NXT Review – 08.12.25

Let’s catch up on WWE so far this week: Smackdown | LFG | RAW

Then, Now, Forever, TOGETHER

This episode comes from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, FL. Your announce team are the usual suspects – Vic Joseph, Corey Graves and Booker T on match calls, Mike Rome on ring introductions, and Kelly Kincaid and Blake Howard on backstage interviews and news updates.

EARLIER TODAY here’s NXT Tag Team Champions Hank & Tank meeting NXT GM Ava in the infamous NXT Parking Lot. Ava tells the champs she knows they want Darkstate and they’ll get them at Heatwave, but she needs H&T to stay out of the main event tonight. Ava apparently has something in her eye which Tank takes as her not being serious about not interfering in the main. Ava forces something resembling a promise out of them.

Lash Legend vs Nia Jax

Jax gains control and drives a shoulder into Legend. Legend slips a charge and puts her shoulder into Jax before throwing a right cross that staggers Jax. Jax sinks in a guillotine as Legend hoists Jax to get out of it. Legend drives Jax into the corner to break the choke. Jax gets a boot up as Legend charges in. Jax runs Legend to the floor but takes her good sweet time going after her. Once Jax hits the floor a recovered Legend drives her back-first into the ring apron. Legend rolls Jax in and follows, but her powerslam attempt is blocked by Jax elbows before Jax pushes Legend to the apron. When Jax approaches Legend pulls her to the corner and slams Jax’s head into the top turnbuckle a couple of times. Legend pulls Jax out over the second rope and chops her in the throat repeatedly. Legend trucks Jax after running the ropes and then hits a standing splash before covering for one.

Legend again tries for a bodyslam but Jax blocks it and headbutts Legend. They hit simultaneous clotheslines on each other and both are down. Once they both make their feet Legend fires up with a pump kick that sends Jax to the floor. We go to picture-in-picture commercials.

During PIP Legend goes to the floor and she and Jax start slugging it out. Legend runs Jax into the ring steps before rolling in to break the ref’s count. Legend heads back out and starts working over Jax along the barrier. Legend pulls the bottom section of the ring steps over to the announce table but a recovered Jax flies in with a right. Jax runs Legend into the ring post before breaking the ref count. Jax dismantles the announce table (I think she tossed Booker’s candy to the crowd and I’m already sad for him.) but Legend slides into the ring on the opposite side. Jax charges in and drops an elbow onto a crawling Legend’s back.

Back to full screen with Jax holding Legend in a side-headlock. Legend fires up with slaps but Jax just calmly hoists her and hits a fall-away slam. Jax covers for two. A Jax corner charges sees her miss and go shoulder-first into the post. Jax staggers into Legend’s crucifix bomb but Legend is too spent to make a cover. Jax tries to crawl out but Legend prevents it so Jax grabs the ring apron. As the ref fixes it Jax pokes Legend in the eye and then trucks her before hitting a standing senton. Legend bails to the floor and Jax stalks her. Legend fires up with rights and then pulls Jax onto the previously-placed ring steps. Legend hits a fall-away slam on Jax through the table, sort of. (Legend very much took the worst part of that spot.)

Jax beats the ref’s count at five and Legend barely makes it before ten. They start slugging it out before Legend scoops up Jax for a body slam. (Not quite Hogan-Andre but it was damned impressive.) Legend covers for two. Legend poses Jax and ascends. Jax recovers and pops Legend seating her on the top turnbuckle. They start slugging it out and Legend slips down. Jax holds the ropes and hits a sit-out Annihilator before ascending to hit another one. Jax covers and gets three.

That turned into a hoss fight, albeit at what Jim Ross would call “a deliberate pace”. The crowd was INTO it by the end, me not so much. That being said, this was just kind of there. I thought it would be more intense given last week’s brawl but starting with collar-and-elbow told me something. Jax only cheated once, and won clean as a sheet. Legend’s got some work to do on her babyface offense. 2.25*

Winner – Nia Jax (Two Annihilators)

Here’s Kelly Kincaid with Darkstate. Everybody yells, Cutler James says something stupid, and they threaten Hank & Tank. We go to commercials.

Back live and here’s Chelsea Green ordering the Secret Hervice to find out who Tavion Heights partner is and take that person out. (Apparently Green’s handle is “The Golden Beaver” as I have no idea how Piper Niven kept a straight face saying that out loud.) Here’s Evolve Women’s Champion Kali Armstrong but Green brushes her off. Here’s Karmen Petrovic smiling at Green who’s actually happy to see a fellow Canadian because she’s safe from her. Here’s Kendal Grey and for some reason Green thinks that Fyre needs to deal with her, so apparently that’s a match. (This entire thing was NXT Backstage Wackiness at it’s worst, sadly. Not funny or clever in the slightest.)

Charlie Dempsey vs Joe Hendry

Dempsey is of course seconded by Wren Sinclair.

Hendry grabs a side headlock to start before running Dempsey over with a shoulder tackle. Hendry slips an armbar attempt and rolls Dempsey over for one. Dempsey hits a Fireman’s Carry and grabs an armbar. Hendry slips out, hits Dempsey with a Fireman’s Carry and grabs his own armbar. Dempsey cuts a wristlock off and they exchange spots a few times before Hendry finally just flips Dempsey onto his back while walking away. Hendry goes to lock up and Dempsey headbutts him before starting with rights and uppercuts. Dempsey hits a gut-wrench suplex and covers for two.

Hendry fires up and after running the ropes he nails Dempsey with an elbow. Dempsey shrugs that off and hits two underhook bridging suplexes on Hendry before sinking in a guillotine. Hendry slips out of it and hits a backdrop suplex on Dempsey. Hendry snaps off some rights and then irish whips Dempsey into a lariat. Hendry hits a fall-away slam on Dempsey before nipping up to a pop. Hendry wants the Standing Ovation but Dempsey blocks it and catches Hendry in a backslide that gets two. Hendry pops up and waffles Dempsey with the Standing Ovation chokeslam and that gets three.

That was abrupt and to the point. I think those two have a banger 20 minute match in them and this got about five. Just a showcase for Hendry, really. I’m not sure what’s going on with Dempsey booking-wise at this point but he does not win very often. 2.5*

Winner – Joe Hendry (Standing Ovation chokeslam)

Here’s Josh Briggs on his way to the ring as we go to commercials.

Back live and here’s Lola Vice warming up with Kelani Jordan. Vice says their match is a big one tonight and she’s focused on eventually becoming NXT Women’s Champion. Jordan says that’s also her focus and she’s going to be the one to take the title from Jacy Jayne. Here’s Jaida Parker to say she’s got money on Jordan and Vice tonight but when it comes to the title, she’s got next.

Here’s Josh Briggs for a chat. Briggs tells the crowd that their boos mean nothing because he sees what they cheer. Briggs says Inamura said he was his friend but he wasn’t. (The crowd chants “Turn his mic off!” here and I am DYING.) Briggs suggests that when Inamura returned it was only about his plan to become NXT champion, not to come back for Briggs. Briggs says he tried to be the best friend he could be while trying to make Inamura a champion but Inamura failed because he lives by “this stupid code of honor”. Briggs isn’t a man of honor, he’s a man of mayhem and he should be NXT champion, but because of Inamura he isn’t. Briggs wants Inamura in a street fight next week in Philadelphia.

Yoshiki Inamura is here and he says he thought Briggs was his friend but now Briggs is just…a jackass. Inamura says that in a street fight with no rules, the honor will be in beating Briggs. A fight breaks out and Inamura ends up trucking Briggs off the apron to the floor. Briggs fights off a couple of Security goofs and climbs the post. Inamura chops him and sends Briggs sprawling onto four more Security goofs on the floor. Inamura hits the entire pile with a frog splash. We go to commercials.

Back live at the announce desk with Joseph pointing out that Graves was in Canada yesterday for Raw, in Orlando tonight for NXT and will be in Mexico for TripleMania this weekend. Graves says he’s taking Pitbull’s “Mr. Worldwide” moniker for himself.

EARLIER TODAY Jordynne Grace sat for an interview with Kelly Kincaid. Kincaid asks Grace about Blake Monroe’s comments regarding her “physical journey” to get to WWE. Grace says her answer might surprise some people but “Blake is actually right”. Grace says she’s spent years avoiding mirrors because she didn’t like what she saw. The battle wasn’t with her body, it was with her mind and that little voice in her head that said she’d never be good enough. Kincaid says she thought that hanging with Monroe brought out a softer side of Grace, but Grace says it was on her for letting Monroe in. Grace thought since she and Monroe were “outsiders” that they could hang together. As it turned out, Grace says, they share the same problem but Monroe is wrapped up in projecting her issues on other people. Grace looks directly into the camera and tells all the “little Jordynnes” that real strength doesn’t feed on someone else’s weakness. At Heatwave, Grace gets Monroe one-on-one and she says that she wants to prove that there’s no “blueprint” to becoming a champion in WWE.

This was an outstanding piece. Really good work by both Grace and Kincaid here.

Here’s Blake Monroe in Ava’s office. Ava orders Monroe to go face-to-face with Grace next week in Philadelphia and Monroe storms off claiming bias.

After a video recapping their work on Impact, here’s Blake Howard with Fatal Influence. Howard asks Jacy Jayne about the upcoming tag match but Fallon Henley interrupts to say they’ve already beaten Vice and Jordan and there’s nothing more to say. Jayne sarcastically thanks Henley for answering her question and then also sarcastically thanks Jazmyn Nyx for entering them into this match. A monitor behind them shows Ash By Elegance and Masha Slamovich entering the PC. As they go to leave, Lainey Reid sidles up and wishes Jayne good luck. Fatal make their entrance as we go to commercials.

Back live with NXT Men’s Champion Oba Femi, Moose, Je’von Evans and TNA Men’s World Champion Trick Williams in the locker room. Femi says none of them are friends but they have to co-exist tonight. Femi says they are the “alpha males” of their species and Moose is with it. (Trick has been on his phone the entire time.) Evans asks Williams if he’s going to say anything and Williams says tonight is one thing but at Emergence Moose is going down and Evans is going to lose in Philly. Hank & Tank enter in the background dressed as exterminators to put the badmouth on Darkstate before Robert Stone chases them off.

Lola Vice and Kelani Jordan vs NXT Women’s Champion and TNA Knockouts Champion Jacy Jayne and Fallon Henley

Ash By Elegance (with the Personal Concierge) and Masha Slamovich are in the crowd. Jayne and Henley are seconded by Jazmyn Nyx. It’s Jordan and Henley to start as the bell sounds.

After running the ropes Henley locks Jordan up and rolls her over for a quick two. Jordan recovers and splashes Henley for two. Vice tags in and Jordan trips Henley so Vice and kick her in the back. Vice covers for two. Henley fires up and slugs Vice before tagging in Jayne. Vice slips a pump kick attempt and slugs Jayne in the stomach. Vice rolls Jayne over into an armbar but Jayne fights it off and gets a one count off a quick roll-up attempt. Vice works an armlock as Henley tags in. Jayne whips Vice who ends up getting a knee from Henley before walking into a huge elbow from Jayne. Henley covers for two.

Henley rams Vice into the Fatal corner and Jayne tags in. Henley whips Jayne onto a prone Vice before Henley wipes out Vice with a running clothesline. Jayne hits a running senton and covers for two. Jayne rolls up Vice for two, but Vice snaps out of it and grabs a sleeper. Jayne rolls out of it and covers for two. Vice gets the advantage and Jordan tags in. Henley charges in and prevents a double team back suplex, but Vice and Jordan get it together to hit simultaneous armdrags on Henley and Jayne. Jordan hits a dropkick on both sending them to the floor as Nyx hits the apron to complain. Jordan chases her off and then takes off after Henley but as she turns the corner Jayne hits a monster pump kick that flattens Jordan. We go to picture-in-picture commercials.

During PIP Jayne whips Jordan back in and then rams her face-first into the top turnbuckle. Jayne works Jordan over in the team corner before Henley tags in. Henley boots Jordan in the ribs and then she and Jayne hit a double-team face-buster on Jordan. Henley drives Jordan’s head into the mat and covers for two. Henley lifts a knee but Jordan shrugs it off and gets a backslide. Henley slides out before a count is made but Jordan gets another sneaky roll-up for one. Henley yanks Jordan down by her hair and then shit-talks Vice. Henley runs Jordan back to the team corner and Jayne tags in. They both hold their boot on Jordan’s chin as the ref counts. Jayne barks at Vice and then waffles Jordan with a cannonball. Jayne covers for two. Jayne drops elbows on a sitting Jordan and then pulls her into a side headlock that morphs into a rear chin-lock.

Back to full screen with Jordan trying to fight her way out with elbows but Jayne lifts a knee to stop it. Jordan slips a Jayne charge and sunset flips her over for two. Jordan fires up with rights but Jayne yanks her head-first onto her knee before walloping Jordan with a clothesline. Jayne covers for two. Jayne runs Jordan to the team corner as Henley tags in. Henley whips Jayne at Jordan who responds with a big boot. Jordan charges out and after Henley and Jayne flip her over Jordan finally manages to tag Vice in. Vice goes nuts on Henley and Jayne with kicks before hitting them both with running Hip Attacks. Henley wanders into a kick and snap suplex before Vice covers for two.

Jordan tags in and hits a springboard legdrop on a prone Henley. Jordan covers for two. Henley gets a boot up to stop a Jordan charge and then Henley pops Vice in the mouth as she stands on the apron. Jordan boots Henley in the gut and hoists her for a bodyslam. Jordan ascends but Jayne charges down the apron as Nyx also jumps up to distract. Of course a recovered Henley immediately slams Jordan off the top. (Like, for crying out loud Kelani.) Jayne tags in and she and Henley hit double-team running knees on Jordan. Jayne’s pin attempt is broken up at two by Vice running Henley over onto Jayne.

Jayne and Jordan start slugging it out as Joseph mentions “deep waters” for the first time tonight. Jayne catches a kick attempt and flips Jordan over before Jayne fires off a superkick. Jayne misses a pump kick and Jordan rolls her up for two. Jordan hoists Jayne but Jayne kind of rolls out of it and tosses Jordan away. Jayne gets a roll-up for two before staggering Jordan with a back thrust kick. Jordan slips out of a body slam attempt and hits a guillotine leg drop on Jayne. Henley breaks up the cover at two. Vice charges in and clobbers Henley with a spinning kick to the mid-section as Nyx jumps onto the apron again. Vice kicks Nyx who falls into the ring and as Nyx and the ref bark at each other, Vice murders Jayne with a backfist. Jordan pulls Jayne to the team corner and hits a split-legged moonsault before covering the champion for three.

Match of the night so far, easily. There were some awkward bits but this got good as it went along. Jordan is now presumably in line for a title shot as things keep tightening around Jayne. Jordan is always so much better in tag situations where it’s not just her awkward offense the entire time. Vice just hammered Jayne with the backfist on replay, like it was something else. 3.5*

Winners – Lola Vice and Kelani Jordan (Jordan split-legged moonsault on Jayne)

Post-match sees a staggered Jayne being lifted up by her team before cautiously eyeing Masha Slamovich and Ash By Elegance.

THE NXT FOCUS PRESENTED BY PROGRESSIVE is on Jasper Troy and Ricky Saints. Troy says he can’t stand Ricky Saints while Saints says he’s been dealing with guys who are jealous of the things he’s said and done. Troy says Saints reminds him of the quarterbacks he used to protect as an offensive lineman. Troy says they got all the glory but they wouldn’t have been anything without a monster like him. Troy says the countout win in Houston wasn’t good enough, and he wants to end Saints in the ring next week in Philadelphia. We go to commercials.

Kendal Grey vs Alba Fyre

Fyre is seconded by Piper Niven as Chelsea Green and NXT Men’s North American Champion Ethan Page watch from a monitor.

They lock up to start and Grey goes behind to dump Fyre down. Fyre makes the ropes and as Grey barks at Niven, Fyre kicks her in the gut. Fyre drops a headbutt and then whips Grey to the corner. Grey slips a charge and after they run the ropes Grey catches Fyre with a low dropkick. Grey hoists Fyre who slips off and pushes Grey to the corner. Grey springboards back and eats a Fyre superkick. Fyre covers for two.

Fyre steps on Grey’s neck while holding her arm before letting her go and kicking Grey in the ribs. Fyre drapes Grey neck-first over the ropes with her knee as Niven chirps at Grey. Niven slaps Grey in the face as the ref chastises Fyre. Fyre locks Grey up and puts a knee in her back, but Grey slips it and armdrags Fyre off of her. Grey hits a couple of running elbows and then launches Fyre with an overhead suplex. In the back, Page tells Green that he’s going out there and help things along, which she agrees to. In the meantime, Fyre is prone on the apron as Grey kicks Niven away. Grey pulls Fyre into an armbar. Fyre slips out as Page is on the scene to tend to Niven.

Grey hits a springboard splash on Fyre and covers for two. Grey hits a spinning snap suplex on a charging Fyre and that gets two. Fyre comes back with a reverse thrust kick and a gourdbuster. Fyre’s knee lift hits and she covers Grey for two. Grey recovers to hoist Fyre, but Fyre rakes the eyes and tosses a staggering Grey into the Gory Special. Fyre covers for three.

Listen, Alba Fyre is actually a phenomenally talented professional wrestler who rarely gets to shine on her own, so I appreciated this for what it was. Grey is really coming along, as our friend Sonic knows all too well from his work on Evolve. This was exactly what it should have been and nothing about it was too bad at all. 2.5*

Winner – Alba Fyre (Gory Special)

Post-match sees Page asking if that was the best that America’s got right there. Page says if that was Height’s pick it will be easy pickings. Here’s Tavion Heights to interrupt. Heights says he respects Grey and is proud of everything she’s accomplished but she is not his pick. Heights says his pick has done something that no other woman has done and that’s win an Olympic Gold Medal. Tyra Mae Steele is behind Page and she yanks him into the air before he slips off. Steele ducks a Fyre punch and hoists Fyre into a release German. Niven gets one as well and as Page tries to run away, Heights fires him back in and Steele waffles Page with a release German. Heights and Steele celebrate as the heels scurry away.

This was a good little angle right here. Steele looked good and her and Heights really fired up the crowd.

Here’s Fatal Influence walking with Jacy Jayne berating Jasmyn Nyx for getting them into the tag match and then not helping. They wander into Ava’s office as she’s been joined by the Personal Concierge. Ava tells Jayne that she’s just gotten off the phone with TNA Director of Authority Santino Marella and Jayne will be defending the TNA Knockouts title at Heatwave against Masha Slamovich and Ash By Elegance. The PC says the Jacy better count the days to Heatwave because at that show the Knockouts title becomes….ELEGANT. Jayne questions why people keep inviting the PC to…the PC…and wants him banned from NXT NOW. Ava says no and that since Fatal has been snippy lately they have a six woman tag in Philly next week against the Elegance Brand. The PC shakes Ava’s hand as Fatal glumly leaves. We go to commercials.

Jacy Jayne really is on another level right now and I’m glad to see it. I feel like there’s something big coming with Nyx, especially with all the Lainey Reid teases lately.

Back live in the locker room with Ethan Page and Chelsea Green griping about not coming up with Steel as an obvious partner for Heights. Green says they have a problem and Page says yes and that it’s “Mr and Mrs Olympics”. Green says she’s come up with a peace treaty idea and Page says he’ll contact his contact at the Canadian Parliament and get it drawn up for next week.

Joseph runs down the stacked Philly card for next week. We go to commercials as the entrances start for the main event.

Darkstate vs Je’von Evans, TNA World Heavyweight Champion Trick Williams, Moose and NXT Men’s Champion Oba Femi

It’s predictably a Pier Six to start that ends with everyone on the floor as Evans dumps Shugars with a back body drop. Evans beats Shugars down in the corner, and when Shugars staggers out Evans trips him and hits him with a standing 180 splash. Shugars catches Evans with a knee but Evans reverses and hits a knee of his own. Evans hits a rana on Shugars before dropkicking him out of the ring. Lennox charges in and eats an Evans dropkick. James decides to try his luck and he eats an Evans right before Femi charges in and clotheslines James to the floor. Griffin charges in and eats a Moose knee lift that sends Griffin to the floor. Shugars flies in as Femi scoops him up and tosses him over the top rope onto the pile of Darkstate bodies. Evans tags in Trick.

Trick doesn’t want to fly so Moose and Femi grab him and toss him over the top rope onto the Darkstate pile (Trick’s facial expression here was priceless when Moose and Oba grabbed him.) Trick charges in the ring and hugs a baffled Evans, Femi and Moose. We go to picture-in-picture commercials.

During PIP Evans heads to the floor and tosses Shugars in. Trick hooks in a front facelock but Shugars pushes Trick to the corner to break the hold. Shugars tags in James who walks into a trip attempt from Trick. Trick hits a roundhouse kick to James’s head before dropkicking him. Trick covers for two. Trick slips a punch and wallops James with a right. James fires up with a forearm but Trick reverses an irish whip into a running lariat. They run the ropes and simultaneously clothesline each other down. Trick rolls away and Moose tags in. Moose whips James to a neutral corner but James slips his charge. James hits a pump kick but Moose slips his subsequent charge and chops James before mounting the second rope. Moose drops ten rights on James before waffling him with a running forearm. Moose drags James to the team corner as Evans tags in. James slugs Evans a couple of times but Evans shrugs it off and crushes James with a leaping forearm. (Sometimes you can just tell when guys don’t really respect other guys and that little forearm exchange maybe told me something about Je’von Evans.) Evans starts really laying in rights and forearms and it breaks down because I think someone potatoed someone at some point. Evans whips James back into the team corner and Femi tags in. Femi starts throwing bombs at James.

Back to full screen with Femi and James holding simultaneous front face-locks and trying to suplex each other. Femi finally wins the battle and hits the back suplex, but he just celebrates as James rolls away to tag in Griffin. Femi and Griffin square up and start slugging it out. (In a different world Griffin is the next hoss up for Femi but instead we’re doing this.) They run the ropes and collide before Griffin grabs a front face-lock and Lennox tags in. Lennox pulls Femi throat-first over the top rope as Shugars indicates how smart they all are to the camera. Griffin hits a twisting powerslam on Femi before Lennox covers for two.

Lennox hits a neckbreaker on Femi and covers for two. Griffin tags back in and hits a legdrop on Femi before covering for two. Griffin slaps on a sleeper but Femi fights out of it and slams Griffin before staggering over and tagging in Evans. Lennox tags in for Darkstate but he runs into an immediate Evans superkick. Evans launches himself over the top rope and splashes a prone Griffin on the floor. (I swear to you, if Je’von Evans and Leon Slater ever have a match…) Evans slips a Shugars charge and pops James in the mouth for good measure as the crowd and announcers are going completely batshit. Evans hits a massive springboard crossbody on Lennox before wiping out Shugars at the announce desk with a tope suicida. Lennox slips an Evans springboard and wipes him out with a huge spinebuster. (Holy shit, what a sequence that was. Evans just went berserk and hit everyone and everything in sight. Incredible and the crowd just came unglued.)

Lennox whips Evans to the corner and tags in Griffin. All four guys from Darkstate take turns bullying Evans and it ends with James clotheslining Evans down before covering and getting two. Evans comes off the ropes and hits a roundhouse kick on James before escaping to tag in Moose. James tags in Shugars who immediately eats some Moose chops. Moose pounds his way through the other Darkstate guys on the apron but when he charges Shugars gets an elbow up. Shugars ascends but as he’s sitting on the top turnbuckle Moose dropkicks him all the way to the floor. Lennox charges in and receives a pump kick from Moose. Moose drops Lennox with a side slam and then hits a running senton on Lennox before nipping up.

Moose runs into a Shugars high boot but when Shugars ascends Moose grabs him for a sit-out powerbomb. Moose covers for two. Shugars pops Moose to break up the momentum and tags in Lennox. Lennox wanders into a Moose headbutt. Moose fires Lennox into his team’s corner and follows with an elbow as Trick tags in. Trick hits a flying uppercut on Lennox as Femi tags in. Femi hits a shoulderbreaker on Lennox and tags in Evans. Evans hits a huge frog splash on Lennox but all three other members of Darkstate break up the cover at two.

Darkstate clear the ring of everyone but Evans before dragging Lennox over to their corner. Griffin tags in and he immediately tags in James. James hoists Evans into a Griffin back body drop before Shugars hits a rolling legdrop on Evans. Shugars covers for two. Griffin tags in and once again immediately tags in James. They try to do the toss powerbomb finisher but Femi and Moose charge in to catch Evans. They toss Evans back and he hits a double neckbreaker on both James and Griffin. Trick clotheslines Griffin to the floor as Femi wipes out James with an elbow. Femi charges Shugars who slips it as Femi utterly destroys Evans in the aftermath. Moose accidently spears Femi as Shugars slips away again. Shugars hits Moose with a between-the-ropes double kick to the head.

Trick jumps to the apron as the Darkstate team hits the toss powerbomb on Evans, but he does nothing to prevent it or break up the subsequent three count.

When they announced this I expected way more chaos but what we got was a pretty standard tag formula match. You had a team of heels who cheated at opportune times, and you had an ostensibly face team of guys who don’t really like or trust each other. Je’von Evans athletic ability is just a sight to behold, man. It’s incredible the things that kid can do but you wonder how long his bump card will be. Trick doing heel shit at the end was expected. I’m sure there will be consequences. It’s a tie for me with match of the night with this and the women’s tag match. 3.5*

Winners – Darkstate (toss powerbomb on Evans)

Post-match sees Hank & Tank charge out to brawl with Darkstate as Security pours out to stop them. The credits roll and we’re out.

Almost none of the backstage stuff hit for me tonight but it was a mostly decent in-ring evening. They have a LOT of things to juggle between the TNA booking and getting things in line for Philly and Lowell. I think the booking made sense mostly but I have the feeling that Darkstate is winning the tag titles at Heatwave and I am decidedly not looking forward to that. I thought the Heights-Steele angle came together nicely and that should be a fun match with them versus Page and Green. Thumbs in the middle leaning up tonight, mostly because the backstage stuff was not great. Oh, and the Jordynne Grace interview was really well done as well, so kudos to those involved.

Y’all are the best comment section and I’m always glad to read them. Thanks for reading and enjoy your day.