10 Most Underrated Moments In WWE Hell In A Cell History

Mankind falling a great distance several times too many. Kane ripping off the Cell door en route to confronting his brother. Rikishi falling ass-first into the back of a hay-filled truck. Even The Big Boss Man being hanged in a grim post-match ceremony. When we think of Hell in a Cell's most unforgettable sights, these are some of the ones that come to mind.

But they're not the only indelible images from two decades worth of gruesome Cell spectacles. With more than three dozen such matches to look back on, the list of wild spots, fun sequences, and harrowing images numbers deeper than just the usual choices. Digging deeper into Hell in a Cell's history, you can develop an appreciation for more than just the moments that have already been perma-plaqued in our brains. I mean, Mick Foley hurtling like a masked meteor through a desk is pretty hard to top, but Hell in a Cell has offered more than just that.

This list will call attention to some of the better, equally vivid Cell moments from years past. Some of them are shuddersome in their depiction of violence, while others were just simply impressive stunts or fun sequences. It's a tribute to one might call the match's best "B-Sides".

10. Attitude's Greatest Hits (2006)

The feud between D-Generation X and the McMahons was a mixed bag, as it certainly freshened up a Raw show that needed a little Attitude redux, but sometimes they tried a little too hard. The blowoff to the rivalry was a handicap Hell in a Cell match at Unforgiven, with ECW Champion The Big Show teaming with Vince and Shane.

The final sequence saw DX win emphatically, through a series of both brutal and humorous acts that have to be some of the most underrated in cell match history. For one, Shane had his throat crushed when Shawn Michaels dropped a flying elbow on a steel chair collared on his neck. Poor Vince was forced to endure a bare-bottomed Stinkface from an unconscious Big Show (laying slumped over the top rope). Not sure if that was better or worse than Triple H breaking a sledgehammer over his father-in-law's back. Now *that's* how you end a feud.

9. Table For Bray (2015)

The Roman Reigns/Bray Wyatt "anyone but you" feud from 2015 could've been worse, although it didn't sway the Reigns haters any. Just two months before their Cell blowoff, fans gleefully chanted "Roman's sleeping!" at a critical juncture of a SummerSlam match, so there was no love for WWE's chosen hero. But he could always bring the goods in a hard-hitting match, as seen here.

The Cell battle between Reigns and Wyatt featured the use of a few tables, with one spot in particular looking brutally cool. The two men fought on the ring apron, with the slugfest culminating by Reigns spearing Wyatt through a table from their position on the apron. The execution looked superb, though it sadly wouldn't be the finish.

8. The King's Mangled Speech (2005)

My pick for 'Most Underrated Hell in a Cell Match' might just be Batista and Triple H's World Heavyweight title match from Vengeance 2005. Had this been the WrestleMania 21 match (and had Cena/JBL been replaced with their I Quit match from Judgment Day), then WrestleMania 21 sits atop the list of best Manias ever, while X-Seven fetches it dinner and rubs its feet.

One of the coolest spots of the match was a tad bit contrived, but the idea of it was fundamentally sound. Helmsley attempted the sort of middle-rope attack that any babyface would counter by raising a solitary boot, so that it hits them in the face. But Batista didn't raise his boot - he raised Hunter's sledgehammer, so that The Game smashed jaw/throat-first onto the maul. Silly? Kinda. Creative? Certainly.

7. Substantial Power (2002)

When Brock Lesnar ended The Undertaker's streak at WrestleMania XXX, he did so with an impressive counter - he leveraged backward out of a Tombstone lift, pulled Undertaker into the same lift, then pressed him up into the fireman carry that precedes his patented F5. The coordination, grace, and sheer strength needed to do that sequence is just downright unfathomable. Unless you're Brock.

Longtime viewers may remember Lesnar did that exact sequence previously with Undertaker, in the ending of their Hell in a Cell match at No Mercy 2002. Both men were exhausted and bleeding profusely (especially Undertaker, who looked like he was wearing a Flash Gordon mask) when Lesnar performed the same counter/lift/press/F5 series that broke The Streak. That makes it even *more* impressive.

6. Wooden Penitentiary (2017)

Though Shane McMahon was given the night's parting shot with yet another stuntman bump off of the cage, his match with Kevin Owens paled to the Usos' Tag Team title war with The New Day. The bout featured both the usual array of creativity from both sides, as well as some truly intense violence when the Usos had control.

On the creative side, New Day managed to create separation in unique fashion by cornering Jey Uso, and sectioning him off from the match with the use of a handful of kendo sticks. Using the sticks as restraining bars, Big E and Xavier Woods wedged them in between the chain link, securing Jey in place as a clever means of divide and conquer. At least Jey didn't have to fall into the back of a truck like his dad did.

5. The Tie That Binds (2002)

Neckties are a curious prop in wrestling. It was cute when somebody would keep IRS tethered by his while punching him. WWE's sponsors didn't find it funny when Daniel Bryan choked Justin Roberts by his. In the less-stringent days of post-Attitude, The Undertaker could get away with doing a number on Paul Heyman via the advocate's neckwear, and it wasn't necessarily via strangulation.

During Undertaker's first Cell match with Brock Lesnar, the American Bad Ass snatched Heyman through the cage wall by the tie, and repeatedly smashed Heyman's face into the steel mesh, causing the former ECW frontman to bleed profusely. Considering how much blood the two combatants were going to lose before the end of the match, maybe a little sympathy blood from Paul E. was required.

4. Like Father, Like Son (2005)

The Undertaker/Randy Orton cell match from Armageddon 2005 would become controversial for the fact that the meddling Cowboy Bob Orton hit a gusher during the match, and nobody bothered to tell 'Taker that The Ace had hepatitis C (despite Orton reportedly telling John Laurinaitis that he couldn't blade for that reason).

Knowing that, it's a little harder to watch the match, as the elder Orton bleeds profusely, but thankfully there was no reported spread of the infection. But the ending sequence was an absolute doozy, as Undertaker feverishly fought off both Ortons while enduring every blindside strike, before ultimately Tombstoning father and son squarely into the canvas for the win. The match was an excellent one, but the wild closing scenes were what truly made it.

3. Setting The Future Stage (2000)

This particular moment isn't some car crash of a high-impact landing, nor was it one that resulted in terrifying blood loss. In fact, the physicality of it wasn't even the cool part - it was the acknowledgement. When six of WWE's most recognizable names and faces took to Hell in a Cell to compete for Kurt Angle's WWE Championship, there was a brief moment where ceremony trumped chaos.

In the latter stages of the match, Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock, the two biggest icons in the game at that moment (as well as moments in which they weren't active, to be honest) simply had a staredown. Everybody else felt secondary when the industrial giants locked eyes amid the heat of battle. WrestleMania X-Seven was about four months away, but everybody in that moment could guess what the main event was going to be.

2. Death From All Angles (1997)

Despite earning rightful raves (including a perfect five stars from Dave Meltzer), about only two moments in the Undertaker/Shawn Michaels melee are frequently mentioned: Michaels' tumble from the side of the cage, and Kane's debut. That's a shame, because there's an entire bit of business on top of the Cell that deserves a little more attention.

When Undertaker chased a desperate Michaels to the roof of the structure, the home viewer was treated to some truly unique visuals from below. The sight of Michaels being backdropped onto the mesh was captivating, just as the image of Undertaker grinding Michael's face into the horizontal chain link was. The underneath camera work presented an engrossing perspective never before afforded to any match within the company. WWE made the most of their first foray into the Cell, capturing some incredible visuals along the ride.

Oh, and that Piledriver to the steel steps on the floor... simply awesome.

1. The Grisliest Of Gushers (2002)

This might just be the most disgusting visual in WWE history, wholly forgivable because it was clearly not intentional. This will be the third mention of the Undertaker/Lesnar match from No Mercy 2002, for which I offer no apologies, because if ever a match deserved more appreciation, it's this one.

The spot is simple enough: Undertaker (who by now has lost enough blood to satisfy a Red Cross quota, and is *still* bleeding out) drops Lesnar with a Last Ride, but doesn't get the pin due to Lesnar grasping the bottom rope on 2. Disheartened, Undertaker rolls off of Lesnar's body, in the process dripping his own blood onto Lesnar's torso and, ultimately, into Brock's open mouth. That one image summed up the level of carnage on display in one of the most violent matches in WWE's long history. Forget falls from the cage - this was much more visceral.