NWA Powerrr Review - September 14, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Trevor Murdoch Called Out Nick Aldis

This was the first interaction we've gotten between these two since Murdoch beat Aldis for the NWA title at NWA 73. I thought Aldis would throw down the gauntlet and immediately challenge him to a rematch, but we didn't get that. Instead, he stayed consistent with what he said last week and showed him respect. He also alluded to going away for a little while. That was said two weeks ago, too, and he returned the next week, so we'll see if it sticks this time. Will the other shoe eventually drop and Aldis turns on Murdoch to set up that rematch? We shall see.

Aron Stevens and Kratos def. The Rude Dudes in an NWA World Tag Team Championship No. 1 Contender's Tournament Quarterfinal Match

The Rude Dudes just qualified for the tournament two weeks ago and have already been bumped. I'm not sure what the point was in retrospect of them qualifying other than to kill television time, but at least they looked good in defeat here. The bigger story is that Kratos blamed Stevens for coming across as "soft" and opted to do the dirty work instead, winning in decisive fashion. The promo he cut afterward was probably the most I've ever heard him speak in the NWA and I thought he did well with it.

James Storm Went Face-to-Face with Judias and James Mitchell

Judias still has an NWA National Championship shot coming his way one of these days, but it looks like he'll have to get past Storm before then. Storm fell short of regaining the gold at NWA 73, but I'm glad he's still in the mix. I enjoyed the exchange here between Storm and Mitchell on the mic. I don't know what that eventual Storm vs. Judias match is going to look like, but maybe Storm can get something decent out of him.

NWA World Women's Tag Team Champion Marti Belle def. Paola Blaze; NWA World Women's Champion Kamille Attacked Melina

I feared this match coming into the show because I have never thought Belle was anything above average in the ring and I didn't know how Blaze was going to do. It was a mediocre match for sure, but not terrible, so there was that. Blaze and Jennacide don't have their tag title opportunity just yet, but if Jennacide can beat Allysin Kay next week, they'll get it. Post-match, Kamille attacked Melina at the commentary table, probably because she was hanging around with Strictly Business' Chris Adonis.

Mae Valentine Interviewed Da Pope, Colby Corino, JTG, Chelsea Green and Kiera Hogan

Good lord, there were way too many people interviewed during this one, never-ending segment. Don't get me wrong, I liked hearing from most of them, but it was way too crowded and it was hard to remember who said what. Da Pope was entertaining as always, but he didn't accomplish much aside from teasing he might "cash in" his title shot on the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship at some point. Corino and JTG hyped up their match in the tag tourney next week (which I mistakenly thought was this week), Green going off the deep end was dumb (I'm sorry but the shtick is not for me and never has been), and Hogan was fine with the limited amount of mic time she had.

Jordan Clearwater def. Cyon and Jeremiah Plunkett in an NWA Television Championship No. 1 Contender's Three-Way Match

This was one of those matches that was taped "earlier in the day" with no one in attendance. To be honest, I didn't have a desire to see any of these three guys win. Clearwater and Cyon are/were clearly in cahoots with Austin Idol while there isn't anything special about Plunkett. This was a solid three-way, but the main story was Idol and Clearwater betrayed the masked Cyon. Tyrus defending his TV title against one of his lackeys in Clearwater is lame to me.

The Humiliation Showdown Between Crimson and Jax Dane Descended Into Chaos

What a unique segment this was as I've never seen anything like it before. Instead of having a formal main event match, Crimson and Dane took turns slapping each other in the face and hard. It was actually better than I thought it would be. Dane ended up taking a cheap shot at Crimson, which brought out Murdoch, members of Strictly Business, Pope, Judias and Storm. In other words, it was a total mess, but I understand the intention was to further a few feuds at once, so in that resect, it did its job.

Overall Show

I'm glad Powerrr is starting to find its groove again after the weekly product did nothing to build toward EmPowerrr or NWA 73 whatsoever. There's more consistency from week to week now as well as improved wrestling, so that's been a plus. They're still trying to cram way too much into the hour, but at least there's some storylines that are catching my attention and have been well done so far. Taping at The Chase has been refreshing as well. It's a definite step up from the empty studio setting.

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