10 Indy Wrestling Stars WWE Would Ruin

6. Dalton Castle

WALTER PROGRESS
ROH

Dalton Castle is a delight.

Dalton doesn't see nor perform his androgynous act as overtly sexual - but in a climate in which he would have no control, his grasp of his own character would be irrelevant. He's glam, not camp - but the mere presence of his ringside "boys" would trigger a dubious association within WWE.

If the worrying parallels between Asuka and Goldberg teach us anything, it's that this company will always, always, revert to type. Consider the fate of the Heart Throbs on the main roster. As the Heartbreakers, they hit the ring to the strains of the Weather Girls' "It's Raining Men!" in Ohio Valley Wrestling, the fans of which received them in the affectionate spirit of high camp. As Antonio and Romeo on the main roster, in 2004, they transformed into sleazy male strippers. The charm - the very point - was missed. As such, nobody missed them when they quietly disappeared.

WWE is a far more progressive organisation in 2017, true, but nowhere near progressive enough to portray Darren Young as an outed pro wrestling babyface - nor, you'd expect, progressive enough to not conflate Castle's gimmick with a rancid source of heat.

 
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Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!