Wrestlers' Ring Names

[klunderbunker]

This is another major problem in wrestling today which seems to be a theme I'm on lately. There's a big problem today in wrestling and it's the names of the wrestlers. First and foremost let me make this clear: I'm talking about ring names, not nicknames, meaning this isn't about names like The Animal, The Rated R Superstar, The Last Outlaw or the Second City Savior. I'm talking about names like Conor O'Brian, DH Smith, Michael McGillicutty, Randy Orton, John Cena, Christian, Crimson, Matt Morgan, D-Von, Mr. Anderson, Matt Hardy and I could go on.

On the other hand, you have names like James Storm, Bobby Roode, CM Punk, AJ Styles, Edge, Randy Savage, Steve Austin, The Rock, Hulk Hogan, Big Show, Ric Flair, and again I could go on.

What are the differences between these groups of names you ask? In the first group, the names mean nothing. You learn nothing about those characters and it doesn't put an image into your head of someone you would pay your money to see.

Michael McGillicutty, DH Smith, John Cena and Matt Hardy are names that sound like partners in a law firm. Yes I know in some cases its their real name. My name is Tommy Hall. Would you put your money down to see someone with that name if you didn't know anything about them? I certainly wouldn't. In short, the names are boring. You don't get any kind of a pop when you think of those names (the names themselves mind you, not the wrestlers and their abilities).

On the other hand, let's look at list #2:

Storm: he's wild, all over the place and uncontrollable
Roode: he's not a nice guy and the word rude instantly comes off as something you probably won't like, making it a great heel name
Punk: same as with Roode. It's the name of someone that isn't liked and is usually cocky
Styles: smooth, sleek, fast
Edge: the idea was that he was always on the edge of snapping. Makes sense.
Savage: wild, crazy, brutal
Austin: Texas, rebels, tough
Rock: strong, tough, never quits
Hulk Hogan: Incredible Hulk, strong, powerful, huge
Big Show: big, strong, huge
Flair: flashy, bright, looks good

See what I mean? What do you get out of Otunga or Hardy or Orton? These names are boring and don't make me want to see most of these guys. Now a lot of them have overcome it, but can you picture a guy with the name of Michael McGillicutty being on top of the card? Just the name itself sounds almost silly. Now a guy named Mr. Perfect on the other hand sounds interesting.

I think you get my point. Far too many ring names today are just dull. They don't inspire any images or thoughts, they tell you NOTHING about the character and they sound almost silly at times.

Thoughts?

 

[Nate DaMac]

I was just thinking about something like this earlier when I saw the WWE Eying Beer Money thread. I like the idea of them coming over but I absolutely cringe when I think of what kind of ridiculous names they'd get when they came over.

It seems to be especially prevalent with their developmental/NXT guys these days. Just come up with a halfway normal half ridiculous sounding name and let him loose. The problem is, when you already know so little about someone and their name is stupid to boot, you're immediately putting your guy up to an almost impossible task. Sure, guys like Cena and Orton had the talent to overcome these things and I suppose that talent is probably more important than a name. But let's face it, Mike Mcgillicutty is never going to become much more than he is now. Dolph Ziggler is only where he is because he was paired up with Vickie, no doubt in my mind that he would be long forgotten if not for her.

I like what you pointed out about the guys who have a meaning behind their name, but I think even a guy with a generic name has a better shot of making it than someone with a stupid name. Alex Riley, Kofi Kingston, Daniel Bryan, etc. It's better to be unheard of than to be laughed at. You can work your way up from being unheard of, but if your name is sounds comedic, there's an enormous battle ahead.

 

[The Bearded One]

I completely agree. I miss the days when wrestling was "over the top" for lack of a better phrase. I miss the days when we had the likes of Sgt. Slaughter, The Ultimate Warrior, Mr. Perfect and so on. Gimmick names, I'd guess is the right way to put it. The character was in the name. Wrestling is so boring compared to then when it comes to characters. I wish they would resort back to the cartoony style of the late-80's and early 90's.

I would even be on board with more names like you mentioned above in James Storm, Robert Roode etc. Names that could be real names, but have an added oomph that will make you notice them. There are only several wrestlers on the WWE roster that have those kind of names. Jack Swagger, Beth Phoenix and Tyler Reks have names that sound like they could possibly be real names, but they also kind of define the wrestler's persona and are marketable as well.

I'm not sure if any of that made a lick of sense, but whatever.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

Its hard to say. I definitely think some of the names that FCW have been using such as Husky Harris, Percy Watson, Skip Sheffield etc are just some of the most boring names ever in wrestling history, but I do like the ring names Randy Orton, John Cena and Cody Rhodes, all of which are just basic names.

I dont usually like ring names that arent "proper" names with a first and last name, but I think the christian name and surname used have to be "cool" or come with some sort of "attitude" whether they sound like a real name or not.

For example- CHRIS JERICHO is a proper name, I doubt there are many people actually called Jericho but at leasts its made to look like a real name. CHRIS BENOIT was also a cool ring name, and that actually WAS his real name.

Names like Rick Rude, Tyler Black, Steve Austin, Lance Storm, Robert Roode, AJ Styles, Chris Hero etc just sound right for some reason.

I am trying to get across that I agree with KB, but struggling to find the right words to be honest. If people dont understand this post, jut read KB's, he makes 100% more sense than I do!

 

[Harthan]

Some wrestling names are better than others. There are a few points I'd like to make, however.

One, a great wrestler can make any name work. The Rock, for example. It's not really a gimmicky name. What does it tell you about the Rock? I disagree that it really implies he's some kind of strong, immovable object. Or if it does, it's not at all what his character is actually about, so it rather fails. It's just a cool nickname derived from Rocky Maivia. Doesn't mean a damn thing. Doesn't tell you a lick about the Rock. But it works, doesn't it? It fits. It feels natural. The reason this is so is because the Rock made it so. He turned it into a great name by becoming a great wrestler.

Secondly, the other problem is that if you try to make every name tell you something about the character, you can descend into a realm of bad puns and forced jokes. You could easily wind up with a very poor name taking this route, rather than an efficient name that works for a wrestler.

I can think of many more names that don't mean much, but are inherently suitable for a variety of reasons. Sting works. It's a cool name, mostly because it's short and brings up cool connotations. But does it tell you much about the character of Sting? Not really.

Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit, Chris Jericho...some great wrestlers. Did they need a name to become successful? Does "Jericho" tell you anything about the wrestler? Not at all.

What I'm getting at here is that the wrestling name doesn't mean all that much. It's more about the wrestler bearing the name. A shining example of this is Dolph Ziggler. Possibly the stupidest name ever, when you think about it. The worst of the FCW Namechangeinator. But he worked with it, and because Dolph was awesome, the name just kind of worked. It has a certain ring to it, now, some strange quality that makes it fit. So you see, the important thing isn't that a wrestler have a name that tells us anything about him. It doesn't need to be gimmicky, or eye catching. What matters is the wrestler bearing the name. If he is successful, the name will work for him.