10 Times WWE Destroyed Something Brilliant
8. The Road Warriors
CM Punk wasn't referring to the Road Warriors when he famously proclaimed that "Vince McMahon is a millionaire who should be a billionaire," but he might as well have been. His tweaking of awesome, out of the box wrestling acts was and is inscrutable.
Whether through ego or miscomprehension, McMahon, almost invariably, is incapable of just presenting something awesome sui generis. The Road Warriors achieved major success everywhere they went by rehashing a proven winner of a formula. They bum-rushed the ring with a terrifying intensity, beat the ever-loving p*ss out of some jobbers, dropped them on their heads, and bid the crowd adieu. They didn't need to do anything else because a) they couldn't and b) the act was a perfect method of extracting something fruitful from meagre resources.
McMahon's first modification saw him drop the Road Warriors moniker and opt instead to formalise their interchangeable Legion of Doom nickname. That wasn't so bad - but beyond destructive was his decision to install a ventriloquist dummy, Rocco, as their mascot. It's not as if they needed to be merchandised - the foam spiked shoulder pads were a hit. Rocco, located in a rubbish pile with an almost delirious irony, apparently steered a young Animal's sense of morality. "When we were little kids, when I wouldn't wanna talk to my parents and I couldn't find Hawk, I'd tell this guy what was goin' on and he'd set me straight, tellin' me what was right and what was wrong!"
The Road Warriors. Morality. A ventriloquist dummy. Red flags should have been raised immediately, and they were. The original name of the dummy, Freckles (!) was hastily changed.
Yes. It was the name that was stupid.