Welcome to WrestlePurists’ Coverage of the November 21st Episode of WWE NXT.
NXT Heritage Cup Championship Match: Noam Dar Defeats Chad Gable
This was a fantastic match. Chad Gable is just phenomenal. After going all 6 rounds, Noam Dar is saved by the bell and retains. Gable had Dar in the ankle lock causing him to tap but not until after time had expired in the round. After the match, Maxxine Dupree and Lash Legend exchange words until Otis and Oro Mensah come face to face. Otis knocks Oro out of the ring and dances in front of Lash. Lash gets swept up by Otis after she is slapped into him by Dupree. She is not impressed.
JBL is here to pick tonight’s Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifying Matches.
Mens’s – Carmelo Hayes vs Josh Briggs
Women’s – Blair Davenport vs Thea Hail
Tony D & Stacks Go Out For Dinner
We return from commercial to Tony D’Angelo and Channing Lorenzo who are taking the week off hanging out at an Italian restaurant. They arrive to a surprise party with family members. The family toasts to Stacks and Tony winning the tag titles and the feast begins.
We then see Carmelo Hayes and Trick Williams in the locker room. They are discussing the Iron Survivor Challenge and Tricks win in last week’s qualifier. Trick says he will be at ringside for Melo. He wants Melo to stay focused. Melo says he wants to do things alone tonight.
The women’s championship match is set to begin but Lyra is jumped by Xia Lee during her entrance. She is being helped by medical staff as we head to commercial.
Los Latharios (Humberto Carrilo & Angel Garza) Defeat Malik Blade & Edris Enofe
Carillo and Garza win via pinfall in solid tag team action.
Josh Briggs is in the locker room with Fallon Henley and Brooks Jensen. They are discussing Briggs’ upcoming qualifying match and the opportunity it represents. Briggs says he has waited his entire life for this moment and heads to the ring.
Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifying Match: Josh Briggs Defeats Carmelo Hayes
As Hayes is about to hit Nothing But Net, Lexis King comes down for the distraction, allowing Briggs to take advantage. Briggs hits a big lariat, followed by a moonsault and wins the match via pinfall. Josh Briggs was impressive and showed solid chemistry with Melo who is always top notch. This was good stuff.
McKenzie Mitchell is in the locker room with Lyra Valkyria who is icing up her neck. She asks Lyra if the match is off tonight considering the attack by Xia. Lyra says the match is still happening and that she owes Xia a kick to the face.
Von Wagner Joins Robert Stone for Dinner
Von arrives to Stones house for dinner. He brings brownies. A few are missing. The kids are excited to see Von and the feeling is mutual. They eat spaghetti. The kids get caught staring at Von in amazement of his size. Stone’s kids tell them they are being bullied at school. Von wants the kids to fight but Stone says no. Wagner tells them to write the bullies names down and he will take care of them. This was an absolutely ridiculous segment and it was hilarious.
Wes Lee In Ring Promo
Wes Lee makes it clear that he wants the NXT North American Championship. He says that when he sees Dominik Mysterio, he sees red. He says he felt like he belonged when he was champion. He felt like he found himself. He says he needs one more shot Dom at “Deadline.” This leads to Dominik Mysterio coming out. Dom says that Lee is good at making people feel bad for him. He says that he doesn’t deserve a title shot. He says he made the title more relevant than Lee ever did. Lee calls him a cockroach and says he will do anything and everything to get the title back. Dom says that next week he will have to face three other former North American Champions in order to have a chance at the title. Dom says if he doesn’t win, he can’t go after the title again.
We see a video package highlighting the Chase U scandal and the subsequent investigation. It appears that Andre Chase himself is taking the brunt of the allegations. He will break his silence next week. Following the video package, Thea Hail and Jacy Jayne are backstage talking about Andre. Jacy wants Thea to calm down and focus on the match. She says she is going to be there for her even though Andre can’t.
Josh Briggs is in the locker room when he is approached by Tiffany Stratton who asks him if he likes the feeling of being a winner. He says he does. She says she knows what it feels like and says she will see him at Deadline. Fallon Henley and Brooks Jensen walk up as Stratton walks away. Henley seems upset that the two were conversing.
Iron Survivor Challenge Qualifying Match: Blair Davenport Defeats Thea Hail
In a shocker, Blair Davenport wins this qualifying match via the Bea Trigger. Jacy Jayne and the Chase U student section are less than pleased with the result.
We see a video package highlighting the current Ilja Dragunov/Baron Corbin feud. Baron talks about how he kept asking Ilja for his shot at the title but in the end in it was easy to get what he wanted from him. Baron essentially makes Ilja’s life seem miserable in comparison to his own. He has his sites set on the NXT title and all but guarantees a victory at Deadline.
Eddy Thorpe Defeats Charlie Dempsey
Thorpe wins this match when he counters into a roll up on Dempsey. After the match, Dempsey, Drew Gulak and Myles Borne all jump Thorpe and leave him laid out.
We return to Stacks and Tony D finishing up dinner festivities. Members of the family come up one by one, offering envelopes of cash. The two are about to head home but as soon as they leave the restaurant they get jumped by Carillo and Garza. The attackers drive off as the family comes to the aid of the tag champs.
We return from commercial to a Arianna Grace vignette. She calls herself a victim to Karmen Petrovic. She says she was attacked and that Petrovic has gone unpunished. She calls herself the cure to envy. This package was very well done. I have enjoyed Arianna’s work these past few weeks. A feud with Karmen Petrovic will be mutually beneficial.
NXT Women’s Championship Match: Lyra Valkyria Defeats Xia Lee
Lyra comes back from getting jumped earlier and against all odds, is able to dig deep and wins this match by hitting a Samoan driver and getting the pinfall over Lee. Lee dominated this match early before Lyra was able to finally turn the tide.
Final Thoughts
These pretaped shows can be pretty underwhelming but tonight’s episode was still very digestable and had some entertaining moments sprinkled throughout. Loved having the Alpha Academy involved the last two weeks and wouldn’t mind seeing more of them regularly. The show flowed well and a good majority of the wrestling was solid. Once again the women showed out in the main event spot.
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
