WWE Hell in a Cell 2015: 10 Things That Must Happen

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The Cell Must Become Dangerous Again at Hell in a Cell

On June 28, 1998, Mick Foley forever changed our perception of the Hell in a Cell when he fell both off of it and through it in his match at King of the Ring against the Undertaker. Foley gave wrestling fans a gift that night with two of the most memorable bumps in WWE history, but at the same time he raised the bar for what a Hell in a Cell match should be to unreachable heights.

I’m not saying there haven’t been any good Hell in a Cell matches since then, but none of them have come close to being as historic as King of the Ring 1998. Furthermore, none of the Hell in a Cell matches thereafter have been remotely as gruesome or death-defying, either.

Every time the Cell makes an appearance, the WWE never fails to reference Foley’s monumental falls. Not that wrestlers should have to literally put their lives on the line to put on a good Hell in a Cell match; however, the Cell is presented as one of the most dangerous matches in the WWE. As a fan, it’s an ingrained concept that the Cell is the coldest reality that wrestling has to offer. Mankind vs. Undertaker at King of the Ring is the match you show your friends when they tell you wrestling is fake.

So then why does Hell in a Cell feel like a glorified cage match?

Wrestlers have tried to add some edge to their Hell in a Cell performances over the years—sometimes in more unorthodox ways than others (looking at you Undertaker vs. Big Boss Man). To this day, though, nothing compares to Mankind vs. Undertaker. Every match inside the Cell since then seems like it would pan out just the same without the Cell being present at all.

At this year’s Hell in a Cell pay-per-view, first, the Cell needs to be the demonic structure it is portrayed to be. If it is going to serve as tonight’s stage for two be-all and end-all matches, the Cell needs to be more than merely a backdrop.

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