The Viking Experience Has To Be The Worst WWE Name Change

The War Raiders finally debuted on WWE Raw, but it came with a steep price. Let me introduce you to The Viking Experience…

For awhile now, WWE has been changing the names of their superstars, typically for the worst. Those name changes, no matter how bad, are usually something a superstar or team can overcome though. I seriously doubt whether that will be the case when it comes to The Viking Experience.

If you would have told me War Raiders were debuting on Monday Night Raw awhile ago, I would have been ecstatic. Raw needs fresh teams, especially ones who are as talented and exciting as Hanson and Rowe.

However, my excitement wouldn’t have come without a hint of concern. Anytime a popular NXT act comes up to the main roster, it’s cause for pause. That doesn’t mean WWE always gets it wrong, but it simply means you have to hope that they are able to capture everything that made a superstar or team great and bring it to a larger audience.

Unfortunately, in this case, that doesn’t seem to have happened.

NXT fans frequently talk about how they don’t want to see their favorite stars’ gimmicks ruined on the main roster. In layman’s terms, that’s what happened with War Raiders.

Instead of sounding like guys who beat people up with reckless abandon, War Raiders now sound like a tacky tourist attraction you would be depressed you wasted your money at on vacation.

WWE somehow found a way to give them the most literal name possible. A name that doesn’t at all convey what they are about as a team, other than the mere fact they dress like vikings.

There’s nothing wrong with dressing like vikings in WWE either! I’m all for having more creative gimmicks on TV, even if it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea anymore. Making them sound like a way to upgrade your order at a Norse themed fast food restaurant certainly isn’t helping build their case as a team to watch though.

The Viking Experience doesn’t sound like a team that’s going to be feared. No catchy chants can be made out of name like The Viking Experience, at least none that I can think of. All in all, Hanson and Rowe might be stuck with possibly the worst name WWE has come up with in quite some time.

I can only hope that fans who aren’t familiar with what Hanson and Rowe, er-I mean Erik and Ivar, can do in the ring can see past the terrible injustice WWE has done to them. They truly are a talented tag team. One that can bring a lot more to the table than what that chintzy sounding name might imply.

At the very least, if there is a silver lining to this whole name situation, maybe these two can eventually bring a high-profile rivalry with Daniel Bryan and Rowan to the table.

After all, Erik basically stole Rowan’s first name. That’s just not something you take lying down.