12 Days That Completely Killed Kayfabe

11. October 13, 2015 - Lana And Rusev's Engagement Is Announced

It almost seems like there's no kayfabe left to break in today's wrestling world, but WWE proved they could still puzzle viewers last week, when news broke that former United States Champion Rusev was engaged to his estranged manager Lana in real life. When TMZ reported the story, WWE's decision-makers had a choice - they could either continue their current storyline, which had seen Rusev dump Lana for Summer Rae, or they could incorporate reality into their programming. The latter choice seemed to offer little benefit, and when WWE actually made that decision, it proved to have come from a place of vindictiveness. The company's brass was clearly annoyed that their superstars' personal decisions conflicted with television, so they exposed Rusev and buried him on air, damaging his character and gaining nothing in return. Wrestlers' private lives had been more or less off-limits prior to this decision, but WWE proved that nothing - not age-old wrestling wisdom or simple good sense - outweighs the company's pettiness.