Professional wrestling is about suspending disbelief in order to enjoy the athletic theatre going on in the ring. When wrestling fans are able to allow themselves to be taken on the roller coaster ride of a wrestling match, it can be a magical experience. Unfortunately, there are even some things that occur in the ring that makes even the biggest wrestling fan cringe. Despite the Attitude Era being professional wrestling's most popular period in WWE, not all things that happened inside the ring were golden.
While some Attitude Era wrestlers were able to become incredibly popular, even they were plagued by some unfortunate finishing maneuver choices. A wrestler's signature finisher is supposed to be so devastating that their opponent is unable to continue on with the match. While the Attitude Era had plenty of these, there were some wrestlers who only succeeded in making fans scratch their heads when they tried to win with their maneuver.
10 Christian - Impaler
There is no denying that Christian has had a very successful wrestling career. Whether it was as a tag team specialist in WWE, or as Christian Cage in Impact Wrestling or AEW, he has managed to entertain fans and rise to the top of the card.
However, why he decided to stick with the Impaler - or known as the Killswitch in modern times - will always be a question. The strange inverted DDT looks more difficult to set up than it is devastating and takes away from him as a performer due to the distraction.
9 Road Dogg - Pumphandle Drop
The Attitude Era may not have been known for having five-star matches at every turn, but there were still plenty of good in-ring workers during the time period. Unfortunately, Road Dogg was never one of them. Known much more for his charisma than his in-ring abilities, that is what made him thrive.
Road Dogg was able to thrive as a tag team competitor mainly due to hiding his lack of ability behind Billy Gunn's athleticism. Considering that he was able to become a multi-time tag team and singles champion with a poorly executed Pumphandle Drop as a signature maneuver is all that needs to be said to understand.
8 Booker T - Scissor Kick
When Booker T debuted in WWE following the acquisition of WCW in 2001, there were some fans who had never seen him wrestle before. Thankfully, Booker's strong character and in-ring work made quick believers of those fans, and he enjoyed a solid career in WWE.
Despite Booker's natural ability to get over with a crowd, his original finishing maneuver left much to be desired. His jumping Scissor Kick did not seem devastating compared to other performers' moves, and he thankfully adopted the Book End as his main signature and moved this one to the side.
7 Mankind - Sweet Shin Music
Mick Foley's entertainment abilities were never in his athletic prowess or technical abilities. Foley's ability to absorb pain and dish out punishment is what made him a popular star, even when his character became the deranged and goofy Mankind of the Attitude Era.
While the Mandible Claw was an odd yet devastating maneuver, Foley's homage to Shawn Michaels was much less entertaining. The aptly named Sweet Shin Music was a tongue-in-cheek way of showing that Foley was unable to kick up toward an opponent's head and only served to devalue his wrestling abilities.
6 Jeff Jarrett - The Stroke
Despite his reputation in the wrestling business, Jeff Jarrett was able to maintain a consistent spot during the Attitude Era as a valued performer. At one time, he was a valued mid-card wrestler and a multi-time Intercontinental Champion.
While Jarrett's in-ring abilities were valued, he could have done with a new finishing maneuver to wrap up the package. The Stroke is similar to The Miz's Skull Crushing Finale but much slower and with less style. Most of Jarrett's in-ring work was slow and methodical, and unfortunately, his finishing move certainly matched that perfectly.
5 Stevie Richards - Stevie Kick
In ECW, Stevie Richards was a valued wrestler whose never-say-die attitude made him popular with fans and other wrestlers. However - like many ECW alumni who joined WWE during the Attitude Era - Richards would wind up becoming a lower-tier wrestler in WWE.
What did not do Richards any favours was his finishing maneuver. While the Stevie Kick may have done well for him in ECW, the WWE already had Shawn Michaels make his name off of an impressive superkick maneuver, which put Stevie in a hard place from the get-go that he was never able to recover from.
4 Rikishi - Stinkface
The Attitude Era was a strange time for wrestling where even the most unusual things would become popular with fans. None of these was any stranger than a four-hundred-plus pound man in a small piece of clothing was cheered for rubbing his backside in his opponent's face.
Rikishi made a name for himself with the Stinkface maneuver and is still fondly remembered for it. Despite its popularity, there is no denying that the Stinkface is not an athletic maneuver and was only around for comedic purposes.
3 Scotty 2 Hotty - The Worm
Scotty 2 Hotty was able to become one of the Attitude Era's most popular wrestlers for a very different reason than most other wrestlers. While most wrestlers relied on their charisma or athletic ability to gain popularity, Scotty did so with a very silly dance maneuver followed by a weak wrestling move.
The Worm excited fans from the moment Scotty signalled for it during his matches, but what was even more surprising was the fact that he won matches with it. Acting like a breakdancing worm, Scott slid across the ring to his opponent before dropping a very simple karate chop to their chest, which was exactly as bad as it sounds.
2 The Rock - The People's Elbow
When it comes to wrestlers who broke into mainstream culture, there are none more famous than The Rock. Due to his incredible charisma, The Rock was able to transition away from wrestling and become one of Hollywood's most bankable movie stars.
Looking back on his wrestling character, it is difficult not to cast criticism on The People's Elbow. While there is no denying his popularity, the theatrical elbow drop has little devastation to it in comparison to other moves. It is surely only on the back of his undeniable connection to the crowd that it became a fixture of the Attitude Era.
1 The Hurricane - Chokeslam
The suspension of disbelief that comes along with being a wrestling fan can sometimes be tested by what occurs inside the ring. While wrestling fans were able to accept that The Hurricane believed he was a superhero, it was difficult to believe that he had real superhuman strength.
Behind the mask and cape, Shane Helms was a well-known cruiserweight wrestler who did not possess the muscles of a heavyweight. So to have him execute a chokeslam as his signature move was questionable due to his size, and his gimmick suffered because of it.