10 Strange Wrestling Debuts That Left Fans Bewildered
6. Tensai
Wrestling fans have long memories. It's why we mourn legends like Joe “Animal” Laurinaitis, and why we celebrate when troubled veterans like Jake Roberts overcome their demons. With this in mind, God only knows how WWE thought they could get away with repackaging Attitude-era stalwart Albert as Japanese monster heel Lord Tensai.
WWE haven't uploaded footage from A̶l̶b̶e̶r̶t̶ Tensai's debut to their YouTube channel, and if you watch it you'll understand why. Shouts of "let's go A-Train!" and "Albert!" can be heard throughout the match, and would continue to haunt Lord Tensai for the duration of his time in WWE.
It is utterly baffling how WWE Creative thought they could get away with this. You cannot have a credible monster heel when the man playing it is easily recognisable as the fat bloke fans used to chant "Shave Your Back!" at. Kane would never have worked if fans recognised him as the guy who played wrestling luminaries such as Isaac Yankem and Fake Diesel, and WWE should have learned from their own history and kept Tensai under a mask.