When Egos Attack! The Top 10 Super Group Stables

A prevailing formula in the creation of a wrestling star is to create star power by association in the form of a stable. Most stables are headed up by an alpha male or female who is the clear-cut ringleader.

But what happens when a stable has multiple alphas?

The "super group" stable is a collection of immense talent usually looking to rule with an iron fist.

Similar to the way rotten bananas make banana bread taste sweeter (seriously, give it a try), super groups are often necessitated when the singular star power of a given wrestler begins to go stale.

Like any collection of superior talent, where each member is used to having their own spotlight, super groups usually do not last very long.

The object of any of these particular stables is to get hot quick and draw money (for the promoter) before egos inevitably get in the way (both kayfabe and shoot).

This is a list of the top ten super group stables of all time. In order to qualify as a super group, the stable in question must have included at least two members who were former or current world champions at the time the group was formed.

10. The Brothers of Destruction

In yet another testament to the fact that the Undertaker can make almost anything work, the team of the Undertaker and Kane joined forces as the Brothers of Destruction.

While they weren't exactly the Rockers, this team of big men was surprisingly solid in the ring together. The monstrous pairing of the Undertaker and Kane served as one of the few bright spots during the Invasion fiasco.

The Brothers of Destruction proved to be a hit in terms of drawing power, and even enjoyed three tag team championship reigns.

9. Rated RKO

Rated RKO was formed to combat another super group in the 'new and improved' Degeneration X.

In October 2006 the WWE found itself in an odd place. John Cena was enjoying a world-beating reign as WWE Champion, while top stars Edge and Randy Orton were caught between championships.

With both superstars working under the RAW brand, they decided to team up in order to rid World Wrestling Entertainment of the stench that was DX.

Truth be told DX was forced to disband after a match with Rated RKO, but only after DX member Triple H suffered a serious leg injury.

Rated RKO won its first and only tag team titles when it defeated WWE Hall of Famers Ric Flair and Roddy Piper for the World Tag Team Championships.

8. The New and Improved DX

After clamoring for a reunion of the rebellious renegades known as Degeneration X, many criticized the New and Improved version of DX due to its ubiquity and lack of edginess overtime.

Faced with newfound restraints due to Shawn Michaels' religious beliefs and the dawning of the TV-PG Era in WWE, this incarnation of DX did not push the envelope the way the original group did.

Despite being met with mixed (mostly negative) reviews among fans of the original stable, DX was a ratings and merchandise winner with WWE.

The introduction of DX glow sticks, that were seen scattered across sold out arenas whenever the lights would go out, sold like peroxide in Flair Country. Woo!

7. Jeri-Show

When WWE decided it was time to start taking the tag team division seriously to some degree, they called upon an impressive pair of former world champions.

The champions in question were Chris Jericho and fellow Canadian Edge, however when Edge went down with an Achilles injury, another decorated champion was called upon to fill his role.

Boy, did he ever.

The Big Show (all seven feet, 500 pounds of him) and Chris Jericho would go on to rule over the tag team division for a period of almost five months.

This reign was unlike any seen in the WWE in recent history. Jeri-Show was regularly featured on pay per views. Their match against DX at TLC in 2009, was the first tag team title match to main event a pay per view since Fully Loaded in 1998.

Some may feel that Jerishow needs to stand the test of time in order to be considered among one of the great super groups of all time.

However, their impact on a tag team division that was left for dead is still felt to this day.

The fact that two wrestlers revitalized an entire division speaks to the fact that Jeri-Show really was was something special.

6. Main Event Mafia

If you're looking for Star Power, Championship history, and dominance, you'll have to wait until we get to No. 1. However the Main Event Mafia also fit the bill when it came to these qualities.

Comprised of Kurt Angle, Kevin Nash, Sting, Booker T, Scott Steiner, and Samoa Joe, the Main Event Mafia was a force to be reckoned with on paper let alone in the ring.

This band of world champions was so jacked with star power that Sting's iconic face paint didn't even make it into the group half the time.

The power struggle between Sting and Angle, along with the curious booking that has become an unintentional staple of TNA, did this sweatsuit stable in.

However, their iron fists were felt most during a one-sided battle with the TNA Frontline (not featured on this list) designed to stop them.

Honorable Mention: Two Man Power Trip

Despite what the graphic may imply, the Two Man Power Trip of a heel Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H never really got off the ground.

Hindered by an ugly quadriceps injury suffered by Triple H, this super group was forced to disband after a brief run with all the gold.

These decorated short timers earn an honorable mention on this list due to such impressive accomplishments in such a short period of time.

Dishonorable Mention: The Magnificent Seven

Show me a man who mentions the Magnificent Seven without laughing, and I'll show you a man who has no sense of humor.

It was between The Magnificent Seven and The millionaire's club as to which pre-apocalyptic WCW flop would earn a dishonorable mention.

So I did some research, only to be reminded that this clumsy impression of the Four Horsemen included the reintroduction of Road Warrior Animal.

In a Halloween costume. After Sid had shattered his leg in pieces.

Unfortunately, Ric Flair (along with Lex Luger, Buff Bagwell, Jeff Jarrett, Scott Steiner, and Rick Steiner) was a key member of this magnificent mess as they joined WCW in its eventual downward spiral circa 2001.

Hey, even Leonardo DiCaprio starred in The Beach.

5. The Rock n' Sock Connection

Despite boasting three tag team championships to their name, The Rock n' Sock Connection didn't crack the top five based on championship accomplishments.

The popularity and entertainment value of this charismatic tag team put them head and shoulders above every other act in the WWF during the famed Attitude Era.

This particular super group pairing was the brainchild of Mick Foley. Paired with the expert timing and execution of the Rock, Rock n' Sock got each other over with the fans on a whole new level.

The defining moment of the Rock n' Sock connection was the unforgettable This is Your Life segment on RAW, which remains one of the highest rated segments in WWE history.

4. Evolution

Perhaps the epitome of a picture being worth a thousand words, Evolution was not only successful at the time of inception, but their main event influence reverberates through The WWE Universe today.

The most productive stables always created breakout stars upon disbandment (Legacy). All this stacked stable did was elevate both Randy Orton and Dave Batista (the two non-world champions of the group) to world championship status upon their departure.

Anybody who watched RAW this past week, and saw Orton and Batista in the main event, knows of the star power that continues to ooze from this tribute to (not impression of) to the Four Horsemen.

Think back to 2003, when Evolution was formed. If somebody were to tell you that Triple H and Ric Flair (who have 29 combined world championships between them) could be considered lesser stars than Randy Orton and Batista (the two unproven rookies), would you believe it?

The opening lyrics of the Evolution theme song tells us Evolution is a mystery, however this simply is not true. The Evolution stable was quite simple, actually.

Relative unknowns were booked correctly, got the rub from legendary figures, and became superstars. That's evolution.

3. The Corporation

The evolution of the Mr. McMahon caricature that screwed Bret lead to a sinister alliance known as The Corporation.

The Corporation posed a threat of a corporate takeover of the variety that resulted in the elevation of younger stars and pay per view worthy feuds.

Former world champions at the inception of The Corporation include The Rock and Kane, who were both betrayed by The Corporation at some point only to become bigger stars.

With the exception of an ill-advised merger with the Ministry of Darkness to form The Corporate Ministry (not featured on this list), this stable did just about everything right in terms of long term booking and not insisting upon itself.

2. The Mega Powers

That's right, brother! With the exception of DX, the Mega Powers are the only group on this list comprised of two guys who were (then) good friends in real life.

The Mega Powers just clicked and had great chemistry together, probably because their voices were so distinguishable.

Many of you may be crying foul on the technicality that Savage was not a world champion at the initial forming of this group.

So I'll just consider the WCW reincarnation of The Mega Powers (which really was just as good) as the super group to have achieved runner-up status.

Whenever you have arguably the two biggest stars in pro wrestling involved in an organic explosion of super stardom, such as The Mega Powers, nothing could ever go wrong. Right, brothers?

1. nWo: The New World Worder

Wrong.

The New World Order had it all. Shocking heel turn? Check. Name brand value? Check. Legendary tag team (Outsiders)? Check. World champions? Check.

They had it all. For years, the nWo ran like a well oiled machine despite its constant moving parts.

With new members came new feuds. With new feuds came bigger crowds. With bigger crowds came pay per view buys. With pay per views came the main event.

With the main event came a tyrannical title run by one Hulk Hogan. With the egos involved (Nash, Hall, Savage, Paul Wight to name a few) came infighting. With infighting came spin offs...

...but it never ended.

The nWo had every component part that a great super group needs to have from multiple successes to the team turmoil, but over the test of time, they became their own worst enemy.

Evolution spawned new stars, then split. The Rock n' Sock Connection drew big ratings, then split. DX sold a shitload of glow sticks, then (eventually) split.

In the always evolving world of professional wrestling, the New World Order were the two (hundred) drunk uncles in a daylight brawl at a bar-b-q after a heated argument.

The thing was, the the brawl got to the point of absurdity, then irrelevance, as everybody either forgot why they were fighting or didn't care.

The nWo started out with promise and was even fodder for young, thriving talent.

However, this one-time super group ended up chasing its own tail before imploding, with large pieces of its black, white, and red shrapnel becoming lodged in the WCW's throat.

So goes the story of the super group. Like the super groups it conquers, and super groups in general, the nWo did not have a happy ending despite the on-paper booking suggesting the contrary.

Strictly for symbolic purposes, neither does this list.