10 Post-WWE Runs That Were Nothing Like We Expected
4. Christian
It's... it's Christian.
The difference between Christian's TNA debut and his return to WWE in 09 was like night and day. Unhappy with his perennial midcarder status in WWE, Christian refused an on the spot new contract offer in 2005 and jumped ship. Unlike WWE, TNA appreciated what they had with Captain Charisma and started pushing him right out of the gate.
For viewers watching TNA for the first time, it was mind blowing to see the former IC champ be celebrated by a wave of adoring fans with a world title held high. Christened the Instant Classic, Christian's great babyface work was eclipsed only by his run as a heel. Villainous Christian Cage was so good he even gave old pal Edge a run for his heel money at the time.
Having proven he was more than cut out to be a top of the card star, anticipation for a WWE return was incredibly high in late 2008. Sadly, WWE still couldn't quite see what everyone else could and Christian, despite his all round talent, was debuted on the ECW brand thanks to a leak surrounding his originally planned Jeff Hardy feud.