Professional wrestling matches have countless variations used to add a little variety to a card. Nothing can add an exciting new chapter to an otherwise stalling feud like a well-placed stipulation, suddenly turning a bog-standard match into one of the main attractions of a Pay Per View. Equally, a poorly-executed gimmick match can be regarded as even more of a disaster than a low quality singles match. They can be viewed as something of a risky tool in the booker's armoury, but one which almost always generates more interest than a standard bout would - for better or worse. However, as entertaining as stipulations can be, they can also shock or scare an audience. As with much in the wrestling industry, stipulations have evolved and been pushed to the limit - many would argue to an overly-exaggerated degree. While gimmicks such as the Royal Rumble or Iron Man matches are fairly easy to pull off with the same level of safety as a standard singles match, a lot of stipulations place competitors in situations with a far higher degree of danger than usual. Other stipulations are terrifying due to the spectacle they create. Nobody really believed the Undertaker had genuinely encased Paul Bearer in cement at the 2004 Great American Bash, but the match still caused a furore for its disturbing nature. Similarly to the way a horror movie can terrify an audience aware of its fictional nature, a well-worked stipulation match can have the same effect upon a crowd of pro wrestling fans - even if the workers involved emerge entirely unscathed. For all the danger (real or perceived) present in each of the following entries, they have admittedly resulted in some of the most unforgettable moments in the history of the industry. The WWE has moved away from such extreme examples of stipulations in recent years, although they're still commonplace lower down the wrestling food chain. Whether the increased sense of spectacle is worth the sacrifice of a wrestlers' safety - and, quite often, the actual quality of a match - is still a hotly debated issue.
