15 Exact Moments Failed WWE Gimmicks Actually Got Over
3. Baron Corbin
WWE wanted you to receive Baron Corbin as something of a throwback.
In NXT, he was deliberately positioned as the methodical, unexciting guy who wanted to kill your internet darlings. WWE leaned in on this when he cut his “I’ll buy a boat and float down the river of your years” promo, but the act didn’t work on the main roster, fans of which weren’t waiting for their favourite PWG dudes to rock up on SmackDown.
The problem for Corbin is that he was actually a throwback: he was a rare modern version of the 1980s/1990s guy who would float between gimmicks with little-to-no success. He was the anti-workrate ‘Lone Wolf’. He was the Constable - one of the worst authority figures in WWE history, and think of the ground that covers. He was ‘Happy Corbin’ - an obnoxious jackass who had failed to learn a lesson in humility. It was a broad, unfunny bit after a promising start.
Two ominous developments happened in 2023: he was sent down to NXT, and he was repackaged as a man who wanted to bury his past. This is code for “Forget everything about this wrestler, it was awful, we know it as much as everybody else”. It looked bad, but then, shockingly, it got awesome.
Shawn Michaels used the ever-reliable “will they, won’t they” trope, but repurposed it for a bromance between Corbin and Bron Breakker. Thrown together and only pretending to be upset about it, Corbin and Bron wanted to be bros. It was obvious. They were just two alphas who couldn’t talk about their feelings or any woke sh*t like that. The act really started to click when Bron, inordinately proud of his ‘WolfDog’s tag team name pitch, presented it to a mocking Corbin. Corbin's gentle hazing was classic; Bron's embarrassed "shut up dude" even better.
Corbin loved taking the piss - but then, you take the piss out of your mates, don’t you?