>>16239691They had gimmicks but you're right that it was never anything outlandish or overly distinctive. They also generally boiled down to a general archetype coated in a veneer of unique attire, catchphrases, etc.
John Cena, for example, had a pronounced gimmick when he was a mid-carder as a rapper. As he transitioned into the main event and the face of the company, he eventually dropped much of that gimmick and instead adopted the simple white-meat good guy babyface act, only distinguishable by others from his merchandise and catch phrases.
Triple H was just a generic asshole main event heel. He was depicted as a strong enough wrestler in his own right, but needed to cheat and have his friends help to keep himself on top and to win and retain championships. This is no different to a large number of heels through time. Hell, Reigns just did basically the same act for a few years with the Bloodline. The primary difference there was that Reigns had the family element to it, while Triple H was trying to re-create the four horsemen.
As far as heel gimmicks go, they are somewhere in the middle of the gradient between complete chickenshit heels who are portrayed as completely weak and hopeless as individuals but use smarts, cunning and partners to keep winning (like Miz) and heels who are portrayed as very good and capable wrestlers but are just unlikable pricks (like Gunther).
But yeah, overstated gimmicks like "I'm a race car driver" or "I like watching my wife get fucked by black men" are more midcard acts, and they also plant people firmly in that slot. Often such acts that do get over with fans don't get pushed because they wouldn't transition to the more serious main event domain.
