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The build to NXT's next special continued tonight, with the black and gold brand presenting The Great American Bash in two weeks.
While the show will be headlined by Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly, other matches have been announced. We will see both sets of NXT Tag Team Championships being defended, with the potential for another few developments to take place.
This week's show was typically strong, following up on one of the best episodes of NXT of all time last week. Samoa Joe is a part of the proceedings and his presence this week continued to excite the fans. We also saw the reveal of Diamond Mine, who made a big statement tonight.
With that being said, here are the main positives and negatives of this week's episode of WWE NXT. What did you think of the show? Let us know by sounding off in the comments below.
#1 Best: Diamond Mine opens after a great NXT main event
After weeks of anticipation, NXT finally paid off the packages by debuting Diamond Mine. This came right at the end of the episode, after the main event clash between Kyle O'Reilly and Kushida.
After O'Reilly picked up the victory, Adam Cole tried to assault him and the two started attacking each other. As the brawl intensified, three men attacked Kushida in the ring. Roderick Strong led the way, with Tyler Rust and the relatively unknown Hideki Suzuki. Malcolm Bivens accompanied them as a manager.
It seems like Strong will be going after the NXT Cruiserweight Championship, which sounds great. He looks fine, having taken a two-month break from the black and gold brand. There is a lot of potential here.
Bivens has shown to be extremely charismatic outside of WWE and on social media. After a few different managerial gigs in NXT, this one alongside Diamond Mine may be the long-term one for him.
We will definitely learn more about the group in the coming weeks, but their debut was highly encouraging. This seems like the perfect usage of Roderick Strong in a post-Undisputed Era world, while another couple of stars are getting some good exposure.
#1 Worst: An unnecessary John Cena callback on NXT
NXT kicked off this week with Adam Cole cutting a promo on the events of last week, which saw him brawl with Kyle O'Reilly and get put to sleep by Samoa Joe. He was scheduled to face an opponent of his choosing. While his rival faced off with Kushida, the former NXT Champion initially refused to wrestle.
However, Cole was interrupted by a relative newcomer. Carmelo Hayes, formerly Christian Casanova, confronted Cole and challenged him to a match. He said the words, "Ruthless Aggression," which was meant to be a callback to John Cena's WWE debut opposite Kurt Angle in 2002.
The moment felt forced and the line was shoehorned in. There wasn't really a need for it, especially with this not being his first match on NXT. Hayes still had a great showing against Adam Cole, though.
The words did not fit at all and Carmelo Hayes should have used another line to finish his promo, instead of blatantly copy-pasting a legendary moment from the past. He does have a lot of potential, as shown opposite Cole on NXT.
#2 Best: Less is more with Samoa Joe as NXT's "sheriff"
After last week's eventful re-introduction of Samoa Joe to NXT, the former WWE US Champion did not get directly involved with anybody. The new "sheriff' of NXT was limited to staredowns and a completely non-physical role in this episode. Joe was not provoked tonight.
First off, he attempted to break up a multi-woman brawl by calling security. The likes of Io Shirai, Raquel Gonzalez, and Shotzi Blackheart were in the mix. Joe obviously couldn't get involved in it, could he?
And then, the former two-time NXT Champion locked eyes with Karrion Kross and Scarlett. There was obvious tension between the pair, stemming from their confrontation last week. The black and gold brand continued to tease us with the two of them.
Hopefully, Kross provokes Samoa Joe at some point down the line. The Samoan Submission Machine also had a staredown with Pete Dunne, who would be an excellent choice for his first match back if he is to wrestle. NXT did a good job in maintaining the hype of Joe's return, while not giving too much away immediately.
#2 Worst: Weird piped-in crowd noises on NXT
NXT is a brand that prides itself on fan engagement. It even welcomed them back, albeit not in huge numbers, to the Capitol Wrestling Center. However, on this week's episode, it felt like the crowd noises were piped in more than usual. It took away from the show at times.
A prime example of this came when the NXT fans present were chanting "Johnny" when Johnny Gargano came out alongside Austin Theory. The leader of The Way was pretty over, but then the boos got piped in quickly afterward.
They continued when the two of them came back to take on fellow heels, Pete Dunne and Oney Lorcan. It was weird and distracting, as well as confusing to the viewers over who to support. Piped-in boos can be counterproductive, especially when a star is as over as Gargano.
The likes of Franky Monet and HitRow also got "booed," both of which are acts that could be cheered despite being heels. Something like this may be expected on RAW or SmackDown, but definitely not on NXT. Hopefully, it gets sorted next week and the fans can help drive the show forward naturally.
#3 Best: Johnny Gargano is the next contender for the NXT Championship
Speaking of Johnny Gargano, it seems like he might be next in line for a shot at the NXT Championship. He and Austin Theory defeated Pete Dunne and Oney Lorcan in a brilliant tag team match, but not before taking a few shots at Karrion Kross in a promo.
The NXT Champion appeared after the match, as Gargano was celebrating his victory, and attacked him. This might even result in a potential face turn for the leader of The Way, considering how over he has been on the black and gold brand lately.
Nevertheless, Gargano will likely face Kross for the title soon. Whether he is a babyface or a heel, fans have every right to be excited about it. Johnny Wrestling is among the greatest big-match performers currently in WWE and his style has worked with every opponent of his so far.
Also, with talk of Karrion Kross potentially moving to the WWE main roster, could NXT pull the trigger on a second Johnny Gargano title reign? Seeing The Way in possession of the NXT Championship would make for great TV, for sure.
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