Shifting away from the previous era, the WWE entered into uncharted waters with its move to a PG rating. Talent had to make changes to their characters and move sets to accommodate a more family-friendly wrestling style. Not only that, but there was also a change in all aspects of the show, giving us a different perspective on what WWE had to offer.
What didn’t change for WWE, though? Was the fact that the product still boiled down to the battle between good and evil? It’s the driving point behind everything great about each era, and the PG edition was no exception. Just like all the other eras, the PG one was rife with some of the greatest villains ever to step foot inside a wrestling ring. Below is a list of these villains.
Brock Lesnar
The Beast Incarnate’s return to WWE created one of the highlight moments of the PG Era. The pop was deafening, and while he was received as a hero by the audience, he soon turned into one of the greatest heels of an era.
Brock Lesnar was the thing that nightmares were made of. He was a physically imposing specimen who would decimate everything in his path. He showed no mercy to every wrestler he faced and would very rarely end up on the losing end. He was the unstoppable villain who sparked fear in the masses. He was the heel waiting at the end of the journey.
Also, it doesn’t hurt that Brock Lesnar was responsible for ending the Undertaker’s streak. That alone creates more hatred than any other feat.
Mark Henry
From one heel powerhouse to another, we have a man whose career many thought was over. Mark Henry was saddled with a smiling baby face gimmick, and it signalled the end of his run. Thankfully, he pulled a 180 on all of us and started on the path to the Hall of Pain.
Embracing a vicious side, Henry took a no-nonsense approach to his character. Using his strength for evil, Henry was a man who struck fear in everyone. He would pound the baby faces of the era down and cut a swath through them all.
Everyone who entered the Hall of Pain would never be the same when they came out. His music struck fear into even the bravest of wrestlers. He became the heel that everyone had always hoped he would be.
The Miz
There was no other wrestler who evoked feelings of more hatred from the fans than The Miz. As a tag team wrestler, he was the reality star who decided to try his hand at wrestling. The wrestling world rebelled against the man who some saw didn’t deserve.
Once The Miz earned his keep, he transitioned his character into an even more insufferable one. He was the annoying voice that burned your ears every time he stepped into the ring. No one could talk more smack than The Miz, but he could back up every word of it. It made the fans hate him more, and along with that came the successes of being a champion.
He was the perfect heel to carry a strap, making way for huge reactions when the baby faces would finally turn the tables on him.
The Authority
Every era contains an authority figure who abuses their power. They provide a great counter to the top babyfaces and are usually less than likeable figures. The PG Era had its version, with the aptly named The Authority.
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were no strangers to throwing their weight around. They did it in previous era, but in the PG? They were twice as ruthless and would openly flaunt their power. There wasn’t a thing that happened without their hands pulling the strings.
They used this to put who they wanted at the top and kept massively overbooking baby faces, such as Daniel Bryan, as far down the card as they could. They escaped issues at every corner and were rarely held accountable. It drove the audience up the wall to see these heels constantly get away with their evil ways.
The Nexus
Their finish went out with a whimper, but the introduction of the NXT group, The Nexus, was top-notch. Comprised of the rookies from season 1, the Nexus debuted by tearing through every major player in WWE. There wasn’t a top guy safe from the group, whether heel or baby face alike. Heck, even Vince McMahon wasn’t able to get away from the group.
The domination of this heel group went unchecked for some time in WWE. They were the best thing on television, and their destruction of the top baby’s made them hated by all. No one escaped the wrath of The Nexus. A group that should have been poised to make a longer run, but bad booking halted that progress.
Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho is a chameleon when it comes to performing. He is able to adapt to any character change and become the best baby face/heel that he can. It’s why he has maintained popularity for decades. Also, a huge reason why he became one of the most hated men in the world of professional wrestling.
Chris Jericho’s character change shifted everything that we loved about him. He cut his hair, wore different tights, and scowled his entire way to the ring. He talked down to everyone and adopted a more vicious side to his character. It was very easy to hate that man, and even easier when he turned on HBK and attacked his wife. There are only special levels of hell reserved for PG era Chris Jericho.
Randy Orton
With the last few years as a huge exception, Randy Orton was always a better heel. His swagger and sneaky ways made him very easy to hate, and his run during the PG Era was when Orton was in peak heel form.
Randy Orton was as evil as anyone could be. No man or woman was safe from his violent nature. The program he had opposite Triple H was the prime example. Orton punted every member of the McMahon family he could, including the wife of The Game. It was terrible to see him stoop to every level he could to get inside the head of his opponents.
The Viper was a predator, plain and simple. Everything about him was dangerous, and no one knew when or where he would strike next. It was a terrifying experience for everyone.
CM Punk
The Voice of the Voiceless was a thorn in the side of just about everyone he came into contact with. When it was working in the fans’ favour, he was a massively over babyface, but when it didn’t, he became one of the most hated men in the wrestling business.
There wasn’t a level CM Punk wouldn’t drop to when addressing the wrestlers of WWE. He would get very personal anytime he took hold of the stick. Serenading Rey Mysterio’s daughter and taking jabs at a deceased Paul Bearer are two great examples of how he would get under the skin of everyone within earshot.
This, combined with an ultimate level of arrogance, made him such a despised man in WWE. Regardless of where he ended up on the spectrum, CM Punk excelled.
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