The Undertaker is one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, and he is someone who is a true icon of the industry. The Deadman achieved everything that could be done in the wrestling business, from title victories to his WrestleMania undefeated streak; he is someone that fans respect immensely.
However, while he's done a lot of positive things for WWE, there's no doubt that there have been some rocky moments throughout his career as well. The Undertaker has stepped up and helped the business in a lot of ways as well though, and here, let's take a look at how he improved, and got worse as he got older.
10 Got Worse: Retirement Teases
There's nothing more frustrating in wrestling than a beloved legend teasing the idea of retirement frequently and then not going through with it. The bait and switch can become annoying and that was the case with The Undertaker.
Whether it was a promo at Raw 1000 or leaving his gear in the ring at WrestleMania 33, The Undertaker did it too many times, to the point where people didn't actually take it as seriously when he did call it a day.
9 Got Better: The Streak
Something like The Undertaker's WrestleMania undefeated streak is something that can only happen with a lengthy career at the top of the sport. Thankfully, that is exactly what happened for him, which created an iconic run that will never be forgotten.
There will never be anything like that streak again in wrestling, and the fact that it became one of the top matches at the biggest show of the year showcases exactly what it meant to the fans over the years.
8 Got Worse: Quality Of Feuds Dipped
During the main bulk of his career, The Undertaker was involved in some epic feuds, whether it was against the likes of Kane or Steve Austin. They were huge storylines that became iconic, but as his career went on, they became less frequent.
Undertaker was involved in a lot of random storylines, from Shane McMahon and the lockbox, to his lackluster storyline with Bray Wyatt. The excitement and buzz surrounding his feuds started to dwindle as a result of it, which is a real shame.
7 Got Better: Fought Through Injuries
Injuries are commonplace in wrestling, but considering the length of his career, The Undertaker dealt with more than most. However, throughout all of that, he continued to fight and kept working hard to come back.
This was simply because of his love for the sport and his desire to help others; giving back to the sport that gave him so much. It's something he continued to do, no matter the pain, and he does deserve a huge amount of credit for that.
6 Got Worse: Taking Spots Of Full-Time Talent
One big way that The Undertaker got worse was the fact that he ended up taking a lot of spots from full-time talent. For someone who loves the business as much as The Undertaker does, it was always a surprise to see him come back so frequently to take the spots of other full-time members of the roster.
The Undertaker knows how long and hard certain people work, so the fact he always had a major spot at WrestleMania is something that did actually hurt his legacy overall.
5 Got Better: His Backstage Presence
While fans have been able to enjoy The Undertaker's great in-ring work, behind the scenes he has been just as influential. The Deadman has always been praised for being a locker room leader and that ended up being a huge role for him.
Undertaker earned the respect of everybody and because of that, he was able to solve issues and really help keep the roster together. It's something that every wrestler speaks about, and is something he no doubt only got better at, as his experience grew in the industry.
4 Got Worse: Breaking Kayfabe
Out of every wrestler in WWE history, The Undertaker has been the one person who has never broken character. He's never strayed or showcased himself in the public eye, however towards the end of his career that began to change.
While this was great for the wonderful documentary about his career, things did end up going too far. From Tik Tok videos to trashing elements of today's product, his kayfabe-breaking decision ended up hurting him, as opposed to improving anything.
3 Got Better: Promo Skills
The Undertaker is never someone that fans would consider to be one of the greatest promos of all time, however, he made a lot of improvements over his career. When he first started talking, The Undertaker was stuck in his character a little too heavily with his promos.
While it worked for the time, The Deadman really did develop and improve at promos as he got older. While they were often very character-driven, he grew in being able to connect with the crowd more as he pushed his storylines, becoming far better at promos as he got older.
2 Got Worse: His In-Ring Work Declined
For the vast majority of his career, The Undertaker put together some fantastic matches. He was a very athletic big man and that led to him having some unforgettable in-ring performances, but as he got older, Father Time caught up with him.
There are very few wrestlers who don't get worse in the ring as they get older, but The Undertaker dragged his career on for a long time. It's something that led to some really poor performances, and sadly, it did damage his reputation by the end.
1 Got Better: Changing With The Times
The gimmick of The Undertaker is something that could have very easily only lasted a short run, due to it being quite over the top. However, he never let that happen, and that's because The Undertaker changed with the times consistently.
Whether it was becoming darker, switching things up with the American Badass, or starting to show more signs of Mark Calaway towards the end of his career, the man behind the gimmick ensured he stayed relevant, and this only allowed him to get better as his career went on.