The Ruthless Aggression Era featured many interesting changes to WWE after the Attitude Era ended. Names like Steve Austin and The Rock leaving led to new stars like John Cena, Batista, and Brock Lesnar getting over as new faces of the promotion. Quite a few interesting tropes developed around this time that became part of the shows every week.
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No one could have predicted that fans would enjoy this era as much as they did since it was following the most popular period in WWE history. The time watching the product back made fans aware of some common traits in the storytelling. Each of the following tropes became part of the Ruthless Aggression Era.
Rivalries Between The Brands
WWE Tried To Create Its Own Competition Between Raw And SmackDown
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- WWE Needed New Competition Plan After WCW Ended
- Raw vs Smackdown Stories Became Common In WWE
- Survivor Series Became Defined By This Story Trope
The end of WCW led to a new chapter of WWE no longer having any competition. TNA becoming a wrestling alternative created a secondary brand, but they never got close to WWE or even AEW’s current level. WWE tried to make the brand split become the competition that existed before WCW ended.
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The Ruthless Aggression Era featured a lot of brand rivalries between the Raw and Smackdown brands. Eric Bischoff and Stephanie McMahon battling as GMs started it off. Various inter-promotional angles started in the fall to pay off at Survivor Series as wrestlers from each brand faced off.
Dominant Heel Title Reigns
Reigns Of Terror Followed Both Shows
- Triple H’s Reign Of Terror Dominated Raw Brand
- JBL Had Year-Long Reign As WWE Champion
- Faces Got Huge Moments Ending These Reigns
The dominant world champion trope often finds success since major promotions can build new stars up by having them end historic reigns. Triple H constantly holding the World Championship on Raw led to fans calling it the infamous “reign of terror.”
However, the names to end Triple H’s reigns like Batista and Chris Benoit had incredible moments paying off by ending his stints on top. JBL had a near-year long WWE Championship reign intentionally set up for John Cena to end it. Batista and Cena became mega-stars by having pivotal crowning moments.
New Tag Teams Having Over-The-Top Gimmicks
WWE Failed Its Tag Team Division During Ruthless Aggression Era
- Vince McMahon Broke Up Most Established Teams
- New Teams Received Ridiculous Gimmicks Ruining Them
- Ruthless Aggression Era Had Fewer Teams Than Past
Gimmicks became more ridiculous during the Ruthless Aggression Era, especially in the tag division. Vince McMahon split up most of the top tag teams, but new teams debuting on the main roster often had gimmicks ruining their chances at success.
Deuce and Domino had the 1960s greaser gimmick that failed their push as tag champs. The Basham Brothers, Gymini, the Dicks, Jesse & Festus, and other teams showed how common it was to play embarrassing gimmicks. Even successful teams like MNM were defined by their gimmicks to limit their ceiling together.
Heel Power Couples Uniting
Merged Heel Characters Into Couple Acts
- Heel Couples Became Strong Source Of Success
- Edge & Lita Getting Together Helped Edge Ascend
- Trish Stratus & Christian Had Underrated Run Together
Couples became more prevalent for WWE during the Ruthless Aggression Era since fans were used to it by that point. More heel couples formed to become top acts together. Edge and Lita became the top heel act, and that angle finally helped Edge get to the next level as a top champion.
Trish Stratus and Christian had the same dynamic, even though Christian’s injury limited their ceiling together. WWE enjoyed Edge having a female partner so much that they added Vickie Guerrero to his act a little while after Lita retired.
Young Stars Getting Over Vs Veterans
WWE Making New Stars Defined The Era
- Roster Had Perfect Mix Of Young Stars & Legends
- Orton Became Star Thanks To His Legend Killer Run
- Cena & Batista Defeated Top Heels For First Title Wins
The biggest goal of the Ruthless Aggression Era was to create new stars with older names leaving WWE, but this required veterans helping them get over. WWE used the trope of having veterans working against younger talents to build their credibility.
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Randy Orton’s legend killer gimmick saw him looking strong against many legends. Mr. Kennedy developing a winning streak by defeating established former world champions. Even the top names like John Cena and Batista had their star making moments coming by defeating legends to win gold.
Authority Figures Vs Wrestlers
Every Show Had A General Manager
- Both Shows Needing GMs Had Authority Figures At All Times
- Raw Had Eric Bischoff Holding Down Spot For Many Years
- Smackdown Had GMs Switching While Adding New Rivalries
The brand split led to authority figures becoming even more important than the Attitude Era where it became a big part of the show. Eric Bischoff feuding with Steve Austin and others as the Raw General Manager played a huge role on the brand for years.
Smackdown had a rotating door of names in the GM spot, like Stephanie McMahon, Paul Heyman and Teddy Long. All of them had feuds and storylines combatting wrestlers since the authority figure vs wrestler feud became a huge trope for the era.
Rivals Forming Tag Teams
“Can They Go-Exist” Stories Started
- Rivals Started Teaming Up More Often In This Era
- John Cena & HBK Won Tag Titles While Feuding
- Recent Years Saw This Trope Used Too Much
The idea of two opposing wrestlers teaming up is joked about today with WWE killing the “can they co-exist” story by doing it too much. Wrestling has always implored this angle to some extent, but it truly took off during the Ruthless Aggression Era.
Both shows had the story at one point when rivals Shawn Michaels and John Cena representing Raw teamed up against Smackdown’s Batista and The Undertaker. Matt Hardy and MVP had a long story as rivals becoming tag champs and having to get along to keep the angle going as another great example.
Embracing Reality Within Storylines
Kayfabe Ended During Ruthless Aggression Era
- Fans Wanted More Reality From WWE In 2000s
- Real Life Drama Involving Wrestlers Became Known
- Cena’s Polarizing Character Welcomed Fans Booing Him
The end of kayfabe came thanks to the internet taking off and fans wanting more reality. WWE embraced that a little during the Attitude Era by making bold changes for edgy changes. However, the real lives of the superstars became part of the show more than ever in the Ruthless Aggression Era.
A real-life love triangle between Matt Hardy, Edge and Lita saw fans forcing WWE to make it part of the show by chanting for Hardy after he was fired. WWE embraced more reality of the fan reaction by doubling down on John Cena’s polarizing reactions and making the boos become a successful part of his character.
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