The Undertaker: Every Reinvention Ranked Worst To Best

Following the WCW/ECW Invasion angle of 2001, the WWF looked to change up its product and tried to arrest their declining numbers. Many wrestlers changed allegiances or gimmicks, defeated WCW stars began to slowly reappear on television, and new stars were being tried out. Prominent amongst the changes was the Undertaker turning heel again. Aligning himself with Vince McMahon, Undertaker did not return completely to his Deadman persona, but added a more demonic side to his American Badass character.

Ruthless and brutal, 'Taker kept his hair short for the first time, adding to the no-nonsense character he was now playing. Destroying Maven after being eliminated from the Royal Rumble, kidnapping Ric Flair's son David in order to get a WrestleMania match with the Nature Boy, and dragging Hulk Hogan through the backstage area tied to his bike, 'Taker's new edge earned him another WWE Championship.

More importantly, after the visible physical issues that had plagued the American Badass and Ministry of Darkness versions of the character, the Undertaker began to get leaner and more agile again. His encounters with Flair, a young Brock Lesnar and memorably a Ladder match against Jeff Hardy were the best he had participated in since the Teardrop Undertaker days of 1997. After a huge section of the fanbase had become disenchanted with him over the previous few years, Big Evil ensured that the Undertaker would remain a popular and respected character, something that had not look guaranteed in the early 2000s.