Wrestling has changed a fair bit over the years but one thing that hasn’t changed is that a useless wrestler can be turned into a superstar if he has a great gimmick.
There is a difference between a gimmick and a character, Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan where great characters but there appearance was pretty much as they would appear anyway.
Not all superstars with a gimmick are useless wrestlers but the gimmick certainly won’t have harmed their career. Glen Jacobs, or Kane as he is better known, is the perfect example. He tried numerous gimmicks, such as Icaac Yankem, but to no avail however since Kane’s creation Jacobs has never looked back, becoming a superstar and even starring in his own movie. Would he have achieved this without a great gimmick? I very much doubt it.
So which gimmicks have been the best over the years? Here are a few of wrestlings greatest gimmicks-
The Undertaker
Without question the most recognizable and successful gimmick of all time. Mark Calloway had struggled to make an impact in the wrestling business until he joined WWE and they created The Undertaker. Everything about the character was perfect from the entrance and the theme music to The Undertaker’s appearance and ring style, this was wrestlings finest creation.
Over the years WWE have tried to experiment with the character but the original incarnation of The Undertaker remains the greatest and without it Mark Calloway would never have achieved the legendary status he now does.
The Ultimate Warrior
What was it that worked so well for the Ultimate Warrior I can’t quite put my finger on but there is no denying the characters success and when that entrance music started the whole roof came of the building, in fact as strange as it may sound the theme music that accompanied The Ultimate Warriors entrance was a huge contributing factor in the gimmicks success. He couldn’t talk, he could barely wrestle, yet because of The Ultimate Warriors creation Jim Hellwig can take his place in wrestling history.
The Demolition
Axe and Smash otherwise known as Demolition where nothing more than average inside the squared circle, however their tough talking and tough looking persona’s made them stand out and become multiple time WWE tag team champions.
Kane
As already mentioned Kane made several attempts under differant characters to make it in the WWE but it wasn’t until the creation of The Undertakers brother Kane that Glen Jacobs became a star. Jacobs will be forever indebted to the people behind Kane’s creation.
The Boogeyman
This gimmick has hundreds saying they hate the gimmick but without it Marty Wright would never have appeared and won on a card such as Wrestlemania. One of the worst wrestlers in recent history yet he’s still an employee of the biggest wrestling company in the world. The Boogeyman gimmick probably won’t last long but whatever it’s lifespan Marty Wright’s wrestling career has been prolonged because of it.
Sting
Some would argue that Steve Borden would have made it with or without the creation of Sting and that may well be true but the gimmick certainly speeded up his rise to the top.
