In late July of 2008, WWE’s Ruthless Aggression Era came to an end, as the company embarked on what’s since been referred to as the PG Era — named such due to a pivot to TV-PG rated programming. For roughly six years, WWE opted for family-friendly content, much to the chagrin of many fans who grew up on the edgier days when the product was rated TV-14.
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While there’s certainly a number of memorable moments like CM Punk’s Pipebomb, the return of Brock Lesnar, and the rise of the YES! Movement, there are also countless moments from the PG Era that fans may have forgotten about. Let’s take a look at 10 of these, which include strange incidents, topical promo segments, and a notable milestone in a legend’s career.
10 Curtis Axel’s Weird Debut (WWE Raw 5/20/2013)
The spring of 2013 ended with Paul Heyman introducing his latest client: Curtis Axel, the son of Curt Hennig who immediately got into a spat with Triple H, leading to a main event bout between the two later that night. It was certainly a promising spotlight for Curtis Axel, but the story here was more about Triple H being messed up from his steel cage match with Brock Lesnar the night before. As a result, Trips succumbed to what appeared to be (kayfabe) concussion symptoms, and the bout was ruled a no contest.
9 Vickie Guerrero Goes Full Eastwood (WWE Raw, 9/3/2012)
On August 30, 2012, Clint Eastwood made headlines when he delivered a bizarre speech at the Republican National Convention that involved talking to an empty chair. Of course, the moment was lampooned by late night talk show hosts, sketchy comedy programs, and randomly WWE. Days after the speech, Vickie Guerrero came out to cut a promo on AJ Lee, who took a while to actually come out despite Guerrero’s demands. As a result, Vickie began addressing her thoughts to an empty chair in the ring, and the topical joke was obvious.
8 The Undertaker’s Final Television Match (WWE SmackDown, 4/26/2013)
Weeks after The Undertaker put away CM Punk in a standout match at WrestleMania 29, The Dead Man wrestled his first television matches on Raw and SmackDown since 2010, which would also prove to be his last TV matches. ‘Taker’s final television match ever went down on SmackDown in late April 2013 when he took on The Shield’s Dean Ambrose in a singles match.
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The bout ended with Ambrose tapping out to the Hell’s Gate within five minutes, but The Shield came out on top afterward thanks to a powerbomb through the announcers’ table.
7 CM Punk Takes A Field Sobriety Test (WWE Raw 4/23/2012)
While holding the WWE Championship, CM Punk feuded with John Cena, Daniel Bryan, and The Rock, but it’s easy to forget that he had a rivalry going on with Chris Jericho as well. The storyline had Jericho make things personal by attempting to reveal the famously straightedge champion as a covert alcoholic — even after Punk put away the challenger at WrestleMania 28. Weeks later, Jericho went as far as subjecting Punk to a field sobriety test live on Raw. CM Punk initially feigned being drunk, but passed the test and went on to beat Jericho again in a Chicago Street Fight at Extreme Rules.
6 Pancake Patterson (WWE Raw, 3/18/2013)
The PG Era was rife with goofy comedy, but sometimes there was the odd gem, including in this mid-March 2013 Raw when fans were introduced to Rufus “Pancake” Patterson, the kayfabe uncle of the Primetime Players, Titus O’Neil and Darren Young. Portrayed by O’Neil in an afro wig and jumpsuit, Pancake Patterson attributed his nickname to the fact that he “flattens fools” and interrupted a John Cena promo to get his nephew Young a match with WWE’s top star. Needless to say, Young lost the match.
5 D'Lo Brown Returns (WWE Raw, 7/21/2008)
In July of 2008, Santino Marella issued an open challenge, and the result was a surprise return few fans could have expected: terminally underrated Attitude Era star D’Lo Brown. Having not wrestled on WWE television since 2003, Brown put away Marella in about 90 seconds. This wasn’t a one-off appearance, either — Brown had officially re-signed to WWE, and stuck around until he was released in early 2009. Most fans likely don’t remember this ever happening because D’Lo Brown only wrestled five televised matches over the span of about four months.
4 The Glee Recap (NXT Redemption, 4/18/2012)
The fifth season of NXT, NXT Redemption, was a strange one. Initially another game show season, Redemption soon began to ignore the competition format and became a weird internet-only minor show featuring the most underrated of WWE’s undercard that somehow lasted 67 episodes. As a result, NXT Redemption did a lot of fun under-the-radar stuff.
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One episode of Redemption opened with a parody of the recaps that started every episode of the musical series Glee, with ECW recounting the kidnapping of Matt Striker and other silliness — complete with the “...and that’s what you missed on NXT.”
3 Big Show Chokeslams John Cena Into A Spotlight (WWE Backlash, 4/26/2009)
While the violence in WWE had been toned down in the PG Era, there were still some wild moments, including some that fans may have forgotten. Backlash 2009 featured a Last Man Standing main event title bout between World Heavyweight Champion John Cena and Edge. Once the brawl made its way to the top of the entrance ramp, where The Big Show intervened to Chokeslam the champion into a nearby spotlight. The spotlight exploded in spectacular fashion, and thanks to the Last Man Standing stipulation Edge was able to capture the belt.
2 The Undertaker Stabs Brock Lesnar (WWE Raw, 2/24/2014)
As stated, the PG Era came to an end in the Spring of 2014, but a couple months before that fans were treated to a surprisingly violent contract signing. After being given an open contract in lieu of getting a title shot at ‘Mania, Brock Lesnar found himself suddenly challenged by The Undertaker, who signed the contract by stabbing Brock Lesnar in the hand. From there, an underwhelming build to WrestleMania 30 followed, which led to Lesnar shocking the wrestling world by ending ‘Taker’s winning streak.
1 The Walkout (WWE Raw, 10/3/2011)
The year 2011 was a weird time for WWE. While CM Punk had made headlines with his legendary “Pipebomb” promo and subsequently beat John Cena for the WWE Title, The Miz and R-Truth were running roughshod over the WWE roster as a heel duo called Awesome Truth. Apparently this was too much for the roster, with the wrestlers and other employees placing the blame entirely on the new authority figure Triple H. Citing an unsafe working environment, the WWE roster delivered a vote of no confidence and staged a walkout, leaving Triple H alone in the ring.
