NXT has officially moved to Tuesday nights. Combining that with the follow-up to TakeOver: Stand & Deliver following WrestleMania 37, it was clearly a show that was meant to be a fresh start in a lot of ways.
How much of it looks like it will be for the better? What elements may have a rough road ahead? Where is this all leading?
Every part of the black and gold brand is up for discussion as we look at the future of NXT going forward after this shift.
Karrion Kross and the NXT Championship
The show opened with Karrion Kross praising Finn Balor for his fight, but establishing that nothing is going to get in the way of his title reign this time. He’ll hold the title as long as he wants and if anyone wants to challenge for it, they can, but they’ll fall.
This was an even bigger step in a more babyface direction than I had anticipated we’d see out of Kross. Lately, he’s been booked more as an antihero than a true heel, and at times, much more on the babyface side in general.
Depending on who the first challenger is, I think this is a sign of a dynamic shift where WWE is experimenting even more with this idea of “shades of gray” that we’ve seen happening the past year.
For the most part, it’s been poorly done. Instead of writing characters with nuance, WWE’s approach seems to misunderstand it as “book them as a heel and a babyface sporadically so they don’t follow any set direction and that’s the same thing”, which it isn’t.
Kross, though, comes off as an experiment with that in the right way. I can just as easily picture him feuding with Adam Cole and LA Knight on the same day he might have a match with Jake Atlas and Tommaso Ciampa.
There isn’t a single person I feel is remotely close to taking that title from him. I fully expect him to feud with everyone under the sun—Pete Dunne, Timothy Thatcher, Johnny Gargano, etc—and to retain until someone new is signed to the brand who can beat him.
If anyone currently on the roster takes him out, it’s probably Kyle O’Reilly.
Raquel Gonzalez and the Women’s Division (Singles)
Likewise to Kross and his character shift, I think the same is happening right now with Raquel Gonzalez, who came off much more like a babyface to me than a heel tonight.
If she had just cut a promo saying “I won the title and now, it’s my turn”, I wouldn’t think that. But they had her strategically welcomed as the new champion, followed by the debut of Franky Monet (who is clearly a heel), followed by a seal of approval from Rhea Ripley and Bianca Belair.
Ripley was feuding with her and was a babyface at the time. She may still be, based on the Charlotte Flair turn. Or, The Nightmare may be a tweener like Kross is being positioned, too. Belair, though, is 100% face, so this was either a moment for the sake of calling back to in the future, and/or a way to show fans “You can cheer for Raquel now.”
She’s going to feud with Monet, but it seems her first stop will be taking out Mercedes Martinez. For a moment, I thought it was Martinez who was turning, but they had her strategically booked to follow up beating down The Robert Stone Brand with trash talking Zoey Stark—a definitive babyface.
Martinez is fed to Raquel while they build up Monet. No appearance by Io Shirai makes me think she’s coming up to Raw or SmackDown soon, probably following WrestleMania Backlash.
Who’s the next in line for the title? I think there’s actually a chance it’s Dakota Kai when they split up. Toni Storm is another strong option, even though we didn’t see her tonight.
Then again, Sarray is making her debut next week. If they keep Raquel heel or go back down that road in some fashion, it could be Sarray who is built up for that spot in the future.
Pure inSAnitY. #WWENXT #IMPERIUM @TheWWEWolfe @Marcel_B_WWE @FabianAichner pic.twitter.com/wInaSE4nzR
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) April 14, 2021
MSK and the Tag Team Division
As expected, MSK retained their newly-won tag team titles against Drake Maverick and Killian Dain. There was no chance those two would snatch the belts.
Imperium’s attack afterward on Dain and Maverick has me thinking Dain’s going to split from Maverick soon enough. The most success he saw was when he was in SAnitY. As the heavy for a group, he works better than on his own.
I don’t particularly think he’s Imperium material, though. That feels strange to me. But maybe this is just a means to start that feud so Imperium has someone to beat. Then, once MSK has held the titles long enough, Marcel Barthel and Fabian Aichner will be the ones to beat them.
The Way stands a chance to do that, though. If Johnny Gargano drops the North American title in the meantime, he and Austin Theory would make good champions. But I don’t think anything is in the works for a few months, at least.
So long as MSK keep having fun matches, they’ll be fine. I expect WWE to put them out there on a regular basis to keep the energy up.
Kushida (!) and the Cruiserweight Division
Wow. I’ve been saying for a while that I thought Kushida would be the person to eventually beat Santos Escobar, but I didn’t think it would happen this fast.
I fully expected Escobar’s open challenge to be answered by someone like Tyler Breeze, August Grey, Ashante “Thee” Adonis, etc. I even thought this might be where The Brian Kendrick pops back up.
Kushida winning the title strikes me as a sign that that was the plan for a while, but Triple H wanted to do the right thing, have Jordan Devlin lose his title to unify the belts, and then make Kushida the real champion.
I still maintain 205 Live shouldn’t exist anymore. I’d like to see that show replaced by NXT Evolve, which will have more flexibility. Kushida doesn’t need to show up on Friday nights pre-taped when he can wrestle on NXT on Tuesdays.
The next champion could be Isaiah “Swerve” Scott if he continues to get perpetual screen time like he’s had lately.
Ember Moon, Shotzi Blackheart and the Women’s Tag Team Division
No advancements in this division. They’re still feuding with The Way, which is fine for now, but I’d have preferred if the titles had changed hands.
Not only do I think this is the weakest part of NXT, despite the women’s division as a whole being rather strong, I also think there’s no clear direction.
I’m not digging it, to be honest. Right now, it feels superfluous.
Due to popular demand, we have a GIF for you. 😉 #WWENXT #InDex @indi_hartwell @DexterLumis pic.twitter.com/GfcmcUTMqQ
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) April 14, 2021
Johnny Gargano and the North American Division
No steps forward taken for this. Gargano remains feuding with both Bronson Reed and Dexter Lumis at the same time.
Indi Hartwell gave herself up to Lumis, so that’s the next story to track, rather than just setting up a new challenger for the title.
I could see a scenario where Timothy Thatcher gets the title down the line. Nothing at all in that regard was hinted at, but that’s where my mind is at right now.
Miscellaneous NXT Extras
Roderick Strong quit. Where’s that going? Is he heading to the main roster? Taking an extended leave of absence to deal with an injury or to do something else? I doubt he’s actually gone from WWE. Very intriguing.
It feels like Cole should be leaving, too, but all signs point in the opposite direction of that.
While I’m disappointed my Tuesday nights got busier, I’m glad this isn’t airing at the same time as AEW Dynamite. It’ll be very interesting to see what the ratings are like. If it’s not a significant boost from normal, I’d imagine we see the same numbers going forward. At that point, we can then say AEW isn’t to blame for people not tuning in.
What are your thoughts on NXT going forward? Is there anything you’re particularly excited about? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!
