NXT is great, it really is when you consider the ring work, the star-power, the crowd and the talent but the one thing they are really lacking is the mic work. Its like there is no stand-out on the mic, everyone is just so average or flat out awful. I know Enzo is charismatic and compares with the best, but he is so redundant that he is often off-putting.
WWE main roster over the years has always one stand-out highly skilled mic worker for each era. From Ric Flair to Jake Roberts to The Rock to John Cena to even Punk....but why isn't this the case with NXT? Is this an indy thing? I mean you hardly ever hear about a great charismatic mic worker from the indy scene, its usually great and incredibly athletic in-ring workers that create the buzz. Is this the reason NXT, filled with indy names, is so lacking in mic work?
I think people tend to forget that NXT is actually a development territory so if someone isn't at a certain level with something like mic work the whole point of the promotion is to help them reach a higher level.
In the Indy's or if you're a Gaijin in Japan you're not really expected to go out there and deliver a Ric Flair level promo as much as have a great match so obviously that aspect of their work would suffer somewhat (Obviously some guys completely buck that trend like Punk, Ambrose or even Owens).
When they come down to NXT they're supposed to be developing that side of their game, they really aren't going to be the finished article. You start to worry when they've shown no improvement whatsoever but someone like Sami Zayn has really brought that side of his game to a very good level and seems to be improving all the time.
That being said, Owens, Enzo, Big Cass, Banks are all easily as good if not better than a lot of the main roster (that's the only comparison we can and should make).
Comparing guys to the all-time great mic workers is not fair at all. It would be like comparing every single match you watch to the greatest match you have ever seen. Does it mean those guys in the 1st match didn't have a good match? No but you are setting the standard ridiculously high.
NXT has good mic workers in Owens, Crowe, Zayn, Enzo, etc.
It's the developmental roster at the end of the day. It's purpose is for the wrestlers to learn, improve, and perfect their skills. Comparing anyone on the NXT roster to Hulk Hogan is ridiculous
I dont think it's fair to compare people trying to develop on the mic to some of the best mic workers of all time. Give them chance to show they can improve and realize good is a long way away from absolutely great.
Some of the greatest examples of wrestlers who carried themselves like the OP was saying are general pieces of shit or people with what nowadays is considered "questionable character" - WWE is not a place for people like that, most of the people employed by WWE seem to be genuinely good & nice people, which isn't what sells. A lot of the guys with great speaking ability, showmanship & presence are considered "bad people" ... it's lame as shit I know but I think people know what I'm getting at.
It's not even that they were truly "bad" people - but that's how they would be labeled by an outsider. Drinkers, guys that party, drug culture etc. Those kind of people usually have a stage presence about them, jerks, assholes are way more entertaining as characters.
But look how the majority of this forum despises Punk & is always crying about him being a selfish jerk & things like that, it's wrestling - every heel character in wrestling is about selfish pride & individual accomplishments for the most part, it's a lot easier to portray that when guys are just being part of themselves, people nowadays are soft as ice cream when it comes to a person's personality & can't handle that though.
Society wants choir boys but then gets upset when the entertainment sucks, especially in something like wrestling which is hardly a place for men with morals.
:bryanlol The fucking nWo comparisons are just idiotic. Lets compare one of the best ages in wrestling history with the current WWE developmental show, if its not as good because i have my nostalgia-goggles on, it fucking sucks fpalm
This isn't even close or fair. Year long history in WCW, WCW bought up by WWE and not even 1 year dead.
Sami was an indy hero, which isn't even close compared to Monday Night Wars.
But honestly, NXT does somehow lack of Mic skill, but NXT is especially there for future WWE talents, to learn it on NXT, to show it on NXT and if you are ready, you gonna take the next step.
What is your benchmark though? Sure compared to Roman Reigns then ye Zayn and Owens are great and finn balor isn't bad.
But fuck that. Stop settling for shit current WWE standards. The rock and stone old are two obvious examples. That is good on the mic. It is like John Cena and WWEs current shittiness has dragged all our expectations down. That is why 10m+ people used to tune in every monday night and now its 3million.
They need to sort it the fuck out. And NXT is not the answer. Its better than WWE. There are dudes with potential who can be used like Neville and Owens who could both be huge. But there is such a lack of showmanship, these dudes from the indys have SO much to learn about how to put on a show for a big audience as Hogan, Rock, Stone cold and the NWO did. SO MUCH to learn.
Owens and Amore are pretty good, Zayn isn't bad and many others are in the not bad category. But yeah I can see where you are coming from OP, there is a lot to be desired from NXT mic workers, but NXT is the place to work on weaknesses.
Not sure I agree - I thought that the contract signing between Owens and Zayn was pretty well done and both were good on the mic. I agree that Balor could improve his mic skills significantly though.
If Sami Zayn is so amazing like you all say then why do I watch him and just laugh at how crap it is compared to the NWO. Where is this amazing sami zayn who comes skipping down to the ring? I will not accept people to tell me this shit is good. Put it side by side with rock/austin vs NWo in 2002 or Sting vs NWo in 1997 and lets see how "great" sami zayn is in any way whatsoever.
Mic work in WWE is mediocre.. There's only a handful of guys that are great on the mic, and no divas can talk... Mic work on NXT might actually be better than the main roster's mic skills.
Kevin Owens and Enzo Amore are as good as anyone on the main roster. I agree that the overall level of mic skill in NXT is not that great but I think this criticism also extends to the main roster, where most of the guys are pretty bad on the mic.
WWE wants to talk about sports-entertainment, but they usually forget the entertainment part. That being said, NXT is a developmental brand after all. Everyone has to start somewhere.
Why do I get the impression that the only reason people are complaining about the promos are because they aren't Attitude Era "shit talking" promos which was also popular on WCW Nitro?
I get it some people miss the previous eras and I do at times as well but there is nothing wrong with Zayn, Owens, Sasha, Enzo etc on the mic.
Especially Sami Zayn whom is the cream of the crop when it comes to promos right now. Sure he doesn't do too many shit talk promos but he comes from the heart with his stuff.
And before people start going on an "NXT is too Indy" rant
Bray Wyatt also came through that system and he's an excellent mic worker as well.
I seriously wonder if people overemphasize promos too much these days and if trash talk promos are the only good promos for some people?
Hardly. It is about having swagger and a presence about you. Both when cutting promos and when doing entrances. You can't tell me watching sami zayn come down to the ring makes you mark out as much as when nash, hall and hogan appear. Surely?
Seems like people are looking at the hype NXT about how well its challenging the main show in terms of quality they are also forgetting that NXT is still supposed to be a development show. You gotta remember this was the FCW replacement. Would many of you complained about poor mic work when FCW was around? Probably not.
Seems like people are looking at the hype NXT about how well its challenging the main show in terms of quality they are also forgetting that NXT is still supposed to be a development show. You gotta remember this was the FCW replacement. Would many of you complained about poor mic work when FCW was around? Probably not.
It is a developmental show but you can't really teach mic work or charisma. Guys like Balor and Neville for example are never going to be good on the mic, they just aren't talkers. The only real talkers on NXT right now are Enzo, Big Cass, Zayn and Breeze, with Owens also being passable. The rest should just look to avoid promos completely and play to their other strengths. It's not like anyone in the midcard of the main roster gets mic time anyway so they should be alright in that respect.
nxt tanked their roster with decent in ring performers.
according to their in ring skills they had to lack charisma or mic skills not to be in wwe already.
guys like neville or balor are not talents, those are routine performers
Owens is a great mic worker, he is just having to learn how to "talk" the WWE's way, you know, watered down so you don't piss off the parents and sponsors. Oh, and Enzo is second to none when it comes to charisma and getting the crowd behind you on the mic, he could be someones mouthpiece on the main roster right now, which is what I believe he may end up being the best at.
I do think Neville has improved over the last few months. However, if this is his absolute peak then it's still not enough.
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