In the world of professional wrestling, gimmicks are critical. They can be as simple as Stone Cold Steve Austin, the beer swilling redneck; all the way to The Undertaker's grim reaper of the Old West. They give the wrestler his motivations, his drives, they form the basis of a lot of promo work and backstage antics. Basically, they're a way of giving the WWE characters some..... um, character. They're a way to reach out and connect with the audience, and that connection is vital, and determines your popularity, your TV time and thus, your job. The difference between a good gimmick and a bad gimmick is what separates your Bray Wyatts from your Boogeymen. So wrestlers, promoters and writers alike spend hours, days, even months in the genesis of a new gimmick, and then to its upkeep and fleshing out. Paul Heyman, in particular, was known to spend hours at a time with his wrestlers, discussing every nuance of their on-screen character, no matter how slight. Vince McMahon, too, loves his gimmicks. Some more than others (Flash Funk, R-Truth, Brodus Clay, The Godfather, The Funkadactyls, Booker T.... How many "dancing black guys/girls" do we have to have before we can safely call him racist?) But sometimes, for whatever reason, the gimmick fails. It doesn't connect with the audience, or it's run its course, or it's just plain STUPID. Mostly that last one, in this day and age. Here's 8 current WWE performers that need a re-think;
Stephen Maher has been a rock star, a bouncer, a banker and a busker on various streets in various countries. He's hung out with Robert Plant, he was at Nelson Mandela's birthday and he's swapped stories with prostitutes and crack addicts. He once performed at a Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras by accident. These days, he passes the time by writing about music, wrestling, games and other forms of nerdery. And he rarely drinks the blood of the innocent.
