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WWE's Attitude Era is the most beloved period in sports entertainment and pro wrestling history. The era officially spanned from 1997 till early 2002. It traces a specific time during WWE's Monday Night Wars with its competitor WCW.
WWE managed to win the ratings wars, thanks to the birth of a new attitude in sports entertainment, after which the company never had to look back in terms of its popularity.
This era was in demand for its adult-oriented content. It focused on an increased level of violent action, profanity, and mature content. The era also boasts of the rise of some of the top superstars in the company's history, including Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, Mick Foley, Triple H, The Undertaker, and Kane, among others.
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The female wrestlers of that time were divided broadly into two categories. Some were marketed as eye candy in an overly provocative fashion, while the rest were catering to the legitimate side of propagating female wrestling.
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It is hard to comprehend such a diverse form of an era where there was little to no censorship involved. As cool as that time might have been, a few of the top superstars with their gimmicks would not have earned their share of popularity if they were in the WWE today.
Let us look at five such wrestlers and their gimmicks that got them over, but which could never work today.
#5 Mark Henry's gimmick that got him over in WWE
To this day, Mark Henry is fondly remembered for his Attitude Era gimmick, The Sexual Chocolate. After the end of his run with the Nation of Domination, Mark Henry adopted a ladies man character.
Under this new persona, Henry would attempt to woo Chyna. But she would set him up only to humiliate him publicly. Henry's character would controversially come up with some of the most bizarre things that would be beyond the scope of appropriation.
Even after all of this, the character got over with the fans. Being a fan favorite, Henry started romancing the veteran Mae Young. The characterization was not very thoughtful from the creative. Mae would later be pregnant and give birth to a hand on WWE Television!
To Henry, it did not matter what he was doing at the time, but what truly meant most to him was for the WWE Universe to enjoy the character's silliness. It doesn't hurt to know that even he was having a ball of a time with that whacky gimmick. Despite all this, it's safe to say this gimmick would fall flat in a questionable state, plummeting in modern times.
#4 Mick Foley's hardcore nature in WWE
Mick Foley wasn't something that this generation of WWE fans would have liked to watch every week on their TV screens. Way too violent for today's programming, Foley would be an outcast if he dropped straight into this generation.
Known for his violent personas, Foley was a hardcore wrestling legend. From being thrown off a cell to crash-landing through flaming tables, Foley was never a visual treat for the faint-hearted.
If you take away the hardcore element from Foley, what remains is a mundane visage of an overweight wrestler that does not fit the mold of how a desirable superstar should look.
It is simply astonishing to realize what Mick Foley had his body to endure to make other wrestlers look like a million bucks. There is no part left in his anatomy that has not been broken or busted. The man has been put through thumbtacks more times than we can count. Foley had lost half of his ear while wrestling a match.
These are the things that got him his identity and made him get over it. These things eventually made him a living hardcore legend.
#3 Jeff Jarrett being a misogynist in WWE
Jeff Jarrett's WWE gimmick took a different turn during 1999. Jarrett's character was the epitome of misogyny where he would suddenly start to target women, discrediting their contributions to society and would blatantly remark that women belong in the kitchen. He would objectify them and use profanity to get on that moneymaking heel heat.
Double J would then take it up a level by physically assaulting female WWE wrestlers and crew. A long list of women would fall prey to the misogynistic superstar such as Debra, Miss Kitty, Ivory, Cindy Margolis, Jacqueline, and Lilian Garcia. Even the old legendary WWE figures like Mae Young and The Fabulous Moolah would be taken out by guitar shots and a figure four leg lock.
Ironically, these things got Jeff Jarrett over to make a mark for himself in the Attitude Era. If you could even imagine such a gimmick in this day and age, then you are brutally mistaken.
The whole storyline was inappropriate even by that time's standards and would not land well even with a single fan nowadays.
#2 Billy and Chuck's tag team in WWE
The storyline involving Billy and Chuck was at the end of WWE's Attitude Era. It began with Billy Gunn and Chuck Palumbo forming a tag team during 2001. Soon, the two would start showing affection towards each other. Furthermore, an attestation of a homosexual relationship was depicted between the two on weekly WWE television.
The duo would flaunt matching red ring gear with bleached hair. They would get their personal stylist Rico. During 2002, the two would get serious and take up their relationship to the next stage by establishing their bond in holy matrimony.
During the ceremony, Billy and Chuck would publicly admit that it was all a ruse and that they were not together. They further stated that this whole angle was merely a publicity stunt that had gone too far. It would officially end the distasteful angle, followed by an attack by Eric Bischoff's 3-Minute Warning.
The events would not sit well with the mass and concerns over the storyline would spark controversies. The storyline probably had the worst taste and purpose, ridiculing the LGBT community as a joke. No one can even dare to imagine the consequences of such a gimmick in this day and age.
#1 Stone Cold Steve Austin might not have gone entirely over in WWE today
A brash, beer-drinking character like Stone Cold Steve Austin was one of the many reasons why WWE's Attitude Era was so popular. The concept of the character was to be anti-establishment. Steve Austin was the embodiment of the company's shift to more mature and adult programming. Austin's persona would be similar to an anti-hero who could change the face-heel dynamic by introducing a third dimension.
Stone Cold would gain an immense amount of cult-like fan following after his King of The Ring promo. Austin would gradually rise to become the company's top star. His tough persona would see him often flipping off his opponents.
He was infamous for turning on anyone at any time and stunning them regardless of whether they were male or female with his patented Stone Cold Stunner.
The most popular angle of Austin's career would come from his feud with Vince McMahon. Vince would refuse Austin's antics and prevent the superstar from becoming the WWE Champion. In a recurring theme, the boss would be tormented and publicly humiliated in unimaginable ways by The Texas Rattlesnake.
An anti-authoritarian character would be very appreciated in modern times, but elements of what made the Austin character stand out would be a red flag today. A beer-drinking, abusive guy who assaults women by face locking and jawbreaking them makes the persona too edgy for television. More so when you take into account that WWE is rated TV-PG.
