4 WWE gimmicks that deserved more

As much as we watch pro wrestling for the in-ring action and the spectacle of each event, one cannot argue against the importance of gimmicks. This industry has practically been built upon the shoulders of captivating characters. During the patriotic period of the 1980s, Hulk Hogan was the top face. In the grungy, rebellious era of the 1990s, no one personified the every man like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. Of course, these are examples of characters that succeeded.

Others, however, slipped into obscurity when, arguably, they shouldn’t have. One can make the counter-argument that some of these characters deserved to fade, as they stood little chance of appealing to broad audiences. What about those that shouldn’t have gone away, though? While everyone has their own understanding of what “underrated” entails, it’s easy to imagine that some gimmicks, in professional wrestling, deserved better than what they received.

Here are just 4 of those very gimmicks, and we’ll start off with one that could make anyone’s skin crawl.

#4: Rick Rude

If there was a face that every WWE fan in the late 80s wanted to punch. Rick Rude exuded arrogance, and why shouldn’t he have? Along with being one of the better workers of the time, he had a body that was practically chiselled out of stone.

He could call arenas of people fat and unwashed – “sweathogs,” and it wouldn’t matter. Rude knew how talented he was, being a former Intercontinental Champion. Shouldn’t someone like that be primed for the WWE Championship?

It’d be easy to sit here and say that politics held him down, as rumours have spread about Hogan being reluctant to feud with Rude on TV. Supposedly, Hogan was intimidated by Rude’s superior definition and his legitimate tough guy background.

However, those rumours are largely substantiated, so your guess is as good as mine. It does not change the fact that the Ravishing One deserved better, as his gimmick is one that can be considered one of the most timeless.

#3: Doink The Clown

A far cry from the more kooky babyface WWE now presents him as the original Doink the Clown was nothing short of intimidating. He made his in-ring debut in 1993 and had the biggest penchant for cruel humour.

From attacking Crush with a prosthetic arm to dumping a bucket of water onto Bret Hart's family members in the audience, he wanted nothing more than to amuse himself at the cost of others. A sociopathic clown, to say the least, and a fun heel that Matt Borne portrayed to perfection.

This all changed, though, when he turned face in September of that year. As the story goes, Borne was let go from WWE due to drug problems, which allowed other people to come in and play the Doink character, this time in the role of a fan favourite.

As time went on, though, WWE fans started to turn against cartoonish gimmicks; obviously, this included Doink. If you were to ask any old-school World Wrestling Federation fan, they may tell you that the clown was better when he had an edge.

#2: Mr Kennedy

Kennedy was nothing short of a loudmouth when he debuted in 2005. Not only was his confidence off of the charts, with an old-school ceiling microphone to announce himself, but he was a good wrestler as well.

He was such a good performer, in fact, that he ended up winning the Money in the Bank match in 2007. What halted his progression, though? In all honesty, it depends on who you ask.

Many people would claim that Mr Kennedy was injury-prone, as he lost his Money in the Bank opportunity due to an injury, which wound up being less severe than expected.

Others would claim that he had an attitude problem, which made him less than popular with certain people backstage. Whatever the case may have been, Kennedy didn’t quite reach the heights he should have. Not even TNA seemed to take advantage of him, which is even more unfortunate.

#1: The Nexus

This is a team that had everything going for it. Upon their iconic debut at the end of the June 7, 2010 edition of RAW, the former NXT season one rookies made a strong statement: you made fools out of us, but we’re not joking now.

Their attacks on various WWE talent, ranging from Evan Bourne to John Cena, established The Nexus as a credible threat. For a couple of months, anyway.

What started the downhill spiral for The Nexus was the team’s loss at SummerSlam, which was capped off by John Cena, who had previously been DDT’d on the exposed concrete outside of the ring, eliminating both Justin Gabriel and Wade Barrett to win the match for his team.

From that point on, The Nexus slowly disintegrated until the brand was so watered down that not even CM Punk could revitalize it. While it’s fortunate that WWE caught fire with The Shield, a more successful stable, The Nexus is a textbook example of what poor booking can do to a band of potential upstarts and, by proxy, a gimmick that should have gone places.