NXT 593

November 25, 2020 – Orlando, Florida

Candice LeRae def. Ember Moon
I continue to be amazed at how much Moon has lost since returning to NXT. They made it make sense here, as Indi Hartwell, Dakota Kai, and Raquel Gonzalez all interfered on LeRae’s behalf. But instinctively you’d think they’d keep Moon more protected. This was pretty solid all the way around, with good fire from Moon and a fun amount of petulance from LeRae. LeRaw won with the Wicked Stepsister at 9:26 (shown). After the match, Toni Storm comes out to presumably back Moon, but then Storm breaks bad and attacks. I guess Hartwell wasn’t deemed ready for WarJames. ***

El Legado del Fantasma brag about all the cruiserweights they’ve put down. They wonder who is left, but Santos Escobar mentions Curt Stallion. Stallion won a contender match on the 205th episode of 205 Live, you see, so he must be getting a shot soon. Just made 205 Live NXT’s third hour already. 

The Undisputed Era comes to the ring to remind us that they exist. They give the Kings of NXT credit for their UE style tactics. Kyle O’Reilly volunteers to fight Pete Dunne in the main event ladder match tonight. I like that Roderick Strong didn’t have to become squeaky clean in the wake of this group’s babyface turn. 

Kushida def. Timothy Thatcher
I am also surprised that Kushida keeps getting wins every week but seems to be lost in the shuffle regardless. Tommaso Ciampa watched this match from the ramp. Thatcher was twice distracted by his presence and got his arm dismantled as a result. Kushida won with the Hoverboard Lock at 9:03 (shown). This was very good, making me want to see a match between them that isn’t just a storyline point in a Thatcher/Ciampa feud. After the match, Ciampa suggests he’s baiting Thatcher into a match. ***¼ 

Kevin Owens hosts Leon Ruff on the KO Show. Ruff is being timid, so Owens encourages him to put up a better front so he doesn’t get eaten alive by the locker room. Owens cracks me up by meta commentating that Johnny Gargano has to come out now because Ruff said his name. He brings out a third chair but Gargano throws it away in anger. He brings out another, which enrages Gargano, but Owens says it’s not for him it’s for a hunch he has. Gargano says Damian Priest’s name, and Owens calls that he’ll come out. He also calls William Regal coming out to make the triple threat match at Takeover, complete with a nod to Teddy Long. This was written brilliantly. Owens’ comedy bits freshened this up and saved it from being one of the hundreds of forgettable match set up segments. 

Finn Balor sort of suggests that he’ll defend the title against the winner of WarJames. Not explicitly, but there are worse ways to decide the next contender. Later, Shotzi Blackheart rebuilds her tank as War Pigs plays. 

Cameron Grimes def. Jake Atlas
Atlas got to show off some of what makes him stand out here, but Grimes quickly put him down with the Cave In at 2:49. Dexter Lumis appears after the match, plays a video mocking Grimes, and challenges him to a strap match. Regal makes it official for Takeover. **

Rhea Ripley comes to the ring to insist that hugging Io Shirai last week didn’t mean she’s leaving NXT, it was done out of respect. LeRae and Storm come out to make fun of her and provide a storyline reason to get Shirai and Ripley in WarJames. And in that spirit, Gonzalez and Kai come out with an unconscious Shirai. Ripley gets beat up and Blackheart is nowhere to be seen, probably too busy building that tank. 

Boa, Xia Li, and their bad makeup all get driven to a garage where they beg for mercy at the feet of a mysterious woman. Probably a repackaged Karen Q based on nothing except the fact that Q is Chinese and she’s probably recovered from her injury by now. 

Ever-Rise is in the ring, but before their match can start they are attacked by the Grizzled Young Veterans. And that’s it. Later, LeRae and an injured (from Moon’s Eclipse) Hartwell get in Gargano’s car. Already in the car is a second Scream mask person. That person is almost certainly Austin Theory, and thankfully ties up a couple of hanging threads from that story. 

Pete Dunne def. Kyle O’Reilly {Ladder Match}
The winner’s team gets the advantage in WarJames, which means the heel has to win. To the shock of absolutely no one, this match was great. It was markedly better than the Adam Cole vs. Dominik Dijakovic ladder match from last year. I usually find ladder matches to be completely played out collections of spots, but these two found a way to incorporate their limb-bendy style into it. I really dug that. My only complaint is that it had a little too much in common with the ladder match from Halloween Havoc, complete with a masked heel interfering and the loser getting thrown off the ladder at the same angle (though this time, not through another ladder) just before the finish. Dunne got the briefcase at 13:53 (shown) for the win. You have to assume the masked person is implied to be Pat McAfee, who said he couldn’t be there tonight and in real life probably wasn’t actually there and required a masked stand-in. ***¾ 

Good show this week. I only wish we had a clearer picture of when Balor will be defending the title again and against whom.