If Big Evil never happened...

[DethMetal]

Two threads in one day. Hot damn, I'm on a roll!!

So, think back to 200-2003. Think back to when the Undertaker stepped away from the Dark Side and became the Amer. Badass/Big Evil. What do you think would've happened if The Undertaker never made that transition. What if he stayed on the Dark Side? What do you think he could've done? Who he could've feuded with?

Discuss.

 

[THEpapachamp]

His Wrestlemania matches at WM 17/18 & 19 defiantly would of been ALOT better..

WM 17 against HHH - Not remembered (Thank God they are doing it again)

WM 18 against Ric Flair - A Dark Undertaker vs. Ric Flair would of been alot more entertaining. Just to see Flair react to his mind games.

WM 19 against Big Show & Albert - WORST match Undertaker has ever had a WM point blank period.

I hated the American Bad Ass as a face.. Big Evil was a decent heel turn for Undertaker. But nowhere near as good as his Ministry heel turn.

The Undertaker should of ended his career as such, his turn back into the Phenom has been nothing but disappointing since.

 

[Hazardous]

In all honesty, I think things were better the way they turned out. While he didn't have as many memorable matches as A.B.A. I enjoyed the short haired Big Evil gimmick. Some great matches happened during this time, including some epic ones with Brock. Even a match or 2 with Benoit, and Cena. If he would have kept the deadman image (which if you remember he all but killed off before he even left) I don't see a lot of anything going on. No Hardcore title runs, or Undisputed title run. No match with Flair, Hogan, or McMahon (wait.. Maybe that's a good thing..) A lot different though. It was a good change, and being buried alive, gave the Deadman one more round.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I think he would still have feuded with most of the same people. I dont understand all the hate for the biker gimmick. I get that some people think that Undertaker was betraying his character by returning from injury in a more "human" form but I LOVED it.

I was never a fan of the Ministry Undertaker (am I now, but I hated it back then), and I thought the American Bad Ass was fantastic. It made me want a chopper motorcycle. He had great ring music, introduced a fantastic new finisher in The Last Ride, and was just really cool. It was a welcome change for me.

However, the heel shorthaired Big Evil was awesome too. The Undertaker going for the Hardcore title was pretty cool, he was just going round kicking ass ( I remember him destroying Maven with a chair and the great Jeff Hardy ladder match) and I much preferred his promos around this time compared to anything he has done since returning to the Dead Man gimmick. There is only so much you can say in promo's now, but he had alot more freedom as Big Evil.

I still think he would have had more title reigns, still been near the top of the company but I reckon he would have had to change from the Ministry persona at some point as it was getting a bit stale. I think the biker/bad ass/big evil gimmick was beneficial to Taker, as it made his character more fresh when he returned to his roots at WM to face Kane.

 

[EasyE]

Personally I liked Big Evil. IMO it also shows how great he is that he was able to CUT OFF his hair, stop dying it, basically become human instead of supernatural and he got it over big time. Plus it made the deadman gimmick more meaningful when he went back to it. The best pro wrestlers can evolve their gimmick and still be over. Taker, Hogan, Jericho, HBK, HHH, Orton, Sting just to name a few.

 

[DethMetal]

I think he would still have feuded with most of the same people. I dont understand all the hate for the biker gimmick. I get that some people think that Undertaker was betraying his character by returning from injury in a more "human" form but I LOVED it.

Don't get me wrong bro. I loved Big Evil. I loved the Dark Side Taker more, but Big Evil was quite interesting and the gimmick was fun and unique. No hate for Big Evil. Just wondering what would've happened if he came back still the Lord of Darkness.

 

[spinningtorturerack]

Although many people thought it wasn't that a good of a run, I loved it. And I think, more importantly, it made his dark side character a far more relevant again. Without the break from his character, I think we would have found him becoming stale a lot more quickly. There was not many places to take his dark side character when he became injured, and by taking it into the new century as a new character, it meant coming back to it he was a certified legend and the old taker character was more respected, not laughed at for being stupid.

 

[MizterColemine]

I was very excited for him to return as ABA. It was very effective and quite the surprise in terms of having switched his style up. Very fresh. My gripe was with his return at WM20 as the DeadMan. It was the opposite of his Judgment Day Biker return. Where as ABA was fresh and edgy, the Phenom return was bland, and relied on nostalgia as opposed to bringing something that still said "DeadMan", but was a little more fresh than the boring music and plain look. He should've mixed a little more Ministry Taker into it for that extra badassness.
Now to the original post. I would also be inclined to think that the gimmick change was the best way to go for the UnderTaker's persona at the time. That stint was a good way to keep him relevant as the Attitude Era was in its final breaths. It also gave us something to look forward to, as EVERYONE was wanting to see him going back to being the dark, the mysterious, the powerful, the frightening, the mythical, the un-dead, the legendary- PHENOM!!!

 

[whoopin' ass]

i agree with a lot of people - Big Evil Undertaker was a good step for him(still have that shirt with the devil face on the front). after the whole ministry thing, Taker needed to be reinvented and the American Badass was a natural way to do it. Big Evil was just the next step in that. Had he not taken that route, he may have gone the Hogan route where people were just bored with the character. I feel that way now - we have seen this before, they make a big deal everytime he comes back but we know he is going to wrestle one, maybe two matches, and then disappear again for 6 months. Big Evil let him reinvent the old Undertaker for a new generation.