WWE NXT Review - July 27, 2021

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Pete Dunne and Oney Lorcan def. Tommaso Ciampa and Timothy Thatcher

Considering both these teams wrestle similar styles, it was no surprise that this was as entertaining and as hard-hitting as it was. Ciampa and Thatcher have turned into a terrific team this year while Dunne has filled in nicely for the injured Danny Burch as Lorcan's partner. The Ridge Holland return was a pleasant surprise and I like how he's picking up where he left off by aligning himself with Dunne and Lorcan. I hadn't heard anything about his road to recovery from that nasty injury he suffered last year, so I'm happy he's back already.

NXT General Manager William Regal Made Karrion Kross vs. Samoa Joe for the NXT Championship Official for TakeOver 36

Although Joe getting back in the ring has been teased since he returned to NXT last month, it was unknown whether he'd actually be cleared to compete again and, if so, when. Well, we found out here that he can in fact return to being a member of the active roster and that he'll challenge Kross for the NXT Championship at TakeOver next month as expected. I'm looking forward to it, but not nearly as much as I was before Kross lost to Jeff Hardy in his Raw debut last week. Not only is he no longer undefeated, he's also obviously on his way up to the main roster. At the very least, I'm happy Joe is finally back on the active roster and now all those matches he teased can become a reality.

Carmelo Hayes def. Josh Briggs in an NXT Breakout Tournament Quarterfinal Match

I remember seeing Hayes and Briggs on the same Northeast Wrestling show in December 2017. That was my first exposure to Briggs I believe, but I'd been following Hayes' independent career since a year or two prior. He's a star on the rise and was the right choice to advance in the Breakout Tournament. This was fun and probably the best of all the quarterfinal matches, but I'm hoping the semifinal matches will be a bit more exciting.

Dakota Kai Attacked NXT Women's Champion Raquel Gonzalez

I think we all saw this coming the moment Gonzalez captured the NXT Women's Championship back in April. It was just more a question of who was going to turn on who, and it looks like Kai is going to be the heel between the two of the (even though the crowd was chanting her name after turning on Gonzalez). It wasn't an amazing segment, but the execution was simple, they played their roles well and the endgame was worth it. Gonzalez vs. Kai is an excellent attraction for TakeOver on paper.

Kacy Catanzaro and Kayden Carter def. Franky Monet and Jessi Kamea

I figured this would be an easy win for Monet and her new tag team partner, but apparently not. I understand that Catanzaro and Carter are more of a team than she and Kamea are, but Monet getting pinned already (and in such an inconsequential match, no less) was certainly questionable. Clearly, this was done to explain why she won't want Robert Stone around, but she should have ditched him from the get-go. It does get Catanzaro and Carter one step closer to contending for the NXT Women's Tag Team Championship, but Kamea definitely should have pinned over Monet.

Imperium (Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner) def. Hit Row (Top Dolla and Ashante "Thee" Adonis)

This seemed to confirm Hit Row's babyface status, but then again, I wouldn't be shocked if they went right back to being heels after their feud with Legado del Fantasma is over because that's just what NXT does. For example, look at Johnny Gargano after he unsuccessfully challenged Kross for the NXT Championship. He was in babyface mode for a few weeks but is already back to being a heel. Nonetheless, this was a well-wrestled match while it lasted with the expected outcome to set up Hit Row vs. Legado for next week and to give Imperium a much-needed win before they eventually challenge MSK for the NXT Tag Team Championship.

Adam Cole def. Bronson Reed

The setup for this match was so quick that you had to know it was going to end in a win for Cole. That's in addition to the fact that Reed popped up on Main Event last month and lost his NXT North American Championship a week or two later. Unfortunately for him, he's on his way down to the main roster, so this essentially served as his swan song from NXT. This was a good main event, but it never felt like it reached that next gear. We also found out afterward that we still haven't seen the last of Cole against Kyle O'Reilly. I assume their third match will be saved for TakeOver. Hopefully it will be a Loser Leaves Town match so they won't be on the same show anymore.

Overall Show

All in all, this was an entertaining edition of NXT. None of the matches stood out in a major way, but the wrestling was solid. The biggest storyline developments came in the first half with Holland returning, Joe announcing his in-ring return (and making the TakeOver main event official in the process), and Kai finally betraying Gonzalez. NXT still lacks that "must-see" vibe and I think part of it is that they're still taping out of the Capitol Wrestling Center. They need to get out of there as soon as possible because a change of scenery could do wonders for this show.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews