What’s up Diva fans and welcome to this week’s slightly (majorly, sorry! Been very busy!) belated NXT Redux. It’s all about Bayley this week, as she finds a tag team partner to take on Sasha Banks and Summer Rae of the BFFs. Charlotte is still keeping a low profile yet if Natalya has anything to do with it, she’ll help Bayley get answers once and for all.
TO THE VIDEO!
The first Diva sighting of the night is the lustrous Lana, looking fine in her red dress and silky ‘I’m a mysterious woman’ gloves. The commentary team (who are irrelevant due to the absence of Renee Young) put Lana over as a woman with money who has a hold over the actions of Alexander Rusev. Lana’s influence is that strong, Alexander only lets go of his Camel Clutch after she tells him to stop. Interesting!
Next, we see a glowing Natalya (not literally, it doesn’t look like she’s a regenerating Time Lord or anything) walking down the corridor and she sees Bayley sat on a random bench. Bayley says she’s really nervous about tonight’s match and the fact she still hasn’t been able to speak with Charlotte. Natalya says that she’s got her back tonight and that she’s her friend. Bayley is shocked that she has a friend (what with Paige going psycho and Emma going AWOL) and she proceeds to hug the oxygen, carbon monoxide and organs including bladder, pancreas and left intestine from Natalya – that was a tight hug! Nattie tells Bayley to just breathe. Well that’s always good advice. It’s not good when you stop breathing.
Out first this week in Full Sail are Bayley and Nattie, and they enter to Bayley’s music. WHAT A SHUN! Not really. I’m trying to create some drama. Natalya will no doubt thank me later. Out next to the epic theme music of Summer Rae, is of course, Summer Rae and Sasha. The antics are uniform and in-time with one another with one-another this week (take note Bella Twins and your hip shimmying) and I’m loving the attitude from Sasha. Just as over-exaggerated as Summer this week and it’s great to see she’s definitely improving.
The match begins with Sasha sassing Natalya after she shoved Bayley to one side. Bayley locks in a sleeper hold and then starts whacking Bayley like a pinata. Sadly for Bayley, there is no candy inside Sasha, just the heart-breaking memories of when Audrey Marie was her stalker. Alas, Bayley tags in Natalya, who hits a double suplex with the help of her bashful pal.
Sasha scrambles for a tag to Summer and the leggy blonde gets a drop-toe hold for her troubles. Bayley tags back in and the pair hit another double suplex. Summer tags Sasha back in again and my brain begins to hurt thanks to the deja-vu of Bayley hitting another drop-toe hold. The pair then jockey for position with a few irish whip attempts before Sasha goes slap happy on Bayley. Her banshee behaviour only gets a two count so she decides to keep things fresh by tagging Summer back in. Summer chokes the happy-go-lucky out of Bayley before ramming Bayley hairbow first into the floor.
THINK OF THE ACCESSORIES!!!
Summer pins Bayley for two before ‘The Boss’ comes back into the squared circle, thrusting Bayley to the mat. Following a cover, Sasha gives Bayley a stiff slap to the pectorals as she goes her springboard armdrag. Bayley however counters out of nowhere, tossing Sasha half way to Albuquerque. Bayley manages to get a tag and here comes Nattie!
The Dungeon Diva clotheslines Sasha before nailing a snap suplex. After a sit-out scoop slam, Nattie kicks Sasha in the face and utilises her discus clothesline. Natalya locks in the Sharpshooter but then can’t decide where she should be positioned so it looks like she’s trying to start the next ‘Gangnam Style’ dance craze. Sharpshooting may take. Then again, it may not. Bayley tags in and instead of going for Sasha, she rams Summer off the apron. Unfortunately, she should have kept her sights set on Sasha as she turns into a kick before getting destroyed with Sasha’s ‘Bankrupt’. See what you did there, Sasha! ;) Bayley can’t get up from that and the BFFs get another one over on poor Bayley.
Thoughts: Another week, another solid performance. Natalya filled a great purpose of helping Bayley when right now, there’s no-one else active who really can. She wasn’t in the match too much, meaning Bayley got the most exposure, and she wasn’t pinned so she still looked strong in defeat.
Sasha and Summer had matching color attires this week and their new and improved entrance was excellent. I was skeptical at first yet I’m really loving them as a team now. Let’s hope Charlotte’s intergration into the group will end up being just as good.
The standout though was Bayley, who continues to make me say “AAAAWWW”. I’m heartless and cold and the only film I ever nearly cried at was Toy Story 3, so it takes a lot to get me to feel empathy or emotion. Bayley somehow does that for me. I can honestly see her winning the NXT Women’s Championship next and the slow, gradual build of her character is a pleasure to watch, meaning I wouldn’t mind seeing it at all. Off to get some soap now to wash my mouth out. And with that, stay tuned, Jack will be back!
