I don’t really agree with Austin Theory being on this list. He has all kinds of personality, it’s just that his push while Vince McMahon was in charge was so unnatural.
Nah till this day even after Vince gone his character still sucks & I find Waller more entertaining over him. Don’t get me wrong he’s great in ring, can put on a match & make anyone look good but his personality sucks & his character comes off corny. I think him turning face & teaming with cody could make him so much better
Right. I personally liked he and Waller together at the beginning, but they could've leaned into their heelish ways more. But once he becomes a babyface he'll b well on his way
They had him beat Bobby Lashley, Seth Rollins, Edge, Rey Mysterio and John Cena, all former world champions and two HOFs. And yet, he still failed to connect with the crowd. This whole cocky young heel is just so dull and boring.
@@aeso3555he was getting heat with Vince booking, it wasn't until Triple H took over and started making him look like the biggest idiot ever that the crowd stopped caring
WWE blew it with Tamina. As a matter of fact, Tamina, Nia Jax, and Naomi should have been put in the Bloodline and could have been successful as a women's heel faction along side the men. Major ball drop in my opinion.
Cesaro from 2013 - 2014 was actually over. He had that run with zeb colter and jack swagger that was damn good. Then after they broke up he won the andre the giant elimination match which gave him more momentum. Then vince squashed his push because they didnt want him to potentially over shadowing roman.
Aliyah still has time to make a comeback. I wish she had a mean girl gimmicks like "The Beautiful People" in Impact but tone down sexually. She run a pact with three other NXT propects and bully other around, and get karma payback later in stories.
Exactly! Everyone made a big deal about her becoming a wrestler. But people fail to understand. Just because your relative is a legend in the business. Doesn't mean you're going to be as big as them
He'd be a good everyman face; humble and kind; with the technical skill to sell beating HHH or sell giving HHH a challenge; eventually we'd get used to him on the mic
Aliyah is like a modern Maria when it comes to fans reaction. The crowd loves her! She is decent in the ring too! Aliyah also stated it's WWE who don't like her to be a FAN FAVORITE.
Aliyah could have been something if they kept her as the bougie heel with Vanessa Borne as the highers ..... Yes she was a good underdog but she shined as a cocky stuck up heel ..... I would have booked her in a mean girls faction on the main roster kinda like the beautiful people in TNA instead of bringing her up as a face ....
I always found him introducing himself for ages memorable because I was like "who are you" Then I see him in ring the first time and see he can really go so I understand some of the ego he had.
He also used his real name for a bit, Nick Nemeth. He was Kerwin White (Chavo Guerrero) golf caddy for a while until the gimmick was dropped after uncle Eddie Guerrero passing.
The biggest thing that made the brain busters work was their manger. He could take over on the mic and really make you hate t6hem. Not that Arn had a lot of trouble on the mic but Bobby just added a level that was awesome. Thats what a manager can do and even more so when it is arguable the greatest manager of all time.
No mention of Dean Malenko? They can call him "The Man of a Thousand Holds" all they want, but the guy had the personality of a brown paper bag and that gimmick was basically just "wrestler."
All great matches but the worry is the fact that he can’t hold his own in storylines on the mic & being interesting lol. We all know cesaro cooks when the bell rings
WWE audience don't give sh*t about dream matchups unless you build up well to that match up, it ain't AEW with random dream matches with no story behind it.
To be honest . Back in the day even if someone didn't have a cool gimick , they had a nice physique but nowadays we have A LOT of bland wrestlers that don't stand out in any way
Funny enough if you go to an indy show. The kind of guys who "can't get over" in WWE, are HUGE stars locally in smaller places. The really handsome muscle-bound tall guys who stand out in a crowd, Yeah a rural show in nowhere VA is going to think they're greek Gods. Also not charismatic enough for TV is funny because if you meet these guys, they're actually very confident and charming. So it can be really hard for scouts and bookers to figure out "it factor" when a these guys are already so much ahead of a lot of the guys on the indies, or even normal people. Like Aaliyah is gorgeous, funny, has an incredible body, and can sexy walk and pose very well, and is reasonably athletic. She's also cute and has interests that make her personality stand out if you're a fan. But that level of attractive is just below the kind of crazy hot it's takes to be nationally famous. If wrestling were still regional, and backstage segments weren't as important, these people would've held a lot of secondary belts and been big local heroes.
So these people could be local gods and goddesses, turning heads with just looks and charm, but what they have is not enough to put their heads above the crowd of competitors on a national elite-level stage? That doesn't seem particularly funny or unexpected. It sounds like the completely universal nature of big ponds vs small ponds that is familiar from absolutely everything in life. Am I missing something?
@ I never understood what was so special about him that he got pushed to the moon in 2011. He wasn’t even that good on the mic. He was very repetitive on the mic. He was very generic and a very basic move set. John Morrison would’ve been better despite Morrison was worse on the mic.
Austin theory wasn’t bland when he had the selfie gimmick, and he definitely wasn’t bland under the Vince McMahon regime. Triple H is killing this man’s career on purpose.
He's 100% bland. This whole cocky young heel has been done to death and the way he cuts his promo is like he's reading off of a script. He was far more interesting as the Unintelligent himbo in the way. BTW, Triple H gave him wins over Lashley, Rollins, Edge, Mysterio and Cena. It's not his fault that Theory failed to connect with the crowd or fumbled so badly on the promos that Cena cooked him on the mic.
@ that was an early 2023 when Vince was there as well with triple H as soon as Vince left officially in mid 2023 Rick BOOGS and Elias who were Vince McMahon guys were fired Omos was taken off TV and Austin Theory’s push ended……
@@kennyking9347 That still doesn't change how his gimmick was bland. A young cocky heel was something that was done to death and wouldn't have made much difference, he's atheltically gifted and fantastic seller but he cuts promos like they're from cue cards, he feels like a person pretending to be character, completely artificial and without an ounce of looking genuine. He's like a nice kid trying waay too hard to act like a douche. Once he no longer panned out as hoped, Vince would've gotten bored of him and summarily moved on to his new toy. You're also forgetting that Triple H was the one who brought him to WWE via NXT and he was the one who actually booked him with a decent character in the Way. And being Vince's pet project has done more harm than good for him because that stain is still with him till this day. For every Roman Reigns, you had a dozen more Nathan Jones, Great Khali, Jack Swagger, Jinder Mahal and even a young Drew McIntyre whose own early career mirrored Austin Theory.
I really hate the word "bland". I personally like generic and "bland" characters. We don't have to pander to the ADHD crowd all the time. Wrestlers don't need to be over the top, cartoony, or have a unique look. That's probably why I liked watching the WWE in 2015-16 because I really do enjoy generic characters. Lorcan and Burch were also one of my favorite tag teams in NXT. I also liked watching Madcap Moss, Aliya and Ridge Holland in 2022.
Yeah, I hate to say it, there have been a lot of wrestlers with bland gimmicks. This is not to say that their not talented. But yeah, there's been a lot of guys who have had bland gimmicks. Jack Swagger is a prime example. Now, this one kind of hurts, because Swagger is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. He is very talented. And he's a guy who deeply cares about this country and doesn't want it to fall as we have learned recently from his support for Trump, which got him almost silenced and got threatened for it by Tony Khan in AEW. And Swagger didn't deserve that. Swagger loves this country and the true values of this country like freedom of speech, religious liberty, school choice, supporting Israel, protecting women's sports from biological males who become women through gender reassignment surgery and change in women's locker rooms, etc. And the fact that he was threatened and almost got silenced by his own boss in AEW Tony Khan for it is horrible. But outside of that, yeah, unfortunately Swagger's gimmick, especially in WWE was bland. And that is sad because he is one of the best wrestlers WWE has ever had talent-wise. But I digress. Then there's the case of Lance Storm, who kind of had a bland character in his own right. Not to say that he wasn't talented or didn't have good or great mic skills or that he wasn't a good heel. But, his character was kind of bland in that he was always stoic and never smiled on-screen overall. I will say this though, it's this stoic side of him that made him interesting, in a good way. But, it was kind of bland at the same time I hate to say. He was a good, maybe a great heel and a good babyface too. No doubt about it. But again, he kind of had a bland character I hate to say. Shawn Spears is another case of a guy who has had bland characters I hate to say. Now Spears is no slouch in the ring like Swagger and Storm mentioned above. But unfortunately, he's been another victim of the bland character trend. Especially with his Tye Dillinger gimmick where he was always saying ten all the time and stuff like that. That was a bland character and kind of got annoying after awhile.
HOW does Austin Theory have a boring character?!?!? If they had already pulled the trigger on Grayson betraying Austin, he could have been in for a main event push, already! He'd be SO over, and he WILL be, whenever they pull the switch. Also, even before now, Austin had a VERY interesting and over character when he was a part of the NXT faction "The Way". Alex Riley is an interesting case. Even if he had a boring character, he was SOOOO over as a babyface when the Miz began to turn on him. Too bad the WWE FUMBLED that whole thing with him, he could've had something. Shawn Spears, now that he's in NXT, i can give him a proper rating, and i gotta say, his creepy gimmick is really strange and funny to watch, i just hope it goes somewhere, eventually! (He was looking like he would win the NXT North American Championship, but he failed to defeat Tony D'Angelo and doesn't seem like he's near the title picture anymore, RN.)
Not even close,she gots main eventer appeal,she looks the part,she's literally female bret hart,is bret hart bland? NO,THEY HAVE IT,btw if she's bland then gunther is bland af,stop being biased
I feel like Cesaro's gimmick as the swiss cyborg really made up for his lack of personality back in 2014 and 2015. He could've made it as that strong stoic character.
The problem with the vast majority of these guys is not a lack of character but Vince McMahon just not getting who they are. Hell until the early days of The Bloodline, Roman ACTUALLY was as bland as could be as wrestler but it didn't stop Vince from over pushing him. Honestly though, his only real character before now was "related to The Rock."
@davidparkes7741 So when Roman was booked badly Vince did it all on his own, but when the Bloodline started it wasn’t all Vince. Just give the guy the credit, it’s his last great creation.
@@davidburke7777 Lol, if you say so. I mean Vince only booked Roman as hard as he did once he hit the main roster because of what his last name is & that lineage. Take that away & Roman is as bland as bland can be as a wrestler, he really doesn't have much going for him. Sure others may have played a part but it's not like he did it alone.
I've never understood people that are like "so and so failed cause they were never a main eventer". If everyone was one, then there'd be no big draws. I personally enjoy Cesaro's work and i think his matches are entertaining for what they are.
It's a little surprising Dean Malenko (the man of a thousand holds) didn't make this list. Like Lance Storm, Malenko was a technical wizard in the ring but not as gifted in character work.
Jesse Sorenson From TNA He Wore a High School letterman Jacket with Wrestling gear but he was good In The ring but the big I word struck and he prematurely retired sad just sad
Lex Luger as patriotic replacement Hogan babyface was the most bland generic character IMO. He was ok as a narcissist heel but as a babyface he was a charisma vacuum.
I love it when dumb wwe fans make these comments, apparently people like rey mysterio never existed in WWE. But you go ahead and enjoy a product that had the worst champ in WWE history for 3+ years.
Austin theory doesn’t suck in anyway how he just got fumbled because they’re gonna put him in a match with old ass cena and expected him to carry somebody he’s not in that point where he can do that and that’s okay Roman can’t carry anyone for shit including him damn self he just has bad booking and was completely set up
I feel like Adam Cole qualifies. He's super likable on things like game streams & interviews, but in-ring, he just feels generic & dull. Every time I hear people talking about how much they loved his work in NXT or his pre-concussion AEW stuff, I watch it and wonder if I'm the victim of an elaborate prank. He's basically his catch phrases and nothing else on-screen. I wanna like him, cuz of the stuff I said earlier that shows he's pretty witty & fun, but as a wrestler, he's just blah.
Raquel Rodriguez! Goodness gracious. She is a powerhouse yet she makes the crowd drowsy, she lacks charisma. Lash Legend will surely kick her ass soon.
Sad that for the Aliyah person from WWE NXT didn’t have a interesting character so she didn’t have much of a chance to shine ✨ esp since HHH was the bosss by 2023 they kick her out since the only reason she was given a chance on the main shows was because Mr Mchman liked her that’s why.
Dykstra was a "very good wrestler"? Where was I when those "very good wrestling skills were on show because it certainly wasn't there during his time in the spirit squad
I think Alex Riley could of gone far not main event if it wasn't for John Cena constantly burying him at every turn because John knew he was good and scared he take his spot
It makes so mad when people like Vince dismiss great wrestlers like Claudio just because, in their eyes, they lack "character". At the end of the day, Claudio, Lance Storm. Marton Stone (Burch) and Biff (Lorcan) and others are WRESTLERS and people came 2 see them bloody wrestle!!@@ If Vince wasn't so short sighted(and perverted) he would emphasises their strengths instead of downplaying them! Steve Blackman got over huge despite the fact that he lacked"character". But here is the tragic thing about Vince and most so called "fans". Even if a wrestler shows "character" or has a gimmick, it still won't be enough. The Wyatt Sicks have a great gimmick but apparently that is not enough for the "fans". Bray wyatt had an amazing character but Vince bloody buried him. Frankly Vince and all the so called "fans" are nothing but fickle children who do not know what they bloody want! And they wonder why no one is over!
Vince didn't always get it right, and he was certainly up to some weird booking in the 2010s (beyond some of the Attitude Era weirdness), but he understood what made a star in his company. He even gambled on people who didn't fit his usual 'type', making World Champions out of Jericho, Benoit, Eddie, Angle, and Rey. Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels likely fit the bill as well, because they may not have received main event pushes had it not been for the 1993 Steroid Scandal. Direct some of this heat at Tony Khan too, because in a promotion that was cultivated to be more like what you described, Cesaro and Rusev have received even less of a push in AEW than they got in WWE. Aleister Black didn't become a main event star either, and based on that, I don't believe Bray Wyatt would have been pushed even close to the heights he reached with WWE.
Also, you are overexaggerting Steve Blackman's popularity - he was liked, but not "over huge". For guys outside the main event, that'd be remaining members of DX (Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, and X-Pac), The Godfather, D'Lo Brown, and Val Venis.
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Happy new year
Does anyone else think that Cesaro would've had a better WWE career under Triple H instead of Vince?
I do.
No, he’s got the personality of drywall.
It's like Vince forced him into a garbage role, kept him in that role and complained publicly often that Cesaro just wasn't good enough.
@Rydonattelo That's the perfect description of his career under Vince.
no doubt in my mind
I honestly always felt like Lance Storm's ability to stay so stoic was what was interesting about him
Dishonorable mentions:
1. Apollo Crews
2. Raquel Rodriguez
Facts man
I mean with Apollo his Nigerian warlord gimmick was something interesting. Raquel I think has worked well as the bodyguard for liv.
@rokaanalzeer7148 Yeah. I meant before she became the enforcer of Liv Morgan.
@@jeremywilliams5141 She's still bland
@@jeremywilliams5141shes just Mexican Diesel now
I don’t really agree with Austin Theory being on this list. He has all kinds of personality, it’s just that his push while Vince McMahon was in charge was so unnatural.
Right he's my favorite wrestler and a future world champion and he's 27 3 years younger than me people are sleeping on my boy lol💯
Nah till this day even after Vince gone his character still sucks & I find Waller more entertaining over him. Don’t get me wrong he’s great in ring, can put on a match & make anyone look good but his personality sucks & his character comes off corny. I think him turning face & teaming with cody could make him so much better
@ I feel like that is his character, a corny insufferable goofball lol
He had personality but ever since late 2022 when he lost the MITB briefcase he's been more serious and bland.
Austin Theory is a sad case. He's not boring, he just doesn't get a damn good booking!
Right. I personally liked he and Waller together at the beginning, but they could've leaned into their heelish ways more. But once he becomes a babyface he'll b well on his way
I think he could benefit from leaving WWE for a while and doing indies and other promotions then returning; ala Drew MacIntyre.
They had him beat Bobby Lashley, Seth Rollins, Edge, Rey Mysterio and John Cena, all former world champions and two HOFs. And yet, he still failed to connect with the crowd. This whole cocky young heel is just so dull and boring.
@@aeso3555he was getting heat with Vince booking, it wasn't until Triple H took over and started making him look like the biggest idiot ever that the crowd stopped caring
WWE blew it with Tamina. As a matter of fact, Tamina, Nia Jax, and Naomi should have been put in the Bloodline and could have been successful as a women's heel faction along side the men. Major ball drop in my opinion.
Cesaro from 2013 - 2014 was actually over. He had that run with zeb colter and jack swagger that was damn good. Then after they broke up he won the andre the giant elimination match which gave him more momentum. Then vince squashed his push because they didnt want him to potentially over shadowing roman.
Yeah his gimmick as the Swiss cyborg in 2014 and 15 kinda made up for his stoic personality
Cesaro looked like a bald dad in his underwear in wwe
I love that for a gimmick. Bald dad in underwear shows you whipper snappers how to wrassle
Aliyah still has time to make a comeback. I wish she had a mean girl gimmicks like "The Beautiful People" in Impact but tone down sexually.
She run a pact with three other NXT propects and bully other around, and get karma payback later in stories.
What about Dwayne Johnson's daughter, she couldn't cut it so they made her GM 😂
Exactly! Everyone made a big deal about her becoming a wrestler. But people fail to understand. Just because your relative is a legend in the business. Doesn't mean you're going to be as big as them
This! And she is awful as GM too
Yes but then he pushed every single relative to WWE. Nia Jax too 😢
Or they made her GM cause her dad in charge and wanted to put her in a position of power 🤦🏾♂️
@@BigDaddyDeek Nia put the work in. She earned her push
Lance Storm was fucking awesome 🔥
Yeah him in ECW was so dope. WWF ruined so many people
He'd be a good everyman face; humble
and kind; with the technical skill to sell beating HHH or sell giving HHH a challenge; eventually we'd get used to him on the mic
Lance storm had the beniot gimmick without that killer instinct
And in hindsight thats a good thing 👍
Well, not in terms of getting a higher spot on the card and being buried by Austin.
Where is Drew Gulak? He would fit on this list.
100%, remember when Bryan Danielson made it his mission to get that boring slab of nothing over. Dark days on smackdown
Aliyah is like a modern Maria when it comes to fans reaction. The crowd loves her! She is decent in the ring too! Aliyah also stated it's WWE who don't like her to be a FAN FAVORITE.
the technical wizard gimmick would work in the Attitude era that was pretty much Chris Benoit gimmick
Or Kurt
@@Cw1047 that wasn't his gimmick his gimmick was the all american hero gimmick and played up the olympic gold medial thing
Thumb + up for Aliyah.. nice Canadian lady..
Aliyah could have been something if they kept her as the bougie heel with Vanessa Borne as the highers .....
Yes she was a good underdog but she shined as a cocky stuck up heel .....
I would have booked her in a mean girls faction on the main roster kinda like the beautiful people in TNA instead of bringing her up as a face ....
Me everytime someone mentions Jack Swagger Tittle run.
Oh yea I forgot about that
Swagger had the look but zero charisma. But he never could get over it's sad
Lance storm was wrestling during the ruthless aggression era
Zeigler was generic his first year, just introducing himself backstage.
And hilariously introducing himself to Kane in the Royal Rumble match and getting Yeeted out 🤣🤣☠️☠️☠️ "I'm Dolph Ziggler!" **YANK!** 😭😭
I always found him introducing himself for ages memorable because I was like "who are you" Then I see him in ring the first time and see he can really go so I understand some of the ego he had.
He also used his real name for a bit, Nick Nemeth. He was Kerwin White (Chavo Guerrero) golf caddy for a while until the gimmick was dropped after uncle Eddie Guerrero passing.
The biggest thing that made the brain busters work was their manger. He could take over on the mic and really make you hate t6hem. Not that Arn had a lot of trouble on the mic but Bobby just added a level that was awesome. Thats what a manager can do and even more so when it is arguable the greatest manager of all time.
Swagger/ Hager's whole career would have been wildly different if he had had a... "brain".... *rimshot*
Dishonorable mentions: Dean Malenko, Natalya, Zoey Stark
nah, Natalya had actually good gimmicks but WWE decided for no reason to give her also really bad gimmicks.
@nixda9326 Only memorable gimmick Natalya ever had was when she was farting.
@@davidburke7777that one falls under the really bad gimmick category...
@daevonthesavage7483 Still the only memorable one she ever had though.
@@davidburke7777 sad if thats the only gimmick you remember of her. and i mean you not her.
No mention of Dean Malenko? They can call him "The Man of a Thousand Holds" all they want, but the guy had the personality of a brown paper bag and that gimmick was basically just "wrestler."
Nia, Omos, Strowman, Nataliya, even Ricochet was bland while there.. plenty of generic wrestlers there now
Imagine if we ever get Cesaro back in WWE and we get matches like Gunther, Kaiser,oba femi,cm punk, Drew McIntyre for examples
All great matches but the worry is the fact that he can’t hold his own in storylines on the mic & being interesting lol. We all know cesaro cooks when the bell rings
WWE audience don't give sh*t about dream matchups unless you build up well to that match up, it ain't AEW with random dream matches with no story behind it.
Happy New Year Everyone! Thanks for all of the great videos Andy! Can't wait to see what you bring us throughout 2025!
Happy New Year 🎉
I actually liked Aliyah I sometimes thst was the part I was looking more at nxt
It is crazy WWE could have had her as a mean killer in NXT for a while at some point.
To be honest . Back in the day even if someone didn't have a cool gimick , they had a nice physique but nowadays we have A LOT of bland wrestlers that don't stand out in any way
Funny enough if you go to an indy show. The kind of guys who "can't get over" in WWE, are HUGE stars locally in smaller places. The really handsome muscle-bound tall guys who stand out in a crowd, Yeah a rural show in nowhere VA is going to think they're greek Gods. Also not charismatic enough for TV is funny because if you meet these guys, they're actually very confident and charming.
So it can be really hard for scouts and bookers to figure out "it factor" when a these guys are already so much ahead of a lot of the guys on the indies, or even normal people.
Like Aaliyah is gorgeous, funny, has an incredible body, and can sexy walk and pose very well, and is reasonably athletic. She's also cute and has interests that make her personality stand out if you're a fan. But that level of attractive is just below the kind of crazy hot it's takes to be nationally famous.
If wrestling were still regional, and backstage segments weren't as important, these people would've held a lot of secondary belts and been big local heroes.
So these people could be local gods and goddesses, turning heads with just looks and charm, but what they have is not enough to put their heads above the crowd of competitors on a national elite-level stage? That doesn't seem particularly funny or unexpected. It sounds like the completely universal nature of big ponds vs small ponds that is familiar from absolutely everything in life. Am I missing something?
Aaliyah could have been so easy just give her some Jersey Shore give me and tell me easy over bro. Women love that
For me, Alberto del Rio is the most boring and generic professional wrestler.
Your just saying that cuz you don’t like him
100% fact. Never liked the guy
He held more onscreen personality than almost everyone on this list, even if it wasn't that much.
They shoulda kept the belt collector with Lance Storm
The Miz should be on this list. He is possibly one of the most over pushed generic wrestlers in history.
The fact he also main-evented Wrestlemania has lost its luster and charm.
@ I never understood what was so special about him that he got pushed to the moon in 2011. He wasn’t even that good on the mic. He was very repetitive on the mic. He was very generic and a very basic move set. John Morrison would’ve been better despite Morrison was worse on the mic.
Austin theory wasn’t bland when he had the selfie gimmick, and he definitely wasn’t bland under the Vince McMahon regime. Triple H is killing this man’s career on purpose.
He's 100% bland. This whole cocky young heel has been done to death and the way he cuts his promo is like he's reading off of a script. He was far more interesting as the Unintelligent himbo in the way.
BTW, Triple H gave him wins over Lashley, Rollins, Edge, Mysterio and Cena. It's not his fault that Theory failed to connect with the crowd or fumbled so badly on the promos that Cena cooked him on the mic.
@ that was an early 2023 when Vince was there as well with triple H as soon as Vince left officially in mid 2023 Rick BOOGS and Elias who were Vince McMahon guys were fired Omos was taken off TV and Austin Theory’s push ended……
@ also nobody on this current roster nobody, can go toe to toe with Cena on the Mic besides maybe Drew McIntyre and CM Punk
@@kennyking9347 That still doesn't change how his gimmick was bland. A young cocky heel was something that was done to death and wouldn't have made much difference, he's atheltically gifted and fantastic seller but he cuts promos like they're from cue cards, he feels like a person pretending to be character, completely artificial and without an ounce of looking genuine. He's like a nice kid trying waay too hard to act like a douche. Once he no longer panned out as hoped, Vince would've gotten bored of him and summarily moved on to his new toy. You're also forgetting that Triple H was the one who brought him to WWE via NXT and he was the one who actually booked him with a decent character in the Way. And being Vince's pet project has done more harm than good for him because that stain is still with him till this day. For every Roman Reigns, you had a dozen more Nathan Jones, Great Khali, Jack Swagger, Jinder Mahal and even a young Drew McIntyre whose own early career mirrored Austin Theory.
The only person to make the bald/babyface look work was Stone Cold. Hair is important in wrestling
When I got into wrestling in late 2022, theory was one of my favorite guys on tv
80% of the wwe roster from 2018 to 2019 could fit on this lol
Benoit, Batista, Kevin Nash, Big Show
And gunther,he's bland too
Batista had good moments so did Benoit
@Austin-l1j having good moments don't cut it especially batista,he was boring and forced and his acting is awful,I rather watch rock movie's
Wheeler Yuta
Lance Storm and Cesaro was nice tho
I really hate the word "bland". I personally like generic and "bland" characters. We don't have to pander to the ADHD crowd all the time. Wrestlers don't need to be over the top, cartoony, or have a unique look. That's probably why I liked watching the WWE in 2015-16 because I really do enjoy generic characters. Lorcan and Burch were also one of my favorite tag teams in NXT. I also liked watching Madcap Moss, Aliya and Ridge Holland in 2022.
@ecogreco Have you ever contemplated that maybe you’re just a bland person?
I get the logic. I've always had a bit of a fascination with "bland" wrestlers like Justin Gabriel.
You are a terrible bland person
You forgot the most generic of all time, Ricochet. Worst promo, no character at all, overhyped generic and forgettable.
You forgot Bret Hart any gimmick that he's had 😂
95% of the current roster can be on this list
Which Roster as this fits AEws more than the WWE CURRENTLY
Sure am glad that bland Undertaker guy never went over.
Lance storm in the 90s he was the Canadian patriot that his charecter.
Yeah, I hate to say it, there have been a lot of wrestlers with bland gimmicks. This is not to say that their not talented. But yeah, there's been a lot of guys who have had bland gimmicks. Jack Swagger is a prime example. Now, this one kind of hurts, because Swagger is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. He is very talented. And he's a guy who deeply cares about this country and doesn't want it to fall as we have learned recently from his support for Trump, which got him almost silenced and got threatened for it by Tony Khan in AEW. And Swagger didn't deserve that. Swagger loves this country and the true values of this country like freedom of speech, religious liberty, school choice, supporting Israel, protecting women's sports from biological males who become women through gender reassignment surgery and change in women's locker rooms, etc. And the fact that he was threatened and almost got silenced by his own boss in AEW Tony Khan for it is horrible. But outside of that, yeah, unfortunately Swagger's gimmick, especially in WWE was bland. And that is sad because he is one of the best wrestlers WWE has ever had talent-wise. But I digress.
Then there's the case of Lance Storm, who kind of had a bland character in his own right. Not to say that he wasn't talented or didn't have good or great mic skills or that he wasn't a good heel. But, his character was kind of bland in that he was always stoic and never smiled on-screen overall. I will say this though, it's this stoic side of him that made him interesting, in a good way. But, it was kind of bland at the same time I hate to say. He was a good, maybe a great heel and a good babyface too. No doubt about it. But again, he kind of had a bland character I hate to say.
Shawn Spears is another case of a guy who has had bland characters I hate to say. Now Spears is no slouch in the ring like Swagger and Storm mentioned above. But unfortunately, he's been another victim of the bland character trend. Especially with his Tye Dillinger gimmick where he was always saying ten all the time and stuff like that. That was a bland character and kind of got annoying after awhile.
HOW does Austin Theory have a boring character?!?!? If they had already pulled the trigger on Grayson betraying Austin, he could have been in for a main event push, already! He'd be SO over, and he WILL be, whenever they pull the switch.
Also, even before now, Austin had a VERY interesting and over character when he was a part of the NXT faction "The Way".
Alex Riley is an interesting case. Even if he had a boring character, he was SOOOO over as a babyface when the Miz began to turn on him. Too bad the WWE FUMBLED that whole thing with him, he could've had something.
Shawn Spears, now that he's in NXT, i can give him a proper rating, and i gotta say, his creepy gimmick is really strange and funny to watch, i just hope it goes somewhere, eventually! (He was looking like he would win the NXT North American Championship, but he failed to defeat Tony D'Angelo and doesn't seem like he's near the title picture anymore, RN.)
I was really getting behind that 007 Jason Statham Transporter gimmick they gave to Cesaro. Pissed they took it away
Lyra Valkyrie
Not even close,she gots main eventer appeal,she looks the part,she's literally female bret hart,is bret hart bland? NO,THEY HAVE IT,btw if she's bland then gunther is bland af,stop being biased
I feel like Cesaro's gimmick as the swiss cyborg really made up for his lack of personality back in 2014 and 2015. He could've made it as that strong stoic character.
The problem with the vast majority of these guys is not a lack of character but Vince McMahon just not getting who they are.
Hell until the early days of The Bloodline, Roman ACTUALLY was as bland as could be as wrestler but it didn't stop Vince from over pushing him.
Honestly though, his only real character before now was "related to The Rock."
Who do you think booked the bloodline storyline in the beginning?.
@davidburke7777 I mean sure, Vince may have played a part in it's initial creation but he didn't do it all on his own.
@davidparkes7741 So when Roman was booked badly Vince did it all on his own, but when the Bloodline started it wasn’t all Vince. Just give the guy the credit, it’s his last great creation.
@@davidburke7777 Lol, if you say so. I mean Vince only booked Roman as hard as he did once he hit the main roster because of what his last name is & that lineage. Take that away & Roman is as bland as bland can be as a wrestler, he really doesn't have much going for him.
Sure others may have played a part but it's not like he did it alone.
Roman had a great look and wasn't bland at all
Nia Jax needs to be on this list. The whole I'm big and crush stick is boring.
Spears is not a flopin AEW he was lost in the shuffle when they went on a spending spree, his feud with Cody Rhodes was fire
I've never understood people that are like "so and so failed cause they were never a main eventer". If everyone was one, then there'd be no big draws. I personally enjoy Cesaro's work and i think his matches are entertaining for what they are.
Dean malenko is a great example of a extremely good worker
Tamina is a perfect example of connections being more important than actual talent. That's the only way she's kept her job for so long
It's a little surprising Dean Malenko (the man of a thousand holds) didn't make this list. Like Lance Storm, Malenko was a technical wizard in the ring but not as gifted in character work.
Jake Hager's purple hat was the most over part of his entire career.
Cesaro needed Paul Heyman as his manager to carry the promos.
Lance Storm worked well opposite more colorful wrestlers; the contrast is important. If everyone is ""charismatic", then no one truly stands out.
Jesse Sorenson From TNA He Wore a High School letterman Jacket with Wrestling gear but he was good In The ring but the big I word struck and he prematurely retired sad just sad
so did the steiners brothers
Yay There Aren’t Any Wrestling Bland Or Most General Characters From WCW.
Lex Luger as patriotic replacement Hogan babyface was the most bland generic character IMO. He was ok as a narcissist heel but as a babyface he was a charisma vacuum.
Raquel Rodriguez I feel is closing near Tamina territory. Hopefully they can make her like diesel with Liv being Shawn
kenny omega great wrestler but lame AF when he opens his mouth
Swagger/Hager needed a Jimmy Hart/Paul Hayman/Bobby Heenan and he could've been huge.
Annnnnnnnnnndy!!! Happy New Year's FAM✌🏻🫡 It's DNAMITE Wednesday!
2:42 Do you even have any evidence that Vince was not a fan of Cesaro's work? Because for someone with a bland personality, Vince did a lot with him.
Simpy they should've gone to performing arts school
Cesaro spend years going from NXT to raw and smackdown under Vince and dude was already tired of it no wonder why he quit
Ty Dillinger was different...... they didn't fully go full out with the perfect 10 gimmick...should've been A new take on the Mr. Perfect gimmick.
I like all these bland gimmick wrestlers on this list except for Kenny Dykstra
Alex riley needs to return to wwe
No real reason or need. What's he gonna do? Attack Miz?
Nee Andy 👍
Happy New Year All 🎉
Damn, all the AEW Flippy crew fits here
What a bland generic comment
@@tronzilla1xboxhater850 sorry that the only stuff more generic and bland than that are the sorry excuses for wrestlers you like.
@daks46 I'm a wrestler now? Hahahahaha nerd
@@tronzilla1xboxhater850 damn, you can't even read
I love it when dumb wwe fans make these comments, apparently people like rey mysterio never existed in WWE. But you go ahead and enjoy a product that had the worst champ in WWE history for 3+ years.
Austin theory doesn’t suck in anyway how he just got fumbled because they’re gonna put him in a match with old ass cena and expected him to carry somebody he’s not in that point where he can do that and that’s okay Roman can’t carry anyone for shit including him damn self he just has bad booking and was completely set up
I liked the swiss Superman original Cesaro gimmick
Lance Storm, wrestling zamboni driver
Aliyah was so forgettable that I thought, "Who's that?" when I saw her in this video.
I feel like Adam Cole qualifies. He's super likable on things like game streams & interviews, but in-ring, he just feels generic & dull. Every time I hear people talking about how much they loved his work in NXT or his pre-concussion AEW stuff, I watch it and wonder if I'm the victim of an elaborate prank. He's basically his catch phrases and nothing else on-screen. I wanna like him, cuz of the stuff I said earlier that shows he's pretty witty & fun, but as a wrestler, he's just blah.
Im still recovering from that Aaliyah promo all those years ago
Maybe Lance storm should have done undertaker gimmick
Not only did Tamina have the personality of a foot she couldn't wrestle
He’s an asshole, but I don’t think Swagger/Hager was generic. He just wasn’t a good promo is all.
Pretty much JAGs (Just A Guy/Girl) lol
Raquel Rodriguez! Goodness gracious. She is a powerhouse yet she makes the crowd drowsy, she lacks charisma. Lash Legend will surely kick her ass soon.
Alex was screwed by Cena.
Sad that for the Aliyah person from WWE NXT didn’t have a interesting character so she didn’t have much of a chance to shine ✨ esp since HHH was the bosss by 2023 they kick her out since the only reason she was given a chance on the main shows was because Mr Mchman liked her that’s why.
Dykstra was a "very good wrestler"? Where was I when those "very good wrestling skills were on show because it certainly wasn't there during his time in the spirit squad
Cesaros look is alright but caw like but his promo and in ring says it all !
Missed out on Raquel Rodrigues
I think Alex Riley could of gone far not main event if it wasn't for John Cena constantly burying him at every turn because John knew he was good and scared he take his spot
It makes so mad when people like Vince dismiss great wrestlers like Claudio just because, in their eyes, they lack "character". At the end of the day, Claudio, Lance Storm. Marton Stone (Burch) and Biff (Lorcan) and others are WRESTLERS and people came 2 see them bloody wrestle!!@@ If Vince wasn't so short sighted(and perverted) he would emphasises their strengths instead of downplaying them! Steve Blackman got over huge despite the fact that he lacked"character". But here is the tragic thing about Vince and most so called "fans". Even if a wrestler shows "character" or has a gimmick, it still won't be enough. The Wyatt Sicks have a great gimmick but apparently that is not enough for the "fans". Bray wyatt had an amazing character but Vince bloody buried him. Frankly Vince and all the so called "fans" are nothing but fickle children who do not know what they bloody want! And they wonder why no one is over!
And that’s what smarks will never get. There’s more to wrestling than just the matches.
@davidburke7777 I am a fan with a bloody opinion do not ever call me a smark or talk down to me again!!!!
@tayojones9460 A smark opinion where all you want to do is watch people fake fight with no storyline to it and no characters to get invested in.
Vince didn't always get it right, and he was certainly up to some weird booking in the 2010s (beyond some of the Attitude Era weirdness), but he understood what made a star in his company. He even gambled on people who didn't fit his usual 'type', making World Champions out of Jericho, Benoit, Eddie, Angle, and Rey. Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels likely fit the bill as well, because they may not have received main event pushes had it not been for the 1993 Steroid Scandal.
Direct some of this heat at Tony Khan too, because in a promotion that was cultivated to be more like what you described, Cesaro and Rusev have received even less of a push in AEW than they got in WWE. Aleister Black didn't become a main event star either, and based on that, I don't believe Bray Wyatt would have been pushed even close to the heights he reached with WWE.
Also, you are overexaggerting Steve Blackman's popularity - he was liked, but not "over huge". For guys outside the main event, that'd be remaining members of DX (Road Dogg, Billy Gunn, and X-Pac), The Godfather, D'Lo Brown, and Val Venis.
Raquel Rodriguez needs to be on this list
Happy New Year Wrestle With Andy
Happy New Year 👊🏻
Swagger desperately needed to play a heel with a good mouthpiece manager
He had that with the real Americans