YMMV / King of the Ring

• Memetic Mutation: A certain Reddit user has become notorious for making elaborate Bait-and-Switch Comments on various threads that start off well-researched and eloquent, but invariably end with a reference to the infamous Hell in a Cell match between between Mankind and The Undertaker. It's become a time-honored tradition for users to read through at least one of them in its entirety before realizing the punchline – so time-honored, in fact, that some say it dates all the way back to nineteen ninety eight when the undertaker threw mankind off hell in a cell and plummeted sixteen feet through an announcers table.
• Overshadowed by Awesome: Ken Shamrock defeated The Rock to win the '98 King of the Ring tournament... the same night as the Hell in a Cell match between Mankind and The Undertaker. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin losing the WWF Championship for the very first time to Kane in the main event didn't help either.
• Signature Scene:
  • 1996: "Stone Cold" Steve Austin's "Austin 3:16" promo after winning KOTR.
  • 1998: The Undertaker shoving Mick Foley off a sixteen foot cell. Hell (in a Cell), the whole match is so much this that it has a Wikipedia article!
  • 2001: Kurt Angle throwing Shane McMahon through the glass wall.
• Tough Act to Follow:
  • The Hell in a Cell match between The Undertaker and Mankind is so damn iconic that most people don't even remember that this wasn't the main event of that PPV, which was "Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs Kane in a First Blood match, nor the titular tournament that took place that night, which was won by Ken Shamrock. It should be mentioned that the reason this match started the way it did – remember, 'Taker throwing Foley off the roof was planned – was ironic because Mick felt this trope applied to the inaugural HIAC match that 'Taker and Shawn Michaels had the previous year. Foley's reasoning was that, by starting off huge, the weaknesses that both men had going into the match (Foley's lack of mobility & 'Taker's busted foot) would be overlooked by the sheer spectacle of Mick's fall. Then Mick went through the cage roof and everything went off the rails.
  • From its inception in 1993 to the last installment of the PPV in 2002 with appearances in 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2015, it was open only to WWE's male talents but the Women's Evolution prompted the WWE to include a women's tournament under the name "The Queen's Crown." With the WWE treating its male and female talents as equals, having only the King of the Ring wouldn't work these days.

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