10 Gimmicks That WWE Milked Dry

During the height of the Attitude Era, the world fell in love with the authority angle involving Mr McMahon and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Moreover, the concept of an evil boss getting his comeuppance was hugely popular and extended beyond WWE to places like WCW, which saw a more active Eric Bischoff.

Nowadays, the act has grown stale, and fans seek newer, more original concepts. Regardless, whenever WWE finds itself in a creative slump, it brings back the authority angle. Only each time it occurs, it's noticeably less impactful.

Whereas the arc from the 90s cemented Austin as a legend, each reincarnation has done less to get wrestlers over aside from Daniel Bryan in 2014, although his case was largely incidental. Originally, The Authority was pummeling the likes of John Cena and Big Show - again, more made men. For a considerably shorter period of time, Cody Rhodes was involved with an angle, but WWE made sure not to give its younger talent too much shine.

The Austin vs McMahon era lasted around six years. The Authority reigned supreme for an accumulative of five years, and in 2020, the man seems to be rearing his head in the form of Adam Pearce, who exercises his power a little more each week. No wonder fans are turned off by the gimmick. Hopefully, WWE will come up with something more original in the next decade.