The Importance Of The Phenom.

He is one of the most respected men in the history of sports entertainment. He strikes fear in the hearts of his competitors and elation with the fans. When he walks down to the ring, you can feel his presence and an air of electricity.

He is the Undertaker.

As a young kid, I remember the man who rolled his eyes in the back of his head as someone who scared the crap out of me. When that music hit, the fear started. Looking back on it 23 years later, that was one thing that makes him so amazing. The Undertaker is one of those rare athletes that delivers on every performance, his whole aesthetic is one that grabs the attention of the audience. There has always been a universal appeal to him that wrestling fans just eat right up. He can come out in his classic cloak and bubble hat (as I call it), as a cult-type leader, or even as a biker; wrestling fans always see the same person. I believe that his appeal comes from his solemness and quietness, most eloquently seen when he cut the famous 'wordless promo' with Triple H to hype their Wrestlemania 27 bout. It was more than epic, it was classic Undertaker.

I have been watching wrestling for a lot of years and have seen a lot of things. One of my all-time favorite memories is seeing him take his unfortunate opponents arm and walk across that top rope. Even now, at almost 24 years old, I still get that same flutter of excitement in my stomach when I see it. It's little moments like those that stick with a fan. Another of my favorite memories is his undefeated streak at the showcase of the immortals, Wrestlemania. How many other athletes can say that they have gone 19-0 at the biggest event of their respective sports? How many can say that they have gone 19-0 at anything? It truly is a feat and is going to be one of the many pieces of his legacy.

More than great in-ring memories, he is professional wrestling. He is so important because even after twenty years in the business, he can still get out there and perform like someone half his age. The Undertaker embodies what every aspiring wrestler should want to be. He has longevity and the reason why he has that is because he is one of the most dedicated performers that professional wrestling has ever seen. He isn't like some wrestlers that go to a rival company and sandbag the place that made them, I'm pretty sure anyone with some wrestling knowledge can figure out who that would be. The Undertaker, even with his dark persona, is someone the fans feel like they can identify with on some level. That, in part with the amazing memories he gives them, is why he has survived over twenty years in the wrestling business.

With his recent comeback to challenge Triple H to their third go at a Wrestlemania, he has reinforced his spot at the top of the company. He comes back at the most opportune moments and capitalizes on them. His matches are always the most anticipated of the entire pay-per-view and to even think about a Wrestlemania without and Undertaker match is simply unfathomable. As far as I am concerned, he makes that event every year, everyone enjoys seeing who he will face and the quality of the matches themselves is always outstanding. It was only last year but one of my favorites (who am I kidding? I love them all.) is when he faced Triple H last year in a match that saw his illustrious streak almost be broken. I get chills up my spine every single time i watch it, i count it in my top ten favorite matches ever.

Say what you want, there is no denying that he is still at the top of his game. This blogger and fan is eagerly anticipating the moment when the bell rings, he gets down on one knee, extends his hand to the sky, and the 20-0 image comes on the screen.