The greatest WWE tag teams of all time: The Brothers of Destruction

There have been many tag teams in the history of the WWE that were all about flair, longevity and technicality. But only one team can claim to be truly destructive, the aptly named Brothers of Destruction.

If there is one man that every WWE fan all over the world roots for, it is the Undertaker. For more than 20 years, he has been one of the dominant athletes to have set foot in the ring. His iconic slow walk from the titantron to the ring has sent chills down every opponent’s body and nobody could ever win a staring contest against him. As if one huge monster from the dark side was not enough to dominate the WWE scene, in came Kane to up the stakes. Kane, quite the opposite, would make his way with blasts of fire from hell all around him, intimidating his opponents with his sheer power.

When Kane first debuted in the WWE, not many would have expected him to pair up with his “brother”, considering the fact that Paul Bearer claimed that the Undertaker was responsible for the murder of their parents. But then again, it was only logical that the siblings would come together at some point or the other.

The first signs of a team in the making came about in the Royal Rumble of 2001. The effect that they would have was there to see as they combined together to eliminate a sizeable number of competitors. They may not have won the Rumble that year, but the potential was there for everyone to see. When Scotty 2 Hotty’s turn came in that rumble, with the brothers standing in the ring waiting for him, you could see the fear in his eyes. He knew that it was the wrong time to enter the ring!

Their first match was a typically brutal one – The First Blood Match. They defeated Rikishi and Haku in that match, and got a shot at the tag team titles at the No Way Out PPV that year, in a tables match against the Dudley Boyz and Edge & Christian. Fittingly, all 3 were teams made up of “brothers”! This match was another demonstration of the dominant force the Brothers of Destruction could be, when they controlled and dominated the entire match. They would have won the tag titles too, if it wasn’t for interference from Rikishi and Haku.

After Austin’s surprising heel turn later that year, he joined forces with Triple H and they feuded with the Brothers of Destruction. The brothers would get a shot at them, if they could successfully defeat Edge & Christian for the tag team titles. Austin and Triple H had no intention of facing the wrath of the brothers and so interfered in the match. In spite of that, the brothers went on to defeat Edge & Christian to become the tag team champions for the first time.

This led to one of the most unique matches ever to be witnessed in the WWE Universe. Triple H was the Intercontinental Champion, Austin was the WWF Champion while the Brothers of Destruction were the tag team champions. The stipulation of this match was that all titles would be on line. So, whichever team won the match would be holding all the titles.

The match turned out to be a mouth-watering one for the audience as all 4 superstars putting up fabulous performances. Just when the brothers were beginning to assert their dominance, Triple H, in typical villainous fashion, took the help of a sledgehammer to knock out Kane to pick up the win.

As a result of the destruction he suffered at the hands of Austin and Triple H with chairs and sledgehammers, Kane was out injured for a considerable period of time and so Undertaker turned his attention towards singles matches and each had their own feuds to fight. They did come back together sporadically over the years, but it never resulted in a sustained team and no proper feud evolved. They did stay together to fight for the WWF during the alliance invasion and helped Vince keep his company away from the hands of his children.

While the team may not have lasted for a long time, it is one of the reasons it makes them such a great team. Most tag teams couldn’t do well in singles matches, which wasn’t the case with the Brothers of Destruction. They were the only team that had both power and agility and brought an all-round expertise to their game which made it difficult for other teams to defeat them without the help of outside interference. But the beauty lies in the fact that they went out on a high and did not die a slow death, as was the case with many other teams. They stayed out of each other’s way so that it always gave them the chance to combine again, whenever the need arose.

The Undertaker has always been ready to help his “brother” whenever the need arose, as was the case in the 1000^th episode of RAW, sending a signal to all the other athletes:

“Through Hell Fire and Brimstone, you will Rest in Peace.”