Fans have seen characters come and go in WWE throughout its history. For every superstar that generated legitimate heat, there were characters that were ridiculed because their character was unintentionally funny. It would be great if every wrestler that debuted was successful right off the bat, but sadly that isn't the case.
What is surprising to note is that there have been some wrestlers who have had Hall of Fame careers that came out of the blocks stumbling in their debut. Thankfully, an awful start doesn't suggest that the rest of their career is doomed. What it does suggest is they simply must work harder to turn things around.
These debuts didn't go over very well due to their presentation, not a deficiency on the part of the performer. The poor debut could be attributed to their character being beyond comprehension, or because a move was poorly executed causing their opposition to be injured.
These starting points were so poor that they are considered among the worst the company has ever produced. It would be ideal if we could immediately see how good performers such as Stone Cold Steve Austin are, but unfortunately, there are moments in their career where they wished they could turn back time.
Who exactly made our list, and what did we consider to be among the worst debuts ever in the company's history?
#5 Rocky Maivia
Dwayne Johnson himself has been more than willing to criticise his look at the time, which included very poofy hair and faux-Polynesian tights. Needless to say, Rocky Maivia didn't go over very well. After a little bit of time, he put on quality matches that really showcased how athletic he was in the ring.
However, if there was something that appeared to be missing when it came to Maivia, it was personality. The high-fiving of fans and fist-pumping in the ring, the smiles and excited jumping on the way to the ring, went away with the 1980s and early 1990s.
Also read: 5 more worst debuts in WWE history
The era of the classic babyface was coming to an end. The character had very little edge or bite, and it became crucial to have him change, to better transition into the era that was to come in the WWE.
As Rocky Maivia, Johnson didn't show the personality that he has become synonymous with today. In all fairness to fans, all they can go on is what they are presented with. As fans know, The Rock certainly took all the hate that was directed towards Rocky Maivia and turned it into arguably the most popular character in the promotion's history.
#4 Edge
The buildup to the debuting Edge was well done, with well-assembled vignettes promoting his arrival. But while he went on to have an incredibly successful career, capturing multiple singles and tag team championships, his initial match in the company didn't turn out so well.
Unfortunately, an ill-executed move affected his debut. After attempting a somersault plancha over the top rope, the way he landed caused him to break the neck of his opponent. The opponent was Jose Estrada, one of Savio Vega's faction Los Boricuas.
Though Edge climbed back into the ring, his opponent could not. Estrada was legitimately hurt, but Edge had no idea what had happened. His reaction to Estrada not getting back into the ring was one of legitimate confusion.
He acted out of character at a crucial time, when he and the promotion wanted the fans to understand that character. Thankfully, with time Edge showcased his skills in the ring and on the mic. The unfortunate circumstances of his debut did not end up defining him.
#3 Fake Diesel/Razor Ramon
The departures of Scott Hall and Kevin Nash from WWE left fans disappointed and seeking alternatives to the product. As many will recall, WWE soon began teasing the return of both characters, which once again sparked interest from their fan base, who wanted to see what would eventually materialise.
After teasing the return of both 'characters', it was Glenn Jacobs and Rick Bognar who arrived on Raw, portraying 'Diesel' and 'Razor Ramon' respectively. It left a bitter taste in the mouth of fans that the characters weren't being played by the same men who had portrayed them previously.
While it may work on soap operas for one actor to replace another actor, it doesn't work for a weekly program with a live audience. As it turned out, Jacobs would later go on to become Kane, a character that has been around for an incredible twenty years.
For Bognar however, it didn't bode as well.
Once the Fake Razor character flopped, he didn't appear on WWE television again. It would have been interesting to see what could have happened if there was some effort put into this different spin on the characters, or if they could have moved away from it into new directions
#2 Kizarny
While the man behind the character has had a fairly successful career in professional wrestling, it could be that the world may simply not have been ready for all that was Kizarny. Today, Sinn Bodhi has a wrestling promotion that emphasises the entertainment element of wrestling.
As Kizarny, he also presented a bizarre element that is associated with the darker elements of the carnival. While the carnival is intended to be a fun place for the whole family, Kizarny represented everything that was wrong with that often-visited place.
In the same way that Doink the Clown would make fans feel uncomfortable because of his rather creepy nature, Kizarny also went in that direction.
In Kizarny's debut match, he faced former United States Champion, MVP, during MVP's losing streak. Kizarny had a quality about him that was unsettling, especially for children. The concept was dropped soon afterwards, as it was apparently considered morally offensive to the viewers.
While it is not quite clear if that was how the character was initially conceived, or represented how the performer interpreted the material. The character was later dropped.
#1 Phantasio
If you don't remember this character, it is sufficient to say that he will go down in the annals of WWE as one of the worst conceived gimmicks in the promotion's history.
While we aren't quite sure if he was or wasn't supposed to be part-mime or part-magician, what we are sure of was that his debut was both the first and last match in his WWE career.
The manner in which he won the match was as just as confusing as the character himself: he picked up the win after having his opposition lose their underwear without losing their other attire.
It was intended to be a comical gimmick that was reflective of the time when WWE was presenting several gimmicks to a live television audience in order to see which one would resonate with the fans.
Phantasio disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. While it isn't quite certain where the character went, what is certain is that it was an ill-conceived idea that didn't generate the type of reaction that WWE's creative team had hoped.
The character was odd, but certainly a reflection of WWE booking at the time.
Send us news tips at [email protected]
