Create Your Gimmick

[I Bent My Wookie]

So I've become somewhat of an owl this week, and between sleeping, finishing all my work for Christmas already and trying to decide whether I want to be silver or blonde for my birthday I decided to take a think back to my old days of E-Fedding and previous gimmick ideas I had when I was training and even more recently as I've felt like wanting to get back into it again (and god knows if I ever stop being scrawny as hell I will)

 

There's a lot of smart wrestling minds on here that I imagine have at one time or another come up with what they thought would be a kick ass idea for a wrestling gimmick for themselves or just in general. I can't ever remember reading a thread solely on the subject but knowing my luck I've probably posted in one in the past.

 

Doing this type of thread is a bit hit and miss for me as well as it kinda gives out everything I had planned for two gimmicks I made in the past (I have tons more I've wrote up to the point I could write a book with the drawings and stuff involved if I took my time) and that if I ever do get the confidence to step into the ring again I wouldn't feel easy using something people already know so much about.

 

I'll start with Two I planned out myself:

 

CRASH TEST DUMMY

 

I always had the idea if I ever did/do break into the business that primarily I'd want my first two years or so to be as closed off from the world as possible while working on other stuff. That may be a little difficult to understand, but it was one of those things where almost like you want to make a good first impression when you meet someone new, breaking into such a performance industry like this, you want a chance to gain experience and confidence on live shows before making your "grand" entrance as the person you want to be for years to come.

 

As some of the forum know from my previous posts I currently have some vary strangely placed tattoos that in the grand scheme of things look stupid as fuck by themselves but when finally completed together should look pretty good to others. Not that I get them for anybody or anything but more that I'm getting bored of being asked why I had my hand tattooed first on my arm, after having my back done. Partially the Aspergers made me want to not do things normally would be the answer before anyone asks.

 

I was looking around for a different reason at Morph Suits for a friends birthday and I came across one for a crash test dummy. Full body suit, head as well, very basic but you could tell from it what it was. An added vinyl logo onto the middle would make it complete.

 

In terms of pure WrestleCrap gimmicks I thought the whole idea behind someone being a crash test dummy in wrestling could be great. Promotions like ICW, Triple X and to an extent PCW with its vocal, passionate fan base I feel would be the types of companies that could get a kick out of it. Something not overly ridiculous, but tounge in cheek at the same time.

 

Coming out to Men Without Hats "Safety Dance" wearing a cone on his head and dancing on the way to the ring, this character would always be up against the odds, usually fed to a monster heel or somebody looking to gain some vengeance for a past defeat to regain an aura of power. I even thought the idea that his matches would last the length of entering the ring with his music playing, being squashed while the music still played and defeated before the end of the song.

 

When I sat down and wrote out all the ideas I had for it (I have a book of them) some of them included having wrestler's doing promo videos for the companies much how FWA used to do little videos of Zebra Kid etc showing off their signature moves but using the Crash Test Dummy to show them, or when training for a big match paying crash test dummy to come in and work with them knowing that as just a dummy, anything they did wouldn't affect him physically and he'd be happy to do this.

 

This itself created the weird sub plot of a heel manager turning CTD heel with the use of the money CTD had gotten from all the beatings, that he was actually wealthy and tired of being everyone's whipping boy. However becoming part of a heel faction, he is used to take most the beatings handed out, becoming their whipping boy because despite thinking he was smart, he's still a dummy.

 

There was even an increase on the character after some time where upon being saved by a wrestler from a different country (the idea came up with El Ligero coming to his aid) that he went away to be maintained and upgraded and in his temporary place they sent a Mexican version as a faulty order "Maniqu

[The Invisible Boy]

Luke Scarrbrick

 

I was always very interested by the character of Raven and where he came from and how it happened and I also think Batman is awesome so tried to imagine a twist on both origins of these characters, thus I came up with Luke Scarrbrick.

 

So his story began when he was born into a posh family, who owned a pretty big house, not a mansion or manor or anything like that but bigger than your normal house. They were pretty well off and Luke was the youngest of the family, with two older brothers and an older sister. All four of the siblings got good grades in all of their classes and all was going well until one day Luke's Dad was killed by a drunk driver in a hit and run incident.

 

After his Dad's death the family all rallied around each other but Luke who was about 15 at this time became very cut off from everyone and everything. He spent most of his free time locked in his room and became a loner, until he met a few guys at a gig who were in a metal band called Painlusting. He had learnt bass when he was younger and agreed to join their band but these guys were into various other things, such as drugs, alcohol and liked to gamble too.

 

When Luke began hanging out with them more and more people noticed a difference in him, he was still generally a loner but he became more angry and depressed, he would get involved in fights and be in trouble with the police. His family eventually discovered how he had become involved in drugs, gambling and alcohol and gave him an ultimatum to either stop doing it, allow them to help him or to get out of their home (something they didn't expect him to do) so he left their family home and stayed on one of his bandmate's couches.

 

Eventually Luke ended up in a fight with one of the guitarists from the band and ended up badly injuring him (broke his left cheek, nose and fractured his left eye socket). This obviously had him thrown out of his mate's house and he went off by himself sleeping rough for a while until he got a job as a bouncer for a club (whilst he was sleeping rough he worked out a lot and had gained quite a it of muscle).

 

During his time as a bouncer Luke managed to get himself a bedsit and began to train in bareknuckle fighting, this eventually led to him doing his job as a bouncer some nights and other nights he would work for independent wrestling shows in gyms and bingohalls.

 

Now he is 29 and his finisher is a running elbow to the face, he sprints towards them, and quickly moves his right elbow into their face, with the sharp, hard, boney part usually hitting them and knocking them out. This is how he broke his ex-bandmate's cheekbone,

nose and eye socket all of those years ago. He named the move in memory of his Dad and called it the Hit&Run.

 

His look is that he is about 6 foot, muscly but not overly so, sort of like Goldberg, not bulky, but good definition. He has long unkempt scraggily dirty blonde hair and has stubble. His ring attire is just some black trunks with Hit&Run written on the back, Hit and run both in white and the & sign in red. He wears black boots, black knee pads and a black elbow pad on his left elbow but nothing on his right elbow which makes his finisher more devastating. He has white tape around both his hands. On his way to the ring he will wear his official tshirt, some ripped jeans shorts and a ripped up, very old leather jacket with the logo of his old band, Painlusting on the back. He has had this jacket since he joined the band all of those years ago.

 

So yeah with his back story it also allows the possibility of a debut for one of his siblings or his ex-bandmates too.

 

 

The above is a character I'd love to see or create but really if I was becoming a wrestler though I'd love to be a rip off of Shawn Michaels, with the dancing to the ring, long flowing hair and the energy and athleticism. I used to be part of an efed where I made this my gimmick and my name was N.C Loco and later Nicky Nitro. I also had a Rey Mysterio like character called Juvi.

[PowerButchi]

Am evil Russian as wrestling always needs more evil Russians, or a rip off of Jimmy Del Ray are the only two I've thought about over the past ten years.

[King Pitcos]

Lotto Lout.

[UK Kat Von D]

I had an idea for a character with insomnia (stay with me on this.) He would basically have been driven a bit mad from lack of sleep and decided the reason he can't sleep is because he is a bad person (after someone telling him there is no rest for the wicked.) So in an effort to cure himself he started doing his best to be a good person, but it didn't work. So he kept trying to think of things that would make him a bad person and has decided that normal everyday things are actually evil. Stuff like not having an eco friendly house, giving all your money to charity, helping the homeless etc are all evil. When that didn't help him sleep he figured that it's also wrong to stand by while other people do evil things, so he had to find a platform to preach and convert the world to his lofty standards. So he became a wrestler to spread the word on how everyone should live their lives. If there's one thing people hate it's being told how to live their lives (especially if that person has a point. Kinda like CM Punk during his straightedge society days.)

 

The character would have a bit of black eye makeup to look like bags under his eyes and be quite slow in the ring with short bursts of vicious offence. The main problem would be he can't cheat in the ring which is obviously important for a heel. I think it would be quite daunting being in a fight with a bloke who would be happy if you knocked him out

[darkship]

Lotto Lout.

 

If that's a sort of "chav lottery winner" Michael Carroll gimmick, I can imagine Greg Burridge doing it.

[patiirc]

The Ref Who Couldn't Count to Three!

 

The gimmick, is that of an old wizened referee, who can no longer count to three when some one is pinned. He has travelled the world and reffed anywhere and everywhere. During his time, he has however began to wind down and has an incredibly slow count. During the count he will hit one, then two, but he can never hit three and he will be mysteriously sparko'd, requiring another ref too finish the match or a no contest.

 

Some have said that this is because of a Voodoo/African curse, put on him on his travels, meaning that some one of the ilk of Power Uti could never lose via pin loss whilst, he was reffing, thus maintaining his position of greatness around the world. (Despite them not being able to win via pinfall either! Heel Logic)

 

Through a series of skits and trials, the experienced ref, who can finish bouts by DQ's or Countouts, get's courted by heel factions, who promise him wealth beyond his means if he joins them, and can provide some favourable DQ/Count Out Wins. He is also courted by comedy faces, who put him through a series of challenges so that he is able to rediscover his '3' Mojo.

 

Initially he would come out to The Beastie Boys '3 The Hard Way' in feds where ref's have theme music, then '3 is the Magic Number' as the storyline progresses.

[Tim Healys Chutney Spoon]

A Terry Thomas-esque/old 1980s upper class British cad type gimmick might work.

 

Comes to the ring his Jagwahhh and sparkly dressing gown and cravat and a different woman every week on his arm (All of which are about half his age). The other "Must-have" is a moustache.

 

I appreciate similar/spin-offs are already out there, but if I was to become a wrestler, I'd love the above as my gimmick.

[ColinBollocks]

I'd rip off Gene Scott. The kids would buy the cymbal banging monkey.

 

If not that, something based on Teen Wolf. For a Wrestlemania, Stone Cold, The Rock and Goldberg will team up and face Michael J. Fox, Jason Bateman and I in a classic.

[Kaz Hayashi]

John Doe

 

Everytime you see him he looks a lot different, such as change of costume, hair masks and music. He speaks in different accents and basically has a different gimmick everytime he is in the public domain.

[neil is brill]

The Ref Who Couldn't Count to Three!

 

The gimmick, is that of an old wizened referee, who can no longer count to three when some one is pinned. He has travelled the world and reffed anywhere and everywhere. During his time, he has however began to wind down and has an incredibly slow count. During the count he will hit one, then two, but he can never hit three and he will be mysteriously sparko'd, requiring another ref too finish the match or a no contest.

 

Some have said that this is because of a Voodoo/African curse, put on him on his travels, meaning that some one of the ilk of Power Uti could never lose via pin loss whilst, he was reffing, thus maintaining his position of greatness around the world. (Despite them not being able to win via pinfall either! Heel Logic)

 

Through a series of skits and trials, the experienced ref, who can finish bouts by DQ's or Countouts, get's courted by heel factions, who promise him wealth beyond his means if he joins them, and can provide some favourable DQ/Count Out Wins. He is also courted by comedy faces, who put him through a series of challenges so that he is able to rediscover his '3' Mojo.

 

Initially he would come out to The Beastie Boys '3 The Hard Way' in feds where ref's have theme music, then '3 is the Magic Number' as the storyline progresses.

 

I love how he can't count to 3 for a pin but can reach 3 and beyond for a countout. Wrestling logic at its finest.

[Shane O' Mac Version 2]

Ron Shen

 

I've started watching Dragonball Z Kai lately, and what's caught my attention lately is what a little bitch kid Gohan is. So my character would be the apprentice of a martial artist- let's say he's managed by a former WWE fighting aficionado, "The Lethal Weapon" Steve Blackman. Despite being very physically unassuming, Blackman would agree to take Ron under his wing in a series of pre-taped vigenettes. Ron learns some impressive fighting techniques in preparation for his debut. He gets a tough draw in this match, put up against a big time guy- say Ryback. Ron freezes up and takes a beating, which JBL talks up the idea of "jitters" and how some people can look great in the gym but can't put it together in competition. Ryback toys with Ron, as Blackman shouts encouragement from ringside. Shellshock connects for the 1-2-3, and after the match, Ryback dismantles Blackman, throwing him into stairs and beating him with kendo sticks. A weakened Ron pulls himself to his feet and goes into a rage upon seeing his mentor beaten down, unleashing a barrage on Ryback, taking him out with a variety of kicks and high-flying moves. The commentators incredulously ask, "Where was that during the match?"

 

Ron spends most of his matches getting beaten up, until he can channel some emotion into fighting back. So when he wrestles, he alternates between being either Mikey Whipwreck or John Cena. If his friends are in trouble, he becomes near unstoppable, and has unbelievable skill, but it depends on whether he can tap into it.

[honor87]

I always thought this would work well as a short lived scenario on chikara. Called my idea the gimmick hunter and all mocked up in safari gear like kimchee with a mask and a big net, and he goes around catching wrestlers in the big net, after he beats them. Ie fire ant, soldier ant etc

He could build up a big stable of caught wrestlers, sort of his trophy cabinet of hunts.

 

Only for him to finally implode when someone points out he's a gimmick himself, to which he catches himsel in the net never to be seen again.

[The Spandex Cowboy]

Smart Mark.

He is a fat nerdy looking type with long hair, greasy hair, who hangs out in the back of the arena or the interview area advising the wrestlers how to improve. He could have his laptop with him all the time. He could be waiting for someone like Mark Henry or Cena when they come back through the gorilla positon and tell them their offence is all wrong, then show them clips of The Young Bucks or Richards etc.....advising them that this is how they should wrestl

[Adam South]

OK, don't have a name (largely because it's a gimmick I would have played myself, back when I still had vague aspirations of getting involved in wrestling again), so let's assume that the character is called 'Adam South'. Also, rather than a wrestler, he's a manager (Because I should never, ever wrestle).

 

The character itself is possibly one that would only really work for a British crowd, because it's based on that very British institution, the football manager. Specifically one Jose Mourinho, but with little bits of the Million Dollar Man thrown in for good measure.

 

He would be introduced to whatever company he was working for as a manager hand-picked by some uber rich but nameless corporation/oligarch (though I suppose thre's always a potential 'Higher Power' type reveal, if you wanted one) , with the sole intention of winning every title in the promotion (This could be down to the prestige of holding these titles, that they're a gateway to earning more money or simply that the money marks see them as a plaything). His genius level knowledge of wrestling and strategy make him their 'Special One'.

 

From there, he'd be seen scouting various matches/wrestlers (Remember when that used to happen?), but without revealing exactly who he's scouting (which could lead to heel turns, etc.) until an appropriate time.

 

Once he has selected his stable, obviously offering them huge amounts of money, courtesy of his paymaster(s), he then goes into typical heel manager mode during matches- arguing with the ref, talking tactics with his charges, the usual. He'd often be seen with a notepad and pen, scribbling down tactics too.

 

Theoretically, for the gimmick to have any longevity/relevance, one or all of his wrestlers would have to win titles. There's an easy out for the character, though, in the event he becomes too stale. You simply have some of his stable lose a few matches in a row and him getting sacked a s a result!

 

The one drawback to this character, or specifically me doing it, is I don't have one ounce of the charisma Jose has, so bit of a non-starter really...