the ring. He rubbed salt in the wounds of every NXT devotee when he mocked the notion of being a champion who will fight against the outsiders tearing down what they’ve built in Orlando. In short, it was Ethan at his best.

Then Trick Williams came out and he even thanked Trick for helping him win the title. I like that Ethan didn’t do the typical heel thing and pretend he did it on his own. He knew that reminding Trick of his failures is actually worse; it twists the knife even deeper into the former champ’s gut.

That’s when chaos ensued. Shawn Spears hit the ring saying Ethan owes him. Je’Von Evans came out saying he’s tired of both bad guys and wants a fight. Oh, and Trick wants his rematch. A brawl ensued and a tag match main event became a thing.

But, as you’ll read later in this recap, the tag match didn’t happen as planned. Trick needed a partner and NXT teased Joe Hendry almost immediately. Then they delivered on said tease and we got a very fun match. During said brawl, the champ got a reminder that he has more sins of which he needs to atone, starting with what he did to Noam Dar. Oro Mensah came from out of nowhere and attacked the champ. They fought into the crowd, which left Shawn all by himself.

The Joe stuff is lots of fun, even for someone not versed in TNA lore. He and Trick made a pretty good team because it’s a lot of the same energy. I’m much more interested in Oro and Ethan though. This is a big spot for Oro, especially if he’s Ethan’s first challenger. But the match, if it happens, already has a different flavor because it’s not about the championship for the Main Man; this is a play for blood. Ethan’s ego kept him so focused on the people who want his title that he forgot the one person who simply wants his soul. How do you defeat someone like that?

We’re going to find out.

B-Sides

The Don

This was the most interesting Heritage Cup match in quite some time. Any time there’s a wrestling/DJ on the 1s and 2s during the match, it qualifies as something different. Eddy Thorpe, still in the midst of this beef with Lexis King over musical tastes, played EDM during between rounds. It certainly distracted Lexis since he had no one in his corner and kept one eye on the DJ while Tony D’Angelo kept all his focus on the challenger.

They battled to a standstill in round 1, Tony got the quick W with the Fuhgeddaboudit in round 2, and Lexis hit a Coronation in round 3. That led to round 4, where the Don got the W with that beautiful spine buster he possesses.

My one disappointment here? No interaction with Eddy. Lexis lost and I wanted him up in the DJ booth after the match. I’m sure we’ll get the excuses later and he’ll blame DJ Eddy for the L, but it was weird having him out there and not having him factor into the proceedings in a more obvious way.

The Chase, pt. 2

Ridge Holland is up to something. Right? Maybe I’m being paranoid but while ingratiating himself to Chase U, he’s seemingly trying to rid it of the MVP. Ridge got Thea Hail a match against Izzi Dame with the intent of putting her on the path for the Women’s NXT championship. But then there’s Duke Hudson, who now has a match with Oba Femi for the North American championship. Let’s get to the former first before I give my thoughts on the latter since a few things happened when Izzi fought Thea.

Thea’s much improved, and I’ve always liked Izzi. They didn’t get a lot of time, much like most of the matches this week, but they worked efficiently with their time. But let’s get to the story, namely in the form of Tatum Paxley. She snuck out of the crowd, continuing her obsession with Izzi. Finally at her wits end with all the stalking, Izzi took her focus off Thea, and Chase U’s number one recruit took over from there.

Thea got the W while Izzi needs to deal with Tatum sooner rather than later.

Singles

• MSK/The Rascalz are back in NXT. Now, full transparency, I have no prior knowledge about The Rascalz. That said, the audience clearly does and they reacted as such. Wes Lee almost retired after taking the L from Oba Femi, but seeing his old buddies rejuvenated him in what came across as a real moment between long friends who love each other. This is a new look for Wes and a different angle for him since he’s been a solo act for quite some time now. And sometimes a morose one at that. This reunion put some pep in his step and I can’t wait to see how it plays out.
• Brooks Jensen is back in town and he’s already causing trouble. He attacked Je’Von Evans, thus taking Young OG out of the main event, and stoked Josh Briggs’ anger. I’m still curious about what happens between these two. Brooks gets a match next week and doesn’t want Josh by his side.
• We got a new stable in the women’s division! I do love a stable and this one looks formidable. Fallon Henley jumped Karmen Petrovic after Karmen defeated Arianna Grace. Why? Because she’s tired of these rookies. And she did it in front of Jacy Jayne and Jazmyn Nyx. During Fallon’s match with Sol Ruca, Jacy & Jazmyn attached Sol, which stopped Ms. Ruca from getting the W over a very angry Fallon. We didn’t get an official announcement but I expect that soon.
• OTM defeated the O.C.! That’s a huge victory for them, which probably puts them next in line for Nathan Frazer & Axiom’s championships. But the bigger story for me is Michin emerging out the stands and coming for Jaida Parker. Security broke up these two but it’s clear this isn’t over yet.
• Cedric Alexander is now in NXT. That’s great and all but the bigger news, the more important news, is Cedric is a Mass Effect fan. My eagle eye spotted an N7 wristband, meaning he’s a man with exquisite taste.
• Ashante is also, possibly back in NXT. We’ll see how that pans out.

This was another NXT episode that packed in so much in two hours. I can’t say all the stories worked for me, even if I thought the matches were solid. But as per usual, NXT throws a lot at the wall with an incredible effort each time out. All in all, a fine fallout show after Heatwave.

What say you, Cagesiders? What are we calling this new stable? And does Duke Hudson stand a chance?

Sound off!