10 Wrestling Gimmicks That Went Way Over Everyone’s Heads

5. The Brood (Lost Boys)

The Brood
WWE.com

What People Thought: Resident bloodsucker Gangrel surrounded himself with his 'Brood' of Edge and Christian to help him take over the WWF. Aside from the vampiric gimmick, it was all presented as serious heel stable stuff, but wrestling fans could both see and appreciate the attempt to introduce a young tag-team in interesting fashion.

What They Actually Were: The Brood was Gangrel's idea, not creative's, and he didn't want it to be 100% serious either. The core idea wasn't something Vince McMahon was even that keen on. He failed to see the thrill of three fun-loving vampires running around giving everyone blood baths at all, meaning ol' Gangers had to repeatedly fight his corner and crow about E&C getting over despite losing.

He got the idea about lovable, blood-drinking leeches from 1987 comedy horror The Lost Boys.

Obviously, The Brood lacked some of the comedic touches Gangrel wanted, but he was able to present himself as an over-the-top cult leader who had brainwashed youth into thinking he was the sh*t. His vision for the stable took direct inspiration from Joel Schumacher's '80s hit.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.