How WWE Can Avoid Botching Asuka's Move to WWE's Main Roster
Monday saw the first promotional vignette for the main-roster debut of Asuka, who is presumed to be headed to Raw.
Asuka was unstoppable in NXT, with an unbeaten record that stretched out to almost 200 victories. Her stay in NXT featured memorable main event-level matches that increased in high drama and heart-stopping near-falls the more she was able to stay undefeated.
Booking Asuka was quite simple: Eat. Sleep. Win. Repeat. Given her overwhelming success at Full Sail University, it was a tried-and-true formula that couldn't possibly be screwed up on WWE's main roster.
Sound familiar?
The announcement of Asuka's impending debut on Raw, in what should be a reason for celebration as the Empress of Tomorrow graduates to the next day, has caused reasonable nervousness among fans.
Not only are there several examples of popular NXT Superstars who flamed out in WWE, but some of these examples are borderline inexcusable. The most glaring flameout was that of Bayley, arguably the most popular NXT Superstar of all time who was often compared to John Cena for her marketability toward children.
Following a string of questionable decisions with Bayley's character, including a squeaky-clean loss in her hometown of San Jose, California, booing Bayley has become all the rage as she recovered from both a shoulder injury and a broken heart.
A dejected Bayley recently told Steve Austin she could be in need of a major overhaul to her character, something that should hardly be a point of discussion less than two years in to her main-roster career (h/t William Windsor of Wrestling Inc):
"I guess it's time to evolve because I've been doing what I've been doing for the last four years, but you always need to evolve. And I plan on doing this for a really long time, so I know it needs to go just like different directions, maybe a different attitude. I guess I'm coming off of my Extreme Rules match with Alexa Bliss where I didn't use the kendo stick on her, so… and it's time for me to evolve and kind of see where else, different avenues, I can go as my character."
Sasha Banks has had choice words about WWE's creative process while on the main roster after being booked as a babyface who cannot successfully defend the Raw Women's Championship.
In a recent interview with Sam Roberts, The Boss said (h/t Windsor of Wrestling Inc): "None of [the WWE Superstars] know what's going on. When you see Monday Night Raw, we're all surprised. Sometimes we're even confused [about] where we're going. And sometimes, maybe they don't even follow through with a storyline, which kind of sucks sometimes."
Whatever is lost in translation between WWE and NXT seems to have particularly affected the women's division. Big names in NXT such as Paige, Emma, Banks, Bayley and, to some degree, Charlotte Flair and Becky Lynch—who are suddenly lost in the shuffle on SmackDown Live—have struggled to live up to their well-deserved hype after rewriting history in Florida. Could Asuka be next?
WWE is being gifted with a supreme talent whose success will hinge on winning and losing. Any weak promo, silly nickname or ill-advised comedy from Asuka would be forgiven if her historic win streak is protected early and defended often.
Asuka will enter the main roster as a lineal champion of sorts whose streak is every bit as important, if not more so, than a championship. As long as WWE respects the streak and Asuka remains invincible, the positive effects could reverberate throughout the division in ways that would elevate the talent around her.
