There's an argument to be made that The Undertaker is the last real gimmick left in pro wrestling, and that if Mark Calaway sold that out by not being so enigmatic and completely reclusive, he'd collapse the entire wrestling business in on itself, too. Thus, he has to protect himself and the gimmick he's had for 23 years at all costs. Hogan is Hogan, Flair is Flair and Piper is Piper, and they exist as the three last super-charismatic front men from wrestling's rock star era. However 'Taker's 'Taker - He's KISS compared to Led Zeppelin and the Sex Pistols - a whole other more amazing thing when compared to anything else worthy of comparison on that vaunted level. Bigger, bolder, badder and yes, cooler than any other star, he's a standout. Again, if The Undertaker becomes commonplace in a world of stereotypically regular and typical people, then the people may not want to believe in the magic of pro wrestling anymore.
Besides having been an independent professional wrestling manager for a decade, Marcus Dowling is a Washington, DC-based writer who has contributed to a plethora of online and print magazines and newspapers writing about music and popular culture over the past 15 years.
