Dumb Wrestling Gimmicks That Were Based On Animals

Tons of terrible gimmicks have been created throughout wrestling history based on a wide range of ideas. The wrestlers themselves have made some of them, others have been handed to them by a creative team, and a bad gimmick has the chance to ruin a career because it can be impossible to build any momentum.

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Gimmicks can be based on anything, but over the years, some shocking ones have been based on animals. While some have worked well because they’re loosely attached, such as Rhino, others have forced wrestlers into ridiculous scenarios that have been difficult to entertain because of how dreadful they are.

The Gobbledy Gooker Was A Disaster From The Start

Audiences Saw The Gimmick Crack Out Of An Egg

• The character quickly became comedic
• Various wrestlers have worked under this mask

The Gobbledy Gooker is one of the worst gimmicks that WWE ever created because it was absurd and impossible to take seriously. At the time, wrestling was filled with wild characters, but the idea of a wrestler cracking out of an egg was too much for anyone to buy into.

The costume looked ridiculous, which didn’t help matters, and the gimmick was then never taken seriously after this point. WWE often brought The Gobbledy Gooker out for one-off moments, normally around Thanksgiving, but it has never been one fans have enjoyed.

Mantaur Had A Ridiculous Look

It Was Impossible To Take Seriously

• The mask would be taken off for matches
• Mantaur was a character that never got pushed seriously

The Mantaur was an interesting idea on paper because the mythological character could be good if it was done right, especially during its time. However, he would head out to the ring in the most insane headpiece that instantly took fans out of the situation.

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He’d then take it off to wrestle and no longer be seen similarly. The entire premise was poorly put together, and there’s a reason why WWE didn’t push him seriously, which is because fans thought it sucked.

The Red Rooster Was A Waste Of Terry Taylor’s Talent

It Featured One Of The Worst Hairstyles Ever

• The idea was to proove Bobby Heenan could get anyone over as manager
• It impacted Terry Taylor’s career negatively

Terry Taylor is a fantastic professional wrestler who is capable of putting together great matches from a technical perspective. However, when he was lumbered with the Red Rooster gimmick, his career was instantly restricted because he could only take that so far.

The gimmick was loosely based on the animal for some reason, which was poorly explained at the time. Taylor gave it everything he had, but from the outset, it was clear this character was never going to work.

The Shark Was WCW’s Attempt To Keep John Tena Relevant

There Was No Clear Gimmick Here

• He was meant to be Avalanche but WWE’s lawyers stopped it
• The Shark had dreadful face paint to convey the gimmick

Many wrestlers jumped between WWE and WCW during the Monday Night Wars, and John Tenta was one of those. Best known to most wrestling fans as Earthquake, he’d built up a solid reputation for himself in WWE as a decent heavyweight wrestler.

WCW tried to tap into that by initially calling him Avalanche, but WWE’s lawyers stopped that as it was too similar. This led to The Shark gimmick being created, featuring terrible face paint that detracted fans from what he was doing inside the ring.

The Bunny Ended Up Becoming A Character

It Kickstarted As Part Of Adam Rose’s Rosebuds

• The Bunny was a regular Rosebud
• He teamed with Adam Rose several times

Adam Rose was an interesting character who managed to get over for a short period due to his energy. A big part of that was his entrance, as he’d run down with his Rosebuds surrounding him, which would be filled with colorful and vibrant characters to get the party going.

One of those was The Bunny, which would be someone dressed as a rabbit. It was a fun mascot on the outside, but then WWE decided to turn The Bunny into a genuine gimmick, which was instantly dismissed by fans who hated the idea of it becoming a featured character.

Shark Boy Was A Joke Of A Character

TNA Leaned Into The Comedy

• The character became a Steve Austin impersonation
• Shark Boy enjoyed his best success in TNA Wrestling

Shark Boy was a unique animal-based gimmick because it focused on the shark and blended aspects of a Steve Austin cosplay, which meant that it was even stranger than most. This was a character that was never going to seriously win titles or be a major threat simply because of the gimmick.

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Shark Boy managed to entertain some fans, as TNA at least acknowledged the insanity surrounding it and leaned into the comedy. However, it wasn’t a gimmick that was ever going to be used for unforgettable storylines.

El Torito Was Treated Like A Mascot

He Was Rarely Given A Chance To Showcase His Genuine In-Ring Talent

• He would work alongside Los Matadores
• He had an iconic WeeLC match against Hornswoggle

El Torito was a wrestler who brought something entirely different for everyone else, and WWE tapped into that by pairing him with Los Matadores. However, he was portrayed as the Matadores bull and mainly used for comedic purposes.

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Even though El Torito was a talented worker, as he proved during his feud against Hornswoggle, his character was fairly restricted in no small part to the gimick that he was stuck working with.

Battle Kat Featured A Terrible Mask

The Gimmick Was One To Forget

• The mask instantly made him look foolish
• He had a career to forget

Another terrible animal-related gimmick was Battle Kat, which was a character that failed to make much of an impact in professional wrestling. It wasn’t a gimmick that fans could take too seriously or wanted to watch, as the idea of a cat being a wrestler was hard for people to take seriously.

Lince Dorado did a better job of making this style of character work because he wasn’t reliant on trying to look like a cat, but implemented it into running the ropes and having a unique in-ring style. That’s not something Battle Kat managed, which led to a career that failed to make much of an impact.