5 Current WWE Superstars and their Attitude Era counterparts

In the history of WWE, there is perhaps no more fondly remembered time than the promotion's fabled Attitude Era. Often romanticized today, everything that followed has been compared to those groundbreaking years.

From storylines to TV ratings, there always seems to be some line between then and now. And while things will never be the same as they were before, people always find some form of nostalgia when it comes to The Worldwide Leader in Sports Entertainment.

The roster of WWE Superstars is no different. Many of today's performers have an Attitude Era doppelganger. There seems to be some need for us to connect today with yesterday, whether consciously or not.

With that in mind, here's a list of today's performers who can be compared to some of the stars of the legendary Attitude Era.

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#5 - Akira Tozawa and Tajiri

The two Japanese stars came to WWE as serious strikers with martial arts backgrounds. Both eventually adapted to the company's television style and embraced their more comedic sides.

Tajiri made his reputation in hard-hitting ECW bouts before coming to World Wrestling Entertainment. From there, he began associating with William Regal. The pair provided some of the funniest vignettes of the Attitude Era's closing months.

Tozawa followed much of the same path. While he has demonstrated his wrestling skills and won the Cruiserweight Championship, he's also found success in the never-ending chase for the cartoonish 24/7 title, which he's captured a comical 16 times.

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#4 - The Phenomenal AJ Styles and The Heartbreak Kid Shawn Michaels

While these two legendary grapplers don't necessarily look alike, they are often compared to one another.

AJ Styles' emergence as a WWE Superstar took place a few years after The Heartbreak Kid's departure from active competition. So it was almost as if Michaels was handing the torch off to The Phenomenal One in an indirect way.

Considered the most exciting in-ring performer of the 1990's, Michaels introduced a high-flying, high-energy and high-impact style that was ingrained into the American wrestling style. As for AJ? He took everything that The Showstopper created and molded it into his own.

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#3 - Alexa Bliss and WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus

Trish Stratus joined World Wrestling Entertainment as a former fitness model and was initially installed as a manager. She eventually made her way to the ring, and although it was slow going at first, Stratus progressed into one of the greatest female superstars of all time.

Stratus had her doubters at first, as many critics dismissed her as merely another 'diva'. For them, she was nothing more than eye candy and was not to be taken seriously.

But she went out there and proved them all wrong.

Following that same path, Alexa Bliss was considered a step behind her NXT counterparts like Sasha Banks, Bayley and others.

But over time, she also proved to be more than just a pretty face, becoming one of the most decorated female stars of the modern era. For her, the best years may still be ahead.

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#2 - Two former Olympians: Chad Gable and Kurt Angle

This is an easy comparison, as the two amateur stars not only look a bit alike, but wrestle the same mat-based style. As soon as Gable made his debut as part of American Alpha, the comparisons to the former gold medalist came immediately.

The two are so much alike that when the storyline was run that Kurt Angle had an out-of-wedlock son, most fans assumed it would be Gable. But in a twist, it turned out to be his American Alpha partner, Jason Jordan.

Unfortunately, the story went nowhere after Jordan was injured. One can only wonder what might have happened had it been Gable as part of the angle instead.

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#1 - Rhea Ripley and WWE Hall of Famer Chyna

This is the newest comparison on this list, as Rhea Ripley has been gaining a ton of momentum on WWE's main roster. Now part of Judgment Day with Finn Balor and Damian Priest, she has shown that she has enough muscle to back up her boys.

Ripley fits much of the same bill in her faction as the late, great Chyna did in D-Generation X. The two both have the same powerful physique, with a dark air of mystery surrounding them.

Time will tell if this young, up-and-coming superstar can match the accomplishments of Chyna. However, just a simple comparison like this - and those mentioned above - is an accomplishment in and of itself.