World Championship Wrestling/Characters/NWA-WCE Era

Lists the various wrestlers active during the NWA WCW Era, from 1988 through 1993. Please limit associated tropes to that wrestler's time in the WCW.

Big Van Vader (Leon Allen White, 1990-1995)

Acrofatic: A 450 pound guy, who innovated the moonsault.
The Big Guy: Depending on if he was a face or a heel.
The Brute: Depending on if he was a face or a heel.
Catch Phrase: "It's Time... It's Time... It's Vader Time!"
Cool Mask: His most famous mask counts, but especially his Mastodon mask that he sometimes wore to the ring before matches, which among other things, blew fog out. Just check it out. Sadly, that mask, along with the name "Big Van Vader", was found to be the intellectual property of New Japan Pro Wrestling, so in his later days in North America, he had to make do with his leather mask and just the name "Vader".
Determinator: Considering he once wrestled a match where he had a detached retina of all things and simply popped it back in and finished his match, this trope seems fitting.
Lightning Bruiser: Especially so in his younger days when he was a bit leaner, though he was still a large fellow. He was able to pull moonsaults and other types of high-flying attacks while also being able to powerbomb and chokeslam with the best of them.
Mighty Glacier
Unstoppable Rage

Bobby Eaton (Robert Lee Eaton, 1985-1992, 1994-2000)

Blondes Are Evil: As a heel
Breakup Breakout: During the time Jim Crocket Promotions was becoming WCW, he was the only one in the Midnight Express that found some long term success.
The Brute: Of the Dangerous Alliance.
Demoted to Extra / Jobber: In 1997 after he broke up with the Bluebloods.
Hair of Gold: As a face.
Power Stable: The Dangerous Alliance and the Bluebloods.
Red Baron: 'Beautiful' in the Midnight Express then 'Earl' Robert in the Blueboods.
Tag Team: A former member of the Midnight Express, on of the greatest teams in professional wrestling. Also with Regal and Taylor in the Bluebloods.

Brad Armstrong (Bradley "Brad" James, 1984-1995, 1997-2000)

Cool Mask: As of the Dos Hombres, Fantasia / Badstreet, the Freedom Fighter and Arachnaman.
Expy: As Arahnaman for Spider-Man and Buzzkill (in part) for his brother, the Road Dogg.
I Have Many Names: In addition to his own, there was one of the Dos Hombres, Fantasia, Badstreet, the Freedom Fighter, Arachnaman, B.A. and Buzzkill.
New Age Retro Hippie: As Buzzkill
Parts Unknown: As Arahnaman, he came from Web City.
Red Baron: 'Candyman'
White Gang-Bangers: As B.A. in the No Limit Soldiers.
Wrestling Family: A member of the Armstrong wrestling family.

Brian Pillman (Brian William Pillman, 1989–1994, 1994–1996)

Blond Guys Are Evil: Most of his WCW run, especially notable during his time with Steve Austin in the Hollywood Blonds and as the 'Loose Cannon'.
Guttural Growler: Spoke with a rasp due to multiple childhood bouts with throat polyps.
Magnificent Bastard
Obfuscating Insanity
Red Baron: First 'Flyin' then 'Loose Cannon'
Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness

Buff Bagwell (Marcus Alexander Bagwell, 1991-2001)

Alliterative Name
Breakup Breakout: He was originally part of a tag team called the 'American Males', after he turned on his parter, Scotty Riggs, the latter mostly toiled in obscurity while Buff got the push.
- This also includes his tag teams with Scorpio, the Patriot and Scott Norton.
Badass Beard
Catch Phrase: "Buff is the stuff!"
Cool Shades
The Fighting Narcissist
Gorgeous George: After a fashion
Heel Face Revolving Door: After he left the nWo he turned a lot.
Momma's Boy
Painted-On Pants
Small Name, Big Ego: "I'm simply delicious"

Butch Reed (Bruce Reed, 1989-1991, 1992)

Angry Black Man
Badass
- Badass Beard
The Jannetty: Butch was this to his tag team partner, Ron Simmons, who went on to become WCW's first Black World Champion.
Cool Mask: As part of Doom, at first.
Mighty Glacier
Red Baron: 'Hacksaw' in his singles career.
Scary Black Man
Soul Brotha

Diamond Dallas Page (Page Joseph Falkinburg, Jr., 1991-2001)

Cool Old Guy: He started his wrestling career at about 35.
Determinator: The guy legitimately trained his ass off to become one of the better wrestlers WCW had.
The Jimmy Hart Version: His theme music, "Self High-Five," essentially an instrumental of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" with a few notes and chords reversed.
Joisey: Even though he's made Florida his home for a long time.
Large Ham
One-Hit Kill: You could beat him up all day, but all he had to do was hit the Diamond Cutter and he'd come out on top and he could hit the Diamond Cutter at a moment's notice, from 52 different positions.
Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: A particularly epic Real Life case, with his Playboy model/fitness goddess wife Kimberly, and Page himself being an ugly, older, hairy, flabby guy with "big green mess"-style tattoos from head to toe.

Dustin Rhodes (Dustin Patrick Runnels, 1991-1995, 1999-2001)

All-American Face: As 'the Natural'.
Hair of Gold: As 'the Natural'.
Nightmare Fuel: His role as Seven when he came back to WCW,
Red Baron: 'The Natural' and 'The American Nightmare'.
Wrestling Family: Son of Dusty Rhodes.

The Great Muta (武藤敬司, Muto Keiji, 1989-1990, 1993-2000)

Costume Porn
Evil Foreigner
I Know Judo
Improbable Weapon User: The Asian mist which he is the first to do in pro-wrestling.
Red Baron: 'The Great' Muta

Johnny B. Badd (Marc Mero, 1991-1996)

Alliterative Name: His real name.
Camp Straight: Just like the man he is an expy of.
Disco Dan
Expy: Of Little Richard.
The Fighting Narcissist
Gorgeous George: A rare Face example.
Punny Name: His stage name is a homage to the Chuck Berry son Johnny B. Goode.

Kevin Sullivan / The Taskmaster (Kevin Francis Sullivan, 1987-1992, 1994-2001)

Bald of Evil
Big Bad: Of the Dungeon of Doom.
Doomy Dooms of Doom
Jerk Jock: As a member of the Varsity Club.
Large Ham
Legion of Doom / Power Stable: The Dungeon of Doom, which he led as the Taskmaster.

Larry Zbyszko (Lawrence "Larry" Whistler, 1987-1989, 1990–2001)

Power Stable: A member of the Dangerous Alliance and the Old Age Outlaws.
Red Baron: 'The Living Legend'
Retired Badass: By 1996, Zbyszko stopped wrestling fulltime and took his talents to the announce table on WCW Monday Nitro.
Spell My Name with an "S": Officially, his last name is spelt Zbyszko, but is sometimes misspelled like Zbysko or Zybysko.
Wrestling Family: Married into the Gagne family.

Masahiro Chono (蝶野正洋, Chono Masahiro, 1991-1992, 1995-2000)

Michael Wallstreet / V.K.Wallstreet / Mr. Wallstreet (Lawrence Michael Rotunda)

Demoted to Extra: He had more going on, before he joined the nWo.
The Dragon: In the York Foundation.
Evil Foreigner: As a member of nWo Japan.
Mook / Jobber: In the nWo.
Jerk Jock: As a member of the Varsity Club.
Power Stable: The Varsity Club, the York Foundation and the nWo.
Red Baron: 'Captain' as his sailor gimmick and in the Varsity Club.
Take That: As V.K. Wallstreet as in "Vincent Kennedy" McMahon.
Wrestling Doesn't Pay: A wrestling sailor as Captain Mike Rotunda and a stock market analyst Wallstreet.

Paul Orndorff (Paul Parlette Orndorff, Jr., 1990, 1992-2000)

Demoted to Extra: As a WCW road agent trainer from 1995-2000.
The Fighting Narcissist: As a heel
One Steve Limit: Averted with him and his tag team partner 'Pretty' Paul Roma in "Pretty Wonderful"
Red Baron: 'Mr. Wonderful'
Reluctant Retiree: He had to do this several times due to his recurring injuries he sustained in the WWE.
Small Name, Big Ego: As a heel

Ron Simmons (1989-1994)

Angry Black Man
Badass
- Badass Beard
Breakup Breakout: Over his Doom tag team partner, Butch Reed.
Cool Mask: As part of Doom, at first.
Mighty Glacier
Pro Wrestling Headband: During his singles career.
Red Baron: 'The All-American' in his singles career.
Retroactive Recognition: Most fans these days know him better as Farooq, or as the guy who shows up occasionally on WWE TV to say 'DAMN!'
Scary Black Man
Soul Brotha
Ur Example: WCW's first Black World Champion.

Scott Steiner (Scott Carl Rechsteiner, 1989-1992, 1996-2001)

Alliterative Name
Badass
Badass Beard
Breakup Breakout: Scott and Rick Steiner, or the Steiner Brothers, were a successful tag team. Scott would become WCW Heavyweight Champion. Rick was not so successful as a singles competitor.
Cain and Abel: After they split as a team, he and Rick fought a lot.
Catch Phrase: Had a bunch of them, but the main one as usually "Big Poppa Pump is your hook up, holler if you hear me!"
Hero-Killer: During his World Title run, he put most every main event face in the company out of action.
Hot-Blooded: He was described as 'The Man with the Largest Arms, and the Shortest Fuse, in WCW'.
I Call Him Mr. Happy: He called his "The Big Dipper" after the constellation.
Insistent Terminology: He refered to the various women he had around, exclusively, as 'his freaks'.
Leotard of Power: When he was still teaming with Rick.
Lightning Bruiser: In his prime.
Red Baron: "Big Poppa Pump"
Sleeves Are for Wimps
Unstoppable Rage

Sid Vicious (Sid Eudy, 1989-1991, 1993, 1999-2001)

Ax Crazy
The Big Guy
Blond Guys Are Evil: As a heel
The Brute
Meaningful Name
Name's the Same: As the bassist from The Sex Pistols.
Red Baron: 'The Millenium Man'
Unstoppable Rage

State Patrol - Sgt. Buddy Lee Parker (Dewayne Bruce, 1989-2001), Lt. James Earl Wright (Dale Veasey, 1989-1996)

Breakup Breakout: Parker, after Wright retired.
Dirty Cop
Drill Sergeant Nasty: Parker's gimmick after the group's split. Based on his position as a trainer at the WCW Power Plant.
Jobber: For such trash talkers, they sure did suck.
Large Ham
Leprechaun: Parker became Braun the Leprechaun during a short stint in the Dungeon of Doom.
Wrestling Doesn't Pay: Wrestling police officers.

Steve Austin (1991-1995)

Blond Guys Are Evil: Most of his WCW run, especially notable during his time with Brian Pillman in the Hollywood Blonds.
Breakup Breakout: Even taking out his Stone Cold wrestling years, Austin won more singles titles than his Hollywood Blond tag partner, Brian Pillman.
Power Stable: A member of the Dangerous Alliance and the Stud Stable.
Red Baron: 'Stunning'
Retroactive Recognition: Goes without saying really.

Tatsumi Fujinami (藤波辰爾, Fujinami Tatsumi, 1991-1992)

Evil Foreigner: In WCW at least.
Not Cheating Unless You Get Caught: How he beat Ric Flair for the NWA world title.
Red Baron: 'The Dragon'
Signature Move: The Dragon Sleeper
Suplex Finisher: The Dragon Suplex

Terry Funk (1989-1994, 2000-2001)

Arch Enemy: Ric Flair
Authority Equals Asskicking: His stint as Commissioner of WCW in 2000.
Badass Grandpa
Cool Old Guy
Garbage Wrestler: He arguably became this during his 2000-2001 run, in which he mostly competed in the Hardcore Division.
Red Baron: The Funker
Ring Oldies

Tom Zenk (Thomas Erwin "Tom" Zenk, 1989-1994)

Face
Red Baron: 'The Z-Man'
Something Person
Wrestling Doesn't Pay: A wrestling bodybuilder (other than Lex Luger).
Xtreme Kool Letterz

Van Hammer (Mark Hildreth, 1991-1993, 1997-2000)

The Big Guy: In the Misfits in Action.
The Brute: In the Flock
Demoted to Extra: More or less his second run with the company. He was more of a Mook than a stand alone star.
Name's the Same: His real name with Canadian musician and actor, Mark Hildreth.
Power Stable: The Flock and the Misfits in Action.
Punny Name: Went by the name Major Stash in the Misfits in Action.
Red Baron: 'Heavy Metal' in his first run with the company.
Wrestling Doesn't Pay: In his first run, a wrestling Heavy Metal guitarist.

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