Top 4 of WWE NXT 3/21/12

Sadly, the closest Derrick comes to making the list this week.

Let’s start off with what did not make the list, and the reasoning behind it. First, Darren Young has a crush on Tamina, and it’s sort of cute because Titus is the one who tells her, with D-Young standing right there. NXT is so full of childish antics and romance it really is it’s own wrestling sitcom, and I love every moment of it. What makes this segment a major fail is The Usos are either coming off racist because they don’t want Tamina to date below her stations (JTG and now Darren Young, and whatever happened to JTG?) That, or Tamina has a thing for black men. I do not have a problem with Tamina dating a bunch of black men, it’s that it looks like there is racism going on with the Usos being against two black men in a row.

The match between Darren Young and Jimmy Uso was a good one, but it did not make the list because compared to the other three, and the segment, it was slow. That and we were supposed to be wowed by Jey being on commentary and I forgot he was even there he said so little. Talented men overshadowed by larger talents on the show.

4. Curt Hawkins vs. Justin Gabriel

When I first heard the show was going to have four matches I wondered how they would fit four onto the less than an hour show while keeping the plot that NXT is known for. This match suffered because of it. Gabriel has been on a roll lately and Hawkins is always great in the ring but the match was not given the time these two deserved. If you judged the match by the last Smackdown and Raw, sure, the match was long, but NXT is notorious for longer, better matches and it was disappointing to see these two have the match that suffered most because of time constraints. Still, an excellent match to watch and gives Hawkins a chance to show even as a singles competitor he can hold his own… even if Gabriel won.

3. Johnny Curtis and Maxine

Curtis and Maxine are up to something, as usual. They want off NXT and onto one of the other shows and will do anything to get there. This includes lying to Josh and chloroforming Striker. “Why do you have chloroform?” Maxine asks the creepiest man currently in the WWE. With Striker and Mathews out of commission Maxine is free to join Regal on commentary for our number two of the night. Later Curtis, who was supposed to be watching the box that Striker was put into, finds the box without Striker. Not wanting to admit this to Maxine he sits on it and when he refuses to show her Striker she asks, “You killed him didn’t you?” Striker is not dead, in fact there is a note left behind telling Maxine and Curtis that someone knows what they did.

2. Tyler Reks vs. Percy Watson

After just writing a blog on why I think Reks is great (oh, you didn’t read that? Go do it after you are done here) he does not disappoint me in this match. Holding true to his character he is a beast in the ring against Watson while Watson takes advantage of Reks’ distraction. Why is Reks distracted? Well, Maxine is massaging Regal’s feet and the two of them are doing anything but talking about the match in front of them. Usually I’m an advocate for commentary being about the match but during this particular one it does work. 1) Regal and Reks are feuding a bit and Regal ignoring Reks makes perfect sense. Of course he would rather pay attention to the beautiful woman beside him than the man who called him “old” even though there is only a ten year difference. 2) Reks and Watson put on a match that is great enough that even with the distractions it is hard to not pay attention to what they are doing in the ring. Reks, though, gets distracted enough that he loses to Watson.

1. Michael McGillicutty vs. Tyson Kidd

Who would have thought I would be throwing McGillicutty up into my top 4, much less at number one? But McGillicutty (who seriously needs a new name if only because I hate typing McGillicutty!) has been brilliant since his return to NXT to feud with Tyson Kidd, and Kidd… well, he’s always been brilliant, it’s just that now people are starting to realize it. Out of the three shows I’ve watched so far this week (Raw, FCW, and NXT) this is the best match I’ve seen so far. This time Kidd picks up the win, making them 1-1. After Kidd’s win McGillicutty leaves him with a statement in a truly creepy, dastardly voice. “Tyson! Tyson! This isn’t over. You’re going to regret ever crossing me. Because I’m going to hurt you where it hurts the most. In your heaaaart.”

As much as I love Batelyn the two of them had very little to do this week. No match, not a central focus in plot, mostly used as accessories for the plots of others, but boy are they shiny accessories. Bateman did get out a good, “Let’s backpedal,” and Derrick and Kaitlyn walked backward and away from the ever increasing weirdness that is Maxine and Johnny.

Love,

Solace Winter