The Let's Watch Some Wrestling NXT Stand and Deliver Preview!

 

Good Morning!

It’s time for our third preview of the weekend, although if I had any sense, dear reader, I’d have done them in chronological order and knocked this one out first. However, what’s done is done, and the posts for nights one and two of WrestleMania are already up.

We’re getting into the silliest of the WWE shows this weekend, although that doesn’t mean it is lacking in promising matches. It’s just that NXT is its own thing, a semi-developmental brand that hovers somewhere between trying out new stuff, keeping some tired old tropes alive, and letting new talent work out the kinks in their performances – albeit on a national stage with a weekly TV show. 

For a while there, NXT was the gold standard while WWE was faltering. Matches between guys like Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa or Sasha Banks and Bayley were getting five stars from reviewers, and NXT’s Takeover shows were some of the hottest tickets of the weekend. Those were the days when Triple H was booking, there was no AEW to speak of, and the independent scene was full of talent that was ready to get paid by WWE and put on some great shows while learning the Fed’s style. Nowadays, Triple H is working with the main roster, and Shawn Michaels is working with a lot of young kids who WWE is recruiting from college – athletes with a lot of personality and potential, but very little experience in a wrestling ring.

As I said in other posts, I want this blog to work for both newcomers and die-hard fans. So, we’re sticking with the format we used for the WrestleMania previews, and using my wife’s steadfast rules for why wrestling matches happen alongside some brief summaries of the rivalries and personalities involved in the fights this weekend. The rules, of course, are as follows:

1. I don’t like you and want to fight you

2. Something was misunderstood between us and we must fight, only to figure out later that we are friends

3. “Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal!”

4. I WANT THAT CUMMERBUND (title)

Shawn Spears versus Joe Gacy

Who’s fighting?

Recently returned to NXT, after helping set things up over at AEW, Shawn Spears is an agent of chaos. He’s also really into chairs, specifically the steel folding variety. He talked Ridge Holland, a large man with a really unfortunate history of injuries, into calling it quits – in storyline terms, anyway. However, he’s met his match in chaos with Joe Gacy, a guy who until recently led a full-on cult. They disbanded, and now Gacy’s just kind of a madman, but one who’s enjoying unleashing his violent nature. 

Why are they fighting?

Rule 1 stuff here. Both Spears and Gacy were in line to challenge Oba Femi for his North American Championship  – more on him later. They lost their respective matches, though, and it was Gacy’s kinda-interference, by removing a chair prepared for Dijak, that cost Spears his win. Spears would pay Gacy back by using that chair on Gacy’s noggin.

Who’s gonna win?

Gacy’s in a weird place right now. He’d been feuding with Dijak for a while, but Dijak moved on to Spears, and now is in the North American title picture. I don’t think Gacy has completely moved on from that relationship, however. This should be a good, short match that’ll see Shawn Spears pick up another victory. Gacy will be just fine without the win.

Thea Hail, Fallon Henley, and Kelani Jordan versus Jacy Jayne, Kiana James, and Izzy Dame in a Six-Woman Tag Team Match

Who’s fighting?

Thea Hail is a goddamn delight! She’s a super-amped college kid enrolled in NXT’s only university, Chase U. Fallon Henley is a cowgirl with some catchy theme music and a desire to do the right thing, and Kelani Jordan is a former gymnast (in real life) and friend to both of them – she’s a little too new in NXT to have earned a two-word character trait just yet.

Jacy Jayne is a classic mean girl, wears all black, and uses people before beating them up and abandoning them. Kiana James is NXT’s resident business lady, and often hides a brick in her fancy purse for … wrestling reasons. And Izzy Dame is James’ business associate and partner in crime.

Why are they fighting?

Chase University was enduring some financial trouble, as its leader Andre Chase had incurred some gambling debts with Tony D’Angelo’s organization. While that was going on, Jacy Jayne befriended Thea Hail and started making Hail over in her image – black lipstick, less focus on school, not being insane when a boy says hi, that sort of thing. When the U was looking done for, Jayne put together a swimsuit calendar (in print, in the year of our Lord 2024) and it managed to sell so well that the University was saved and Chase’s gambling debts were paid. Unfortunately, during that time Jacy met some other, meaner girls and turned her back on Thea. Classic reason 3.

This is on a wrestling show. I love this stuff so much.

Who’s gonna win?

I mean, the good guys gotta win here, right? Nobody likes mean girls. 

Carmelo Hayes versus Trick Williams

Who’s fighting?

Carmelo Hayes is HIM. Athletic, fast, strong, good on the microphone. He also knows he’s all those things, which is why he’s a great bad guy. Trick Williams has all the tools to be a WWE superstar – he’s tall, jacked, charismatic, likable, and has a really catchy theme song that fans chant “Whoop that Trick” along with. 

Why are they fighting?

Rule 3, hopefully followed by 2. Hayes was the North American Champ for a long time, but after he lost it, he was more than willing to let his sidekick at the time, Trick, go after it. Unfortunately, while Trick was doing the work to get that title, he kinda accidentally worked his way into a World Championship match with Ilja Dragunov by way of the Iron Survivor match last year. Trick was attacked after he won that match, although who the attacker remained a mystery.

This wasn’t some kind of subtle bread crumb-type turn – literally everybody on the roster knew ‘Melo wasn’t happy with Trick’s newfound success, including the current champ. And they all straight-up told Trick this! He was just too good a friend to listen to them. While Trick/Melo Gang was involved in a tournament for the Tag Team Championship, Trick was also preparing for his own title shot. After they lost in the finals to the WolfDogs, Trick also fell to Ilja in a good, straight-up loss. It was after the loss that Carmelo turned on his former brother, and the long friendship between the two was over.

Who’s gonna win?

I usually list the non-title matches before I get into the title matches out of respect for the big belts. However, this is likely gonna be the main event, as it’s the biggest story NXT has going for it. Both guys are playing their parts brilliantly, with Trick getting incredibly over with the crowds and Hayes leaning into his performance as a smug, unlikable, jealous prick. Hayes is incredibly talented, and I think he’s due for a callup to the main roster any day now – in fact, he’s made some appearances on SmackDown already. And Trick has the look to be a full-on world champ, I just think he could use a little more development. So I’ll say Trick Williams defeats his mentor and brother, maybe they reconcile, and maybe that’s ‘Melo’s time to say goodbye to the NXT faithful.

Baron Corbin and Bron Breakker © versus Axiom and Nathan Frazier for the NXT Tag Team Championship

Who’s fighting?

Baron Corbin is a WWE veteran, a former football player who’s been through a bunch of gimmicks in both NXT and on the main roster. Unfortunately, his best work was probably the time he won a bunch of money gambling, and then lost it and was sad. He was sent down to NXT for a character refresh, and he’s really found his personality alongside his new tag team partner. Bron Breakker is that partner – a genetic freak and the son of Hall of Famer Rick Steiner, and nephew of Big Poppa Pump, Scott Steiner. He’s jarringly strong, and his initial babyface run was based on his second-generation bona fides and that aforementioned power. When he turned heel, that power was used as a weapon, but there wasn’t a lot of personality behind it. He was just a bully, a tough jerk. When he was paired with Corbin in a “can they coexist?” tag team, it took a couple weeks to find their footing, but they were really successful once they did. The pair is now a cohesive, fun pair of maybe-not-bad-guys anymore, and their backstage skits are some of the best on NXT.

Axiom and Nathan Frazier are another slapped-together team, but where Bron and Corbs are powerhouses, Axiom and Frazier are quick, flippy, and entertaining. They’re another recently-paired team, and as such they haven’t quite engineered the chemistry of the WolfDogs (a joke name that Bron proposed to Corbin that’s stuck), although there’s still plenty of time for that.

Why are they fighting?

Oh, it’s rule 4, featuring  a tag team tournament that just ended this past week in a triple-threat match. Axiom and Frazier came out the winners, and they’ll get a title shot.

Who’s gonna win?

Bronn is another guy who’s had some exposure on SmackDown, tossing guys around and looking great doing it. It seemed like he would be sticking around the main roster sooner than later. And while Axiom and Nathan Frazer would be fun champions, flipping around the ring like madmen against bigger, stronger opponents who yeet them to and fro, I feel like the well-received champs have almost done too well and Bron will be sticking around NXT until this current run peters out a little more. WolfDogs retain and, eventually, will curse each other for their sudden but inevitable betrayal.

Oba Femi © versus Dijak versus Josh Briggs for the North American Championship

Who’s fighting?

Dijak is up first. He’s a big dude who believes in justice and violence – kind of a Sin City character, complete with a monochrome entrance and cool shades. Josh Briggs was part-owner of a cowboy bar, involved in a love triangle, and half of a beloved tag team just a few months ago. Since then, he and his partner broke up, the third part of that triangle has mostly moved on to do her own thing, and they all lost the bar. He’s still ostensibly a good guy, but he’s real grumpy. Oba Femi is kind of a prodigy. Born in Nigeria, this former shot-putter is jacked, and has a blast just heaving other men around the ring. He ended lucha superstar Dragon Lee’s short North American title reign in dramatic fashion with a clean victory, and has been destroying dudes ever since. At only 26, he still has a lot to learn but he’s really developing quickly.

Why are they fighting?

Dijak has been calling out Femi for a while now, because Rule 4 applies to almost all championship matches – it’s rarely “I hate your guts but also that cummerbund looks real nice,” you know? Josh Briggs got involved when his former tag team partner, Brooks Jensen, got thoroughly destroyed by Oba Femi, and Briggs wanted revenge. 

Who’s gonna win?

Oba Femi had the title put on him way too soon, in my humble opinion, but we’re here now and we should make the most of it. Femi should retain here in a “big meaty men slappin’ meat” kind of match, which just so happens to be my favorite kind. Short, hard-hitting, and with big slaps and big moves between some big dudes.

Lyra Valkyria © versus Roxanne Perez for the Women’s World Championship

Who’s fighting?

Our challenger here is Roxanne Perez. The longtime top babyface of NXT had to give up her title after a concussion scare last year, and when she returned she participated in a ladder match that she didn’t win. Then she got a title shot, but the match got complicated when Lola Vice cashed in a title opportunity, making the match a triple threat and costing Perez a win. Perez turned against the fans and her coworkers after that, attacking a bunch of NXT stars and breaking Lyra’s arm!

Lyra Valkyria is a bird person, a gal whose gear and character gives pagan/witchy vibes. She’s a good guy champ, but the continuing assaults from Perez have taken her down a darker path, and she’s told stalker/pal Tatum Paxley that she’s willing to become that person to retain her title. Oh, right – Valkyria has an obsessed fan in Tatum Paxley, who dresses like her, idolizes her, and defends her whenever she can.

Why are they fighting?

I kinda stepped on my own tail in the character descriptions here. Perez claims she never really lost the NXT Women’s Championship, which is technically true. But she’s had opportunities since then, and it just hasn’t worked out for her. Now she’s a bad guy and has a title shot – sounds like rule 4 with some 3 mixed in for that heel turn.

Who’s gonna win?

Roxanne is another NXT performer who fans have felt is ready for the main roster for some time now. Unfortunately, this current bad guy run just isn’t working for me – she’s the most generic kind of heel, and she’s not very good on the microphone in these “I hate you, the fans” promos. However, last week’s NXT showed us that Paxley isn’t comfortable with her hero going rogue to retain her championship. I could see Valkyria retaining, giving Perez a chance to move on and Paxley a window to become a babyface in a rivalry against the now-dark champion.

Ilja Dragunov © versus Tony D’Angelo for the World Championship

Who’s fighting?

The challenger, Tony D’Angelo, is the “Don of NXT.” That’s right – it’s 2024 and we still have mafia stereotypes in this promotion. And for the last few months the mob boss was a good guy! He’s fine as far as in-ring stuff goes, but it’s all about the b-level acting for this guy. And he pulls it off, I think!

Ilja Dragunov is the champion, and he’s a lanky, lean guy that wrestling fans might describe as “tougher than a two-dollar steak.” He’s always impeccably dressed, super intense, and is a monster in the ring. 

Why are they fighting?

Rule Four again! Tony D. won a play-in match against Carmelo Hayes by using Trick Williams’ theme music as a distraction against ‘Melo. That got things started, and since then D’Angelo has used some classic mob intimidation tactics against Dragunov. You know, kidnapping, booting his car, bringing him to a scary place where guys in suits are using table saws on pieces of wood…normal wrestling stuff. Dragunov doesn’t have a whole lot of character besides “likes pain” so it’s nice to see him working with an over-the-top character like Tony.

Who’s gonna win?

I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say Tony D’Angelo is going to pick up the victory and the title. Ilja’s title run has been good, and he’s good as a champ, but I feel like the Don of NXT needs the title to keep his gimmick solid. Also, Ilja is just about out of challengers at this point, so a title change might be the thing that sends him up to the main roster, where a certain longtime rival of his – Gunther – might need a new challenger.

…and that’s it!

What a packed weekend we’ve got! I think we’re gonna forego Casual Friday this week, as I’ve already pumped out over 10,000 words on previews alone. (!) I’ll see you next week for the usual Casual Friday and Untitled Monday blog posts, with the Monday blog featuring a recap of WrestleMania, Stand and Deliver, and also Collision if I find the time to check that out too! Hell, if I’m feeling particularly saucy I’ll try to post some thoughts on Sunday morning…but I can’t make any guarantees. 

If you have questions, concerns, or comments, drop 'em in the comments section below! And follow me on Twitter (X), Facebook, BlueSky and/or Instagram using the links on the right.

Thank you so much for reading. If you liked what you saw, consider telling your friends, mentioning Let’s Watch Some Wrestling on social media, or even buying me a hot cup of coffee using the Ko-Fi button. Have a great week, and I’ll see you back here next time, dear reader. Until then, Let’s Watch Some Wrestling!

The best Raw in the last ten years? That and more...it's Casual Friday!

 

Good Morning!

It’s a busy sports weekend, with the next round of the NCAA tournament already running and baseball’s first weekend of the regular season. We’ve also got WrestleMania week coming up, with all the go-home madness that comes with that, plus AEW’s continuing build to its Dynasty PPV. 

But what I wanna talk about today is expectations. They’re related to all of those things, really. Whether it’s your March Madness brackets or your hopes for the Cubbies, people put a lot of stake in the things they love – or the things they’ve decided to identify with. And wrestling is no different. The problem comes when someone’s expectations are unrealistic, or they put too much stake in an opinion or a hope that may be less than plausible. Take the latest trend in Twitter takes – the stopwatch guys. These are people who time things on wrestling shows – stuff like match length, or the amount of actual wrestling on a show, or the amount of time women’s matches are allotted. They are rarely unbiased or presented in good faith – more often than not, it’s fans of “the other side” pointing out their perceived shortcomings with the product they’re analyzing. 

But why do that at all? If you don’t enjoy WWE’s focus on storytelling, or presentation, what good are you doing by timing the amount of time matches are taking up on their programming? Preaching to the choir? Upping your follower count? Yelling at another fanbase who values different parts of pro wrestling? I just find it exhausting. 

There is SO MUCH wrestling out there, there’s literally no reason to get mad at others for liking what they like. I mainly watch Raw, NXT, SmackDown, Dynamite, and Collision. I enjoy them for very different reasons. WWE for its larger than life image, storytelling, presentation, and stars. AEW for its incredible matches and smaller feel. And NXT because it’s just kinda silly, and I like seeing younger talent find their abilities. I’m fully aware of a bunch of other stuff, and when I’m in the mood I’ll watch some New Japan, or TNA, or just find matches on YouTube that folks recommend. And I feel like I’m on the low end of wrestling consumption – you go on BlueSky or Twitter and there are people live-tweeting shows at all hours. 

My point is, maybe we need to enjoy what we enjoy. I like liking things – and yeah, I’ll complain a little when the thing I like doesn’t go how I’d hope, because I’m invested. But I’m not going on social media to argue about that because a) nobody has ever won an internet argument and b) I simply don’t want to. Everything in life seems so polarizing – I don’t need my entertainment to fall into that as well. 

“It’s A Soap Opera With More Suplexes and Less Violence”

…in which I discuss the storylines that keep us watching week to week

It’s the week before WrestleMania and all eyes were on Raw this week, emanating from my beloved hometown WWE arena of the Allstate Arena (or the Rosemont Horizon for the real ones – the real old ones, that is). For a show that had minimal wrestling – a thing that we accept in WWE programming, especially this close to ‘Mania – this might have been one of the best booked Raws in years! The Cody speech that opened the show was great. The little teases that nodded towards the chaos that would ensue during the main event were so good. And that post-main event beatdown of Rhodes by The Rock, outside, in the rain, with the ghosts of Stone Cold and Cena looking on from a semi trailer? Cinematic feels like it’s too strong a word, but I got nothing else. Rock versus Cody has to be coming if Rocky’s schedule allows for it, but we’re also expecting Rock to take on Roman Reigns at some point. We’re spoiled, is what it comes down to. 

AEW has been putting on shows that are basically the opposite of WWE, keeping the focus in the ring and signing some of the best talent in the world. Hopefully the attendance starts to reflect the in-ring product, because I feel like it really puts a damper on the shows when they take place in these mostly empty arenas. I see people saying it’s a bad crowd, but even a good crowd can only make so much noise in a barn. Khan has said that they book the larger arenas because of their ability to market the shows better, but we’re not seeing that marketing pay off in full stadiums. I’d like more small venues, personally. Sell out! Get people mad that they can’t get in, and next time around maybe you book that larger option.

Dynamite gave us some amazing matches in the opener and main, with Shibata fighting Will Ospreay and Takeshita taking on Swerve Strickland. Both were great matches, if not the best they could pull off, and they just made me look forward to more battles between these four. 

NXT, also building to a big WrestleMania weekend show with their always-good Stand and Deliver on next Saturday afternoon, had some great stuff too! A fantastic main event featuring main-roster guys Otis and Tozawa of Alpha Academy taking on the NXT tag champs, the Wolf Dogs, stood out as the best thing on the show. But we also got Dijak beating Shawn Spears with a little help from former foe Joe Gacy, and Natalya showed up to answer an open challenge from well-regarded new-ish wrestler Lola Vice…and beat her, because we need to keep Nattie strong for, um, reasons. 

I just…I don’t like Natalya. I don’t like that she’s always around, I don’t think she’s as good as WWE seems to think she is, and I think she’s kinda turning into Chris Jericho in a way, just always around the younger talent. No thank you. 

We Watched Some Wrestling!

…in which I recommend some of the best matches I saw last week

AEW gave us Swerve Strickland versus Konosuke Takeshita, and as a fan of both, that’s an easy recommendation:

And, as I mentioned a little while ago, that NXT main event between Alpha Academy and the Wolf Dogs was a lot of fun!

But rather than a match, the WWE offering is going to be the last bit of Raw. The CM Punk/Seth Rollins/Drew McIntyre segment was crazy in an unhinged, unscripted, almost reactionary kind of way, though, and since I already linked the Rock’s assault on Cody, I’ll link that promo here:

Closing Up Shop

…in which I say goodbye for now

And that’s it! Thanks for coming with me on that journey. No pay-per-views or premium live events this weekend, so it’s “just” the five hours of WWE SmackDown, AEW Rampage, and AEW Collision to keep up with. Next week is the biggest week of the wrestling year, and I’m sure we’ll have a lot to talk about after this weekend, so I’m looking forward to catching up with you on Monday, dear reader.

I’ll see you next week for the usual Casual Friday and Untitled Monday blog posts. If you have questions, concerns, or comments, drop 'em in the comments section below! And follow me on Twitter (X), Facebook, BlueSky and/or Instagram using the links on the right.

Thank you so much for reading. If you liked what you saw, consider telling your friends, mentioning Let’s Watch Some Wrestling on social media, or even buying me a hot cup of coffee using the Ko-Fi button. Have a great week, and I’ll see you back here next time, dear reader. Until then, Let’s Watch Some Wrestling!

The Casual Friday, um, Saturday Morning Edition!

 

Good Morning!

It’s been a little while! I had some existential crises coupled with some commitments to help my pals, that ate into the time I usually spend bullshitting with you, dear reader, about pro wrestling and whatnot. But I’ve also been reading a lot, and it’s all very depressing.

Big websites are kinda being eaten by these moneyed groups – groups that aren’t interested in the work these sites put out, but are interested in either constant growth and increased revenue or in saddling the company with a ton of debt before letting it die. Kotaku just had its editor-in-chief resign after being on the job less than a year, because (allegedly) the owners of the site decided they should be less about reporting and more about producing fifty gaming guides or tips articles a week. As somebody who sometimes has trouble pumping out a single blog post – a post recapping my favorite thing in the world, mind you – this seems insane to me. 

Bloody Elbow, a popular MMA blog, had a similar fate. Less than 24 hours after the site was sold off, writers there were laid off and much of their work was scrubbed from the site. Suspiciously, most of the stuff that was deleted first was Bloody Elbow’s work reporting and investigating the business behind the fights. It’s great work, see, but it could be viewed as “controversial” by the people who run UFC and other fight groups. 

So we’re losing the actual reporting and having it replaced by things like “What did Dave StrongPunch say to his upcoming opponent on camera in a staged confrontation?” or “How to find the third (of seven) special statues in the Stardew Valley update” – things that will get clicks but don’t really have a reason to exist, aside from selling you on the popular game or upcoming PPV. It’s gross! And while I’m not exactly a reporter or journalist over here, I do appreciate the sites that do things like original reporting, or stories that aren’t just reviews or previews (he says as a guy who does just that.)

But I don't want to be all doom and gloom. Yes, media isn’t in the best spot, but we’re getting a lot of worker-owned co-ops that are continuing the traditions of these bought-out shells. For every Deadspin or Kotaku that failed their writers, a Defector or Aftermath have risen from their ashes, sites founded by writers from those sites and continuing to produce good work. These sites are typically subscription based, but I think it’s worth supporting these writers for the same amount one might pay for a Max or Netflix – and you’re getting new content every day, and lots of it, from a variety of good voices. 

“It’s A Soap Opera With More Suplexes and Less Violence”

…in which I discuss the storylines that keep us watching week to week

A weird double-dip this week, as I didn’t publish last week’s Casual Friday because of reasons. I did drop last week’s a little earlier today – you can read it here if you’d like to catch up on Mercedes Moné’s debut and the continued build to WrestleMania – but I think since we’re on a multi-lane highway to both WrestleMania AND AEW Dynasty, you’ll be ok just jumping on with this blog. Still, give that link a click for my ego’s sake, would ya?

This week was kinda packed, with Rampage airing immediately after Dynamite this week because of the college basketball tournament. So we had two three-hour blocks of wrestling on Monday and Wednesday – and a third if you watch Rampage after SmackDown like I do. 

Fortunately, as all roads lead to pay-per-views, most of the actual wrestling shows are serving those shows. While we had *checks notes* some great matches and a ton of promos in the twelve hours of WWE, ten hours of AEW, and four of NXT since last we spoke, we’ve mostly been focused on building matches – even when the matches used to build those matches have been really good! Did that make sense?

So we’ve seen build towards Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns, and the tag match leading into that, Cody and Seth Rollins facing off against The Rock and Reigns. But that also means we’ve gotta think about Drew McIntyre, who will face Rollins at some point over WrestleMania weekend as well. With Raw heading to Chicago on Monday, maybe CM Punk – who was involved with both guys before and immediately after his triceps injury – will be involved? Not in a triple threat, at least I don’t think, but maybe as a guest referee, or guest commentator who gets involved. Who’s to say?

The whole Rock/Cody side quest has taken center stage, as The Rock has been using social media to cut some particularly nasty promos on Cody and his family. While I am not super invested in that stuff, as I’m not really a socials guy, people seem to be enjoying it, and those shorts are definitely getting people talking. And they allow Rocky some creative freedom, even if he basically has regressed to the 90s version of himself, questionable promos and all. And if a rising tide raises all ships (is that the phrase?) then Rock getting attention on SmackDown will raise the whole company’s profile on the remaining road to WrestleMania.

It’s really the only thing in flux at this point. Sure, we’re still two weeks out, and we will likely see another four matches or so finalized. But aside from the intrigue of the two heavyweight championships, WrestleMania is all but set. And that’s great! There’s a lot to look forward to and we’ll be here to break it all down for you. Really! I swear!

Over on the All Elite side of things, Kazuchika Okada has become the Continental Champion, defeating Eddie Kingston in a pretty decent match for that title. Okada is a megastar, and putting a title on him while he’s growing more comfortable in his role as a super douche alongside the Young Bucks was a good call. Eddie already seems to have moved on from that title picture, which is fine. The guy has two other titles to worry about, and with Supercard of Honor coming in a few weeks he’ll be defending that Ring of Honor Championship against … somebody. And PAC vs Okada should rule.

Mercedes Mone continues to make her presence known, getting involved in the TBS title picture a bit. I think it’s just a way to ease her into the Willow Nightingale match that seems to be coming, although I can’t imagine they would try to make Willow the bad guy in that rivalry. Willow is just too goddamn lovable to be a heel! And honestly, Mercedes is better as a baddie.

So that’s what comes immediately to mind. Of course, several other storylines are chugging along, and I think it would be better if I try to write a shorter something the morning after shows, and keep Casual Friday just that – a casual talk about the best stuff of the week, and a way to catch up. I know some of you, dear readers, just come here to get caught up on the overall vibe of wrestling, or you’re just being nice and reading the stuff I put out there because you know me, or I said something funny on Twitter or BlueSky. And I appreciate that! I’m still trying to figure out the best way to do things around here, you know?

Speaking of that, I made my friend Sarah in WWE 2K24. While I don’t think I’m going to try to do the whole “animal hospital fights amongst themselves” thing again, I do enjoy making people in the game, and I haven’t played through the mens and womens storylines in a few years. Maybe I should try streaming the game? If I do, it would probably be on Twitch. I’ll let you know on here when I decide to do it, and of course I’ll tweet and skeet before we get started. 

Skeets being the posts on BlueSky. I don’t make these things up.

And! I’m writing this as SmackDown is on, and some fun stuff happened on here as well. KO is a gem despite not really having anything to do at WrestleMania, and he and Randy Orton will be teaming up against the amazing Pretty Deadly next week. Damage CTRL continued their assault on the SmackDown women, with Iyo Sky beating down Bayley before heading to her match against Naomi. After a distraction finish, the champ and the tag champs – and Dakota Kai – took out both Naomi and attempted hero Bianca Belair, with Asuka spitting some poison mist into the eyes of Naomi. I’m hoping this leads to another women’s match being added to ‘Mania – maybe something that gets Jade Cargill and Tiffany Stratton pulled into it as well? Steiner math gets us 4-on-3 if we assume Asuka, Kairi Sane, Dakota Kai, and Tiffany Stratton against Naomi, Bianca, and maybe Jade Cargill. That won’t do. Maybe just Naomi and Bianca against the Kabuki Warriors for the tag belts? I haven’t worked this out yet, obviously.

Of course, this week’s SmackDown truly existed for one thing – a face-to-face meeting between Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes, with both men agreeing to head into the arena alone. It closed the show, because that’s how you get people to watch, and after Roman sauntered into the ring with about ten minutes of TV time remaining, Cody Rhodes followed. Some quality references to both the Shield and Bullet Club followed, as Roman tried to bring Seth Rollins’ loyalty into question. Cody tried to turn the tables on Roman, asking if The Rock was trustworthy. All in all, it was another solid promo segment, ending with Reigns refusing to shake Rhodes’ hand after Cody offered good luck. And, after Roman left the ring, Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso approached the ring, as we all probably should have expected. But! Another pair of hoodies appeared in the crowd, and Seth Rollins and Jey Uso kept things civil as the music in the arena switched from Roman’s to Cody’s, and that wrapped things up.

One last observation: commentary duo Corey Graves and Wade Barrett are pretty good, but it did seem like Graves was really pushing Wade’s old “Bad News” nickname this week. I won’t speculate as to why –  I mean, it is a cool nickname, it just seemed a little pushy is all.

We Watched Some Wrestling!

…in which I recommend some of the best matches I saw last week

Oh boy, there were some good ones! If we’re just doing the one-match-per-company setup (and we should, or I’ll easily get overwhelmed with options) then here’s my picks. WWE wrapped up the Becky Lynch versus Nia Jax storyline, with Lynch scoring a definitive win over the much-improved Jax. Becky has been on a roll lately, getting really good matches out of some often disappointing talent. That’s not to say Liv Morgan or Nia Jax are bad, but they stepped their games up against The Man and it showed.

AEW had at least three I’d love to tag here, but the match between Adam “I was Edge in WWE” Copeland and Christian Cage was a hockey lover’s dream. A street fight in Toronto that brought in hockey jerseys, a goal and stick, and a big board with nails in it (not a hockey thing) this match was just a lot of fun. 

And NXT gave us Drew Gulak taking on Riley Osborne for the Heritage Cup, which means weird rules and technically proficient wrestling.

Closing Up Shop

…in which I say goodbye for now

And that’s it! Thanks for coming with me on that journey. No pay-per-views or premium live events this weekend, and the NCAA tournament is pre-empting Collision, so we’re taking the weekend off. Maybe it’s time to go out and see a movie, or check out that X-Men ‘97 that all the kids are talking about.

I’ll see you next week for Casual Friday, but I’ll also try to put something up the mornings after Raw, NXT, and Dynamite. As always, this is a work in progress, and it’s easier to play around with the format now, as opposed to when we somehow end up with actual people reading this stuff. If you have questions, concerns, or comments, drop 'em in the comments section below! And follow me on Twitter (X), Facebook, BlueSky and/or Instagram using the links on the right.

Thank you so much for reading. If you liked what you saw, consider telling your friends, mentioning Let’s Watch Some Wrestling on social media, or even buying me a hot cup of coffee using the Ko-Fi button. Have a great week, and I’ll see you back here next time, dear reader. Until then, Let’s Watch Some Wrestling!