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"Undertaker: The Last Ride" is WWE Network's Limited Series Event that takes a rare look at Mark Calaway, the man behind the most legendary character in WWE history, as he prepares for the inevitable end to his career.
This particular special has been the most hyped docuseries in months, and as far as the first episode goes, it meets all expectations.
The Undertaker is seemingly indestructible. As we see throughout the premiere, Mark Calaway has been through insurmountable physical and mental challenges in a career that spans across 30 years.
But what makes this docuseries special is that we see The Undertaker at his most vulnerable state in WWE. Whether you are a Professional Wrestling fan or not, everyone has heard of The Undertaker at some point in their lives.
This bold documentary is not only tasked with dissecting an aged gunslinger's journey, but it is also responsible for providing a down-to-earth look at one of the most mythical characters in fictional entertainment.
Here are the five biggest news stories from "Undertaker: The Last Ride" - Chapter One.
#5: The Undertaker talked about how the WrestleMania 30 performance destroyed his confidence
“The match with Brock, to this day, I still don’t remember,” Mark Calaway said. “I’m not sure when I got concussed. I don’t know how that match happened.”
At this point, fans have seen the footage of The Deadman's WrestleMania streak ending more times than we can count. But this episode provided additional insight on that infamous WrestleMania 30 moment.
Vince McMahon was frantic after The Undertaker collapsed backstage. The medical team knew something bad had happened when Mark had no idea where he was.
The Undertaker commented that one concussion he suffered while wrestling Brock Lesnar destroyed his confidence. This began Mark Calaway's rocky WWE journey throughout the next few years.
#4: Triple H momentarily restored The Undertaker's confidence at WrestleMania 31
After the WrestleMania 30 incident, it was up to The Undertaker to restore his legacy against Bray Wyatt next year.
WrestleMania 31 is often underlooked when people talk about The Deadman's post-2014 career. Perhaps that is so because it represents the calm before the storm. The Undertaker's match against Bray Wyatt was considered safe and decent as compared to, say, his disastrous match against Goldberg.
But it was Triple H who ensured that Mark Calaway had enough confidence in himself before stepping into The Undertaker's shoes in 2015.
The episode showed a backstage moment between The Undertaker and Triple H, as pictured above. This was before the former legend made his trademark entrance. Mark later confessed that it was those few words from Triple H that helped him get through the match.
This wasn't the only pivotal moment between The Undertaker and Triple H throughout the first part of WWE Network's Limited Series, but it was certainly heartwarming to see a genuine backstage moment between two industry icons.
#3: The Undertaker expressed how working only a few times a year is harder than it looks
"That's a huge challenge to only work once a year and then try to have timing, cardio, have your gimmick. It's tough, but it's my reality. That's where I'm at. At this point in my career, I (Mark Calaway) can't work a full schedule. There, I said it."
It is easy to forget that a lot goes into preparing for a wrestling match, especially one with The Undertaker at this stage of his career.
As both Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Undertaker expressed, getting into in-ring shape and preparing the body to handle some rough bumps becomes a concern for a part-timer. On the road, wrestlers get used to the pain after a while. But for an aged wrestler, it becomes harder to cope with the injuries if you only wrestle once or twice a year.
As Michelle McCool said, people have no idea about the amount of pain he is in. The first part of this docuseries shows how that pain gets amplified each and every year The Undertaker comes back.
#2: The Undertaker's WrestleMania 33 match against Roman Reigns was supposed to be the end of the road
WWE fans always speculated that The Undertaker's WrestleMania 33 match was supposed to be the final conclusion to The Deadman's career.
In Chapter One of The Last Ride, we finally get to see the backstage moments before and after the bout itself. Roman Reigns and Mark Calaway developed a professional relationship ahead of their big encounter.
For a viewer, all of it alerts a sense of impending doom, because we know that things are going to end on a bad note after it's all said and done.
The Last Ride's recap of their WrestleMania bout showed that Mark Calaway gave his best shot to make The Deadman gimmick look as good as possible. After the match, Mark gets lowered from the entrance ramp and meets Triple H.
This leads to the second big moment between them, where both icons share a hug in a touching moment. Triple H tells him “that’s a hell of a run.” The Undertaker gets a heartfelt applause backstage, signaling this was supposed to be the end to his in-ring career.
But we all know that won't be the case in the next episode when Mark realizes a negative fallout to his fight against Roman Reigns.
#1: Mark Calaway is in search of the great final match for The Undertaker
The whole point of The Undertaker coming back each and every year has a meaning to it.
There are stories dating back to the late 90s which detail how Mark Calaway deals with all the physical pain. But it was WrestleMania 30 that marked the beginning of the end.
"Undertaker: The Last Ride" doesn't just provide an intimate look at one of the most protected wrestling characters in history, but the limited series also has a current purpose attached to it.
Mark Calaway won't let go of his onscreen alter-ego until the character seems to have completed his arc. The Undertaker's fans or peers don't know when that arc ends. We might speculate about it online, but ultimately, Mark Calaway is the only one who knows when it should all end for The Undertaker.
Maybe he won't be satisfied until the day comes where Mark is forced to let go. But this documentary's overarching purpose is to question whether or not The Undertaker will have that great final match in the years to come.
As viewers, all we can do is strap ourselves for the upcoming episodes of WWE Network's intriguing look at the greatest of them all.
