When you stop and think about it, every wrestling show that is broadcast is likely someone’s very first experience of that company, or the wrestling industry as a whole. As such, you need to make a strong first impression, and the first thing a new viewer would see is the name of the show. A strong event name can set off imagery in the person’s head, giving them an idea of what to expect, while a lackluster name can make someone actively disinterested in tuning in. Today, we’re going to look at some of the Best and Worst pay-per-view (or special event) names of all time.
It’s worth noting that I’m purely judging these based off the name of the show, and not the wrestling that transpired on said show. As always, this is entirely my opinion, so feel free to share yours with me on Twitter!
BEST – WrestleMania | WWE
We kick things off with the granddaddy of all names, and understandably so, WrestleMania makes the Best list. WrestleMania is a cultural phenomenon, and the vast majority of the population of the entire world recognizes the name, even those who are non-wrestling fans. The name itself has been played off, parodied and even featured in mainstream entertainment media, and is without a shadow of a doubt the most recognizable, and by extension one of the Best, wrestling event names. Taking the prestige of the name aside, it’s still a great name. It’s direct, to the point, it lets people know exactly what they’re watching, it’s perfect. A mania of wrestling.
WORST – This Tuesday in Texas | WWE
We go from the most recognizable name in the industry to… not that. This Tuesday in Texas was a show that ran in December 1991 and I’ll give you one guess where it aired from. No, it wasn’t New York, you idiot. The name just sounds like someone talking about an upcoming breakfast meeting they’ve got with a client, not the name of a professional wrestling show where men and women batter each other. I’d like to think this came about by someone being assigned to name the show and the person responded ‘this Tuesday in Texas?’ to confirm which show they’d be naming, and they just went with it.
BEST – King of the Ring | WWE
This has it all. A snappy name, a rhyme scheme, easy imagery to conjure, it’s pretty much as perfect as you can get for a wrestling show name. It rolls off the tongue, and it’s easily linked with wrestling. There’s honestly not much more I can say about this. It’s just really good.
WORST – Hog Wild / Road Wild | WCW
If you’re reading this, you have officially been blessed. In this entry we’re covering not one, but TWO terrible names.
Hog Wild first ran in 1996 during the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally for… reasons unknown. Eric Bischoff likes motorcycles. Taking aside the terrible franchising and marketing for the event, just think about someone coming across the name and then imagine their reaction when they realized it was a wrestling event. Hog. Wild.
For the following three years after those manic hogs, the show was renamed to Road Wild due to a potential copyright issue with HOG, the Harley Owners Group. ROAD WILD. Curse those crazy roads and their… impact on the wrestling industry for some reason. What a terrible set of names. Also, fun fact: Hulk Hogan main evented all four of these shows. Classic.
BEST – Unforgiven | WWE
There is something about this name that just… fits. Unforgiven first debuted as an In Your House show in 1998 before becoming its own show in 1999, and it’s one of the names I miss the most in today’s product. It’s aggressive, it’s epic, and it invokes imagery of battles, wars, all the good stuff you want people to be thinking of before a wrestling show. Unlike something like Hog Wild.
WORST – The Great American Bash | WCW
The Great American Bash. As an Englishman, seeing something called The Great American Bash does make me chuckle a little. Obviously patriotism levels vary between the two countries, with ours only spiking during the World Cup, but marketing something as ‘American’ doesn’t exactly sell it. Also, calling something a bash sounds more like a party than a wrestling show, so maybe this is just a really big party? Well, SummerSlam might like to think that’s what it is, but I don’t think that’s what they were going for here. The same can be said for Bash at the Beach, but at least that has alliteration. This is just… a nothing name. It’s just plain bad.
BEST – Invasion | WWE
Yes, yes, I know. Just the word “invasion” can invoke the deepest levels of anger in wrestling fans of a certain generation. But let’s take that all aside for a second.
Invasion is the perfect name for this show. In storyline, WCW and ECW were invading WWE in 2001, disrupting programming, stealing championships, being general nuisances for the show. What better, more fitting name could there possibly be than Invasion? It’s simple, it’s evocative, and it tells people exactly what to expect from the show. It’s perfect.
WORST – Great Balls of Fire | WWE
For the first time in this Best & Worst series, we’re going to end things off on a negative because there are just too many terrible names out there, such as this absolute gem: Great Balls of Fire. This event was a one-time show (shocking, I know) from 2017 and it is genuinely hilarious. It has nothing to do with wrestling, and it just sounds ridiculous. I don’t think I need to explain more than just to tell you to stop for a second. Just think about the name itself. Break it down. Great. Balls. Of. Fire. The person who pitched this name no doubt had great balls himself.
Did I miss any on this list? How much are you laughing at Great Balls of Fire? Let me know in the comments, on Twitter, or on Discord today!
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