World Wrestling Entertainment/Characters/Brand Extension

Lists the various WWE wrestlers active during the Brand Extension Era, from 2002 to 2011. Please limit associated tropes to that wrestler's time in the WWE.

Alberto Del Rio (Alberto Rodríguez) 2010-
""My name is Alberto Del Rio! But you...you already know that."
 * Badass Latino
 * Because Destiny Says So: After weeks of telling everyone that it was he destiny to win the 2011 Royal Rumble, he wins it
 * Bilingual Bonus / Getting Crap Past the Radar: Del Rio has made a habit of cussing quite a lot in Spanish when he's angry or excited.
 * Boring but Practical: His arm bar finisher.
 * The Bully/Kick the Dog: He seems to be obsessed with people (even people he's not feuding with) and doing whatever he can to break their arms.
 * Catch Phrase:

"It is my destiny...""


 * Card-Carrying Villain: He once said he wants to beat Rey Mysterio Jr so he can see children crying in the audience.
 * Conspicuous Consumption
 * Cool Car: His entrance involves him driving a Bentley different high class car every time.
 * Expy: He's basically a Mexican JBL. Christian lampshaded this by calling him "Juan Bradshaw Layfield" at least one time.
 * Not So Similar:He turned out not to be, even though that was the first impression he left on everybody
 * Jerkass
 * Lightning Bruiser: A six foot five, two hundred and forty pounder that has a bevy of aerial moves and can pull off an enzuigiri as well as a multitude of suplexes.
 * Mythology Gag/Viewers Are Geniuses: Matt Striker said that he has two faces, the smiling, virtue spewing gentleman and that vicious arrogant wrestler, his Lucha name (Dos Caras) translates as Two Faces.
 * Rich Bastard
 * Royal Blood: He's apparently descended from King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, yes, the ones in the 15th century.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: The dude's a self righteous braggart.
 * Stepford Smiler: He'll be happy and smiling, even while beating you up, but his facade will occasionally crack and his face will contort with rage.
 * Spotlight-Stealing Squad: He began making regular appearances on Raw while still being a top star on Smackdown.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome
 * Tall, Dark and Snarky
 * Underwear of Power
 * Villain With Good Publicity
 * Wicked Cultured: He's a finely dressed, wine drinking sophisticate.
 * Wrestling Psychology: Look at his face whenever he's in a match or segment, the story he tells with his eyes alone is superb.
 * Write Who You Know: The real guy based the Alberto Del Rio character on a composite of people he hates.

Alex Riley (Kevin Robert Kiley, Jr.) 2010-

 * The Apprentice / Battle Butler: To Miz, for a time.
 * Character Development: Probably unintentional, but Alex Riley's kayfabe history is actually very well done if you think about it. He goes from Schoolyard Bully All Grown Up in his NXT phase to getting his first big 'job' with the Miz, who turns out to be a Bad Boss and even bigger bully than Riley himself. Riley finally figures out what it's like to be on the wrong end of a Jerkass and eventually stands up to the bully, realizing the error of his own ways in the process. Again, probably unintentional, but pretty cool as well.
 * Demoted to Extra: Had a toe-to-toe feud with the Miz. Pinned him clean on PPV at one point. After their feud was over, he promptly disappeared almost entirely from Raw. He's regularly seen on Superstars and NXT.
 * The Dog Bites Back: After The Miz had failed yet again to retake the title from John Cena on Over The Limit, he called Riley a useless bungler who has been actively responsible for his every failure over the past few months. After a few humiliating slaps, he then fires Riley, to which Riley responds by beating the everloving hell out of the Miz, destroying his suit, and leaving the ring to thunderous cheering.
 * TWICE!
 * Jerk Jock: Dubbed himself "The Varsity Villain" on NXT, and ran around wearing a letterman jacket. Definitely played the part, as well.
 * The Runner Up Takes It All: By the way things are going for Riley, he may very well end up more successful in the WWE than the NXT season 2 winner Kaval, who is already released. Even more ironic since his former mentor also qualifies for this trope through Tough Enough season 4.
 * Schoolyard Bully All Grown Up
 * Sharp Dressed Man: Seems to have picked up his mentor's gift for wearing a good suit.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: As a heel.
 * Underwear of Power

Batista (David Michael Bautista, Jr.) 2002-2010
""That's my title, and coming this Sunday, I'll be taking it back!"
 * Anti-Hero: Type III or II, depending on the storyline.
 * Badass Grandpa: In Real Life. No, really!
 * Bodyguard Betrayal
 * Boisterous Bruiser: Especially in his "enforcer" role with Evolution.
 * The Big Guy / The Brute: Depends on his Face / Heel status.
 * But Not Too Foreign: He is of Filipino-Greek heritage. He even had a tattoo of both countries' flags in his left shoulder.
 * Cool Shades
 * Determinator
 * Dumb Muscle: When he made his WWE debut as D-Von Dudley's sidekick.
 * Genius Bruiser: See the next two entries.
 * Genre Savvy
 * Dangerously Genre Savvy
 * Gentle Giant: As a Face.
 * Glass Cannon: Despite being a Lightning Bruiser, he is very prone to injury.
 * Hot Blooded: During his early career with Evolution.
 * Hot Dad and Grandpa What Massive Hotness You Have: In Real Life. Justified that he had a child at 21, and his daughter became a teenage mom. He said in one interview that he's happy, yet he can't believe he's already a grandfather before 40.
 * Last-Name Basis
 * Memetic Mutation: Batista's the patron saint of Photoshop.

"Basketballs don't hold grudges!"

"Weapons aren't only encouraged. They're allowed.""


 * Perma Stubble
 * Precision F-Strike
 * Real Men Wear Pink: Batista's fashion sense is... special.
 * Screaming Warrior
 * Sharp Dressed Man: They used to call him "Dapper Dave" for a reason.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome
 * Tall, Dark and Snarky: In his Heel runs.
 * Tattooed Flags On His Left Shoulder: See But Not Too Foreign.
 * Underwear of Power

Bobby Lashley (Franklin Roberto "Bobby" Lashley) 2005-2008

 * Badass: Much like another guy, he traded in his pro wrestling gig for legitimately beating the crap out of people.
 * Bald of Awesome
 * The Big Guy
 * Captain Ersatz and Composite Character: Arguably of both Brock Lesnar and Goldberg. See Fan Nickname below.
 * Charles Atlas Superpower: The only one, so far, who can match Brock Lesnar.
 * Determinator
 * Everything's Better With Bob
 * Fan Nickname: Blackberg ("Black Goldberg") and Blesnar ("Black Lesnar"), due to his being nearly identical in physique other than skin color.
 * Genius Bruiser
 * Hot Dad
 * Lightning Bruiser
 * Mighty Glacier
 * Military Brat
 * Put On a Bus: Got beaten down by Mr. Kennedy, and was never seen or mentioned on WWE TV again... ever!
 * In Real Life, he went into MMA and joined TNA. He didn't fare too well at either.
 * The Quiet One: Was actually called soft-spoken on his entrance video.
 * Ramming Always Works: Can perform the spear.
 * Suplex Finisher
 * Underwear of Power: Wore white at first, then settled with black.

Brock Lesnar (Brock Edward Lesnar) 2002-2004, 2012

 * The Ace
 * Ax Crazy: Heel.
 * Badass
 * The Big Guy / The Brute: Depends on his Face/Heel status.
 * Blond Guys Are Evil (Heel)
 * Boisterous Bruiser
 * Charles Atlas Superpower: My God.
 * Determinator
 * Farm Boy: He was in Real Life.
 * Genius Bruiser
 * Hot Dad
 * Jack of All Stats
 * Jerkass
 * Jerk Jock
 * Lightning Bruiser
 * Suplex Finisher: Until the F-5.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Ungrateful Bastard

Brodus Clay (George Murdoch), 2010-

 * Acrofatic: 350+ pounds and can still preform high cross body slams.
 * Ambiguously Bi the Way: Seems pretty cool with his pair of female backup dancers. But there's something to be said for the fact that anytime one of his opponents has attempted to put him in a hold, his response has been (despite his strength) to gyrate his hips and thrust his pelvis until the guy got so uncomfortable he had to let him go.
 * Big Fun: As the Funkasaurus.
 * Boring but Practical: And running splash might be one of the more boring (technically speaking) finishers in the WWE to date, but there's something to be said for jumping and throwing all near-four hundred pounds of yourself onto an opponent's chest. And that 'something said' is usually a 3-count.
 * The Brute: A Genre Savvy subversion.
 * Captain Ersatz: Of King Hippo, of all things. The Miz was quick to point this out when forced to fight him.
 * Calling Your Attacks: "SHEEE-plex, baby!"
 * Dance Battler
 * Death From Above: His finisher is a running splash to a downed opponent. Let's put that into perspective - a guy that's about 375 pounds goes airborne and lands on the chest of whatever poor sap happens to be fighting him that day. Ouch.
 * Four Moves Of Doom: In the early goings of his career on WWE, his matches have ended with a sequence of: Running Headbutt, Exploder Suplex, Corner Splash, and then his Finishing Move.
 * Friend to All Children: As a face. His wins tend to end with about a half dozen or more kids dancing alongside him and the backup girls in the ring.
 * Getting Crap Past the Radar / Don't Explain the Joke: His finishing move (a leaping cross body) was called, "Ah, Funk It". Yeah. Let's see how long that name sticks in the PG Era.
 * Double Subverted. After about a week, they changed the finisher name again. Now it's called "What The Funk?"...which is, if anything, even less subtle than the first one.
 * He no longer uses the crossbody, having traded it for an as-of-yet unnamed splash.
 * Hey It's That Guy: Worked as a body guard for Snoop Dogg.
 * Incoming Ham: At most, there are a handful of entrances on WWE's main roster that bring the hog like Brodus Clay's...and, since he's been on TV for less than a month, that's saying a lot.
 * Kiai: SHHHHHEEEEEAAAA.
 * LARGE HAM: Emphasis on the "large"...and the "ham."
 * Lightning Bruiser: Moves around the ring way faster than should be allowed for a man of his size and build.
 * Meaningful Name: The original name for his finisher was called the "Fall of Humanity." As mentioned before, it's a running high cross body done by a 360-pound man. Do the math on that one.
 * Parts Unknown: Planet Funk
 * Reality Subtext: His debut to WWE TV, while still on NXT, saw him as a bodyguard, which was one of his well-known
 * Recycled Soundtrack: Brodus' face theme, "Somebody Call My Momma", was briefly used in WWE eight years earlier by Ernest "The Cat" Miller. Unfortunately for Brodus, Tazz is no longer around to sing along to the song.
 * Roaring Rampage of Revenge: His motivation as a heel.
 * Shout Out: Took the name Brodus Clay as one to the man he once guarded, Calvin Cordozar Broadus...otherwise known as Snoop Dogg.
 * Stout Strength
 * What Could Have Been: Subverted. Originally, he was to debut as a monster heel, injuring jobbers and putting them in his personal 'Hall of Pain.' WWE liked the idea...but the gimmick went to Mark Henry instead.
 * What Happened to The Mouse?: After been Put On a Bus, due to sustaining an injury while attempting to help Alberto Del Rio win the World Heavyweight Title, he started having Squash Matches on Superstars and then finally getting a promo that he was coming to Raw. Only to have Laurinaitis calling him on a weekly basis telling him, he'll be having a match the next week ... that is until January 9, 2012 when he came back as the Funkasaurus.

Carlito (Carlos Edwin "Carly" Colon, Jr.) 2004-2010

 * Afro Asskicker
 * Alliterative Name: Carlito "Carribbean" Cool. And if you want to go further, his real name is Carlos "Carly" Colon.
 * Anti-Hero: Type III.
 * Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: And we're not just talking about his Finishing Move!
 * Demoted to Extra: His career looked pretty promising in 2004, but WWE has since buried him. Of course, this was mostly due to real life drug problems which he refused to fix that lead to his dismissal.
 * Carlito has stated his drug problem was fairly recent, and he wanted to be fired which is why he refused to go to rehab. Although he did rehab after getting fired.
 * Dirty Coward
 * Funny Afro
 * How Do You Like Them Apples: Spits them in the face of people who don't wanna be cool!
 * It Runs in The Family: Son of Carlos Colon, a big draw in Puerto Rico, and brother to Primo, his tag team partner. Also his cousin, Orlando "Epico" Colon as well.
 * Jerkass
 * The Napoleon
 * Offscreen Moment of Awesome: The Colons (Carlito and Primo), where gonna unify the World Tag Team Titles and the WWE Tag Team Titles in a match against The Miz and John Morrison at Wrestlemania 25. This ended up as a dark match before the event.
 * Rule of Cool: And if you're not, he'll spit in your face. Literally.
 * Small Name, Big Ego
 * Third Person Person
 * Trademark Favourite Food: Apples, of course.
 * Underwear of Power:At first. Wore pants later on.

Chris Masters (Christopher Todd Mordetzky) 2005-2007, 2009-2011

 * The Big Guy / The Brute: Depends on his heel/face status.
 * Fan Nickname: On the GAMEFAQS Pro Wrestling Board, many refer to him as "Christopher Masterpiece"
 * The Fighting Narcissist: At first, not so much recently.
 * Genius Bruiser: Reads books on politics on the road.
 * Pec Flex
 * Red Baron: "The Masterpiece"
 * Small Name, Big Ego: As a Heel.
 * Underwear of Power

CM Punk (Phillip Jack Brooks) 2006-

 * Blood Knight: "My only addiction is competition."
 * Dark Messiah: In his Straight Edge Savior heel gimmick.
 * Drugs Are Bad: His Heel gimmick consists of him pointing this out, repeatedly, to the audience.
 * The Fundamentalist: Heel, regarding his Straight Edge beliefs - Have you ever taken drugs? Smoked a cigarette? Drunk alcohol? Doubled up on a prescription medication? If so, he's better than you!
 * Kid Appeal Character: Until his Face Heel Turn.
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold: As of late 2011.
 * Smug Straight Edge
 * Straight Edge Evil
 * Tall, Dark and Snarky
 * Took a Level In Jerkass
 * Underwear of Power
 * Well-Intentioned Extremist: In his Straight Edge Savior gimmick, his goal is to save people from self-destructive addictions. His methods and his definition of "addictions", however, leave something to be desired.

Cody Rhodes (Cody Runnels) 2007-

 * Badass Family: Well, duh.
 * Breakout Character: When he was in Legacy, most fans were sure that he would be the less successful teammate when the group inevitably split. Instead, he broke out of Legacy with his "Dashing" Cody Rhodes narcissist character, and has been a huge part of Smackdown since.
 * Continuity Nod: Cody's moveset includes several moves picked up from his former partners, such as Hardcore Holly's Alabama Slam.
 * The Dandy
 * The Fighting Narcissist
 * In the Blood: Dusty Rhodes seems to have charisma in his genes, judging by his sons...
 * Mask Power
 * Not in The Face: As Dashing Cody Rhodes. It could be a catchphrase for him.
 * Punny Name: and Matt Striker would annoying sing lines from the song
 * Red Baron: "Dashing" (from July 2010 to January 2011).
 * Took a Level In Badass: Since being injured by Rey Mysterio, Rhodes has gone from a Rick Martel expy to something more along the lines of a comic book supervillain.
 * And after he was unmasked he became a badass version of... Cody Rhodes?
 * Underwear of Power

Curt Hawkins (Brian Myers) 2007-

 * Cane Fu
 * Garfunkel: Seems like this so far for Zack Ryder.
 * Green-Eyed Monster: He's grown very bitter and very jealous of Zack's success as of late.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: It's not just about Zack. He and his latest partner Tyler Reks both feel like they're headline-worthy talent being overlooked in general and they will complain about it to anyone who'll listen.
 * Follow the Leader: Ironically, or perhaps hypocritically, he and Reks tried to follow Ryder's lead in taking advantage of the internet fanbase by way of a YouTube series. WWE buried it for weeks on NXT before ordering it dead.
 * Red Baron: "The Party Starter".
 * Straight Man: To Zack Ryder just before they split up.
 * Those Two Bad Guys: With Zack Ryder, when they were associated with Edge.
 * With Vance Archer upon his return.
 * Now with Tyler Reks.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Unrelated Brothers: With Zack Ryder when they were known as the Major Brothers.

Daniel Bryan (Bryan Danielson) 2010-

 * Big Yes: Following his heel turn he would shout Yes! Yes! Yes!, whenever he won. Also whenever he makes his entrance.
 * Badass Beard
 * Beard of Evil
 * Badass Normal
 * But Not Too White
 * Chick Magnet: First the Bellas, then Gail Kim, then AJ.
 * The Everyman: His current gimmick, he's a laidback normal looking technical wrestler surrounded by a pack of crazy people.
 * Expy: He started as one of Chris Benoit and Dynamite Kid.
 * Kurt Angle ever since turning heel due to his technical skill and referring to himself as a role model oblivious to the fans booing.
 * Granola Guy: a vegan socialist.
 * Face Heel Turn: Followinghim winning the World Heavyweight title
 * Perma Stubble
 * Put On a Bus: After The Nexus attacked he was was the only one who was remorseful and wouldn't be part of the group, but returned in time for Summer Slam as part of Cena's team.
 * Red Baron: On the indies, he was known as "the American Dragon." Although it has not been used on WWE TV yet, WWE did secure a trademark on the name.
 * Even though WWE hasn't used it yet, we know they definitely aren't shying away from the idea based on the evidence that Bryan has dragons on his ring gear.
 * As of 2011, he's been referred to as "The American Dragon". During his February match with the Miz.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Weak but Skilled

David Otunga (David Daniel Otunga Sr) 2010-

 * Amoral Attorney: His current gimmick.
 * Beard of Evil
 * Bow Ties Are Cool: During his lawyer gimmick.
 * The Evil Genius
 * Face Heel Turn: Made quite the impression as guest host of Raw by putting himself in a tag match with John Cena (to give Cena a chance to win after former partner Batista screwed him over) - and then does the same thing Batista did, letting Cena get beaten down by ShowMiz.
 * Genius Bruiser: He's a Harvard Law grad.
 * Genre Blindness: He was the one who suggested that Alberto Del Rio become champion if CM Punk gets intentionally disqualified.
 * Hey It's That Guy: You might remember him as "Punk" from a show called I Love New York.
 * He's also been spotted at celebrity gatherings with Jennifer Hudson.
 * Hot Dad
 * In the Hood: Used to wear a hoodie during his ring entrance if he's the one competing.
 * It's All About Me: His theme song.
 * Jerkass
 * Miles Gloriosus
 * The Nexus: Surprisingly, he hasn't been as much of a factor as previously thought. He seems to have fallen into the role of Enforcer, leaving the leadership to Wade Barrett.
 * Pec Flex: As well as everything else.
 * Red Baron: "A-List".
 * Running Gag: Expect someone to make fun of him by comparing him to his fiancé, Jennifer Hudson.
 * Or Carlton.
 * Small Name, Big Ego
 * Smug Snake: Especially where his physique is concerned. He's well put together and he knows it.
 * The Starscream: Quickly became this in The Nexus.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Very Punchable Man: Being John Laurinaitis' essential number two and messenger tends to have his drawbacks. That is, Otunga often ends up being an outlet for other superstars' frustration.

Dolph Ziggler (Nick Nemeth) 2005, 2006, 2008-

 * Arch Enemy: He and Kofi Kingston have feuded over the mid card titles almost nonstop.
 * Zack. Ryder.
 * Boring but Practical: His finishing move, the Sleeper Hold is a very effective and pretty simple move, but it just doesn't look that cool. In a WWE Magazine letter column, he defends this by saying it's much more versatile than some of his previous finishers.
 * Canon Dis Continuity: You mean this guy used to be Chavo "Kerwin White" Guerrero's caddy? And they don't bring up his time in the Spirit Squad either.
 * Card-Carrying Villain: It says "#Heel" on his tights.
 * Catch Phrase: "Hi, I'm Dolph Ziggler." (Lasted until he used "I Am Perfection" for the first time.)
 * "Hashtag, #Heel!"
 * Deadpan Snarker: On NXT season 4. During challenges and matches he's not involved in (as an active wrestler at least), he has a tendency to grab a mic and mock whatever is going on.
 * Dye Hard: See below.
 * Expy: Of Mr. Perfect, primarily due to his theme song. Oh, if only he could do the Perfect Plex.
 * Some say of Billy Gunn. He's got the hair and the moveset.
 * His slicked back bleach blond hair also makes him look a little like a younger Ric Flair.
 * The Fighting Narcissist: "I am perfection!".
 * Hey It's That Guy: Chavo "Kerwin White" Guerrero's former caddy and the only former member of the Spirit Squad still employed.
 * Hidden Depths: Fluent in American Sign Language.
 * Hot Blooded: Which really bites him in the ass in matches, his Fatal Flaw is the ease he gets frustrated by failure.
 * Holy crap, when his NXT Rookie Byron Saxton got eliminated, Dolph was channeling Ric Flair levels of hot blooded craziness.
 * Important Haircut: Right after the start of his first run on WWE Monday Night Raw.
 * And again after his return to Raw.
 * Likes Older Women
 * Old Shame: Used to be a member of Spirit Squad, and Chavo Guerrero's caddy.
 * Screaming Warrior
 * Weak but Skilled: Is a smaller wrestler that relies a lot more on his speed and legit talent then throwing people around.

Drew McIntyre (Drew Galloway) 2009-

 * Combat Pragmatist: Drew cheats at least once every match.
 * Demoted to Extra
 * Fatal Flaw: Overconfidence, leading to an occasional lack of focus. This is lampshaded by a commentator at least once per match.
 * George Jetson Job Security: Went through a storyline where he was one loss away from being fired...about four or five weeks in a row. Then, he actually DID get fired...only to be re-hired the following week.
 * Hometown Hero: He's over in Scotland, at the very least. He was even allowed to wrestle a match as a Face over there, despite being Heel his entire WWE career.
 * Humiliation Conga: The above storyline saw Drew losing about five or six matches in a row to increasingly pathetic opponents. When he finally got his job back, it was from pinning the three-foot-tall Hornswoggle.
 * Man in A Kilt: On the indies. Sadly, he gave up the kilt for WWE so that he could be another guy in trunks.
 * Red Baron: "The Sinister Scotsman."
 * The Chosen One
 * Slipknot Ponytail: Happens a lot.
 * Smug Snake: Can often be seen wearing a cocky smirk on his face.
 * Unfortunate Implications: He was supposed to receive a gimmick as an 'arrogant playboy', but the angle went over like a lead balloon - mainly because it started to bleed over into Ambigiously Gay, which made some people in creative uncomfortable.
 * Violent Glaswegian: Good god, yes. Other than not actually being from Glasgow (he was born in Ayr and is billed as such), he fits the bill perfectly.
 * Weapon of Choice: The ring itself.

Ezekiel Jackson (Rycklon Stephens) 2008-

 * Badass Decay: From the tropes below to jobbing two straight nights on TV to David Otunga heading into the 2012 Wrestlemania season.
 * Bald of Awesome
 * The Big Guy: Face.
 * The Brute: Heel.
 * Charles Atlas Superpower: Scoop Slams The Big Show and put The Great Khali in the Tortue Rack.
 * Demoted to Extra: See Small Name, Big Ego below.
 * Evil Versus Evil: against Vladimir Koslov in WWECW
 * Genius Bruiser
 * Gentle Giant
 * Beware of the Nice Ones: In his own words "Don't Mistake My Kindness For Weakness."
 * Scary Black Man
 * Not anymore.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: Was due for a renewed push in 2012, but before it even got started he was bragging about the push he was going to get and a fight nearly started in the locker-room. Vince McMahon got wind of the situation and thus the push was halted and his Badass Decay was part of his punishment.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Villain Team-Up:William Regal convinced him and Vladimir to put aside their differences and help him win Christian's ECW championship. Kozlov got kicked out but Regal stuck around and helped Ezekiel win the title after he failed to win it.

Finlay (David Finlay) 2006-2011

 * Badass Grandpa
 * Blood Knight
 * Cool Old Guy
 * Fighting Irish
 * Hot Blooded
 * Little Guy Big Buddy: To Hornswoggle.
 * Oireland
 * Put On a Bus: Took the blame for a house show incident where The Miz interrupting the National Anthem caused controversy.
 * Simple Staff
 * Weapon of Choice: The shillelagh.

Goldberg (William Scott "Bill" Goldberg) 2003-2004

 * Anti-Hero: Type II or III, occasionally Type IV.
 * Badass
 * Badass Beard
 * Bald of Awesome
 * The Big Guy
 * Boisterous Bruiser
 * Charles Atlas Superpower: Maybe he's not as strong as he used to be during his WCW days but he's still impressive.
 * Fingerless Gloves
 * Genius Bruiser
 * Hot Blooded
 * The Jimmy Hart Version: Invasion, Goldberg's entrance theme from the WCW, was owned by Turner Broadcasting. Rather than buy it, the WWE chose to copy it, though their version is significantly less badass.
 * Large Ham
 * Last-Name Basis
 * Lightning Bruiser
 * Ramming Always Works: SPEAR!!!
 * Say My Name / Crowd Song: During his entrance the crowd chants... "Gooooldberg... Gooooldberg... Gooooldberg..."
 * Showy Invincible Hero:Given his WCW record, he had to be or else WWE would get major fan backlash.
 * Screaming Warrior
 * Suplex Finisher
 * Underwear of Power
 * Unstoppable Rage

The Great Khali (Dalip Singh Rana) 2006-

 * A Hero to His Hometown: More popular in India than probably anywhere else by several magnitudes.
 * Anti-Villain: He only worked with Jinder Mahal to protect his sister's honor.
 * Bollywood
 * The Brute: As a heel.
 * The Dog Bites Back: He eventually got tired of Jinder and punched him.
 * Demoted to Extra
 * Creator's Pet/The Scrappy: Vince McMahon loves him, as he's a huge draw in India and he's huge. The fans (mainly the smarks), not so much due to his size and much limited moveset and that he can't move around all that well.
 * Dumb Muscle: For Jinder Mahal, during his recent Heel run. Was cured when he had enough of Jinder's bullshit.
 * Evil Foreigner
 * Funny Foreigner: After his Heel Face Turn
 * The Giant
 * Gentle Giant
 * Put On a Bus: Courtesy of Mark Henry.
 * The Bus Came Back: A few months later.
 * The Quiet One/The Unintelligible
 * The Worf Effect: For one reason or another, Khali frequently gets injured in-storyline to prevent him from participating in multi-man matches.

Heath Slater (Heath Miller) 2010-

 * The Dark Chick
 * Defector From Decadence: Twice with Justin Gabriel.
 * Evil Redhead: That Chick From Wendy's.
 * Fiery Redhead
 * Heterosexual Life Partners: With Justin Gabriel
 * Jerkass
 * Love to Hate
 * Red Baron: "The One-man Rock Band." Despite his comparatively low importance, this is mentioned on any occasion he's competing in the ring.
 * Recently christened "The One-Man Southern Rock Band".
 * Underwear of Power: He now wears pants.
 * "The Villain Sucks" Song: I hate you, Heath Slater!

Jack Swagger (Jacob "Jake" Hager) 2008-

 * Badass Boast
 * Blond Guys Are Evil
 * Boisterous Bruiser
 * The Bully: Can come off as this very often. Most of his feuds tend to be with wrestlers significantly smaller, older, and/or weaker than he is. He once tried to call out Hornswoggle for a match in ECW. Of course, that was before WWE-ECW's more awesome moments when a certain someone came out in the middle of Swagger's promo to stop the madness.
 * Dirty Coward
 * Dumb Muscle: Zigzagged. Even though his Real Life persona errs much closer to that of a Genius Bruiser (he was a two-sport athlete at Oklahoma, where he also earned a degree in finance and was set to start a career in that field before WWE called him), he almost invariably comes off as this in storyline if he's aligned with someone else. It may be the lisp that has something to do with it.
 * Expy: Where have we seen this before? An arrogant but talented wrestler who brags about his accomplishments in amateur wrestling while wearing the traditional wrestling singlet and using an ankle lock as a finisher? How about making him an American Patriot? Never seen that before in WWE.
 * What are they going to do next, shave him bald?
 * Informed Attribute: He never quite leaned into the flavor-2 Eagle Land that one would expect from a patriotic heel.
 * Hair of Gold: He is very proud of his natural blond hair.
 * Blond Guys Are Evil
 * Jerkass
 * Jerk Jock
 * Large Ham
 * Lightning Bruiser: Weighs north of 260, but doesn't seem to give up a lot of speed to smaller opponents.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: WHO AM I?
 * Thpeech Impedient: Hith notitheable lithp ith mocked by hith opponenth.
 * Took a Level In Badass: Jack Swagger . . . World Heavyweight Champion?!
 * "Well Done, Son" Guy: Several of his promos during his World Heavyweight Champion reign made it clear that his dad held him to extremely high standards and always expected him to become a champion.

John Cena (John Felix Anthony Cena, Jr.) 2002-

 * The Ace: Progressively since 2007.
 * Anti-Hero: Type IV -> III during his Dr. of Thuganomics days.
 * Ascended Fanboy: Both in Real Life and in his persona.
 * Chained By Fashion: Used to be.
 * Charles Atlas Superpower
 * Delinquents: Mostly during his initial "Dr. of Thuganomics" run, but lapses back into it when he's around DX.
 * Determinator: It must be stressed how much of a Determinator he is in Real Life. If he's injured and the doctors predict he'll be sidelined for a year, he'll come back within six months. If they predict he'll need six months, he'll show up at the arena the day after surgery.
 * Do It Yourself Theme Tune: Both of the ones he's used.
 * Everything's Better With Spinning: What he did to the actual belts for the US and WWE titles. Inverted with his Finishing Move. He pretty much took Brock Lesnar's F5 and replaced the spin with a simple drop.
 * Five Moves of Doom
 * Foe Yay: With most of his rivals, but his promo against Batista during Summerslam 2008 stands out: "For six years I've been watching you." Not to mention Randy Orton.
 * Getting Crap Past the Radar: "Five Knuckle Shuffle" was slang for masturbation before Cena used it as the name for his fist drop.
 * Hot Blooded / Large Ham: He's... charismatic, to say the least.
 * Improvised Weapon of Choice: His chain with a large padlock during his Dr. Of Thuganomics gimmick.
 * Invincible Hero: 2005-present.
 * Jerkass: When he's a heel, during his Dr. Of Thuganomics gimmick.
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold: Face run of his Dr. Of Thuganomics gimmick.
 * Lighter and Softer: Progressively since 2005.
 * Loveable Rogue: Face run of his Dr. Of Thuganomics gimmick.
 * Nice Cap
 * Power Fist: He used brass knuckles during his Dr. Of Thuganomics gimmick, as well as his trademark chain with padlock by wrapping it to his fist. Finally, his Five Knuckle Shuffle move is a whole lotta showmanship with a Power Fist to the face ending.
 * Precision F-Strike
 * Pretty Fly for A White Guy: During his Dr. Of Thuganomics days.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: During his Dr. Of Thuganomics days.
 * Take That: Kayfabe example. During his feud with Brock Lesnar in early 2003, he named his version of the Death Valley Driver "The F-U" as a dig at Lesnar, whose finishing move was "The F-5."
 * We Want Our Jerk Back

John Morrison (John Randall Hennigan) 2004-2011

 * Alpha Bitch: Mocks those less attractive then himself (a.k.a everybody else).
 * Badass Beard: He's started growing one.
 * Badass Longcoat: A befeathered, occasionally animal-print longcoat.
 * Badass Long Hair
 * Beware the Nice Ones: Never piss off John Morrison. CM Punk and the New Nexus were taught that lesson hard once in 2011.
 * Bishounen
 * Blond Guys Are Evil: If he's a Heel, and his name is Johnny Nitro.
 * Breakup Breakout: From MNM, which makes Joey Mercury his Garfunkel. On the other hand, he and his second notable tag partner, The Miz, have both attained similar levels of success thus far.
 * Originally, Morrison was on his way to being the WWE's breakout star, but everything went backwards when The Miz won the WWE championship in November 2010.
 * Catch Phrase: "We don't allow (X) at the Palace of Wisdom."
 * "Hi. I'm John Morrison, and (insert some random bit of trivia that probably isn't true but most likely is hilarious)."
 * Then why does he have a Jimi Hendrix style theme song?
 * Maybe he's just an aficionado for old school rock-and-roll?
 * Casanova
 * Chivalrous Pervert
 * Cloudcuckoolander: Has a very...eccentric promo style. Especially as a Heel.
 * Cool Shades
 * Dance Battler: Uses some Capoeira inspired moves, especially noticeable when he flairs before a leg drop.
 * Deadpan Snarker: All the time on the Dirt Sheet.
 * Dirty Coward: Heel.
 * Even the Guys Want Him: Oh, those abs.
 * It's not gay if it's JoMo.
 * Everything's Better With Sparkles: Well his pants, coat, shades and abs are anyway.
 * Fur and Loathing
 * Gaussian Guy: His entrance is even in slow motion.
 * Handsome In Mink
 * Handsome Lech
 * I Have the High Ground
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold: As a face he mocks his enemies for their speech impediments, nationalities, and other uncontrollable things.
 * Le Parkour: Which has been played up by the comentators a lot.
 * Long Haired Pretty Boy
 * Messianic Archetype: For a while he was feuding with CM Punk because while Punk was preaching about the importance of the material world, John promised a paradise.
 * No Celebrities Were Harmed: A wrestling Jim Morrison impersonator?
 * No Shirt Long Jacket
 * Put On a Bus: Stretchered out after a Falls Count Anywhere match with The Miz. Not expected back, as his contract had run out.
 * One of Us: There's hints in his promos, but bigger things come from his twitter account such as when he was visiting an art museum and compared something to Gir from Invader Zim.
 * Red Baron: The Shaman of Sexy, and he's earned it.
 * Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: Rambles like hell on his promos.
 * Small Name, Big Ego
 * Stupid Sexy Flanders
 * Suspiciously Similar Song: His theme song sounds a lot like Fire, by Jimi Hendrix.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome
 * Tall, Dark and Snarky: Heel.
 * Unkempt Beauty: If you catch some of the non-show photos he posts on his twitter account, you'll bound to say "Stupid sexy John!" at some point. Even dressed down and what have you, he's still stupidly sexy.
 * Warrior Poet
 * When He Smiles: When he smiles he looks even more Bishonen and around ten years younger.
 * Wouldn't Hit a Girl: After turning Face. He was willing to attack women if Melina commanded it when he was in MNM.

Justin Gabriel (Paul Lloyd Jr.) 2010-

 * Badass Beard
 * Beard of Evil
 * Bishonen: especially clean-shaven.
 * Defector From Decadence: Twice with Slater.
 * The Dragon: In The Nexus maybe, averted in the Corre, which had no leadership.
 * Everything's Better With Spinning: Or flipping, as it were. His Finishing Move is the 450 Splash.
 * Heterosexual Life Partners: With Heath Slater.
 * I Have the High Ground
 * Underwear of Power

Kaval (Brandon Silvestry) 2010
""Call me a rookie, find out what I'm packing, cause I'm the only reason for some Total Nonstop Action.""
 * Badass Baritone
 * Bald of Awesome
 * Boastful Rap: He did one as a promo, where he dissed his opponents on NXT and mentioned TNA.


 * The Comically Serious: To his NXT mentors Lay Cool, who more or less treat him like a purse-dog.
 * Finishing Stomp: His Finishing Move is a diving double foot stomp.
 * Fragile Speedster: Though he can go to Lightning Bruiser or Glass Cannon depending on how he's booked. Always fast, the power of his strikes vary, at their peak he can bring Samoa Joe and The Big Show to their knees.
 * Honor Before Reason
 * Hidden Depths: Both in and out of character, Mr. Silvestry is supposed to be a very serious wrestler, Kaval is also a focused and proud badass, pairing him with the Laughably Evil duo LayCool would seem to be a big mistake, instead you get some legitimately humorus moments that have helped all three of them get over.
 * Jobber/Screwed By the Network: Ever since he won NXT, he only won one match. That includes a clean loss to Chavo Guerrero.
 * Mythology Gag: Kaval has been described both by Matt Striker and himself as a "low-key" character, referencing his old name in the indies, Low Ki. In his one words, he's the only reason for some Total Non-Stop Action.
 * The Napoleon: A minor case, but he didn't take kindly to being called small by The Big Show.
 * The One Guy: With Lay Cool.
 * Pint-Sized Powerhouse
 * Proud Warrior Race Guy: Seriously, if you translated his voice and attitude to a Klingon, it would totally fit.
 * Screwed By The WTH Casting Agency
 * Screams Like a Little Girl: Subverted. If he's scream his head off, it probably means he's about a half-second away from crushing something with his feet.
 * Serious Business: He has a very old school attitude towards Kayfabe.
 * Something Completely Different: He stands out a lot, not only for having a martial arts based wrestling style, but also his look, size, attitude and persona.
 * Token Good Teammate: Lay Cool are villains, he's being played as a Face, they get on pretty well though, probably because Lay Cool are Harmless Villains.
 * Vocal Dissonance
 * Warrior Monk: He's a practicing Taoist and has the discipline of a soldier.

Ken Kennedy (Ken Anderson) 2005-2009

 * Aborted Arc: During the "Who's Vince's kid?" angle, it was Kennedy who was originally slated for the spot. Then he failed a drug test, and they gave the angle to.
 * Alliterative Name (Ken Kennedy, Kamikaze Ken)
 * Blond Guys Are Evil
 * Curse: Both Eddie Guerrero and Umaga had their last fights with Kennedy before dying.
 * I Have the High Ground
 * Jerkass (Heel)
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold (Face)
 * Large Ham: MMMIIIISSSSTERRR KKKKKEEEEENNNNNNEEEEEDDDDYYY!
 * ...Kennedy.
 * Lightning Bruiser: Used the Kenton Bomb (basically a clone of Jeff Hardy's signature Swanton Bomb) and the Green Bay Plunge - both aerial maneuvers - despite being over 240 pounds.
 * No Indoor Voice: Particularly when he says his name.
 * Put On a Bus or Screwed By Randy Orton depends on which side are you on.
 * Say My Name: See Large Ham.
 * Small Name, Big Ego
 * Underwear of Power

Kofi Kingston (Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah) 2008-

 * Alliterative Name
 * Arch Enemy: He and Dolph Ziggler once feuded almost nonstop for the midcard titles. They've occasionally revived their feud over the tag titles.
 * The Artifact: The reggae theme music and color scheme of his wrestling gear are artifacts of his Fake Nationality.
 * Awesome but Impractical: The S.O.S., which involves flipping himself and his opponent over rather awkwardly. It looks cool, but it's hard as all hell to execute, which is probably the reason it's never become his primary finishing move.
 * Awesome Yet Practical: His Trouble In Paradise finisher. It's a spinning kick to the face that can be executed on nearly anyone from nearly anywhere - including from the ring apron.
 * Badass Long Hair: Known for his very long dreadlocks, which he keeps banded behind his head for convenience's sake.
 * Beware the Nice Ones: One of the WWE's most triumphant examples.
 * Fake Nationality: Was billed as being from Jamaica, but it was revealed he's from Ghana, West Africa. Justified when Triple H questioned him about his lost accent and he explained he was paying tribute to the Jamaican culture.
 * Fragile Speedster - as a midcarder.
 * Lightning Bruiser - pushed as this during his brief upper-card feuds.
 * HSQ: He's not a high flyer in the 'complicated lucha-libre style maneuver' sense (like Sin Cara, for instance), but he can jump halfway out of a stadium with his leaping ability.
 * Ignored Enemy: Sometimes he's taken for granted by opponents with seemingly bigger fish to fry. Some people - like Chris Jericho, for instance - have found out that this only makes him angrier, and isn't a good idea.
 * I Have the High Ground
 * Keet
 * Kid Appeal Character
 * Le Parkour
 * Named By Democracy: Kofi's and Evan's tag name, Air Boom, was voted by the fans.
 * Only Sane Man: Kind of a given when your tag team partner is seeing invisible people.
 * One of Us: In an issue with Nintendo Power, he said he wanted a pink hoodie.
 * Underwear of Power

Michael McGillicutty (Joseph Curtis "Joe" Hennig) 2010-

 * Alliterative Name
 * Arch Enemy: With Tyson Kidd. Sadly this was only showcased on NXT, but their feud was about how Kidd wasn't a second or third generation wrestler and how he hanged out with the Harts.
 * Beard of Evil
 * Demoted to Extra: After he and Otunga lost the Tag-Team titles, he all but disappeared from Television. While Otunga aligned himself with John Laurinaitis, Michael ended up (back) on NXT.
 * Finishing Move: The Mc Gillicutter, a running swinging neckbreaker.
 * The Evil Genius: In the new Nexus.
 * It Runs in The Family: Both with his father, Mr. Perfect and grandfather, Larry "The Ax" Hennig.
 * Underwear of Power

The Miz (Michael "Mike" Mizanin) 2006-

 * Alliterative Name: Michael (Mike for short) "The Miz" Mizanin
 * Ascended Fanboy
 * Badass Longcoat: Didn't last long though.
 * He still pulls it out for a PPV match.
 * Casanova Wannabe: Almost painfully so.
 * Catch Phrase: "Cause I'm The Miz...and I'm...AWESOME!"
 * "And I'm your Chick Magnet, The Miz." (back on the Dirt Sheet)
 * "Really? Really? Really?" (when he interrupts people)
 * Hoo-Rah! (on Smack Down circa 2006-2007)
 * Chick Magnet: So says he.
 * Cool Mask: As Calgary Kid
 * Exactly What It Says On the Tin: The Skull Crushing Finale is a full-nelson legsweep that puts the opponent right down onto his forehead.
 * Fatal Flaw: His inability to shut up.
 * Finishing Move: The Skull Crushing Finale.
 * I Have Many Names: He lists about five or six trying to pick up a girl in a WWE.com video.
 * It's All About Me: One of the largest egos ever.
 * Jerkass
 * Large Ham: Because he's The Miz, and he's AWESOME!
 * Master of None / Jack of All Stats: And not in a good balanced way, one of his major non-Kayfabe flaws as a wrestler his lack of specialization, he isn't a high flier, he isn't a power wrestler, he isn't a submission expert and he isn't a technical guy either, he's just...there. And he is getting better.
 * The Napoleon
 * Not-So-Harmless Villain: One of the most awesome things he's done in a while was imitating R-Truth's opening and performing a Boastful Rap. R-Truth laughed, so The Miz brained him with the mic and went to town on him, and performed a brutal looking armbar-thing on him. He ended it with a Creepy Monotone version of his catchphrase.
 * He's also beaten the living daylights out of Sheamus after being dismissed as a loser.
 * He's even put John Cena through his paces - probably more so than anyone else recently.
 * Nice Hat: Used to be part of his entrance attire.
 * No Shirt Long Jacket: While not being a Badass Longcoat, his leather jacket is pretty cool.
 * He breaks out the Badass Longcoat for each PPV.
 * Progressively Prettier: When he started he wasn't the best looking guy around, now its quite different, compare this to th[[http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_rUOnT-66hGU/SO0JYgHRdVI/AAAAAAAAIaE/8evCbOLlZ9A/s320/x0gp3w0t
 * Scarf of Asskicking: Subverted, when he dropped the scarf he started kicking way more ass.
 * Smug Snake: Even if he's a face, he's smug.
 * Straw Fan: Vince used him to "show" why anti-Cenites are wrong. It didn't quite work.
 * Small Name, Big Ego
 * Took a Level In Badass: And how. Who would have pegged that kid from The Real World with the annoying gimmick, the flubbed lines, and the weakest finishing move in the WWE, would turn into a multi-time Tag Team Champion and hilarious host of "The Dirt Sheet", let alone the guy successfully defending the WWE Championship in the main event at Wrestlemania? Pro Wrestling Illustrated even gave him the most improved award twice.
 * Ugly Guy Hot Girlfriend: Okay, so Miz isn't hideous, but how the hell he managed to land Maryse of all girls is anybody's guess.
 * Underwear of Power: After returning.
 * Wrestling Psychology: He's damn good at selling, his pirouette after getting cold clocked by The Big Show was spectacular.

Montel Vontavious Porter (Alvin Burke, Jr.) 2006-2010

 * Ascended Meme: For a long time, the Wrestlecrap message board would routinely insist that what WWE needed was a character based on obnoxious football prima donna Terrell Owens. That wish was finally granted with MVP.
 * Then subverted when MVP turned face, becoming much more like the good-guy, inspirational kind of athlete from a tough background.
 * Fan Nickname: The Power Ranger, thanks to his rather unorthodox outfit (which he wore to cover up a Malcolm X tattoo). JBL spared no expense in mocking him for it in his debut.
 * Fun With Acronyms: MVP.
 * Jerkass (Heel)
 * Jerk Jock (Heel)
 * Jerk With a Heart of Gold (Face)
 * Latex Space Suit
 * The Napoleon (Heel)
 * Put On a Bus: Asked for his release because he didn't like how he was being booked. Proceeded to head for Japan.
 * Real Life Writes the Plot: Being an ex-con limits some of his travel options.
 * Small Name, Big Ego

Muhammad Hassan (Mark Copani) 2004-2005

 * But Not Too Foreign: Was portrayed as an Arab-American.
 * Enemy Mine: His entry into the 2005 Royal Rumble caused this, with all eight men (Consisting of both Faces and Heels) in the ring stopping what they were doing & waiting for him to get to the ring, before everyone attacked him.
 * Even Canadians, for some strange reason.
 * All because of his Strawman Political bent. The Unfortunate Implications were astoundingly blatant.
 * Evil Foreigner: Subverted. But that didn't stop the "USA" chants.
 * Fake Nationality: Mostly. He's half Italian with some traces of Jordanian-Palestinian.
 * Mistaken for Terrorist
 * Real Life Writes the Plot / Screwed By the Network / What Could Have Been: Was originally set to defeat Undertaker in a number one contender's match and eventually face then-Champion Batista in a title match at SummerSlam 2005. However, after the Smackdown controversy caused from the infamous Undertaker/Daivari match, UPN demanded Hassan to be removed from Smackdown. So, his match with The Undertaker at the Great American Bash was used to write out his character. His career never recovered, and it took years before he would attend anything wrestling-related again.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome

Randy Orton (Randal "Randy" Keith Orton) 2002-

 * A Father to His Men: Alternated between this and The Neidermeyer when he led Legacy.
 * Anti-Hero: Type V.
 * Ax Crazy: If he's a Heel.
 * No, pretty much any time.
 * Determinator
 * Dirty Coward: If he's a Heel.
 * Five Moves of Doom: Garvin Stomp, Elevated DDT, Powerslam, Twisting Backbreaker, RKO.
 * Foe Yay: Randy has a rather... intense... wrestling style, and a promo style to match.
 * Fun With Acronyms: His Finishing Move (RKO) is derived from the first letters of his full name.
 * Hearing Voices: His current theme.
 * Hot Dad
 * It Runs in The Family
 * Jerkass: If he's a Heel.
 * Jerk With a Heart of Jerk: If he's a Face.
 * Kick the Dog: As a heel...literally.
 * Kick the Son of A Bitch: As a face. Again, literally.
 * Kick Them While They Are Down: His second finisher, the punt.
 * Large Ham: He has some incredibly hammy moments, most notably the Miracle on 34th Street Fight with David Otunga.
 * Precision F-Strike
 * Small Name, Big Ego: Prior to becoming a monster heel.
 * Smug Snake: His monster Heel run, hence The Viper.
 * Sociopathic Hero: His latest face turn has made him one.
 * Tall, Dark and Handsome
 * Tall, Dark and Snarky
 * Thirteen Is Unlucky: Guess who The Undertaker beat to extend his undefeated Wrestlemania record to 13-0 back in 2005?
 * Fridge Brilliance: He gradually became increasingly evil since then, eventually turning into the Viper.
 * Which maybe had more to do less with 'Taker than the psychological effects of achieving early success only to have his True Companions turn on him.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Villain Protagonist

Rey Mysterio Jr (Oscar Gutierrez) 2002-

 * Badass Spaniard
 * Cool Mask
 * Determinator
 * Even the Guys Want Him: If you can name one semi-regular tag partner he's ever had that didn't snuggle, kiss, and hug him at every available chance, I'd love to hear it.
 * Fragile Speedster
 * Game Breaking Injury: Has been having problems with his knees for years.
 * Hot Dad
 * I Have the High Ground
 * Kid Appeal Character
 * Legacy Character: To clarify, Rey originally wrestled as Rey Mysterio Jr (or Rey Mistero Jr if you want to be a little more accurate). The original Rey Mysterio was his uncle. Jr was unmasked during WCW however, WWE wanted him with his mask. Luchadore traditions are pretty strict about strict about putting a mask back on so to get around that, Jr asked and got permission to wrestle as simply Rey Mysterio in WWE. That is, Rey Mysterio Jr was unmasked but Rey Mysterio never was.
 * Fridge Brilliance: He's not stealing his uncle's identity. Rey Mysterio, and Rey Misterio are two different characters.
 * Location Theme Naming: The West Coast Pop is obviously named from the West Coast of the US, while the 619 is the area code of San Diego, CA (which is part of the West Coast), Rey's hometown.
 * Masked Luchador: DUH!
 * Older Than They Look
 * Omniglot: Maybe not in real life, but he seems to be able to easily converse with everyone else on the roster, up to and including a mute leprechaun and a giant who can barely even speak his own language.
 * Pint-Sized Powerhouse

R-Truth (Ronald "Ron" Killings) 1999-2000, 2008-
"I Want My Son Back!"
 * You Fail Geography Forever: "Nothin' Good Comes From The South." Says the guy who came from North Carolina/Georgia.
 * It's just Cheap Heat. Michael Cole said pretty much the same thing, despite being from Texas.
 * And then there was the Milwaukee/Green Bay mix-up...
 * Angry Black Man: His recent heel turn.
 * Awesome McCoolname: Ron Killings, anyone? And they went with R-Truth and K-Kwik before.
 * Catch Phrase: What's Up?
 * Truth is...
 * And that the truth, the whole truth and nothin' but the truth.
 * It's a conspiracy!
 * Don't boo me, you should be booing yourselves!
 * Lil' Jimmy!!
 * [Insert Wrestler Here] is about to get GOT!
 * Cheap Pop: "[Name of city he's currently in], WHAT'S UP?"
 * Translated into true Cheap Heat when he mistook Milwaukee for Green Bay.
 * Cloudcuckoolander: As both a Heel and a Face
 * Do It Yourself Theme Tune: "What's Up" and "Right Time." When he was a Face, his entrance included him dancing and performing the rap over the track on his way to the ring.
 * Recently he's been started up again.
 * Everything's Better With Spinning: Apparently, he thinks so. Two of the finishers he's used (Truth Axe and Lie Detector) - respectively, a corkscrew scissors kick and a double corkscrew flying elbow.
 * Evil Is Hammy: Oh God. The image of him entering an arena in Richmond, VA to "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" in full Confederate soldier regalia will not be unseen for a long time.
 * Expy: Shows several similarities to Booker T - a black, dreadlocked, Spirited Competitor with a Lightning Bruiser fighting style (although more emphasis on the "lightning" and less on the "bruiser"). He even used a modified version of the scissors kick for a while.
 * Flanderization: At the very beginning of his most recent heel turn, he was certainly a slightly unhinged loose cannon, but as the heel run has gone on, his Sanity Slippage has been cranked Up to Eleven...and then slightly past it.
 * Characterization Marches On: He has lost some of him Flanderazion, but he's still a Cloudcuckoolander who's talking to Little Jimmy.
 * Good Smoking, Evil Smoking: After doing a Face Heel Turn by beating up John Morrison, he took out a cigarette and began smoking it, as the crowd chanted "That's illegal!" and a woman in the audience very audibly shouted "Think of the Children!"
 * The "That's illegal!" chant came about because they were in the UK at the time, where smoking indoors is prohibited.
 * Green-Eyed Monster: At least part of his recent heel run seems to be because he's jealous of the fact that people only seem to care about John Cena.


 * Large Ham: Is a bit of one as a face, but then again, so are most guys in pro wrestling. As a heel, Truth hasn't just chewed scenery, at some points he's swallowed it whole.
 * Lightning Bruiser: Is he a fast power wrestler or a strong high flyer?
 * Living Lie Detector: Just for Pun.
 * No Indoor Voice: Face or heel...when cutting promos, R-Truth has two volumes: loud and louder.
 * Older Than They Look: He's 39.
 * Sanity Slippage: Oh so very much since his recent Heel turn. Even if a viewer could think it was something else, announcers and people fighting him will tell you directly that R-Truth has lost it.
 * Slasher Smile: As a heel - not a guy you would want to meet in a back alley, that's for sure. Makes use of a way-too-wide, eye-bulging, evil clown-type smile when he does smile.
 * Took a Level In Jerkass: Went from the Kid Appeal Character to the guy blowing smoke rings in people's faces and chucking drinks at audience members.
 * Why Did It Have to Be Spiders?
 * Because John Morrison has been compared to Spider-Man.

Santino Marella (Anthony Carelli) 2007-

 * Big Ol Unibrow
 * Boisterous Bruiser
 * Buffy-Speak
 * Bus Crash: Barely avoided a literal instance of this trope. He was Demoted to Extra after losing the Tag Team titles along with Kozlov (who was later 'future endeavored') and was recently involved in a pretty brutal wreck. Despite how that image looks, he suffered a separated shoulder and that was about it.
 * Cherry Tapping / Finger Poke of Doom: The Cobra.
 * Fridge Brilliance: The Cobra looks like a Finger Poke of Doom at first, until you realize it's a high velocity poke to the throat. Maybe it won't knock a guy out, but stunning him for three seconds is actually quite plausible.
 * Chew Toy
 * Chick Magnet
 * Creepy Crossdresser: Santina Marella, Santino's "sister".
 * Crowning Moment of Funny: Santino himself tends to be a walking Crowning Moment of Funny. It's a good part of the reason he's become so popular.
 * Empathic Weapon: Played for Laughs with his green snake glove.
 * Ensemble Darkhorse: Doesn't even begin to cover it. When he, the pop was absolutely massive.
 * Fake Nationality: Billed as being from Italy, when really, he's Italian-Canadian.
 * First-Name Basis
 * Funny Foreigner
 * Important Haircut: Got rid of the weird-looking rat tail just as he began making the transition from Joke Character to Lethal Joke Character.
 * Joke Character
 * LARGE Ham: Oh, yeah. And most times, it's hilarious.
 * Lethal Joke Character
 * Leotard of Power
 * One-Hit Kill: CCOOOOBBBBRRRAAAA!!!
 * Plucky Comic Relief
 * Red Herring Shirt
 * Screams Like a Little Girl
 * Shout Out: Santino's name is one to Gorilla Monsoon, whose real name was Robert Marella.
 * Those Two Guys: With Vladimir Kozlov.
 * Took a Level In Badass: Right around when he teamed with Kozlov.
 * Wholesome Crossdresser: As "Santina".

Sheamus (Stephen Farrelly) 2009-

 * Ax Crazy
 * Badass Beard
 * Badass Long Robe: As King Sheamus.
 * The Berserker
 * Boisterous Bruiser
 * But Not Too White: Seriously??
 * Creepy Celtic Crosses: From his High Cross powerbomb to the loads of crucifixes on his merch, Sheamus has a lot of these.
 * Demoted to Extra: A multi-time WWE Champion who fought Triple H in a high profile match at Wrestlemania 26, put him out of action for nearly a year at the next PPV and became King of the Ring. Since winning Kot R however he's subsequently lost more often than he's won. When Triple H returned Sheamus interrupted his promo... and was promptly beaten down like he was an afterthought and then subsequently squashed by Evan Bourne. He managed to win the United States Championship from Daniel Bryan who invoked his rematch clause for Wrestlemania... in a match that subsequently got pushed off the card into a dark match that turned into a meaningless battle royal won by the Great Khali. From main eventer who put a legend out of action to not even on the show a year later. Isn't it sad, Sheamus?
 * Evil Foreigner
 * Evil Redhead
 * Fake Nationality: Averted.
 * Fan Nickname: "Lobster Head". His song goes "It's a shameful thing / You lost your head" not "Lobster Head".
 * Fighting Irish
 * Improbable Hairstyle: He wrestles while sporting...AnimeHair?
 * Irish Curse: One of his signature moves.
 * Jerkass
 * Hair-Trigger Temper
 * Leitmotif: He's ashamed for they lost your head!
 * Lightning Bruiser: 275 pounds - slingshot shoulder tackle. That's all that needs to be said, really.
 * Miles Gloriosus: Talks a big game about how much of a Badass he is, and with his Lightning Bruiser style he certainly could live up to his own hype. However, he has proven himself a cringing coward when pitted against an equal opponent.
 * Until recently.
 * Mondegreen: LOBSTER HEAD!
 * TOO MANY LIMES!!
 * Oireland: Though he does come by the nationality honestly - he was born and raised in Dublin.
 * He tends to exaggerate his natural accent a bit more for promos however, as evidenced by his interview appearances.
 * Proud Warrior Race Guy: He did not want to be another funny drunk Irishmen, instead playing up the warrior culture of Ireland.
 * Red Baron: The Celtic Warrior, and more recently, the Great White.
 * Redemption Promotion: After a Heel Face Turn, has established himself as a crowd favorite and returned to the main event scene.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Verbal Tic: He ends his sentences with fella, fella.

Ted Dibiase (Theodore Marvin "Ted" DiBiase, Jr.) 2008-

 * Awesome Yet Practical: His Dream Street finisher is an awesome visual for a finishing move, especially if sold well.
 * Battle Butler: Virgil, DiBiase, Sr.'s bodyguard, eventually fired by Jr.
 * Finishing Move: Dream Street, a cobra clutch side slam.
 * Henpecked Boyfriend: To Maryse at one point.
 * Hot Dad
 * I Come From Money Song
 * It Runs in The Family: Both with his father and grandfather.
 * Legacy Character: Almost impossible not to be. It's even lampshaded in his entrance music. (Pun not intended, BTW.)
 * Subverted. Daddy's hand-me-downs got tiring fast, trading in the family servant for a gold-digging girlfriend and outright giving dad back the Million Dollar title. This culminated into him finally becoming a more philanthropic sort of rich guy after turning face.
 * Name's the Same: Dropped the 'Jr.' from his ring name recently.
 * Non-Idle Rich: Doesn't want his father's hand-me-down (Million Dollar Championship) and would rather go after his own opportunities.
 * Spoiled Sweet: The next logical step, finally taken after his Heel Face Turn biting back against Cody Rhodes.
 * Power Stable: Was part of Legacy with Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton.
 * Redemption Promotion: Played pretty straight with his Heel Face Turn.
 * Rich Bastard: As a heel.
 * Screw the Rules, I Have Money: As a heel.
 * Smug Snake
 * Straight Man: Plays this often, in particular when compared to the hamminess of his dad, the evil of Randy Orton and more recently to Cody Rhodes.
 * Underwear of Power
 * The White Prince
 * Wrestling Family: He's a third-generation guy with his dad, Ted Sr., his grandfather, "Iron" Mike Di Biase. His little brother had a brief stint in FCW as well, but had to retire due to injury.

Tyler Reks (Gabriel Allan Tuft) 2009-

 * Awesome McCoolname to Run Away From Really Fast: Invoked this for his ring name and says he one day wants to hear the crowd chant "Reks Wrecks."
 * The Brute
 * Demoted to Extra: What happened to this guy? He brute-forced his way onto the Smackdown Bragging Rights team by taking out Kaval last year, and also made the Survivor Series team on the same brand. Then he got drafted to RAW in April's draft and hasn't been seen since.
 * Demoted to NXT is what happened.
 * He and Hawkins have recently resurfaced on WWE programming as members of John Laurinaitis' informal stable.
 * Dreadlock Rasta
 * Follow the Leader: Subverted. Like Zack Ryder, he and Curt Hawkins tried to capitalize on the internet by way of a YouTube series. WWE promptly shut it down.
 * No Holds Barred Beatdown: His wrestling style.
 * Small Name, Big Ego: The ultimate undercard example, along with partner Curt Hawkins.
 * Surfer Dude: At first.
 * Underwear of Power

Tyson Kidd (Theodore James "T.J." Wilson) 2009-

 * Arch Enemy: The Usos, while part of the Hart Dynasty. Yoshi Tatsu and Michael McGillicutty on NXT.
 * Bald of Awesome
 * Bald of Evil
 * Charlie Brown Baldness/Idiot Hair: The small "crown" of hair he used to wear at the fore of his dome.
 * Childhood Friend Romance: With Natalya.
 * Demoted to Extra: Went from being in a successful tag team to spending his days on NXT and Superstars.
 * Heel Face Revolving Door
 * Real Men Wear Pink: As part of the Hart Dynasty, started to wear basic black after the break-up.
 * Running Gag: Had a new manager accompany him every (other) week (on Superstars). This eventually became an Aborted Arc.
 * Screaming Warrior: "YEEEAAAAHH!!!"
 * Underwear of Power

Umaga (Edward "Eddie" Solofa Fatu) 2002-2003, 2005-2009

 * Ass Kicks You
 * Ax Crazy
 * Badass Family
 * The Brute
 * Does Not Like Shoes
 * Evil Foreigner: Samoa is a US territory but he was paired up with a Cuban manager who did all the talking.
 * Facial Markings
 * Finger Poke of Doom: A literal case, unlike the trope namer. The Samoan spike is a thumb jab to the throat. Sometimes he jabbed the opponent repeatedly until they bled or done it the top rope.
 * Genius Bruiser
 * Hard Head
 * It Runs in The Family
 * Lightning Bruiser
 * No Indoor Voice
 * Red Baron:The Samoan Bulldozer
 * Unstoppable Rage
 * Wild Samoan: Also, the Trope Namers are his uncles.
 * Wrestling Family: Part of the big Samoan, Anoa'i Family.

Wade Barrett (Stuart Alexander Bennett) 2010-

 * A Father to His Men: Seemed to genuinely care about the welfare of the other Nexus members initially, risking his own contract and title shot to secure contracts for them. This didn't last after their loss at Summerslam.
 * The latter part was named as the reason he was exiled from Nexus when he turned around and formed the Corre; making it too much about Wade when it was supposed to be about the group. Crosses over into Ring Psychology as while in Nexus, he'd make the other members put people on his shoulders for his finisher while with Corre, he does the whole thing himself.
 * Evil Brit
 * Fatal Flaw: It's All About Me has come back to bite him in the ass repeatedly.
 * I Did What I Had to Do: Feels completely justified doing what he did to get himself and the rest of the rookies contracts.
 * {Leitmotif} End of Days.
 * The Nexus: Was their leader. Then became the defacto leader/spokesperson for the Corre, an offshoot of the Nexus on Smackdown. That is, until his It's All About Me attitude took over, and the group disbanded because of it.
 * Mr. Fanservice
 * Noble Demon: He's even apologized for attacking John Cena and Bret Hart.
 * Smug Snake
 * Tall, Dark and Snarky
 * Underwear of Power

Yoshi Tatsu (山本 尚史 Yamamoto Naofumi) 2009-

 * Arch Enemy: With Tyson Kidd on NXT.
 * Gratuitous English
 * Keet
 * Heterosexual Life Partners: Him and Goldust.
 * Mask of Power: Averted. He has changed his look...but he's still essentially a Jobber and a guy that only sees TV time when a match or promo (e.g. Lumberjack or locker-room-clearing brawl) calls for a lot of bodies.
 * Skunk Stripe
 * Stock Foreign Name

Zach Gowen 2003-2004

 * Handicapped Badass: He's the only professional wrestler who wrestles with one leg.
 * Improbable Weapon User: His Prosthetic Leg.
 * Littlest Cancer Patient
 * The Load
 * Red Herring Shirt

Zack Ryder (Matthew Cardona) 2007-

 * Arch Enemy: Dolph Ziggler, Jack Swagger, and Vickie Guerrero
 * Catch Phrase: "Woo woo woo!"
 * You know it.
 * From his internet show there's also "Take care, spike your hair."
 * "Are you serious, Bro?"
 * Odd Friendship: With Raw commentator for WWE Superstars Scott Stanford. Stanford's a middle-aged, Emmy winning sportscaster while Ryder's a young, Long Island guido. Yet Stanford regularly takes part in Ryder's internet show taking part in all of it'z zaniness and even threw out a couple of Zack Ryder references while doing highlights for a Yankees game on the New York news.
 * Plucky Comic Relief: The dude's basically Santino if he was from Long Island instead of Italy and slightly less ridiculous.
 * Those Two Guys: With Curt Hawkins, when they were associated with Edge.
 * Took a Level In Badass: Went from a funny Heel jobber to a credible Face United States Champion in less than a year, all thanks to his YouTube series which would either gotten him noticed or fired.
 * Running Gag: Lots in Z! True Long Island Story. His various turns of phrase with wrestling lingo, his own dad being a John Morrison fan instead of a Zack Ryder fan and every episode featuring a (usually very quick) shot of a Dolph Ziggler action figure.
 * Underwear of Power
 * Unrelated Brothers: With Curt Hawkins when they were known as the Major Brothers.