NXT LVL Up
Date: August 18, 2023
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Blake Howard, Byron Saxton

It’s that time of the week when I don’t know what to expect from this show, but there have been enough better shows in recent week that I’m not overly bored with the idea of this show anymore. What matters is getting some bigger names around here and that has been the case on occasion. Or maybe there’s nothing to it at all. Let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Jacy Jayne vs. Karmen Petrovic

They fight over a lockup to start with Jayne powering her into the corner without much trouble. Petrovic takes it to the mat in a headlock before getting some rollups for two each. Jayne is sent to the apron and scores with a knee to the face, followed by a running elbow in the corner for two. A kick to the back keeps Petrovic down and we hit the double arm crank. That’s broken up and Petrovic gets in a kick of her own but Jayne blasts her with a discus forearm for the pin at 5:08.

Rating: C. There’s not much to be seen here and just like after her first match, I don’t know much about Petrovic. Commentary said she had a martial arts background but other than that, the only things I know about her is that she is in good shape and she has blond hair. Jayne is a much bigger deal and Petrovic didn’t get much in here, so she didn’t exactly gain much in defeat.

Brooklyn Barlow is back after a year away and faces Dani Palmer tonight. From what I can find, she’s been back on live events since May but this will be her tenth ever match (with four coming before her injury). That barely qualifies as a restart.

Dani Palmer vs. Brooklyn Barlow

Palmer quickly takes her down by the leg to start and they trade arm cranking. Back up and Barlow gymnastics her into a headlock takeover. That’s broken up and Palmer takes her down with an armdrag but Barlow fires off some knees to the ribs. The abdominal stretch goes on but Palmer is out without much trouble. Palmer sends her into the corner and drops a corkscrew moonsault for the pin at 4:53.

Rating: C-. I can have some sympathy for Barlow as she literally hadn’t even had ten matches before this one, but I never bought this as a wrestling match. It felt like a bunch of gymnastics and the two of them trying to remember where they were supposed to be next. Granted that’s what you’re supposed to learn to do in developmental, but maybe they shouldn’t be on camera yet.

Oro Mensah vs. Ikemen Jiro

The rest of Meta Four is actually here with Mensah. Jiro slugs away to start but gets his throat snapped across the top rope. A kick to the back gives Mensah two and what looked like an implant DDT gets the same. The chinlock goes on but Jiro fights up (as wrestlers tend to do when chinlocked) and hits the jacket punches (less common). A Meta Four distraction doesn’t work and Jiro nails a running shot in the corner for two. Another jacket punch rocks Mensah but another distraction lets him come back with the spinwheel kick in the corner for the pin at 5:37.

Rating: C. Good enough here as Mensah is still entertaining in the ring and Jiro is one of the few people who can work with anyone. It was almost weird having bigger names like Meta Four out there and it fit well here. At the same time, Mensah doesn’t get a ton of attention so letting him have a bit of spotlight is a good thing.

Overall Rating: C. The biggest thing that I keep harping on with this show is how much the bigger names help. That really is the case, as having one rookie match after another doesn’t make for an interesting show. All that does is make for a show that feels like a bunch of people who aren’t very important. Mensah and Jayne aren’t top stars, but they’re a lot bigger than a lot of the people usually around here. Keep doing stuff like that and the show is that much better.

Results
Jacy Jayne b. Karmen Petrovic – Discus forearm
Dani Palmer b. Brooklyn Barlow – Corkscrew moonsault
Oro Mensah b. Ikemen Jiro – Running spinwheel kick in the corner

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NXT LVL Up
Date: July 22, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Sudu Shah, Nigel McGuinness

This show has started to change a little bit in recent weeks and that is a good thing. There have been some original interviews and even a tease of some storylines. It shouldn’t be that hard to do SOMETHING with this show but unfortunately that doesn’t seem to be WWE’s idea. Maybe they have a different idea this week though so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Thea Hail vs. Brooklyn Barlow

Chase U is here with Hail. They fight over wrist control to start before trading some rollups for two each. A headlock takeover puts Hail down and we hit the armbar as commentary talks about how much Chase U appreciates Hail. Something like a seated abdominal stretch brings Hail back to life for a side slam. A standing moonsault into Hail Yeah (ok that’s clever) finishes Barlow at 5:37.

Rating: C-. This was a lot of Barlow dominating, or at least dominating as much as you can with a headlock. Barlow continues to be little more than another blonde with an athletic background and that isn’t exactly getting her very far. On the other hand you have Hail, who is a total ball of charisma and she is starting to get somewhere with Chase U.

Hank Walker isn’t going to let Duke Hudson disrespect him tonight.

Ru Feng vs. Bryson Montana

Feng grabs a headlock to start and takes Montana to the mat to crank away. It works so well that Feng does it again before switching to a front facelock. Montana fights up and starts with the most generic power offense you could imagine, including right hands and shoulders to the ribs in the corner. A backbreaker into a side slam mix things up a bit and there’s a Michinoku Driver for two on Feng. The chinlock doesn’t last long as Feng fights up with his variety of martial arts. Montana isn’t having that and hits a Sky High for the pin at 4:34.

Rating: D+. They tried to make beating Feng important but that has never been the case and probably won’t for most of his time around here. Montana got my attention when he debuted and maybe he can do a little something. With that kind of power and look, there might be a chance for him and that is the point of a show like this one.

Hank Walker vs. Duke Hudson

Hudson drives him into the corner to start and puts on a quickly broken headlock. Walker powers up and slams him down for two, only to get driven into the corner for some shoulders to the ribs. A reverse DDT gets two on Walker and we hit the chinlock with a knee in Walker’s back. That’s broken up and Walker pulls the hair before taking off his shirt and faceplanting him for two. Back up and Hudson slips off the shoulders, setting up a big boot for the pin on Walker at 6:04.

Rating: C. Walker feels like quite the dead end gimmick, if nothing else because Brooks Jensen, Josh Briggs and Fallon Henley are already doing it and doing it better. Hudson is someone who should be able to do something of his own but for some reason it hasn’t quite started yet. He feels like a bigger star than most around here and having him around does help a bit.

Overall Rating: C-. You can add in the interview (which is a good idea) and the stories from one week to another (which seems to have already been dropped) but ultimately, the wrestling just isn’t that good. What are you supposed to do when the wrestling is pretty weak at best and you’re lucky to get an ok match? That is LVL Up in a nutshell and I have no reason to believe it is going to change.

Results
Thea Hail b. Brooklyn Barlow – Hail Yeah
Bryson Montana b. Ru Feng – Sky High
Duke Hudson b. Hank Walker – Big boot

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NXT LVL Up
Date: June 24, 2022
Location: Capitol Sports Studios, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Sudu Shah

So we continue around here, as NXT stars continue to take over WWE. They now have three shows, as the NXT undercard has invaded NXT UK, because we haven’t seen enough of these people just yet. That isn’t necessarily a good thing, but when has that ever stopped WWE before? Let us know in the comments below.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Bryson Montana vs. Quincy Elliott

The much bigger Elliott powers him into the corner to start but misses a charge and gets knocked own. Back up and Montana starts driving in shoulders to the shoulder before grabbing a reverse chinlock. A forearm to the back cuts off Elliott’s comeback and some heavy forearms set up the chinlock sequence. The slam attempt collapses though and Elliott runs him over, only to get caught with a dropkick. Back up and Elliott elbows him out of the corner, setting up a kind of reverse Vader Bomb (lifts himself up on the ropes and drops forward) to pin Montana at 5:07.

Rating: C. Elliott is the kind of guy that WWE always finds a place for, as he has the size and enough charisma to make up for his lack of mobility. It’s not my kind of thing, but I get what they’re trying for with him. Montana has a great look but needs time in the ring and some coaching, which is where (hopefully) the NXT house show loop can do him some good.

Kiana James vs. Brooklyn Barlow

James cranks on the arms to start but gets reversed into a headscissors. Back up and Barlow gets to work on the arm for a change, only to get snapmared down into an armbar from James. The exchange of arm cranking continues until Barlow rolls her up for two. A kick to the knee gives James the same and it’s off to a seated abdominal stretch. That’s broken up and Barlow strikes away but gets knocked into the corner. A belly to back gutbuster finishes for James at 5:17.

Rating: C-. This was an exchange of grappling until the bigger name won. James isn’t a big star yet but she has something that sets her apart enough. Barlow looks like Tiffany Stratton without the gymnastics background and the rich girl stuff, which doesn’t leave much. Then again, how far can you get when you’re presented as nothing but the next generic blonde?

Ikemen Jiro vs. Ru Feng

During his entrance, a fan high fives Jiro and then gives him a thumbs down behind his back. Feng takes him down without much effort to start but Jiro grabs a headlock. That’s broken up so Jiro takes him down and hits a slingshot splash to the back. Feng goes after the knee until a small package gets Jiro out of trouble. More shots to the knee put Jiro down and we hit the half crab. Jiro gets out and hits a monkey flip, setting up the Ikemen Slice for the pin at 5:28.

Rating: C. I’m not that into Jiro’s deal with the wacky jackets, but he is very smooth in the ring and that is more than enough to keep him around at least for the time being. Feng is someone who has been around for a bit and I still don’t know what I’m supposed to see in him. They had a nice enough match here with the leg thing and Jiro coming from behind to win, but it was a LVL Up main event so it isn’t worth much.

Overall Rating: C-. The star power wasn’t around here and that isn’t exactly the best thing to watch. LVL Up isn’t exactly a great show most of time but they can get some people out there to do some good stuff. This wasn’t one of those weeks though as it just came and went without much going on, as tends to be the case here more often than not.

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NXT LVL Up
Date: June 3, 2022
Location: Capitol Wrestling Center, Orlando, Florida
Commentators: Nigel McGuinness, Sudu Shah

The normal trend of this show is likely to continue this week as we have three more matches between people who aren’t usually going to make it to NXT proper. That can make for some acceptable background noise but rarely much more than that unfortunately. You get used to the concept though so let’s get to it.

Here are last week’s results if you need a recap.

Opening sequence.

Fallon Henley vs. Brooklyn Barlow

They go to the mat to start and it’s a pair of standoffs before Henley grabs the armbar. An exchange of rollups get two each and Barlow wants her to bring it. Back up and they fight over a lockup until Barlow starts working on the arm instead. She cranks on the neck as well but Henley fights out with a faceplant. A running knee finishes for Henley 4:22.

Rating: C-. Henley continues to look like a star and I could see her being on the main roster someday. She has a gimmick and the charisma to make it work so with some more ring time, she could wind up going somewhere. Barlow has a good look but she is still in the very early stages so you can’t tell much about her just yet.

Tatum Paxley vs. Sloane Jacobs

They grapple around to start with neither being able to get the better of things. Paxley slams her down (while throwing in a squat) and it’s time to crank on the arms. Another slam is countered into a headlock takeover though and Jacobs hits a running boot for two. The chinlock keeps Paxley down but she is back up with a butterfly suplex. Jacobs gets caught in an electric chair, with Paxley spinning her around into a powerbomb and floating over for the pin at 5:52.

Rating: C. Paxley is another someone who could go somewhere with some more time but, much like Jacobs, it is way too early to know what they have with her. This and some house show matches are the kind of things that could do both of them a world of good. That ist he case with a lot of people on NXT so those live events coming up are great ideas.

Edris Enofe/Malik Blade vs. Dante Chen/Javier Bernal

This is about as LVL Up of a match as you can get. Blade works on Chen’s arm to start before a dropkick gets two. Enofe comes in for a basement 619 for two before we hit the headlock. It’s off to Bernal for a splash in the corner but Enofe powers him into the other corner. That means Blade can come in to miss a charge in the corner, allowing Chen to grab a chinlock.

Bernal adds an atomic drop for two and the chinlock goes on again. Blade finally rolls underneath a clothesline and brings Enofe back in to clean house. A top rope elbow gets two on Chen and Enofe can’t believe it. He’s so stunned that he hits a reverse Sling Blade setting up an assisted elevated Stunner to finish Bernal at 7:03.

Rating: C+. This wasn’t a great match but it was better than just about anything else we have seen around here in a long time. Enofe and Blade could hang as a young and plucky team on the main NXT roster and that is the kind of team they could use. Chen and Bernal were two heels (I think?) thrown together here as opponents and they did just fine, even in a short match.

Respect is shown post match.

Overall Rating: C. This show might not have been much on its own but it was a great illustration of why NXT needs live events. There was about seventeen minutes of wrestling on this show between eight wrestlers. How much can you really get out of that little amount of time? Give these people eight to ten minutes each for three shows a week and they can actually get somewhere. Like wrestling has worked for, like, ever.

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