It was obvious last week that Gargano was going to use this opportunity to orchestrate the match in his favor for an opening defense. He's really done a tremendous job hamming things up as he's a heel but man oh man, what a bold-ass move by having Ruff beat Gargano. Good for Ruff as he's been utilized on WWE programming since the pandemic started. Ruff has obviously been a jobber but he has a pretty fun move set, bumps his ass off, and can be a compelling performer in the ring. The belt falling off him after Priest put it on him was a brilliantly hilarious moment. Priest being direct but nice to Ruff backstage was funny and the "go watch Wheel of Fortune" line to Gargano was fitting. Ruff is now the modern 1-2-3 Kid. Good for him, and it won't do anything but help Gargano build more heat.
All things considered, tough spot for Atlas and Escobar to be in but they had a fun match. Atlas looked a little dodgy in some parts but he's still young so I'm fine with it. There's also something to be said with Atlas. He's pretty much been booked like a white meat babyface since showing up on NXT but I like that he's booked to have some edge. Just outright jumping Llegado de Fantasma in the parking lot is a nice touch. Plenty of upside for him. I like how NXT has kept in the lab with calibrating the ideal latino superstar. They keep going through different versions but I think they've got the right overall act in Escobar. He's basically got the ADR gimmick but doesn't appear to be a scumbag. Hopefully he's not one. They ran through this Atlas feud pretty quickly.
Boa took a hell of a boot and a hell of a beating from Raquel. Beyond impressive that she did her one-armed power bomb on a dude the size of Boa. That's a ton of theatrics for the implications of messing with whoever is writing these letters to Xi and now Boa. It's going to deliver something substantial. I just hope it hits the mark.
Think of the heat if Candice ran over that tank on Veteran's Day. Anyway...good on them to give Shotzi time to explain why the tank meant so much to her. Probably could have used that several weeks ago, prior to the incident, but it's good that the explained. Shotzi seems like someone who is going to be a major player in the women's division in terms of a title contender a year or so from now.
JFC, one of Toni's legs might be bigger than Candice. The size disparity between the two of them was jarring at times. This was a really good spotlight for Toni to put on her working boots against someone more than capable to go with her in the form of Candice. I'm pretty surprised they had Toni lose here, with the obvious angle of Shotzi causing a distraction there, but at least it was a blatant cheap win. Indi being the reveal of Ghostface shocks no one but it naturally sets up a tag match (playa).
Not a surprise that Thatcher went after Greene but a nice way to transition it towards Lumis by messing with the portrait. Anything with Lumis creates a wildly contrasting dynamic but this was a really massive one with Thatcher. Feels like less is more with Lumis' matches. It feels like the last 3-5 matches for him have been stretched out quite a bit. That almost comes across as counterproductive for him in some ways. The burlap sack may mean we get a blindfold match between Grimes and Lumis.
Ciampa is a character of convenience, as I've said, but it may be a situation where he's spinning his wheels since there was no direct message for what's next for him. Still imagine it's buying time for Bálor in some form or fashion.
The prime target didn't have the production value I was anticipating but it was still fantastic. I like how they spun Rhea's story. It generally came off in the moment that they were just trying to find stuff for her to do but they spun it as people were trying to pick her off after she had her disappointment at Mania. She rose above those challengers and is ready to take back her title. That's well and good, but Io isn't going to let that happen. Kind of surprised we don't have a "two weeks from now" announcement and the match is next week.
McAfee citing "The team I was on lost to Drew Brees and his dumb baby" and calling Joseph "Michael Cole Jr." were moments of gold. Rocking a gold chain and a gaiter was a choice lol. The match didn't get a lot of time and was clearly a secondary component as it was about getting McAfee over and then getting the numbers game aspect for The Kings over. The ending was very chaotic. UE's absence is a little jarring, and the idea almost seems like they're using Breezango and Dain/Maverick as the foursome to take on The Kings. I'm guessing that's a convenient zag, but they're doing a great job of building heat on The Kings.
Bálor returning and a massive women's title match next week. Looking forward to it.