9. Things Got Personal
The beauty of CM Punk's feud with the Undertaker was that it became about a lot more than beating the Streak. In the week following CM Punk's challenge to the Dead Man, the wrestling world was shocked by the sudden death of William Moody, best known for his work as iconic manager Paul Bearer. The March 11 episode of Raw opened with the Undertaker paying tribute to Bearer, after a montage aired of his best moments. In a moment of stunning disrespect, the heartfelt tribute was interrupted by CM Punk's entrance music as he cut a promo about ending the Streak. Later in the show, Punk stole Taker's symbolic urn and refused to return it in the build up to WrestleMania. This gave the rivalry a real edge. For once, it wasn't the legendary Undertaker who was the formidable aggressor; it was the pretender to his crown. By exploiting Taker's real-life personal tragedy, the feud cut through the boundary between kayfabe and reality in a way that was absolutely golden in the midst of the so-called 'Reality Era'.