Undertaker: The Last Ride review: Chapter 2 takes off from episode 1 and discusses his future with the WWE
The Undertaker and Michelle McCool backstage after WrestleMania 34
"I'm not as good as I once was, but I'm good once as I'll ever be" - Undertaker
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In the Undertaker Last Ride - Chapter 1, we saw the journey of him facing his worst fear after suffering a shocking loss at WrestleMania 30.
Undertaker: The Last Ride Chapter 2 The Redemption picks up after the events at Wrestlemania 33 in 2017.
Mark Callaway (The Undertaker) relives his WM 33 match with Roman Reigns and feels he should have given much more, going on to state that he was a 'disappointment'. After the loss to Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 33, Undertaker went on to leave his signature attire - coat and hat - in the ring and said there 'could not be anything more real' in what he felt at that particular moment.
Undertaker post his match at WrestleMania 33
WWE superstar Big Show called it 'religious'. Big Show said, "It symbolises how Taker worked in his entire career. When you leave that ring, everything's in it. You gave the fans what they wanted."
"To see that symbolism in his face, which he never registers anything... That got me," said Shane McMahon, who faced Taker at WrestleMania 32.
The second episode of the docuseries on The Phenom dwells deeply into Undertaker's mindset and his wife Michelle McCool's emotions on what the future has for him post WM 2017. Taker lives with regret and an intention to redeem himself but only one problem stands in the way - his health.
"I don't wanna be a parody of myself" - Undertaker
Undertaker backstage at WrestleMania 33
Michelle McCool said, "He left 'The Undertaker' persona in the ring, but for the first time in 30 years he broke character and kissed me on-air. That was the only thing that gave me hope that, selfishly, as a wife, to know so much pain he's in, to believe that he's done."
Former Universal Champion Roman Reigns, who faced Taker in the WrestleMania 33 match said, "It was heartbreaking, it affected me and made me emotional and wanna cry. I don't regret anything... Was it (the match) perfect? No. But we were in the moment and as live performers, anything can happen. It all comes back to his character and the responsibility he holds. If there's a job to be done and a goal to be achieved, he gets it done."
WWE chairman and CEO Vince McMahon said, "First you feel bad for the human being and then for the character. As a human being, he had a big decision to make - What does he do that's best for his family."
Undertaker: The Last Ride Chapter 2 then continues four weeks after his WrestleMania 2017 match where Taker went on to undergo hip surgery. During that time, Taker reveals he had a total of 15 surgeries in his career (eye, shoulder, biceps, knee, fingers).
Post-surgery, Undertaker was released of the chronic pain in the hip which lasted for almost 15 years. He said, "I was pain-free and able to do things."
Mark Callaway's wife Michelle McCool has stood like a rock beside him during this trying time. "She should get a medal for what she went through and had to endure. She showed me what was important in life again because I lost that. I wouldn't be the man I am today without her."
It was also revealed in Chapter 2, that McCool did not want to meet two WWE superstars during her career in the company - Kane (Glenn Jacobs) and The Undertaker. She went on to find out that Kane was one of the nicest guys in the world and she ended up marrying the other one (Undertaker). They trackback to their first few meetings and it was also revealed that Callaway actually fell for McCool coz 'she really knew how to throw a football'.
Three months later, Undertaker's contract with WWE was on the brink of expiring in August 2017. Taker was scheduled for a meeting with WWE CEO Vince to discuss his role in the future and admits he gave up strategising meetings with Vince 'a long while ago'. Despite working for him, Undertaker shared a special bond with Vince McMahon like no other. "Besides my father the most influential person in my life is Vince," said Taker.
Big Show, Batista, Bret Hart go on to talk about Taker's relationship with Vince through the years and their journey together in building WWE as a business. Taker said, "He (Vince) has been like a dad, brother - been it all to me."
When asked what has The Undertaker meant to him and WWE, Vince simply tears up and says "can't do that".
January 2018 - at the Royal Rumble, Michelle McCool competed in the first-ever women's royal rumble match. After the Rumble, Vince discussed a possible match for Undertaker with 16-time champion John Cena at WrestleMania 34. Although he initially doubted his return physically, Taker began prepping for the same. He went on to get a custom ring for himself and practised his in-ring game.
A month before WrestleMania 34, The Phenom began central focus on cardio workouts. His sole objective was to redeem himself and have a better match and steal the show with a view of eliminating Mania 33's performance from his books. Undertaker also found big help in former WWE superstar Primo, who trained with him in the ring 2 weeks ahead of Mania.
John Cena, a 16-time WWE World Champion and one of the biggest superstars in WWE in the past 2 decades, stated that this storyline was decided as they had to 'bring back The Undertaker'.
John Cena and The Undertaker backstage after WrestleMania 34
John Cena and The Undertaker first faced each other in a singles match at Vengeance 2003 which Taker won. This match at WrestleMania 34 had to fill the empty void from 2017. Undertaker and John Cena faced each other in what could be called a short match with Taker dominating the entire match showcasing all his signature moves and ended up winning the match. The WWE Universe, however, was left begging for more.
Undertaker after his match at WrestleMania 34
Nonetheless, The Undertaker cleared all doubts and finally knew that he had it in him to wrestle. The only question that begs now was - does he decide to still wrestle or hang up his gloves?
Undertaker: The Last Rider Chapter 3 will dive into details of the decision Taker made and what unfolded.
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