Is Taker's Fanbase Disintegrating?

This opinion started forming in my mind after a couple occurrences. One, a frequent visitor to this site told me that many of the links on my link page led to sites that no longer existed. So when I decided to change them, I also checked out the rest and found even more. And then recently Rosey, of the Pro Wrestling Utopia, announced she is shutting her doors on her Taker site. When I first got on the 'net back in the day, Rosey's was the first Undertaker site I found. And for years, it was one of the most popular ones out there and is a legacy site, as it's been around for nearly six years. However, its updates were few and far between after Taker's return in 2000, primarily because, as she stated on her site, she didn't like the the new incarnation.

These occurrences got me to checking out some Undertaker links, via the Moontribes site, which has a long list of them. And I found that many of them have either been abandoned or closed down. And it does appear, at least if you go by the 'net standpoint, that Undertaker fanbase that used to be fiercely loyal and strong on the 'net is starting to slowly crumble at the foundation.

This is also the same fanbase that created site after site for him. At one time, you could probably find close to a hundred of them, maybe more, on the Internet, the majority with recent updates. Now many of those fans have become disenchanted with Undertaker and closed up shop or have abandoned their sites. I found some of the sites with little notes saying why they did so and many of them were directed at not being fans of the UT anymore, not liking the fact he helped get his wife in on the action, or just tired of his redneck sthick.

I also would like to point out that most of these sites were strong until his complete 180 that occurred in character shortly after his return. Now I do joke about the Undertaker "Weenies," who are attracted to the darkness of the Undertaker only (and have taken it very, very seriously) but seeing that many sites shut down, which were run by many different types of people, it shows me that the dislike of the current incarnation just wasn't from the "Goth" segment of the fanbase but from a varied group.

And while some would just say they were fair-weather and weren't real fans of Taker, I definitely think the opposite. There has to be a deep affection for the character to even want to tackle the headaches of building a site because it's not an easy undertaking. Some may think I absolutely hate Undie because I do take digs at him but it's quite the opposite and if I didn't like him on some level, this site would be gone, plain and simple. Many of these UT sites obviously involved intensive time and effort, something you wouldn't dedicate to a site if you didn't really dig Undertaker. I also completely understand them shutting down if they felt that strongly because there's no point and it's not enjoyable working on a site of which you no longer have any interest in the subject.

This all also leads to something else I do have a bone to pick about. Personally, I think it really sucks on Calaway's part to have made such a drastic transformation of Undertaker, and then seemed to think the fans should be behind him 100%. I also think he felt we should have also been behind Sara 100%, due to association. This is a very narrow-minded way of thinking and I feel that that frame of mind is biting him in the ass right now because of the intense backlash from the smarts to the marks over his gimmick, something that's never happened before, even in the Ministry.

And as the whole theme of this opinion has stated, it has cost him some fans. However, not until I really started looking around at the sites and seeing them either shut down completely or abandoned, did I really get the number. I think it's a shame that these fans, who were so loyal to him, felt betrayed when he decided to start doing what he wanted and seemingly ignoring the fans' input. Yes, there are some out there who think BikerTruckerRedneckTaker is nothing short of fucking inspired, but I wonder what they are really applauding? Are they diligently just going along with it, because they think that's what a "good Taker fan" does? Are they so intent on knowing about his private life that they applaud every single thing he brings from it to TV, because it makes them feel closer to him? Or are there some who are really only popping for the bike and music, but not the man behind it and his storied history in wrestling?

I also wonder if these fans will ever come back, even if he does return to something resembling the actual Undertaker? It is a nice notion that when it does come time for his last ride, he'll have legions of long-time, dedicated fans cheering him on. However, he does have some making-up to do to these fans and whether he'll do it remains to be seen.

 

 

Date Written: (4-28-02)

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