8 Gimmicks From The Past That Wouldn't Work In Today's WWE

There have been countless savage characters in wrestling over the years and each one usually followed a similar pattern. A crazed foreign wildman enters the company, under the guidance of a handler that acts as the brute's mouthpiece. It's a tried and tested formula and one that has worked repeatedly over the last several decades.

One of the first savage teams to gain widespread notoriety was The Wild Samoans. Managed by Captain Lou Albano, this team of crazed heathens paved the way for the likes of The Missing Link, Kamala, and The Headshrinkers. However, while wildmen gimmicks presenting primitive tribesmen may have been acceptable in the cartoon era of the '80s and early '90s, today they simply come off as insulting.

When Umaga debuted in WWE in 2006, eagle-eyed viewers would have been aware of his previous life as Jamal of Three Minute Warning just three years earlier. If that were to happen today, a quick Google search would tell you that history instantly, making it even harder to suspend disbelief. Simply put, the wildman gimmick has become an outdated concept.

For modern proof, look no further than Kongo Kong in GFW, Despite their best efforts, the gimmick comes off as hokey and out of place in 2017. What's more, Google will also tell you his real name is Steven... which sounds infinitely less savage.