40 Greatest Stories Wrestling Ever Told

If everyone was being honest with themselves, there would've been some doubting glances at the brand new Kane gimmick when it was hatched by creative in mid-1997. Glenn Jacobs had played an evil dentist and a Diesel rip off, so hopes weren't exactly high that he'd match up against The Undertaker or make the best of becoming that character's kayfabe brother.

Kane would go on to become a standalone Hall Of Famer.

Paul Bearer threatened Undertaker with news that his disfigured, chargrilled brother was "alive" over the summer months. Then, after significant build, Kane debuted by ripping the door clean off the WWF's new Hell In A Cell structure before hitting a Tombstone Piledriver on his onscreen sibling. It's still viewed as one of the greatest debuts ever.

Kane became more than a one off feud who'd keep 'Taker busy heading into WrestleMania XIV. Everything, from his entrance, costume and mask to the way he'd make fire shoot from the turnbuckles during his entrance, clicked with fans. They had a new monster to enjoy, one miles better than other Undertaker foes like Giant Gonzalez or a past-his-prime King Kong Bundy.

It was as though the failure of 'Undertaker vs. Underfaker' at SummerSlam 1994 was something Vince McMahon took personally. His creative team put together a dramatic storyboard for Kane's introduction. He was over even before debuting, such were the strength of Bearer's promos and 'Taker's terrified reactions when his old manager reminisced about family fires of yesteryear.

There may never be a better supernatural storyline than this.