7. The Mysterious Pilot Episode
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqdlQhCEhdU Although the first actual broadcast of SmackDown was a pilot episode in April 1999, the WWE doesn't consider the show to have débuted until later the same year. This mysterious original episode was aired as a one-off special, and makes for sobering viewing considering some of the names involved. The figure of Owen Hart (even in his fated Blue Blazer gimmick) is a reminder of the tragedy that would befall the company only a month later, while Darren Drozdov - or Droz - is seen wrestling D'Lo Brown in an eerie prelude to their catastrophic rematch in August. While Droz's paralysing neck injury also took place on an episode of SmackDown, it would be unfair to include this as a moment the WWE would rather we forgot, especially considering their good treatment of Drozdov following the incident. He was employed as a writer for the promotion's magazine and website, and was able to partially recover from his paralysis by regaining movement in his arms. This stands in stark contrast to TNA's high-profile release of Jesse Sorensen following the fracture of a vertebrae in his neck, a move made especially disgusting considering Dixie Carter's earlier promise that Sorensen would always have a job with the company.