Io Shirai vs Candice LeRae
Poppy was decidedly less scary than when she first popped up in NXT last year. This match was great, definitely a hot start to the show. It didn’t reach the heights of their Takeover match but it was still brutal and Shirai and LeRae still work wonderfully together. Ripley making the save during the post-match attack was a great way to get her involved as well.
Winner: Io Shirai
Grade: B+
Your Prince is showing
Finn Balor’s promo here was amazing. I think picking Johnny Gargano as his first heel feud was the perfect move because Gargano is such an organic babyface. This turn has certainly rekindled my interest in Balor so let’s see where we go from here.
Grade: A-
Bronson Reed vs Shane Thorne
This was a fast, fun little match. It was pretty good, getting Reed a nice win and giving Thorne some more television time. I feel like this match functioned as a placeholder, as it was somewhat out of place amongst the other matches that were furthering over stories.
Winner: Bronson Reed
Grade: B
Kairi Sane and Asuka vs Tegan Nox and Dakota Kai-Women’s Tag Team Championships
The women’s tag titles are officially back on the map! This match had a great runtime, solid glimpses at a potential title change, and all four worked so well together. It was wonderful getting to see Asuka and Sane really deliver like we know they can. Plus, I don’t think this will be the last tag title match for Team Kick!
Winner: Kairi Sane and Asuka
Grade: B+
But wait, there’s more!
The women’s brawl after the tag title match was so good. It was the culmination of all the little interactions and digs we’ve been seeing over the past couple of weeks. And now we’re going to get the first-ever women’s War Games match!
Grade: A-
Cameron Grimes vs Tyler Bate
I didn’t really have any issues with the match. It was fairly standard if we’re being honest. The ending was to be expected since Killian Dain is trying to get his message across to Pete Dunne via his friend and tag partner Tyler Bate. I don’t really like that they pulled Bate back to the United States just to be a tool of emotional response but hey, things could be worse.
Winner: Cameron Grimes
Grade: B
Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish vs Matt Riddle and Keith Lee
I could watch O’Reilly and Fish tag team matches all day. They’re so good together and I love them as champions. I can see a potential feud here between O’Reilly/Fish and Riddle/Lee in some capacity as well; Riddle and Lee meshed well as a team and it’s always nice to have another tag team in the cut ready to go. It was another distraction finish but I find that this one was a bit more intriguing as it lead to the post-match angle.
Winner: Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish
Grade: B+
We’ve got another War Games match!
There was another wild brawl after this match and it looks like UE is headed to another War Games match. I’m all for this and I hope Dominik Dijakovic or a returning Velveteen Dream rounds out the team of Keith Lee, Matt Riddle, and Tommaso Ciampa.
Grade: A-
Final Thoughts
In my opinion, this was a very solid and well-booked show. I’m glad we’re starting War Games builds early; there’s plenty of time to add drama. The only real complaint I had was the filler match between Reed and Thorne
Overall Grade: A-
