Common Pro-Wrestler Gimmick Archetypes

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Күн бұрын

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Pro wrestling has many different characters and gimmicks, the WWF / WWE were masters of creating outlandish characters for their television shows as a way to add personality to each of their performers, however many of these gimmicks could be considered recycled or reused.
Gimmick archetypes exist in pro wrestling; there's been more than one unhinged wrestler on our TV screens (Brian Pillman and Psycho Sid), we've had multiple giants who tower over their opponents (Andre The Giant and The Big Show), we've had superstars claiming to be ladies men (Ravishing Rick Rude and Shawn Michaels) along with legit athletes competing in the ring with amateur credentials (Kurt Angle and Brock Lesnar). Not every wrestler that's graced a ring has been a true original in terms of their characteristics.
This video looks at common pro wrestler archetypes that have appeared in WWE, AEW, TNA and WCW.

Пікірлер: 573

@thetruej7872 5 ай бұрын

I love gimmicks when they're based on other media like how Crow Sting was based off The Crow, Razor Ramon based off Scarface, Kane based off slasher movie villians, etc.

@jediknightgeo 5 ай бұрын

Razor was more inspired by. Sting was a straight rip off.

@troywright359 5 ай бұрын

Glacier by subzero.

@Ian-Omega 5 ай бұрын

So you’re a child

@SRC267 5 ай бұрын

What was the Christmas Creature based off?

@zachary_attackery 5 ай бұрын

In Japan they have actual movie villains as wrestlers: Leatherface, Freddy, Jason etc

@ZJP 5 ай бұрын

Seeing the Mountie in the end made me think of Law Enforcement and Military gimmicks. Mountie, Big Boss Man, Captain Shawn Dean, "Rambo" Greg Gagne, The Truth Commission (adjacent to military), Lacey Evans, The MIA, Sgt. Slaughter, Sgt. Craig Pittman

@aubreyyoung4610 5 ай бұрын

And The SHEILD. They were like S.W.A.T. / Black Ops guys you know were skimming a few bricks on every drug bust.

@ultim8deadpoolmdk86 5 ай бұрын

What you think about AoP they seem to have a militia/mercenaries type gimmick IMO

@texanarchy666 5 ай бұрын

@@aubreyyoung4610im pretty sure they were supposed to be a private militia but yeah

@RaphIsStillASmark 3 ай бұрын

And Corporal Kirchner

@Monchegorx 5 ай бұрын

"The scrappy underdog": Mick Foley, Chris B****t, Bryan Danielson, Sami Zayn, Pete Dunne, Ilja Dragunov

@GodLovesYou828 5 ай бұрын

Benoit

@texanarchy666 5 ай бұрын

so excited for dragunovs future. gunther v dragunov 2 is my favorite match of all time

@MansMan42069 5 ай бұрын

Krispen Wah?

@heyiamnick4144 5 ай бұрын

Idk if Dragunov can be described as the scrappy underdog I mean maybe in his feud with Walter but *right now* even against guys who are much bigger than he is Bron Corbin Dijak, he never feels like the underdog he is so intense and brutal

@johnaustin209 3 ай бұрын

*B-E-N-O-I-T

@Venemofthe888 5 ай бұрын

I think the only one who pulled of a babyface authority figure was Teddy Long

@CharlieMyrkr 5 ай бұрын

The crowd is always gonna love you when you make guys go one on one with the Undertaker playa!!! 😎

@Venemofthe888 5 ай бұрын

@@CharlieMyrkr or he makes it a tag team match playa

@pleaseshutup7053 5 ай бұрын

No one else is like Teddy he was great

@simplysteve68 5 ай бұрын

Lol, not sure if it's in the vid, but Teddy was a referee in WCW before he was chosen to become a Mgr, and his first tag team to manage, was Harlem Heat (Booker T & bro Stevie Ray)! Can You Dig It, Playa?

@KingKhanate1997 5 ай бұрын

Adam Pearce does a good job on Raw. He doesn’t really have a gimmick. He’s just an Everyman trying to do his job effectively and not get threatened by his muscled up coworkers.

@ajtaylor8750 5 ай бұрын

The antihero gimmick is one that people enjoy no matter the era, as long as it's done in a way that isn't corny. Stone Cold stands head and shoulders above them all because he is much like the character he portrayed.

@pleaseshutup7053 5 ай бұрын

In all forms of media the anti hero works

@17thNO 5 ай бұрын

@@pleaseshutup7053Kanye West, Eminem and Howard Stern proves that.

@pleaseshutup7053 5 ай бұрын

@@17thNO lol stern was a flat out villian along with Simon cowell

@ellismarquez8410 5 ай бұрын

@@17thNO Trump is an antihero while Eminem and Stern are woke elitist sellouts.

@anjetto1 5 ай бұрын

@17thNO Kanye west? The guy who announced he loved Hitler? The guy who made Jewish executives kiss pictures of Hitler before business deals? Hes an anti hero? You're an American, right?

@TimMendeesVideo 5 ай бұрын

Great video, as always. One of my favourite archetypes has always been the cult leader gimmick: Bray Wyatt, Raven, Waylon Mercy, Ministry-era Taker, Kevin Sullivan before he was too legit to quit. Always found it really engaging stuff.

@AMFL3116 5 ай бұрын

💯

@sirkjohno0129 5 ай бұрын

CM Punk as well

@Terryfrost219 5 ай бұрын

I don’t really recall Waylon being a cult leader though lol was he?

@TimMendeesVideo 5 ай бұрын

The character was partially based on Jim Jones, so... He wasn't there long enough to get a cult but I reckon it would have been on the cards.@@Terryfrost219

@TimMendeesVideo 5 ай бұрын

Absolutely. Though, he was part of Raven's 'Gathering' in 2003 TNA, so it all comes full-circle. @@sirkjohno0129

@Johnoftheuchiha 5 ай бұрын

Honestly rappers seem to do the best out of all the music men. Acclaimed and early John Cena come to mind. Even TNA era Ron Killings was a world champion with a rapping gimmick

@Rocket1377 5 ай бұрын

It's a lot easier to rap than sing. Less repetition of words, and you don't need to carry a tune.

@AdolphSaxOfficial 5 ай бұрын

@@Rocket1377why would less repetition be easier?

@villian99918 5 ай бұрын

With rapping it gives the opportunity to do disses with it which when done right usually go over pretty good with the crowd

@CharlieMyrkr 5 ай бұрын

I honestly loved Angle’s comedy as well, nobody could roast themselves like Kurt

@hermanswords8629 5 ай бұрын

He's a man and we are boys. And theres nothing he likes better than playing with boys. LOL. Kurt Angle was gold.

@Seriously_Unserious 5 ай бұрын

Except maybe R Truth. Oh it's True, it's the damn Truth, the whole damn truth, and nothing but the damn Truth.

@travispoettcker1078 5 ай бұрын

He's the tito ortiz of wrestling

@Mujangga 5 ай бұрын

Let's not forget the time-honored ethnic gimmick.

@burritoboy2751 5 ай бұрын

Polish Power!

@mrmoose6619 5 ай бұрын

Even Hulk Hogan was originally "the Irish hero" (before he became the "Real American" which was originally the US Express of IRS and The Widowmaker)

@Polyidus97 5 ай бұрын

I would argue you can make the authority figure work as a baby face, but you can't have them be the star of the show in the same way as a heel authority figure can be. If you see Bob Armstrong in Smokey Mountain Wrestling, the face authority figure works more as a way of giving the fans some justice for the actions of the heels (fines, booking rematches etc.), and as a tool for keeping storylines going rather than having constant backstage attacks or run ins. The problem is when you try and have the face authority figure be someone with a huge profile like Hulk Hogan in TNA or Shawn Michaels in WWE (although both were constantly turning) as you can't have them be that side figure like Bob Armstrong or Jack Tunney who is only there occasionally to keep things moving.

@entropy2k196 5 ай бұрын

You made the point I wanted to make. The face authority figure works best as a side character. They also can act as the glue to make the overall environment work. The competing GMs for Raw and Smackdown Adam Pierce and Nick Aldis are perfect examples. Why should I care which show Jade Cargill goes to? Well, if Raw and Smackdown are market competitors, then it gives me some reason to care.

@christophernicholson20 5 ай бұрын

Mark Henry the "Sexual Chocolate" gimmick, The Godfather and Viscera the "Extra Large Love Machine" ladies man gimmicks

@slowburnraloh1807 5 ай бұрын

And Val venis

@oneandonlymario659 5 ай бұрын

I think one we see a lot is the Street Fighter. Not fireball throwing martial-arts warriors, but the guy who touts they were born and raised on the "mean streets" and brings that knowledge to the ring, like the Street Profits, Cryme Tyme, the Nasty Boys, etc.

@lennyschneider674 5 ай бұрын

New Jack

@kami_in_the_skye 5 ай бұрын

I always just classified it as Blue Collar, but Street Fighter probably fits better, since it doesn't imply a job itself being the gimmick (and Day Job gimmicks probably qualify as their own archetype anyway). But yeah, Eddie Kingston is probably the GOAT of this archetype. Not enough ugly (extremely relatively speaking in Eddie's case, man has the most perfect eyebrows in the business, lmao), tough old cusses who just beat the hell outta people. Mox mixes it in nicely with his loose cannon character as well. Sheamus in The Bar and especially as an old-timey hooligan also nicely embodies the trope. Finlay's definitely on the Blue Collar/Street Fighter Mount Rushmore alongside Eddie too. But it doesn't just have to be ugly tough fat guy energy. As you noted, Cryme Tyme & Street Profits fit the archetype nicely, and they're both *very* different portrayals from each other and the most common Nasty Boy types. Cryme Tyme had those brutishly violent vignettes heralding their debut, but once they actually showed up they got by almost entirely on comedic charm, street smarts, & hustling marks. And the Street Profits have the most amazing chaotic, crazy athletic streetball energy about them. So I think the archetype definitely works well with the way video was structured! There's certain common aesthetics & some fairly iconic portrayals, while leaving enough space for a lot of different stylistic approaches to find success under the same banner.

@oneandonlymario659 5 ай бұрын

@@kami_in_the_skye R-Truth embodied this at different times, too. Maybe split the difference and call this type of character "Streetwise."

@angkhoanguyen6114 5 ай бұрын

Ricky Steamboat

@mattgarcia710 5 ай бұрын

Eddie Kingston

@israelmpika7857 5 ай бұрын

the all american babyface(hogan, cena, cody rhodes) daredevils(jeff hardy, rvd, darby allen) the faction enforcer( solo sikoa, batista, big bossman, jake hagger) cocky trash talkers( the rock, the miz, mjf)

@Estolcles 5 ай бұрын

Working as a creative with a lower-end indy promotion, I'd hope for more of these videos. I like the idea of trying to figure out a gimmick, as Ray Candy said to New Jack: "you've never seen before." See all the archetypes and try to figure out some sort of gimmick that doesn't fit ANY archetype.... and if it's even possible....

@Seriously_Unserious 5 ай бұрын

and if you are fitting an archetype, figure out how to make it your own thing and silence the "he's a copycat" critics.

@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick 5 ай бұрын

As somebody who comes from an academic background in literature and theater, part of why I’ve gravitated towards professional wrestling so much is because I see so many similarities between it and classic archetypal theater throughout history. Like wrestling, staged art such as the Commedia dell’arte, Peking Opera, Noh Theater, and dozens of others were able to tell simplistic, but thrilling stories by utilizing handfuls of widely circulated caricatures and routines. All of this is to say that not only do I think that archetypes in wrestling are great, I think they’re part of professional wrestling’s fundamental makeup.

@mattjones5531 5 ай бұрын

Can we just take a minute to remember that the Undertaker started out as an "occupation" gimmick and was portrayed more as a wild west undertaker, so much so that the Undertaker used to do promos while hand crafting his opponents caskets in his workshop. While that may have fell by the wayside when the Undertaker evolved into a more supernatural gimmick that doesn't change the fact that the Undertaker is the most successful "occupation" gimmick in wrestling history.

@Briansgate 5 ай бұрын

True

@Briansgate 5 ай бұрын

But also remember, Undertaker wasn't the first to be slotted in that kind of role. Vince first had Barry Windham portray The Widowmaker. rather undertaker version 1.

@mattjones5531 5 ай бұрын

Not to say that you're wrong but the Widow maker gimmick looks more to be another heel cowboy as opposed to a wild west undertaker, in both terms of presentation and personality though while i can see how you may've drawn that conclusion quite frankly it doesn't seem plausible to me@@Briansgate

@Briansgate 5 ай бұрын

@@mattjones5531 I get what you're saying. I see it as more of an evolution rather than a direct comparison. "Let's tweak it" as they say.

@ZlothZloth 5 ай бұрын

@@BriansgateYeah, that sounds better. Paul Bearer and the urn showed up very quickly and give him a supernatural air, but it took some time before he ditched the undertaker tie.

@MrDrokkul 5 ай бұрын

Sid Pillman / Brian Vicious is one of the weirdest things I've ever seen. Bravo!

@joe9739 5 ай бұрын

It doesn't help they both have the "Ramen-Noodle Mullet" going on😂😂

@SRC267 5 ай бұрын

@@joe9739now I figured out why I always felt hungry after watching a Sid match

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

@@joe9739and Lexis King is continuing the tradition. Wrestling indeed has more than one royal family.

@joe9739 5 ай бұрын

@@jaybee5315 McMahon-Hart-Von Erich-Guerrero- and those damn Samoans (idk how to spell the last name)

@shishioh 5 ай бұрын

Sid was doing the insane megalomaniac since 93 in WCW with Vader. Pillman ripped him off if anything.

@_fadingcolors 5 ай бұрын

Toni Storm is another great example of a comedic persona from a talented wrestler.

@McPoshSquatch 5 ай бұрын

Maybe I missed it, but how was Mankind left off the unhinged list of wrestlers?

@chillahslocal 5 ай бұрын

& John Cena left off the musician one?

@alexklimkewicz7191 5 ай бұрын

The Soldier: Sgt. Slaughter, Corporal Kirchner, GI Bro The Multi-Sport Guy: Sparky Plugg Bob Holly, The Goon, Abe Knuckleball Schwartz The Strong Man: Ken Patera, Dino Bravo, Mark Henry The Cowboy: Smokin Gunns, Cowboy Bob Orton, Justin Hawk Bradshaw Were there other Ass Men apart from The Booty Man and Billy Gunn?

@blackfoxx86 5 ай бұрын

Could you consider Rikishi an Ass Man?

@evrbody 5 ай бұрын

Rikishi, of course.

@alexklimkewicz7191 5 ай бұрын

The Lackey: Virgil, Brisco & Patterson, Tajiri, Mizdow, The Disciple

@royasturias1784 5 ай бұрын

@@alexklimkewicz7191Tajiri for a while had lackeys of his own namely Akio (repackaged later as Jimmy Wang Yang) and the late Sakoda.

@matts.1443 5 ай бұрын

Don't forget pro golfer Barry Darsow in WCW.

@chrisdeeuu546 5 ай бұрын

Never forget that Mick Foley's road to the championship started by being a comedy wrestler who was the only babyface who seemed to love Mr. Mcmahon and couldn't see just how much the chairman hated him....

@kaynwells6936 5 ай бұрын

Shawn Michaels and Buff Bagwell was the same gimmick too. I’m sure there were others

@djdarq6311 5 ай бұрын

What lol

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

HBK, Bagwell, Big Poppa, Heel Lex, Rick Martell, Rick Rude, The Masterpiece and everyone doing the selfie (Prince Pretty, Theory, Logan Paul) all fall under the narcissistic heel gimmick

@theheavy2742 5 ай бұрын

Mr. Ass and Val Venis.

@daveyadict_ 5 ай бұрын

7:31 Mohammad hassan could have been great. His promos were good, and the heat was so hot....but the timing of the train terrorist attacks on rhe same night as that angle with taker....it halted it right in its tracks

@jimbo_1312 5 ай бұрын

Could've been even better if they'd played him as a sympathetic babyface with legit concerns (like his initial few promos). Also, that undertaker angle was tasteless and probably would've killed things off regardless of the 7/7 bombings imo.

@daveyadict_ 5 ай бұрын

@jimbo_1312 it was awkward. I loved his promos though. In ring was ok, I'd seen worse...but creative got out of hand real fast

@zemox2534 5 ай бұрын

You forgot the brawler archetype. The brawler is a no nonsense tough guy who lives a good fight and whenever I see a brawler in a wrestling ring, I know I am going to see a fight. The best brawlers In my opinion are Stan Hansen, Terry Funk, Tomohiro Ishii, Fit Finlay, The Road Warriors, Steve "Dr Death, Williams, Masato Tanaka and Aja Kong.

@user-sb8bn4vq8e 5 ай бұрын

Dean Ambrose

@goodluckjoe4241 5 ай бұрын

Stone Cold

@zemox2534 Ай бұрын

Do not forget the Briscoes.

@fredheskett6334 5 ай бұрын

Greasy sweathogs. Sweaty greasehogs works too!😂

@mrmoose6619 5 ай бұрын

Sounds like a Rick Rude insult, if you ask me... LOL

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

As long as its not Hoggy Sweatgrease i’m good with it 😅

@joshjohnson6891 5 ай бұрын

This is like a blueprint to gimmick assignment in the PC Fantasy Booking game, Total Extreme Wrestling 😆

@jeffwhite5007 5 ай бұрын

Opposite of the rich heel, there is the poor/came-from-nuthin babyface. Dusty Rhodes, JYD, Hillbilly Jim, Jim Duggan, and even Stone Cold.

@corywilson2007 5 ай бұрын

Alex Wright was dope

@monarched 5 ай бұрын

One archetype you forgot is the Patriot gimmick, although in some ways it could overlap with the "foreign heel" stuff depending on the country

@christophernicholson20 5 ай бұрын

Yeah I agree. A lot of wrestlers had that American hero or patriot gimmick everyone from Hulk Hogan, Hacksaw Jim Duggan and even Lex Luger

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

@@christophernicholson20Del Wilkes also literally played The Patriot

@Seriously_Unserious 5 ай бұрын

The Heart Foundation of the 90s is a classic example of a patriot gimmick. In the states, the Harts being patriotic Canadians make them heels to the American fans, but step north of the 49th parallel, and their patriotic Canadians made them the home country heroes against the evil American foreigners arrogantly proclaiming Canada is the same as the States and Canadians have no identity of our own. Pretty much whenever you work nationality into a gimmick, it'll make them a near automatic babyface in their kayfabe homeland, and heels outside their homeland. After all, guy coming out waving Stars and Stripes and chanting "USA, USA, USA" on Canadian soil, will be received very differently from him doing that same on American soil, or coming out waving the red Maple Leaf and chanting "Go Canada Go!" or something. As a Canadian, I viewed Brett Hart and his stable mates as babyfaces during their patriot gimmick.

@mrmoose6619 5 ай бұрын

Not sure if you remember, but Hacksaw Jim Duggan actually tried doing the USA USA chant at WM 6 in Toronto... against Canadian (Quebecois) Dino Bravo.

@bernardosantosribeiro6665 5 ай бұрын

I see a lot of recycling of characters that didn't work out in the past in the recent NXT, it's really cool, it helped a lot of people with Brian Pillman's son for example

@benziescha5438 5 ай бұрын

The comedy gimmicks on their own warrant a deep dive Early Eric Young and Black Machismo Jay Lethal are the first that come to my mind but going back there's everyone from Les Kellett to R Truth....

@lukelee7967 5 ай бұрын

The Hurricane was such a wonderfully silly heel.

@exilhamburger4802 5 ай бұрын

That Royal Rumble spot with Triple H and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Just brilliantly executed!

@simonbird8093 5 ай бұрын

I loved the Million Dollar Mans original vignettes and they portrayed perfectly the spin that you have to give each archetype to stand out. For example Ric Flairs boasting about his wealth was often centred around him being the Champion and the greatest wrestler but Dibiases were more subtle and sinister, especially at the start. I'm paraphrasing but i loved the vignette when he spelt out his motivation 'What do i like? Of course i like the money but what i really like is what the money can make people do for me'. Genius.

@robcav8747 5 ай бұрын

2:16 - King Harley Race was huge in the 80s and the one I think of most often (surprisingly not Lawler) from my childhood

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

Ironically, when WWF booked “King” Harley Race in Memphis they got sued by Lawler because nobody can be booked as “king” in Memphis. and Jerry Lawler won

@TheSuckoShow 5 ай бұрын

I think comedy wrestlers are some of the smartest guys in the business. Main eventing has a limited window, and mid carders can only go so far if they're losing. A good comedy guy can lose every week and still be the highlight of the show, and there's less worry about aging out of the job.

@borobinson7005 5 ай бұрын

I always thought Rick Rude looked a bit like Don Frye 😹

@borobinson7005 5 ай бұрын

Has there ever been a fisherman gimmick?? I know The Shark (John Tenta) and Shark Boy but they were supposed to be actual fish lmao 😹

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

Curt Hennig. i mean his finisher is a fisherman suplex 😁

@nickamalfitano3613 5 ай бұрын

Tugboat. Typhoon.

@SRC267 5 ай бұрын

14:23 - the zombie gimmick is going too far, it's ridiculous.

@danspawn85 5 ай бұрын

I find your lack of Wiggle disturbing.

@JackQSmith 5 ай бұрын

Some guys weren't pure comedy but could play a comedic villain well at times while being very serious other times. Kurt Angle, HBK (especially his first heel run), Owen Hart, Jericho and even Mr. Perfect to name a few.

@sukanyacole1882 5 ай бұрын

I thought Piper did a good job of operating outside the heel GM trope, but maybe that’s just cause of how unhinged he was 😂

@ignatiusjackson235 5 ай бұрын

The Rock as a heel was a Money Man, too. Those expensive shirts and everything. People just forget about that because he turned babyface. I'm taking pre-Hollywood, c. 1998.

@charliebrownnz1 5 ай бұрын

Other Archetypes: Missfits/pranksters - D-X Savages - Haku, Warrior (comes from parts unknown), Umaga, Shamrock (when he would snap) Psychopaths - Weyland Mercy, Big Boss Man ~2000 Mexican/Luchadores - the style is the gimmick Japanese - the style is the gimmick Aristocrats - William Regal, Hunter Hearst Helmsley pre D-X Movie/media characters ip-offs - Sting, Razor Ramone, Kiss Demon, Oz Dark/Broody character - Sting, Raven

@professionalboycottservice7872 5 ай бұрын

Sycho Sid

@THEANIMEFANZ_ 5 ай бұрын

there is a section of a wrestling gimmick known as the showman, think guys Nic Nemith and Mr.Perfect

@HorrorNeedle 5 ай бұрын

Surprised McMahon never came up with a wrestler called The Gynecologist.

@burritoboy2751 5 ай бұрын

😂😂😂

@SteveEazy 5 ай бұрын

Damn!

@JonySmith-bb4gx 5 ай бұрын

They can make any gimmick But Owen never needed a gimmick . He had the body of Steve Austin and movement of Richocet. The man was best of the best. True king King of ❤s

@kidgruesome407 5 ай бұрын

I think we all know the one true true King in wrestling is Jimmy King from WCW

@M1stah.J 5 ай бұрын

And he will Rule You !

@martinzies2874 5 ай бұрын

Sid absolutely OWNED that unstable trait. Jon moxley used it as a crutch when he's just not very good. The British invasion comes to mind when you think anti american wrestlers. Great list and it opens up for discussions on who, given the chance, would've played these roles best.

@anthonyturner6399 5 ай бұрын

Pls do so much more of these. I love this kinda thing so much.

@jonathanstempleton7864 5 ай бұрын

Carl Jung could write a book on wrestling gimmicks 😄

@vincentspinale3383 5 ай бұрын

Really fun video. Rikishi and Too Cool for dancers would have been perfect, too.

@zachary_attackery 5 ай бұрын

I think the ECW Zombie thing was a rib on Sci Fi Network because that show debuted on Sci Fi and I remember hearing they had some kinda rule where all shows had to have some "supernatural" element, so they just threw a zombie on there as a joke. They later also added that vampire guy

@trueSconox 5 ай бұрын

Well, I'd like to have a second part. Maybe you could make a lil series out of this. Having a trait, and going into some wrestlers, who did really good with the trait, but also some that did not that good with the trait. You have also accumulated so much knowledge about wrestling, that you could explain a bit, as to why certain wrestlers failed, while others succeded.

@raggamuffinmcgee 5 ай бұрын

I know it's difficult to be all- inclusive in these videos but one of the "loose cannon/psychotic" archetypes was Mankind at his debut... he wore that mask, would scream while rocking in the corners, pulling out his hair. When he gave promos the way he talked was haunting. Middle school me was seriously freaked out.

@thebaker525 5 ай бұрын

This video was very timely given we’re seeing an -arguably- face authority figure in Triple H right now in storyline, fighting the Rock over his place in the Wrestlemania title scene.

@EVGriffinJr 5 ай бұрын

On the evil authority gimmick. There’s so many names, but one that I think gets overlooked is Dario Cueto from Lucha underground! That villain, for the first three seasons of that show was magnificent. For me personally, he’s only second to Vince McMahon and the Mr. McMahon character.

@MrBeardsley 5 ай бұрын

R-Truth isn’t just a brilliant comedian (all the stuff he’s been doing lately has been solid gold, never thought I’d see a hot tag in a Rumble match), he’s still a great worker and the man hasn’t aged a day in 20 years. Seriously, I can’t wrap my head around Truth being 52 years old.

@carloslimon1012 5 ай бұрын

I feel like another wrestler who should be in the unstable category is either Mankind or Cactus Jack. 2 out of 3 of Foley’s gimmicks were his craziest for when he was giving beatings or taking them

@bubbathedubba3713 5 ай бұрын

Surprised the cowboy gimmick didn’t make the list

@Zephyrbal 5 ай бұрын

Lifetime Babyfaces. Sting, Steamboat, etc.

@I_am_Kamelot 5 ай бұрын

OMG this should be used as introduction for the chapter on “how to create you wrestler gimmick” in any kind of wrestling role game!

@verselynx6769 5 ай бұрын

don't forget about your 'wrestling enigmas' jeff hardy, Sting, Goldust, the great muta

@phreakzilla8514 5 ай бұрын

Another excellent video. I wasn’t looking at the screen when you were going through the Supernatural tier, and when I looked up and saw The Fiend I got choked up. Damn, he deserved so much better. RIP

@ernieb352 5 ай бұрын

Its so odd to see the different gimmicks some wrestlers go through, before finding the one that really sets them apart. JBL alone went through 4 gimmicks, the cowboy, the follower, the bodyguard, and lastly the rich man. Also, Mr. Ass really did have an awesome theme, I had The Music Volume 4 and I would listen to his and The Rock theme the most.

@supermetroid009 5 ай бұрын

This is slowly becoming my fav channel period

@RZellarsFilms 5 ай бұрын

The all American gimmick: Hogan, Angle, Luger, The Patriot, Jack Swagger, Jim Duggan

@TheCarpetbagger 5 ай бұрын

Great video! You make some of the low key best wrestling content on KZfaq

@Suchega_Uber 5 ай бұрын

I was kind of surprised by the amount you gathered. I had never put much thought into the classification of gimmicks. I hope you do make another video on it. I am sure you could surprise me again.

@chui1976 5 ай бұрын

Nice video and selection. In my opinion, maybe not as big as the foreign villain, we have the "ethnic" baby face: Rey Misterio, Pedro Morales, Bruno Sammartino, Tito Santana, Jimmy Snuka among others.

@Hammox 5 ай бұрын

Yeah we´re gonna need a part 2

@SirHammerHead888 5 ай бұрын

Awesome video. So many memories & laughs. Thanks for putting this together. I'm wondering what kind of category we might have for wrestlers that (loosely speaking) didn't really have a gimmick. No big entrance theme...catchphrases...flash or fireworks. Guys like Rugged Ronnie Garvin, Greg The Hammer Valentine & Don The Rock Muraco to name a few that come to mind. You know, wrestlers that just walked in all quiet & focused ready to take and give an ass-kicking to any one without fear. Guys that were known as some of the toughest of all time and respected for it. Wondering how we might catergorize them...

@bradmullins9132 5 ай бұрын

GREAT video!! Love the structure & outline!!

@doubledown9 5 ай бұрын

Ohhh man, loved this video! Hope there’s a series, could have watched a vid on this subject for hours!

@DaveHorgan. 5 ай бұрын

One comedy wrestler that I loved watching, but is really out of leftfield for this video, was Les Kellett. He was a WOS legend and his comedy timing and bodily movements were often beyond what professional comics can do. Long Live Les!

@bailey__ 5 ай бұрын

More of these videos would be awesome. I feel like there’s enough depth here to make it into a series or a mini series

@AlphaProto 5 ай бұрын

10:36 If Okada comes to WWE I want him to use the money man gimmick. I think that was what the Rainmaker was originally. WWE would be smart to play that up. Just like Alberto Delrio.

@Rocket1377 5 ай бұрын

He's not going to WWE. Okada is AEW bound, I guarantee it.

@williamsmith666 5 ай бұрын

I thought Moxley was just a drunk plumber...

@heisensaul5538 5 ай бұрын

He must have the same gimmick as TL Hopper than....

@Rocket1377 5 ай бұрын

His character isn't a drunk. You are mixing Jonathan Good's real-life problems with his gimmick. His alcohol issues were never part of any storylines, so show the man some respect and leave that out when discussing the Jon Moxley character.

@Briansgate 5 ай бұрын

I would almost say "Cowboy" falls under 'occupational gimmick' but there were so many, I feel Cowboy deserves its own category.

@edwinfashion5967 5 ай бұрын

Great content, keep it up! Can't wait for part 2

@RobertHenderson.poopiebear 5 ай бұрын

I'm ALWAYS HAPPY when there's a new wrestling bios video! I'm also NEVER disappointed. Great stuff as always.

@ModernDayRenaissanceMan 5 ай бұрын

The Superstar gimmick. Billy Graham LA Knight The Natural Butch Reed

@miracle_ftw 5 ай бұрын

Excellent themed video. Keep it up!

@Jihi2 5 ай бұрын

I was thinking you could do a whole video series with each video looking in depth at each of these gimmick archetypes. The history and evolution of a gimmick, important examples with successes and failures. How some gimmicks and archetypes reflect the real world, foreign heels tend to be more prominent during periods of wars and other military conflict for example. Why was Piper never really considered a foreign heel? He was a main event level heel for at least half of his career and billed from Glasgow but was always just more of a mouthy badass type. The answer of course is he avoided typical foreign heel traits we would associate with The Iron Sheik or Ivan Koloff. But what were those traits and did he did so deliberately? I think it could make for an interesting discussion. You could do a whole video looking at superhero gimmicks from the Blue Blazer to the Hurricane and isn't Sting's crow gimmick technically a superhero gimmick? RVD's singlets are famously based on pop comic art. And are there cross cultural influences between lucha and the famous masks and superhero masks? I don't know but I've always wondered about that. The more elaborate wrestling outfits in general are highly influenced by superhero costumes. Lots of interesting content to mine.

@FuckYoutubeCensorship 5 ай бұрын

Crazy you never mentioned mick Foley or scott steiner for the psycho gimmick

@Rocket1377 5 ай бұрын

Foley's gimmick was more complex, which set him apart from other one dimensional psychos like Sid. His character also evolved gradually over time, and he never underwent a repackaging, so it's difficult to separate Mankind from Dude Love from Cactus Jack from Mick Foley, as he would even switch identities during the same ppv. Mankind wasn't deranged all the time, and the guy who tore his own hair out was still the same character who danced and sucked up to McMahon, and even teamed up with the Rock. They are all different aspects of one schizophrenic character. Unlike someone like Kane, who wasn't supposed to be the same guy as Issac Yankem, despite being portrayed by the same guy.

@B3Band 5 ай бұрын

Omos may currently get by on size alone because that's what they make him do. But he's actually really funny and charismatic outside of the ring if you watch his social media. Hopefully WWE will let him show more of his personality when they're tired of just selling him as a giant and nothing else.

@Gargoyle_75 5 ай бұрын

Loved this video! Could do a second one, especially with Tag Teams.

@bigboy9497 5 ай бұрын

When are you uploading wcw nitro 24th May 1999?

@tafua_a Ай бұрын

The thing is, I honestly think that babyface authority figures do work, but only when they're neutral and hands-off (or when they're Teddy Long). A babyface that uses their power to punish the heels every time isn't fun. However, an authority figure that only intervenes when the heel does something so outrageous that not even the people writing the rulebook could conceive of it (think for example Ted DiBiase buying the WWF championship) or punishes the babyface when their righteous fury goes against the rulebook is interesting. Think of Jack Tunney only showing up when major stuff went down, or Gorilla Monsoon kicking Steve Austin out of the arena after he attacked an injured Bret Hart.

@Smok3yR1der 5 ай бұрын

The Influencer Tyler Breeze kinda did this and I'm surprised more wrestlers haven't used it as a gimmick

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

Austin Theory and Logan Paul

@zlinedavid 5 ай бұрын

Brian Zane 😂

@villian99918 5 ай бұрын

Tyler Breeze was ahead of his time

@tygoneeb9904 5 ай бұрын

Don't forget Mr Perfect as a legit athelete

@YaboiEsten 5 ай бұрын

Wrestling bios is back the king of retro wrestling

@AMFL3116 5 ай бұрын

Evil Foreigners, but no mention of Ludvig Borga! 😮

@JohnSmithShields 5 ай бұрын

Regal to an extent too.

@royasturias1784 5 ай бұрын

Shinsuke Nakamura, right after his WM bout against AJ Styles Strong Style applied to yo crotch!

@IAMGavinMitchell 5 ай бұрын

Remember when WWF used the occupational gimmick (dentist, trash collector, hockey player, tax collector, stockcar driver and country singer?)

@T-Bag13 5 ай бұрын

Decent week all in all and now it ends well. Thanks again.

@nonstickmeat 5 ай бұрын

Hey Wrestling Bios great video as always, If I may ask do you write and record the script first when you make a video or do you edit together the clips you feel are relevant then speak over them?

@TheThemillions 5 ай бұрын

Hell yeah do another of these videos. Maybe do an in-depth look at each type and all the different wrestlers to portray them? Just a thought for ya

@jaybee5315 5 ай бұрын

One of wrestling’s favorite archetype is when they lump them all into a stable. When they have big plans for one or many individuals that constitute long term storytelling, get them into a stable. When there’s too many guys in the roster and too little time to book them separately, get them into a stable. When a guy has a hard time getting over on his own, get him into a stable. There’s the androgynous gimmicks as well: Goldust, The Velveteen Dream, Orlando Jordan, Sonny Kiss, Adrian Adonis, Dalton Castle.