The Undertaker's Protoge

[Rockafella]

Now we all know that the Undertaker's career is slowly but surely winding down. When he leaves, the WWE will be losing a huge "character" (notice I didn't say personality). I know the "E" doesn't really do characters anymore, as we usually just see big muscle heads dragging each other around the ring nowadays. Off the top of my head, the Undertaker is probably the last larger than life character left in the WWE (Kane doesn't count because he doesn't really have that persona anymore, but I could be wrong).

With that being said, do you think there would be any chance that the Undertaker could maybe "recruit" somebody to take his place? There are a few ways that I considered, that could actually work if the WWE wanted to go through with it.

1) The Undertaker could finally beat Kane, only to have Paul Bearer tell him that he forgot about a certain "family member." Have this mysterious member haunt Undertaker for weeks. Huge build up of course, have him booked to be STRONGER than Taker. Have the fued finish up with the new guy ending the infamous streak. (He HAS to in order to take his place, or be "passed the torch".)

2) Have Kane continuously destroy Undertaker until Taker himself reveals that Kane wasn't Taker's only younger brother. Have the brother debut and completely destroy Kane. (THIS NEW GUY MUST HAVE A MASK TOO ADD DEPTH TO THE STORY). Eventually the brother will turn on Taker saying how they both had left him for dead in the "fire" (the same one that Kane was burned in, although I'm probably off by a long shot on the story cuz I don't remember it.) Have the fued culminate at Wrestlemania with the new guy beating both brothers of destruction in the same match.

Now obviously this would not be an easy task to do because they would need somebody willing to dedicate their entire career to this one character. Obviously let him have the same moveset, size, and "powers," that Taker and Kane possess. This is by far a long stretch, but I think this would be amazing to watch. It would let us keep the feeling that one of our favourite characters from the last while will have somebody to take his place.

So what are your thoughts? Could this work? How would YOU want this to happen?

This is my first thread, pls don't tear my balls off if something is wrong >.<

 

[tjfjr4488]

that would be an awesome story line bc im 22 and i was young but i still remember the story line and build up for the debut for kane and it was awesome and exciting to tune in every week to see what was happening next. this would be an awesome idea.... have be like an twin of kane that neither of them knew about beside paul bearer or a younger cousin who is just now finally ready to make his mark....wow i wish this story line would happen

 

[Krobra]

I've thought about someone taking the shoes of the Undertaker when he retires, but this will probably not happen. This 'brother' would have to be in his late twenties, when Taker's and Kane's parents died. I am pretty sure that if they were going to use this story line, it wouldn't make sense. I mean, how could you not remember your mom being pregnant? Unless she gave birth in the fire, I doubt this story line would be believable. Will anyone take Taker's place? Impossible. Will someone try to replicate the streak? Maybe. I can see a wrestler a generation or two from now trying to replicate the streak by going undefeated at Wrestlemania.

If I was going to make a Taker Protege storyline, I would have Taker announce a hand picked wrestler that he feels can 'control the darkness'. This guy may not need to have the same gimmick as Taker or Kane, but definitely a monster heel/face. Have this guy 'continue the streak' by giving him strong opponents to face at Wrestlemania, and restart a streak. Thing is, where are we going to find a star like that who WWE can trust to push this guy to be the next 'Taker of WWE'?

 

[Raven]

very good idea for a first thread man, i think undertaker is really the "last of a dying breed" so to speak, he is some one that even non-wrestling fans know. so i beleive that if done right they could make taker have a protege of sorts, but i say go a diffrent route, have a guy come in with a dark gimmick, get on a winning streak then have a match with kane where he completly destroys the new guy (who will be regered to as X for the rest of my post) have kane beat X viciously ina cage match or inferno, then the lights go out an takers music hits and kane is laying on the floor and taker over him with X in the corner looking intimadated, taker turns to X an shakes his hand,the ultimate dighn of respect in the wwe a handshake from taker, then from there on out taker train X and he becomes "bigger,faster,stronger,smarter,better" an he doesnt really need a name like "the undertaker" maybe his name could be Mourge as in a funeral mourge and later on he sits down with taker an explains he is redy to take the torch and its X vs taker at wm maybe throw in kane and well yea
but overall you have a very good idea

 

[Captain Jive]

umm.....no.
It would be too dumb to bring in yet another brother. Where has he been the past 13 years since Kane debuted? And its not likely that either one of them just completely forgot they had another brother. Its basically the exact same as the Kane debut, just with a new guy. If someone breaks the streak, then thats a claim Undertaker wont be able to make anymore. So when he retires, he will just be a guy that hung around for a couple of decades and won half the championships that people who have put in half the time or less than he did. He needs the streak.

Also any Undertaker 'protege' will only be seen as a rip off, no matter how its done.

 

[TheFatManFromYoutube]

You could have it Be Undertakers son too. A brother, ehh, But a son who wants vengeance, Say Undertaker abandoned then for the dark side.Hell You could use Matt Morgan for this if they hired him back. I like the storyline idea. The Reason I said Morgan is because of his size and wrestling ability., Takers and kane are huge so id imagine him to be big to. But Matt is also 34(maybe taker was a pimp when he was 11 lol), so if they wanted his "son" or "brother" to be around longer they would have to hire some one else.

Hell Hire back Aloisia and have Morgan and Aloisia as his kids lol.

 

[MrHashasheen]

This idea has potential, but not as you suggested.

No, not as son or a brother, but a Disciple.

Keep Taker off screen until he recovers, maybe even longer just in case. Kane goes through his storyline with Edge, and Edge eventually wins the title. Kane is intent on regaining it, with Paul Bearer behind him, when this new disciple hits Smackdown and ambushes Kane. And then the Undertaker appears, on the TitanTron, telling Kane that even though he has clawed his way back out of hell, he is still recovering. But he has discovered a powerful student of the Darkness that has made him and Kane who they are. He had made him his disciple, and commanded him to destroy Kane in his stead.

Cue feud between Kane and the new Disciple of Darkness, with Undertaker appearing every now and then in promos with the new guy to get him over and build up his character.

 

[acstylez]

I liked every part of it exept for 2 things. 1 the streak should be left alone. Taker is the greatest wrestler of all time. So to have some newbee, storyline or not, beat the dead man is a terrible idea.. this is 20 years of being the best wrestler alive, gone down the drain. Plus if he tries to turn face the fans might still have that against him. 2 I don't think that having 2 new guys even with pauls help could defeat or should defeat the BOD. Maybe instead it should be a forway for the world heavyweight championship. Taker wins, grabs a mic and says "I--I have nothing to proov". Taker drops the title, and smoke rushes. In the ring. Then when it clears taker is gone. Then Taker can retire and the new guys can still establish then selves as top stars.

 

[acstylez]

I liked every part of it exept for 2 things. 1 the streak should be left alone. Taker is the greatest wrestler of all time. So to have some newbee, storyline or not, beat the dead man is a terrible idea.. this is 20 years of being the best wrestler alive, gone down the drain. Plus if he tries to turn face the fans might still have that against him. 2 I don't think that having 2 new guys even with pauls help could defeat or should defeat the BOD. Maybe instead it should be a forway for the world heavyweight championship. Taker wins, grabs a mic and says "I--I have nothing to proov". Taker drops the title, and smoke rushes. In the ring. Then when it clears taker is gone. Then Taker can retire and the new guys can still establish then selves as top stars.

 

[6timehitta]

Hmmm I like the son idea, but instead of Morgan, he might just be finding his niche in TNA, use someone from FCW. I'm talking about Jackson Andrews!!!!! This guys is huge, pretty good on the mic and a decent worker. If you wanted a slow, lumbering, stooge, you could use Eli Cottonwood as like a mindless meat puppet, but Andrews could be used, and tbh id love to see it happen. Andrews and Kane could be pretty entertaining IMO.

 

[DamienM855]

I've actually been thinking of the ways Taker could retire, and whatever way it happens, it absolutely HAS to be at mania.

In my opinion there's 3 ways Taker could do this.

1. Have yet ANOTHER match with Kane, and finish off a legendary and long-running fued.
2. Find someone talented, dedicated, and loyal enough to the WWE to become his protoge - and while this is a perfectly good idea, there is the problem of making the fans believe in this new guy, not to mention actually finding a guy to do it.

or 3. As many of the IWC agrees, the time has come to turn Cena into a mega-heel. But imagine if Cena was to screw Taker out of his supposed retirement match THIS mania, only for Taker to re-appear NEXT mania and give us the send-off of a century by beating the biggest heel the company has seen in years.

 

[EssJay76]

When I read this thread, I started to think about the idea I had for bringing in James Mitchell. I thought that he should have been with Kane to counter Paul Bearer. The sinister Minister would have been a great addition to Kane, but as we all know they decided to have Paul join his son and turn on Taker.

I think there is a great way to still use a character like the Sinister Minister, bring back Taker AND introduce a protégé. I also really like the idea of a disciple that was mentioned in an earlier post. When Taker is closer to being ready to come back they could start vignettes with Mitchell and some druids wanting to search for Undertaker. The druid and Mitchell could start their search and also show up on Smackdown to distract Kane. This could lead Kane to attack the druid and dominate the druid for a few weeks until Undertaker is found. Upon resurrecting Taker from hell, the druid would also learn to harness to powers of the dark side, just like Taker and Kane. The druid would return to Smackdown, defeat Kane and then bring back the Undertaker.

This could also be used to lighten Taker&#8217;s workload and even recreate the Ministry of Darkness. When Taker is ready to retire from the WWE, the MoD could turn on Taker and welcome Kane into the fold. If Kane retires first they could get rid of him first or turn on them both, reuniting the Brothers of Destruction as they leave the WWE.

For this to work, you need someone who is young, tall and very strong to play the druid. Looking at the current FCW talent roster I would go with either Jackson Andrews (my top pick) or Mason Ryan (looks like a long lost brother of Batista). Unfortunately we&#8217;ve already seen Eli Cottonwood and know how he wrestles.

As for the streak.... it should NEVER be ended! The only exception would be if Undertaker suggests it to Vince first.

 

[VinnieSunshine]

All good, valid ideas. Im gonna throw my thoughts here as well. We'll start at the present time.

Kane, thinking he is rid of the Undertaker once and for all, goes on a dominating run as champion. Come RR time, things start to really shake up. Lights go out and when they come back his symbol is hanging on the stage, Kane starts to see visions of Taker, things start happening backstage...etc.

Have Kane win at RR. As he is walking off, the lights go out and a video plays of a camera going throw a cemetery. Kane starts flipping out as Bearer tries to calm him down.

After all this goes on for some time, Kane cuts a promo about how it isn't real, Taker is dead...etc. The lights go out and a blast of lightning ignites Takers symbol. Kane looks scared.

Eventually a video would play of druids digging at Takers grave until is hand comes up from the ground.

Taker reforms the ministry (not as dark) and his first recruit becomes his protege. After Taker eventually beats Kane and reclaims the title, the protege goes to Taker and challenges him at WM for the title, the streak and control of the ministry.

Taker wins, but not before giving control of the ministry to him anyway. Taker announces his retirement and goes off to retire as the champion. The title then is given to Takers protege, since he was the last #1 contender.

 

[Dr. Stinger A. Zoidberg]

No. The reason for that is because there will never be another Undertaker. There is nobody that the WWE can use that can even scratch the surface of being like Taker. Your idea about the whole "brother" thing just wouldnt work. When Paul Bearer told his story over and over again in the 90's while building up Kane's debut, he said that there were only two children, Taker and Kane. In order for there to be another brother, he would have to be an age just a bit younger than Kane, who is 43. The WWE wouldnt start a storyline with a superstar who is getting old. So the answer to this is a definitive 'No'.

 

[Calderownz]

I'd be nice, in many ways, but Taker isn't losing at WrestleMania, if he even competes. It just isn't happening.

Nonetheless, another brother or a son role could make a lot of sense. Especially if it were Kane's son, since 'Taker is too known and if he had a "son," many would wonder how this was never figured out beforehand.

Nonetheless, I love the character idea, since I think it always adds a different element to the stories and how the match unfolds.

 

[Otsegolectric]

Very interesting ideas.

I think a way to fit in a third "Brother of Destruction" would be if it was revealed by Kane that the reason he was burned when Undertaker "burned down the funeral home" was because he had to go back and rescue his baby brother. Remember, Kane is only the half-brother of 'Taker so that would explain why Undertaker is unaware of his existence. Kane saved the child and now he's here for vengeance.

Any number of things could be done with this story and eventually all three brothers could join together with Undertaker passing the torch.

 

[Tech N9ne]

Whether it be a younger brother or not. The whole idea is murdered when you said "end the streak". I get what you are saying, but ending the streak to push someone is stupid. I have never liked that idea. To me, no one's push or beginning to a career is worth ending that record.

Taker will not go down as the best in the ring or with the most title reigns. Yet he is one of, if not the best wrestler of all time. The streak is what will go down in history with Undertaker and should be mentioned when his name is mentioned in 20 years. He deserves the streak to remain intact when he leaves. It will be his biggest claim to fame.

If there was some random idea to bring in a 3rd son in this story, I would feel more comfortable if he beat Kane at Mania. Then later in some sort of way, turn on Taker and beat him as well. Just not at Wrestlemania.

EDIT: Also, back when Khali debuted they had him destroy Undertaker. Imagine if they would have had that great idea for WM? What a horrible mistake that would have been. I think in a sense, having someone beat Taker at Mania would work opposite. I actually think having someone beat him would be setting that guy up to fail. I think being the guy to beat Taker at Mania would be a lot of hype to live up to and might ruin someone before they even get their fair shake.

Shawn Michaels was just named the top superstar in the history of the WWE. He failed twice at defeating Undertaker at Wrestlemania and was even retired in the process of not succeeding in taking the streak down. Now (For Example) Matt Morgan in a mask, or Abyss, or Rob Terry with his hair died black, in a mask is supposed to come in and take the record like that??

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

The idea is certainly not bad but it is a bit soap opera-ish. These kind of stories are no longer the norm in PG WWE these days so I think you can rule out the chances of this happening.

Plus as some other poster said that if you debut a character like the Undertaker or Kane they will generally not find that much acceptance because of the cult popularity of the original two and will be looked down upon as poor imitations.

Also I don't think that Undertaker loosing at Mania is a good idea let alone to a newcomer.

Plus any guy who retires the Undertaker( again does not need to happen at Wrestlemania) will get over huge as a heel for retiring such a popular babyface so again there iss no need for your idea to come true.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

When I read this thread, I started to think about the idea I had for bringing in James Mitchell. I thought that he should have been with Kane to counter Paul Bearer. The sinister Minister would have been a great addition to Kane, but as we all know they decided to have Paul join his son and turn on Taker.

I think there is a great way to still use a character like the Sinister Minister, bring back Taker AND introduce a protégé.

Mitchell would have perfect as manager of Kane. He is great on the mic and could get Kane even more over as an evil pcychotic monster. I hate that fact that Mitchell is not signed to either WWE or TNA right now, he is too good a talent to waste.

As for Undertaker having a protoge...hmmmm I dont know if I like the idea. It sounds cool and all, but it would be setting a guy up to fail if he was expected to follow in the great Undertakers shoes. The streak should not end either, as it it Undertakers legacy, and should remain that way. It has been well deserved for an incredibly loyal company man, and to take it away in retirement would be stupid.

Plus leaving the streak intact leaves it open for rare comback appearances at WM by Taker in future years.

 

[Vega]

I like the idea of Undertaker hiring and training a successor, but don't let them fight against each other, but together, until the end of Taker's career. Let him inofficially continue the streak and be rarely accompanied by Taker. He'd have to to inherit the power of the urn and some other mannerisms.

But there is just one problem: The guy would have to be a tremendous talent, somebody, whose talent shines so bright that a fail is almost impossible. The guy would have to keep the gimmick until the end of his career and must not be too well known by now. He must - to an extent - look like the Undertaker and be fairly big and strong. I don't see this guy right now. The closest choice would be Tyler Black. He has a bit of the Undertaker look, is a tremendous talent and already played a rather dark character in The Age Of Fall. However, he's really not that big and strong and maybe could get more over with other gimmicks.

 

[People's Champ]

That idea wouldn't work. The Undertaker is a one of a kind persona, character, whatever you would like to call it. And its been played so well for so long that having someone try to replace him when he leaves wouldn't go over well. The WWE has tried bringing these type of dark guys to go up against the Undertaker and they never get over.

Besides that, the WWE is beyond that now. The Undertaker is a unique character, a product of a time when we saw these unreal, cartoonish characters from the WWE. They just don't do that anymore. and that would need to be done in order to bring this "brother" around. While it seems like a good idea, it just wouldn't work in today's WWE.

 

[NWannabe]

While the character is steeped in mystique and all that crap, he's also revered as loyal, badass, and a great worker. I say great as in throughout his entire career, he has never been forgotten about. Taken in that context he could 'knight' some wwe superstar to hold down the yard or some crap. CM punk could be that guy, and given the crap he's been trudging through while still staying interesting to fans, this all could be a rite of passage.


But I doubt that, they will try something quick and flashy and it will flop.

 

[Tequila Dave]

I'm sorry to say I'm not a fan of this idea.

There is a reason that 'dark' and 'larger than life' characters don't work in the WWE anymore, and that's because they're hard to relate to or take seriously; WWE fans sinply won't easily accept a dark character. The Brothers of Destruction work so well mainly for nostalgic reasons; If 'Taker and debuted today with his gimmick, I can guarentee he wouldn't be anywhere near as succsessful. (For proof that dark gimmicks aren't very well recepted look at Kevin Thorn/Mordecai.)

Also, the WWE would have to have HUGE faith in someone to defeate both the Brothers of Destruction at Wrestlemania. I mean, they must be 100% sure that an individual can carry the WWE for years to come before they bestow upon him the biggest honor a wrestler can achieve (defeating The Undertaker's streak.)

I don't want to see another dark character and I don't want to see a rookie end The Undertaker's streak.

 

[slimmshady]

Interesting idea. I have also thought of this idea previously but instead of someone replacing the undertaker, I had always liked the idea of someone replacing kane. I thought that if they remasked kane, somewhere down the line wwe could train up a new comer who could learn all the trademark moveset of the current kane and eventually take up his place. They could make up a storyline revolving around the mask where it has decided to stop using glen jacobs as the vessel and moves onto another vessel (ie the new comer to pronounce as the next kane). But I also like the undertaker idea. However, the problem is you would have to find someone commited and talented enough to take up such a huge legacy. Remember that the legacy of the undertaker is huge and therefore this new comer has to step up to the mark just as kane did at bad blood 97. A storyline for the undertakers replacement could revolve around the current undertaker anouncing that the legacy of the undertaker will live forever and hand picking the next deadman. However, like someone mentioned before, the PG era doesn't do this storyline any justice and will most likely turn into a watered down load of crap.

 

[Genius_Deadman]

i think the WWE needs a new big "dark side" type of character, especially if Taker retires, but certainly nothing too close to the Taker gimmick itself.

the idea of another brother is too far fetched, even for the WWE kiddies nowadays. i mean, look at how much they already butchered the great storyline it once was. Kane's early run was that he was burned his whole life, then they change it with Katie Vick and that he was going to a school function? come on now lol then he was never burned, which just eliminates everything Bearer said back in the day.

the only honestly logical thing is if they swerve it a bit. bring in someone exactly like Glenn Jacobs as the masked Kane and say they switched it with the 3rd brother and that the actual Kane was spared the mask losing. other than that, i don't see how the whole storyline survives to be honest.

if you want an Undertaker protege, i'd consider just a druid type character who's been under Taker's wing for years. since he told Kane he hasn't told him everything about his powers, he's the only guy he's shared the knowledge with. he can't really make a Ministry of Darkness because of the prior character of the stable, it was too evil. he could be a manager type gimmick or just a figure in the stable (like the big guy who was Taskmaster's father in the Dungeon).