WWE: The Top 10 Characters Today

Even in the PG-era WWE, there are still many cutting edge characters. You have characters such as the rebellious, truth-telling CM Punk. You have characters such as the "Viper" Randy Orton. And you even have lesser known wacky characters, such as Zack Ryder.

Although this era doesn't have the variety that past eras such as the Attitude Era had, it nonetheless, has it's bright spots.

This article will rank the Top 10 superstars in the WWE today, purely based upon their "characters", or "charisma".

10. Kane

Yes, Kane's character is no longer as interesting and mythical as it was when he debuted in 1997. It can be argued that since he unmasked in 2003, Kane hasn't been seen as the same "Big Red Monster" as he was, pre-unmasking era.

But despite all of those popular opinions, Kane's character still remains one of the best in the WWE today.

For a guy (Glen Jacobs) who's claim to fame in the WWE before the Kane character, was Dr. Isaac Yankem, Jacobs hit the gold mine with the demented/mentally scarred brother of the Undertaker.

Kane, after 14 years with the same character, still remains a main event-tier talent and a popular character with a completely new generation of WWE fans.

9. Christian

Christian is an interesting case.

In the PG-Era WWE, Christian obviously can't be the "Instant Classic" or "Peeps Champion" that he was in the mid-2000's before leaving the WWE for TNA. But yet, despite having to tone his character/act down, Christian still remains an interesting character. He has the ability to be a babyface, the ability to be a tweener and the ability to be a heel.

Christian is the definition of a versatile superstar.

Unlike certain superstars such as Rey Mysterio, Christian can channel many different reactions from the crowd any time he wants.

Take for example most recently. Ever since his return earlier this year to exact revenge upon Alberto Del Rio, Christian was a babyface. Arguably, he was the second biggest babyface on Smackdown. After repeated failed attempts to defeat Randy Orton for the World Heavyweight Title, he was able to become a heel. All it took was one Smackdown.

Christian is one of the most underrated superstars and characters, of his generation.

8. Zack Ryder

A lot of people tend to be split on Zack Ryder.

On one hand, you have a lot of people who like the guy for his wackiness and his cockiness despite not even being considered a mid-card talent.

On the other hand, you have a lot of people who despise his character and think that his character is overrated.

Whatever the case may be, it's hard to argue Zack Ryder not being at least in the top 10 of WWE characters today.

Zack Ryder is somebody who has stage presence and has the ability to catch the crowd's attention just by being a complete idiot.

No, he's not the Rock. He is however, somebody who has developed a cult following and become a fan favorite despite only being featured on Superstars and on WWE.com as of late.

You have to give him credit for that.

7. John Cena

If this was 2003-2004, during the height of the "Basic Thuganomics" John Cena, Cena would probably be number one on this list.

It's 2011, and although John Cena is the "brand" of the WWE, is the biggest superstar in the WWE today, and seemingly destroys everyone in his path when he's "Super Cena", Cena's character can get rather bland and boring a lot of the time.

Cena is one of the best promo men in the WWE, and has been for the past eight years. With the WWE moving into the PG-Era a couple of years ago, it has limited Cena's ability to be the character that he was just several years ago.

You factor in that the WWE doesn't want their main superstar being overly offensive and it puts Cena in a tough position.

The Cena that you see today can cut interesting promos, but the promos today that you see are just full of phoniness and ass kissing to the fans. As the Rock said, adult men see right through that. That's why you see the Cena backlash that you see today.

Regardless, Cena can make any feud interesting with his ability on the mic, and even though he's not the "Basic Thuganomics" Cena and moreso a "military/thug/34 year old guy that dresses up like a teenager" hybrid version of that previous incarnation, Cena still remains one of the more interesting superstars in the WWE today.

6. HHH

I was thinking about not including HHH on this list because he hasn't been an active superstar in over a year and it looks as if he is done as an active superstar now that he's working a lot behind the scenes for the WWE and is nearing the age of 42.

But until he officially retires and is taken off that superstars page on WWE.com, HHH earns a spot on this list.

HHH, for the past 12 years, has been playing virtually the same character that he's played since 1999 when he first became a World Champion.

Over that time period, the "Cerebral Assassin" has remained the same, except with minor tweaks to his character. Since that time, he has become more "sadistic" than he was before.

HHH is probably one of the top three promo men in the WWE today, and has been ever since he became the top main event heel in the WWE 12 years ago.

HHH's ability to still connect with the crowd with virtually the same character 12 years later, speaks volumes about his charisma.

5. The Miz

The Miz is the perfect case of many people having a neutral opinion on a certain superstar.

Some people think he's one of the best characters in the WWE today, some people think he's run of the mill and an overrated version of a character that we've seen before.

I think by the crowd's reaction every week on Monday Night Raw, you can tell the Miz is one of the most charismatic superstars in the WWE today.

The Miz is the perfect example of a guy who gets by purely upon his cocky, "I can't do no wrong" persona. The Miz is not a great wrestler. Hell, he may not even be a good wrestler. His matches with Cena were pretty underwhelming. But there's no doubt that the build up to those feuds, despite the Rock's presence overshadowing the feud, were pretty damn good. A large part of that was due to the Miz.

The Miz is a guy that was destined to be a heel. There is no way this guy can be a babyface. With his reality TV show background and his "jackass" persona, the Miz is destined to be a heel for the rest of his wrestling career.

4. Cody Rhodes

Probably the biggest heat I'll get for this list, is the ranking of Cody Rhodes at number four.

With most superstars in the WWE today, they're so basic and bland that I find myself tuning out of Raw or Smackdown just because of how phony it is.

Whenever Cody Rhodes is on Smackdown, I'm simply always entertained.

When Cody Rhodes was in the Legacy, he was such a bland superstar. When he teamed with Hardcore Holly and turned on him, I didn't care the least bit about it.

As soon as he went to Smackdown and sort of stole Lex Luger's persona, he has changed that opinion of mine.

Whether it's talking about his disfigured face and wearing that ridiculous mask, or putting paper bags on people's heads and talking in that slow monotone voice of his, Rhodes has become one of the best characters in the WWE today.

If it wasn't for longevity of the superstars ahead of him, I might have even ranked Rhodes as high as number two.

3. Randy Orton

Randy Orton is another superstar who is very versatile.

Orton is best suited as a heel. I think most will agree on that. But he also has the ability to be an extremely over babyface. I mean arguably as of this writing, he is the most over babyface in the WWE today.

Orton is the anti-Cena. He does not say things to suck up to the crowd. He does not say things with the intention of getting them to like him. He simply goes about his business and acts as he's always acted. With time, the fans grew to like him.

It wasn't intended for Orton to be a babyface, but with the crowd quickly getting behind him because of his "anti-hero" acts, the WWE had no choice but to make Orton a babyface.

Orton is no Steve Austin, but their paths to becoming babyfaces and their characters are at least a little bit similar.

2. The Undertaker

Similar to HHH, I was considering not including the Undetaker on this list.

With the Deadman at the age of 46 and not having wrestled on a full time basis in well over a year, it looks like his active wrestling career is over.

But until he retires, the Deadman, even 20 years after he first debuted the character, remains one of the top characters in the WWE today.

Anytime he comes down to the ring in that five minute entrance of his and everytime the "GONG" goes off, fans go crazy. It doesn't matter of what age, because of how mythological Taker's character is, fans are immediately glued to him.

The fact that a characer (Kane) was spun off of Taker and remains relevant 14 years lafter and that fact that Taker's character still remains one of the top characters in the WWE 20 years later, says it all.

1. CM Punk

May this be an overreaction to recent events? Yes. May this be an overreaction to the current feud between Cena and Punk that is taking place? Yes. I don't care. CM Punk is the most interesting character in the WWE today and it's all due to one reason: he's being real.

Most of the characters in the WWE today were written by writers and were given to the superstars. CM Punk is a shining example of somebody who is just himself.

The promo that he gave at the end of Raw a couple of weeks ago talking about all of the politics  was probably the best promo I had seen since the Attitude Era. It was great, not because CM Punk is a great promo man, but because of the honesty behind it.

Who cares if the WWE gave him the go ahead to say all of those things? You can tell it was straight from the heart. You can tell the majority of Punk's ranting was real frustration from years spent in the WWE.

Even before CM Punk became a media darling, he was the leader of the Straight Edge Society. Punk was a heel, despite the fact that everything he was saying about drugs and alcohol was true. The fans instead rooted for a guy (Jeff Hardy) who has had numerous troubles with drugs and the law, over a guy who told the fans why drugs and alcohol are for weak people and the fans in response, jeering him for it.

CM Punk can be a tad overrated at times but he is definitely the most intriguing superstar in the WWE today. His character says it all. Just telling like it is.