i hope they keep undertaker off tv

[KillerWolf]

i couldnt help but notice that the undertaker hasnt had a wrestling match since wm20. he has only been on tv for 30 seconds. apparently the writers dont know what to do with him. if that is the case, i am glad he is not appearing on television.

IMO they should keep undertaker off tv until they can re-package him. if you still dont feel that his return was a flop, then :nono: . now, some people stated that the complaints about taker's 'new look' were somewhat "quere-eye". the fact is, for that particular wrestler, the look is an important part of the package. at wm20 people were expecting the deadman, and got the biker w/new music+cheesy props. enough on that.

the point im tryin' to make is that i hope they keep taker off tv for a while and then have him re-surface (sometime after the next smackdown ppv) as a heel. THE LORD OF DARKNESS is just the superheel that smackdown needs. an evil undertaker would make a great tormentor for eddie.

it is CLEARLY the wrong era for the undertaker circa '93. there is also an apparent lack of interest in 'bikertaker'. most real wrestling fans agree that the 'lord of darkness' was undertakers best incarnation. it MIGHT still be a valid concept today, and it gives smackdown a mainstream heel, + with the possible rebirth of the MINISTRY, smackdown would have a large heel stable.

[The CyNick]

I mentioned before Mania that I thought it would be interesting to see what would happen if they promoted house shows in large part around "The Return of the Deadman".

With him not appearing on TV every week, this should be even easier to do. Fans know he's back, but they dont get to see him on TV, so the only way to see him is to go to a live event. It might just create a small spike in house show attendance, which would be great for the company.

Its smart to keep him off TV, because I think everyone agreed that this character would have a very short shelf life. However if he only shows up every few weeks to promote a PPV match, then I think he can last a little longger as a viable character, and again it might increase PPV buys with his limited exposure. It'll be interesting to see what happens with Judgment Day, I'm sure he'll be on the card, and it'll be interesting to see if that can make up for the poor main event.

In terms of turning him heel, I dont think it would work, people like him too much. Plus, I just dont see him doing the right thing for guys like Eddie and Cena.

I would rather see them experiment with this limited exposure thing, and then after it dies out, go back to the Biker babyface Taker.

[SuperSlim]

I say just keep him off... allow him to better his look... and make those occasional returns... and a heel taker would probably be better than a face taker even though everyone likes him too much. At least with a heel taker we have a good heel on SD! besides Bradshaw :roll: and Show :roll:. and he could restart a ministry and with the ministry more heels can be born and some could even rise to bein a big enough heel to actually challenge for the WWE title and the U.S. title cause SD! is definitely low... very low on big heels now.

[DMI]

:rant: :foc:

[Kane Knight]

I think that Undertaker should come back to TV as is, and they should do a promotional Tie-in with the Deadlands RPG and CCG. I've never actually played or tried the games, but I'm sure they've done the zomie cowboy idea before...

[ilt_undertaker]

:rant: :foc:

[John la Rock]

ya at first I iked the Undertaker's look at Wrestlemania XX because he was a good mix of the Bad Ass and Deadman. My mind changed after watching his match with Kane at WM XIV. That was his best costume and entrance IMO. I say he either drops the Deadman thing completely or goes back to the WM XIV look caue it rules :y:

[BLaZeR-]

I definitely think he should be brought back as a heel but not to reform the Ministry, instead team him up with The Big Show again as his mentor, I enjoyed that angle and it was cut very short.

[RGWhat316]

I wonder if some of this had to do with Paul Heyman leaving SmackDown? Taker had tombstoned Heyman, sold the neck injury through RAW saying he was gonna deal with him, then quit after getting picked. So i wonder if changing Heymans plans changed Takers plans.

[The CyNick]

I wonder if some of this had to do with Paul Heyman leaving SmackDown? Taker had tombstoned Heyman, sold the neck injury through RAW saying he was gonna deal with him, then quit after getting picked. So i wonder if changing Heymans plans changed Takers plans.

Nah, Taker was going to be programmed with Brock, but Brock quit, so they had no back-up plan for Taker.

What they should have done was put Taker with Vince. Taker should want revenge for Vinc ebeating him at Buried Alive. They could do a Casket Match to go along with the gimmick change, and have Taker win. That wya Taker gets a high profile (and dominating) win, and none of the top guys get hurt by it.

[The CyNick]

Another idea would be to bring Steiner over to SD when he gets healthy, give him a small push, and then have him go after Taker. Steiner is pretty much finished so why not have him squashed by Taker?

[Shaggy]

Yea, I cant really think of any way to use Taker. The whole thing of him being the dead man was because of Kane. Now since him and Kane went agaisnt each other there really seems no point in it anymore.

[KillerWolf]

I mentioned before Mania that I thought it would be interesting to see what would happen if they promoted house shows in large part around "The Return of the Deadman".

With him not appearing on TV every week, this should be even easier to do. Fans know he's back, but they dont get to see him on TV, so the only way to see him is to go to a live event. It might just create a small spike in house show attendance, which would be great for the company.

Its smart to keep him off TV, because I think everyone agreed that this character would have a very short shelf life. However if he only shows up every few weeks to promote a PPV match, then I think he can last a little longger as a viable character, and again it might increase PPV buys with his limited exposure. It'll be interesting to see what happens with Judgment Day, I'm sure he'll be on the card, and it'll be interesting to see if that can make up for the poor main event.

In terms of turning him heel, I dont think it would work, people like him too much. Plus, I just dont see him doing the right thing for guys like Eddie and Cena.

I would rather see them experiment with this limited exposure thing, and then after it dies out, go back to the Biker babyface Taker.

youre right. people like him. so dont you think people want to see him on tv.
i think its smart to keep him off tv because the 'new undertaker' sucks and he has no place on smackdown. however, they wont be doing THE FANS any favors by limiting his exposure to house shows and ppvs. that's absurd.

remember all the hype?!? ON MARCH 14 AT WM20 THE DEAD WILL RISE AGAIN!!!!!!! seriously....what have they delivered. a five minute match at wm20 and a 30 second television spot. :nono:
undertaker fans are the real losers here. :nono:

[ilt_undertaker]

youre right. people like him. so dont you think people want to see him on tv.
i think its smart to keep him off tv because the 'new undertaker' sucks and he has no place on smackdown. however, they wont be doing THE FANS any favors by limiting his exposure to house shows and ppvs. that's absurd.

remember all the hype?!? ON MARCH 14 AT WM20 THE DEAD WILL RISE AGAIN!!!!!!! seriously....what have they delivered. a five minute match at wm20 and a 30 second television spot. :nono:
undertaker fans are the real losers here. :nono:

<font color=Silver>So far, I havent been dissapointed in the Deadman's return :) </font>

[PureHatred]

Some of you might be familiar with the game EWR ( a wrestling promoter sim ).Anyway, on the boards at .400 studios I'm doing a diary and one of the featured storylines is a feud between Big Show and Undetaker where Show is trying to destroy the "myth of the Deadman" in order to prove that he deserves another shot at the WWE title. Not that this is a work of art but this segment got a pretty good response:

Backstage, The Big Show is dressed and hurriedly driving off. He gets into his huge black Ford F-150 and starts to leave the arena. As the truck peels out of the driveway, we switch to different camera, one inside the Big Show’s cab, located over his shoulder and giving the audience a good view of where he’s headed. Show is driving like a madman, veering all over the road and mumbling to himself: “It’s not real. It’s just a gimmick. Just a god damned gimmick….” The road is pitch black and in his panic it seems as though Big Show has veered off the main highway. He’s flying aound turns, the truck tires squealing in anger, the engine itself roaring like a wounded animal, when all of a sudden..

Big Show: HOLY CHRIST!!

..there he stands, like the night come alive. Black and pure like onyx. His arms spread. He is Attis on the pine. Christ on the cedar. Odin on the world-ash. The Undertaker. Larger than life and standing in the road. Those unmistakable eyes rolled back into his head.

The Big Show never even tries to slow down…

‘Because I could not stop for Death,
He kindly stopped for me-
The carriage held but just ourselves,
And Immortality.'

The windshield shatters. The trucks begins to spin and the camera goes to static. Moments later, we see Big Show come crawling up an embankment. The Ford is totaled. Show seems unhurt, except for the bloody gash in his forehead. But as he staggers into the road, he notices- we all notice- that there is absolutely no sign of the Undertaker. Show plowed into him going near 80 mph and now it looks like he walked away without a scratch. The Show screams into the night….

Show: DAMN YOU..WHERE ARE YOU??? I KNOW YOU’RE HERE, MARK. IT’S JUST A GIMMICK..IT’S NOT REAL!! THIS IS NOT REAL!!!

Rating: 84%

**FADE TO BLACK**

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

To continue my point...the 'Taker could be on TV right now if they could just continue to find ways to get people into the character. Not everyon eliked his new look, but with a good storyline than eventually people will focus on that more than his goofy hat.

[Loose Cannon]

<font color=Silver>So far, I havent been dissapointed in the Deadman's return :) </font>

Me neither. I mean he's only been on TV for like a combined 20 seconds not counting Mania. I like it. Less Taker= :yes:

[KillerWolf]

<font color=Silver>So far, I havent been dissapointed in the Deadman's return :) </font>
hmm. thats wierd. and you like the undertaker, right??
as an undertaker fan, i would be disapointed that he hasnt been on tv since his 'return'.

[CBright7831]

I've like Taker's new look.

He would look like a fucking cartoon character if he would have went back to old old school taker.

Sorry to disappoint you all.

[ilt_undertaker]

Me neither. I mean he's only been on TV for like a combined 20 seconds not counting Mania. I like it. Less Taker= :yes:

:p

[Mr. JL]

This is the same writing team that could not fit in Kanyon and Sean O'Haire into a role on Smack Down... something is wrong there.


F'N ridiculous!


I believe this will go down as the biggest waste of talent the wrestling world has ever seen.

[PureHatred]

I believe this will go down as the biggest waste of talent the wrestling world has ever seen.

Calm down, man. At this point the Undertaker is only as good as his gimmick. His matches aren't going to be great (unlees you're really into no-selling) so if the writers have nothing for him, he's not going to be on TV. I've already posted in this thread at least an example of how the Deadman could be effective. But as far as the "biggest waste of talent, etc..." with RVD and Booker T around, UT may not even be the biggest waste of talent on his own show.

[The CyNick]

youre right. people like him. so dont you think people want to see him on tv.
i think its smart to keep him off tv because the 'new undertaker' sucks and he has no place on smackdown. however, they wont be doing THE FANS any favors by limiting his exposure to house shows and ppvs. that's absurd.

remember all the hype?!? ON MARCH 14 AT WM20 THE DEAD WILL RISE AGAIN!!!!!!! seriously....what have they delivered. a five minute match at wm20 and a 30 second television spot. :nono:
undertaker fans are the real losers here. :nono:

Well the point would be to increase business at house shows and on PPV. Smackdown's ratings have been flat for about a year and a half now, so not having Taker on TV probably wont do much damage. However, if you treat him as a special attraction that people have to pay for, people may actually pay to see him perfrom which will put more money in the WWE's pockets.

Back in the day Hulk Hogan rarely made appearances on TV, and they used to promote him being at house shows and PPvs, as a result he seemed like a special attraction and people were willing to shell out money when they seen his name on the card.

Its not difficult to comprehend.

[Fox]

Back in the day Hulk Hogan rarely made appearances on TV, and they used to promote him being at house shows and PPvs, as a result he seemed like a special attraction and people were willing to shell out money when they seen his name on the card.

Its not difficult to comprehend.

Yeah, but this isn't back in the day. These days, if you're out of sight, you're out of mind. And how are they supposed to push an UT PPV match without him being on TV regularly? It worked with Kane, but there isn't a plausabile scenario with anyone else.

They really need to include the Taker as a regular part of the Smackdown broadcast, but they need to do something about the direction he's going in. My suggestion (as if i matters) is to have him continue laying out SD heels, until finally trying to do so against a certain somebody, and getting his ass handed to him a little bit. Although I don't know who the certain somebody would be (SD! is a little low on heels), but I do know that it would up their credibility a few notches.

Of course, that will never happen. I don't see a big difference between Austin's previous role on TV and Taker's current role. They don't wrestle on TV, but they bury talent. It's pointless. Maybe UT should go the way of Austin and leave the WWE. I know that I wouldn't mind.

[Mr. JL]

Calm down, man. At this point the Undertaker is only as good as his gimmick. His matches aren't going to be great (unlees you're really into no-selling) so if the writers have nothing for him, he's not going to be on TV. I've already posted in this thread at least an example of how the Deadman could be effective. But as far as the "biggest waste of talent, etc..." with RVD and Booker T around, UT may not even be the biggest waste of talent on his own show.
Yeah, sorry I should have been more specific. I was not really talking about the Undertaker in my post. I was raising a point that the WWE could not find great talents such as Kanyon & O'Haire spots. Both of those guys have more charisma than half the people on the current rosters and it is my bet that they could play any role and make it entertaining. And not too mention they can actually wrestle.

The fact that they can't find a role for the Undertaker is just icing on the cake and really shows you just how uncreative the "creative/writing" team really are.

[ColdwaVer]

I've like Taker's new look.

He would look like a fucking cartoon character if he would have went back to old old school taker.

Sorry to disappoint you all.

Amen to that.

Seriously people, it's been what, three weeks. The plan was to have him go against Lesnar, and Lesnar buggered off. So you wish they'd have thrown him into a crap storyline with absolutely no preparation? Then you'd have bi</>tched about that instead. Or do you think he should be squashing the entire roster? Then you'd bi</>tch about that. They aren't going to win with some of you folks.

[Fox]

Amen to that.

Seriously people, it's been what, three weeks. The plan was to have him go against Lesnar, and Lesnar buggered off. So you wish they'd have thrown him into a crap storyline with absolutely no preparation? Then you'd have bi</>tched about that instead. Or do you think he should be squashing the entire roster? Then you'd bi</>tch about that. They aren't going to win with some of you folks.

WWE is purposely keeping him off TV so that he'll be a "special attraction" at house shows and random TV appearances. It isn't that he doesn't have an angle to work, it's that they're not GIVING him an angle to work.

[HHHsucks929]

It's kinda stupid to keep him off TV ayway, because Smackdown! needs big names as it is.

[Savio]

IMO they should keep undertaker off tv.
nuff said

[Wondermouse]

http://www.moontribes.com/images/yun2.jpg
http://www.billard-baden.at/images/bugs-bunny.gif

I don't see the resemblance.

[Kane Knight]

ya at first I iked the Undertaker's look at Wrestlemania XX because he was a good mix of the Bad Ass and Deadman. My mind changed after watching his match with Kane at WM XIV. That was his best costume and entrance IMO. I say he either drops the Deadman thing completely or goes back to the WM XIV look caue it rules :y:
Good mix...90% badass, 10% Old School.

[Corkscrewed]

Even though I'm a huge Taker mark, I'm cool with his being off TV for the time being. There's nothing for him to do, and with this current character, occassionally appearing is perfectly fine. It increases the enigma, which is essential, and makes it less likely that fans will grow tired of him more.

[Goldbird]

^^^

Yeh, i sorf of agree. But i felt that undertaker's current gimmick is good! U guys over here have to realise that no matter what, nobody is gonna change back to their old gimmicks! They are old and so what if they WERE popular.

Get over it dudes. Live with the current taker'.

[Kane Knight]

People aren't pissed that he's not going back to the Old Taker. They're pissed at a lame ass gimmick, and that the WWE deceptively offered something they didn't deliver.

If you don't want to bring back the Dead Man, don't make promises. Don't go at it half assed.

And for God's sake, change his gimmick, the Biker Bad Ass sucks.

[Kane Knight]

Live with the current taker'
Yeah, live with bad and unentertaining gimmicks.

[Goldbird]

^^^

How do you noe he's bad and unentertaining? When he only got 20 secs on national tv? Are u trying to imply that if another green wrestler makes his debut on tv for 1 min and totally sucked, then he will suck for the rest of his life?

[Kane Knight]

^^^

How do you noe he's bad and unentertaining? When he only got 20 secs on national tv? Are u trying to imply that if another green wrestler makes his debut on tv for 1 min and totally sucked, then he will suck for the rest of his life?
It's funny, you're preaching the opposite based on the same amount of time.

Isn't that a little hypocritical?

[Kane Knight]

Two things:

1--It's Know. Not noe.

2--There is a quote function, so you don't have to rely on the ^^^^ so heavily.

[Corkscrewed]

^^^^^ Well said.

^ What?

[SeanMC]

^^^^^
lol(felt left out there!)

Im dissapointed with his gimmick personally, i always thought it was way over hyped for his return aswell, it was all to staged and unrealistic IMO. Like somebody said it reminds me of that episode in the simpsons when they brought a new malibu stacy out and all she had was a new hat. That's what really gets me is that they think wwe fans are that f-ucking dumb.

[CBright7831]

http://www.moontribes.com/images/yun2.jpg
http://www.billard-baden.at/images/bugs-bunny.gif

I don't see the resemblance.
Do you know how stupid he would look in chaps, and those gloves, and that attire, with his short hair?

[KillerWolf]

Do you know how stupid he would look in chaps, and those gloves, and that attire, with his short hair?
ok......the point of this post was not that i wanna see taker pull a wm13 as far as his 'look' goes. at wm20 i was disapointed that to see paul bearer. i was disapointed to see the urn. i was disapointed to see the druids or whatever with the torches. I REALLY REALLY HOPED FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY NEW AND ORIGINAL. (personally, i was hoping for something satanic and badass looking). thing is, the "creative writers" had MONTHS to come up with something, and what they delivered was a JOKE that was valid for ONE MATCH AND ONE MATCH ONLY. and i am therefore glad that undertaker is not on tv making a fool out of himself. i am hoping that they are revamping takers character to something more original than a half-assed attempt at an 'old-school' nostalgia trip. at this point i would even settle for the 'ministry'.

and due to the wwe's creative failure, undertaker fans who did not see wm20 and do not happen to be fortunate enough to go to a HOUSE SHOW ONCE A ****IN' WEEK have not seen their beloved undertaker since his return.

[Moongoose Mcqueen]

I guess they're keeping him off tv to test the waters with his fued with Booker T before going into, and I suppose at the same time working on his look/storylines. But I would suggest they hurry up and get him on tv, because the basic wrestling fan isn't gonna care about his return anymore, his hype coming of wmxx will die off. This week would have been a good time to show his appearance on the televised event, but its going on basically a month next week or so.

[The CyNick]

Yeah, but this isn't back in the day. These days, if you're out of sight, you're out of mind. And how are they supposed to push an UT PPV match without him being on TV regularly? It worked with Kane, but there isn't a plausabile scenario with anyone else.

They really need to include the Taker as a regular part of the Smackdown broadcast, but they need to do something about the direction he's going in. My suggestion (as if i matters) is to have him continue laying out SD heels, until finally trying to do so against a certain somebody, and getting his ass handed to him a little bit. Although I don't know who the certain somebody would be (SD! is a little low on heels), but I do know that it would up their credibility a few notches.

Of course, that will never happen. I don't see a big difference between Austin's previous role on TV and Taker's current role. They don't wrestle on TV, but they bury talent. It's pointless. Maybe UT should go the way of Austin and leave the WWE. I know that I wouldn't mind.

Well in terms of promoting house shows, you can have him do promos where he talks about coming to a certain town for house shows (which can run during the existing house shows spots).

Then for PPV, you have a heel talk smack about him, Taker comes back one week, they brawl, PPV match is announced, and vignettes are produced with Taker and Bearor talking about _______ getting dealt with at the PPV.

I just think Taker's gimmick doesn't lend itself to being a TV character where he can be on TV every week cutting promos and working matches. I think he needs to be used liek Hogan was back in the day where he makes rare appearances on Tv that leads to PPVs and house shows.

[CBright7831]

ok......the point of this post was not that i wanna see taker pull a wm13 as far as his 'look' goes. at wm20 i was disapointed that to see paul bearer. i was disapointed to see the urn. i was disapointed to see the druids or whatever with the torches. I REALLY REALLY HOPED FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY NEW AND ORIGINAL. (personally, i was hoping for something satanic and badass looking). thing is, the "creative writers" had MONTHS to come up with something, and what they delivered was a JOKE that was valid for ONE MATCH AND ONE MATCH ONLY. and i am therefore glad that undertaker is not on tv making a fool out of himself. i am hoping that they are revamping takers character to something more original than a half-assed attempt at an 'old-school' nostalgia trip. at this point i would even settle for the 'ministry'.

and due to the wwe's creative failure, undertaker fans who did not see wm20 and do not happen to be fortunate enough to go to a HOUSE SHOW ONCE A ****IN' WEEK have not seen their beloved undertaker since his return.

:roll:

As long as his hair is barely at short length, he should stick to badass biker taker attire.

That's all I'm going to say.

[Wondermouse]

Because there's no way at all to make his hair artificially longer. None.

[Moongoose Mcqueen]

I don't know how it would work in wrestling, but they can add realistic extensions to someones hair that can sustain action and movement in movies and with stuntmen and stuff. If it would have looked stupid, then obv don't use it, but it was also a short squash, and then as we're seeing he wouldn't have to wrestle until Judgment day, 2 months later.

[Kane Knight]

Because there's no way at all to make his hair artificially longer. None.
:y:

[Kane Knight]

Yeah, I love it when people say "he has short hair!"

Well, of course.

[KillerWolf]

god dammit!!!!! the point was not supposed to be about the man's hair. the point was that the wwe lacked the foresight to see that that this new 'old undertaker' would not be valid past wm20. if brock lesnar had not quit, it might have been a descent feud. but he did quit, and since their new creation has 0 flexibility, he is off of tv, and that sucks if you are an undertaker fan.

ya know what would be funny.........if he came out on tv (next smackdown) as heel 'bikertaker' and said 'screw all you fans who want him to be the deadman'.

that sounds like a mainstream heel and #1 contender to me.

[Kane Knight]

dunno. If a heel's job is to get a ton of fanboys to turn off their TVs, then yes, it sounds like a mainstream heel.

[KillerWolf]

......more on that

one could easily read all the posts on this topic and think: "bitch, bitch!!! people bitch because they want undertaker to go back to all the supernatural gobblegygook, and when he does, they're still not happy". well i think that it is clear that this regression to 'old-school ut was done to appease the fans.

BABYFACE biker character DID suck. and yeah, i missed the 'lord of darkness' (ministry) undertaker. but, i was perfectly happy with the 'red devil' (heel biker character). "yes sir - i am your world wresting federation champion. and you will respect me". i thought it was entertaining. but then, after only three months or so, they turn him face again! WTF!

especially for a man his size, Mark Calloway used to be able to do some amazing things in the ring. i understand that he is no longer capable of doing a swan dive over the top rope or being thrown through the middle rope and landing on his feet. his limited stamina and ring ability IMO sort of negates the whole concept of making him 'the phenom' again. i was content with the smashmouth/submission style he had adopted.

so anyway. IMO this is just the wrong era for 'the phenom' because that character requires to be 'fed' a steady stream of 'disposable heels'. and things have gotten so bad that bradshaw is the top heel. and its OBVIOUS that that character is way too inflexable. and baby face bikertaker is LAME. i think that heel bikertaker is cool and flexible:

he could come out next week as big evil/red devil and say "screw you fans and screw this company, i aint gonna be the phenom". he could thrust himself into a title shot by intimidating kurt angle ( angle's a heel now, and therefore a coward ) he could then be 'out-smarted' somehow by eddie at the ppv title match. the next week on smackdown he can jump eddie and give him a bloody beating. eddie is saved by random main event or upper-midcard face. taker then feuds with that person for 'sticking their nose in his business'.

it all = undertaker back on tv - in a role that
a) isnt outdated
b) is flexible
c) calloway isnt too old to play

[Kane Knight]

one could easily read all the posts on this topic and think: "bitch, bitch!!! people bitch because they want undertaker to go back to all the supernatural gobblegygook, and when he does, they're still not happy". well i think that it is clear that this regression to 'old-school ut was done to appease the fans.
"One" could...If "one" was retarded...

He didn't "Go back," nor was he a hybrid, or any of the other bullshit people have been saying. And if it was done to appease the fans, they coulda tried actually appeasing the fans...

[KillerWolf]

dunno. If a heel's job is to get a ton of fanboys to turn off their TVs, then yes, it sounds like a mainstream heel.
i might need you too elaborate on that. are you sayin' there's a lot of (i guess gothic people who like to play misunderstood vampire when they're not baggin' groceries at the piggly wiggly) who only tune in to wrestling because they herd the phenom was returning - and if he bails on this gimmick, they'll stop watching? :?:

[Fryza]

All I'm going to say, is if they put him on TV, they need to change his gimmick.

'Taker doesn't put over. Period. Having him with the deadman gimmick means he'll make ALL their workers (especially people like Booker and Bradshaw, who they NEED to look strong) look weak. Bringing him out on TV ruins the image they need to create for many of their workers. And since he's a face, he can just tear through about the four-seven heels they really have (Booker, Bradshaw, Haas, Show, FBI, Long, Jindrak).

Just my two cents..

[Kane Knight]

i might need you too elaborate on that. are you sayin' there's a lot of (i guess gothic people who like to play misunderstood vampire when they're not baggin' groceries at the piggly wiggly) who only tune in to wrestling because they herd the phenom was returning - and if he bails on this gimmick, they'll stop watching? :?:
http://members.lycos.co.uk/kaneknight/hahahaha-no.gif

[Kane Knight]

All I'm going to say, is if they put him on TV, they need to change his gimmick.

'Taker doesn't put over. Period. Having him with the deadman gimmick means he'll make ALL their workers (especially people like Booker and Bradshaw, who they NEED to look strong) look weak. Bringing him out on TV ruins the image they need to create for many of their workers. And since he's a face, he can just tear through about the four-seven heels they really have (Booker, Bradshaw, Haas, Show, FBI, Long, Jindrak).

Just my two cents..
So they move him over to Raw, have him dominate, then get buried by HHH, followed by being buried by Shane, and finally, have him jobbing on Heat to Hurricane...

[R3st!nP3ac3]

well maybe heres what WWE is trying to do, maybe not? but when UT returned people complained on how he still wrestled like the Bad Ass and not like the Dead Man. Well maybe since Brock quit and Taker couldn't go anywhere maybe he is trying to brush up on his skill and maybe there experimenting with him (and taking the damn bandana off his head)

[Moongoose Mcqueen]

I thinks its safe to say that just about everyone was at least a little dissapointed with the new look, but Smackdown is in dire need of him anyways due to their lack of big names. The draft lottery brought them Booker T to the main event, RVD, and freed up Haas and Jindrak for singles wrestling, but they're still hurting.
I didn't like the new look at all, but I'm able to suck it up once I realize its better than the american badass of 2003 and Smackdown needs Taker seeing as they've lost Brock, and Kurts on the DL. Hopefully the look will progress, as long as he keeps growing his hair and they don't add another damn element of the badass like they did after WM.

[CBright7831]

They should have moved him to RAW. They could have also kept Triple H on Smackdown! and let him feud with Taker, but obviously that's not going to happen now.

[John la Rock]

Good mix...90% badass, 10% Old School.

hmm let's see. he had the deadman music, deadman entrance, he was accompanied by Paul Bearer, he used all the deadman manerisms, and he won using the Tombstone Piledriver.

If you ask me he was 90 % deadman

[Kane Knight]

hmm let's see. he had the deadman music, deadman entrance, he was accompanied by Paul Bearer, he used all the deadman manerisms, and he won using the Tombstone Piledriver.

If you ask me he was 90 % deadman
Wow, he had druids and the graveyard symphony! Well, there you have it, kids! 90% deadman!

:roll:

And in the moment where Kane tomstoned Linda, he magically became Oldschool as well, right?

[John la Rock]

Wow, he had druids and the graveyard symphony! Well, there you have it, kids! 90% deadman!

:roll:

And in the moment where Kane tomstoned Linda, he magically became Oldschool as well, right?

explain to me how we was 90 % bad ass then?

[Kane Knight]

Like most people who saw the match without the entrance would have gathered he was supposed to be the Deadman...

[Batsu]

Yeah...it seems like a midpoint between Biker Bad Ass Taker and the Taker before the return.

When Taker came back at Judgement Day 00, in the long black trenchcoat and did the eye-rolling gimmick... I thought this was the beginning of something great. It was cool for a while but it kind of died down as Undertaker was fast becoming an "Austin Mark II" and eventually "Mean Mark Callous Redux".

Does anyone remember Undertaker right before he left WWE due to injury back in '99? He kinda looked like Biker Taker...

I think that for a "Deadman" gimmick Undertaker was doing too much of the "Bart Gunn" thing and not too much of the "Taker" thing.

The '98-'99 Taker was great. I think he got a "babyface" pass on the basis of his longevity, but most of that time, that Taker was straight evil HEEL. The "You Will Respect Me" / BIG EVIL Taker was the closest thing to that, but for a different reason altogether.

the outfit Undertaker used to wear didn't seem too outlandish compared to the other more "extreme" wrestlers. The "goth" side of Taker was what gave him that extra edge. That went out the window with the Biker image...he still made all those "devil" references, but they just seemed out of place with the "Biker".

Biker Taker jumped the shark with that DDP feud. By then he was about in the same boat as Stone Cold Steve Austin post-"What?"-mania.

He got some of his fire back in that Brock Lesnar feud, but that was about it...

as for Kane, him Tombstoning Linda didn't (completely) make him old school; that kinda reminded me of late '99 when he was out to Tombstone Tori (back before that damn piledriver ban was applied)....but the mannerisms of the unmasked Kane were a lot closer to home than that (admittedly funny, but defnitely -weird-) stuff he was doing in that horrible second feud with HHH that sparked that "necrophilia" angle. That was kinda sad because the "fireball" shooting Kane feud with HHH (in which HHH dressed up as Goldust) made me wish for a retread of that feud for years...