The WWE had put out DVD sets of the "Greatest Stars" of the 80s as well as the 90s. Well being that the first decade of the new century is now over I think that a greatest stars of the 2000s would be something fun for the WWE to put out and just a few ideas as to who would be included, I compiled a list of people/teams that I feel really represent what the WWE was in the 2000s...
John Cena, pretty much a given. He is the WWE's poster boy of the 2000s. From 2002 until now, he has transformed from blue chipper to bonafide WWE superstar and poster boy.
Randy Orton. Very similar to Cena, arguably the number two face in the WWE currently and has stayed consistantly over for the majority of his carrer in the WWE.
Triple H. Say what you want about the man, it's undeniable that he has been a top guy for the majority of the last decade, from the earliest days of The Game to the King of Kings, he is an extremely consistant and among the best workers of the last decade.
Batista, I can't say that I am a huge fan of his, never really was, but he was one of the biggest names in the WWE over the last half of the decade, from his days in Evolution to the day he "Quit" he was one of the biggest names in the WWE, however with the rumored MMA carrer I am not sure how positivelty he would be viewed.
Rey Mysterio. The epitome of "underdog" in professional wrestling. Honestly, I feel that the whole underdog gimmick has been played out more than a Undertaker streak angle. But he is one of the most consistant and popular wrestlers of the last decade.
The Undertaker. Sure, you can call him stale, you can say he squashes people. But one thing you cannot deny is his tenure and impact on the WWE. From his return as the American Badass at Judgement Day (?) 2000 to his return at Wrestlemania XX as the Deadman the Undertaker is one of, if not the greatest CHARACTERS in the history of the WWE and professional wrestling in general.
Kane. One of the most underrated and misused talents of all time. Even through years of horrid booking and jobbing to lesser talents, he has stayed consistantly over as both a face as well as a heel. Even after his unmasking he was able to keep his monster character and really transform from "The Undertaker's brother" to arguably the greatest monster character of all time.
The Big Show. Next to Kane, the most underrated worker in the WWE over the past decade. He hasn't been given to many world title runs in the past 10 years, but imo he has never really needed them to stay over. You could argue that he did more to put over the WWE's poster boy John Cena than anyone else. He came into the WWE as Vince's enforcer and has went through various other allegiances and even a brief stint of retirement before coming back in 2008.
The Hardy Boys. The greatest team of the past decade if you ask me. Both Matt and Jeff have succesfully transitioned from tag team specialists to completely respectable singles competetors. Alongside Edge and Christian as well as the Dudley Boys they were pioneers in the art of the Ladder match and the TLC match. However, being that Jeff is no longer employed, and it looks like he never will be again employed by the WWE, I am not 100% sure that they would be given there dues.
Chris Jericho. Y2J. The first ever Undisputed Champion. This man has truely done it all. When he arrived in the WWE in the fall of 1999 there weren't too many people who would have ever dreamed that he would become what he has today. After numerous Intercontinental title reigns and world title reigns he has proven that he is one of the best of this generation. Even after a 3 year absense from the ring, he made his return to the WWE, showing no ring rust at all and was just as good as he was when he left.
Edge. You could include Edge and Christian, but to be fair they were split up by 2001. When Edge first debuted in 1998 I don't think many people realized how much of a star he would later on become. At first he was an enigmatic superstar who entered the ring through the crowd, then came the E&C days, where his comedic side really shined. After Edge and Christan broke up Edge became a superstar in the making. Numerous runs with the IC title as well as a few more tag title reigns before winning his first World title after cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase on John Cena. the rest is history.
Shawn Michaels. Much like some of the other names on this list a no brainer. When he made his comeback in 2002 nobody thought he had what it took to be "the Showstopper" anymore. He proved everyone wrong and went on to continue his career right where it left off, as one of the best wrestlers in the world, if not of all time. Despite only winning one world title thsi decade he solidified himself as one of the all time greats. Main eventing Pay Par Views as well as ressurecting one of the most popular stables of all time in DX. Up until his final match at Wrestlemania 26 he was one of the most popular stars in the WWE and still is to this day.
Eddie Guerrero. Before his untimely death in 2006 he was one of the best in ring performers and entertainers in the WWE. With a truely inspirational and heart warming "against all odds" type of story he was his first and only WWE Championship in 2004. Even though he only lived through 6 years of the decade it's hard to deny that he was one of the greatest of the decade.
Ther are other names, like Kurt Angle, and Booker T who do deserve to be on this list as well but, being that they are not on the best terms with the WWE I presume I do not know if they would be included and/or how they would be portrayed. Also, Chris Benoit would imo deserve to be included but I am not sure if the WWE is quite ready to showcase his carrer yet.
So what do you guys think of my list? Good? Bad? Who would you inlcude/exclude?
This isn't anything official, just a list I made and who I feel are some of the best WWE wrestlers of the last decade.
John Cena, pretty much a given. He is the WWE's poster boy of the 2000s. From 2002 until now, he has transformed from blue chipper to bonafide WWE superstar and poster boy.
Randy Orton. Very similar to Cena, arguably the number two face in the WWE currently and has stayed consistantly over for the majority of his carrer in the WWE.
Triple H. Say what you want about the man, it's undeniable that he has been a top guy for the majority of the last decade, from the earliest days of The Game to the King of Kings, he is an extremely consistant and among the best workers of the last decade.
Batista, I can't say that I am a huge fan of his, never really was, but he was one of the biggest names in the WWE over the last half of the decade, from his days in Evolution to the day he "Quit" he was one of the biggest names in the WWE, however with the rumored MMA carrer I am not sure how positivelty he would be viewed.
Rey Mysterio. The epitome of "underdog" in professional wrestling. Honestly, I feel that the whole underdog gimmick has been played out more than a Undertaker streak angle. But he is one of the most consistant and popular wrestlers of the last decade.
The Undertaker. Sure, you can call him stale, you can say he squashes people. But one thing you cannot deny is his tenure and impact on the WWE. From his return as the American Badass at Judgement Day (?) 2000 to his return at Wrestlemania XX as the Deadman the Undertaker is one of, if not the greatest CHARACTERS in the history of the WWE and professional wrestling in general.
Kane. One of the most underrated and misused talents of all time. Even through years of horrid booking and jobbing to lesser talents, he has stayed consistantly over as both a face as well as a heel. Even after his unmasking he was able to keep his monster character and really transform from "The Undertaker's brother" to arguably the greatest monster character of all time.
The Big Show. Next to Kane, the most underrated worker in the WWE over the past decade. He hasn't been given to many world title runs in the past 10 years, but imo he has never really needed them to stay over. You could argue that he did more to put over the WWE's poster boy John Cena than anyone else. He came into the WWE as Vince's enforcer and has went through various other allegiances and even a brief stint of retirement before coming back in 2008.
The Hardy Boys. The greatest team of the past decade if you ask me. Both Matt and Jeff have succesfully transitioned from tag team specialists to completely respectable singles competetors. Alongside Edge and Christian as well as the Dudley Boys they were pioneers in the art of the Ladder match and the TLC match. However, being that Jeff is no longer employed, and it looks like he never will be again employed by the WWE, I am not 100% sure that they would be given there dues.
Chris Jericho. Y2J. The first ever Undisputed Champion. This man has truely done it all. When he arrived in the WWE in the fall of 1999 there weren't too many people who would have ever dreamed that he would become what he has today. After numerous Intercontinental title reigns and world title reigns he has proven that he is one of the best of this generation. Even after a 3 year absense from the ring, he made his return to the WWE, showing no ring rust at all and was just as good as he was when he left.
Edge. You could include Edge and Christian, but to be fair they were split up by 2001. When Edge first debuted in 1998 I don't think many people realized how much of a star he would later on become. At first he was an enigmatic superstar who entered the ring through the crowd, then came the E&C days, where his comedic side really shined. After Edge and Christan broke up Edge became a superstar in the making. Numerous runs with the IC title as well as a few more tag title reigns before winning his first World title after cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase on John Cena. the rest is history.
Shawn Michaels. Much like some of the other names on this list a no brainer. When he made his comeback in 2002 nobody thought he had what it took to be "the Showstopper" anymore. He proved everyone wrong and went on to continue his career right where it left off, as one of the best wrestlers in the world, if not of all time. Despite only winning one world title thsi decade he solidified himself as one of the all time greats. Main eventing Pay Par Views as well as ressurecting one of the most popular stables of all time in DX. Up until his final match at Wrestlemania 26 he was one of the most popular stars in the WWE and still is to this day.
Eddie Guerrero. Before his untimely death in 2006 he was one of the best in ring performers and entertainers in the WWE. With a truely inspirational and heart warming "against all odds" type of story he was his first and only WWE Championship in 2004. Even though he only lived through 6 years of the decade it's hard to deny that he was one of the greatest of the decade.
Ther are other names, like Kurt Angle, and Booker T who do deserve to be on this list as well but, being that they are not on the best terms with the WWE I presume I do not know if they would be included and/or how they would be portrayed. Also, Chris Benoit would imo deserve to be included but I am not sure if the WWE is quite ready to showcase his carrer yet.
So what do you guys think of my list? Good? Bad? Who would you inlcude/exclude?
This isn't anything official, just a list I made and who I feel are some of the best WWE wrestlers of the last decade.
