WWE NXT Review - November 21, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Keith Lee def. Fidel Bravo

Lee was extremely over in front of this crowd and looked like an absolute star. As I've said before, he's an extremely impressive athlete and has a high ceiling if he's continued to be booked so dominantly. He hit all of his signature spots and went over in decisive fashion. I'm glad he was able to compete in front of a TakeOver crowd for the first time and shine, even if it wasn't the actual TakeOver special.

Lars Sullivan def. Keita Murray

Similar to Lee's match, this was a complete squash with Sullivan winning in a matter of a minute. Afterward, he cut a promo about how he won't rest until he gets his rightful shot at the NXT Championship (following his recent victories over Velveteen Dream and EC3), which was weird considering video packages began airing at Survivor Series hyping his upcoming debut on WWE TV. Lee then came out to brawl with Sullivan and I'm looking forward to their eventual one-on-one encounter.

Nikki Cross def. Candice LeRae

I figured this would be a throwaway/forgettable outing considering how much time they were given to work with, but this turned into a fun little match with a great final stretch. LaRae showed a more aggressive side here and seemingly planted the seeds for a heel turn (the crowd reacting to her the way they did was telling), but even that wasn't enough to earn her the victory. LeRae has been quite the loser lately and I must agree with the masses that she has been fairly underutilized in the promotion as a result of her curtailed television time. I don't mind that she's always going to be involved in whatever Johnny Gargano is doing, but she should also be establishing her own identity simultaneously.

Overall Show

These post-TakeOver editions of NXT TV are rarely newsworthy, if only because the better part of the hour consisted of TakeOver video packages and replays of each match. That isn't a bad thing, however, because they're all excellent and re-watching the special in its entirety is strongly recommended, anyway. Lee and Sullivan were showcased in their respective matches and Cross and LeRae had an enjoyable affair, so all in all, this show gets a thumbs up from me.