A debut episode of a new television series is like a first date.  There's a little bit of awkwardness, the direction is not certain, but there are glimpses of what the future could be like if everything goes well.  If I was to categorize the maiden episode of WWE NXT the same way I characterize my dates, I'd say I'm intrigued enough to give it a second date.  I might check out its facebook page, ask friends of the show more about it, and I might even call it in the next couple of days.  That being said, it certainly wasn't love at first sight. I see potential, but there is work to be done.  Let's recap the good, the bad, and the ugly from NXT: episode one.The season began with all 8 hopefuls standing in the interview area looking eager and hungry.  I thought this would be the time where the audience learned the rules and format of the show so we'd know how to track who should win the Raw contract, but that explanation would not come.  Instead, The Miz checked out the prospects and singled out his project, the accomplished Daniel Bryan.  As he stated on his WWE blog (which is nothing compared to mine!), he repeated that he felt Bryan has no personality and had to go out to the ring to prove that he does otherwise Miz would "slap some into him".  Bryan proceeded to cut a pretty decent promo about his experiences and count me as someone who thinks his personality is probably ahead of half the roster already.  The only knock I have on the kid is his size.  He's shorter than the Miz by a few inches, and Miz isn't tall to begin with.  This kid is going to have to make himself seem larger by wrestling big and owning his personality so that his size isn't something people notice moving forward.  He got a good start on that with his catchphrase "if you don't tap, you'll snap".  For a guy billed as a technical dynamo, it fit perfectly, but the Miz disagreed and proceeded to actually slap his student.  This pair come off more as feuding than mentoring, but I like it.  The kid has been around the world wrestling and from a character standpoint, it makes sense the way he he coming off towards The Miz.  This may become the most intriguing story on the entire show.  This segment was followed by the first ever NXT match.  It was a pro/rookie tag team match of Christian and his rookie, Heath Slater, against Carlito and his rookie, Michael Tarver.  I like how each rookie got a little promo video so the audience could learn about them before they debut.  It's a good way to show who these guys are and get them a little time to speak.  My initial thoughts on these two rookies are that Michael Tarver reminds me of Bobby Lashley only a drop smaller and a little more charisma, while Heath Slater looks like a mix between Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Jay of Jay and Silent Bob.  He's also got a little Owen Hart in him, especially with that yelling in the ring.  The difference in the match was communication vs. a lack thereof, as Carlito and Tarver miscommunicated, leading to Tarver being in a bad situation, while Christian and Slater (that sounds weird together, huh) were on the same page, with Slater pulling Carlito out of the ring while Christian hit the Killswitch on Tarver for the win.  The rookies got a little work, but it's way too early to judge what kind of in ring workers they are.  Slater seems to have more personality though, and getting paired with Captain Charisma seems to be a perfect fit for the outgoing young star.  By the way, Tarver is known as "Mr. 1.9 seconds" for his knockout ability, but he didn't come close to that.  If you are going to have a nickname like that, you better make damn sure that you knock a lot of people out.  That gimmick would work as a heel but he will have to just do it, even if it's after matches, to get over as a heel who can beat up anybody.  Next was the first one on one match between rookies as David Otunga, fiance of Jennfier Hudson (mentored by R-Truth) faced off against South Beach Party Boy Darren Young (mentored by CM Punk).  Otunga looks like a good prospect but it's hard to tell if people will take him seriously given who his fiance is.  He has the same problem Miz had coming in as he has previous fame.  It also doesn't help matters that R-Truth seemingly has no clue that Otunga is there.  Truth did his normal entrance and didn't change up the rap to introduce Otunga, didn't end the thing with an intro, nothing!  He might as well have wrestled because he entered like he was and barely acknowledged Otunga.  As for Young, they are playing it off like Punk doesn't want to mentor Young unless he's willing to give up partying and go straight edge.  I like how Punk is sticking to his character and that dynamic should be very unique as the show goes on.  The match itself was short, as Otunga hit some sort of sloppy slam for the win.  Punk and his Straight Edge Society just shook their heads and walked out on Young while Otunga celebrated.  I'm not sure yet if I like Otunga, but he has a good build.  Young on the other hand has the dumbest looking hair this side of Carlito.  It looks like grain grass growing on his head!  I can't imagine him ever being taken seriously with that hair, but we shall see.  The main event featured the confident Daniel Bryan against the newly crowned World Heavyweight Champion, Chris Jericho.  Jericho was accompanied by his protege, Wade Barrett.  Barrett is being promoted as a British bare-knuckle fighter, which means tough Brit.  He certainly looks the part, as he is big and strong with a confident look.  While Bryan looks tiny, he did a hell of a job in the ring against Jericho.  Obviously the WWE knows this guy can work, and work he did.  He even took a nasty bump as he jumped over the top rope onto Jericho who slammed him onto the announce table.  You could see the bruise he got, which should be seen on one of those "don't try this at home" WWE commercials in the near future.  Jericho got the win with the old version of the Walls of Jericho, but not before Bryan showed off a submission maneuver of his own.  A great debut for Bryan, but a loss none the less.  On the other side, Barrett was interviewed shortly during the match and did well, coming off as confident and tough.  I think he has a bright future as a heel.  Overall, there was decent wrestling and interesting interactions, but the format is still rough and there are definite kinks to work out.  I'm still not sure how these 8 men are competing for contracts and I don't think anyone knows.  The show seemed more like ECW with nobodies and established talents interwoven.  I'd like to see how these guys will be judged moving forward.  Also, I look forward to Justin Gabriel and Skip Sheffield debuting next week since they didn't do a thing this week.  It should be interesting to see how this show and concept progresses, but if nothing else, I'd watch to see how this Miz/Bryan thing plays out.  That and the Punk/Young thing are the most intriguing parts of the show right now and I want to see both dynamics progress.  For a final note, I just want to state that the NXT theme song is really growing on me.  I like it a lot and it really seems to fit the concept.  Let's just hope the concept grows and makes for some compelling TV that features (hopefully) future superstars.