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The Attitude Era remains arguably the most iconic, defining period in WWE history.
Many of the modern-day Superstars in WWE were inspired and motivated by what and who they saw during the Attitude Era years, a period at the end of the 1990s and very early 2000s that saw the likes of Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock emerge into the spotlight and shine.
It was an era that provided countless memorable moments. The birth of D-Generation X and an altogether more adult-themed set of programming led to some controversial moments.
The Attitude Era's most controversial moments
Of all of those in the Attitude Era, one of the most surreal moments was the Montreal Screwjob. That took place in Canada at the cusp of the period that saw Bret Hart unseated as WWE Champion in his hometown.
Meanwhile, there can be little argument that Stone Cold Steve Austin's Attitude Era rivalry with Vince McMahon was one of the greatest of all time.
As with the 2020 era of WWE, the Attitude Era had a fairly stacked roster. In addition to the above, the likes of Triple H, The Undertaker, Edge, and Sable all featured heavily during this period. That meant that, despite the best efforts of the company, there were still plenty of instances of wrestlers not necessarily getting the television time or character development that some might feel they deserved.
Today we've decided to turn the clock back to the late 1990s and early 2000s, load ourselves up with some of the most underused talents throughout WWE and thrust them into the present-day picture. Who would shine? Here's our view:
#5. Owen Hart
Owen Hart came to prominence in WWE thanks to his rivalry with brother, Bret, in 1994. Over the following years, Owen would win tag team, Intercontinental and European gold in WWE, yet never really pushed on to that main event level.
Owen was probably one of the best mid-card performers of his generation. Still, it could well be argued that come the advent of the Attitude Era, Owen faded from prominence rather than excelling. We genuinely feel that a wrestler of Owen's tremendous ability and experience could have been the perfect WWE Champion. Indeed, the ideal Attitude Era feud would have been Owen v Shawn Michaels to avenge Bret's injustice in Montreal.
While we love the idea of an Owen at his prime tangling with the likes of AJ Styles and Samoa Joe, the great tragedy is, of course, the fact that he sadly died as a result of a fall at a WWE event in 1999, with the most iconic period in the company's history only just beginning to take hold.
#4. Steve Blackman
Steve Blackman came close to starring in WWE during the late 1980s, but became seriously ill and missed years of his wrestling career.
He did make what was his second WWE debut back in 1997, helping Vader after the Rocky Mountain Monster had been attacked by the Hart Foundation.
While it may have flown under the radar, Blackman actually boasted one of the most impressive undefeated WWE runs of the 1990s. His first loss, to Jeff Jarrett, came almost a year into his career. He enjoyed a memorable feud with Shane McMahon and was part of one of the most iconic moments of the year 2000 when he knocked the Boy Wonder off the top of the TitanTron
From there, Blackman starred in tag team wrestling, the Brawl for All tournament, and as a Hardcore specialist prior to his eventual departure from WWE in 2002.
The former martial arts fighter had six reigns as Hardcore Champion to his name but, despite his impressive physical condition and a no-frills attitude that proved popular, he never quite managed to move on to the next level.
#3. Taka Michinoku
When WWE brought in the Light Heavyweight Division in 1997, it promised a new era of breath-taking, high-flying wrestling that would be the perfect competition to WCW's Cruiserweight ranks.
The youngster tasked with spearheading that charge was Taka Michinoku. Taka made his debut in July 1997 and come the end of that year, was celebrating being the company's first-ever Light Heavyweight Champion after beating Devon Storm, Aguila, and Brian Christopher to win a tournament for the title. The finale took place on pay-per-view, too, granting Taka a massive audience.
The Light Heavyweight Championship was decidedly short-lived, as was Taka's WWE career. While he defended his title for a short while and then enjoyed a foray into tag team wrestling as part of the Kaientai faction, he never got to follow through on that early promise. He ultimately left the company for good in 2002.
With so many high-flyers in today's WWE, could you imagine Taka Michinoku against Ricochet, or as part of an NXT TakeOver?
#2. Gangrel
One of the most iconic characters from the Attitude Era must surely be Gangrel. The Vampire-like star, who made his way to the ring to bold, striking red lights and a goblet of (so we're led to believe) blood to spit in a style later adopted by Triple H.
He made his debut in the summer of 1998, and quickly went about setting up a faction that included two new recruits - a pair of raw, young performers by the name of Edge and Christian! The former had, of course, been wrestling as a singles star before then, but The Brood - as they were known - really put the Rated-R Superstar on the map.
Anyway, Gangrel promised plenty but, owing to the popularity and, later, the success of both Edge and Christian, the leader of the group actually finds himself forgotten and thrust into the background when people think of the trio.
Gangrel wrestled sporadically after Edge and Christian began to shine in their own right, but left WWE in 2001. Despite memorable feuds as part of The Brood, Gangrel's relatively lackluster career with the company ended without him having held a title.
Now, imagine Gangrel v Aleister Black...
#1. Flash Funk / 2 Cold Scorpio
At 54 years of age, 2 Cold Scorpio is arguably one of the greatest veterans on the independent circuit.
The Colorado native made his wrestling debut in 1985 and is still going strong, with an incredible indy career to his name as well as stints with ECW and WCW.
What probably goes under the radar - at least in his career - was Scorpio's stint with WWE, namely because he failed to really achieve or reach the heights that many might have expected for him.
Granted, some may feel that the WWE creative team wasn't overly kind to him. He made his debut as Flash Funk in 1996, dancing and jigging his way to the ring as an early version of Brodus Clay, complete with a dancing entourage.
He did revert back to his 'Scorpio' name before the end of the decade but was gone from WWE before 1999 was out, with a brief flurry in the Brawl for All tournament arguably his most high-profile achievement.
Considering he'd been active for 12 years by the time he made his WWE debut, we believe it's criminal that more wasn't made of his experience and skills. A 1998 version of 2 Cold Scorpio would, for instance, be a perfect fit for NXT, helping bring through the next generation of talent.
