NXT Sept. 21: 3 things that went right on Tuesday’s episode

Two weeks in, it has become clear that NXT 2.0 isn’t going to be for everyone, nor should it. That goes for the laundry list of wacky gimmicks, too: some view most of them as a welcome change (or they’re enjoying them for the one-note gimmicks that they are) while others see it as an unwelcome trip back to the early ’90s.

Either way, NXT’s “throw everything at the wall and see what sticks” approach has made the show a tough one to turn away from (unless you think it’s terrible). This week, WWE threw even more zaniness at the audience, and there were some good things that stood out on the show.

These are the three things that went right on the Sept. 22 episode of NXT 2.0

Bron Breakker

If nothing else, WWE has handled Bron Breakker well through his first two weeks on the brand, and he has held up his end on the microphone and in the ring. While having Breakker pin LA Knight last week was silly, the idea of giving him a signature win on his first night was a sound one.

The follow-up this week continued on that positive path. In the show’s opening segment — which mirrored the tiresome angles that often kick off main roster WWE shows — Breakker stood tall alongside NXT Champion Tommaso Ciampa after fending off Pete Dunne and Ridge Holland.

Then, Breakker teamed with Ciampa to take on Dunne and Holland in the main event. Following some quality action and some outside interference by Kyle O’Reilly (payback for Holland and Dunne attacking him last week), Breakker picked up the win for his team and once again teased his pursuit of the NXT Title.

So far, so good.

Andre Chase

Someone needs to tell Timothy Thatcher, Dean Douglas, and Bob Knight that Fox Sports’ Nick Wright’s clone is stealing their respective gimmicks in this “Andre Chase University” vignette that aired this past Tuesday.

In this college classroom setting (kudos to WWE for nailing the aesthetics there), we saw Chase point out mistakes Odyssey Jones made in the Breakout Tournament Finals, echoing the sorts of condescending “lessons” that Douglas and Thatcher would issue. When a student pointed out that Jones beat Chase in the tourney, we then saw the Knight come out, tossing chairs and going on a profanity-laced tirade (very “edgy”).

Much like the Dean Douglas gimmick, what Chase is doing here has a clear ceiling, but that doesn’t make this less entertaining.

Odyssey Jones

For Odyssey Jones, WWE pulled out their favorite trope for super heavyweights: the handicap squash match against two jobbers.

As has been stated in these pieces, enhancement matches that allow wrestlers to flash their movesets are more than welcome on any wrestling show. This one continued to establish the talented Jones as a force between the ropes.

A versatile big man with enough charisma to fill the entire Capitol Wrestling Center, WWE has something with Jones. Of course, what that something develops into will depend on WWE, but the company is off to a good start.