I know it hasn’t even been a month yet since DarkState kicked its most interesting member, Saquon Shugars, out of the faction, with the breakup occurring on the May 19 edition of “NXT,” but for whatever reason, the storyline already feels like it’s dragging. Maybe it’s because I’m not used to Shawn Michaels booking at his best friend, Triple H’s, glacial pace, or because everything else feels so much more fast-paced lately on “NXT” with all the new folks establishing themselves, but I am just not interested in this any longer, after wanting to see Shugars on his own for so long.

The week following the brutal attack on Shugars, the rest of DarkState cut a promo in the ring, but he was nowhere to be found until the very end of the show, when he was just seen sitting atop a production truck. Last week, he showed up to beat down Cutler James with a bat ahead of the faction’s tag team match, and this week, he distracted Dion Lennox during his match by appearing on the tron, then showing up behind him with the bat when the match was over.

I got unhinged vibes from Shugars throughout his time with DarkState, and when he was kicked out of the faction, I expected all the crazy (complimentary) to be completely unleashed. Not saying chasing people around with baseball bats isn’t unhinged, but I guess I expected more from him. Like, a lot more, from constant backstage attacks, to maybe even a response from Shugars in the ring, in front of fans, since he’s so good on the microphone. Sure, there might be a lot going on in the world of “NXT” right now, but I think this should have been, and should still be, as it can be saved, a priority.

I guess maybe getting this feud over with, as I’m assuming it ends with Lennox and Shugars’ match after Shugars beats all the other members, means that he will be closer to the NXT Championship, and that scene is already pretty crowded. But, he could be put into the North American Championship scene while the top title picture rights itself, which would be fine. Right now, it feels like it’s going to take until Deadline until we see Shugars vs. Lennox, but if there’s no plan for Shugars after this yet, it makes some kind of sense, even if I don’t like it.

Written by Daisy Ruth