Getting Tricked: NXT Booked Itself Into a Corner Post No Mercy

NXT No Mercy was a fantastic show, and it set up the brand for an exciting future with many moving pieces. The Tuesday after No Mercy, NXT booked itself into a corner with Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes, just the brand in general.

It isn’t necessarily surprising, given some hindsight. WWE NXT is set to compete directly with AEW and the newly acquired Adam Copeland. Getting more main roster acts on the show is crucial for keeping the brand competitive. The drawbacks, though, could far outweigh the short-term benefit of winning the second-largest promotion in North America. 

The introduction of main roster talent adds a disjointed feel to the show, even if it gets fans excited online to tune in. The ratings wins are good for catching headlines. They come at the expense of current talents though, as Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes both showed this week. It might also be bad for the future of NXT and the next generation of WWE superstars.

Trick Williams Was on a Roll

With his big victory for the North American title, Trick Williams found himself in the good graces of the NXT faithful. Having finally gotten his title, he was elevating himself to ascend to the level of Carmelo Hayes, his friend and likely eventual rival.

That momentous moment at a point of weakness for Melo set the two up for some real troubles and a clash to define this generation of NXT. Of course, that can still happen, but the divination adds a risk the company doesn’t need to take. 

Even with the distractions and a hot act like The Judgment Day, losing a title to Dominik Mysterio so quickly hurts a superstar’s credibility. Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes are two of the top acts in this era of NXT. Having him win and then lose the title to further the main roster story of Dominik and Judgment Day leaves him in a weaker position.

If Williams et al. look strong, the brand will gradually do better. If they are not, then the high ratings they are experiencing now could disappear. 

With Nostalgia Acts, NXT Booked Itself Into a Corner

Bringing in guys like John Cena is a way to get a quick rating. Paring him with Carmelo Hayes in a match featuring Paul Heyman and Bron Breakker doesn’t do anything more than improve that number. Melo and Breakker aren’t feuding, and the one-off meeting makes little sense, given his story is with Trick and NXT Champion Ilja Dragunov.

Paul Heyman and John Cena also have no built-in history with the two performers. This isn’t even considering Cody Rhodes and Asuka’s role next Tuesday. 

Ratings are important, but they are most important to people looking to make comparisons. To the rest of the wrestling fandom, it is the quality of the show, not the quantity and demographic breakdown, that matters. WWE and all wrestling promotions are entertainment companies. They need to make money, which can be hard for fans to accept. However, Raw and SmackDown can make plenty of cash.

Those shows can push the top people in top feuds, over and over, to make money. NXT isn’t about nostalgia; it is about the future. While the main roster is steeped in the tradition of the past, NXT has always been a brand focused on tomorrow, something that the recent overhauls really understood. Adding these “surprises” gives a short gain, but at what cost?

NXT Booked Itself Into a Corner, Now What?

With some of the show’s highest television ratings to date, it can be hard to conclude that NXT booked itself into a corner. The likes of Dominik Mysterio, Becky Lynch, and the rest of the main roster reinforcements have gotten people interested in Shawn Michaels’ developmental brand.

What is missing from this, though, and what is on display in the booking of Trick Williams and Carmelo Hayes, is that NXT is its practice WWE Universe. That means it comes with its continuity and hierarchy. 

Trick dropping the title after just one night doesn’t help Trick Williams at all. It also impedes the TrickMelo story NXT has been slowly building towards. Likewise, inserting Carmelo Hayes into a partnership with John Cena, to face Bron Breakker doesn’t give fans anything new.

It actually detracts from Melo’s other story and takes Breakker out of his Von Wagner feud. A few stars coming down on loan can help keep the show interesting. So too could a few stars turning up on Raw or SmackDown in advance of their main roster debut. When the leading acts like Cody Rhodes, Becky Lynch, John Cena, and Judgment Day all appear on NXT, though it becomes a fourth hour of Raw or an early episode of SmackDown. 

NXT is About the Future

The move toward more main roster stars is geared to compete in a ratings war that frankly doesn’t exist. It takes away the black and gold brand identity a little bit at a time. The media and entertainment landscape isn’t the same, and this “new war” isn’t going to be fought with Nielsen ratings.

The worst part about it, though, is what we could lose. The last crop of NXT breakout stars did not get over because of gimmicks and brand synergy; quality storytelling away from prime time helped names like Adam Cole, Sami Zayn, or Johnny Gargano build an NXT legacy. Sacrificing the ability to tell those stories to wage a ratings war is bad. Recently, NXT booked itself into a corner by clinging to the rules of the ancient past.