One of the most iconic professional wrestlers in the history of the sport will have his backstory explored in an upcoming original graphic novel, WWE: Undertaker, from Boom! Studios.
The Undertaker is the focus of the story that unearths the unholy wrestler’s legacy within WWE continuity, providing untold stories across the character’s nearly 30 year history, including the origins of his relationships with former manager Paul Bearer and his love-hate dynamic with his brother Kane.
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The graphic novel is written by novelist and combat sport expert Chad Dundas, with WWE artist Rodrigo Lorenzo rendering the visuals for the haunting tale.
“His career encompasses the three major eras of modern WWE wrestling,” Dundas said in an interview with ESPN. “He’s part of the classic early ’90s era, he obviously is a key part of the Attitude Era and he just wrestled at WrestleMania 34. There’s no one else that really is that vital, regardless of if you’re a recent convert to professional wrestling, or you’re someone like me who’s been watching it for 30 freaking years. You know The Undertaker.”
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Or at least one of his many iterations throughout the years, the character having undergone numerous makeovers and tonal changes since his debut. But Dundas’ story will not be a biographical look at Mark Calaway, the man who has portrayed The Undertaker since his WWE debut in 1990, but rather an exploration of the connective moments in-universe between televised matches as with the rest of Boom!’s WWE ongoing series. That means dissecting the Undertaker’s personal and professional relationships, many of which defined the character.
“One of the most fun parts of a project like this is getting to take those deep dives into these big relationships in the Undertaker’s career,” Dundas said. “Deep-dive into how he got hooked up with [Paul] Bearer. A deep-dive into his relationship with Kane. Trying to imagine what conversations between the two of them would have been like backstage after Kane debuts and the Undertaker realizes that this brother that he thought had died when he was a child, is still alive.”
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Boom! Studios has been publishing the official WWE comic since January 2017 focusing on stories that go beyond what pro wrestling fans see on TV as their favorite superstars handle the backstage drama and intrigue informing their fights every week.
WWE: The Undertaker by Chad Dundas and Rodrigo Lorenzo with a cover by Oliver Barrett will be out this October from Boom! Studios.