10 Things WWE Did Better Before RAW

Quick, name one wrestler who kicked out of Jake Roberts' DDT.

Once upon a time, it was understood that each man on the roster wielded at least one move that was humanly un-absorbable. Whether you were getting hit with the Shake Rattle n' Roll, the Rude Awakening, or the Boss Man Slam, the match did not go on beyond that.

Nowadays most finishers are really just heavy signature moves; they don’t guarantee a match is over any more, they simply make for a more suspenseful near fall. The battle against stagnation dictates that many finishers can now come at random points, and under the right circumstances, are survivable.

In the past, an entire match was essentially a build-up to the moment one superstar formally called game over. Very few people kicked out at that point (except via Hulk-up,) and if they did, that move had better belong to a lower-card act or risk losing its lustre.