4 Ups And 4 Downs From Last Night's WWE NXT (June 17)

Downs...

4. Dana Brooke Is Not Ready For TV

Only when a superstar is struggling does it truly land home what a strange hybrid show NXT has become. It's a developmental show but, because of it's burgeoning reputation as the holding pen for exciting independent stars, it's got a large, and increasing, level of exposure. This is very good for the prestige of the superstars who are killing it right now, much less for those who are not quite ready. NXT isn't really preparing people for a TV show, it is a TV show, and one that the fans have come to expect to be better in a lot of regards than Raw and Smackdown. No pressure. As such, WWE need to be careful that they don't handicap stars before they can flourish, by putting them out in front of a big and expectant audience before they're ready. It's happened to Baron Corbin, and it's happening to Dana Brooke. She only featured in a backstage segment last night, but she struggled to connect with the audience at all. Her delivery did little to hide that her lines were way too scripted ("Call me Miss Brooke. In fact, call me miss... understood") and she didn't register much emotion. She's still learning, of course, and that's technically what NXT is there for, but considering her segment came after a backstage interview featuring a seasoned pro like Samoa Joe, she did badly by comparison. If Dana Brooke isn't ready for TV tapings, there's zero shame in that, but NXT is getting to be too big a spotlight under which to falter, and the WWE shouldn't force her into a position where she's likely to get far more backlash than understanding from the fans.