[NXT SPOILERS] For JUNE 29, 2016

[RIPPA]

Per PWI

Quote

Week 3

- Alexa Bliss def. Carmella 

- Andrade Cien Almas def. Noah Potjes 

- Johnny Gargano and Thomasso Ciampa def. The Hype Bros 

Post match: Gargano calls for an NXT Tag Team Title match. American Alpha comes out and says if Gargano and Ciampa get a match, it will be with American Alpha. The Revival show up on stage and say that they run things. William Regal says Gargano and Ciampa will get a title match soon, but American Alpha will face The Revival next week in a 2 out of 3 Falls Match. Gargano and Ciampa leave. The Authors of Pain lay both teams out.

- Samoa Joe def. Onie Lorcan (not sure if this is a dark match or not)

Per WON

Quote

- Alexa Bliss beat Carmella

Long well-paced match with Alexa getting the win with the sparkle splash

- Andrade cien Almas beat Noah

Running knees finish for the win.

- Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa beat The Hype Bros

Post match, they took the mic and wanted to be next in line for the titles. American Alpha interrupts and says they're taking back the titles, The Revival interrupts and say they're the A team and drive the car in the division. William Regal then announces a 2-of-3 falls match between Alpha and Revival. The Authors Of Pain then destroyed Alpha, and Gargano and Ciampa try to make the save but are also destroyed. Authors of Pain stand tall.

- NXT Champion Samoa Joe beat Oney Lorcan

Physical match with Joe taking everything Lorcan had to offer before hitting the muscle buster for the win.

 

[RandomAct]

Gargano/Ciampa vs Hype Bros was just way too much fun.  Kind of a nothing show otherwise.

[SirSmUgly]

Alexa Bliss might just have the shittiest offense in the company. Definitely the shittiest signature offense. Carmella is totally inauthentic in every way. Bayley needs to stick around just because they need her and Asuka to hold the fort. Nia Jax honestly has looked to improve over the last two shows than Alexa ever has in particular. 

Nakamura cut a pretty good little sit-down interview, I thought. He does well in that setting, and I like the idea that he gets to talk a little more than he does in promos in the ring. 

Almas needs that heel turn about now. The amount of La Sombra I've seen is low, but he's never really impressed me as a face, whereas as part of Los Ingovernables, he seemed much better working as a heel. Dude is just a natural heel, maybe? I don't know, other people would know better. 

Like Aries, for example. A muuuuuuch better heel. Dude seems like a dick in real life, and it really comes across in his promos. 

They should probably call the Hype Bros. up for the split and let Mojo develop while tagging with a solid worker in Ryder. I don't see much for them down in NXT. The tag match was good in spite of Gargano's shitty, contrived offensive spots. Hot take: Mojo Rawley is a better worker than Johnny Gargano. 

Honestly, they should prob call Dash and Dawson up, too. Dawson can cut a solid promo at this point, and they would counterpoint the more colorful tag teams in the division really nicely. I'm guessing American Alpha are the only team going up, though. That two-out-of-three is going to be FIYAH though. 

 

 

 

[Greggulator]

I very much liked Carmella/Bliss. It had a really good flow and easy-to-follow story. It wasn't Sasha/Bayley or anything like that but it was really well done. Carmella had the advantage early, using her spunk and wits. Bliss turned up her mean girl and viciously went after Carmella's arm. Bliss threw a tantrum, which allowed Carmella to mount a comeback that was too little too late. Good job from both of them, continuing the next chapter in their fun mini-feud that has unfolded for a while now.

[Go2Sleep]

The Bliss/Carmella match was a lot better than I thought it would be given the amount of time it got. Alexa's emotional stuff was pretty forced, but overall they told a good story without trying to do too much. I liked Alexa's addition to her knee drop, but she's still doing the Undertaker choke and I have no idea why.

The tag match was a lot of fun. It's too bad NXT is gonna be broken up soon, because their current tag division would probably be the best in WWE since late 2006.

[Greggulator]

Ciampa/Gargano vs. Hype Bros. is literally a matchup in my nightmares. I would place Ryder and Gargano very high on my list of "guys people like who are absolutely awful and people only like them because we live in a garbage world." They could very likely be my number one and two on that list. I only slightly hate Ciampa less. The guy I hate least in that foursome is Mojo Rawley. I like Mojo's energy and "aw shucks" nature. He's not good, but he at least has something I can have a hook to beyond "OH HE MADE CRAPPY INTERNET VIDEOS AND TALKED ABOUT PUSHES!!!" and "makes a face like he's shitting his tiny pants while scanning the crowd of 150 Floridian for-profit university students like it's the SuperDome."

That said, this was a really friggin' great match. It was a really good tit-for-tat match. Everyone got to have a lot of shine with this, and Mojo looked awesome. He seriously found himself as a tag worker here -- his energy and power were major advantages and used well with Ryder's experience. And Gargano and Ciampa's double teams and the like actually belonged for once, as they had to use their caginess to not lose, as opposed to them tossing out needlessly complex stuff to make a bunch of neckbeards applaud. This was a great "anyone can win this" match.

The final segments were also great. Gargano still comes off super lame. But Gable/Jordan were great in their roles. The Revival are my platonic ideal of wrestling, and they may soon get matched by The Authors of Pain who are so good at being monsters.

[turk128]

Both the women's match and the tag match had every right to be forgettable fillers but they were surprisingly entertaining.

Bliss tries her best but she simply is way too petite despite putting on some serious lower body mass. She really needs a muscle by her side or a faction to lord over.

The tag match was incredibly fun. The story was simple but not boring; the Hype Brothers were the better tag team but C&G were more experienced.

Holy crap, that Jordan suplex.

*ahem*

Gar Gonzala & Chimpy

[Trocar Slush Weasel]

I thought it was a really good show.  Bliss surprised me in that her offense seemed crisp where she usually misses some moves.  (Yeah, I know there were some flubs but she hit that backflip double knees move solid)  Mojo is a guy that fights smaller than he is but against Ciampa/Gargano you could see just how big a guy he is.  Speaking of big guys, damn those AoP are huge and props to Jordan for that swank suplex.  And then sell on that humongous clothesline.

[Greggulator]

What I liked about Bliss/Carmella -- The execution of the moves wasn't fully there. But they understood why they were doing those moves that are still a bit out of their reach of competence and athletic ability. They knew the plot of the match. They really did a good job with placing in little flourishes -- Carmella's moonwalk, Alexa's temper tantrum -- at the right time, and knowing how to do those things and react facially is something that can only really happen in the moment and nothing you can work out in an empty gym. I very much liked Carmella holding her arm and working it out. It didn't render the arm completely useless, but it hurt and she had to avoid that side of her body. That stuff is way more important than whether the handstand leg scissors or chokeslam look sharp. They can make those moves tighter and/or find things they can execute better. But the timing and knowing how to get from A to B and make it look organic and natural isn't something just anyone can do.

The difference level with the Four Horsewomen and Asuka is in the execution and that they can tell a story with more ebbs and flows and can improvise.

But Alexa/Carmella felt like an approximation of a 2014 NXT Summer Rae vs. Emma match. The lightbulb went off.

[JonnyLaw]

2004 NXT really was a good year. 

[Cristobal]

I for one could have done without Lawler's commentary on that match, given Emma was 15 at the time.