D-Generation X

D-Generation X (also known DX) is a professional wrestling stable (and later tag team) best known for their appearances in the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment/WWE). The group originated in the midst of the WWF's "Attitude Era" in 1997 as a foil to another prominent faction, The Hart Foundation.^[1]

After its original run with members Shawn Michaels, Hunter Hearst Hemsley (later known simply as Triple H), Chyna and Rick Rude, the group expanded to become a mainstay of the Attitude Era with new additions like X-Pac, The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg and Billy Gunn) and Tori until it disbanded in August 2000. After a teased reunion in 2002, DX reformed in June 2006 as the duo of Triple H and Shawn Michaels for the remainder of the year^[2] and again in August 2009 until March 2010, shortly before Michaels' retirement. This incarnation was voted the greatest WWE Tag Team Champions of all time in a 2013 WWE viewer poll.^[3]

Concept

The group's gimmick was best known as a gang of rebels who broke the rules, acted and spoke as they pleased, and wrestled whoever they wanted no matter how provocative and insulting. Noted for their crude, profane humor and sophomoric pranks, the stable has been dubbed multiple times as the "most controversial group in WWF/E history". Michaels' autobiography suggests that it was WWF head writer Vince Russo who first conceived the moniker for the faction, while Hart claims it originated from New York Post columnist Phil Mushnick, a frequent critic of the WWF.^[4]

DX was one of the fives main contributing factors, along with Stone Cold Steve Austin, Brothers Of Destruction, The Three Faces Of Foley (Mankind,Dude Love,Cactus Jack) and The Rock to the onset of the WWF's Attitude Era. WWF/E Chairman Vince McMahon has repeatedly denied that DX was inspired or heavily influenced by World Championship Wrestling's (WCW) New World Order (nWo), though the core members of both on-screen factions included members of professional wrestling's Kliq; (Sean Waltman even served as a member of both groups; as did Michaels, briefly, during the nWo's revival in the WWF/E in 2002). On October 6, 1997, in one of the earliest DX promos — in fact the week before the group was officially named — Michaels alluded to this off-screen connection. After Bret Hart claimed to have destroyed the Kliq and to have "run [Scott Hall and Kevin Nash] outta town" (that is, from the WWF to the rival WCW/nWo), Michaels declared, "The Kliq owns this [professional wrestling] business", and said that it had really undergone "expansion" rather than "destruction".

History

Degenerates

Chyna (right), acted as an enforcer for Triple H (left) and Michaels in 1997, then remained allied with the larger incarnation of the stable until 1999

According to Triple H, WWF management wanted to keep apart The Kliq, of which he and Michaels were members, so they were hesitant to pair the duo together at first.^[5] Despite this, the group began to collude on the August 11, 1997 main event of Raw Is War. During Michaels' match with Mankind, Hunter Hearst Hemsley (Triple H) and Chyna both interfered as they were feuding with Mankind; towards the end of the match Rick Rude returned to the WWF revealing himself as Michaels' bodyguard and helped him win the match by attacking Mankind with a chair.^[6] The following week on Raw, Michaels and Triple H teamed up to take on Mankind and The Undertaker, only to lose the match by disqualification after Michaels used a chair on Undertaker.^[6] Michaels would eventually face the Undertaker at Ground Zero: In Your House on September 7 with Triple H, Chyna and Rude all interfering on Michaels' behalf to make the match end in a no contest. They were often shown on television practicing sophomoric/crude humor and rebelling against authority figures in the company, primarily Vince McMahon (then an on-air color commentator) and then Commissioner Sgt. Slaughter, the latter of which DX made a particular habit of humiliating by giving him the nickname Sgt. Slobber.

D-Generation X had their own pay-per-view in December 1997. The first logo of D-Generation X is featured on this poster

D-Generation X's first feud was against the Hart Foundation, who was led by Michaels' nemesis Bret Hart. At WWF One Night Only, the group helped Michaels beat Foundation member British Bulldog for the European Championship, making Michaels the WWF's first Grand Slam Champion.^[7][8][9] On-screen, the name was taken from comments by Hart, who on several occasions, including the October 6, 1997 episode of Raw Is War, had labelled Michaels "nothing more than a degenerate". The following week, on October 13, 1997, Michaels made "D-Generation X" the group's official name, mockingly citing Hart's insults as his inspiration.

Although DX and the members of the Hart Foundation continued to battle on-screen in some fashion through the end of 1997, the Bret Hart-Shawn Michaels feud ended ebruptly at Survivor Series when Michaels won his third WWF World Heavyweight Championship via the Montreal Screwjob, whereby Hart was lied to about the match's pre-determined outcome after he (Hart) had signed with WCW and refused to drop the WWF Title before he left the company the following day.^[10][11] Rude was also legitimately upset over the Montreal Screwjob, and he subsequently left DX and the WWF to return to WCW. As the only Hart Foundation member that remained in the WWF, Owen Hart continued to feud with DX, specifically Triple H.

D-Generation X was used as the title for a WWF D-Generation X: In Your House pay-per-view telecast on December 7, 1997. By this point, with Michaels holding the WWF World Heavyweight Championship and WWF European Championship, and DX's victory in the feud with the Hart Foundation, their status as the lead stable in the company was solidified. Michaels headlined the event and was disqualified in a WWF World Heavyweight Championship title defense against Ken Shamrock when Owen Hart interfered, having been off-screen since Survivor Series. Earlier that night, Triple H defeated Sgt. Slaughter with the help of Chyna in a Boot Camp match.^[12] On the December 22 episode of Raw is War however, the two were forced to wrestle each other for the European title. In a mock match Michaels laid down while Triple H ran around the ring and eventually pinned him for the championship.^[13]

In the beginning of 1998, Triple H exchanged the European Championship with Owen Hart.^[14][15] At WrestleMania XIV, Shawn Michaels was the reigning WWF World Heavyweight Champion and Triple H was the reigning WWF European Champion. They recruited boxer Mike Tyson to act as the "special enforcer" in the main event of the night featuring Michaels against Stone Cold Steve Austin. At the end of the match, Tyson turned on D-Generation X and cost Michaels the match.^[16]

DX Army (1998–1999)

The night after WrestleMania, Triple H ejected the absent Michaels for "dropping the ball" over the Tyson incident. In reality, Michaels had suffered a back injury and started a four-year hiatus from wrestling.^[5] Triple H assumed full leadership of D-X and recruited X-Pac, who had been recently fired from WCW, and the WWF Tag Team Champions The New Age Outlaws ("Bad Ass" Billy Gunn and "The Road Dogg" Jesse James) into the stable.^[5] While the intent was for the stable to remain heels, they became hugely popular and were eventually pushed as fan favorites. During this time, they feuded with the heel gimmick of The Rock and his group the Nation of Domination and then later, Vince McMahon's Corporation.^[5][17] The group remained united and hugely popular throughout 1998 and into early 1999.

On episodes of Raw Is War in April and May DX went to war with WCW, with whom the WWF were in direct competition at the time, through a series of legitimate visits to WCW headquarters and live events. On April 27, 1998 Raw Is War and Nitro both took place in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, a mere 19 miles apart. D-Generation X traveled from the WWF show in Hampton to The Scope in Norfolk and shouted insults against WCW through a bullhorn, as well as mentioning the fact that WCW gave out free tickets to fill up arenas for television while sporting black armbands with the acronym POWCW (Prisoner of WCW), which referenced Kliq members Scott Hall and Kevin Nash. They then tried to enter the arena via a loading dock, in their army jeep before being stopped by someone closing the door.^[18] They also attempted to forcibly secure meetings with Nitro's executive producer Eric Bischoff and WCW owner Ted Turner at WCW headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. Another segment used computer graphics to make it appear as if Triple H had flown over the arena where WCW Nitro was taking place and wrote "WCW Sucks" and "DX Says Suck It" in the sky.^[17]

DX expanded after Michaels' departure to include The New Age Outlaws tag team, who had often affiliated with the stable prior to joining

The group also feuded with the new Corporate Commissioner, former DX leader Shawn Michaels, who turned on the group after costing X-Pac a WWF Championship match against The Rock.^[19] The faction would continue to feud with Michaels throughout late 1998, with Michaels reversing Billy Gunn's Intercontinental Championship victory against Ken Shamrock,^[19] costing The Outlaws the Tag Team Titles and even managing to lure the New Age Outlaws to The Corporation on the December 7 episode of Raw Is War. However, the Outlaws quickly revealed this to have been a ruse, turning on The Corporation that same night.^[19] When The Corporation turned on Michaels in January 1999, he was taken in by DX once more. This too was short lived as later that night DX were instrumental in Michaels being ambushed by The Corporation, with X-Pac commenting "What goes around, comes around".

Some of the group's most memorable promos were their parodies of their rivals. On July 6, 1998, DX carried out the first of these segments. In this instance, they mocked The Nation, with Triple H portraying The Rock (referred to as "The Crock"); Road Dogg playing D'Lo Brown (referred to as "B'Lo Brown"); "Bad Ass" Billy Gunn playing The Godfather (referred to as "The Gunnfather"); X-Pac as Mark Henry (referred to as "Mizark Henry"); and impressionist Jason Sensation as Owen Hart.^[20] On December 14, 1998, they would turn their attention to The Corporation with Triple H again appearing as "The Crock", Road Dogg playing Mr McMahon (with two midgets representing Gerald Brisco and Pat Patterson kissing his behind throughout); Billy Gunn, playing Shane McMahon wearing an adult diaper; X-Pac playing Ken Shamrock; Chyna as The Big Boss Man; and Sensation returning to play Michaels.^[21] These parodies would be resurrected during the fourth incarnation.

Throughout 1999, the members gradually turned on one another. Initially, Chyna turned on Triple H and joined the Corporation on January 19.^[5] At WrestleMania XV Chyna turned on then fellow Corporation member Kane, helping Triple H to defeat him. Later that night, Triple H and Chyna interfered in X-Pac's European Championship match with Shane McMahon. Initially, it appeared they were there to help X-Pac, but Triple H quickly turned on him, delivering a Pedigree to his former stablemate, costing him the match. Chyna and Triple H would then join The Corporation, with Kane being ousted.^[5] As a result, X-Pac began to share a bond with Kane, which resulted in Kane becoming associated with the faction and the duo holding the WWF Tag Team Championship twice.^[22][23][24]

Though the group maintained a united front against The Corporation, Billy Gunn became frustrated at Kane's presence and The New Age Outlaws' inability to win the Tag Team Championships from X-Pac and Kane. Following one such defeat on the April 29 episode of SmackDown!, Gunn became angry at X-Pac.^[20] The following week on Sunday Night Heat, he apologized to X-Pac, but attacked him when X-Pac's back was turned, citing his frustration at being "held back" and departing from D-Generation X, therefore reducing the members to just Road Dogg and X-Pac.^[17] Over the following weeks, Gunn would continue to attack X-Pac and Road Dogg, often being chased away by Kane.^[20] In July, Triple H and Chyna told Billy Gunn that Road Dogg and X-Pac were making a lot more money from D-Generation X's royalties than the other three (due to them still using the name as a tag team). This led to a tag match at Fully Loaded whereby the winners would get the rights to use the D-Generation X name, which Road Dogg and X-Pac won. Though not officially a member, upon winning the Tag Team titles from The Acolytes on August 9, Kane, under encouragement from partner X-Pac, uttered his first words without help from a voice box, said words being "suck it".^[20]

DX/McMahon-Helmsley Era (1999–2000)

On October 25, the group (minus Chyna) reformed as villains when Triple H and X-Pac helped the New Age Outlaws – who had reunited a month previously^[20] – defeat Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock.^[17][25] On that week's Smackdown, X-Pac suggested that DX would get "bigger," hinting that Kane would finally become an official member. However, later that night, he turned on Kane following a match with The Dudley Boyz, stating there would be no additional members.^[26] That same night, DX were "hunted" by Austin, with Stone Cold catching Road Dogg in a bear trap, Billy Gunn in a noose, having a portion of the backstage ceiling fall on X-Pac and finally catching the whole group in a net.^[26]

Road Dogg with X-Pac's on-screen girlfriend Tori

From then on, Kane and X-Pac would feud, with X-Pac eventually stealing Kane's storyline "girlfriend" Tori, on January 27, 2000, with Tori becoming a member of DX.^[27] Triple H also "married" Stephanie McMahon, who would also join the group.^[28] Throughout this period, the heel DX would feud with the likes of Austin, The Rock, Shane McMahon, Mankind/Cactus Jack, Chris Jericho and Kane,^[20] primarily securing and protecting Triple H's WWF Championship, which he had won on January 3, 2000.^[29] They would arrive at arenas in a tour bus called "The DX Express."^[30]

Until mid-2000, DX remained a strong and united group. In early 2000, however, Billy Gunn was placed out of action for several months after suffering an injury during a match with the Dudley Boyz. On-screen, Gunn's storyline involved him getting thrown out of DX because "he lost his cool".^[17] X-Pac teamed with Road Dogg once again but the two never reached the heights the New Age Outlaws had. At WrestleMania 2000, Vince McMahon, then a babyface, turned on The Rock and aided Triple H in retaining his title.^[31] The group was officially dubbed the McMahon-Helmsley Faction. On March 30, X-Pac and Tori assisted Stephanie McMahon in winning the Women's Championship from Jacqueline.^[32] On April 12, Steve Austin used a crane to drop a steel beam on the DX Express tour bus, crushing the bus in the parking lot.^[33]

X-Pac in a Dumpster match, fought alongside Road Dogg and Tori against frequent rivals the Dudley Boyz

The Rock defeated Triple H at Backlash in a match which featured Steve Austin's brief return to the WWF.^[34] Though Triple H regained the title the following month at Judgment Day,^[35] the group gradually broke apart. Road Dogg and X-Pac became frustrated by their lack of success as a tag team and turned on each other, culminating in a match at SummerSlam, which X-Pac won.^[36] By late 2000, Triple H had become a solo star.

On the November 6, 2000 episode of Raw Is War, the group temporarily rejoined (except for X-Pac, who was injured) to take on The Radicalz (Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, and Perry Saturn) in an eight-person tag team match, which DX won.^[37] The match included the group doing their old DX entrance, as well as telling the crowd to "suck it!" It was a symbolic end to D-Generation X. Chyna, Billy Gunn, Road Dogg and K-Kwik, Road Dogg's new tag team partner, however, feuded with the Radicalz that month, eventually leading to a match at Survivor Series. The Radicalz won the match.^[38]

DX reformations

After that, DX remained unseen and largely unmentioned until Shawn Michaels returned to WWE in 2002. With the acquisition of Triple H being persuaded by Michaels, and then Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff to sign a contract to join Raw as part of the "Brand Extension" at Vengeance. The following night on the July 22 episode of Raw at Shawn Michaels' 37th birthday, a week after the breakup of the nWo, Triple H handed Michaels a DX T-shirt and stated he "had an idea", suggesting that the two reform the group and make Eric Bischoff's life hell. The duo later came out that night to their old music and crotch chops, and pyro to the delight of the crowd. However, Triple H turned on Shawn Michaels that same night; he had teased the reunion as a ploy to appease Michaels and lure him to the ring before giving him a Pedigree, making Triple H a villain once again.^[39] This act led to the in-ring return of Michaels at SummerSlam and was the genesis of a long feud between the two that ended with a Triple H victory during a Hell in a Cell match at Bad Blood in 2004.^[40]

Reformed duo (2006–2007; 2009–2010)

In 2006, a series of events occurred which hinted at a DX reunion. At WrestleMania 22, former members Shawn Michaels and Triple H performed the crotch chop during their respective matches (the former against Mr. McMahon and the latter against John Cena for the WWE Championship), which was met with loud cheering from the fans in attendance.^[41] The two continued to deliver chops in the following episodes of Raw as Michaels feuded with Vince and Shane McMahon and Triple H focused on the WWE Championship, repeatedly running into McMahon in the process.

Michaels displaying the DX "X"

On the June 12 episode of Raw, the events came to a head, when, during Triple H's gauntlet match against The Spirit Squad, Shawn Michaels came in to help his former friend. After the duo had laid out the entire Spirit Squad, the two men began to perform their crotch chops. DX continued their brash antics at the expense of the Spirit Squad, the McMahons, and Jonathan Coachman for several weeks and repeatedly took part in blatantly camp product placement during Raw promos.^[42][43] Most of their antics now involved practical jokes on Vince.

On the June 26 episode of Raw, they added to the list of parodies with Triple H impersonating Vince McMahon, talking about his love of "Dicks" (a double entrende referring to Dick Ebersol, Dick Clark, and Dick Cheney, as well as the male member; this was also used again repeatedly with roosters, saying that Vince loved "cocks"), while Michaels impersonated Shane McMahon.^[44] When Vince, Shane, and the Spirit Squad came to confront them, the contents of a port-a-potty were promptly dumped on them.

On the July 3 episode of Raw, as a result of their actions on June 26, Vince banned DX from the arena; DX responded by infiltrating inside the production truck and performing a series of pranks on Mr. McMahon (including focusing a camera on McMahon in a public restroom [which was shown on the Raw Titantron], as well as tampering with his microphone). At the end of the episode, as Vince tried to leave in his limousine, fireworks were activated inside the limousine, shooting out of the moon roof, causing a dazed Vince to crawl out covered in soot, at which point DX greeted him with sparklers, wishing him a "Happy 4th of July".

On the August 21 episode of Raw, DX repeatedly vandalized Vince's property by tagging "DX" on first Vince's $30 million private jet, then the front of the WWE World Headquarters building, and finally Vince's limousine (as well as tying a chain to the back axle of the limousine, causing the axle to be violently pulled off when Vince and Shane tried to leave).

During their feud, DX defeated the Spirit Squad at Vengeance and on the July 15 edition of Saturday Night's Main Event,^[45][46] as well as The McMahons (Vince and Shane) at SummerSlam.^[47] At Unforgiven in a handicap Hell in a Cell match that featured Big Show on The McMahons' side, DX again came out victorious.^[48]

DX's next feud was with Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton). At Cyber Sunday, the fans selected Eric Bischoff over Vince McMahon and Jonathan Coachman to be the special guest referee for the match. Bischoff allowed the illegal use of a steel chair to give Rated-RKO the win, marking DX's first defeat as a tag team since their reunion in June 2006.^[42][49] At Survivor Series, Michaels and Triple H got back at Edge and Orton by leading Team DX (Triple H, Michaels, Matt and Jeff Hardy, and CM Punk) to a 5–0 sweep over Team Rated-RKO (Edge, Orton, Gregory Helms, Johnny Nitro, and Mike Knox).^[42][50] In 2007, DX challenged for the World Tag Team Championship against Edge and Orton at New Year's Revolution. The fight ended in a no contest after Michaels hit the referee. During the match, Triple H suffered a legitimate torn quadriceps. After the match, DX beat down Rated-RKO with steel chairs and on the announce tables.

After Triple H's injury, Shawn Michaels continued to uphold the DX image by himself leading into WrestleMania 23. Michaels would still come to the ring with the DX music and attire even though Triple H was not joining him during this period. During this time, he captured the World Tag Team Championship with John Cena as well as went on to face Cena at WrestleMania 23 for the WWE Championship. Michaels would continue to use the D-Generation X motif until after Backlash, at which point he reverted to his traditional entrance music and attire, thus ending this incarnation of D-Generation X. Michaels and Triple H teamed up again under the D-Generation X on the January 28, 2008 episode of Raw defeating Umaga and Snitsky.^[51] Despite DX reforming for one night only occasions, both Triple H and Shawn Michaels have used the "crotch chop" since the one night only returns.

On the September 29, 2008 edition of Raw, Triple H and Shawn Michaels reunited as DX to take on Chris Jericho and Lance Cade. They won by disqualification, due to Cade and Jericho attacking Michaels with a ladder.^[52] After being mocked by John Morrison and The Miz for two weeks, on the 800th episode celebration of Raw, DX defeated the duo. During the Christmas season, DX appeared in numerous vignettes to promote DX clothing and other WWE merchandise; one such commercial also featured Kelly Kelly. In the 2009 WWE draft on April 13, 2009, Triple H was drafted back to the Raw brand.

In April 2009, Michaels took a hiatus from WWE after losing to The Undertaker at WrestleMania XXV. Meanwhile, Triple H was embroiled in a rivalry with Randy Orton and The Legacy (Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase). The feud continued from the spring through the summer with Triple H mainly combating with Orton over the WWE Championship. Eventually, Triple H would begin to target The Legacy because they were responsible for his losses against Orton during matches. After losing a handicap match to The Legacy, Triple H stated that he would search for Michaels in order to reunite DX. On the August 10, 2009 episode of Raw, video segments aired in which Triple H met with Michaels at an office cafeteria in Texas where he was working as a chef; throughout the segments, Triple H would try to convince Michaels return to WWE from hiatus. After several incidents during the segments (including a grease fire and Shawn getting shouted by a little girl), Michaels agreed to team with Triple H to face The Legacy at SummerSlam, superkicking the girl, and quitting from his chef job in the process.^[53]

DX after a Steel Cage match against The Legacy

On the August 17 episode of Raw, in St. Louis, MO, Michaels and Triple H officially reunited as DX, but as they were in the process of their in-ring promo, Legacy attacked them both.^[54] Their first match after reuniting was against Legacy at SummerSlam, which they won.^[55] At Breaking Point, however, they lost to Legacy in the first ever Submissions Count Anywhere match in WWE history.^[56] At the October pay-per-view Hell in Cell, DX defeated Legacy in a Hell in a Cell match.^[57] DX would challenge John Cena for the WWE Championship in a triple threat match at Survivor Series with both men failing to win the title,^[58] although they were able to retain their friendship and tag team partnership. On December 13 at TLC: Tables, Ladders and Chairs, DX defeated Jeri-Show (Chris Jericho and Big Show) to win the Unified WWE Tag Team Championship in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match;^[59] the first tag team championship reign for Michaels and Triple H as a tag team.

On December 21, 2009, Triple H announced that Hornswoggle was the new DX midget.^[60] This came about after Hornswoggle sued DX for emotional and physical distress due to them not allowing him to join DX.^[60] After being taken to court where they were ruled guilty by a jury and judge consisting of dwarves, Michaels told Triple H that Hornswoggle could be the mascot. Triple H agreed to it only if the charges were dropped, which Hornswoggle agreed to.^[60] On the January 11, 2010 episode of Raw, Mike Tyson, who was the Raw guest host for the night, teamed with Jericho to face DX; however, at the end of the bout, Tyson turned on Jericho and aligned himself with Michaels and Triple H.^[61] On the February 8, 2010 episode of Raw, DX lost their Unified Tag Team titles to ShoMiz (The Miz and Big Show) in a Triple Threat Elimination Tag Team match also featuring The Straight Edge Society (CM Punk and Luke Gallows.) On the March 1 episode of Raw, they lost their rematch for the titles which would be their last televised match before Michaels retired.^[62] Road Dogg, Billy Gunn and X-Pac have gone under the team names of D-Generates of Wrestling and Team Suck It while wrestling together on the indy scene before returning to WWE.

Non-wrestling reunions (2010–present)

DX did not appreciate Damien Sandow's interruption of their reunion on Raw 1000

Michaels and Triple H reunited in a non-wrestling capacity for the 2010 Tribute to the Troops, after SmackDown events in 2011 and 2012 and during the 2012 Hall of Fame ceremony when they inducted Mike Tyson.

On July 23, 2012 at the 1000th episode of Raw Billy Gunn, Road Dogg, X-Pac, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H appeared together for the second time with all five male members present. The group were interrupted by Damien Sandow, who accused them of displaying sophomoric and disgusting behaviour which he believed had brainwashed society, which resulted in DX attacking Sandow.^[63]

Michaels, Triple H, X-Pac, and Billy Gunn would make another reunion alongside Kevin Nash, who was made an honorary member of the stable, at the January 10, 2013 taping of NXT. Upset at his previous attack, Sandow interrupted the reunion, only to receive an "X-Mark" from Michaels and Triple H. In March 2013, Billy Gunn and Road Dogg reformed the New Age Outlaws multiple times until Brock Lesnar took out the team with F-5s during his feud with Triple H.

During Triple H's heel Authority storyline which began later in the year, both Shawn Michaels (in a non-wrestling capacity) and the New Age Outlaws returned as babyfaces only to eventually turn against anti-authority faces on Hunter's behalf, becoming occasional allies of the Authority in the process. During this period, the New Age Outlaws won the WWE Tag Team Championship against the Rhodes Brothers (Cody Rhodes and Goldust).

At WrestleMania 31, Billy Gunn, X-Pac, Road Dogg and Shawn Michaels all interfered on Triple H's behalf in his match against Sting turning heel. They were then fought off by the nWo (Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Hollywood Hogan), who interfered on Sting's behalf. This marked the first legitimate confrontation between the two groups. Triple H ultimately won the match after attacking Sting with a sledgehammer that was handed to him by Billy Gunn.

Signature taunts

Crotch chop

DX promos always include a signature move whereby the wrestler points his hands towards his own crotch, making the shape of a "V", and in the later, more popular variant with hands crossed, an "X". The implication is that the viewer or listener should "suck it" (i.e. perform oral sex).

The crotch chop was first used in the WWF by Shawn Michaels several months before the formation of DX, at least as early as July 21, 1997, while he stood in-ring for an interview segment on Raw Is War filmed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Although Michaels had not yet made his heel-turn (which would follow a few weeks later, after the events of Summerslam), his feud with the Canadian-born Bret Hart made Michaels a de facto heel to the Canadian crowd. Months later, at the October 6, 1997 episode of Raw Is War, both Michaels and Triple H repeatedly directed the crotch chop at both Hart and hostile members of the audience.

According to Triple H, Vince McMahon was hesitant to let DX members perform the "X" at first, but he was later talked into it.^[5] When DX enters the ring they do a pyro routine. Green X pyrotechnics go off three times, with DX crotch-chopping at each firing. They then pause for a second, then chop once more as the pyrotechnics fire for the fourth time.

The crotch chop is used in the 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire by Jamal (Dev Patel) after getting away from pursuing security guards^[64] and by a character in the opening scenes of the 2007 movie Knocked Up. Fidel Edwards, the West Indian fast bowler has on occasions used the crotch chop after taking a wicket.^[65] It has also been used by Professional Bowler Pete Weber after getting a strike, Weber himself is a fan of wrestling. The character Kenny Powers in the HBO series, Eastbound & Down also uses the gesture in a fantasy sequence where he walks through the halls of the school where he works. In a 2010 episode of Family Guy, titled "Extra Large Medium", a cutaway shows Spock doing the crotch chop after he wins the lottery.

Suck it!

The crotch chop and the words "suck it" actually originated with the nWo, while Syxx/X-Pac was still a member of the faction, Later on DX would use a cross armed x-chop. The signature DX slogan originated on the October 6, 1997 episode of Raw Is War, with Shawn Michaels stating, "I've got two words for 'The Hitman' Bret Hart: suck it!", before doing a one-armed crotch-chop (while holding the microphone with his other hand). Later in the episode, both Michaels and Triple H (separately) proceeded to the ring for the Bret Hart-Triple H match, each of them directing the slogan and crotch-chops at fans seated along the entry ramp.

The slogan is also used in the DX Army's popular "Let's get ready to suck it!" promos, conceived as a parody of Michael Buffer's "Let's get ready to rumble!" match introduction that was routinely featured at contemporary WCW events. The routine originated in the "DX Army" era with X-Pac, Road Dogg, and Billy Gunn and starts when Triple H asks the audience, "Are you ready?". He then shouts, "No, [city name], I said, are you ready?!", or "I thought this was [city name], I said, are you ready?!", to elicit a louder reaction from the crowd. He would continue on, in a similar voice to Buffer, "Then, for the thousands in attendance, and to the millions watching at home: let's get ready to suck it!". Following this, Road Dogg would announce a variation of "Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages: D-Generation X proudly brings to you its soon-to-be/WWF Tag Team Champions of the World! The Road Dogg Jesse James, The Bad Ass Billy Gunn: The New Age Outlaws!" depending on their status as champions. The group would then talk or posture in relation to the people they were feuding with at the time. Billy Gunn would then end the routine with "And if you're not down with that, we got two words for yah!" to which the crowd shouts "suck it!" back at them.

During the tag team revival of the group the routine was truncated so that Triple H would say his part while Michaels would take Billy Gunn's lines to conclude it. They often would just say these two parts, with brief ad libbing, rather than lengthy speeches each time.

Incarnations

• First incarnation:
  • Type: heel stable
  • Active: August 11, 1997 – March 29, 1998 (WrestleMania XIV)
  • Members: Shawn Michaels (co-leader/founder), Hunter Hearst Hemsley/Triple H (co-leader), and Rick Rude (left for WCW after the Montreal Screwjob)
• Second incarnation:
  • Type: face stable
  • Active: March 30, 1998 – July 25, 1999 (Fully Loaded)
  • Members: Triple H (leader) (left in March 1999), Chyna (left on January 25, 1999), X-Pac, Road Dogg, and Billy Gunn (left in April 1999)
• Third incarnation:
  • Type: heel stable
  • Active: October 25, 1999 – November 6, 2000
  • Members: Triple H (leader), Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley (joined in December 1999), X-Pac, Tori (joined in January 2000), Road Dogg, and Billy Gunn (left in February 2000)
• Fourth incarnation:
  • Type: face tag team
  • Active: June 12, 2006 – January 7, 2007; August 10, 2009 – March 1, 2010
  • Members: Shawn Michaels, Triple H and Hornswoggle (mascot)
• Fifth incarnation:
  • Type: heel stable
  • Active: March 29, 2015
  • Members: Shawn Michaels (co-leader), Triple H (co-leader), X-Pac and The New Age Outlaws
  • Combined weight: 480 lb (220 kg)

In wrestling

Michaels performing Sweet Chin Music on Chris Jericho

Triple H prepares to execute the Pedigree on Chris Benoit

• New Age Outlaws' double-team finishing moves
  • Double flapjack dropped into a hangman
  • Spike piledriver
• Triple H and Michaels' double-team finishing moves
  • X-Mark (Superkick (Michaels) into a Double underhook facebuster (Triple H)), sometimes with Michaels pushing down on the victim for extra force
• Triple H and Michaels' double-team signature moves
  • Double DDT by both of them
  • Facebreaker knee smash by Triple H into an inverted atomic drop by Michaels
  • Sharpshooter by Michaels/Crossface combination by Triple H
  • Spinning spinebuster by Triple H followed by a diving elbow drop by Michaels
  • Triple H throwing Michaels over the top ropes, with Michaels performing a senton

• Entrance themes
  • "Break It Down" by The DX Band (November 10, 1997 – February 17, 2000; July 22, 2002)
  • "Break It Down V2" (February 21, 2000–March 2000; November 6, 2000)
  • "The Kings" by Run–D.M.C. (March 20, 2000–July 2000)
  • "Break It Down V3" (June 2006–April 2007; August 2009–September 2009)
  • "Break It Down V4" (September 14, 2009–March 2010; July 23, 2012; August 11, 2014; March 29, 2015)

Championships and accomplishments

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • Comeback of the Year (1998) – X-Pac
  • Tag Team of the Year (1998)^[66] – The New Age Outlaws
• World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment
  • WWF Championship (5 times)^[67] – Shawn Michaels (3),^[11] Triple H (4)^{[68][69][70][71]}
  • WWF Intercontinental Championship (2 times)^[72] – Triple H (1),^[73] Road Dogg (1)^[74]
  • WWF European Championship (5 times)^[75] – Shawn Michaels (1),^[9] Triple H (2),^[13][15] X-Pac (2)^[76][77]
  • WWF Hardcore Championship (2 times)^[78] – Road Dogg (1),^[78] Billy Gunn (1)^[78]
  • WWF/World Tag Team Championship (6 times)^[79] – The New Age Outlaws (Road Dogg and Billy Gunn) (5),^{[80][81][82][83][84]} Triple H and Shawn Michaels (1)^[85]
  • WWE Tag Team Championship (1 time) – Shawn Michaels and Triple H (1)^[86]
  • WWF Women's Championship (1 time) – Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley (1)
• Wrestling Observer Newsletter
  • Worst Feud of the Year (2006) vs. Vince and Shane McMahon

Media

• WWF – D-Generation X (1998, VHS)
• WWE – D-Generation X (June 2, 2006, DVD)
• The New and Improved D-Generation X (February 20, 2007, DVD)
• The two team members have their faces on the cover of WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009
• DX: One Last Stand (April 5, 2011, DVD)

See also

• The Kliq: Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, X-Pac, Triple H and Shawn Michaels.
• The McMahon-Helmsley Faction
• The New Age Outlaws: Billy Gunn and Road Dogg.
• New World Order

References

External links

• WWE.com DX subsite
• D-Generation X (1997) Profile
• D-Generation X Army Profile
• D-Generation X (2006) Profile