NXT – October 30, 2014: Help! He Needs Somebody. Not Just Anybody.
NXT
Date: October 30, 2014
Location: Full Sail University, Winter Park, Florida
Commentators: Jason Albert, Renee Young, Rich Brennan
We’re getting very close to the next big show and Sami’s road to the title is on fire. Other than that the main story is Hideo Itami having to face the Ascension on his own which hasn’t been working all that well for him. Things are starting to pick back up around here and it’s made things much easier to get through. Let’s get to it.
Sami says he hasn’t won the big one yet but he’s still on the road to redemption. Titus O’Neil comes in and says he’s the next challenger on the way. They agree to a match, presumably tonight.
Opening sequence.
Tag Team Battle Royal
Vaudevillains, Colin Cassady/Enzo Amore, Ascension, Tye Dillinger/Jason Jordan, Buddy Murphy/Wesley Blake
Winners get a title shot and if one member is out, the whole team is out. It’s the usual brawl to start with the Vaudevillains having to slide back under the ropes early on. Dillinger rips off a chop to Amore but Big Cass makes a save. We get back to the brawling with Gotch saving himself over and over. There aren’t any eliminations yet and we’re coming up on four minutes into the match. Blake/Murphy and Dillinger/Jordan are in trouble but the Ascension dumps all four guys at once.
The Vaudevillains bail to the floor, leaving Cassady and Amore to fight the monsters. Enzo jumps on Viktor’s back and hammers away, only to walk into an STO. Cassady fights back as the Vaudevillains come back in. Well crawl to the apron at least. Enzo and Cass are thrown into each other for an elimination and here comes Hideo Itami to stand on the stage. The distraction lets the Vaudevillains dump the Ascension for the surprise win at 6:28.
Rating: C-. Eh it’s a battle royal so what are you looking for here? The Vaudevillains are the best option here as they’re over with the crowd and a unique act so why not give them the shot? Itami helping is a good idea and since it’s been awhile since the last distraction win, the ending didn’t make me roll my eyes as much.
Itami comes in after the match but gets laid out again. Konor tells him to go back to Japan or they’ll send him back in a box.
Emma vs. Carmella
Carmella’s line: “Bada bing, hottest chick in the ring.” A quick rollup gets two on Emma but she drops down next to Carmella on an Irish whip. Carmella stomps away in the corner as the announcers suggest costumes for Albert. She stops to check her nails while choking Emma on the ropes (Albert: “Renee are they real?” Renee: “Uhhhhh…….”) before putting on a bodyscissors. Emma blocks a kick and Carmella panics, allowing Emma to take over with clotheslines, followed by the Dilemma. The Emma Sandwich gets two but Carmella trips her up and puts on the crossface with her legs for the submission at 4:57.
Rating: C. Not bad here with Carmella being another decent character to help fill out the division. NXT’s women’s division is so much better than WWE’s in terms of developing personalities for the girls. Yeah Carmella’s character may be very stereotypical, but it’s unique for the division and is something different than some chick that just happens to wrestle.
Bull Dempsey vs. Justin Gabriel
Apparently Dempsey didn’t cry at the end of Old Yeller. Dempsey easily stomps away as someone tries to start a Sawyer Fulton chant for some reason. A side slam gets two on Justin and Bull just hammers on the head. We hit the chinlock for a bit before Justin counters into a reverse DDT. A moonsault gets two for Justin but he dives into a backdrop, setting up a running Vader body attack. Bull’s top rope headbutt gets the pin at 3:47.
Rating: D+. I’m getting a Bam Bam Bigelow vibe from Dempsey minus a lot of the high flying stuff. He’s not great in the ring but he plays the role well enough and looks like a machine every time. He’ll be a good dragon for someone like Sami to slay later on and that’s all he needs to be.
Bayley says if Becky Lynch wants to bring Sasha, she’ll bring Charlotte.
Baron Corbin vs. Tony Briggs
The NXT crowd’s newest cool idea: counting the time before Corbin gets the pin at 18 seconds with End of Days. He’s getting faster at it too.
Itami says he isn’t leaving and will have a friend next week.
Marcus Louis vs. Sylvester LeFort
Louis isn’t hiding the bald anymore and throws Sylvester down by the throat. LeFort tries to crawl away again but gets nailed with a clothesline. A release Rock Bottom ends Sylvester at 1:26. Louis came off like a killer here and kept shouting YOU DID THIS TO ME.
Titus O’Neil vs. Sami Zayn
Titus throws him around to start but Zayn comes back with some chops. They trade more chops in the corner until O’Neil plants him with a pair of backbreakers. We take a break and come back with Sami caught in a bearhug. Sami gets choked in the corner as Titus mocks the OLE chant. More chops have no effect on Titus as he just throws Sami down.
Sami gets tossed to the floor but Titus lets him get back in, only to do the same thing again. He tries it again but Sami hangs on and comes back in with a high cross body for two. A big boot and over the shoulder backbreaker get the same for Titus as frustration is starting to set in. Back up and Sami grabs the exploder suplex in the corner followed by the Helluva Kick for the pin out of nowhere at 11:30.
Rating: C-. It’s still not a good match but this was miles better than their first one because Sami got the win. Titus is still little more than a musclehead but I liked his talking to make him seem all the more arrogant. Nothing special here but it plays into the road to redemption story and gave the fans something to cheer for.
Post match Tyler Breeze comes out and says hang on a second. Sami doesn’t get a title shot for beating a couple of uggos. If he wants the title shot, he has to beat the one person he’s never beat. Regal has already made the match for next week.
Overall Rating: C. This was all about moving the stories forward and the depth they’re reaching is great. Sami having to go back and avenge each of his losses is a great story and the rematch with Breeze could tear the house down. By this point I’m sure you know who Itami’s friend is going to be and the reaction is going to blow the roof off. Not a great show this week but they have me wanting to see more. That’s something I haven’t been able to say about WWE in a long time.
Results
Vaudevillains won a tag team battle royal last eliminating Ascension
Carmella b. Emma – Leg Crossface
Bull Dempsey b. Justin Gabriel – Top rope headbutt
Baron Corbin b. Tony Briggs – End of Days
Marcus Louis b. Sylvester LeFort – Release Rock Bottom
Sami Zayn b. Titus O’Neil – Helluva Kick
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