Lita has amassed an incredible legacy in WWE. The high-flying Superstar shot to success with the Hardy Boyz as a member of Team Xtreme, before moving on to popular programs with Kane and Edge. Lita captured the Women's Championship four times and forged a definitive rivalry with Trish Stratus that earned both of them a place in the Hall of Fame.
Lita's accomplishments withstanding, the high-flyer hailed from an era that featured some of WWE's most controversial storytelling. The Hall of Famer competed in a division that paved the way for the Women's Evolution but included many moments that wouldn't fly today.
10 Beat Up By Male Superstars
Lita wasn't afraid to take bumps throughout her career. The high-flying Women's Champion competed in multiple matches, especially during her tenure with Team Xtreme. Unfortunately, this led to many brutal beatdowns at the hands of male Superstars.
During an episode of Monday Night Raw in 2001, Lita was savagely attacked with a steel chair by Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H. The disturbing moment worked in establishing The Two Man Power Trip as heels, but wouldn't fly in today's PG era.
9 Love Triangle With Matt Hardy & Edge
During 2005, WWE blurred the lines between reality and kayfabe by depicting Lita's affair with Edge on-screen. The two Superstars were involved in an uncomfortable love triangle with Matt Hardy that exposed their personal lives and turned Lita into a despised heel.
Lita and Edge became the most hated couple in WWE as they were forced to flaunt their relationship in Matt Hardy's face. The scandalous storyline was popular but another relic from a more problematic WWE era.
8 In-Ring Sex Celebration
Lita and Edge featured in some of WWE's most outrageous moments whilst paired together on-screen. The Superstars starred in a live sex celebration in the ring that included them stripping each other's clothes before being interrupted by Ric Flair and John Cena.
Edge and Lita's 'activities' were heavily alluded to before the Women's Champion was hit with an FU from Cena. The outlandish event remains one of WWE's most controversial moments.
7 Forced Marriage To Kane
Before her on-screen relationship with Edge, Lita was involved in a disturbing kayfabe relationship with Kane. In 2004, the Big Red Machine began stalking Lita during another love triangle storyline with Matt Hardy. Lita was forced to marry Kane after becoming 'pregnant' with his child.
The uncomfortable angle included Kane kidnapping Lita with disturbing implications that modern audiences would find unacceptable. Bizarrely, Kane emerged from this story as a sympathetic babyface due to Lita's new relationship with Edge.
6 Snitsky And The Baby
As if her kayfabe romance with Kane wasn't disturbing enough, WWE featured an on-screen angle that saw Lita miscarry in the ring. Gene Snitsky hit Kane with a steel chair, resulting in the Big Red Machine falling on his pregnant bride.
Snitsky later came to the ring with a doll to mock Lita in another bizarre segment. This brought Lita and Kane together as a united front before Lita began feuding with Trish Stratus for the Women's Championship.
5 Competing In Bra & Panties Matches
WWE was a different environment for its female competitors during the Attitude Era. The pre-Women's Evolution period saw Superstars such as Lita, Trish Stratus, and Torrie Wilson compete in Bra and Panties matches that would never be allowed in the company nowadays.
Lita and Trish faced each other in matches with this stipulation, as well as the duo of Wilson and Stacey Keibler in 2001. These problematic segments stand as a stark contrast to the current progression of the modern era.
4 Fired For Not Posing In Playboy
In April 2003, Lita was involved in another problematic angle with Eric Bischoff. The Raw general manager fired the high-flying Superstar after she rebuffed his advances and refused to pose nude in Playboy like SmackDown's Torrie Wilson.
Lita returned following a seventeen-month hiatus after being rehired by Stone Cold Steve Austin. Lita and Matt Hardy later faced Bischoff and Molly Holly in a match that placed Lita's career on the line.
3 Humiliated In Her Retirement Match
Lita and Trish Stratus are viewed as trailblazers in women's wrestling, but the high-flying Superstar didn't receive the same warm send-off as her rival. Lita's retirement match saw her lose the Women's Champion to Mickie James as the hostile crowd booed her out of the building.
To add insult to injury, Cryme Tyme came to the ring selling scandalous belongings that supposedly belonged to Lita. It was a humiliating send-off for one of WWE's most talented female competitors.
2 Weird 'Relationship' With Dean Malenko
Another uncomfortable angle in late 2000/early 2001 saw Dean Malenko persistently trying to seduce a disinterested Lita. The WWF Light Heavyweight Champion tried to woo Lita, refusing to back off despite interference from the Hardy Boyz.
Lita challenged Malenko for title unsuccessfully, though eventually defeated him in a singles match thanks to Matt Hardy. Their real-life romance was incorporated into kayfabe with Malenko thankfully forgetting his obsession.
1 Matt Hardy Costs Lita Her Job
Before their love triangle with Edge, Lita's on-screen relationship with Matt Hardy had its fair share of problematic moments. Hardy cost Lita the Women's Championship and her career when he refused to tag into their bout against Eric Bischoff and Molly Holly.
Hardy later berated Lita for returning to Raw instead of joining him on SmackDown, accusing his girlfriend of caring more about the championship than their relationship. The high-flying Superstar was rehired by Christian, before teaming up with Trish Stratus to take on Christian and Chris Jericho in a Battle of the Sexes match that would never feature in today's storylines.