Mike Reviews NXT Heatwave 2024

Happy Monday Everyone!

I’m off work today and Heatwave comes in at around 2 hours 20 minutes on the Network, so let’s have a look at it as some of the matches sound intriguing. I don’t really watch NXT at all, so let’s see how good a job they do of taking a non-regular/first time viewer and easing them into things.

Thomas has also reviewed Heatwave for the Blog, so give that a goosey gander!

Our Main Event is a Fatal Four Way for the NXT Title, featuring two Canadians going for the belt in Canada. You can find the full card below;

NXT Heatwave 2024 Card

Heatwave is emanating from Toronto, Ontario, Canada on the 7th of July 2024

Calling the action are Vic Joseph and Booker T

Opener
Luchas de Apuestas
Wes Lee’s Only Shot At The Title
NXT Men’s North American Title
Champ: Oba Femi Vs Wes Lee

Oba Femi is really REALLY big and Wes Lee is considerably smaller, so that’s an immediately easy story to tell for anyone tuning in for the first time, with the stipulation of Lee only getting this one shot adding an extra layer of drama to things. They do a good job of working this believably in the shine, with Lee peppering Femi with strikes and trying to use his speed to keep the Champ off his game. Femi eventually manages to catch Lee though and FLINGS him into the air with a modified F5. The crowd charts chanting “Holy Poop” following that, and I can’t disagree with them. We hit the heat segment following that, to the shock of no one I’m sure, which works well thanks to Lee continuing to take big bumps for Femi. Femi looks a little bit awkward and stiff (movement wise) in there at points, but Lee makes up for it by selling big and making the Champ look like a monster.

Lee shows some good defiance by constantly trying to get back to his feet and fight back, but Femi always finds a way to put poor Lee back on the canvas so that the Champ can continue to maul the challenger. Lee’s performance kind of reminds me of Spike Dudley taking on a Bam Bam Bigelow or Mike Awesome actually, although Lee strikes me as a more spectacular overall worker than Spike was. Lee eventually manages to mount a comeback with his high flying, with Femi being a decent base for him and taking smooth bump for a rana at one stage so that Lee can get a two count. Femi looks a tad bit awkward again during the comeback and closing stages, where it looks like he gets a bit lost at points, but it’s only slightly and he works through it, using his charisma to cover for it. They try a face buster counter to a powerbomb at one stage, but they don’t quite get it, but Lee quickly follows up with a wacky flipping kick for two and the fans soon forget it. Kudos to them for not panicking and powering through there. Eventually though Femi’s size proves to be decisive, as he shrugs everything off and gets a big sit out powerbomb for three.

WINNER AND STILL CHAMPION: OBA FEMI
RATING: ***

Thoughts: Lee was absolutely fantastic in this, as his selling and bumping were next level and he did a great job of showing defiance whilst getting killed in the heat so that you didn’t ever truly give up on him. Femi has charisma and personality, so he’s not just a generic power guy, but you can see why he’s still in NXT at the moment, as his work still lacks some polish. Lee being so good helped make up for that though, as he took so many bumps and sold so well that he ended up making Oba Femi look like this terrifying monster. Against someone who isn’t as good of a bump taker and seller, I’m not sure Femi would have looked quite as good here, but that’s why he’s in development, so it’s all good. The match itself told a good story and the crowd definitely enjoyed it, so it was a success in achieving what it wanted to achieve, and this was a good way to start off Heatwave

Match Two
NXT Women’s North American Title
Champ: Kelani Jordan Vs Sol Ruca

Jordan won the belt in one of the hundreds of ladder matches that seem to keep happening in wrestling at the moment. Remember when that was a special stipulation that you’d see once maybe twice a year, if that? Jordan is a gymnast and Ruca is a surfer, and the video package suggests that both of them are babyfaces. Jordan is all about structure and following the rules, whilst Ruca is all about going with the flow. We get a look at the athletic ability of both wrestlers in the early going, as they flip around to counter the other, and the crowd seems to appreciate it. The execution of it all could be crisper, but it fits the story of the match and it didn’t look terrible or anything. Ruca the surfer busting out a surfboard stretch at one stage did bring a smile to my face I must say. I liked her Miserlou styled entrance music as well. Jordan eventually manages to send Ruca to the floor and follows with a nice looking twisty body press, and that leads to Jordan controlling things back inside the ring.

Ruca is soon back in it, with an incredible looking springboard 450 clothesline typed move, but Jordan replies with a reverse rana to send Ruca to the floor for an Asai Moonsault, as they just keep upping the ante in this one with the high spots. Ruca responds with a Moonsault of her own to give us a double count out tease, and it’s back into the ring following that for some near falls. This one has kind of given me vibes of ECW matches like RVD Vs Sabu actually, which you can take either as a compliment or a criticism depending on whether you like those kinds of matches, but it feels apropos for us to get that kind of match on a show called Heatwave. Things get a tad bit sloppy in the closing stages, but the crowd still thinks it’s awesome, so it can be forgiven somewhat. Jordan goes for a 450 Splash, but Ruca gets the knees up, only for Jordan to then counter Ruca’s wacky flippy cutter out of the corner into a pinning hold for two. Ruca tries to reply with some kind of crazy Electric Chair move off the top, but Jordan counters it into a reverse rana and Split-Legged Moonsault ends it straight after.

WINNER AND STILL CHAMPION: KELANI JORDAN
RATING: **3/4

Thoughts: This was two wrestlers in development trying something a bit different to a standard match, so it had moments where it worked and moments where it didn’t. The athleticism on display from both combatants was incredibly impressive and the crowd seemed to appreciate the effort, especially when they started busting out the big dives and high spots as the match progressed.

Earlier tonight on the pre-show; Karmen Petrovic and Ariana Grace, picked up a victory. NXT GM Ava Johnson congratulates them on their victory, but they can’t seem to get along, so we’ll be getting a match on Tuesday. First off, it’s good that they’ve already got a match built for the next show. Secondly, Grace was hilarious here, as she essentially broke up the team but then immediately complained that Johnson was making them wrestle one another!

Match Three
NXT Tag Team Titles
Champs: Axiom and Nathan Frazier Vs Chase U (Andre Chase and Duke Hudson) w/ Riley Osbourne and Thea Hail

The Champs look to be having problems according to the commentary team, as Frazier was late to the show today and Axiom almost had to go it alone. Chase is wrestling wearing a collared shirt and a jumper here, which must feel absolutely horrible. This looks to be Face Vs Face, as no one is wrestling especially villainous, although the crowd seems to prefer Chase U. Hudson looks to be a big power wrestler, and he’s been in the system for quite a while, so maybe he should be worried that he’s still down in development after all this time? It’s mostly back and forth action in the early stages, and it’s well worked overall. The crowd seems to be into it and working it this way makes sense if you don’t have a clear Heel Vs Face dynamic going on. Eventually the Champs manage to control things and keep Chase in their side of the ring for a bit, with Chase selling it well and the Champs successfully controlling the match without coming across as being heelish.

Eventually Chase is able to counter an Axiom ankle lock and it’s hot tag Hudson, which is well done with Hudson showing some good fire and the Champs taking nice bumps for him. I’m not sure what Hudson is like in a regular setting, but as “big guy doing the hot tag” he’s been just fine here and the crowd have been into him. We of course get a parade of dives at one stage, due to the Champs being high flying flippy types, and the crowd enjoys that enough to give us an “NXT” chant. Frazier gets a 450 Splash onto Hudson back inside the ring following that, but Hudson kicks out at two in a good near fall, although I’m not thrilled with big moves like that not being finishes. Still, that’s a modern wrestling problem, not an NXT problem. Hudson actually replies by busting out the Trish Stratus corner rana at one stage. I’m not sure if that’s a regular move of his or not, but if he decided to throw it in because they’re in Toronto for Heatwave then kudos!

Hudson gets a modified powerslam to Frazier following that, but Frazier is out at two in another good near fall. This leads to more chaos, with Hudson taking a Spanish Fly from Axiom, only for Chase to then come in with an improbable Canadian Destroyer to Axiom, which sends the crowd into a fit of hysterics because I’m guessing that Chase doesn’t normally do cool high spots owing to him being a sweater wearing putz? Miscommunication between the Champs almost leads to Chase getting the pin on Axiom at one stage, in a fantastic near fall that the crowd totally bit on. Heck, I nearly bit on it and I knew the result coming in! Chase then stomps Axiom enough times that the crowd can spell “C-H-A-S-E-U” before coming off the top with a cross body. I’m liking this Andre Chase fellow I must say. However, it’s not to be Chase’s night, as the Champs hit him with a series of MOVEZ and Axiom gets a dropkick/superkick combo styled move for the three count.

WINNERS AND STILL CHAMPIONS: AXIOM & FRAZIER
RATING: ***3/4

Thoughts: I thought that was great. It’s difficult working a tag match when it’s Face Vs Face sometimes, but they just modified the formula a little bit in order to make the alignment work by having the Champs work a control segment on Chase instead of a heat segment. That worked really well and it achieved the outcome of us still getting a hot tag leading into the home stretch, but at no point did the Champs really come across as being villains. They just happened to have control for a period of the bout until the challengers could get themselves back into it. The finishing stretch was a lot of fun, with plenty of good near falls and an invested crowd really adding to it. Chase suddenly busting out a tonne of moves to pop the crowd was the highlight of the match for me, as I’m kind of a sucker for “unassuming looking person suddenly starts doing cool stuff” sequences

Wes Lee is upset that he failed in his quest to win the belt tonight, although he does add that Oba Femi was the better man.

Folks in the Main Event are getting ready

Match Four
NXT Women’s Title
Champ: “The Prodigy” Roxanne Perez Vs Lola Vice

Perez is the dominant Champ who can’t be beat, but Vice is an MMA fighter who should be able to give her a run for her money. We get the dramatic “lowering the cage” music as both are shown backstage in a nice touch. This is a case where they’ve done a good job of getting the storyline and the characters of both wrestlers across for a new viewer, so credit to them for that. They’ve shown Vice cleaning people’s clocks with that spinning back fist and Perez immediately flees early on when Vice teases it, so we know that it’s a devastating move that could spell the end of the bout if it connects. Perez manages to catch Vice unawares when Vice sends the Champ back into the ring though, and that’s the cut off. Perez looks good on offence during the heat and Vice sells it all fine. Vice eventually makes the comeback with a series of quickfire kicks, and then tries to win it with a choke hold, but Perez manages to roll out of it at first and then roll out of the ring to break it a second time.

Vice tries to get the back fist outside of the ring, but Perez ducks it and Vice hits the ring post, which gives Perez something to target back inside the ring, including doing Pentagon’s arm-breaker spot. Vice sells all of that well, and Perez gets a chance to be a sadistic jerk whilst attacking the appendage, and she does a good job with that. Vice does manage to catch Perez with the back fist, but the force of the blow sends Perez to the floor and Vice is too hurt to immediately follow up on it, which allows Perez to eventually get her foot on tope rope back inside the ring to break the count at two. I liked that, as it protected the move as it was only a combo of the delay and Perez being close enough to the ropes that saved the Champion. Perez manages to deliver the Pop-Roxx (Code Red) following that, but it only gets two, so Perez takes the fight outside and does the move onto the commentary table instead, as you do.

Vice manages to survive that and kick out at two back inside though, so we get a submission tease with Perez going to a cross face instead, but Vice gets out of that, so Perez gets her finisher THREE more times, and that’s finally enough to win. I’m not sure about that finishing sequence actually. I think I would have preferred Vice to maybe get one more submission tease or near fall of a roll-up before Perez hit the last three finishers, just to keep the crowd on their toes. As far as getting Vice over in defeat though, that was a pretty effective way of doing it.

WINNER AND STILL CHAMPION: ROXANNE PEREZ
RATING: ***

Thoughts: That was good, with them giving Vice an out for losing due to the delay in her making the cover following the back fist, and then Perez had to essentially murder the challenger with multiple finishers to finally pick up the win

Main Event
NXT Men’s Title
Champ: Trick Williams Vs Shawn Spears Vs “All Ego” Ethan Page Vs Je’Von Evans

Evans won a battle royal to earn a Title shot, but then he lost to Ethan Page on the same show, so now Page is in contention as well. Spears also has a win over Evans though, as well as the Champ, so all three of Page, Spears and Evans will get a Title shot tonight. That feels like quite a convoluted way of getting there to be honest, but hey-ho. Couldn’t they have just had Page get eliminated in the battle royal but the ref miss it, only for him to then come back in to throw out Spears and Evans whilst they were battling on the ropes. Page technically “wins” the match, but both Spears and Evans could have a legitimate claim to being screwed out of getting their Title shot, so GM Ava could then book the Fatal Four Way in order to make things fair?

The Canadians have a fun little exchange early on, whilst they try to outdo one another by throwing their opponents into the ringside area, but Evans and Williams fight back to send them from the ring and then do a bit together, which is good. It’s hard to do play by play here because so much is going on, but basically everyone hits moves on everyone else and it’s entertaining. The match does follow the usual patten that these multi-person bouts do though, with it usually being two folks going at it in the ring whilst the other two sell on the floor. They do mix in some spots when all four are in the ring though, and those are probably the best parts of the match.

Spears of course introduces his trusty chair into proceedings at one stage, which allows him to get some near falls, including a Spicolli Driver into the chair whilst it’s placed in the corner for two on Williams. We get a quadruple down following a parade of moves at one stage, and the crowd is very much into the action. Evans gets our Holy you-know-what spot of the match, by diving out of the ring and putting Williams through the ringside barricade at one stage, but he then gets hit with a C4 (fireman’s carry into a neck breaker) back inside the ring by Spears, which leads to Page stealing the pin for two in a good near fall. Evans fights back with some more wacky high flying, which leads to Williams breaking up the pin when Evans has Page down with a cutter.

Evans’ night seems to end in peril however, as Evans tries a springboard flippy-doo but Williams blocks it and then shoves Evans down through the announce table in a MONSTER of a bump. Ooof, that looked brutal. Spears tries to win it with a Sharpshooter on Williams, but Page breaks that up and gets The Ego’s Edge (Razor’s Edge) onto Williams, only for Evans to rise from the dead to break up THAT. Williams then runs wild with knee strikes, but he accidentally knocks Page down onto the corpse of Evans, and that leads to Page accidentally winning the Title and thus keeping the storyline going. It should be pointed out that Spears dragged Williams out of the ring there, meaning that Williams couldn’t break up the pin, and you can now explore exactly why Spears did that. Did he not realise the situation, or was it deliberate on his part?

WINNER AND NEW CHAMPION: ETHAN PAGE
RATING: ****

Thoughts: I know some of the regular viewers of the show were unhappy to see Page leave Heatwave as the Champ, but as someone just dipping in I can’t say that this came across as any kind of travesty. Page is a mechanically sound wrestler and he can cut a solid promo, so he’s fine as the Heel Champ in the development league because he’ll be able to have decent matches with the babyfaces they’re trying to develop until it’s time for him to either drop the belt back to Williams or pass it on to the next top babyface they’re trying to build. However, it’s easy for me to say that when I don’t watch the weekly show, as I can just drop in now and then to see how it’s getting on. If you really don’t like Page because you find him dull, then sitting through weeks of him as Champion might not be so appealing. Evans looked like a really exciting high flyer in this one, and with some more seasoning he could become quite the star. Williams is already pretty much a star, and you have to think that he’s main roster bound when the next draft happens? Spears was his usual dependable, if not especially exciting, self, and the match worked well overall

Page celebrates, but it looks like Joe Hendry will be in his future. Okay, fess up, who said his name?

In Conclusion

Heatwave was an easy watch and good show overall, although it suffered from the usual stuff WWE shows do of having quite a bit of additional filler due to the Peacock deal meaning we need extra video packages in order to extend the run time so that the freeloaders on Peacock can have their advert break.

However, I was able to shave the show down a bit due to watching it the day after, and what I got was a good wrestling show with a hot crowd, so I was very happy. I’m not sure I saw enough to make me want to watch the weekly NXT show, but then again I’m mostly watching clips on YouTube at the moment and tuning into the big events anyway.

I’ll certainly keep an eye out for the next big event that NXT runs though, as Heatwave was good fun.

Recommended show!