Why the Undertaker?

[klunderbunker]

In wrestling, we've seen a lot of really out there gimmicks, ranging from a half human half turkey to a voodoo priest to an evil dentist to the world's largest love machine. Most gimmicks like these just don't work at all for one simple reason: people don't take them seriously and they're pulled from the company and the wrestler is repackaged. I've been reviewing Survivor Series and one of the shows got me thinking: why is the Undertaker immune to the bad gimmick effect?

Undertaker's gimmick is one of the most over the top ones ever: he's more or less a zombie. He doesn't feel pain, he has weird powers like controlling light and fire, he's been flat out demonic at times, and allegedly he's ice cold. Think about that for a minute. How ridiculous does that sound to you? That can last nearly 20 years but the half man half turkey only lasts maybe two weeks? What i want to know is simple: why do you think the Undertaker, who has one of the most off the wall gimmicks off all time, has lasted so long and not suffered the same fate as the other weird gimmicks?

 

[KKarvox]

Because it started when out there gimmicks were normal, and it has been around so long that its become a staple in WWE. Had it started now, he probably would have been repackaged or future en-devoured like Kevin Thorn or the Boogeyman, but it started in the cartoony era where weird gimmicks were the norm. He also took a break from the deadman gimmick as Big Evil/ABA, so it broke it up from becoming stale.

 

[Vintage Nick]

Perhaps because it's been used correctly? Maybe it was just iconic because he had the build/look/attitude? Those are currently the only two solutions I can come up with, but I feel that there are more stranger gimmicks than "The Deadman/Phenom" out there. We had Bastion Booger (good lord), we had Eugene (kind of a poor choice of a gimmick), Doink the Clown, The Party-Boy man, and don't forget The Yeti.

All in all, Mark Callaway just seems to have the better luck and managing to hold onto being The Demon of Death Valley" for almost twenty years (remember, he had the break as The American Badass and Big Evil), and I still don't think it's gotten stale.

 

[SSJPhenom]

Simple: Because the man behind The Phenom is extraordinary!

Unlike most of the other gimmicks that you named, Mark Callaway can actually wrestle, he has the build, the look, the mic skills, and he has said that he just simply loves playing that character. He is smart enough to know when to change the 'Taker character's gimmick up a little bit and that is also what has kept him going for this long. He is able to make his character fresh.

In the Attitude Era, after the Kane feud, they really sort of shyed away from the weird powers and what not and just made him like a demonic/satanic guy and that worked then because of how edgy the Attitude Era was. Then they brought him back as more or less himself on a motorcycle, which worked then because of 9/11. Then they brought him back as a mixture of both deadman and biker which, IMO, is the best incarnation of him yet. By this time, however, he was already an icon in the WWE, so now he is just so respected and loved by everyone that it doesn't matter what he does, he will remain a top of the WWE favorites.

So I think that it is a combination of his wrestling know how, his ability to change his character to remain fresh, and how seriously Mark takes the character. He has really taken and over the top gimmick and turned it into a wrestling legend and icon. Well done Mark.

 

["Cool Guy" Jensen]

It's mostly due to booking, and the fact that The Undertaker is Awesome! The timing that Undertaker debuted came at a wonderful time for him to succeed. Unlike some other gimmicks. I also think it has to do with the fact that you said, Undertaker's gimmick is "over-the-top"... not ridiculous. Gobbley Gooker? Ridiculous! The Shockmaster? Ridiculous. Papa Shango? Let's move on...

Also the fact that The Undertaker changes his gimmick every now and then. Tries to keep it fresh, although the same situations.

Plus... if The "Undertaker" gimmick didn't work, I'm sure that Mark Callaway would do anything he can to help out the gimmick and try to improve it in order to make it seem better and get people more into it. He's booked well and he gets the fans on his side... that's pretty much all it takes!

 

[Blade]

Ok, I'm gonna throw out a less biased opinion than "Cause he's brilliant!"

There's a few factors that are involved. He came at a time when cartoonish gimmicks were really starting to become popular in the WWF. He was like a pioneer if you will. I'm guessing maybe people were getting sick of gimmicks that were just people with various personality traits. It was new, it was different so I guess people paid attention.

Then there was the way he was booked. He was booked as unstoppable at a time when kayfabe ruled. There were no internet sites giving away secrets and backstage gossip. People believed what they saw (to a certain extent) so again, people started to pay attention to this seeminlgy unstoppable being. He ended Hulk Hogan's 3rd WWF title reign at a time when Hulk Hogan was still huge.

And then there's the way the character was played by Mark Calloway. When people first saw The Undertaker, it was fucking creepy. Calloway's pale, expressionless face and the way he rolled his eyes, that music, and how well he executed that devastating tombstone. People believed the character.

And lastly, how the character has changed with the times. He was cartoon-ey in the time of cartoonish gimmicks with the deadman gimmick, he was controversial when WWF was most controversial with the Ministry, he was cool and hip when the WWF was cool and hip with the biker gimmick, and now it's back to trying to get the kid audience, so he's back to being the crazy gimmick. Well, he's so loved and respected that he'd be over in any gimmick, but still.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

There are a lot of factors overall. The Undertaker came along at the right time, they booked him exactly as they should have for the most part in the first few years of his time in the WWF, and people took it seriously. Even though the character is somewhat over the top, they downplayed a lot about it. He was dark, but not too dark. He was dark and creepy, but they didn't go to cartoonish levels of creepiness and evil.

Ultimately, however, a lot of the credit has to go to Mark Calaway himself. He was this stoic, silent, near 7 foot 300 pound man that did things in the ring that most people had never seen men his size do. He had size, strength, speed, agility, balance and this "superhuman" tolerance for pain that was believable because of how Calaway pulled it off. Keeping him undefeated for the first year he was in the company helped a lot to, as did giving him a win over Hulk Hogan. While his first loss was to Hogan, the WWF portrayed Hogan as having to cheat to beat the Undertaker. So by the time the WWF did start to go really over the top with the character, he'd just taken root. Fans respected Calaway and what he brought to the Undertaker character.

 

[Doomsday Device]

Its the man behind the gimmick.

If they would have given the exact gimmick to someone else it may have not worked at all. Besides the look, Mark had/has the heart, brains, passion, and desire to survive and keep going.

If they would have given that gimmick to some quitter guy, someone who gets injured just by sneezing, or someone with a drug & alcohol problem the gimmick would not have been as successful as it is.

Sure, this whole deadman thing captured people's interest and imagination, perfect timing to come up with that too, in 1990. When you had the yellow and red Flag waving goodie guy Hulk and Warrior, here came this guy in all black with a bit of grey and never seemed to be short of breath or sweat. Shit that was cool.

Plus Taker had the ability to reinvent himself, before getting too stale with the crowd. Whether it was a new storyline or his attire.

The gimmick itself is great, but its the man behind it who made it was it is today.

 

[ccotreau1]

the only other gimmick that seems to not get stale is HBK...because the person behind the character makes it work

 

[SSJPhenom]

The Undertaker is doing it again tonight by coming out in his sleevless robe! He always does something to make his character seem fresh. I know that we have seen it like this before, but it has been a long time. I love it. 'Taker is awesome. Now what he should do is wear the hat with the sleevless robe. That would be the shit right there.

 

[Klown_Karnage]

I agree with what has been said here so far. The man behind the persona, I think, is the most major reason why this one works. It's the wrestlers themselves that create the legend, although to be fair, The Undertaker is pretty much the most "over the top" gimmick to ever be donned by a legendary wrestling figure. I include Randy Savage and The Ultimate Warrior in this one, but it's a close race.

I do agree that his booking has been great and I think that has a lot to do with his work behind the scenes. The Undertaker isn't just a great wrestler, he's a guy who pretty much helps to jumpstart and continue the rise of other figures. Just think of the greats he's had feuds with and how it helped them: Kurt Angle, Jeff Hardy, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Goldust, Mankind, and perhaps the one he's known most for bringing into the Main Event spotlight: Kane. It's my belief that because his presence is gold not just for himself but for those he works with, he'll always get good booking as a way to say "thanks".

 

[shafe_41]

It's weird. It's just one of those things that works. HE makes it work. Sure the gimmick itself is over the top, but Taker does it in sort of a "real" way if that makes sense to anybody. I totally agree with that's been said already by pretty much everybody. But you have to admit, that he's been "humanized" a little bit over the years as well. I mean he no longer has the urn around that gives him some sort of mysterious power. Also going with the group, he started when gimmicks were all pretty over the top and all just everyday practice. I mean look what Taker debuted around. Warrior, Macho Man, Sgt. Slaughter, THE WARLORD, etc... Sure some were a little more normal than others, but "gimmicks" have all been humanized over the years. Look at the stars of the past 10 years or a little more. Austin, The Rock, Bret Hart, HBK, Cena, Triple H, Orton, etc... and I could go on and on. All those guys didn't necessarily have a "gimmick" other than a glamorized or magnified version of themselves. An over the top version of themselves essentially. They're also going with more normal names as the years go on too. Not all, but most. John Cena, John Morrison, Randy Orton, Mr. Kennedy, etc... just to name a few. They aren't superheros, they're not wearing masks, they don't have a stupid job like an evil dentist or garbage man, or clowns.

I also believe that Taker has been around so long, that nobody really gives two shits about his "gimmick" anymore. He's beyond his gimmick. He's a living legend and we are more excited for the man behind the gimmick that can still perform at the level he does when he's in the ring. But again just to answer the question... it started long ago and it just stuck.

 

[y2empleh]

One of the biggest reasons for the longevity of the gimmick was that they knew when to make changes early on in the career. From him no longer having paul bear, to big evil, to ministry, to american bad ass, to current old school return. Eventually all gimmicks need to be tweaked, Cena going from a rapper to a thug, HHH from a blue blood to a degenerate, sting from the stinger to a silent crow wannabe, HBK from a rocker to a heartthrob to a degenerate, to a christian, now a combo degenerate/christian.

Another reason the gimmick has stayed is because he has the best entrance the business has ever seen and likely will ever see, period. Even his biker entrance was the best, be honest, who DIDN'T pick that as their entrance on the WWE video games?? But the deadman entrance is the best period, it is one of those that I don't care if you know the storylines and outcomes are scripted, when he stands on that top stair and takes off the hat, EVERYONE buys into the gimmick.

 

[WunNightStan619]

the undertaker gimmick was interesting, scary at times and just all around fun to watch. Sorta like watching a supernatural being right in front of u. The Undertaker character was also a serious character. The turkey gimmick, largest love machine, evil dentist, they all were not meant to be taken serioiusly. They were more-less entertainment gimmcks much like Hornswoggle. The character of the undertaker WAS to be taken seriously and it was soooo intriging to the audience in the past and even today

 

[MaddMatt]

I agree completely with what everyone has said. One thing I'd like to add was the original face turn. When he was a heel, everyone was afraid of him. Wrestlers were afraid of him. Fans were afraid of him. Even the ref was afraid of him. The early Undertaker character was one of the only heels in history who didn't run away.

If I'm not mistaken, the turn was made when Jake Roberts slammed Taker's hand in the casket, and Taker dragged the casket around chasing him. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's when he made the face turn. Anyway, after that, he was on our side. Everyone was still afraid of him, but now we also looked to him for protection. An assist from the Undertaker always evened the odds, no matter how stacked they might have been. We wanted to believe that this dark defender had supernatural powers, because they were the powers protecting the fans and faces when they really needed it most. Every time I got jumped by Indians on the playground, I fully expected the Undertaker to come and save me...or at least lend me the powers of the undead, so I could overcome the odds. When he made that face turn, he became like Frankenstein on the Monster Squad.

Another thing is when he wrestled himself. That was a huge landmark in the development of this character. Every wrestling fan around totally bought into that match, and to this day, it's legendary

The final reason that such an unbelievable gimmick stuck was that he never switched companies. If, suddenly, The Undertaker is on WCW...no matter the era...the gimmick falls flat. Why would the grim reaper get a job with a different wrestling organization? The performer may remain, but the character would not. I think Vince realized what he had, and I think that's a HUGE reason you never saw him leave for WCW, even when they were trouncing WWF in the ratings. Vince used to put him over like nobody besides maybe Hulk or Warrior when he was announcing ringside. Face or heel, Vince McMahon was all about making this character believable. He totally sold this gimmick, and we all bought the shit out of it

 

[theking2422]

The Undertaker is a legend no matter if he is a face or a heel or just normal everybody will like his dark gimmick or his american bad ass gimmick did u see this fridays promo i didnt knew if he was talking like a heel or a face but all the crowd gave him a big pop so trust me what ever gimmick taker uses until he retires the crowd will follow him ......peacethe undertaker

 

[The Notorious Big.Pad.Dee]

The Undertaker's Deadman persona is probably one of the best booked and best portrayed characters in the history of Wrestling. Have you ever seen Taker break character? Everything about the man is done brilliantly. What about his moveset? It's the perfect monster type offense. Driving someone head first into the mat or grabbing someone by the throat are heartless moves which work the best with gimmicks like this.

Another factor is that he seems mysterious. We hardly ever see the Undertaker when he's not in the ring. If the Undertaker started showing up in the GM's office or talking to Josh Matthews every week, you would lose the mystique behing him, and that's the reason why these "supernatural" characters worked. They were more than human.

Also, Undetaker has been a main eventer for his whole career. He would never have worked as a mid-carder, which is what most of the other "supernatural" characters were. Taker wouldn't work without the Pyro effects, which are normally reserved for headliners, and he also wouldn,t work if he wasn't so dominant over pretty much every one in the WWE.

 

[JBK2008]

The Undertaker came in at the top and stayed there his entire career and that in itself is legendary. The man is undefeated at WrestleMania and is a multiple time world champion. He's had some of the biggest matches ever in WWE and he only seems to get better with age. Wether it's a promo, his wrestling attire or his vast knowledge and techniques and ring skills, he's always been great.

 

[Wrath]

There is one and only reason for this and it's the man behind this gimmick. Yes he was booked really great but as long as you don't have any talent good booking is not enough to be taken seriously. If deadman gimmick and push was given to someone else he would've failed very quickly and let alone 20 years the gimmick couldn't even last 2 years. What is so special about Mark Callaway ? The answer is simple because he made us believe that he is a deadman. It's that simple you can deny it all you want but when you watch a match of Callaway you don't see him as a normal performer you think he's somehow different than others. It's the whole reason Deadman gimmick is fucking great.

Do someone remember when he returned as a biker ? He looked really weird in everyone's eyes. Because we thought it can't be The Undertaker it's someone else he can't be a normal human being. When I first saw Undertaker as a biker I didn't understand he was The Undertaker I could understood it on RAW after PPV. It was hard to believe it's the Undertaker we've seen for years. It's the reason why Undertaker character lasted this long because Callaway made us believe he is a deadman. It's the only reason why Undertaker has been taken seriously.