Sami Zayn def. Adam Rose
NXT kicked off with a bang as Sami Zayn was in action for the first time at Full Sail since his injury, and he took on the Social Outcast member, Adam Rose who returned to his old stomping grounds once more.
It was a nicely paced match, with Zayn taking control in the early goings, working on Rose's arm with several different maneuvers, until the main roster superstar got the advantage following a straight right hand.
Rose would then display a more aggressive side to himself as he beat down on Zayn, attempting to ruin his return, hitting a flying head butt from the top rope, but the NXT favorite would kick out, and quickly change the momentum, as he locked in Koji Clutch for the victory.
Analysis: This was a short match, and because of that the ending seemed very abrupt and out of nowhere, but it's good to see Zayn back in action and the victory established him as a serious contender for next weeks match, it was also good to see him use a submission maneuver for the victory, it's something different that he doesn't do too often.
Backstage promo with Jordan & Gable
We were then taken outside, where NXT's hottest tag team; Jason Jordan and Chad Gable were stood, and they talked about the recent NXT awards, and how they were not even nominated for best tag team.
But they did mention, that in London they beat a team that was nominated, and former champions, Blake and Murphy, and they challenged them to match between just them, unlike in London.
The duo then talked about how they have each dominated in the sport, outside of WWE, and that they were alpha's, which led to them creating their brand new tag team name.... American Alpha.
Analysis: That was a very fun promo from a pair that are only growing in charisma and personality each week, the way they interact with each other is so fun to watch, and the new name is fits well. On a side note, how were they not nominated for tag team of the year? They might be relatively new, but they made a big impact in a short space of time, and probably deserved at least a nomination.
Apollo Crews def. Tye Dillinger
Next up we have two of NXT's best in-ring talents in action, but the match started off at a rather slow pace with neither man getting the upper hand, that was until Apollo Crews put on an amazing feat of strength.
Crews hoisted up the perfect 10 into a delayed suplex, which Dillinger began to fight out of, instead of allowing him to escape, Crews simply squatted then lifted him back up to his the move, it was quite incredible and the fans reacted accordingly.
Dillinger then escapes to the outside and plays possum as he attacks Crews before hitting a suicide dive, followed up by a vicious knee to the temple which led to a near fall, but Crews would regain control and hit his powerbomb finisher for the victory.
Analysis: It was another short match but it certainly was fun whilst it lasted, both men looked to hit impressive spots to get the crowd invested and it paid off, the squatted suplex was fantastic.
No real surprise with the finish, but it would good to see Tye Dillinger be given a storyline in the near future as he has tons of talent, and the crowd love him, he's just waiting for an opportunity to prove himself now.
Post match Crews got on the microphone and challenged Finn Balor to a non-title match, as a way of proving himself and climbing the ladder back to the top, a match that the champion would later accept in a short backstage segment.
Analysis: That should be a fun match, it was great last time until the interference's so seeing them go at it again will be perfectly fine, and with the title not being on the line there is a chance Crews could pick up a pinfall victory over Balor.
Backstage interview with Blake, Murphy and Alexa Bliss
The trio were being interview for a response to the challenge from the American Alpha's, whose new name the tag team were mimicking, but the joking quickly stopped when Alexa Bliss told them she was embarrassed in London when they were defeated.
However, she said she would stick with them as it took half of the roster to take away their tag title's when they were champions, and she claimed to she would set an example in her match later on.
Analysis: Good segment which continues to show that Bliss is firmly in charge of the group and what they do, her heel persona is much better than when she was face and she is continuing to be the shining star in the group.
The Vaudevillians Vignette
We are shown a video package of the tag team as their theme song plays, the duo are smiling and posing, shaking hands, until the music started to fade and the pair's facial expressions took a much angrier turn, bringing it to an end.
Analysis: It looks like the tag team are getting a gimmick change and appear to be turning heel, I think it's a wise move to give them a new direction as what they were doing had become a little stale.
Baron Corbin def. Rich Swann
Rich Swann made his debut in NXT on this episode, an experienced and well known independent talent who many fans may recognize, and be pleased to see at Full Sail, and he worked hard with Baron Corbin to create the best singles match of the night.
It was the battle of speed and agility against sheer power, a contrast that can often create fun match ups like this, the first major talking point was a fantastic spot of Corbin flipping Swann over his head, to land face first on the mat after several spins mid air, awesome spot.
Corbin then looked to bully Swann around the ring, but that wasn't something that would happen, with Swann hitting a flurry of drop kicks and one fantastic spinning roundhouse that had Corbin on the ropes.
Swann, with the crowd firmly behind him dived off the ropes in an attempt to finish things, but he was caught by Corbin who hit the End of Days for the victory after a solid match.
Analysis: Really fun match, with both men working very hard to put on a story, which allowed Swann to get over with the fans despite it being his debut on the show. Corbin continued to look impressive as he got the job done, but it was Swann who stole the show, and hopefully it's not the last we've seen of him in NXT.
Baymella def. Alexa Bliss & Emma with Dana Brooke
The Women's Champion, Bayley and best friend/number one contender,Carmella formed their famous, Baymella in the ring for the first time ever, as they took on Emma and Alexa Bliss in tag team action.
It was clear from the get-go that the heels were not friends, with Bliss flicking her hair into Emma's face forcing Brooke to separate them before the match began, but once the faces hit the ring, they were on the same page as they ambushed them, sending Carmella out of the ring as they beat down and injured the champ.
Despite the rib injury, Bayley opted to start the match, showing her fighting champion spirit, but she wasn't 100% and struggled as the heels had complete control with frequent tags and double team moves.
However, the hug loving champion staged a comeback, and even had time to verbally insult Brooke who had been a loud annoyance at ringside throughout, despite a small attempt from the heels to stop the tag, Bayley gets to her partner, and Carmella cleaned house, locking in a leg submission on Bliss for the win.
Analysis: This was an excellent match between four of the best women in the division, all of them had their time to shine, with the heels looking particularly strong, which is always good to see, since the main roster never do it.
The victory for the faces had to happen with both of them having a title match next week, and it will be intriguing to see what happens between them, as there is several options they can play up, but I think a Nia Jax run in is the most likely.
Samoa Joe def. Johnny Gargano
Gargano started the match on fire, taking it right to the beast, hitting him with rights and lefts to the point where Samoa Joe got out of the ring for a breather. But Johnny Wrestling would only follow, which proved to be a poor decision as a clever kick would see Gargano land hand on the ring apron.
After a beat down, Joe kicked Gargano out of the ring, which resulted in a nine count, but a Hulk Hogan like comeback didn't work for Gargano, as Joe simply slapped him around, literally.
After avoiding several clothesline's, Gargano would hit two enziguris, before being thrown out of the ring again, however this time his return back to the squared circle would have a huge impact, hitting a DDT from the ropes.
Another attempt to fly through the ropes didn't work out though, as Joe caught his opponent and locked in the Coquina Clutch, resulting in a submission victory after an impressive match.
Analysis: A solid match to continue setting up next weeks triple threat, it made Joe look like a monster, which is what he needs after being beaten by Balor in his title shot, for Gargano it was an impressive showing, and hopefully we get more of him in the future.
Score: 8/10
A very entertaining show, that was NXT at it's very best; simple storytelling with good wrestling put together, the way that all shows should be, the time simply flies by and is so easy to watch you don't notice that it's finishing because it never drags, unlike RAW.
Having all three guys in the number one contenders match showcase their abilities and get good wins against strong opponents was good to see, and makes it tough to predict next week, in what should be an excellent match.
But this episode also developed other stories,including the Women's title match and the tag team division, whilst teasing a possible heel turn for The Vaudevillians, and all in all it was an excellent show.
Moment of the show: This week goes to the women's tag team match, it was a superb T.V. match that showcased the abilities of all four women perfectly, it told a story within the match and the fans were invested.
Star of the show: Rich Swann, this might be a surprising choice to some people as there was a lot of strong performances making several candidates, but Swann on his debut go the fans invested in his match, (which was also excellent) but he also put on a great performance in the ring, and I really hope we see him back at Full Sail.
What did you think of this weeks NXT? Let us know via our twitter - @Vavel_Wrestling, or in the comments below.