(Asuka isn't just number one, she's also numbers 2-10 as NXT books the rebuilding of the developmental women's division around her. Source: WWE Network)
Once The Empress of Tomorrow became champion of the now, WWE moved up the best women in NXT with urgency to round out the brand split. After Asuka defeated Nia Jax, the latter moved to the main roster. Bayley, after losing her rematch for the title at Takeover: Brooklyn II, got her long overdue call-up to Raw. Finally, the last of the NXT veterans joined the main show's ranks as top heel Alexa Bliss, fan-hate machine Eva Marie and Carmella were summoned. This leaves a giant vacuum in WWE's developmental incubator to fill when booking compelling feuds for the champion.
The men's roster is rebuilding as well, but WWE can wait for rookies at the Performance Center to elevate their skills for TV. Champ Shinsuke Nakamura, Samoa Joe, Austin Ares, The Revival and the recently returned Hideo Itami are all ready to keep butts in seats and eyes on screens until homegrown talents emerge. The women have some solid wrestlers, interesting personalities and evident long-term potential, but there's a dearth of wrestlers whose personas and mat skills are in sync enough to hang with the champ.
(Seeing Red: Ember Moon's skills and eye-catching persona make her the only candidate who can step in now as a genuine threat to break down the walls of Asuka City. Source: dailywrestlingnews.com)
Asuka faces a ring general's challenge that no other title holder in WWE faces. She must elevate all the women around her as she mows them down, until the day there is one worthy of the belt when Asuka is eventually called to the main roster. Ember Moon, with her rich pedigree in Shimmer and other promotions, is the only woman on the NXT roster who can plausibly approach Asuka's level. There is no doubt she can join Asuka in continuing the tradition of epic female title bouts across WWE's brands, but pulling the trigger will have to wait as she establishes her presence. No problem there, but the first challenger to laugh at danger is a head scratcher.
(Asuka dispatches the bubbly Liv Morgan in short order. The NXT women's division as a whole faces a steep challenge in stepping up to not only be worthy of storylines and title shots with the champ, but also with each other.)
Liv Morgan called out Asuka with emerging chutzpah on the mic after stomping a mud hole in Rachel Fazio. One would think the bout would have involved either some sort of run-in by one or more roster heels, or by Morgan herself in defeat. No one can reasonably expect the green Morgan to get into a protracted title feud and be a serious threat on skill alone. A heel turn for Morgan wouldn't solve the booking problem, nor would it elevate the New Jersey star, as doing so would cut against the grain of her positive reception from the NXT fans. After the match, Peyton Royce and Billie Kay added much insult to Liv's injuries, taunting her in passing while the challenger was looked over by a trainer. This at least shows a booking springboard for either a secondary feud for Liv, or for one of these heels to step up for an Asuka program.
(Peyton Royce's guile and ever-emerging skills make her a solid choice for a feud with Asuka, even if she may not be ready to carry the torch herself yet. Source: WWE.com)
All signs point to either Royce or Kay getting that first long term feud for gold. Audiences, however, are just getting to know them as their gimmicks are freshly dialed in. The ring skills are there to a greater degree for these Aussie imports, but they also have to do their parts to make fans believe that Asuka needs to keep her head on a swivel or she could end up on the wrong end of a run-in or group stomping at any time. However these talents get there, it has to happen and they must keep Asuka and Ember Moon separated as long as possible to maintain the division's high standard as well as elevate themselves and each other.
(Ember Moon has all the tools for an epic feud with Asuka, but it’s up to her peers like Mandy Rose to step up and set the stage. Source: WWE.com)
The ladies of NXT are still evolving but on the main roster –particularly Smackdown Live – the distaff element are as well. Alexa Bliss gets her first title match against Becky Lynch at No Mercy. Lynch showed during the inevitable contract-signing fight on the Sept. 20th Smackdown an edge in her promos that finally match her intensity in the ring. She has always shown her love for wrestling and joy every time she runs down the ramp. Her endearingly dorky puns and demeanor warmed fans up to her when her place in the new women's booking was that of a sidekick. Organic popularity found her without the chance to build a full presentation the way Sasha Banks and Charlotte had prior to reaching primetime.
("I'll rip your head off!" Becky showed Alexa Bliss that No Mercy is more than just a cute PPV title. Source: WWE Youtube)
For the first time, when she ended her formative promo with "I wasn't born to be champion I fought to be champion," we were treated to an intensity in the Lass Kicker we had yet to see on the mic. She has always been a force to be reckoned with, but her words, along with the charge up the ramp to get some payback on the sneaky and delightfully evil Bliss after eating the contract folder, showed us the ass kicking machine we have seen glimpses of. A week later on the September 27th Smackdown Live, Bliss retaliated showing us the vicious yet cowardly heel drawing heat, derailing Becky's match by sucker punching her on the ramp.
(Becky is taking no prisoners, but Alexa Bliss is craycray like the honey badger. Source: WWE.com)
This is the right way to start of the Boulder Shoulders era on Smackdown. It's also what's needed given there are only seven women on Team Blue's roster – six right now until Eva Marie's wellness violation suspension ends. We have seen how a rash of injuries can harm WWE's card. We all remember the bareness of 2016's Wrestlemania as well as Sasha Banks' current back problems cutting her first title reign short.
(Lynch finally brings this caliber of intensity to the mic. LOVE LIVE BOULDER SHOULDERS! Source: WWE.com)
I've never been a big fan of having two world champions on WWE TV, but the roster of men is deep. WWE hasn't had a lack of talent in decades, their problems have arisen from periods of not knowing how to utilize their talent. The women, while finally getting the chance to put on quality matches and have at least one feud that's supposed to matter, are not nearly as deep-- seven wrestlers on each main roster show. It’s up to Becky Lynch to be the ring general and leader to help greener charges like Carmella and Alexa Bliss, as well as veterans like Naomi find their way and to tell in-ring stories that compel fans but don't shorten careers. Otherwise, Smackdown's going to look a lot like Asuka City does now.
patricia@mail.postmanllc.net
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