I'd be ok with him if he didn't try to do an epic style match. He could probably do an awesome 1991 style attraction match with the right opponent feeding and stooging for him and it'd bring presence and star power.

 

Exactly. For the past who knows how long, the guy wrestled 3-4 times a year. Who cares if he wants to come back and wrestle in some sort of special attraction type match, or whatever. Your garden variety WWE fan would probably want to see it, just not the hardcore fans who care more about the quality of the in ring product.

 

If he had a full hip replacement in May is it even plausible that he could be ready to have a match by November?

 

It didn't stop Roddy Piper.

 

When did Piper have his surgery? Pretty sure it was before WM12. I always thought his rebuttal for WWF pointing out he main evented Starrcade with a fake hip was that they didn't seem to mind when he'd wrestled Goldust a few months earlier.

You can't compare Piper and Taker though. They might as well have been using leeches on Piper for how ancient the surgery was then.

 

I'd be ok with him if he didn't try to do an epic style match. He could probably do an awesome 1991 style attraction match with the right opponent feeding and stooging for him and it'd bring presence and star power.

 

Exactly. For the past who knows how long, the guy wrestled 3-4 times a year. Who cares if he wants to come back and wrestle in some sort of special attraction type match, or whatever. Your garden variety WWE fan would probably want to see it, just not the hardcore fans who care more about the quality of the in ring product.

 

 

Even the late stages of his career Undertaker, whenever he returns, is always entertaining. It might not lead to a match that's great technically, but WWE always turns on the showmanship for The Dead Man. Just the lights going out and the GONG! hitting is always a mark-out moment. Even for old man 'Taker. And The Undertaker himself has always adapted pretty well in switching up his character over the years. I could see him coming back again & working more submissions into his match, not just due to his love for MMA but also due to necessity because of various injuries & age, and proving people wrong.

 

Of course, I also loved The Undertaker when he was doing to Big Evil, Red Devil biker gimmick and finishing with The Last Ride Powerbomb. If he wants to keep going, I say more power to him. Same thing I say about Terry Funk. You don't tell an all-timer that has given so much to your promotion/the industry no.

 

If you're at a live show and you get a surprise entrance from The Undertaker, it's one of the coolest live experiences you can have. Just being in that atmosphere when the lights go out, the music slowly rises, the cell phones go on and 'Taker lurches toward the ring. I have seen it live twice and both times it was announced ahead of time, so I knew it was coming & it was still awesome. So I can't imagine how hard I'd mark out if it were a surprise.

I would like to see WWE work toward creating a new Undertaker, an iconic type that's more of an attraction for most of his career that can stay fresh and have longevity by not being overexposed. That should have been Big Show's role, but that hasn't happened for a variety of reasons we've discussed before. Maybe Braun can eventually settle into that.

Until Brock retires, he's that guy.

Per Ticket Drew on the November 1, 2017 edition of the Wrestling Reality with Justin LaBar podcast:

 

Expect Undertaker to compete in the main event of Raw 25, probably against Kane. Also expect the show to be 4-5 hours since it's dual venue and that'll give each venue adequate content.

 

https://twitter.com/ticketdrew/status/929890892802076674

Jesus Christ, that's gonna be one helluva long RAW that night.

Surely it'll be a three hour simulcast. If you want the show longer, do dark matches, what's the sense in airing both and making it even longer?

Looks like Undertaker/Cena is happening at this years mania.

 

 

WWE Intercontinental Champion Roman Reigns vs. WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar has been planned for one of the WrestleMania 34 main events. The Wrestling Observer notes that Reigns vs. Lesnar is still the plan but there's no word yet on if Reigns will go into WrestleMania with the IC Title.

The other top WrestleMania 34 match will see John Cena finally face off with The Undertaker. It's believed that a big angle with Cena and Taker will be shot at the January 22nd RAW 25th Anniversary show in New York City as both Superstars will be there.

Cena/Taker at Mania should have happened years ago, when the streak meant something. Running it as a quasi-nostalgia/WRESTLEMANIA MOMENT! match, in 2018, is more proof that Mania may as well take place out of main continuity.

 

EDIT: Turns out I said something like this before, oh well.

Honestly, I would actually like Undertaker as a manager. Make it full circle. Make him say silly shit like Paul Bearer used to and put over how much of a killer the wrestler he manages is.

 

If Undertaker actively endorses someone, he must be incredible, etc.

I think this will be a good GWE style test for Cena, actually.

I'm a Roman fan, but I thought his match against Taker last year was below average for him and even below average for the Deadman when you compare it to, say, his 10 previous matches (that'd be basically what? the previous 3-4 years? And let's exclude that Hell in a Cell match against Shane too just so my argument doesn't completely fall apart).

 

With Cena, I at least have confidence that Big Match John will be able to convincingly lift him off his feet, so we probably won't see the flubs that marred last year's main event. Reigns is cosmetically mighty, but he's probably not top 5 in brute strength and that botched Tombstone reversal was ugly and the moment I remember most from the actual match.

 

Also, again, I'm a Reigns fan, but I think he's still improving in a lot of ways while Cena has mastered getting to and having the "Big Fight" Match and everything that entails - building up to the match with "Is that a shoot?" promos, playing up the face/heel reactions he gets, balancing vulnerability with Never Give Up heroics, etc. This match is not going to be for everybody, but...wait for the pun...I do have a morbid curiosity towards it.

1990 : Taker worked like he was a corpse.

2017 : Taker looked like a working corpse.

 

Morbid curiosity is right. The Taker match last year was the only time I was remotely impressed by Reigns all year long (he usually bores the fuck out of me) because he managed to work around a guy who looked like he didn't belong in the ring anymore. The post-match was perfect, so of course we have to make it irrelevant by having a dream match at the very least 5 years too late.

I'm conflicted about it. It's my first Mania in person, so I kind of like that I get to see a match between these two. However, I would have loved something like Joe vs Cena or Styles vs Cena. I'll be holding out hope that Cena can make it into a good live experience.

I just hope we don't get PWG Cena and the match ends up having 5 AA's and 4 Tombstones.

I'm astounded that anyone could possibly want or need to see another Undertaker match, or why from a booking perspective you'd take away the accolade of having retired him from the guy getting the world title push.

Cena/Taker at Mania should have happened years ago, when the streak meant something. Running it as a quasi-nostalgia/WRESTLEMANIA MOMENT! match, in 2018, is more proof that Mania may as well take place out of main continuity.

 

EDIT: Turns out I said something like this before, oh well.

 

I couldn't agree more. Cena being the one to break the streak around 2007 time is when it should have happened. Having Brock beat Taker and then Roman and this year likely Cena wont mean as much as it could have been.

I just hope we don't get PWG Cena and the match ends up having 5 AA's and 4 Tombstones.

That’s definitely the Cena we’ll get for a match like this.

 

I just hope we don't get PWG Cena and the match ends up having 5 AA's and 4 Tombstones.

That’s definitely the Cena we’ll get for a match like this.

 

 

Then sadly, I don't see the hype for this match at all. 09' John against a broken down Taker would be way more compelling to watch than Cena throwing Taker's body around for big spots and a bunch of nearfalls.

 

I just hope we don't get PWG Cena and the match ends up having 5 AA's and 4 Tombstones.

That’s definitely the Cena we’ll get for a match like this.

 

I'm not convinced. The match might be good because of physical limitations.

The match will probably look like shit mostly because of physical limitations. Taker has looked like shit the last two Manias already, and the matches don't get better because of it.

Hope he does come back. Love me some old man Taker.

WWE's forced 'Big Match Drama' didn't help Reigns/Taker and it will not do Cena/Taker any favors at all. The "stay down!" stuff was cringeworthy and has become a WM staple.

 

PWG Cena

HBK D Level soap opera 'emotions'

WWE speak

Self-conscious epic formula

Multiple kick-out of finishers

Crippled Undertaker

 

All of these elements together spell 'trouble'.