WWE NXT Review - February 24, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Dexter Lumis def. NXT North American Champion Johnny Gargano (Non-Title)

Lumis and Gargano wrestle completely different styles, but that was actually made this match enjoyable. Lumis' shtick is unique (and not for everyone), but it meshes well with Gargano's heel comedy. They had an enjoyable opener and they nailed the psychology. I believe Lumis lost to Gargano a few months ago, so I figured he would win here to set him up for a future title shot and that was exactly what happened. That said, Lumis isn't the right guy to take the title off Gargano.

NXT Women's Champion Io Shirai def. Zoey Stark (Non-Title)

I don't know what Stark did to earn a match against the champion after only debuting last week, but she had a solid showing, nonetheless. I never bought into the possibility of her winning, but it was nice that she was made to look competitive in defeat and take Shirai to her limit. This proved that she'll be one to watch going forward in a division already stacked with star power. Toni Storm emerged afterward and challenged Shirai to another title match since she wasn't pinned at TakeOver: Vengeance Day. It was announced later in the night that their championship clash will go down in two weeks.

Xia Li def. Kacy Catanzaro by Referee Stoppage

Li has been squashing people left and right since re-debuting with her new character, and although this was the biggest fight she's had yet, the outcome remained the same as it should have. Catanzaro made strides in the women's Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic and put in a good effort here. As for Li, she continues to shine in this role and is coming along very well. She finally feels like the complete package. The referee stoppage finish was also a nice touch.

Grizzled Young Veterans def. Drake Maverick and Killian Dain

I'm really happy that TakeOver: Vengeance Day didn't mark the end of Grizzled Young Veterans in the tag team spotlight despite their loss in the finals of the men's Dusty Classic. They're a terrific team, and honestly, I wouldn't mind seeing them win the NXT Tag Team Championship before MSK just so MSK can be in chase mode. Maverick and Dain were the perfect team for them to beat to bounce back from their recent loss. This was a fun affair with the right outcome. Alexander Wolfe confronting Dain backstage afterward was interesting, too.

Karrion Kross def. NXT Cruiserweight Champion Santos Escobar in a No Disqualification Match (Non-Title)

​​Kross has had some pretty good matches since coming to NXT, but I really feel like this was his best yet. Escobar is obviously excellent, but I loved how badass Kross came across, especially when he was beating up Joaquin Wilde and Raul Mendoza. This definitely benefited from the stipulation and the fact they brawled all around the arena was cool. I usually hate when champions lose non-title matches that don't lead anywhere, but Escobar will be fine and Kross is now another step closing to getting back the NXT Championship he never lost.

Adam Cole Attacked NXT Champion Finn Balor and Roderick Strong

Cole explaining that Kyle O'Reilly losing back-to-back NXT Championship matches pissed him off made sense. He also did a nice job of acting innocent and trying to get back on the same page as Strong before betraying him, too. Part of me thought Strong would turn along with Cole, but I'm glad Cole is flying solo for a change as a heel, which is the role he has always excelled at. This was another great angle that progressed the story of Undisputed Era's breakup.

Overall Show

The stuff with the Undisputed Era has made NXT feel more must-see than it has in a while. The wrestling is consistently solid, but the show needs more exciting elements to it from week to week. That said, this was a solid effort on the whole. The final half hour was the highlight, but the rest was mostly entertaining and they filled the time well. There wasn't a ton to the show, but they gave the matches more time than usual and I appreciated the less is more approach. I like how they're advertising title matches for the next two weeks to give viewers things to look forward to.