Asuka and the Top 10 Breakout Superstars of WWE in 2017

The past 12 months have been an interesting time in WWE. Many Superstars had the best year of their careers in 2017, even if it wasn't their first year with the company.

The level of talent on the roster has never been higher, and the influx of new faces has led to more five-star matches being produced on a monthly basis than ever before.

Take Roman Reigns vs. Cesaro from the December 11 episode of Raw for example. This was as good or better than most of the PPV bouts from 2017.

Different Superstars have succeeded in different ways this year. Some wrestlers have been killing it in the ring, some have been owning everyone else on the mic and some have been funnier than anything we have seen on Saturday Night Live in recent memory.

Let's take a look at the Superstars who had a breakout year in 2017.

Drew Gulak

The cruiserweight division has been putting on great matches since its inception, but the characters have had a hard time connecting with fans.

The problem with trying to launch an entire division at once is viewers not having enough time to get to know everyone. When you try to push half a dozen people at once, nobody gets the attention they deserve.

A few Superstars were able to establish themselves this year, and one of the most surprising people to connect with fans has been Drew Gulak.

His gimmick of being an anti-high-flyer made him a heel, but his devotion to the gimmick and enthusiasm for his plan for a better 205 Live endeared him to the WWE Universe.

Fans like to chant strange things all the time, but nobody could have ever predicted a "PowerPoint" chant would catch on the way it has.

Breezango

Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon keep calling SmackDown the land of opportunity. While some deserving talents have been left off television on a regular basis, two Superstars have excelled.

Tyler Breeze and Fandango were paired together in May 2016, but they didn't take off as a team until they were drafted to SmackDown and given the chance to embrace their comedic personalities.

The Fashion Police segments have been some of the best parts of the blue brand in 2017. It began as random comedy skits, but it soon morphed into a way for WWE to parody some of the biggest franchises in Hollywood. 

Saw, Stranger Things, Miami Vice and Law & Order are just some of the properties Breezango used to make themselves one of the most popular acts on the roster. Their in-ring time has been limited, but with any luck, that will change in 2018.

Alexa Bliss

Alexa Bliss went from being Wesley Blake's and Buddy Murphy's manager in NXT to being one of the most successful women on the main roster in less than three years.

Her rise to power started in 2016 when she was drafted to SmackDown during the brand split, but she really took off in 2017.

She is already a four-time women's champion, and three of those titles were won this year. She has been in the ring with the best and brightest in WWE and kept up with them every time.

Her work in the ring has improved a lot, but it's her ability to run down her opponents on the mic that separates her from the rest of the roster. 

If she keeps winning titles at the same pace, she will be one of the most successful women in all of pro wrestling by the time she decides to retire.

AJ Styles

AJ Styles coming to WWE was a dream come true for many fans around the world, and to everyone's surprise, WWE has treated him like the living legend he is.

The Prince of Phenomenal has already become one of the best in-ring performers in WWE history and he hasn't even been with the company a full two years.

He began the year as WWE champion and he will end 2017 the same way, but in between those two reigns was a great run with the United States Championship.

Styles even managed to get two great matches out of Jinder Mahal, something nobody else was able to do while he was WWE champion.

Styles may have arrived in 2016, but 2017 has been the best year of his career in terms of high-profile feuds and show-stealing performances. 

The Usos

The Usos have been ripping it up on the tag team scene since they first debuted in 2010, but they took their characters to a whole new level in 2017.

Jimmy and Jey's transition from face-paint-wearing babyfaces to what they have become has been one of the most satisfying journeys to follow. 

They tread the line between heel and babyface so they can feud with whoever WWE needs them to fight, and their promos have gotten significantly better thanks to a change in attitude.

Three of their five tag title victories happened in 2017. Their matches against teams like The New Day and American Alpha made the SmackDown tag team division one of the best parts of the company, and they clearly don't plan on slowing down anytime soon.

Neville

While the majority of the cruiserweight division struggled to find its footing, one Superstar managed to draw everyone's attention to 205 Live.

Neville spent a few years working as a good guy in NXT and on the main roster, but he never quite clicked the way management had hoped, even when he teamed up with Stephen Amell at SummerSlam 2015. 

Turning heel was the saving grace for The Man Gravity Forgot. Not only did he elevate the entire cruiserweight division, but he also made the cruiserweight title mean something.

We don't know if or when we will see Neville return to a WWE ring, but we will always have the memories of him owning everyone in the ring and on the mic in 2017.

Samoa Joe

Like Styles before him, it took Samoa Joe over 10 years before he was given a real WWE contract. He built up a reputation in TNA for being one of the toughest guys around, and he has continued to prove it on Raw.

WWE is taking the slow approach with Joe and building him up over time. This is mostly because Brock Lesnar has held the universal title hostage most of the year, but it's also to give Joe more longevity.

His matches are always hard-hitting contests that leave fans wanting more, and that's the mark of a great pro wrestler.

It's just a matter of time before Joe becomes the WWE or universal champion. In the meantime, the WWE Universe will have to settle for watching him choke out his opponents on a weekly basis.

Elias

We have seen several NXT Superstars go from a top spot in the developmental system to obscurity on the main roster, but we rarely see it go the other way.

Elias was floundering in NXT for a long time. It was surprising when WWE brought him up to Raw, and many assumed he would be relegated to the role of a jobber.

Then he started singing songs before his matches. His insulting lyrics were hilarious and his constant frustration at being interrupted never gets old.

Elias is a talented wrestler when he is given the chance to show off his skills, but his biggest assets at the moment are his guitar and ability to mock whatever city WWE happens to be in. 

Asuka

Asuka's run in NXT saw her tie and surpass Goldberg's undefeated streak in WCW, and WWE has continued her winning ways on the main roster.

The Empress of Tomorrow has been positioned as the toughest woman in the division, but she has been kept out of the hunt for the title so far.

Management likely has plans for an extended championship run in the future, so establishing her as an unstoppable force beforehand is a smart move. 

Suffering an injury and being forced to relinquish the NXT women's title was unfortunate, but it gave WWE a way of taking the title off her without having her lose a match.

2017 was a great year for Asuka, but 2018 will be even better once she gets her hand on the Raw Women's Championship. 

Braun Strowman

Even if he wasn't your favorite wrestler, it would be hard to argue against naming Braun Strowman as the top breakout star in WWE this year.

The Monster Among Men is one of the biggest and baddest men on the roster, but he also has impressive speed and agility for someone his size.

His series of matches against Reigns made everyone see the potential Strowman had as a top babyface, but his feud with Brock Lesnar is what made him into a megastar.

He has yet to hold a title in WWE, but it's more a matter of "when" than "if" he will win it. It wouldn't be surprising to see Strowman win the Royal Rumble and go on to challenge The Beast at WrestleMania.

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The men and women listed in this article all had a great year in 2017, but so did plenty of other people. Who do you think were the biggest breakout stars in WWE this year?