WWE NXT Review - November 22, 2022

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Toxic Attraction Attacked NXT Women's Tag Team Champions Katana Chance and Kayden Carter

Mandy Rose revealed here that the winner of the women's Iron Survivor Challenge match at NXT Deadline will eventually challenge for the NXT Women's Championship, so it sounds like she won't be defending the title on that show. This segment also saw Chance and Carter rekindle their rivalry with Jacy Jane and Gigi Dolin, which was inevitable since NXT has so few female teams. This was a fine way to kick off the show but nothing special.

Cora Jade def. Wendy Choo

So, Jade's new heel character is that she's a bully and Choo's babyface character is a prime target of her bullying. Got it. I suppose the dynamic makes sense, but the Choo crap is so bad that it's hard for me to care. It feels like a filler feud for Jade, and I fear there are more matches to come, but at least this was a well-worked match and Jade won as she should have. I'd love for Choo to switch up her stupid act based on what we saw afterward, but I'm not holding my breath.

Ivy Nile def. Kiana James

Nile has totally took a backseat during the Diamond Mine drama and it felt like she was absent from NXT TV for months on end. Granted, she was used on Level Up, but does that really matter considering hardly anyone watches that show? This was passable, but James continues to get a ton of television time between this show and Main Event and I'm not sure why because her character is bland and she isn't amazing in the ring yet. I wouldn't have had Nile sell for James as much as she did, but the result was what it needed to be.

Scrypts def. Guru Raaj

I wasn't sure what to make of the Scrypts vignettes over the last month, and I'm glad I didn't get too excited by this arrival because it ended up being Reggie in a stupid-looking mask. Between Axiom and now Scypts, what's with NXT putting people in masks and expecting people to care? He's still an acrobatic freak in the ring, but his mannerisms are ridiculously dumb. This was a decent re-debut for him, but how is anyone supposed to take him seriously?

Schism Addressed the Audience

We didn't get any Thanksgiving-themed crap on Monday's Raw, but we did get Schism "giving thanks" in this segment that accomplished nothing. Sure, they put some "fan" through a table, but the crowd cheered them for doing so. The rest of this was a waste of time. I give credit to everyone involved for attempting to make the most of what they're being given, but the material is awful and I have to fight the urge to fall asleep every time they talk.

Zoey Stark def. Sol Ruca

As I've said before, Ruca's athleticism is impressive, but she's still far from television ready. That said, if she is going to be on the show, she'll only benefit from working with someone as seasoned as Stark. This was designed to give Stark her first win as a heel. Post-match, Nikkita Lyons went after her, and that's not a match I'm overly excited her. Maybe Stark can carry her to a competent contest and Lyons will exceed expectations, but we shall see.

NXT Tag Team Champions Pretty Deadly def. Andre Chase and Duke Hudson

This came together on a whim earlier in the episode. Could the tag titles have changed hands? Sure, I suppose there was a chance, but I'm happy they didn't. This was solid stuff and the dynamic with Chase and Hudson is easily the most interesting thing either guy has done in NXT so far (and that's coming from someone who isn't at all a fan of the Chase U crap). Meanwhile, Pretty Deadly continue to roll as champs.

NXT North American Champion Wes Lee def. Carmelo Hayes; Dijak Returned

​Was this the first proper one-on-one match between Lee and Hayes in NXT? They've been building to it for a while, and although I was wondering why they weren't saving it for NXT Deadline, the post-match angle made it clear what the title match at that event is going to be instead. Nonetheless, this was an excellent main event with a hell of an effort from both guys. I'm also happy to see Dijak back. I don't know if he needed a new look, but the name is an upgrade and I just hope they can let him be the kickass wrestler he was the last time he was in NXT.

Overall Show

Halloween Havoc feels like it wasn't that long ago, and it's already been five weeks. Damn. That means NXT Deadline is coming up quickly and there isn't a ton of time for them to build up a strong card without it feeling thrown together. This was an abysmal episode on the whole, but at least it ended on a high note with that above-average main event and Dijak returning. That Scrypts debut on the other hand... yikes. I'm curious who will end up in the Iron Survivor Challenge matches, though.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews