I never expected this to be my return to wrestling writing, but after some discussion it was clear of all of the With Spandex refugees I was the most qualified. The Undertaker debuted 30 years ago at Survivor Series 1990. I began watching wrestling regularly a few months later. My first live show was supposed to be headlined by one of the Undertaker/Ultimate Warrior Body Bag matches. My Dad was always a huge Undertaker homer, comparing him to Vampire Freddie Blassie. Yes, we’re all old.
It’s hard to explain the mystique of The Undertaker to the younger set. It was hard enough when I was a ref back in the early ’00s when the dynamic was trying to defend not utterly hating UT. It’s been trendy to hate him for half my life. I accept every single criticism. Hell, I make most of them.
But he truly is The Phenom.
I can laugh and snark and tear apart every angle. It’s so easy.
I can DEFINITELY criticize him as a person.
There are things I can point to and call him out over. (Burying DDP for example.)
But there was so much more there.
The aura was real. Anyone that was ever there live felt it. The energy was palpable, even at home. Whether he was coming out to destroy a “youngster” in 1991 or for a Saudi pay day in 2019, the aura and the energy was there. Did he always live up to it? Of course not. Nothing could. Nothing can ever live up to the “ideal” of The Undertaker.
Undertaker has never been about the wins or losses. It’s always been about the impression and the memory. Taker vs Giant Gonzales at Mania IX might be one of the worst matches EVER, but we remember it. Mr. Blue Lives Matter hanging a cop in Hell in a Cell at Mania XV? The match was terrible, but the visual was stunning. The Undertaker has been part of some of the most over-the-top segments of all time. For a fan of the absurd in wrestling, he stands alone on top.
He begins and is the ultimate evolution of the WWE obsession with spectacle over content. And what spectacle. Urns. Druids. Fire. Caskets. A fat pale guy with a high-pitched voice that eventually died drowning in a vat of concrete. Sometimes (often) it was ridiculous. But it was memorable. Ridiculous, stupid, fun and memorable. Anyone that focused on how “dumb” The Undertaker gimmick is missed the point. “Dumb” was the point. The entertaining and often hilarious point.
In terms of content, Taker delivered as much or more than anyone else WWE has put in the top tier. The very first angle I remember watching as a kid was Jake the Snake “teaching” The Ultimate Warrior how to beat The Undertaker. (Trust me) I was 11 and thought it was the funniest thing I had ever seen. It was my introduction to the craziness of pro wrestling. When Taker turned on Jake, I was hooked.
I quit watching regularly during the Monday Night Wars era, but have tried to catch up on the highlights. In my opinion, one of the best matches of that whole period was the main event of SummerSlam ’97. Bret Hart and The Undertaker had a unique chemistry going back to his original Survivor Series debut. If you like pro wrestling, that match should be on your watch list. No matter what you think about the competitors or the era.
I was going to try and talk up his 00’s part of the streak, but there is little point. Either you “got” it or you didn’t. The early part of the streak was questionable. The later part was legendary. In particular, his feuds with Batista and Edge stick out in my memory. It’s rare I can point to a period where the main event was my favorite part of the show. That era of Smackdown though was as strong as anything before or since on weekly tv.
At this point I have probably rambled much longer than most people would care. So let me wrap this up by saying that The Boneyard match was better than I ever expected to get this late in his career. It was a perfect encapsulation of the silliness of his entire angle and career. A more than fitting sendoff for the big man. Other than never facing Sting, there are no more paths for him to conquer. He can rest…in…peace.
Thank you Taker.
