WWE NXT Review - November 26, 2024

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Ridge Holland Addressed NXT Champion Trick Williams

Holland came out to Chase U's entrance music to troll the crowd after beating Andre Chase last week and ending Chase U. He didn't say much, so what we were left with was a simple segment to set up Williams' rebuttal for later in the night. The best thing I can about this is that it was kept short and sweet. I'll also say that Holland has come into his own as a heel since turning.

Ethan Page def. NXT Tag Team Champion Axiom to Qualify for the NXT Championship No. 1 Contender's Iron Survivor Challenge Match

The hook here was that Axiom's tag partner, Nathan Frazer, previously qualified for the men's Iron Survivor Challenge, so the question was whether Axiom would be able to do the same. Although he failed, he can still win that last chance qualifier next week. This was a very good match and I appreciated that they got as much time as they did. Page winning clean was a nice touch.

Lola Vice def. Wren Sinclair

As I've said before, Sinclair plays her role really well, even though she never really wins when it matters most. This was a relatively short match, but it was decent while it lasted. Post-match, Vice called out Jaida Parker and teased meeting her in an NXT Underground match (haven't we gotten enough of this in the last year and a half?). I assume that will happen on NXT TV at some point in the next few weeks and not at Deadline.

NXT North American Champion Tony D'Angelo def. Shawn Spears

I thought this might be saved for Deadline, but apparently not. It's also not as if what we got here was so great that I'm anxiously awaiting a rematch, either. This was solid albeit unspectacular. As seen during the post-match angle, Niko Vance is officially aligned with Spears and Brooks Jensen. Are we supposed to take seriously as the next threat to D'Angelo's title?

Giulia def. Kelani Jordan to Qualify for the NXT Championship No. 1 Contender's Iron Survivor Challenge Match

I was surprised to see these two face each other in a qualifier since both feel like great fits for the Iron Survivor Challenge. However, as I mentioned could be the case with Axiom, it's possible Jordan qualifies anyway in next week's last chance qualifier. At any rate, Jordan rose to the occasion here against a much more experienced opponent. This was a fun outing with Jordan looking credible in defeat.

Eric Bischoff Interrupted NXT Champion Trick Williams and Ridge Holland

Well, this was random. Not the brief back-and-forth between Williams and Holland on the mic, that was fairly standard stuff. I'm talking about Bischoff popping up on the big screen. He's made a handful of cameos on WWE (and AEW) TV in recent years, but I believe this marked his first-ever appearance on NXT TV. He said he'll appear in person on next week's show to address the situation between Williams and Holland... for some reason. I guess they're really digging deep to garner interest in the feud. Oddly enough, Bischoff will be serving as the on-air authority for a MLW event next Thursday night in New York City.

NXT Women's North American Champion Fallon Henley def. Tatum Paxley

Much like two weeks ago, it was cool to see the NXT Women's North American Championship positioned as the main event for a change. Once again, it didn't feel like a super important match and it was average at best from an in-ring standpoint, but I assume this was saved for last because of Gigi Dolin's return afterward. I like her forming an alliance with Paxley and chasing the North American title, especially given her history with Jacy Jane.

Overall Show

I'm looking forward to the Iron Survivor Challenge matches more than anything else at Deadline and the qualifiers have completely carried NXT TV in recent weeks. I can't say the same about the NXT Championship picture, which doesn't feel like a priority at the moment. All in all, this was another enjoyable, well-structured episode. Most stuff felt like it mattered and there was plenty of build for Deadline. I'm very curious what the show will look like post-Deadline.

SEE MORE: NXT Reviews