The Naraku project is already showing cracks
When the April 28 edition of NXT aired, the arrival of EVIL, rebranded under the banner of Naraku, felt like a desperate attempt to inject some Tokyo Dome heat into the Performance Center. Let’s be real for a second: bringing in a former IWGP Heavyweight Champion usually signals a major power move. Instead, we got a faction debut that feels like a bargain-bin tribute to his previous run in New Japan.
The booking strategy here is transparent and frankly, a bit lazy. Building a stable around a guy whose entire gimmick relies on interference and ref bumps is a bizarre choice for a weekly show that prides itself on faster pacing. NXT is where the future of the company goes to get polished. Dropping an established act into the middle of the card without a cohesive vision for their ceiling just makes everyone else look like second-class talent.
The lack of original creative direction
Watching these segments, it is clear the creative team hit a wall. They are falling back on the tired trope of the "foreign invader" stable, a recycled idea that has been done to death since the mid-nineties. EVIL is a veteran, but you cannot simply port one show's internal logic into another and expect the fans in Orlando to care. The result is a disconnect between the ring work and the crowd's reaction.
We have seen WWE stars join this Naraku faction, effectively putting their own momentum on ice to serve a storyline that has no clear endgame. It feels reactive rather than proactive. You don’t build a legacy by mimicking the past. Watching promising young talent get relegated to holding chairs at ringside during a 12-minute main event is the exact opposite of what this brand needs.
Why this booking stinks
The biggest flaw right here is the predictability of the interference. Professional wrestling thrives when the audience believes a clean finish is possible. By making Naraku the architects of constant chaos, the company is effectively devaluing their own roster’s legitimacy. It doesn’t scream "dominance" to win because your buddies ran in; it screams "insecurity" in your own champion’s work rate.
If the plan is to make them the top heels, they need a signature victory that doesn't involve a cheap distraction. Right now, the faction is stuck in a loop of run-ins that ruin the rhythm of the television broadcast. Unless there is a massive pivot, this group is headed for a quiet split by the end of the year. You can’t just rely on house style names to carry the segments when the writing is this thin.
Let’s call it what it is: a mid-card experiment gone wrong. You have a roster full of guys grinding for spots on the PLE cards, and instead, the focus is sucked up by a faction that isn't evolving. It is lazy storytelling disguised as a big-name acquisition. The fans aren't buying the hype, and quite frankly, I don't blame them.
