10 Times WWE Tried To Be Edgy (And Failed Miserably)
2. Hawk's Self-Destruction
Poking fun at someone's addiction and mental health challenges isn't cool. Given WWE's long list of casualties and track record of pushing superstars to the brink, both mentally and physically, you'd think creative might want to avoid directly tackling a sensitive subject like suicide. You'd be wrong, though.
In WWE's Attitude Era, no subject was off limits. Legion of Doom member Hawk learned that the hard way when he found himself in a storyline built around his own self-destruction. WWE blatantly leaned on Hawk's issues with drugs and alcohol, depicting him as an increasingly unreliable tag team partner fixated on taking his own life. Are you not entertained? No? Fair enough.
Hawk stumbled to the ring, he fell off the entrance ramp... you get the idea. It was troubling to watch, even by Attitude Era standards.
Hawk's behaviour prompted the addition of a third member, Droz, to The Legion of Doom, ostensibly to steady the team's focus.
The angle's dramatic finale arrived when a suicidal Hawk threatened to jump off the TitanTron in front of the live crowd. Droz climbed up, seemingly to rescue Hawk, but instead pushed him over the edge. Speaking of being pushed over the edge...
As if that wasn't bad enough, Droz then claimed he had been secretly enabling Hawk's addictions in order to get him out of the way - permanently. Hawk and Animal had seen enough. They left the WWE and hit the road soon after. Good for them.