Best & Worst Gimmick of Decade: 2000's

[Ruthless-RKO]

Simple enough, I have to admit, over the last decade, we've ahd some weird, funny and stupid gimmicks...

What I want to know is, what would you say was the best & worst gimmick of the last decade??

I would have to say the worst would have to be Vito, he was a cross-dresser, i think back in 2006..i mean what was that all about...i stopped watching wwe from 2005-2007, but i always seem to remember watching him, backstage was alright, but coming out to the ring like that...i mean that was a stupid gimmick...

The best gimmick, I'm going to have to choose...Santino, for his italian/american stereotype gimmick..he still uses it now..he's just really funny and what he does as well...maybe not the best in the ring, i mean he jobs now days...but the gimmick will always be remembered...

Hourable Mention for best!
John Cena - Rapper
JBL - Rich Businessman
Mr. Kennedy - Self-announced wrestler
Perry Saturn - In-love with Moppy!! (Don't know if this was a gimmick...but it was funny!!)

What would you choose??

Please keep this thread on topic...a poll will be released later..

 

[Storm316]

Best:

Undertaker's American Bad Ass days. It was a fresh look at Taker and I really enjoyed Big Evil during that time.

I would give Matt Hardy Version 2.0 a shout out too. His entrances were awesome with the little "Matt Facts." Good stuff.

Worst:

Mordecai...that was just terrible.

runner up. The Fake Kane angle they did. It had some promise, but it was just done terribly. And then it just straight up disappeared.

 

[Lazerball]

i agree bout Taker being the best, but only after he had his own music not Rollin or American Badass, when he won the title and hardcore title and literally just the beat the hell outa eveyone.
Worst was Simon Dean, the exersice guru, coming to the ring with his duffle bag of weights and other stupid shit, he was bad in the ring, and his promos drew a ton of heat cause it was jus soo horrible.

 

[Ferbian]

Worst: Great Khali back when he was acting as that Punjabi playboy (I don't know if he still does it, but it's god awful) and I found it to be ridiculous that WWE had him do his own version of Maria's Kiss Cam.

A honorable mention would be: Hornswoggle, While he does certainly fit into the gimmick and all, I just never found any interest in a Irish Leprechaun, it's not cause he's taking up air time for boring segments etc. it's just the gimmick as a whole I find ridiculous.

Best: Eddie Guerrero's Latino heat / lying cheating and stealing gimmick, I consider them to be very blended together, and I absolutely loved Eddie Guerrero, he was incredibly entertaining especially with the lying cheating and stealing, definitely my favorite gimmick.

Honorable mention(s):

CM Punk - Straight Edge messiah (was actually voted Wrestling Observer Newsletter best gimmick of 2009) he's been golden ever since his heel turn, and the gimmick as a whole is so well played on him because he's legitimate about it all.

Ron Simmons and John Bradshaw - APA: While the Acolytes / APA really started in the late 90's then I still think it was an absolutely golden gimmick, their backstage segments, their little office, everything about them was awesome, great tag team with a great gimmick.

 

[hacksawrowdyhogan]

Best Simon Dean the fitness guru ripping on fat people and all his vignettes. It is a shame that it never went farther like a cruiserweight belt.

Worst: Mordecai, you saw him in the white light one week on smackdown and did he ever appear a second time. I don't know what he was supposed to be but I think it was Noah of Ark fame.

 

[Mr.The Miz Fan]

The best gimmick of the 2000's may have to belong to CM Punk. The Straight Edge Savior has had the fans love him and hate him with pretty much the same gimmick. The way he uses the mic is amazing. Giving these speeches that get him so much hate from the crowd. He has used these gimmick for years and will for the 2010's. He will still be getting heat has well.

The worst gimmick is hands down was Eugene. Did he even have a gimmick? He was the mental nephew of Eric Bischoff. His gimmick was simply stupid. The fans loved him for some odd reason yet, people love hornswoggle to. All Eugene did was copy legends. The Rock and others are the reason Eugene was even cared about.

 

[Post]

Best--- It's tough to narrow this down, but here are some of my favorites.

1. Eddie's "Lie, Cheat, and Steal"
This was realistic. In life, people take short-cuts. Most of the time we see people get nailed for cheating, but Eddie showed us that it's not always bad to cheat. Sometimes, others deserve what they get. This took Eddie to a different level. I loved when he took off his boot to "cheat Kurt Angle out of the title at WM.

2. Jillian Hall as a singer. She got so much heat for her awful vocals, and the fact that she believed she was good made the gimmick even better.

3. Edge becomes "The Rated R Superstar." Edge went above and beyond pushing the envelope on appropriate for tv. It made him a great heel and was one of the last edgy (no pun intended) things WWE has done.




Worst

1. Hulk Hogan as Mr. America. This was embarrassing. It devalued Hogan and made a joke out of him. It was a ridiculous concept.

2. Chavo as Kerwin White. Chavo denounced his own people and conformed as a "typical" white, middle class man. He came to the ring complete with a golf cart, clubs, and a caddy. He even dyed his thinning hair blonde. Thank God this gimmick did not last.

3. Luke Gallows as Festus. Really...bells serve as his on/off switch. This was a classic stupid Smackdown story.

 

[Huggie-Bones]

So I read these forums on occasion but resisted making an account because nobody likes a troll....but this question is too good to pass up on.

Best
Discounting the truly amazing wrestling characters that carried in from the 90's like Rock, Austin, HHH, Kane, 'Taker, etc. you have to take a long look at the newer performers who have really made a name for themselves post-attitude era. My first instinct is to go with CM Punk for a number of reasons but this one primarily: The mic work to back it up! The man really believes what he is saying and that is not only the defining quality for a good heel but for the execution of a gimmick as well...and as everyone knows, the more a wrestler believes in his persona and molds it to himself the more succesful it will be(see Stone Cold). In addition to his mic work, the formation of a faction to support the gimmick is pure genius as well. As long as it doesn't push to the point of being too annoying like Steven Richard's RTC...nuff said.

Worst
I see Mr. Miz Fan beat me to Eugene...that was possibly the most ******ed (pun intended) angle I've ever seen on wrestling television(if you discount some of the crap that wcw was pulling in its latter days...ie the shocker). The fact that they expected the fans to accept that a mentally deficient 'superstar' could somehow compete with the favorite, intelligent, wrestlers was more of an insult than a storyline. The only ray of entertainment in the dismal black void of Dinsmore's gimmick was the tag team run with Bill Regal, but all of the charisma and panache came from Regal on that one. "Don't Eugene, you'll go blind!"

Simply Amazing Honorable Mentions
Even though it was very short, Edge and Christian's short run impersonating Los Conquistadors was probably one of the most creative things I've ever seen. It had everything a fan like me wanted to see. The crafty heels figuring out a way to beat the commishioner and face the Hardyz one more time in an era where tag team wrestling could possibly have stolen the show from the main eventers. "Si senior."
And as Storm316 pointed out, Matt Hardy's 2.0 gimmick was definately the most entertaining of the singles gimmicks that came from the big tag team breakups.

 

[naimliss]

okay there's a lot of horrible gimmicks. Currently I'd say is Orlando Jordan, okay we get it, he likes blokes but that doesn't need to be the basis for his character. C'mon he had Rob terrys face pasted over his nipples and he busted a load of lotion on his face. That's just pointless and super gay. but funk dat here's the runner ups:

Rico (gay)
Cody Deaner (joe dirt 2.0)

 

[wwe4ever]

very interesting topic....thanks for bringing it up
For the best gimmick...ummm....it's really hard to decide so im just gonna list some of my favorites without arranging them:
- Randy Orton's "legend killer"
- CM punk's "straightedge society"
-Kane's scary few months after he took off his mask,when he had that black towel on his head and his feud with RVD then when he tombstoned linda mcmahon....i was genuinely scared and had nightmares about him during that period.
- Santino's current italian/american gimmick
- matt hardy with the "facts" in his entrance ...really cool
- Undertaker's "american badass" with the motorbike
- John cena as a rapper
- eddie guerrero's "lie, cheat and steal"
- Miz's "awesome".... well, it really is.
- Kurt angle's "olympic gold medalist"....i know it's real but it was good
- Carlito's "cool with the apple" thing
- Hurricane's "what's up with that?"
-Mickie James' "trish obsession"
- Of course Kelly with the expose...that was smokin'
-And definitely DX with the funny segments
Now for the worst:

- Boogeyman (surprised nobody already mentioned that!!)
- Rico's gay thing
- Vito's cross-dressing
- Santino's "Santina"
- Chavo's kerwin white ( if the passing of eddie guerrero did one good thing, it would be ending this gimmick)
- Rosey's "Super Hero In Training"
- Eugene
- Khali's "punjabi playboy" ( when viscera did it, i kinda liked it!!)
- Jack Swagger currently
- Gallow's "festus"
- Jimmy wang yang's "redneck"

just want to point out that kane's current storyline on smackdown reminds me of the period from where he had just removed his mask....it's shaping up to be great.... i hope the wwe don't screw it like they've screwed a lot of potential gimmicks and storylines

 

[MoRtAnDaD]

best ones to me:

Mr. Kennedy, brought a new twist to the usual cocky heel style.
Lesnar, unstoppable destruction machine (ummm.. its not really a gimmick, its his true self)

worst:
khali, every incarnation of him.

 

[Legacy Reborn]

Best gimmick of the 2000's I would have to say is a group...the Main Event Mafia. I always had fun watching TNA when the MEM was running the show.

In WWE, I have to say Punk has the best gimmick with the SES.

Worst gimmicks....Mordecai sucked horribly...but one also not mentioned so far was Jesse turning into Slam Master J....now that was too funny to me.

 

["The Instant Classic"]

Best

There have been some good ones. Altough it hasn't fully flourished yet, I'm really into the "Viper" face gimmick. I was at WM XXVI and I heard a small child behind me scream (post Randy taking a bump) "But Randy... your supposed to be a viper"

Another good one would be Triple H's King of Kings gimmick... need I explain myself?

Worst
As some have mentioned before... The Spirit Squad again, no explanation needed

However another would be Black Reign. Goldust himself has said it sucked and I just found it embarrassing for him

 

[IrishCanadian25]

It occured in 2000, and it was awful.

Naked Mideon.

It pains me to post the pic, but I have to ensure you all realize how right I am.

Awful stuff. A quasi-talented (but grotesque) gentleman wearing nothing with a thong, a fanny pack, and boots? Why can't some wrestlers just say to Vince "you know, I don't think I need the work that badly...

 

[The Scarred One]

A lot of great and bad gimmicks have already been mentioned like Randy Orton, CM Punk and Mr. Kennedy so I'm going to do some that haven't already been mentioned.

Best:
MVP - When this guy debuted, it just clicked. He was this arrogant, overpaid and overindulged sports athlete similar to many sports stars out there and, even though it was just a storyline, he was the highest paid superstar on SmackDown without proving himself. Although I don't mind his current "Eye of the Tiger" gimmick, this one really made people notice him.

Christian - When he became Captain Charisma, it really showed that he had come a long way from his tag team with Edge. He cut his hair and got rid of the stupid sunglasses and fishnet shirts and adopted cooler wrestling tights and CC jumpsuits. He was still the creepy, little bastard that people loved to hate but he took it to a whole new level.

John Morrison - Although I enjoyed his work in MNM as Johnny Nitro, the transition to John Morrison was necessary for him, much like how Rocky Maivia became the Rock and Shawn Michaels became the Heartbreak Kid. He looked like a rock star and came off as one. It really made people notice him as a future world champion.

Monty Brown/Marcus Cor Von - When he started out as the Alpha Male, it really got people to notice him. How could anyone not? Here was this guy with mannersims of a jungle predator, ridiculous strength and agility and mic skills that although never rivaled the Rock's but did come pretty close (just look at his promo at Hard Justice 2006 when they had to stall for time while dealing with a fire in the Impact Zone, as he was pretty much improvising right then and there). It's a shame neither TNA nor WWE ever realized this guys full potential.

Worst:
Viscera - Around the time he became the World's Largest Love Machine, it just seemed stupid. Not only was it a ripoff of Mark Henry's Sexual Chocolate gimmick, but it just didn't fit Big Vis, especially when they did the storyline with Lilian Garcia. I was actually glad when they turned him into Big Daddy V.

Scotty Goldman - I don't know what the hell this guy's gimmick was suppose to be, but one thing was clear about it: JOBBER! You'd figure they would've done something better for the man also known as Colt Cabana, considering how a lot of Ring of Honor-bred stars seem like hot free agents. Oh well.

I'm sure there's plenty of others in mind, but I can't think of them right now.

 

[Goliath Uterus]

Well there are a few just terrible gimmicks the WWE has tryed to make work. Kerwin White was just a terrible idea and while i enjoyed it cause they were actually giving Chavo a push it was still just plain stupid, they should have just kept him Chavo and gave him the same push. Mordecai was just plain silly, the crowd didnt know what to say about him, it was just dumb. Jesse and Festus, I had high hopes for Jesse seeing as he is the son of Terry Gordy and all but of course the WWE just had to saddle him with this ridiculous gimmick. Eugene was stupid, pointless, waste of tv time/money and extremely offensive to a lot of people, i dunno why they even thought of this. Simon Dean was another guy who was good, but given a dumb gimmick to work with, he got good heat no doubt about it but no one is gonna go far with the gimmick of a personal trainer. Mr. America, this was stupid because there was no reason to do it, why the fuck didnt they just say it was Hulk Hogan, everyone knew, (i mean come on "I'm not Hulk Hogan brother!") it was pointless and the crowd would have enjoyed it a lot better if it was just Hulk Hogan. The Sprit Squad, they were just soo bad and annoying, im sooo happy that Dolph Ziggler wasnt held back the rest of his career cause of this horrible gimmick. The American Baddass, I personally hated this gimmick, it wasnt natural and I always thought he should have been the Deadman his whole career, I hated the music, I hated the bike, and i hated the gimmick overall. Kofi Kingston (accent days) the accent was just so stupid, he didnt sound Jamaican at all and it just held him back.

Lets move on to some of the best gimmicks, The Rock, everyone loves the Rock, the cocky sumbitch who was likely to find any object, turn that sumbitch sidewayz and stick it right up your candy/monkey ass, gotta love the Rock. Stone Cold Steve Austin, i dont have to say much here he's just a beer drinking ass kicking wild dude that everyone loved. The APA, these guys were so cool, they were like the enforcers of the WWF and they plain kicked ass. The Right To Censor, i loved this group cause it was at a time whent the WWF was getting really edgey and lots of silly groups were bitching about them and the right to censor made fun of all that, Stevie Richards is also just a funny ass dude. Kane, when he came out no one knew what was going on but they knew it was awesome, Kane was scary as shit and a great wrestler. Triple H, he is a great wrestler, no matter what anyone says, and could always get a great reaction, especially as a heel. Y2J Chris Jericho, he was such a arrogant cocky asshole that some people saw how great he was but others just hated him sooooo much, a truly great gimmick. Booker T, all his gimmicks were great but i really loved his Harlem Heat days, they were so cool and such a dominant tag team that he quickly became one of my favorites. Elijah Burke, both gimmicks he has had were great, i loved him with Terkay because he cold hide behind the big guy but also beat the hell outta people, not to mention he was a great heat magnet and a great worker, his Black Pope gimick though, is just fantastic, the best new gimmick i've seen in a while, people love the Pope thats for sure.

 

[Lee]

The Right To Censor, i loved this group cause it was at a time whent the WWF was getting really edgey and lots of silly groups were bitching about them and the right to censor made fun of all that, Stevie Richards is also just a funny ass dude.

This guy will go far. Without a shadow of a doubt the best gimmick of the 2000's were "Right to Censor" they succeeded in being a very over heel faction using simply mid to lower carders, Steven Richards, GoodFather, Val Venis, Ivory and Bull Buchanan. This was a group who did a promo on morality in the Bible belt and got booed out of the building. It was one of those ones that had the serious elements, the comedy element, something that was essentially a good thing done in the wrong way and it worked, kind of like the SES are doing now.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

Worst: Just about every tag-team they threw in the mix (The Dicks, The Heart Throbs, Gymini, etc etc etc). As for singles competitors, I have to say these guys:

Eugene- I enjoyed the kid approach with his character, but just like a certain movie quote, never go full ******. Heidenreich would fit in this as well.

DDP- Great wrestler, bad gimmick. I'm talking about the stalker angle. Works wonders for Goldust, but completely buried Dallas Page.

Suicide- Guy based on a video game character is doomed to fail.

Best: As far as tag-teams go, MCMG, Booker T & Goldust, and the Straight Edge Society are definitely in there. As for singles:

Sean O'haire- Devil's Advocate gimmick. Had TONS of potential.

Chuck Palumbo- Psychotic Biker gimmick. Another one that had potential.

Randy Orton- Legend Killer or Viper, he has held onto perhaps the best angles in recent memory.

 

[TheAnimal]

I think it has got to be Punk because it is completely different to anything WWE has ever had. Eddies lie, cheat and steal and even the legend killer gimmicks were brilliant too i think.

Worst i think is Mordecai because it was ridiculous and he looked ridiculous. It was supposed to be like Undertaker i think but they just fucked it up.
The fake Kane one was crap, it made no sense and they just had him beat him up and sent him off right in the middle of the feud.
Jimmy WangYang was crap too i think. Even his name is a joke, but i think the fact he dresssed up like a cowboy was stupid. He is a good worker, but they wasted his ability.

 

[thejuliomartinez]

I think the best gimmick has to be diarrhea sandwich (just kidding) well I say it is the cm punk "Messiah" gimmick. He is very good on the mic and can back it up in the ring.
The worst is definitely Eugene. WWE made mentally ******ed people look bad.

 

[greatmuta]

Best: For me was the Edge & Lita combination. It was for a fairly short period of time but they garnered as much heat as any duo in a long time. Perhaps it was because of their real-life drama, but the crowd genuinely hated them and they played it like a freaking flute. Awesome.

Worst: Mark Henry or maybe it's his lack of a gimmick. They've tried everything from heel to face from monster to lover. Nothing gets this guy over. I think the KoolAid outfit he's currently wearing is almost as bad as the Hershey Bar costume he wore while dating Mae Young. To quote Ron Simmons, "Damn!"

 

[mister_b1LL]

Worst: Kizarny. What? Who? Exactly. I was about to search YT for some horrible gimmicks and he popped up and I was like, "Oh yeah, now I remember him."

Best: Lots of great candidates, but I have to say SES CM Punk is money. Without a legitimate straight edge guy like CM Punk in the wrestling business this gimmick would have never even been thought of. In all seriousness many of the gimmicks that have been around this decade you could have put on somebody else and it would have made him a star. You could have put Eddie's Lying, Cheating, and Stealing gimmick on Super Crazy and would have worked. You could have made the rapper gimmick work for Vito. And if I may be so bold, but if you put a big cowboy hat and a black trenchcoat on any big guy in the wrestling business, you could have made the Undertaker work with anyone with the right treatment.

Now don't think for a second I'm trying to downplay the success of Guerrero, Cena or the Undertaker, but CM Punk's gimmick requires legitimacy in order for it to work. The other gimmicks didn't exactly need it. That's why I think CM Punk's is the best gimmick. Viva la Straightedge!

 

[JuviJuiceIsLoose]

Best- MVP. I LOVE the original MVP character. Obviously, he's a play on the highly paid, trash talking athlete like Terrell Owens and Chad Johnson. He just played that role to perfection with the cockiness and his ability to back it up in the ring. I thought he was the best thing on Smackdown during his feud with Matt Hardy when he was the United States Champion, and 1/2 of the WWE Tag Team Champions at the same time! Just so awesome!


Worst- Kizarny. Oh, for the love of God, Kizarny! You notice that the WWE hasn't done any of those hyped up debuts vignettes anymore after this atrocity! The way he talked didn't make any fucking sense. He was just bad! It's a shame, because I heard he's a good wrestler. He just got dealt this horrible gimmick!

 

[Supernova]

As much as I'm not a fan of the guy, Cena's rapping gave him a platform to stand out from everyone else. It was successful because it got him over and was failry entertaining too.

 

[RKO FAN#!]

the best- American bad ass riding on a motorcycle down to the ring he was just a regular guy at that time.
the worst- Simon deen and the Simon system. i mean common a fitness guru
also the male cheerleaders the spirit squad that annoyed the crap out of me,