Over the Course of WWE History, there have been gimmicks that have come and have fallen. Many fell victim to the changing times in an industry that is constantly evolving. However, there is one gimmick that has been able to adapt with the forever changing landscape. There is one character that is able to whether the different storms that have come against wrestling while still standing strong. That legend is the Undertaker. For 25 Years, The Phenom has seen it all and done it all. Recently, I purchased the Book "25 Years of Destruction". It is a great encyclopedia that chronicles the transcendent career of one of the wrestling world's iconic attractions. It stays true to Kayfabe form and is very comprehensive as it gives the blow by blow details on the Phenom's legacy and his influence on the landscape of wrestling as we know it today.
Western Mortician (1990-1994):
Undertaker made his debut at Survivor Series being accompanied by Brother Love as a mystery partner for Ted DiBiase's Million Dollar Team. He made an impact pretty much from the time that he walked in the door. The Deadman was very impressive in his debut, taking out Koko B. Ware and Anvil with his classic Tombstone Piledriver. By early 1991, Brother Love announced that he could no longer guide the career of the Undertaker. That night, he introduced the man that would forever be linked to The Phenom, Paul Bearer. Undertaker and Paul Bearer were a perfect combination for each other. Paul's face was just as pale as Taker's. Plus, he carried an urn. Undertaker started his path of WrestleMania destruction by decimating Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka. During this period, Taker would also end his matches by placing his opponents in body bags. In the Spring of 1991, Undertaker would feud with Ultimate Warrior. The most significant moment of the feud came when Undertaker stuffed Warrior inside of a casket. Many thought Warrior was actually dead. That shows the impact of a character like The Undertaker. He would also align himself with Jake "The Snake" as Roberts feuded simultaneously with both Warrior and Randy Savage. At Survivor Series, Undertaker surprised everyone by defeating Hulk Hogan for the WWF Championship. However, The Undertaker surprised everyone when he stopped Jake "The Snake" from attacking Savage and Liz with a chair. Roberts asked him what side he was on. Taker answered "Not yours". This would change the perception of Undertaker from being an ominous villain to a protective figure that the fans would soon love and respect. Undertaker would vanquish Jake at WrestleMania VIII. During this time, Undertaker would start to refine his look. He would go from having a mullet to growing his hair out to make him look even more mysterious. Taker would then feud with Harvey Wippleman's henchmen such as Kamala and Giant Gonzalez. These were not quite the best dance partners for Undertaker, but he made the most out of what was fed to him. At Survivor Series, Undertaker dominated Kamala in the first-ever Casket Match. Taker would run into a roadblock with Giant Gonzalez in what would be the worst match of the Streak at WM IX. However, The Phenom put the Giant away once and for all at Summerslam '93. At the 1994 Royal Rumble, Undertaker challenged Yokozuna for the WWF Championship in a Casket Match. Yoko was known for having a fear of Caskets, which played right into Taker's advantage. When the Phenom was on the verge of putting the 550+ pound champion in the Casket, Crush, Adam Bomb, Diesel and others attacked Undertaker and put him in the Casket to help Yoko win the match. However, this would not be the last of the Undertaker.
Highlights:
WWF Debut at Survivor Series
WrestleMania debut:
Undertaker made his WrestleMania debut at WrestleMania VII, where he made short work of Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka.
Feud with Ultimate Warrior
Survivor Series 1991: Defeated Hulk Hogan for WWF Championship
WrestleMania VIII: Defeated Jake "The Snake" Roberts
Royal Rumble 1994: Casket Match vs. Yokozuna for WWF Championship
Deadman Rises (1994-1996):
Undertaker emerged from his grave just in time for Summerslam to battle Ted DiBiase's counterfeit version of the Undertaker. He claimed that his Taker was the real version he claimed responsibility for introducing the Deadman to the WWF in 1990. Paul Bearer did not believe Ted's claim to have the real Undertaker. Bearer had been around Undertaker long enough to know who he really was, and he could tell the difference between the original and the imposter. Paul brought his Undertaker to battle DiBiase's Undertaker at Summerslam. The Real Undertaker returned at Summerslam, but with purple gloves and the purple tie as opposed to his traditional black and gray combination. Taker's appearance took on a better quality with darker hair, a goatee, more tattoos and even paler than before. The two Takers started the match staring each other down. The match told a great story as Undertaker conquered his counterfeit counterpart with the Tombstone Piledriver for the win. He overcame the likes of Kama and King Kong Bundy from the Million Dollar Corporation. After conquering Diesel, Undertaker was faced with an opponent whose gameplan he was not prepared for. That opponent was Mankind. Undertaker was wounded both physically and psychologically. Never before had an opponent gained a mental edge on Undertaker until Mankind came on the scene. To make things worse, Paul Bearer betrayed Undertaker at Summerslam.
Highlights:
Defeated Yokozuna in a Casket Match (Survivor Series 1994)
Defeated Diesel (WrestleMania XII)
Started feud with Mankind
Introduced the Buried Alive Match
Defeated Mankind (Buried Alive 1996)
Lord of Darkness (1997-98):
By the start of 1997, Undertaker would dawn a new look. He would do away with the traditional image that fans have associated with him (Mortician) into a much more gothic image. He would sport a black v neck with black spandex along with black crosses. Instead of the classic gloves, he would exchange those for black leather gloves with holes for the fingers. Instead of the classic Undertaker black trenchcoat, he would wear a long black leather sleeveless robe. Taker would also get rid of the hat. However, Undertaker would bring back his classic attire for a special occasion at WrestleMania 13. The Streak was not even a topic of conversation at the time, WM 13 was the first time that Undertaker was in the Main Event during his WrestleMania career. To celebrate, Taker wore the gray gloves and tie for this special moment. That night, he defeated Psycho Sid to capture his second WWF Championship in six years. The match was not among Taker's best, but the moment where he held the belt high was more than enough. This period was when Undertaker enjoyed his longest title reign as WWF Champion from WrestleMania 13 to Summerslam. As Champion, Taker would fight off challengers from Stone Cold Steve Austin, Vader, and others such as a young Hunter Hearst Helmsley. In May 1997, Paul Bearer attempted to rejoin with Undertaker by using an ultimatum of revealing a "deep, dark secret" about his past involving his brother Kane. Taker was troubled with this secret for months as he continued to feud with Bearer. In July, Undertaker defeated Vader in a Casket Match. He would ultimately lose the WWF Title to Bret Hart at Summerslam after Special Referee Shawn Michaels nailed him with the steel chair. Shawn promised to call the match down the middle, because he said that if he did not, then he would not wrestle in the United States anymore. Bret Hart made a similar promise. Taker already had his hands full with the news about Kane, but he had another problem to deal with as this started a feud with him and Shawn. Michaels himself had problems with Bret, and he made another enemy out of Undertaker. When the fans thought they could present sympathy to Shawn, they were wrong. HBK admitted that he meant to hit Taker with the chair. This led to Undertaker challenging Shawn Michaels to the first ever Hell In A Cell Match at Badd Blood 1997. This match was made to determine the number 1 contender for Bret Hart's WWF Championship. The match was absolute warfare and was another revolutionary element of wrestling history from both Taker and Shawn. Just as Taker was ready to put the final nail in the coffin for HBK at the end of the match, Kane arrives with Paul Bearer. The Big Red Machine rips the door off of the cell and climbs into the ring to stare down his older brother. Kane gives Taker a Tombstone Piledriver so that HBK would pick up the win. Undertaker had two feuds running at the same time. Taker would challenge HBK for the WWF Title at the Royal Rumble in a Casket Match. It seemed as though Kane was on his brother's side against DX. However, that was not the case as The Big Red Machine costs The Deadman the Championship. After the match, Kane locked him in the casket and set it ablaze. When the casket lid was reopened, The Undertaker disappeared. Two months later, he returned and decided to fight Kane at WrestleMania. Undertaker defeated Kane at WM XIV and once again at Unforgiven in an Inferno Match. Undertaker would also rekindle his feud with Mankind as he defeated him at King of the Ring in an HIAC (Hell In A Cell Match). He would also win the World Tag Titles with Stone Cold. He would also challenge Austin for the WWF Title at Summerslam. Taker would later join with Kane to form the Brothers of Destruction as they would both challenge Austin for the Title.
Highlights:
Defeated Psycho Sid for the WWF Championship at WrestleMania 13
Started feud with Shawn Michaels
Wrestled in first ever HIAC (Badd Blood '97)
Started feud with Kane
Defeated Kane at WrestleMania XIV
Defeated Mankind at King of the Ring '98
Ministry of Darkness (1999):
By 1999, Undertaker's character took on an even more sinister twist than before. He became more of a cult-like leader of a group called the "Ministry of Darkness". This version of Taker was known for some very infamous moments in WWF/E History. First, he hung Stone Cold on his Undertaker symbol as if he was crucifying Austin. This moment put WWF in very hot water with the media. Parents and others were outraged because it was a very controversial moment. As times became edgier, so did Undertaker. You can't talk about the "Attitude Era" and not bring up how much controversy they created. He hung the Big Boss Man with a hangman's noose after he defeated him in a Hell In A Cell Match at WrestleMania XV. Taker also abducted Stephanie before Stone Cold saved her. During this time, Undertaker defeated Stone Cold to win his third WWF Championship. He would also team with Big Show to win the Tag Titles from The Rock & Sock Connection.
Highlights:
Defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin for the WWF Championship
Won WWF Tag Titles with Big Show
The Biker Era (2000-2003):
The Undertaker made his long awaited return to the WWF at Judgment Day 2000. Only this time, he returned in a way that was non-traditional of the legendary gimmick. In the middle of the Ironman match between The Rock vs. Triple H for the WWF Title, The Undertaker arrives on a motorcycle blasting Kid Rock's music. The fans explode with cheers as Taker clears the ring with Chokeslams and a new finishing move called The Last Ride. Instead of the typical Undertaker ring attire that signified death, The Phenom wore sunglasses, jeans, a scarf and a leather jacket while riding Harley Davidsons. At this time, Undertaker started to talk more. He claimed that he would make his opponents "famous". This was closer to Mark than Undertaker. Not only did he become more humanized but he also put on some extra weight to be honest. During his matches, Taker would wrestle in jeans or leather pants. He would also start to wear the larger black gloves similar to the gloves that they wear in UFC. This would fit in line with Taker being more of a brawler. This version of Undertaker gets mixed reviews. Not my favorite version, but I along with others prefer this over the Ministry version of Taker. During this phase, Undertaker wrestled in the 6-man HIAC Match at Armageddon. He also defeated Triple H at WrestleMania X7. Undertaker would also make Diamond Dallas Page another notch on his belt during the time of the Invasion of WCW/ECW. The Brothers of Destruction would win the WCW Tag Team Titles during the Invasion as they helped Team WWF defeat The Alliance. After the Invasion, Undertaker returned in his Biker form, but as a heel. He would also cut his traditionally long hair. Taker defeated RVD at Vengeance for the Hardcore Title before losing it in February 2002. This version of Undertaker was known as "Big Evil" as he went everywhere demanding respect. Undertaker attacked The Rock and nailed him with a Tombstone on a car backstage. Ric Flair tried to reason with Taker but only made things worse. Undertaker attacked David Flair, which drove Flair past his limit. Flair challenged Big Evil to a match at WrestleMania 18. Undertaker would win as he pummeled the Nature Boy, closing the match with the Tombstone Piledriver to extend his streak to 10-0. Undertaker would defeat Steve Austin at Backlash to become the number 1 contender for Hulk Hogan's Undisputed WWE Championship. At Judgment Day, Undertaker defeated Hulk Hogan to become a four-time WWE Champion. This was the second time Taker defeated Hogan for the Title. The first time was 11 years earlier at Survivor Series. Much like their first match, Taker won with interference. Only this time, it was from Vince McMahon. Taker would hold the title until Vengeance where he lost to The Rock in a Triple Threat Match involving Kurt Angle. After losing the title, Undertaker would find a new rival in the rising phenomenon known as Brock Lesnar. Taker challenged Lesnar for the WWE Title. After their Match at Unforgiven went to a no-contest, Taker and Brock took things inside of the Cell at No Mercy. Their match was a bloodbath with Lesnar winning to retain the title. Taker would close out this gimmick with a Buried Alive Match vs. Vince McMahon at Survivor Series. When Taker had the win in the palm of his hands, in typical little brother fashion Kane interferes.
Highlights:
Defeated Triple H at WrestleMania 17
Won WCW Tag Titles with Kane
Helped Team WWF defeat The Alliance
Defeated RVD for Hardcore Title
Defeated Hulk Hogan for WWE Championship
2004-Present:
After losing the Buried Alive Match at Survivor Series 2003, The Undertaker resurfaced at the 20th Anniversary of WrestleMania (WM XX) on March 20, 2004, at Madison Square Garden. That night, he gained his revenge on Kane, as he defeated his younger brother with the Tombstone Piledriver for the second time on the grandest stage of them all. Taker returned in Deadman form, as he made his entrance with the classic druids. This version of Undertaker has become a hybrid of the classic Taker gimmick mixed with the Biker because he still does the Last Ride. Early on, he also wore the leather pants like the Biker version. Over time, Undertaker has added new weapons to his arsenal of moves. With the inspiration of UFC/MMA, Undertaker has added a Submission hold to his repertoire (Hell's Gate). It is similar to the Triangle Holds in UFC. After defeating Kane, Undertaker would feud with the likes of Booker T, The Dudley Boyz, and JBL throughout 2004. A new, hungry young challenger would look to make a name for himself at the expense of Killing a Legend like Undertaker. That young man's name was Randy Orton. In 2005, Randy Orton was hungry to prove himself and to prove to WWE that he was truly a Legend Killer. From Sgt. Slaughter to Shawn Michaels Cactus Jack to Ric Flair, Randy defeated them all. Now, his biggest test stood in the form of the 6-10 300 lb mythic giant known as The Undertaker. Randy would do his best to show that he was not intimidated by Taker's famous mind games. Orton even gave Jake Roberts the RKO to show that he was ready for Undertaker. At WrestleMania 21, Randy put up a great fight but was killed by the Legend of the Undertaker. Orton would become another statistic of the Streak. Randy would feud with Taker for the rest of the year until the Deadman defeated him at Armageddon to settle the score. Undertaker would also defeat Mark Henry in a Casket Match at WrestleMania 22. In 2007, The Undertaker accomplished something that he had never done before during his illustrious career in WWE. He won the Royal Rumble. Taker drew number 30 and finished as one of the final two men in the Rumble with Shawn Michaels. The fans enjoyed a mini match between them before Taker sent his long-time rival over the top rope. Undertaker was on his way to WrestleMania, as he decided to challenge Batista for the World Heavyweight Title. At WrestleMania 23, Undertaker defeated Batista in a very intense battle to become WHC (World Heavyweight Champion). This was the first time in 10 years that Undertaker left WrestleMania as a Champion, the first time being WrestleMania 13. During this time, Undertaker became the Cornerstone for Smackdown, making him one of the feature stars with the likes of Edge, Batista, and Randy Orton. The quality of his matches greatly improved, especially at WrestleMania. UT and Batista feuded throughout the year over the WHC. When Taker defeated Batista in a Steel Cage Match on Smackdown for the WHC, Edge cashed in his MITB Briefcase on a wounded Deadman. Edge speared Taker to win the Title. Undertaker transitioned from feuding with Batista to feuding with The Rated R Superstar. Taker defeated Edge to regain the World Heavyweight Title at WrestleMania 24 to close the show. Their feud would come to a close at Summerslam, where Undertaker defeated The Ultimate Opportunist in a Hell In A Cell Match. After finishing off his feud with Edge, Undertaker turned his sights to long-time rival Shawn Michaels. They continued what they started in the late '90s. Only this time, the stakes were higher. This was a battle of who was the bigger WrestleMania Legend as Shawn Michaels stepped up to the plate to battle the Streak in a War of Light vs. Darkness. UT and HBK delivered back to back classic WrestleMania Matches as Taker was victorious in both while he sent HBK into retirement at WM XXVI. Taker would feud with Shawn's long-time friend Triple H in back to back WM matches including an HIAC Match at WM XXVIII (End of an Era) with HBK as the Referee. Taker would also defeat CM Punk at WM 29 to defend the honor of Paul Bearer. At WM XXX, the Streak came to a crashing end at the hands of Brock Lesnar. Taker would take a hiatus only to return at WM XXXI to defeat Bray Wyatt before returning to his business with Brock Lesnar. Taker's feud with Brock would pick up again when he cost Lesnar a chance to win the title at Battleground. Undertaker would defeat Brock at Summerslam before Lesnar would defeat him for the last time at Hell In A Cell. The Brothers of Destruction teamed up to defeat the Wyatt Family at Survivor Series. This looks like Taker's farewell. Much like Shawn Michaels, this has been a time where Undertaker has produced some of the best matches of his career.
Highlights:
Defeated Kane at WM XX
Feuded with Randy Orton
Defeated Randy Orton (WM 21)
Won Royal Rumble 2007
Defeated Batista for WHC at WM 23
Feuded with Batista
Feuded with Edge
Defeated Edge at WM 24
Defeated Shawn Michaels at WM XXV & XXVI
Defeated Triple H at WM XXVII & XXVIII
Defeated CM Punk at WM XXIX
Feuded with Brock Lesnar
Innovator:
Undertaker's influence goes beyond his WrestleMania Streak. Taker was an innovator when it came to Specialty Matches. His gimmick introduced Casket Matches, Buried Alive Matches, Boiler Room Brawl, Inferno Matches and HIAC.
Casket Matches:
vs. Kamala (Survivor Series 1992)
vs. Yokozuna (Royal Rumble 1994)
vs. Yokozuna (Survivor Series 1994)
vs. Kama (In Your House- 7/23/95)
vs. Kama (Summerslam 1995)
vs. King Mabel (Seasons Beatings)
vs. Goldust (Beware of the Dog)
vs. Vader (7/21/97)
vs. Shawn Michaels (Royal Rumble 1998)
vs. Kane (10/19/98)
vs. The Rock (5/17/99)
vs. Heidenreich (Royal Rumble 2005)
vs. Randy Orton (No Mercy 2005)
vs. Mark Henry (WrestleMania 22)
Buried Alive Matches:
vs. Mankind (Buried Alive 1996)
vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin (Rock Bottom 1998)
w/Big Show vs. Rock & Sock Connection (RAW 9/9/99)
vs. Vince McMahon (Survivor Series 2003)
vs. Kane (Bragging Rights 2010)
Inferno Matches:
vs. Kane (Unforgiven 1998)
vs. Kane (RAW)
Boiler Room Brawl Matches:
vs. Mankind (KOTR 1996)
HIAC Matches:
vs. Shawn Michaels (Badd Blood 1997)
w/Stone Cold vs. Kane & Mankind (RAW 6/15/98)
vs. Mankind (KOTR 1998)
vs. Austin vs. Rock vs. Triple H vs. Kurt Angle vs. Rikishi (Armageddon 2000)
vs. Brock Lesnar (No Mercy 2002)
vs. Randy Orton (Armageddon 2005)
vs. Batista (Survivor Series 2007)
vs. Edge (Summerslam 2008)
vs. CM Punk (HIAC 2009)
vs. Kane (HIAC 2010)
vs. Triple H (WrestleMania 28)
vs. Brock Lesnar (HIAC 2015)
Title History:WWF Championship:11/27/91-12/3/913/23/97-8/3/975/23/99-6/28/995/19/02-7/21/02World Heavyweight Championship:4/1/07-5/11/073/30/08-5/2/0810/4/09-2/21/10World Tag Titles:7/26/98-8/10/988/22/99-8/30/999/9/99-9/20/9912/18/00-12/21/004/19/01-4/29/018/19/01-9/17/01WCW Tag Titles:8/9/01-9/27/01Hardcore Title:12/9/01-2/7/022007 Royal Rumble Winner
Undertaker has enjoyed some of the greatest matches and feuds in WWE History. In honor of his 25th Anniversary, I have compiled a list of his 25 Greatest Matches. They range from the quality of the match itself, the storyline surrounding the match and the significance involved. Ladies and Gentlemen, here are Undertaker's Top 25 Matches.
Top 25 Matches:
1. vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 25)
2. vs. Shawn Michaels (Badd Blood 1997)
3. vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 26)
4. vs. Triple H (WrestleMania 28)
5. vs. Kane (WrestleMania 14)
6. vs. Mankind (KOTR 1998)
7. vs. Edge (WrestleMania 24)
8. vs. Triple H (WrestleMania 27)
9. vs. Batista (WrestleMania 23)
10. Royal Rumble 2007
11. vs. Kurt Angle (No Way Out 2006)
12. vs. Bret Hart (Summerslam 1997)
13. vs. Edge (Summerslam 2008)
14. vs. Brock Lesnar (No Mercy 2002)
15. vs. CM Punk (WrestleMania 29)
16. vs. Hulk Hogan (Survivor Series 1991)
17. vs. Randy Orton (WrestleMania 21)
18. vs. Edge (One Night Stand 2008)
19. vs. Mankind (Boiler Room Brawl)
20. vs. The Rock vs. Kurt Angle (Vengeance 2002)
21. vs. Mankind (Buried Alive 1996)
22. vs. Brock Lesnar (HIAC 2015)
23. Survivor Series Debut
24. vs. Diesel (WrestleMania XII)
25 vs. "Undertaker" (Summerslam 1994)
Undertaker has been one of the single most influential figures to ever step into a squared circle. He has changed the perception of Big Men in Wrestling. There was no other Big Man/Giant before him that wrestled the way that he did and accomplished what he did. The Phenom is a one of a kind character that will only be seen once in a lifetime. Enjoy it while you can, because we will never see another star like this again in our generation. As far as the Book, I would give it 5 out of 5 Undertaker WWF Championships. I would give it 10 Tombstone Piledrivers out of 10.
