Under the regime change in which Triple H has taken control of WWE, with Vince McMahon stepping down from power, there has been a renewed focus on the weekly Raw and SmackDown shows. There have been some better and more authentic gimmicks produced and some strong character work, though not everything is perfect.
Some of the aftermath from McMahon’s lethargic and soulless roster has remained, with Triple H unable to change everything overnight, although there have been some gimmicks used by him that simply haven’t worked as well as he may have hoped. It must be said that not every gimmick mentioned isn't necessarily terrible, but some could be a lot better.
10 Akira Tozawa
No matter how much time goes on, things haven’t changed for WWE and Vince McMahon, with him still leaning into stereotypes up until his final day in charge.
Even under Triple H, Akira Tozawa has still dressed up in ninja-like attire, which still feels like an awfully stereotypical thing to make him wear. For someone who is such a good wrestler, his talents have been completely wasted since he joined WWE.
9 Madcap Moss
In his team with Baron Corbin, Madcap Moss lived up to his “Madcap” moniker by being a jokester and goofball. It was annoying but in a good way. He underwent a fairly natural face turn from there.
Since becoming a babyface, Moss has been given zero characters, and the “Madcap'' name no longer makes any sense. His gimmick is so bad because there is no “gimmick” in sight. It is a shame given that his momentum was growing, but WWE has seemingly given up on him as of late.
8 Shanky
It must be noted that Shanky hasn’t appeared on TV much over the last few months, but his gimmick was one that was too silly to ignore. Once again, WWE decided to utilize a big man with a comedy gimmick.
Whenever Shanky heard music, he couldn’t help but break into dance, losing himself in the beat. He would try and seemingly flirt with the ring announcers too, in a very weird dynamic. This gimmick was a complete dud, with fans hardly caring for it at all. It is unclear exactly if this has been dropped completely, or if he is absent through injury or a change in direction.
7 Mustafa Ali
Mustafa Ali’s gimmick is currently one of a babyface who seems to just be all talk but loses all the time. For someone as talented as Mustafa Ali, it feels as though he is further being punished due to him wanting out of the company earlier this year.
He now pops up trying to have fights with others, but quickly gets disregarded and defeated. His gimmick is so weak and lifeless at this point that it feels as though there is perhaps no coming back from it.
6 Karrion Kross
Karrion Kross made his WWE return under Triple H, with his previously poor run on the main roster looking to be rectified. Unfortunately, though, Kross’ time back has got off to a rocky start in terms of his gimmick.
Kross has a great look and strong in-ring work, but his promo style hasn’t worked out just yet, and it is hard to pinpoint exactly what sort of gimmick he has. He speaks like an over-the-top villain, and the entire hourglass element of his character feels disjointed. There are some cracks that need to be fixed, but currently, fans are showing less and less interest in Kross.
5 Maximum Male Models
When the Maximum Male Models team began, both Mace and Mansoor were hilarious. Their commitment to the role was fantastic, and the gimmick felt like something fresh. Unfortunately, it received absolutely no depth or progression.
It now feels like a mostly lifeless act with nothing aside from the basics of them being models. It feels straight out of a previous era in terms of how much thought has been put into the gimmick aside from just the basics.
4 Johnny Gargano
In NXT, Johnny Gargano rose the ranks with his gimmick being one of a great wrestler full of heart and soul. Unfortunately, the main roster in WWE is a hard place to get over with a gimmick like that.
Since returning to WWE, Gargano has been cheesy, jokey, and utilizing all the unlikeable and forced cadence that WWE so often uses for their babyfaces. His goofy persona is awkward, and fans haven’t been laughing much at his quirks or digs at the likes of The Miz. Fans may begin to turn on Gargano if his character isn’t changed soon.
3 The Schism
The Schism has been a growing faction in NXT, with their leader, Joe Gacy, building what feels like a cult. In 2022, it feels as though wrestling has seen enough cults over the years, especially one which has been so haphazardly booked like The Schism.
NXT has been unable to decide whether they have magical elements or not, with this chopping and changing over several months. In addition, the popular Grizzled Young Veterans team has been put into this group, which is a complete waste of their talents.
2 Matt Riddle
For most of 2022, WWE had been getting the balance between Matt Riddle’s serious and goofy nature spot on, with him getting hugely over in feuds against Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins. However, since then, WWE has been taking backward steps.
WWE is currently leaning far too much into his stoner jokes, which feel overly done at this point. He has reverted to his pandemic-era “dumb” nature too, making him feel like someone with less importance and legitimacy.
1 Apollo Crews
Many fans have tuned out of NXT since the rebranding of the show, so some may not be aware of the absurd gimmick currently held by Apollo Crews, who made his return to NXT earlier this year.
Crews can see into the future, with him having premonitions (which are filmed and shown to the audience), which leads him to stop disaster or bad events from happening. It is cartoon-like in the worst of ways, and it quite simply isn’t fun to watch.