History Wrestling / WWEToughEnough

* BadassNormal: Jeremiah Riggs, a former MMA fighter, had no wrestling training prior to Season 5. Yet his fitness was top notch and he picked things up shockingly quickly

* BittersweetEnding: How Season 5 ended, with Season 5 winner [[KickTheDog Andy being slapped by Vince [=McMahon=] and then stunned by Stone Cold]].
** ShaggyDogStory: He was released in early 2012 and since never had an appearance.

*** Episode 2, Matt was given several opportunities to demonstrate his implied superiority (based on having greater experience than most of the others), and bungled every single chance he got. Of course, those who knew Matt Cross knew he was a high flier with [[DullSurprise little charisma]] and few to any on the mat moves. Trish Stratus apparently did not know this and asked to be shown what he could do, [[SelfFulfillingProphecy on the mat]].

* FourGirlEnsemble: Five girls in Season 5: brunette white (Michelle), blonde Hispanic (Ivelisse), black (Ariane and Christina) and Middle Eastern (Rima).
* GameBreakingInjury: Ivelisse and Martin from ''[=TE5=]'', see RealLifeWritesThePlot below.

* ReallySeventeenYearsOld: Marty "Boogeyman" Wright in Season 4, who was Really Forty Years Old.

** Season 4 saw a challenge in which Wrestling/TheBigShow ripped into the contestants for being handed an opportunity without paying their dues. Many though ill of the fact that this came from the man who's very first wrestling match saw him defeat ''Wrestling/HulkHogan'', in the main event a pay-per-view (''WCW Halloween Havoc 1995''), to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.[[note]]Hogan had defeated The Big Show, then known as The Giant, in a Sumo Monster Truck match prior to the main event. In the main event itself, The Giant won by disqualification. However, a pre-match stipulation meant that the title changed hands.[[/note]]

* PyrrhicVictory: With the exception of John Morrison, none of the winners ever made it big in WWE.

* [[ReallySeventeenYearsOld Really Forty Years Old]]: Marty "Boogeyman" Wright in Season 4.

''Tough Enough'' is a reality show developed by Wrestling/{{WWE}} where participants compete to win a WWE contract and be the next WWE Superstar or Diva. It originally aired in 2001 on Creator/{{MTV}} for three seasons, but was dropped. Its fourth season was integrated into ''[[Wrestling/WWESmackDown SmackDown!]]'' in 2004, after which the series was cancelled until 2011, when it was revived once more with Wrestling/StoneColdSteveAustin as the host. In 2015, ''Tough Enough'' was revived again, this time with Wrestling/ChrisJericho as the host.

* [[Wrestling/{{Ryback}} Ryan Reeves]] - ''[=TE4=]'' competitor (repackaged as first [[Wrestling/TheNexus Skip Sheffield]], then as Ryback following an injury; employed 2004-2007 and 2008-present)

* PyrrhicVictory: With the exception of John Morrison, none of the winners ever made it big in the WWE.

* RealLifeWritesThePlot:
** Matt Cappotelli, who was a heavyweight champion for WWE's then indy brand, OVW, had his career cut short due to him being diagnosed with Astrocytoma, and the surgery and chemo that followed. He had been at OVW from 2004 to 2007 and released from his contract in 2009, never even reaching WWE again.
** During a routine kick-out drill, Martin (Season 5) fractured his foot, and was ordered by his doctor to withdraw from the show. Up to that point, Martin had won three skill challenges in a row, and was unquestionably one of the favorites to win the show. It's also worth noting that Martin was pointedly never forced to give Stone Cold his belt to signify his elimination, he was instead asked to hang up his belt on his own, with Stone Cold noting that he ''was'' indeed "Tough Enough", save for this unforeseen injury. Ivelisse, who was also injured, was not given this distinction when she was eliminated.
** Dianna (Season 6) left the show in what initially appeared to a ScrewThisImOuttaHere moment because she missed her fiancé. In a follow up interview, Dianna revealed that the real reason why she left was due to one of her friends being paralyzed during a fight at her bar.
** Hulk Hogan was fired by WWE after his racist remarks became public. As a result, he was removed as one of the judges of Season 6. Going one step further, Hogan's appearance on the show, as well as his removal, was not mentioned or referenced at all.

* BreakTheHaughty: Patrick Clark, a Wrestling/{{CZW}} wrestler who was also the first graduate of Maryland Championship Wrestling's academy alongside ROH Top Prospect Lio Rush was eliminated in Season 6 after placing in at the top three weeks in a row for his perceived failure to learn the value of humility.

** Season 4 saw a challenge in which Wrestling/TheBigShow ripped into the contestants for being handed an opportunity without paying their dues. Many though ill of the fact that this came from the man who's very first wrestling match saw him defeat ''Hulk Hogan'', in the main event a pay-per-view (''WCW Halloween Havoc 1995''), to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.[[note]]Hogan had defeated The Big Show, then known as The Giant, in a Sumo Monster Truck match prior to the main event. In the main event itself, The Giant won by disqualification. However, a pre-match stipulation meant that the title changed hands.[[/note]]

** Wrestling/HulkHogan was fired by WWE after his racist remarks became public. As a result, he was removed as one of the judges of Season 6. Going one step further, Hogan's appearance on the show, as well as his removal, was not mentioned or referenced at all.

** Season 4 saw a challenge in which Wrestling/TheBigShow ripped into the contestants for being handed an opportunity without paying their dues. Many though ill of the fact that this came from the man who's very first wrestling match saw him defeat ''Hulk Hogan'', in the main event a pay-per-view (''WCW Halloween Havoc 1995''), to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.[[note]]He won by disqualification, but a pre-match stipulation meant that the title could still change hands.[[/note]]

* FourGirlEnsemble: Five girls in Season 5: brunette white (Michelle), blonde hispanic (Ivelisse), black (Ariane and Christina) and Middle Eastern (Rima).

** Season 4 saw a challenge in which Big Show ripped into the contestants for being handed an opportunity without paying their dues. Many though ill of the fact that this came from the man who's very first match saw him defeat ''Hulk Hogan'', in the main event a pay-per-view (''WCW Halloween Havoc 1995''), to win the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.[[note]]He won by disqualification, but a pre-match stipulation meant that the title could still change hands.[[/note]]

* SlutShaming: Amanda tried to do this to Sara Lee, claiming she was "playing ring rat".[[note]]"Ring rat" is an industry term for a groupie who likes to sleep with the wrestlers.[[/note]] Wrestling/MickFoley slammed her for it.

** Season 4 saw a challenge in which Big Show ripped into the contestants for being handed an opportunity without paying their dues. Many though ill of the fact that this came from the man who's very first match saw him defeat ''Hulk Hogan'', in the main event a pay-per-view (''WCW Halloween Havoc 1995''), for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship.[[note]]He won by disqualification, but a pre-match stipulation meant that the title could still change hands.[[/note]]

* [[Wrestling/{{Cameron}} Ariane Andrew]] - ''[=TE5=]'' competitor (of "Melina vs. Alicia Fox" infamy; signed to FCW shortly after elimination, repackaged as Cameron Lynn; was a Wrestling/BrodusClay dancer and remains employed after Clay was released; employed 2011-2016).

* [[Wrestling/{{Cameron}} Ariane Andrew]] - ''[=TE5=]'' competitor (of "Melina vs. Alicia Fox" infamy; signed to FCW shortly after elimination, repackaged as Cameron Lynn; was a Wrestling/BrodusClay dancer and remains employed after Clay was released; employed 2011-present).

** Taken to the extreme with with Season 5 where the first contestant eliminated was the first to debut on WWE TV in an active role. Ariane is currently working under the name "Cameron".

* {{Retool}}: The ''$1,000,000 Tough Enough'' (Season 4) pretty much stands out as the most dramatic change to the format. The 2012 revival pretty much restored the show back to the original format but refined the elimination contest with a weekly "bottom three", though its 2015 revival reinserted Season 4's weekly fan voting. Season 6 also introduced a panel of judges in addition to the trainers who could choose to save someone from elimination if they wanted.

** The most notable example is The Miz, who between the fourth and fifth seasons, managed to become the only ''Tough Enough'' alum to become WWE Champion. For even more added hilarity, Miz was the one chosen to replace Hulk Hogan as a judge in Season 6, bringing everything full circle.

* SenseiForScoundrels: Stone Cold.

* HiddenDepths: Most notable was Michelle who eventually quit the show to spend time raising her daughter. Also before the show, Ariane worked as a behavior therapist for autistic children.

* SlutShaming: Amanda tried to do this to Sara Lee, claiming she was "playing ring rat"[[note]]"Ring rat" is an industry slang term for a groupie who likes to sleep with the wrestlers[[/note]]. Wrestling/MickFoley slammed her for it.

* TheSmurfettePrinciple: Not initially in the first season - as there was an almost equal number of males to females, with two female trainers as well. But most notable in the fifth season, which had five females in comparison to seven males - likewise with only one female trainer. Season 6 once again had an equal split of male-female contestants - but only one female trainer and one female judge.
* SpearCounterpart: Season 4 featured entirely male contestants and consisted of weekly skits on Smackdown. This made it a male version of the Diva Search, which took place on Raw - featuring a series of women hoping to earn a WWE contract.

** Similarly, Alexander argument with Patrick in Season 6 that knowing WWE history was not important and that "you don’t have to know anything about this sport" didn't exactly do him any favors with judges Daniel Bryan and Hulk Hogan nor the public who voted him out.

Several of the competitors from ''Tough Enough'' have been employed by the WWE despite not being the overall winners of their respective seasons, and not all of the winners are still employed by the WWE.

* Maven Huffman - ''[=TE1=]'' winner (notable for being "[[RememberWhenYouBlewUpASun That Guy Who Won Tough Enough]]" and for his elimination of Wrestling/TheUndertaker at the 2002 Wrestling/RoyalRumble; employed from 2001-2005).

* Chris Nowinski - ''[=TE1=]'' competitor (notable more for his post-retirement success as a [[GameBreakingInjury concussion expert]]; mostly remembered for his infamous debate with Wrestling/ScottSteiner and his participation in "That Jackie Gayda Match"; employed from 2002-2003).

* Jackie Gayda - ''[=TE2=]'' winner (of "That Jackie Gayda Match" infamy and wife of [[Wrestling/TheWorldsGreatestTagTeam Charlie Haas]]; employed 2002-2005).

* Daniel Puder - ''[=TE4=]'' winner (only made one appearance after winning; wrestled at the Royal Rumble; famous for an incident with Wrestling/KurtAngle; was released in OVW, employed 2004-2005)

* Rima Fakih - ''[=TE5=]'' competitor (the reigning Miss USA going into'' [=TE5=]''; wasn't employed by WWE).

*** In episode 1, Ariane shot herself in the foot in every way possible, and seriously pissed off Stone Cold during the elimination ceremony (see ''TooDumbToLive'' below).

* FiveTokenBand: Justified since they come from all over America.

** Matt Cappotelli, who was a heavyweight champion for WWE's then indy brand, OVW, had his career cut short due to him being diagnosed with Astrocytoma, and the surgery and chemo that followed. He had been at OVW from 2004 to 2007 and released from his contract in 2009, never even reaching the WWE again.

** Wrestling/HulkHogan was fired by the WWE after his racist remarks became public. As a result, he was removed as one of the judges of Season 6. Going one step further, Hogan's appearance on the show, as well as his removal, was not mentioned or referenced at all.

* RememberTheNewGuy: The Miz in terms of being added as one of the judges for Season 6 after Hulk Hogan was fired by the WWE.

* SlutShaming: Amanda tried to do this to Sara Lee, claiming she was "playing ring rat"[[note]]An industry slang term for a groupie who likes to sleep with the wrestlers[[/note]]. Wrestling/MickFoley slammed her for it.
* SpecialGuest: Usually once per episode, a noteworthy WWE wrestler would visit the gym, and give advice to the contestants, and perhaps share anecdotes. In Season 5, the guest star usually gave a lecture that's specific to the theme for the week; for example, Wrestling/TheBigShow visited during "technique" week, and emphasized in his speech that even "big man" wrestlers like himself had to have excellent technique, they couldn't only rely on their physicality.

* WalkingShirtlessScene: Luke. Is there an episode where he hadn't taken his shirt off?

* TheMeanBrit: Played straight with Wrestling/{{Paige}} in Season 6, who is by far the most critical of the judges.

* PassThePopcorn: Happens with Tanner in Season 6 every time a CatFight pops up.

* BreakTheHaughty: Patrick Clark, a Wrestling/{{CZW}} wrestler who was also the first graduate of Maryland Championship Wrestling's academy alongside ROH Top Prospect Lio Rush was eliminated in season six after placing in at the top three weeks in a row for his perceived failure to learn the value of humility.

* CanonDiscontinuity: John Morrison's guest appearance in Season 5, which ignored the fact that he ''won the third season''.

* BreakTheHaughty: Patrick Clark, a Wrestling/{{CZW}} wrestler who was also the first graduate of Maryland Championship Wrestling alongside ROH Top Prospect Lio Rush was eliminated in season six after placing in at the top three weeks in a row for his perceived failure to learn the value of humility.

* BreakTheHaughty: Patrick Clarke, a Wrestling/{{CZW}} wrestler who was also the first graduate of Maryland Championship Wrestling alongside ROH Top Prospect Lio Rush was eliminated in season six after placing in at the top three weeks in a row for his perceived failure to learn the value of humility.

** Jeremiah's strip tease anyone?

** Billy Gunn's comments to ZZ about not taking the contest seriously with when making up his comedy "M'erica Zane" gimmick in a character-creating competition. To be fair, Gunn's problems with ZZ stem from more than just that.[[note]]It had more to do him being constantly disappointed of ZZ's overall fitness and performance in the challenges.[[/note]] However, one could be forgiven for thinking ill of this particular critique considering it's coming from the man who was once known as ''Mr. Ass''.

** In fact, the only real subversion was one of the Season 3 winners, John Hennigan, aka Wrestling/JohnMorrison. However, his successful career is why people tend to ''forget'' that he had been on the show, let alone one of the winners, because TE winners never amounted to much. The most successful winner after Morrison, Maven, is best known for eliminating Wrestling/TheUndertaker from the 2002 Wrestling/RoyalRumble, and his gimmick was basically "that guy who won ''Tough Enough''".

* CompanionShow: Season 6 had ''Tough Talk''.

* DrillSergeantNasty: Most of the trainers adopted this persona during the show. Most notably Stone Cold in Season 5, Wrestling/KurtAngle in Season 4, Bill [=DeMott=] in Seasons 3 and 5, [[Wrestling/BobHolly Hardcore Holly]] in Season 2, Wrestling/{{Tazz}} in the original season, and Wrestling/BillyGunn in season 6.

* BittersweetEnding: How Season 5 ended, with Season 5 winner [[KickTheDog Andy being slapped by Wrestling/VinceMcMahon and then stunned by Stone Cold]].

* BittersweetEnding: How Season 5 ended, with Season 5 winner [[KickTheDog Andy being slapped by Wrestling/VinceMcMahon and then stunned by Stone Cold.

* Maven Huffman - ''[=TE1=]'' winner (notable for being "[[RememberWhenYouBlewUpASun That Guy Who Won Tough Enough]]" and for his elimination of Wrestling/TheUndertaker at the 2002 Royal Rumble; employed from 2001-2005).

* Ariane Andrew - ''[=TE5=]'' competitor (of "Melina vs. Alicia Fox" infamy; signed to FCW shortly after elimination, repackaged as Cameron Lynn; was a Wrestling/BrodusClay dancer and remains employed after Clay was released; employed 2011-present).

** You have to look up Christina's bio away from anything ''Tough Enough''-related to learn that she's the sister of Alicia Fox.[[note]]Christina goes by her given last name of Crawford.[[/note]]

* BittersweetEnding: How Season 5 ended, with Season 5 winner [[KickTheDog Andy being slapped by Vince [=McMahon=]]] and then stunned by Stone Cold.

* TheDeterminator: Could be said for most of the eventual winners and a large number of the runner ups. This was averted with Rima "Miss USA" Fakih in Season 5. Everyone agreed she had the mental drive and a determinator-style desire to win, but she simply wasn't able to keep up with the physical demands of the competition, and was eliminated in the fourth episode.
* DrillSergeantNasty: Most of the trainers adopted this persona during the show. Most notably Stone Cold in Season 5, Kurt Angle in Season 4, Bill [=DeMott=] in Seasons 3 and 5, [[Wrestling/BobHolly Hardcore Holly]] in Season 2, Wrestling/{{Tazz}} in the original season, and Wrestling/BillyGunn in season 6.

*** Darryl Cross was the very first man eliminated in the season ''(and thus, the entire series)'' after falling out during aerobic exercises by claiming he caught the flu on the plane ride to the show's location, [[MoodWhiplash goofing off]] after Wrestling/TripleH's very serious speech about commitment to the business, acting very immaturely to the trainers and the other contestants, and complaining under his breath when Wrestling/AlSnow called him out on a botched move, prompting Snow to shout, [[Awesome/ProfessionalWrestling "I don't take that from my ten-year-old son, and I'm sure as hell not taking it from you!"]]

** Matt Cross's scenes were cut down in his two episodes to fit the definition of "the boring guy" and the reason he was eliminated. Among other things this included bumping into his good friend CM Punk while working backstage, and apparently setting himself on fire while in the house.

** Indirectly delivered by Triple H upon hearing that one of the contestants had hung a Wrestling/{{Goldberg}} poster in his room, to both Goldberg and the contestants, while lecturing the group on the level of commitment they need to be successful as wrestlers. Segues into the very best part of DareToBeBadass. [[note]]"Who are your idols? Who do you look at and say 'that's what I want to do'? Not 'that's the money I want to make', not 'that's the other [=TV=] show I want to be in', not 'that's the spot I want to be in on Leno'. That's the yard. That's the business. That's what I want to do. That's the story I want to tell. You can tell a lot about a guy in this business (from) who he looked up to in this business. ({{Beat}}) Then somebody tells me... one of these guys had a Goldberg poster on his wall that had to be torn off. No big deal to me. I think, 'You know, Goldberg. He's in our business. Hell of an athlete'. The question I ask is: If your biggest idol in this business is a guy that's been in this business for about a year, got everything handed to him, can't have a match longer than four minutes, has not wrestled for probably for more than three months straight because every three months he's got a hangnail, he's got a toothache, he's got a tummy ache, and he's got to take time off, and I wonder where does that mentally put that person? What does that person think about this business? Is it about what we do? Is it about telling a story? Or is it about being a big jacked-up guy that stands in the ring, is fed a bunch of guys who really don't know what they're doing to mow over? He abuses that. What does that say about someone that has no heart for what we do? No guts, no heart. You get injured, you keep going. You get hurt, you keep going. I've had to be carried to the top of the ramp to go to the ring! I've had to be helped up the stairs because I couldn't walk myself to 'em! And I've walked to that ring and I've wrestled for 45 minutes against Wrestling/VinceMcMahon. After he fell thirty-five feet on my leg, his big fat ass almost busted it, and I still went to the ring. I'm not bragging. I'm not that tough. I'm not tougher than anyone else in our business. But I respect our business. I love our business. I put my life on the line every day for our business and I gladly do it, and I'll continue to do it until I can do it no longer. Not for the fame. Not for the glory of it. Not so I can get laid. No other reason than the love of the business (...) But I question the fact that when somebody has a poster of a guy on their wall that can't suck it up enough to continue when he's on top of the business, when he's on top of the company, and they ask him to go, and he says, 'I'm sorry. I can't. I have to sit home for three months. I can't even make it to [=TV=]. I'm sorry, I don't like where the storyline's going, so I can't come in.' I have to question that guy's heart! I've got to question that guy's desire! I got to question whether he just thinks, 'Hell, I'm pretty jacked up. I'm just as big as these guys, so I can stand in the ring with them. As long as they put me over, it don't matter, I'll be a big star. I'll make a lot of money, I'll be famous'. You gotta ask yourself inside where to draw the line. When do you take time off? Do you tape it up and you keep going? Or do you call in sick? (...) You guys have the greatest opportunity in the world, in my opinion, to be in the greatest business in the world. Do not fuck it up. Do not throw it away, 'cuz if you do, you piss on every single person that's come before you. Every single person that's paid their dues, every person that's busted their ass, every single old timer that's busted up and can barely walk, you piss on them.[[/note]]