The Undertaker is one of the greatest wrestlers ever. Over the past 25 years, he's been able to transition and switch up his entire character at times. There are a few different eras of Taker. 1990-1993 Taker, where he started off as a redhead essentially with minimal makeup or effects and wore grey gloves. Then there was the rebirth of Taker from 1994-1996, where he wore the purple gloves and had a lot of makeup. Then, his 1997-1999 era was the introduction of a much more darker Taker and eventually lead to his Ministry of Darkness Run. From there, he became the American Bad Ass, then Big Evil/Red Devil, then returned as a hybrid of Big Evil/Deadman Taker, before eventually going back completely to being the normal supernatural character of the Undertaker. What era is the best? What is the worst? Let's take a look
8. American Bad Ass (2000-2001)
-This was hands down the worst era of Taker. He was slow. Out of touch. His matches were pretty lackluster and nothing significant really came out of him turning into this bad ass biker. Taker as the American Bad Ass worked but really didn't work. He hadn't perfected his role and transition yet.
7. Return to Deadman (2004-2006)
-Taker returned as the Deadman with Paul Bearer in 2004 at Wrestlemania 20 and it seemed odd. He had a medium haircut, still dressed like Big Evil/Red Devil and didn't feel like the Taker of old. He had stale feuds with Heindenrich, Booker T, the Dudleys, and The Great Khali. Not a good time by any stretch for Taker. The only noteworthy thing was his Orton feud.
6. The Beginning/Grey Gloves (1990-1993)
-The beginning. Where he bested Jimmy Snuka. Won his first WWF Title. Beat Hogan. Beat Jake the Snake. But also, was put into awkward feuds with Nailz, Giant Gonzalez and guys like that. The start of the Taker character, but it hadn't reached the level of mystique and fear it became known for.
5. The Phenom's Last Stand (2013- Current)
-Taker since 2013 has been up and down. He had a great match with Punk at Mania 29, a terrible match with Brock at 30, then feuded with Brock and Bray Wyatt in 2015. While his appearances have picked up over the last year or so, this era isn't necessarily as noteworthy due to his age and him slowing down a bit. Still fun to watch, but since the streak ended at 30 to Brock, the appeal is gone it seems.
4. Big Evil/Red Devil (2002-2003)
-This is what the American Bad Ass Taker should have been. No nonsense, no cheesy Limp Bizkit gimmick, just Taker as a tough veteran kicking Ric Flair's ass, beating Hogan, Austin, fighting Rock and Angle, being the first big challenge for Brock, taking Vince to task. He was in his element as Big Evil and that was his best time outside of the Deadman character easily.
3. The Ministry of Darkness Beginning/Attitude Era (1997-1999)
-Taker was in a class of his own during the Attitude Era. His feud with HBK was amazing. His feud with Kane was absolutely captivating. He had great wars with Austin. Foley. Started the Ministry with his dope theme music. This was the pinnacle of Taker in some ways, and if he had better matches during this period consistently, this would be no. 1 for sure. The apex of his character in many ways.
2. Taker's 2nd Coming (1994-1996)
-After returning at Summerslam 1994, this was the pinnacle of the mythical creature version of Taker. Right before he split off with Paul Bearer, Taker was in his character prime in some ways. He was loved. Yet feared. He was revered. Yet still a mystery. He didn't talk much, but everything he did had a purpose. His feuds weren't too significant aside from Mankind and Yokozuna, but him as a character was complete greatness.
1. Taker's True Prime (2007-2012)
-This was the prime of Taker. Hands down. Taker vs Batista. Taker vs Edge. Taker vs HBK. Taker vs HHH. These all occurred during this period and Taker would have some of his best matches with all those guys. This is where we learned Taker wasn't just a great character and gimmick, but he was an amazing worker inside the ring. From an overall standpoint, this is where Taker shined the brightest period.
What do you think of our rankings? Agree? Disagree. Let us know in the comments below.
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