WWE NXT Review - February 15, 2017

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

NXT Tag Team Champions Authors of Pain def. Garriston Spears and Lance Anoa'i (Non-title)

I was quickly growing tired of these squash matches from Authors of Pain when they were still directionless last year, but now that they have the NXT Tag Team Championship in their possession and have two feuds going with #DIY and The Revival, this was a simple and effective way of allowing them to showcase their dominance. And for those who claim brief bouts such as this is all they're capable of, watch their great match with #DIY from TakeOver: San Antonio. They can flat-out go with the right opponents and can certainly hold their own.

Billie Kay and Peyton Royce def. Liv Morgan and Ember Moon

Didn't Morgan and Moon face off against each other a few weeks ago? I realize they were never rivals, but it was weird for them to go from allies, to opponents, and back to being allies in this match. Daria Berenato is far being ready for television, but even she would have made more sense as Morgan's partner considering her history with Kay and Royce. This was decent for what it was, but thankfully it didn't last long. I was pleasantly surprised by the heels scoring the victory, setting the stage for next week's No. 1 Contender's Triple Threat match between Moon, Morgan and Royce. But why wouldn't Kay be involved?

The Revival Attacked #DIY

I'm not exaggerating when I say Revival, #DIY and Authors of Pain pretty much make up NXT's entire tag team division at the moment. That said, they're keeping things compelling by establishing issues between all three tandems. #DIY cut a straightforward promo about losing the titles before Revival hit the ring, laid them out, and made their exit before Authors of Pain could get their hands on them. I'm all for a Triple Threat tag team title match happening at TakeOver: Orlando.

WWE United Kingdom Champion Tyler Bate def. Trent Seven

First and foremost, the video packages that aired throughout the evening looking at both guys were well done, and the commentators acknowledging that these two are tag team partners in the PROGRESS Wrestling promotion was also appreciated. I didn't care too much for their antics early on, and the crowd was relatively quiet during the first half of the bout, but Bate and Seven picked up the pace nicely down the stretch and put together as a really fun match that the crowd came alive for.

Overall Show

Featuring two of the WWE United Kingdom Championship Tournament's brighter stars was a cool change of pace for NXT, and the main event turned into an entertaining affair. The rest of the show wasn't incredibly exciting, but at least feuds were furthered in the women's and tag team divisions, planting the seeds for various matches at TakeOver: Orlando. On a side note, a vignette aired hyping Kassius Ohno's return to the brand, so I assume he'll resurface sooner rather than later.