WWE NXT Review - December 21, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Bron Breakker Confronted NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa

This was one of the best promos I've heard Ciampa cut in some time. This is why he's in the role of NXT Champion: to lend credibility to all who challenge him, both in the ring and on the mic. He spoke with intensity and looked intimidated of Breakker when he nearly got laid out for slapping him. This did its job of selling me on their NXT Championship clash for New Year's Evil even though I was already excited for it.

Raquel Gonzalez def. Dakota Kai in a Street Fight; NXT Women's Tag Team Champions Toxic Attraction Attacked Gonzalez and Cora Jade

Didn't Gonzalez lose the NXT Women's Championship to Mandy Rose in a Street Fight at Halloween Havoc? A different stipulation would have been nice because that was less than two months ago, but there was also a Steel Cage match on NXT just two weeks ago. Nonetheless, this was an excellent match. I loved how it started in the backstage area and spilled over into the ring coming out of the commercial break. They beat the hell out of each other and had strong chemistry, which was no surprise given how well they worked together at TakeOver 36. Kai losing yet again makes me think she may be main roster bound, but seeing is believing. Additionally, I'm all in on Gonzalez vs. Jade vs. Mandy Rose in a Triple Threat for the NXT Women's Championship at New Year's Evil. It makes perfect sense given what we've seen from them lately.

The Creed Brothers vs. Grizzled Young Veterans Ended in a No Contest

Both of these teams are heel, so I'm not sure who the crowd was supposed to cheer for. I like Creed Brothers and believe they have a ton of upside, whereas I haven't been a fan of Grizzled Young Veterans being made to look like a bunch of goofs over the last month. This match was going well before Jacket Time, Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen showed up at ringside. The non-finish seems to set up an eight-man tag team match with all four teams.

Dexter Lumis def. Trick Williams

Lumis beat Carmelo Hayes by disqualification last week due to interference from Williams, so it was safe to assume Lumis was winning here. Williams is decent in the ring, but he feels more like a comedy character than anything else, and that's fine because he plays the role well and Lumis is a fun foil for him. This was what it needed to be. We found out later on in the show that it will be Hayes vs. Roderick Strong at New Year's Evil in a title unification match, which is long overdue given how irrelevant the NXT Cruiserweight Championship has been for many months.

AJ Styles Confronted Grayson Waller

First Riddle, now Styles. It's clear WWE is bringing in these big names from the main roster to help with the ratings, which are struggling. Maybe turning the former black-and-gold brand into a glorified developmental show and ridding it of almost all of its established star power wasn't the best idea in retrospect? This came completely out of nowhere, but I enjoyed their exchange and though Waller held his own once again. He's getting a hell of a push at the moment and hopefully they can stay consistent with it. They left the door open for a match between the two and I'm curious if we'll get it at New Year's Evil.

Edris Enofe def. Von Wagner

This was Von Wagner's first match since beating Kyle O'Reilly in a Steel Cage match two weeks ago and seemingly ending his NXT career. Within a minute of this starting, it immediately ended in a roll-up win for Enofe. Yes, seriously. Enofe has skills what I've seen, but seeing as how he lost to Boa recently, NXT obviously doesn't have any plans for him. Rather, he was beaten up afterward by Von Wagner. In other words, this was completely pointless as it ruined any momentum Wagner got from his win over O'Reilly.

Io Shirai def. Elektra Lopez

It's amazing how prominently featured Lopez has been since the NXT relaunch despite being green in the ring. Don't get me wrong, she has potential, but she's far from polished. Thankfully, she'll only benefit from working with people as experienced and as talented as Shirai. The match itself was throwaway and served as a backdrop for the latest development in the ongoing angle with herself, Xyon Quinn and Santos Escobar. Their love story is nothing compared to Indi Hartwell and Dexter Lumis, but I appreciate the effort they're putting into it.

Pete Dunne def. Tony D'Angelo

I think I've turned a corner on D'Angelo in recent weeks. I always knew he could go in the ring, but the gimmick was too goofy for me. It's still over-the-top and I don't think he'll get beyond a certain level with it, but to his credit, he's making it work to the best of his ability. He proved he was on Dunne's level with the performance he had here and it was a very well-worked main event. D'Angelo loses nothing in defeat and I'm glad he attacked Dunne afterward because that means the feud isn't over yet.

Overall Show

I get the sense from a majority of fans that NXT 2.0 isn't terrible television, but it isn't exactly must-see, either. That isn't to say NXT a year ago was infinitely more must-see, but personally, I found the shows to be more worthwhile compared to what we're getting now. That said, they're doing a better job of building actual storylines and certain stars instead of going too heavy on the squashes. Competitive, entertaining matches are necessary and we got that on this show between the Street Fight and the main event. We also got plenty of hype for New Year's Evil in two weeks, so I can't give this episode anything less than a thumbs-up.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews