Writer: Brett Porter

To many wrestling fanatics, The Attitude Era is the WWE’s magnum opus. The amount of talent in the ring and on the mic is yet to be matched. Among other major players in this golden age of sports entertainment, D-Generation X would be the ones responsible for countless memorable moments, so I thought I’d highlight some of my favorites.

Although these are some of my personal favorites, almost any promo that D-Generation X was part of was worthy of this list. For this reason, I omitted DX’s iconic invasion of WCW because we’ve covered it in past articles. Say what you want about DX, but if you ever thought this group of miscreants would respect the authority of Vince McMahon, then I’ve got two words for ya.

5. Recruiting Mike Tyson

Who would have thought there’d be a way to make Mike Tyson’s brief WWE tenure even wilder. At the time, Iron Mike was feuding with Stone Cold Steve Austin. At first, it looked as if Tyson was getting ready to pounce at the outlaws, only instead to join their ranks. This turned out to be a great ratings boost during the Monday Night Wars.

4. Trying to be Controversial

Eric Bischoff, the then-acting General Manager for Monday Night Raw, brushed Shawn Michaels and Triple H off to the side, claiming the duo wasn’t controversial. In this backstage promo, Michaels gets flustered after hearing this information. In an effort to set the record straight, the Heartbreak Kid goes on a tirade and delivers a handful of Sweet Chin Music to unsuspecting staff. Did it prove a point? That’s up for debate. Did Shawn Michaels immediately express guilt after superkicking Stan? It sure seemed like it.

3. The Spirit Squad Saga

Before the Spirit Squad’s debut, the only male cheerleader I ever knew of was George Bush. Consisting of Kenny, Johnny, Mitch, Nicky and Mikey, the Spirit Squad would find themselves doing Vince McMahon’s bidding. For a brief stint, their prime directive was to eradicate D-Generation X. Of course they’d fail in every attempt, but the entire plot is full of hilarious moments. Among others, the young buck cheerleaders would get slimed and even worse, covered in poop. Like most DX antics, the Spirit Squad Saga would demonstrate that they were always one step ahead of Vince McMahon.

2. The Forced Title Match

In a stroke of managerial brilliance, WWE Hall-of-Famer Sgt. Slaughter, at the time an authority figure on Monday Night Raw, tried to make Triple H and Shawn Michaels turn on each other. The plan? Make Michaels defend his European Championship against The Game. Instead of putting forth anything resembling a real match, Michaels would throw the match and relinquish the title to his partner. Following this squash match, DX would give emotional speeches on how much the title meant to them. Shawn Michaels would cry into the shoulder of Chyna in an attempt to keep his composure. Of course, this was all thinly veiled sarcasm. The biggest mistake Sgt. Slaughter made in his planning was assuming either of them cared about the title.

1. DX Addresses the Network

Those who tuned in to the 2/2/1998 episode of Monday Night Raw were probably both surprised and confused to see Shawn Michaels, Triple H, and Chyna giving a speech. The WWE was issued a warning by the USA Network, primarily citing D-Generation X’s crude on-screen behavior. In what will go down as one of the riskiest creative decisions in professional wrestling, the team decided to make a whole segment out of the ordeal. They would carefully and articulately lay out a set of standard practices to adhere. In doing so however, DX used almost every known curse word in the book. As the speech progresses, they promise to make less references to their junk, followed immediately by censored banter between the duo.

The speech ends with some obvious jabs at Bill Clinton. Starting off with calling the White House the Oral Office, Michaels signs them off with the legendary phrase “I did not sleep with that young intern. As a matter of fact, I was up all night.” The craziest part of this segment was how well received it was by the USA Network. Essentially they abided by the unwritten rule of “if you laughed, we’re off the hook.” Had this segment bombed, it was a near-definite that DX would be fired from the WWE. Instead, the promo came with a hearty ratings boost and a letter from USA congratulating and commending them for their creative direction with the warning.

Honorable Mentions:

1. Taking a Break for a Photo-Op

A staple of the Survivor Series pay-per-view has always been the elimination tag team match. This five-on-five match would pit DX, the Hardy Boyz, and CM Punk against Edge and Randy Orton’s Rated RKO, Mike Knox, Gregory Helms, and Johnny Nitro, one of the three members of the MNM stable. At one point, Michaels and Nitro would be their respective teams’ tagged-in competitor. The Heartbreak Kid would slide under the ropes to catch his breath. While outside the ring, he would wrap his arm around Milena, MNM’s matriarch. The two would pose for a photo before realizing who they were posing with. They’d both scream and run in opposite directions. This seventeen seconds of childlike antics was so memorable that seventeen years later, Seth Rollins and Rhea Ripley would recreate the awkward encounter.

2. Impersonating The Corporation

In my opinion, the WWE has a solid track record when it comes to these types of promos. Something about watching a wrestler impersonate another wrestler always gets a rise out of me. In this instance, D-Generation X leads off December 14’s Monday Night Raw by dressing up as different members of The Corporation. Road Dogg dressed up as Vince McMahon. Badass Billy Gunn dressed as his son, Shane McMahon. X-Pac dresses up as Ken Shamrock. Triple H dresses as “The Crock,” clearly ribbing the Brahma Bull. My personal favorite of this costume party however, is Chyna dressing up as Big Boss Man. The crew would go on to impersonate their respective characters and probably set a world record for the number of times they collectively said sphincter.