The Undertaker has a legacy like no other. By 1997 he was already achieving legendary status. He won two WWF Championships. The first was against the immortal Hulk Hogan, and the second was defeating Psycho Sid at WrestleMania 13. He was in the middle of an unprecedented undefeated streak at WrestleMania.
The Dark Days were certainly upon us. After Undertaker won the WWF title, Undertaker’s former manager, Paul Bearer, appeared and attempted to reconcile with the new WWF champion. When Undertaker refused to take back Bearer, Mankind attacked the Undertaker.
Then Paul Bearer lit flash paper and threw a fireball in the Undertaker’s face. Paul Bearer sealed his fate. This led to a match at In Your House Revenge of Taker. This is the story of The Undertaker & Kane and their rivalry.
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After the Undertaker defeated Mankind in the main event, the Undertaker got a little bit of revenge and threw a fireball in Paul Bearer’s face. The next night, on Monday Night Raw, Paul Bearer appeared. His face was bandaged from the burns. Bearer grabbed the mic and condemned the Undertaker for his actions.
He also threatened that he would tell Undertaker’s “deepest, darkest secret ” if Undertaker refused to allow Paul Bearer to manage him during his championship reign. This threat bothered the Undertaker so much that the Deadman agreed. Paul Bearer was now managing the reluctant WWF Champion.
The Undertaker & Kane
He’s Coming…
However, Paul Bearer did not just manage the Undertaker; he used this opportunity to berate and embarrass the Undertaker. The Man from the dark side had enough and choke-slammed Paul Bearer.
The next night on Monday Night Raw, Paul Bearer lets the world know that he will tell Undertaker’s deepest darkest secret. Paul Bearer went on to tell a story of a funeral home he worked in owned by the Undertaker’s parents.
He also went on to say that Undertaker had a brother named Kane. Paul Bearer stated that he caught the “red-headed punk,” aka The Undertaker, and his brother taking chemicals from the embalming room.
Paul Bearer claims that when he left for mortuary school, he saw that “red-headed punk ” give him a look. When Paul Bearer returned, the Undertakers family funeral home was in flames.
In this fire, Undertaker’s parents and his brother perished. On national television, Paul Bearer accused The Undertaker of setting fire to the funeral home and murdering his parents and brother.
The Undertaker responded, calling Paul Bearer a liar. His parents did die in that fire, but he did not start the fire. Paul Bearer responded back, calling Undertaker a liar. Paul Bearer also added that the reason he knows Undertaker is a liar is that “Kane is alive. ”
The Undertaker & Kane
“That’s Gotta Be Kane”
For months now, Paul Bearer constantly accused The Undertaker of being a murderer. He also kept threatening that Kane was coming. In August of 1997, Undertaker lost the WWF Championship to Bret Hitman Hart at Summerslam.
During this match, Shawn Michaels was the special guest referee. Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels despised each other. At the finish of the match, Shawn Michaels kept getting in the way of the Hitman. Bret responded by spitting on HBK. Michaels went to hit Bret with a steel chair, Bret moved, and Michaels inadvertently leveled the Undertaker with the chair.
Bret Hart became the new WWF Champion. Undertaker then turned his attention to Shawn Michaels. Things escalated rather quickly between Undertaker and Michaels. They decided to settle the score in hell…Hell in a Cell. This was an updated cage match with no way out.
Little did Undertaker know that not only would this be his first Hell in a Cell match, but he would also have a family reunion with his brother Kane. As the Undertaker was going to tombstone Shawn Michaels and go for the win, the arena’s lights went out.
Hellfire and Brimstone were walking to the ring. Kane had arrived with Paul Bearer. Kane ripped off the door to the cage, stepped in the ring, and tombstoned his brother as Paul Bearer watched on.
The Undertaker & Kane
Fighting with Family
In the weeks that followed, Kane and Paul Bearer continued to challenge Undertaker. Undertaker stated that no matter what, he would not fight his brother. Eventually, it looked like Kane decided that he did not want to fight his brother either and saved him from a few beatdowns.
It appeared Kane and Undertaker have reconciled, but this was a Paul Bearer setup. In January 1998, Undertaker received a rematch against Shawn Michaels at the Royal Rumble. Shawn Michaels was now the WWF champion, and Undertaker wanted the title.
The match was a casket match. In a casket match, whoever puts his opponent in the casket and closes the lid is declared the winner. This was Undertaker’s specialty. It appeared Undertaker had the match won after a tombstone into the casket on Shawn Michaels.
Just then, Undertaker was attacked by DOA and DX. Kane arrived and saved his brother again. At least, at first, it appeared that way. Suddenly Kane attacked Undertaker. Kane threw Undertaker in the casket and shut the lid. Paul Bearer and Kane proceeded to padlock the casket. Then Kane pulled out a match and lit the casket on fire with his brother inside.
The Undertaker & Kane
Taking Credit For A Brother’s Demise
In the months that followed, Kane took credit for destroying the Undertaker. However, Kane may have spoken too soon. The dead never rest, and the Undertaker returned. The fight was set for WrestleMania XIV. Undertaker and Kane’s first official one on one match. The Undertaker was victorious with three tombstones.
Kane, however, was not finished. Kane challenged Undertaker to the first-ever Inferno Match at Unforgiven. In this match, the ring would be surrounded by fire. The first competitor to light his opponent on fire wins. Never before had anything like this match happened in WWF. The flames surrounded the ring as the two monsters waged battle. The flames would get higher and higher with each death-defying move.
The Undertaker & Kane
The True HEAT Within Their Rivalry
Undertaker ended up winning this match as well when Kane’s arm got caught in the blaze. Kane had now lost two matches in a row to his brother. Also, during this time period, Paul Bearer announced that Kane is not Undertaker’s brother. He’s his half-brother. Paul Bearer also stated that he is Kane’s father and he had an affair with Undertaker’s mother.
This led to a match where the winner would become the number one contender for Stone Cold Steve Austins WWF title. Stone Cold previously defeated Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania to become the new champion.
Kane won the match and the right to face Austin. The next week on Raw, Steve Austin was attacked by Mankind and Kane. Mr. McMahon, who was Stone Cold Steve Austin’s main nemesis, convinced Austin that it was Undertaker behind the attacks. Kane received his title shot in a First Blood Match at King of the Ring.
In this match, the loser is the first one to bleed. However, a stipulation was added that if Kane lost, he wouldn’t bleed. He would set himself on fire. Even though Kane had put Undertaker through hell literally, Undertaker still did not want to see his brother set on fire.
The Undertaker & Kane
The Roles Are Reversed
During the match, Stone Cold Steve Austin looked as though he would retain his WWF title when Undertaker showed up. Everyone thought Undertaker was there to damage Kane, but instead, Undertaker went to swing at Kane and “inadvertently ” hit Austin with a steel chair. Austin was split open and bled all over the mat. Kane was now the new WWF Champion.
However, this was short-lived; the next night on Monday Night Raw, Stone Cold Steve Austin regained the WWF title. Undertaker knew he had to be the one to defeat Stone Cold. The match was set for Summerslam.
The theme of that year’s Summerslam was Highway To Hell. Undertaker and Steve Austin went to hell and back again in the match. Austin was victorious with a stunner, but Undertaker and Kane were always a threat.
The Undertaker & Kane
The Brothers of Destruction vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin
At Breakdown In Your House, Mr. McMahon made a triple threat match between Undertaker, Kane, and the WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin. However, because McMahon wanted nothing more than for Austin to lose the title, he put in the stipulation that neither Kane nor Undertaker can pin each other to win.
The only way a winner is declared is to pin Austin. This all but made sure a new champion would emerge. The match was complete chaos. Basically, this was a handicap match. Both brothers attempted to pin Austin. At the end of the match, Austin was choke slammed by both Kane and Undertaker.
Both Kane and Undertaker pinned Stone Cold Steve Austin. Technically both were now the WWF Champion. The next night on Raw, Mr. McMahon declared the title vacant and blamed Undertaker and Kane for this. McMahon insulted the Undertaker and Kane. As Mr. McMahon was getting ready to leave, The Undertaker grabbed McMahon.
The brothers proceeded to break Vince McMahon’s leg with the steel steps. Before the Undertaker and Kane crippled Mr. McMahon, he made a match at Judgement Day Undertaker would challenge Kane with Stone Cold Steve Austin as the special guest referee.
The Undertaker & Kane
In Pursuit Of Austin
The Brothers of Destruction destroyed each other in this match, but they also went after Austin. Paul Bearer appeared out of nowhere with a steel chair. Paul Bearer told Kane he was there to hit the Undertaker with the chair. Instead, Bearer hit Kane. The chair shot barely fazed Kane.
As Kane went after his father, Undertaker grabbed the chair and slammed it across Kane’s skull. Undertaker had aligned himself with Paul Bearer again. Just then, Austin came to, saw what happened, and stunned Undertaker. Kane and Undertaker were both knocked out. Stone Cold Steve Austin, the special guest referee, counted to three and declared himself the winner.
The Undertaker & Kane
The Ministry of Darkness
The next night on Raw, Undertaker showed up with Paul Bearer. To add to Undertaker’s new attitude, Undertaker said that he actually started the fire that killed his parents and burned down the funeral home after all this time.
He also proceeded to showcase his dark satanic side. Undertaker assembled a ministry of darkness. Paul Bearer also told Kane that he used him like a pet and called him stupid. Undertaker turned his attention to Stone Cold Steve Austin at In Your House Rock Bottom.
The Undertaker had also recently spoken about being aligned with a higher power. No one would have thought the higher power was Vince McMahon. Undertaker had been threatening the McMahon family for weeks, but it was just a ruse. Mr. McMahon and the Undertaker were after Stone Cold Steve Austin’s soul at In Your House Rock Bottom.
Kane had not forgotten what Undertaker and Paul Bearer had done to him and interfered in the match. Due to his interference, Mr. McMahon banished Kane back to an Asylum as punishment.
The Undertaker & Kane
The X-PAC & Big Red Machine Alliance
When Kane finally returned to the WWF, he aligned with X-Pac. Together they won the tag team championship twice. Kane was also an honorary member of Degeneration X . Undertaker tried to recruit Kane to his Ministry.
Still, Kane knew it was his brother that convinced Vince McMahon to put Kane in an asylum. Kane chose XPAC over his brother. The Undertaker was not happy. He recruited The Big Show, and together they formed an Unholy Alliance.
In late 1999, Undertaker suffered an injury that made it necessary to take time off from the ring. He barely appeared in the ring. Most of the time, Undertaker would demand Big Show do his dirty work for him.
Eventually, Big Show had enough of the Undertaker, and the Unholy Alliance ended. Undertakers Ministry also imploded. Undertaker put together a work shoot promo on Vince McMahon. In this promo, he said Vince took everything he had from him. Undertaker also announced that he quit the WWF.
The Undertaker & Kane
The American Bad A** Rides
At the May 2000 pay-per-view Judgement Day, Undertaker returned with a new look. Gone were the goth and darkness. This Undertaker was now true to himself. He was a badass biker. Undertaker wasted no time in clearing the ring of all of DX and the McMahon family.
The Undertaker was back, and he was on a mission. Shortly after that, Undertaker and Kane once again teamed up. They were now dubbed the brothers of destruction. They reconciled their differences and were on their way to the WWF tag team title. Once again, this was short-lived.
On Monday Night Raw, Kane choke slammed the Undertaker through the ring and rode off on his motorcycle. Kane claimed he attacked his brother because he’s accepted who he is ….a monster. This led to a showdown between the Undertaker and Kane at Summerslam. Undertaker won the match, got his revenge, and demasked Kane.
The Brothers of Destruction Return
Both Kane and Undertaker went their separate ways until Jan 2001. Kane had recently earned the fans’ respect again because of his performance at that year’s Royal Rumble. Kane and Undertaker also had a brief reunion at the rumble when they cleared house. In a match on Monday Night Raw, Kane was attacked by Rikishi and Haku.
The Undertaker raced his motorcycle to the ring and saved his brother. The Brothers of Destruction were back, and no one was safe. Kane and The Undertaker went on to double-chokeslam all the tag teams in the WWF. They almost became tag team champions at the expense of the Dudley Boyz.
The Undertaker & Kane
Playing The Game
On Smackdown in 2001, Triple H claimed that he had beaten the best. He wanted to know why he wasn’t in the main event. Triple H claimed the WWF was his. Undertaker was now celebrating ten years in the WWF. It was called the decade of destruction, and he took exception to Triple H.
The Undertaker claimed that Triple H had not beaten anyone until he beats him. Undertaker told Triple H, “if you try me, I’ll make you famous.” Triple H proceeded to attack Undertaker. He even went so far as to get a restraining order on Undertaker from touching Stephanie McMahon, HHH’s wife.
The next week on Raw, during a HHH match, The Undertaker and Kane abducted Stephanie McMahon. They threatened to throw the Billion Dollar Princess off a balcony if he didn’t get a match with Triple H at WrestleMania. Undertaker got his match with The Game.
The Undertaker won the match with a last ride. That same night at WrestleMania, another match also stole the show as the Rock defended his WWE Championship against Stone Cold Steve Austin. Who would have predicted that Stone Cold would win back the title, turn on the fans, and join forces with Mr. McMahon?
The Undertaker & Kane
Rivalry with The Two Man Power Trip
Not only did the new WWF champion Stone Cold Steve Austin join forces with Mr. McMahon, but he also joined forces with Triple H. Together, Steve Austin and Triple H were known as the Two Man Power Trip. It was also during this time that Triple H won the Intercontinental Title.
The Two-man Power Trip now had both the WWF major titles. The Brothers of Destruction, Kane, and The Undertaker, recently won the WWF tag team Championship. At Backlash, The Brothers of Destruction challenged the Two-Man Power Trip. All titles were on the line.
Unfortunately, Kane and the Undertaker came up short in this contest, and Triple H retained the Intercontinental Title, and Stone Cold Steve Austin was still the WWF Champion. In addition to that, by defeating the Undertaker and Kane, the Two Man Power Trip was also tag team champions.
The following month at Judgement Day, Kane defeated Triple H for the WWF Intercontinental Title in a chain match. Undertaker wasn’t as lucky though; Triple H helped Stone Cold Steve Austin retain the WWF Championship.
The Undertaker & Kane
Stalking Sara
The week before WrestleMania X-Seven, WWF bought WCW. As part of the purchase for WCW, several WCW superstar’s contracts were now owned by WWE. During this time, a mysterious video kept being shown on Raw.
The video showed The Undertaker’s then-wife Sara. The person shooting the video was Sara’s unidentified stalker. The stalker would follow Sara to the grocery store, out running, and in her pool in the backyard.
The stalker later revealed himself as WCW’s own Diamond Dallas Page. Diamond Dallas Page wanted Undertaker to make him famous. He figured the best way to get Undertaker’s attention was to go after Sara. Eventually, another friend of DDP joined his crusade. Kanyon made his debut in WWE.
DDP and Kanyon went on to win the WCW tag team championship. Undertaker and Kane challenged DDP and Kanyon to a winner take all cage match at Summerslam. After a hard-fought victory, the Brothers of Destruction unified the Tag Team Championship by defeating DDP and Kanyon. Eventually, The Brothers of Destruction lost the tag belts. Both brothers decided to go their own way.
The Undertaker & Kane
Big Evil
In late 2001 Mr.McMahon had a conversation with the Deadman. He told the Undertaker that he respected him and that he owed him. He owed him because Mr. McMahon said he makes it possible for Undertaker to kick ass without consequences. On Monday Night Raw, Mr. McMahon was embarrassed by Stone Cold Steve Austin.
Jim Ross was seen laughing at McMahon. McMahon didn’t like it and demanded JR come into the ring and kiss his ass. As Kurt Angle held JR for Vince McMahon, the Undertaker came down to the ring. He told Vince that everyone kissed his ass, but the one who kissed his ass the most was the Undertaker.
He then proceeded to ask JR if the reason why he will not kiss Vince’s a** is because JR thinks he’s better than the Undertaker. Undertaker did the most unimaginable thing and made JR kiss Vince’s a**. The era of Big Evil, Red Devil, was upon us.
The Undertaker wasted no time in assaulting Ric Flair. He also defeated Hulk Hogan for the Undisputed Championship. Undertaker’s turning point came when Jeff Hardy challenged him to a ladder match. Jeff Hardy fought, and during that match, he made the Undertaker respect him.
The Undertaker & Kane
The Evolution of The Big Red Machine
Kane, on the other hand, remained a fan favorite. Kane won the WWE tag team championships with Rob Van Dam and The Hurricane. The monster was officially gone…or was it just dormant. Triple H now led a group called Evolution, comprised of himself, Ric Flair, Batista, and Randy Orton.
Triple H harassed Kane about his past. Kane was becoming a monster again. Triple H forced Kane into a match where if Kane lost, he would de-mask and show the world his scarred face. Triple H did win that match. Kane did as he promised and removed the mask. The monster was unleashed like never before. Kane went on a rampage.
He set fire to Jim Ross during an interview. Kane tombstoned Linda McMahon. He beat Shane McMahon senselessly and tortured him with a car battery. No one was safe from the monster.
The Undertaker & Kane
Hellfire and Brimstone vs. Death and Darkness
After the match with Jeff Hardy, Undertaker once again began to see the light. After he was drafted to Smackdown, Undertaker began on a crash course with Undisputed WWE Champion Brock Lesnar.
The Undertaker came within moments of defeating Lesnar in Hell in a Cell. Vince McMahon felt he owned the Undertaker. He demanded Undertaker attack his daughter Stephanie who Vince was hell-bent on teaching a lesson.
Stephanie was now the GM of Smackdown. Vince challenged his only daughter to a match. Undertaker did not like Vince’s parenting skills, so when Vince tried to choke Stephanie with a lead pipe, Undertaker made the save. This led to a Buried Alive Match at Survivor Series.
During this match, Undertaker punished Vince McMahon all over the arena. It looked like Undertaker was on the verge of victory when Kane appeared and buried the American Badass alive. Due to Kane’s help, Mr. McMahon holds a victory over The Undertaker in a buried alive match.
Kane appeared weekly on Smackdown, stating that his brother The Undertaker was dead and gone. He even went so far as to hold a funeral for the American Badass. What Kane didn’t realize is you can’t kill what’s already dead. Kane’s worst nightmare was about to rise from the grave. Yes, the American Badass was dead, but the Undertaker was reborn.
In the weeks that followed, the Undertaker haunted his brother. This led to Undertaker vs. Kane at WrestleMania XX. This marks the second time in WrestleMania history the Brothers of Destruction attempted to destroy one another.
The Undertaker & Kane
An Eternal Merging of Pathways
The Undertaker made his return, complete with druids and Paul Bearer. Kane was once again tombstoned to hell as the Deadman continued his undefeated streak at 12-0. Once again, after WrestleMania XX, both brothers went their own way.
The Undertaker focused back on the WWE Championship on Smackdown against JBL. He also put on a Legend vs. Legend killer classic match against Randy Orton at WrestleMania 21. After defeating Orton, The Undertaker’s streak was 13-0.
Kane became more sadistic on Monday Night Raw. He was like a horror film come to life. Kane was now nicknamed the Devil’s Favorite Demon. He also married Lita in a dark wedding complete with an unforgettable maid of honor, Trish Stratus.
Lita also became pregnant with his demon seed until a run-in with Gene Snitsky, which really wasn’t his fault. Lita eventually turned on Kane for edge. The fans felt bad for Kane and began to cheer him on as he terrorized Edge. Kane also teamed up with The Big Show and won the Raw tag team title.
