
246: The Undertaker's Origins & Oddities From The Vault
From Talking Taker by Alex Doriot
February 1, 2026 · 1h 55m · Episode 290
About this episode
The episode explores rare Undertaker footage and discusses his early matches and character evolution.
We're finally uncovering some rare Undertaker footage from the WWE Vault on an all new Talking Taker! Join wrestling superfans Alex Doriot and Travis White on their encyclopedic exploration digging up The Dead Man as they dive into some "Origins and Oddities" featuring "The Man Who Walks With Angels". Up first are the "Origins" - some of the earliest squash matches of the Grim Reaper that we've never discussed before including his first ever singles match and his first ever use of a bodybag! Then we look at some "Oddities" - some rarely seen untelevised live event matches against the likes of Stone Cold, Mankind, Shawn Michaels, Diesel, The Rock, Kane, X-Pac, and more! We've got so much to discuss including the evolution of Undertaker's character, the lost art of the house show match, the impeccable comedy timing of Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan, Paul Bearer's hilarious antics, an absolute banger between Mankind and Taker, Diesel and The Dead Man hanging out backstage, X-Pac and The Rock being over like crazy, and an on-the-scene report from one of these matches from 1996 from our pal Tommy On The Spot! Plus we've got our monthly Undertaker sightings, Alex opens a birthday…
People in this episode
Hosts: Alex Doriot, Travis White
Topics covered
- Undertaker
- WWE
- wrestling history
- character evolution
- live events
Keywords
- Origins
- Oddities
- squash matches
- bodybag
- house show match
Mentioned in this episode
Products: Talking Taker, WWE Vault Channel
Books & works: The Dead Man, Origins and Oddities, The Man Who Walks With Angels, Origins, Reconstruction, Royal Rumbles
More episodes of Talking Taker
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- 248: The Birth Of The Streak · April 1, 2026 · 1h 22m
- 247: A Taker Looks At Forty · March 1, 2026 · 1h 42m
- BONUS: Mario Mancini Talks Taker! · February 11, 2026 · 1h 29m
- BONUS: Ranking The Top 10 Royal Rumble Surprise Entrants With Watchalong Tommy! · January 30, 2026 · 1h 51m
- BACK FROM THE DEAD: Royal Rumble 2001 · January 22, 2026 · 1h 47m
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