5 Ups And 1 Down From WWE NXT (Nov 11)

2. Great Dexpectations

Nobody on the face of the earth needed a big win quite like Timothy Thatcher this week. After beating up a procession of load of cash-in-hand day-trippers in recent episodes, the gimmick finally felt like it had worn thin. Ok, you run a wrestling school purely so you can abuse the students - weird flex but ok - now what? Do we get a match out of this?

We did here, sort of. Dexter Lumis isn't the match this is all building to but it felt like a far better use of TV time than watching Jimmy Dingle or Charlie Spudsucker get put into an armbar for 15 minutes. Iron sharpens iron, after all, and it was at least nice to be reminded of the level that Thatcher's supposed to be on.

In much the same way as Storm and Candice minutes prior, the closing stages were done with one eye firmly on the ramp. Cameron Grimes appearance, whether flanked by a zombie ref or otherwise, was an inevitability here, but was probably the path of least resistance for giving Thatcher the win. It's hard to find anything specific to praise here, as the match, the booking, and the implications all come in firmly at that C+/B- level, but it's a positive night for those involved so...