First of all, this is going to be a pretty long post. I don't expect anyone to read the whole thing. But if anyone does, feel free to comment and tell me what you think. If there are any gimmicks you feel are worse than these, than do tell. But Im pretty sure these are the cream of the crap.
40)The Mountie
The Mountie somehow became Intercontinental Champion, which is a great achievement for someone with a gimmick this bad. The gimmick was so controversial that Jacques Rougeau couldn't perform under The Mountie name when wrestling in Canada. Mountie would electrecute his enemies with a shock stick but the lame sound effects were clearly pre-recorded. Worst of all was his catchphrase "I'm the Mountie!" Wonder how long it took to come up with that one?
39)Rosey, the S.H.I.T. (Super Hero in Training)
As if having a superhero gimmick like Hurricane wasn't enough, WWE had to go and give him a sidekick with an oh-so-clever acronim for a nickname.
38)Papa Shango
I actually liked this gimmick as a child, but looking back now it was obviously one of the worst in history. Three words: Ultimate Warrior vomiting. That is all.
37)Repo Man
Here's another gimmick I liked as a kid. Only because even as a child I could figure out that it was Demolition Smash under the mask. The tattoo was a dead giveaway. I loved Demolition, so I had to love Repo Man. For some reason he wore a Lone Ranger type mask and carried a rope. What that had to do with being a repo man is beyond me.
36)The Berzerker
Huss Huss Huss. As Frank Costanza once said to Elaine, "what the hell does that mean?" His career highlight is that he once attempted to stab Undertaker with his obviously phony sword. He missed. And so did WWE with this horrendous gimmick.
35)Nailz
Boy, WWE was really pumping out the bad gimmicks back in 1992. Here's another. Played by Kevin Walchoz, Nailz was an ex-con who's only feud was with Big Bossman. Thankfully this horrible character was put out of it's misery after Kevin assaulted Vince McMahon backstage over money issues. But no, he didn't go to prison for it. Although, that would have been ironic. Then again, Vince is a bigger crook than Nailz ever was.
34)Spirit Squad
Does a team of male cheerleaders sound like a good idea to anyone? No? Me neither. But for some reason it did to Vince McMahon. Remember the spirit squad next time you here someone call Vince McMahon a creative genius. That genius label gets tossed around way too much nowadays.
33)Waylon Mercy
Dan Spivey played Waylon Mercy, a gimmick based on Robert DeNiro's character in the movie Cape Fear. Unlike when The Simpsons brilliantly spoofed Cape Fear using Sideshow Bob, WWE's parody fell flat. Watching a Waylon Mercy match is about as painful as Bob stepping on all those rakes.
32)Damien Demento
A crazy man character who hailed from "the outer reaches of your mind". Oooookay. His only highlight is main eventing the very first RAW against Undertaker. He was a very short lived character that was a clear ripoff of King Curtis Iaukea. Just don't call him a jobber. He doesn't like that.
31)Phantasio
Blink and you missed him. He was a mime/magician character who appeared only once on tv. He wore a mask to the ring and when he removed it he had identical facepaint underneath. So what was the point of the mask? During his one and only match, he snuck up behind his opponent and "magically" removed his boxers, allowing him to secure a roll-up victory. He also removed referee Earl Hebner's boxers before disappearing forever.
30)PN News
Before John Cena, there was another rapper gimmick, only it was terrible. Take John Cena, add 200 pounds, take away the muscles and charisma, and you have PN News.
29)Kizarny
Kizarny, a member of a carnival who spoke in "carny talk", wrestled in several dark matches before making his debut to a dead crowd in January of 2009. By March, he had been released.
28)Disco Inferno
Disco was still relevant in the 90's right? No? It wasn't? Well someone forgot to tell WCW creative that.
27)Heidenreich
Before R-Truth's "little jimmy", there was Heidenriech's "little johnny". Though it was later revealed that "Little Johnny" was supposed to be a doll similar to Al Snow's Head, the storyline was scrapped. Heidenriech would return with an even worse gimmick though, a poetry reading heel. Unlike Lanny Poffo though, Heidenreich sucked at poetry. He also sucked as a Road Warrior.
26)Duke The Dumpster Droese
He was a garbage man. And in 1996, WWE FINALLY realized this gimmick wasn't working and decided to throw out the trash man.
25)The Goon
It seemed that in the early '90s, every gimmick wrestler had to have an occupation. Goon was a Hockey Player. His wrestling boots even looked like skates. I don't know if this offended me more as a Hockey fan or a wrestling fan.
24)Paul Burchill
What happens when WWE tries to ripoff Johnny Depp's Pirates Of The Caribean character? You get a short lived gimmick that got almost zero crowd reaction.
23)Kerwin White
Chavo denounces his mexican heritage and becomes a golf cart driving white guy. I'm tempted to write a joke here about how the wrong Guerrero died, but this was not really Chavo's fault. I have a hunch this was a Micheal Hayes idea. Just a hunch.
22)Misfits In Action
Chavo Guerrero makes back to back appearances, this time in M.I.A, along with Hugh G.Rection. Get it? Huge Erection? Ahahahaha. Oh wait, thats not funny at all. Just to show you how badly WCW was booking its talent during their dying days, they actually had Booker T in this stable of jobbers. What a waste of Booker's skills. Ironically enough, due to terrible gimmicks like M.I.A, WCW would find itself M.I.A from the wrestling business altogether just a few short months later.
21)ZEUS
Zeus was a character in Hulk Hogans horrible movie "No Holds Barred". To market the movie, WWE had the Zeus character become a wrestler and fight Hogan in the WWF. Zeus never won a match. Which means he has as many wins in the ring as Hulk Hogan has good reviews for his movies: NONE. Ironically, Zeus, played by Tony Lister, faired much better in the world of Hollywood than Holllywood Hulk Hogan ever did. Most recently, Zeus starred in "The Dark Knight". Meanwhile Hulk Hogan is still trying to get someone to look at his Mr.Nanny 2 script.
20)GLACIER
In 1996, WCW thought it would be a good idea to try and appeal to the fans of the widely popular Mortal Kombat video games. So they ripped off Sub Zero and called him Glacier. Turns out it was a terrible idea. Not only terrible, but terribly costly as well. Glaciers ring gear was estimated to have cost $35,000 alone. In addition to the gear, estimates state that production costs for Glacier's entrance cost almost half a million dollars. The costume and entrance were scrapped after only four matches. What a waste.
19)Mortis
Glacier's arch nemesis. Another Mortal Kombat ripoff. Thankfully WCW went bankrupt before they could ever ripoff other popular 90's video game characters such as Crash Bandicoot or Sonic The Hedgehog.
18)Wrath
See Mortis.
17)The Boogeyman
Marty Wright tried out for tough enough but lied about his age and was disqualified. So, to prove he'd do anything to get a job with WWE, he agreed to eat worms and crawls around on the floor. Boogeyman is the latest in a long line of characters created by VinceMcMahon to feature African American men with painted faces behaving like untamed savages. You stay classy Vince.
16)eUgEne
Eric Bischoff's special needs nephew. What you might not know, is that Nick Dinsmore, the man behind Eugene, holds the record for most reigns and longest combined reign in Ohio Valley Wrestling history, and that is as himself, not Eugene.
15)That 70's Guy: Mike Awesome
Despite the fact that WCW already employed a guy using the stuck in the 70's gimmick, that being Disco Inferno, they decided to double down on a gimmick that had already failed. How does that old adage go? "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it?" Yeah, that's WCW.
14)Xanta Claus
Santa's evil twin brother from the south pole. Actually, it was Balls Mahoney. Thankfully the gimmick only lasted for the holiday season of 1995.
13)Isaac Yankem
Played by Glen Jacobs (kane), Yankem was Jerry Lawler's evil dentist, brought to the WWF to eliminate Bret Hart. His teeth were rotten and yellow and his entrance music was the sound of a dentist drill. Which makes you wonder why did Lawler ever go to this guy for dental work in the first place? I guess we shouldnt let facts get in the way of a good story.
12)Friar Ferguson/Bastion Booger
Both were played by the late Mike Shaw. Not sure which was worse. Friar Ferguson was a "mad monk" character which WWE dropped after receiving complaints from the catholic church. For the first time ever, I actually agree with the catholic church about something. But one bad gimmick only led to another and thus Bastion Booger was born. I've never really been able to figure out what the Booger character was supposed to be. To the best of my knowledge, Bastion Booger was just a giant, ugly, overgrown baby. Sort of like Newt Gingrich.
11)Seven
Seven's WCW debut and exit came on the same night. He floated from the entrance ramp to the ring, with lights and ambiance very similar to The Undertaker. But when he got to the ring, Seven (Dustin Runnels) performed a worked shoot where he downplayed his former character Goldust as well as his current gimmick. This is what WCW considered creative back in their dying days. Worked shoots were all the rage in WCW's final years. That's probably why it was their final years.
10)Mantaur
Just google mantaur if youve never seen him. How on earth did a fat guy with a Bull head on his shoulders ever get the green light from Vince? Who thought this was a good idea?? Amazingly, Mantaur is NOT the worst gimmick on this list. That's saying something.
9)Arachnaman
Here's another bright idea from the brilliant minds at WCW. Let's take Spiderman, change the colors slightly and package him as a wrestler! Marvel Comics sued WCW, forcing the gimmick to be dropped.
8)Max Moon
Even the characters from Ed Wood's epically bad b-movie "Plan 9 From Outer Space" had more authenticity than this wwf spaceman character from 1992. What a glorious year for crappy gimmicks that was. The bad gimmick class of 92 deserve there own reunion.
7)THE YETI!
Debuting in a block of ice around Halloween on Monday Nitro, Ron Reis was dubbed The Yeti (or "Ye-tay!" if youre Tony Schiavone). When the ice thawed, The Yeti was revealed to actually be a mummy. Thats right, a mummy. Even though the Yeti is another name for The Sasquatch, WCW thought "fuck it, we'll make him a mummy". The Yeti joined The Giant in attacking Hulk Hogan, performing a poorly executed tandem bear-hug which made it look like Yeti was dry humping Hogan. Luckily, this abomination of a gimmick was only used a few times. After that the character was changed to a ninja and was billed as "Super Giant Ninja", which sounds like a bad japanese game show mascot.
6)OZ
Before Kevin Nash, before Deisel, even before Vinnie Vegas, there was Oz. Managed by Merlin the Wizard, Kevin Nash's Oz dressed in a long green robe and was based on the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Beause what's more intimidating than The Wizard of Oz?
5)Battle Kat
WWE was sued by Mattel for trademark infringement over this gimmick which involved jobber Dean Peters dressing up in a cat suit and using his cat like reflexes to defeat the Brooklyn Brawler. Unfortunately for him, Battle Kat didnt exactly have 9 lives. In fact, he didnt even have 9 weeks. He was released less one month after his debut.
4)Mr.America
Hulk Hogan puts on mask and claims he isnt Hulk Hogan. Mr. America even passed a lie dectector test to prove he wasn't Hogan. In the end, it was revealed that (spoiler alert) Mr. America was indeed Hulk Hogan. Hogan legitimately quit WWE shortly after this gimmick. I wonder why?
3)Kiss Demon
In 1999 Eric Bischoff struck a deal with the band KISS to create a wrestler based on the theme of the overrated rock band of the same name. The result was KISS Demon. KISS Demon was supposed to be the start of a stable called "Warriors of KISS", which would include a member who represented each member of KISS. But when Bischoff left WCW, the KISS Demon left with him. No word on whether WCW had any other rock band related characters in the works. Might I suggest, "The Beatles"? "Nobody Beats the Beatles....The Beatles Beat you!" As corny as that sounds, its really not any worse than Kiss Demon.
2)Gobbledy Gooker
Leading up to the 1990 Survivor Series, a mysterious egg had been on display, and was promised to hatch at the event. The result was Hector Guerrero in a chicken suit. The event was so hyped and the result was so terrible that it was an instant failure. The announcers and commentators, Mean Gene, Gorilla Monsoon and Roddy Piper all tried to play up the Gooker, but it didn't help. When children as young as 4 are booing, you know you've done something epically wrong.
1)The Shockmaster
What do you get when you mix Fred Ottman (aka Tugboat), a Star Wars Stormtrooper mask covered in glitter, and a piece of lumber carelessly placed on the floor? One of the most unintentionally funny moments in television history. Not to mention the worst gimmick ever.
40)The Mountie
The Mountie somehow became Intercontinental Champion, which is a great achievement for someone with a gimmick this bad. The gimmick was so controversial that Jacques Rougeau couldn't perform under The Mountie name when wrestling in Canada. Mountie would electrecute his enemies with a shock stick but the lame sound effects were clearly pre-recorded. Worst of all was his catchphrase "I'm the Mountie!" Wonder how long it took to come up with that one?
39)Rosey, the S.H.I.T. (Super Hero in Training)
As if having a superhero gimmick like Hurricane wasn't enough, WWE had to go and give him a sidekick with an oh-so-clever acronim for a nickname.
38)Papa Shango
I actually liked this gimmick as a child, but looking back now it was obviously one of the worst in history. Three words: Ultimate Warrior vomiting. That is all.
37)Repo Man
Here's another gimmick I liked as a kid. Only because even as a child I could figure out that it was Demolition Smash under the mask. The tattoo was a dead giveaway. I loved Demolition, so I had to love Repo Man. For some reason he wore a Lone Ranger type mask and carried a rope. What that had to do with being a repo man is beyond me.
36)The Berzerker
Huss Huss Huss. As Frank Costanza once said to Elaine, "what the hell does that mean?" His career highlight is that he once attempted to stab Undertaker with his obviously phony sword. He missed. And so did WWE with this horrendous gimmick.
35)Nailz
Boy, WWE was really pumping out the bad gimmicks back in 1992. Here's another. Played by Kevin Walchoz, Nailz was an ex-con who's only feud was with Big Bossman. Thankfully this horrible character was put out of it's misery after Kevin assaulted Vince McMahon backstage over money issues. But no, he didn't go to prison for it. Although, that would have been ironic. Then again, Vince is a bigger crook than Nailz ever was.
34)Spirit Squad
Does a team of male cheerleaders sound like a good idea to anyone? No? Me neither. But for some reason it did to Vince McMahon. Remember the spirit squad next time you here someone call Vince McMahon a creative genius. That genius label gets tossed around way too much nowadays.
33)Waylon Mercy
Dan Spivey played Waylon Mercy, a gimmick based on Robert DeNiro's character in the movie Cape Fear. Unlike when The Simpsons brilliantly spoofed Cape Fear using Sideshow Bob, WWE's parody fell flat. Watching a Waylon Mercy match is about as painful as Bob stepping on all those rakes.
32)Damien Demento
A crazy man character who hailed from "the outer reaches of your mind". Oooookay. His only highlight is main eventing the very first RAW against Undertaker. He was a very short lived character that was a clear ripoff of King Curtis Iaukea. Just don't call him a jobber. He doesn't like that.
31)Phantasio
Blink and you missed him. He was a mime/magician character who appeared only once on tv. He wore a mask to the ring and when he removed it he had identical facepaint underneath. So what was the point of the mask? During his one and only match, he snuck up behind his opponent and "magically" removed his boxers, allowing him to secure a roll-up victory. He also removed referee Earl Hebner's boxers before disappearing forever.
30)PN News
Before John Cena, there was another rapper gimmick, only it was terrible. Take John Cena, add 200 pounds, take away the muscles and charisma, and you have PN News.
29)Kizarny
Kizarny, a member of a carnival who spoke in "carny talk", wrestled in several dark matches before making his debut to a dead crowd in January of 2009. By March, he had been released.
28)Disco Inferno
Disco was still relevant in the 90's right? No? It wasn't? Well someone forgot to tell WCW creative that.
27)Heidenreich
Before R-Truth's "little jimmy", there was Heidenriech's "little johnny". Though it was later revealed that "Little Johnny" was supposed to be a doll similar to Al Snow's Head, the storyline was scrapped. Heidenriech would return with an even worse gimmick though, a poetry reading heel. Unlike Lanny Poffo though, Heidenreich sucked at poetry. He also sucked as a Road Warrior.
26)Duke The Dumpster Droese
He was a garbage man. And in 1996, WWE FINALLY realized this gimmick wasn't working and decided to throw out the trash man.
25)The Goon
It seemed that in the early '90s, every gimmick wrestler had to have an occupation. Goon was a Hockey Player. His wrestling boots even looked like skates. I don't know if this offended me more as a Hockey fan or a wrestling fan.
24)Paul Burchill
What happens when WWE tries to ripoff Johnny Depp's Pirates Of The Caribean character? You get a short lived gimmick that got almost zero crowd reaction.
23)Kerwin White
Chavo denounces his mexican heritage and becomes a golf cart driving white guy. I'm tempted to write a joke here about how the wrong Guerrero died, but this was not really Chavo's fault. I have a hunch this was a Micheal Hayes idea. Just a hunch.
22)Misfits In Action
Chavo Guerrero makes back to back appearances, this time in M.I.A, along with Hugh G.Rection. Get it? Huge Erection? Ahahahaha. Oh wait, thats not funny at all. Just to show you how badly WCW was booking its talent during their dying days, they actually had Booker T in this stable of jobbers. What a waste of Booker's skills. Ironically enough, due to terrible gimmicks like M.I.A, WCW would find itself M.I.A from the wrestling business altogether just a few short months later.
21)ZEUS
Zeus was a character in Hulk Hogans horrible movie "No Holds Barred". To market the movie, WWE had the Zeus character become a wrestler and fight Hogan in the WWF. Zeus never won a match. Which means he has as many wins in the ring as Hulk Hogan has good reviews for his movies: NONE. Ironically, Zeus, played by Tony Lister, faired much better in the world of Hollywood than Holllywood Hulk Hogan ever did. Most recently, Zeus starred in "The Dark Knight". Meanwhile Hulk Hogan is still trying to get someone to look at his Mr.Nanny 2 script.
20)GLACIER
In 1996, WCW thought it would be a good idea to try and appeal to the fans of the widely popular Mortal Kombat video games. So they ripped off Sub Zero and called him Glacier. Turns out it was a terrible idea. Not only terrible, but terribly costly as well. Glaciers ring gear was estimated to have cost $35,000 alone. In addition to the gear, estimates state that production costs for Glacier's entrance cost almost half a million dollars. The costume and entrance were scrapped after only four matches. What a waste.
19)Mortis
Glacier's arch nemesis. Another Mortal Kombat ripoff. Thankfully WCW went bankrupt before they could ever ripoff other popular 90's video game characters such as Crash Bandicoot or Sonic The Hedgehog.
18)Wrath
See Mortis.
17)The Boogeyman
Marty Wright tried out for tough enough but lied about his age and was disqualified. So, to prove he'd do anything to get a job with WWE, he agreed to eat worms and crawls around on the floor. Boogeyman is the latest in a long line of characters created by VinceMcMahon to feature African American men with painted faces behaving like untamed savages. You stay classy Vince.
16)eUgEne
Eric Bischoff's special needs nephew. What you might not know, is that Nick Dinsmore, the man behind Eugene, holds the record for most reigns and longest combined reign in Ohio Valley Wrestling history, and that is as himself, not Eugene.
15)That 70's Guy: Mike Awesome
Despite the fact that WCW already employed a guy using the stuck in the 70's gimmick, that being Disco Inferno, they decided to double down on a gimmick that had already failed. How does that old adage go? "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it?" Yeah, that's WCW.
14)Xanta Claus
Santa's evil twin brother from the south pole. Actually, it was Balls Mahoney. Thankfully the gimmick only lasted for the holiday season of 1995.
13)Isaac Yankem
Played by Glen Jacobs (kane), Yankem was Jerry Lawler's evil dentist, brought to the WWF to eliminate Bret Hart. His teeth were rotten and yellow and his entrance music was the sound of a dentist drill. Which makes you wonder why did Lawler ever go to this guy for dental work in the first place? I guess we shouldnt let facts get in the way of a good story.
12)Friar Ferguson/Bastion Booger
Both were played by the late Mike Shaw. Not sure which was worse. Friar Ferguson was a "mad monk" character which WWE dropped after receiving complaints from the catholic church. For the first time ever, I actually agree with the catholic church about something. But one bad gimmick only led to another and thus Bastion Booger was born. I've never really been able to figure out what the Booger character was supposed to be. To the best of my knowledge, Bastion Booger was just a giant, ugly, overgrown baby. Sort of like Newt Gingrich.
11)Seven
Seven's WCW debut and exit came on the same night. He floated from the entrance ramp to the ring, with lights and ambiance very similar to The Undertaker. But when he got to the ring, Seven (Dustin Runnels) performed a worked shoot where he downplayed his former character Goldust as well as his current gimmick. This is what WCW considered creative back in their dying days. Worked shoots were all the rage in WCW's final years. That's probably why it was their final years.
10)Mantaur
Just google mantaur if youve never seen him. How on earth did a fat guy with a Bull head on his shoulders ever get the green light from Vince? Who thought this was a good idea?? Amazingly, Mantaur is NOT the worst gimmick on this list. That's saying something.
9)Arachnaman
Here's another bright idea from the brilliant minds at WCW. Let's take Spiderman, change the colors slightly and package him as a wrestler! Marvel Comics sued WCW, forcing the gimmick to be dropped.
8)Max Moon
Even the characters from Ed Wood's epically bad b-movie "Plan 9 From Outer Space" had more authenticity than this wwf spaceman character from 1992. What a glorious year for crappy gimmicks that was. The bad gimmick class of 92 deserve there own reunion.
7)THE YETI!
Debuting in a block of ice around Halloween on Monday Nitro, Ron Reis was dubbed The Yeti (or "Ye-tay!" if youre Tony Schiavone). When the ice thawed, The Yeti was revealed to actually be a mummy. Thats right, a mummy. Even though the Yeti is another name for The Sasquatch, WCW thought "fuck it, we'll make him a mummy". The Yeti joined The Giant in attacking Hulk Hogan, performing a poorly executed tandem bear-hug which made it look like Yeti was dry humping Hogan. Luckily, this abomination of a gimmick was only used a few times. After that the character was changed to a ninja and was billed as "Super Giant Ninja", which sounds like a bad japanese game show mascot.
6)OZ
Before Kevin Nash, before Deisel, even before Vinnie Vegas, there was Oz. Managed by Merlin the Wizard, Kevin Nash's Oz dressed in a long green robe and was based on the book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Beause what's more intimidating than The Wizard of Oz?
5)Battle Kat
WWE was sued by Mattel for trademark infringement over this gimmick which involved jobber Dean Peters dressing up in a cat suit and using his cat like reflexes to defeat the Brooklyn Brawler. Unfortunately for him, Battle Kat didnt exactly have 9 lives. In fact, he didnt even have 9 weeks. He was released less one month after his debut.
4)Mr.America
Hulk Hogan puts on mask and claims he isnt Hulk Hogan. Mr. America even passed a lie dectector test to prove he wasn't Hogan. In the end, it was revealed that (spoiler alert) Mr. America was indeed Hulk Hogan. Hogan legitimately quit WWE shortly after this gimmick. I wonder why?
3)Kiss Demon
In 1999 Eric Bischoff struck a deal with the band KISS to create a wrestler based on the theme of the overrated rock band of the same name. The result was KISS Demon. KISS Demon was supposed to be the start of a stable called "Warriors of KISS", which would include a member who represented each member of KISS. But when Bischoff left WCW, the KISS Demon left with him. No word on whether WCW had any other rock band related characters in the works. Might I suggest, "The Beatles"? "Nobody Beats the Beatles....The Beatles Beat you!" As corny as that sounds, its really not any worse than Kiss Demon.
2)Gobbledy Gooker
Leading up to the 1990 Survivor Series, a mysterious egg had been on display, and was promised to hatch at the event. The result was Hector Guerrero in a chicken suit. The event was so hyped and the result was so terrible that it was an instant failure. The announcers and commentators, Mean Gene, Gorilla Monsoon and Roddy Piper all tried to play up the Gooker, but it didn't help. When children as young as 4 are booing, you know you've done something epically wrong.
1)The Shockmaster
What do you get when you mix Fred Ottman (aka Tugboat), a Star Wars Stormtrooper mask covered in glitter, and a piece of lumber carelessly placed on the floor? One of the most unintentionally funny moments in television history. Not to mention the worst gimmick ever.
. Better still, he was given a Roadie who transpired to be the actual voice behind the music (from Garth to Milli Vanilli
).
