Frequent readers of my articles here on WhatCulture will recognize that I never miss a chance to laud the cool aura of "Black Charisma" Masahiro Chono. I'm not biased, though -- no list of the top bad-ass looks in pro wrestling history would be complete without an appearance from the former IWGP Heavyweight Champion. Unlike the bulk of the entries on this list, Chono's bad-ass-ness doesn't come from a place of pure intimidation -- though the man is certainly intimidating. For him, it's more of an overpowering cool that radiates from his person. His entrance gear, his sunglasses, his hair, his attitude... all of it conveys a swagger that cannot ever be duplicated. He's one of a kind. Really, Chono's the bad guy cowboy in the Western movie -- the one all the townspeople fear, the one whose arrival is accompanied by suspenseful music, the one clad in black. We know we're supposed to be rooting for the fresh-faced sheriff to take him down, but really, the outlaw is so much more interesting.
Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried.
*Best Crowd of the Year, 2013
