WWE NXT Review - March 6, 2014

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

NXT Champion Adrian Neville def. Camacho (Non-title)

While it was a basic squash match that was only mere minutes long, it was a nice showcase for Neville. He is fresh off his title win from last week and the live crowd was very receptive to him here. His post-match promo started off rough, but he turned it into one of his better (if not his best) promos in recent memory. I got a kick out of how he poked fun at his looks, but he was still able to establish himself as a worthy champion. He had an enjoyable exchange on the mic with Bo Dallas that built toward their eventual rematch for the title.


Charlotte def. Emma

Charlotte is still quite green in the ring, but at least she's improved since her debut. She's extremely athletic, I'll give her that, but there's still room for improvement in terms of her in-ring work. If anyone could bring her to an exceptional match, it's Emma, and that was the case here. They weren't given much time, but that was probably for the best given Charlotte's level of inexperience. The moment Charlotte got "injured" it was obvious that she was going to win given her father's reputation, but it made for a cool finishing sequence and a smart way to protect Emma, who suffered her second straight loss. She may already be on the main roster, but here's hoping WWE doesn't job her out every time she comes to NXT similar to how Xavier Woods is being utilized.

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Corey Graves def. Yoshi Tatsu by Count-out

During his pre-match promo, Corey Graves introduced him as simply "Graves", but until otherwise noted, I'll assume he's still using the name Corey. It really wasn't much of a match, but it was a nice win for Graves, regardless. Why protect Tatsu in having him loss via count-out? As Graves said in his promo, Tatsu hasn't been relevant in forever (if ever), so I don't see the harm in having him get pinned. I suppose it was done to set up a rematch between the two, but Graves seems to be moving into a feud with Sami Zayn, so I don't know how likely that is. Speaking of such, I am looking forward to the Graves vs. Zayn feud, as it gives both guys something substantial to do for the near future.


Adam Rose def. Wesley Blake

When I first heard he was getting a gimmick change to seeing him in the pre-match vignette, I despised the Rose character if only because he was so great in his role as Leo Kruger. After seeing his awesome entrance, though, I instantly fell in love with it. It was very similar to Brodus Clay in the sense that he was better as a heel, but he is totally devoted to his new face persona that it might actually work. We know he can go in the ring, so that isn't an issue, but I hope this gimmick doesn't wear out its welcome like The Funkasaurus did.


Sami Zayn def. Corey Graves

I was surprised this match take place on this show, as it could have been built up over the next few weeks. Nonetheless, it was a very well wrestled match and Zayn and Graves made the most out of the small amount of time they were allotted. The final few moments were fun and Graves lost nothing in losing via the small package. I might have been better if Graves went over to tell the story that Zayn just can't buy a victory, but I assume this rivalry is far from over, so we'll see how it progresses from here.


Overall Show

It was obvious that various matches from this show were from different tapings based on the change in commentary team, but aside from that small nitpick, it was a solid show. Neville was properly showcased and furthered his feud with Dallas in the opening segment. The Zayn and Graves match shouldn't have been rushed, but it was a good main event to close the show with. The other there filler matches were fine and served a purpose. With NXT now being on the WWE Network and being exposed to more viewers, I hope the program can keep up the strong momentum coming out of NXT: Arrival with enjoyable episodes such as this one.