Last time in the last Best and Worst of NXT UK: Travis Banks won a Fatal Four-Way to become Number One Contender to the WWE UK Championship, Kay Lee Ray dominated, and Gallus beat down the Hunt for no particular reason.
Click here to watch the show on WWE Network. If you’d like to read previous installments of the Best and Worst of NXT UK, click right here. Follow With Spandex on Twitter and Facebook. You can also follow me on Twitter if you want. And now, the Best and Worst of NXT UK from June 12, 2019.
Best: European Alpha
This was one of those matches that went exactly like you knew it was going to go, but it was a great watch anyway. It was Jazzy Gabert’s in-ring debut, and I thought it was great that her first match was a tag team affair with her and Jinny versus Isla Dawn and Xia Brookside. I’d have expected a monster like Jazzy to start out by squashing some jobbers, but NXT UK has been using that method to establish new people so much that I’m extremely relieved they’re doing something different here.
Starting the match with Jinny in the ring was exactly the right move, so Jazzy can be this big looming threat on the apron. Plus we get to see Jinny and Isla go at it for a little while, which I’m certainly not going to object to. Once Gabert comes in, that’s pretty much going to be that, and they all know it. It surprised me that Jinny ever even got to tag back in after Jazzy, but what’s great is that she only comes in the put a cap on what Jazzy’s done, like she’s saying “This is from me!” about her henchwoman’s handiwork. Jazzy throws Xia around, and then Jinny tags in and kicks her a few times. Jazzy beats the shit out of Isla and hits her finisher, and then Jinny tags in just to get the pin.
One of the best things about about this Jinny/Jazzy dynamic is how clear the future is laid out before us. Remember how over Jazzy was at the first Mae Young Classic? Everybody loves her, and inevitably she’ll turn face in the foreseeable future, no matter how much of a scary monster she is. So having her be manipulated by a more insidious heel like Jinny gives her someone to eventually turn against, as well as letting her off the hook for a lot of the nasty stuff she does at Jinny’s bidding.
Promo Time
Okay, we have to talk about Ligero’s mask. Why would anyone wear a custom mask where the eye and mouth holes aren’t where their eyes and mouth are? And why is there a big hole in the top of the mask when Ligero’s bald? Brandon Stroud pointed out to me that he’s basically wearing a simplified Psicosis mask and named himself “Liger,” and that might be the last straw for me. I tend to be predisposed to like masked wrestlers but more and more, even with this backstage “getting to know you” segment he got this week, I feel more and more like Ligero is a guy who really likes a thing more than a guy who is the thing, and that’s pretty tiresome.
Also on this episode, Kenny Williams talks about Noam Dar being a jerk, and promises to face Kassius Ohno (also a jerk) next week. Toni Storm does another good interview-style promo about who’s coming for her belt (Kay Lee Ray this time), which is fine but I wish they’d bring her to the ring more often and let her pop the crowd even if she’s just going to talk. Travis Banks has a whole video package now that he’s the Number One Contender. And finally, the Hunt yell into a camera and then knock it over and make noises, because they’re ANIMALS.
Worst: Chaos Monsters
The honest truth is that I’m not sure I have enough energy to spare to care about Ilya Dragunov. He’s obviously talented, has a great weird look, and generally seems to have a lot of potential. But right now we’ve got British Strong Style versus Imperium (which you’ve probably already scrolled past this paragraph to read about), Travis Banks going for the title, Gallus beating up people (and animals), the Grizzled Young Veterans insisting they should never have to defend, and everything going on in the women’s division. That’s not even everything. There are so many storylines in this hour-long weekly show that I don’t have it in me to get invested in Ilya Dragunov beating up Joseph Conners for no particular reason except to say “Privet.” Once Ilya gets involved in some real shit, I’m interested in what he does.
Best: British Strong Style Versus Continental Beef Style
British Strong Style are always a delight, and I’m glad the formation of Imperium has given them an occasion to work as a team again. Of course, if there’s a rematch they’ll have to bring Mark Andrews or someone, but we’ll get to that. I really don’t care at all about Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel in isolation, but they make an excellent two-man army for General Walter.
Since Walter arrived as something of a tweener, giving him a faction is the perfect way to establish him as a total heel. He’s the biggest scariest dude in the world, why would he need other guys? But he has other guys anyway, because he’s the worst. On top of that, they go on and on about the noble sanctity of wrestling, like they aren’t willing to cheat in the pursuit of their goals. It’s excellent heel work. The fact that they’re also a little reminiscent of nazis is kind of uncomfortable if you think about it too much in the context of the real world, but a dash of fascist imagery has always common among wrestling heels, so as long as they don’t wear actual nazi symbols or say anything racist, I’m willing to let those concerns slide off my back for now.
Anyway, the important part of this match was when Alexander Wolfe showed up to help Imperium win and became their newest member. I enjoyed how surprised Marcel Barthel was to see him. I was less surprised, because I’d heard he was coming, but I was still thrilled to see my second favorite member of Sanity back on TV. I was surprised that he still looked and made faces like the Chaotic Neutral Sanity version of himself, despite joining this very Lawful Evil faction. We’ll see if that evolves in time, but I have faith in Alexander to have fun and make it work.
That’s all for this week. Join me next time when a Women’s Battle Royal will decide the next contender for Toni Storm’s women’s championship.
