8 Horrible WWE Returns That Absolutely Nobody Asked For
3. Tensai (2012)
It's a shame that Matt Bloom's last in-ring run collapsed the way it did. He was always an underrated big man, particularly outside of WWE, and transformed himself into an effective monster gaijin during his New Japan Pro Wrestling run. Vince McMahon leaned heavily on this experience upon bringing Bloom back as Lord Tensai in 2012. This probably seemed like a great idea at the time, but it yielded nothing but ridicule for the former Albert.
During his most famous WWE run, Bloom was literally named after a penis piercing. When he left, his nickname was 'The Hip-Hop Hippo.' The fans naturally dumped all over his reinvention as a Japan-inspired badass, and while the company tried to push him hard (even handing Tensai victories against John Cena and CM Punk), it soon fell on its backside.
Tensai was taunted with chants of "AAAAAAAALBERT!" from day one. His previous runs meant nobody could take him seriously, and with his credibility undermined, Bloom's in-ring career fell by the wayside. Still, at least he was able to transition into an influential role as the Performance Center's head trainer. He has never been as important to the company as he is today.