10 WWE Innovations That Nobody Wanted
4. Anonymous Raw General Manager
The Anonymous Raw General Manager was supposed to add some mystery and intrigue to Raw, but it quickly got tedious.
The anonymous nature of the GM meant there was no accountability. Decisions came through emails read by Michael Cole, who uttered the most unbearable catchphrase each time. Without a human face to relate to or rally against, it was hard for fans to care about the GM’s decisions. Watching babyfaces feud with a computer was the dregs of wrestling.
Plus, the storyline dragged on way too long without a satisfying payoff. Fans were dying to know who the Anonymous GM was, but the reveal kept getting pushed back, leading to frustration. When the big reveal finally happened, long after the gimmick had disappeared, it was Hornswoggle, which felt more like a joke than a rewarding conclusion. Vince McMahon definitely kept 'Swoggle in his office, in a box that said in case of emergency break here, because he was used as the payoff for way too many plots.
The gimmick also messed with the flow of the show. The GM’s emails constantly interrupted matches and segments, breaking the momentum and making Raw a marathon to watch. Having the main event of WrestleMania interrupted by that infuriating Apple ringtone doesn't get mentioned enough in lists of the worst moments in WWE history.