The Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic continued this week and the remaining first-round matches stole the show for different reasons. We had the official team debut of the Bro-serweights (Matt Riddle and Pete Dunne), plus the reunion of the Time Splitters (Alex Shelley and KUSHIDA).
First of all, if we're talking match of the night, I'd give it to the Bro-serweights vs. Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews. They had the most death-defying exchanges I've ever seen. Surprisingly, Riddle and Dunne worked great together as a unit. And while I still expect a swerve somewhere down the line, part of me wishes they keep teaming up for a bit because the skits they can produce would be hilarious.
For the other DRTTC match, it wasn't the match itself that got everybody's attention. Neither was it because of Alex Shelley's return to the ring and debut on NXT. Rather, it was how the Time Splitters reunion was cut short. I'm actually surprised they gave the victory to the Grizzled Young Veterans.
However, I admit that this was a good ploy to give massive heat to the former NXT UK Tag Team Champions. For someone like me who's not too familiar with James Drake and Zack Gibson's body of work, I'm now looking forward to seeing what NXT decides to do with the two, especially since they'll be facing the favorites (or at least my pick) to win—The Undisputed ERA.
On the other side of things, I hope it isn't all over for Alex Shelley. He looks like he still has some more left in his tank and maybe he could help KUSHIDA connect more with the NXT Universe (as the Japanese Superstar hasn't really done much since debuting for the brand). That, and I'd love to see more of Shelley, to be honest.
It wasn't all about tag teams for this episode as we also had a Battle Royal for a shot at the NXT Women's Championship at NXT TakeOver: Portland. A lot of new faces were present, as well as some returns, however, I'm quite unhappy with how the finish turned out.
Sure, I'm glad a lot of people got the spotlight. People like Shotzi Blackheart (who I feel is getting a name change in the future), Tegan Nox, Mercedes Martinez, and the returning Kacy Catanzaro all had their time to shine. So why do I feel that Io Shirai was shortchanged? It might be my bias speaking, but I really thought Shirai deserved to win this one. While Io was in the final two, I just really didn't believe that Bianca Belair deserved to eliminate her.
On the other hand, this may be a silver-lining for Shirai. I don't really see NXT Women's Champion Rhea Ripley losing soon so maybe this was a way to keep her away from Io for now. Still, I hope Shirai gets her shot before she loses all momentum, as with some of the previous Japanese NXT Superstars.
This particular episode was pretty beefed up. While we had fewer matches than usual, I can tell that these were PPV-quality bouts. The cruiserweight three-way was highly enjoyable, as well. The skits, promos, and backstage angles were also eventful. A surprise #DIY reunion made me smile. And while I still think Keith Lee sounds like he's always too happy on the mic, his moments of the night were golden.
Grade: A
Match to Watch: Bro-serweights vs. Flash Morgan Webster and Mark Andrews
Not-So-Full Sails
- Keith Lee has been on a roll. I noticed that I started to take him seriously after he grew his beard. Maybe it makes him look more menacing since he looks too happy at times.
- I enjoy it whenever Lee does the Pounce. Watch that backstage angle over and over again. It's funny but scary as well.
- Who were those random ladies in the Women's Battle Royal? Were they even introduced properly? I feel like I've never seen some of them before.
- Angel Garza on commentary during the Cruiserweight Three-way gave me WCW Nitro/WWE Attitude Era feels. Maybe I just miss guest commentators.
Photos and videos from WWE
*****
Miguel “The Migz” Llado is your supposed style icon and NXT reviewer at the Smark Henry offices. A lover of everything music, wrestling, videogames, and food, he lives his life tweeting his mind off (@the_migz) and ‘gramming random food items and locations (@tha_migz) as he sets on his journey to completely do things spontaneously. You can also add him on PSN (MigzLlado) to show your WWE2K19 (or any PS4) skills. When not being a smark, he lives his life being (and trying to be) an awesome architect, musician extraordinaire and armchair fantasy booker.
: Tag Teams On Top){kind=link}