Femme Fatale
I swear Shawn Michaels was in my head this week.
The instant I thought about Jacy Jayne, she appeared on television. Jacy and
Fatal Influence marched to the ring like they were going to war during Tatum Paxley’s first title defense.
Oh, how’d we get to Tatum’s title defense? Glad you asked.
Tatum cut a promo earlier in the episode all about being a fighting champion. But Izzi Dame tried putting a stop to all of that. Shock. Izzi disguised her jealousy under the mask of concern for her friend. She didn’t think Tatum was ready to take on all comers so soon, nor did she believe championship shots should get tossed out like paper planes. My words, not hers. Tatum heard all that but said nah, I’m bringing back the wheel! And yes, I missed the wheel at Halloween Havoc.
Izzi’s main beef switched to not appearing as an option on said wheel. Loved the way Tatum said she and Izzi would never ever fight each other because they’re best friends. I swear Tatum is silly like a fox; she knows Izzi is plotting and is just rubbing her face in it at this point.
The wheel landed on Lola Vice and before the match could really get into a groove, out came Fatal Influence:
This means we’re getting a six-woman tag next week. Tatum teams with her supposed best friend, Izzi, and her actual friend, Lola, against a very motivated Fatal Influence.
My one criticism of this whole thing? Fatal Influence doesn’t talk! And by that I mean anyone not named Jacy Jayne. Lainey Reid ran her mouth a lot before joining that group. And Fallon Henley wasn’t exactly shy. But for the most part we only hear Jacy. Even tonight, it was words from Jacy while the other two walked behind her as usual. Yes she’s the leader and the former champ, but a group becomes dynamic when every member has a personality and voice. These two are quieter than a church mouse on Easter Sunday morning.
B-Sides
The other big story throughout the night that made me think Shawn Michaels is in my head was Trick Williams and Ricky Saints. Right before the show started, I pondered what of Tricky? He’s no longer the TNA champ, he came up short in the NXT Championship rematch he begged for, and there’s not many mountains left for him to scale on the black and silver brand. Sure enough, as soon as that last question exited my mind, Trick ransacked the control room and wrecked the show’s opening. Trick was mad.
Ricky came out and the two basically did a Tom & Jerry thing throughout the episode. They showed up at the end of Myles Borne vs. Tavion Heights, and finally during the main event between Kelani Jordan and Jordynne Grace. There’s something fitting about a big NXT angle interfering in a TNA championship match, but I’m sure the irony isn’t lost on anyone reading these scribbles. After they affected that match’s outcome, we then got the overused NXT wall break spot:
In two weeks, these two end it…possibly…in a Last Man Standing match.
Now, as for the match these two interrupted.
Kelani Jordan and Jordynne Grace can go. That’s not exactly a groundbreaking opinion but I actually didn’t appreciate two men interfering in a match for a woman’s championship. Besides the TNA/NXT stuff, the optics themselves just don’t look good. BUT, the match still delivered.
We got some psychology with Kelani injuring Jordynne’s knee early and going after it for most of the match. The Kelani evolution from All American Girl Scout to someone willing to do whatever it takes to win seemingly took its final twist this week. Despite wrestling a one-legged Juggernaut, that just wasn’t enough for Kelani.
She was desperate. I liked her going for the championship then deciding against using it. It showed that she needed to convince herself, which means we’ll hopefully get an explanation next week.
Again, not thrilled at the journey but I’m very satisfied with the destination. I hope Kelani affirms a heel turn too. Stating that the locker room and the audience turned against her is the easy move. She bleeds TNA now!
Album Cuts
- Color me shocked. Well, not too much color. I didn’t expect Lash Legend to take Kendal Grey’s Evolve Championship, but I did expect shenanigans. I figured we’d get a finish that kept the championship around Kendal’s waist without pining The Bougie Bully’s shoulders to the mat. So a competitive match that resulted in Kendal pinning Lash wasn’t something I thought possible. Lash often demonstrates her power during matches. She did so in this one by stopping literally stopping Kendal in her tracks when the Evolve champ tried stomping the prone challenger. Lash caught her feet then tossed her over the ropes. My description doesn’t do it justice. Kendal looked good as well, but the finisher didn’t work for me. I know what she was trying to do but Lash is way too tall for a Jumping Reverse STO. That made a move designed for ultimate impact look too awkward. Ending aside, this was a very fun match that showcased why Kendal is the Evolve champ.
- Myles Borne and Tavion Heights are boys, so this match between them was all about moving to the next level. They realized that elevator won’t go any further without getting past one another. That foundation led to a match that, for the first few minutes, was truly a wrestling match. It was mostly mat wrestling and two guys trying to outwork each other through counters, holds, and old school graps. The story informed the wrestling style, which should always be a thing but isn’t. And I enjoyed the first half. Things evolved once Josh Briggs showed up on the announce table. Myles and Tavion picked up the pace and got a bit more aggressive. Of course they had to because the action needed to spill outside to get Josh involved. First it was Tavion, then it was Myles with a springboard dive onto both men. Thankfully they didn’t go with a DQ finish here; we got a last minute roll up from Myles that gave him the W. This was a razor thin margin victory befitting the story. Solid and logical wrestling! Josh attacked Tavion after Myles and his former No Quarter Catch Crew partner hugged it out post match. So yeah, Tavion and that Mayhem guy are ready to dance together.
- This NXT Anonymous thing is silly now. It’s gone on far too long and it’s really just another way for them to do backstage segments. It “caught” DarkState confronting Je’Von Evans after the latter got off the phone with Leon Slater. Scandalous!
- Sol Ruca relinquished her Speed Championship! Why? Because she doesn’t trust Zaria to defend it properly, even though she didn’t say that. We’ll now have a tournament for said champion, which Zaria said she’ll enter to get the championship back for both of them. I want to hear Sol’s truth on this one since she’s clearly biting her tongue.
- Blake Monroe defends her North American Championship in two weeks in New York City. Please be excited, as Nintendo and Nigel McGuinness would say.
NXT delivered this week. This was a purposeful show that followed up on lose threads from Halloween Havoc, dropped several newsy developments, and provided some entertaining wrestling matches. NXT doesn’t hit that mark for me consistently these days but when it does, I’m always pleased.
What say you, Cage Siders? Is the Last Man Standing match Trick Williams’ last stand?
