67. Cody Rhodes vs Seth Rollins (Hell in a Cell Match, WWE Hell in a Cell 2022)

There were only two contenders for match of the night at WWE Hell in a Cell 2022. The opening bout, a triple threat match for the Raw Women’s Championship between Bianca Belair, Becky Lynch and Asuka, or the main event, a Hell in a Cell match between Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins. To be honest, these were the only two bouts I watched. But I doubt Madcap Moss vs Happy Corbin would be anything above a 3* match. Between the opening and closing bouts, there’s only one that will linger in my mind for a long time. And that’s the main event.

64. The Undertaker vs The Big Bossman (Hell in a Cell match, WrestleMania XV)

There was no excuse for Kane vs The Undertaker to be on the WWE Network’s ‘Best of Hell in a Cell.’ They could only have dull, plodding matches together, and their Hell in a Cell match was just another example of that. Rest assured, that’s not the worst Cell match ‘Taker has fought. In 1999, the Hell in a Cell had it’s WrestleMania premiere, the third Cell match on PPV. ‘Taker fought the Big Bossman inside the structure. Yes, it’s even more boring than it sounds, and the ending is offensive in its absurdity!

63. Kane (c) vs The Undertaker (Hell in a Cell match for the World Heavyweight Championship, Hell in a Cell 2010)

Of course, the WWE Network has ‘Best of Hell in a Cell’ special on its ‘Trending’ section. The Hell in a Cell PLE is this Sunday! I presume its exclusively matches from the Hell in a Cell PPV. There are some great choices on there, like The New Day vs The Usos in the first ever Hell in a Cell for the Tag Team Championship. And, unbelievably, there is this match, between Kane and The Undertaker for the World Heavyweight Championship. Is this some kind of joke?

33. Brock Lesnar vs The Undertaker (Hell in a Cell match, WWE Hell in a Cell 2015)

A Hell in a Cell match on the annual Hell in a Cell PPV that actually ends a feud? Yes, you read that right! Rather than a Hell in a Cell match shoe-horned into a feud just because a calender date comes up, this Hell in a Cell match feels like the right way to end this feud between ‘Taker and Lesnar! This is a bloody and violent as the HIAC matches of old, evoking memories (of course) of the two wrestlers’ first encounter inside Hell in a Cell. I’m pretty sure they’re the only pair to have two singles bouts inside Hell in a Cell (13 years apart!). Their first Cell collision was a minor classic, and their second collision is almost as good.

14. Shawn Michaels and Diesel vs Razor Ramon and 1-2-3 Kid (Action Zone, 1994)

Yes, I’m a little late, but to honour the passing of Scott Hall, I found this hidden gem on the WWE Network (from a recommendation in the Inside The Ropes Magazine). I’d never heard of the early 90s WWF show ‘Action Zone’ before, and from what I gather this is the only match worth watching from the show (I’d like to proved wrong). And what a match it is!

13. Edge vs The Undertaker (Hell in a Cell, Summerslam 2008)

Yet another underrated entry in an underrated feud? You think HIAC, you think HBK/Taker, Taker/Mankind, HHH/Batista, even Banks/Bayley. But Edge/Taker? Much like their TLC bout the previous month, I think it’s remembered more for the closing high spot rather than anything else (that actually takes place after the match has ended!). However, it’s as gruelling and brutal (but not bloody) as those more famous HIAC bouts, even if it turns into a TLC bout inside the Cell as the match goes on.

Review: WWE Network’s 100 Best Matches To See Before You Die: #13 The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (No Disqualification, Streak vs. Career, WWE Wrestlemania XXVI)

(Here’s the link for the match on the WWE Network: http://network.wwe.com/video/v31294203?contextType=wwe-show&contextId=wrestlemania&contentId=66743884&watchlistAltButtonContext=series )

Sequels, who’d have them? Of course, there’s Terminator 2, Aliens, Godfather II…but those are the chosen few. There’s a great chance of disappointment when you watch a sequel, especially if the predecessor was something special. Some may call the first WrestleMania match between The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels as the greatest match ever (I’m one of those people. And the WWE Network’s 100 Best Matches…List agrees with me. It’s #1! Click here for my review). How could they possibly follow it up? At WrestleMania XXVI, the rematch was set: The Streak vs Career, Undertaker vs Shawn Michaels…

Review: WWE Network’s 100 Best Matches To See Before You Die: #37 The Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels (Inaugrual Hell in a Cell Match, WWE In Your House: Badd Blood)

(Here’s the link for the match on the WWE Network: http://network.wwe.com/video/v31316311/?contentId=&contextType=wwe-show&contextId=in_your_house )

The inaugural Hell in a Cell match is one I could (and have) watched all over again. I’ve said this before during these reviews, but the general rule is that an original gimmick match is rarely better by its successors. Look at how far the Hell in a Cell match has fallen since the PG Era of the WWE began. Lack of ultra-violence and blood sanitised a match that promised buckets of claret. Nowadays, Hell in a Cell matches are ordinary matches that take in place an overly massive cage. Back in 1997, we had no idea what to expect. With Shawn Michaels and HBK involved, a good match was a surety. But what would happen? A match that, 20 years later, has not been bettered. We’ve seen plenty of HIAC matches since that time. There’s even a PPV named after the gimmick match. But none can match the original.

Review: WWE Network’s 100 best Matches: #50 The Undertaker vs. Mankind (Hell in a Cell, WWE King of the Ring 1998)

(Here’s the link for the match on the WWE Network: http://network.wwe.com/video/v31289543/?contentId=31289543&contextType=wwe-show&contextId=king_of_the_ring)

Oh…I’m halfway there! Only 50 matches left to watch…!!!!

Surely this is the most infamous match in WWE history? Mankind and The Undertaker have given us one of the most replayed moments in WWE history. Mankind’s fall from the Hell in a Cell structure through the Spanish announce table will live on in WWE broadcasts until the end of the business. The fall came to define the Hell in a Cell, for better or for worse. From that moment on, people expected HIAC to include a death defying fall from the top of the cell (see Shane McMahon’s latest entry in the pantheon of Cell’s falls at WrestleMania 32, for example). But is the match more than that fall (and Mankind’s other death-defying fall through the cell itself and onto the mat)? Or should it be remembered only for that hellacious fall?

Review: WWE Network’s 100 Best Matches: # 57 The Undertaker vs. Triple H (Hell in a Cell, WWE Wrestlemania XXVIII)

The third (and presumably final!) WresleMania match between The Undertaker and Triple H took place inside the infamous Hell in a Cell. There was a questionable premise behind the third match: even though ‘Taker defeated HHH at ‘Mania XVII, he wanted a rematch because HHH had handed him a horrific beating. Right away, it only made sense in the loosest of terms. Surely ‘Taker had already proven he was better than HHH? It wasn’t a fluke victory. However, opponents for ‘Taker at that point were thin on the ground (as they are now), so they needed an excuse for the two to face off again at ‘Mania. They gave us a slow, intermittently dramatic match that was apparently all about the story between HHH, Taker and special guest referee Shawn Michaels. It was ‘The End of an Era…’