Two popular groups formed in the World Wrestling Federation in the late 1990s: The Brood, which featured Gangrel, Edge and Christian, and The New Brood, with Gangrel and the Hardy Boyz. Gangrel had originally formed The Brood with Edge and Christian after briefly feuding with Edge, who was determined to rescue his storyline long-lost brother Christian from Gangrel’s influence.
The Brood: Gangrel, Edge, Christian
But with no explanation, Gangrel was able to turn Edge into an ally from an enemy and he formed The Brood with Edge and Christian in autumn of 1998. They appeared to be vampires (Gangrel often drank “blood” from a goblet), but were described as living gothic lifestyles. Often it was Edge and Gangrel that wrestled as a tag team, while Christian stood on the sidelines. In February 1999, The Brood joined The Undertaker’s Ministry of Darkness.
Christian was frequently a target of Undertaker’s wrath, however, and on one occasion Undertaker whipped Christian’s back repeatedly for revealing to Ken Shamrock where the Ministry was keeping Stephanie McMahon (who the Ministry had kidnapped). On another occasion, The Undertaker ordered Edge and Gangrel to help him “sacrifice” Christian on his giant cross-like symbol, but they refused, and fought with the Ministry.
Edge and Christian broke away from Gangrel in the summer of 1999. Edge and Christian had become suspicious when Gangrel accidentally spit blood in Edge’s face during a match against the Hardy Boyz at the 1999 King of the Ring. Gangrel had supposedly meant to hit Matt Hardy with the spray. They made up, but soon after, Gangrel turned against them, and Edge and Christian formed a tag team.
The New Brood: Gangrel and the Hardy Boyz, Matt and Jeff Hardy
After the breakup of The Brood, Gangrel formed The New Brood with Matt Hardy and Jeff Hardy, after the Hardys turned against their manager Michael Hayes. They used the same ring of fire entrance as the original Brood had done. They were a heel faction with Gangrel once more the leader.
At the World Wrestling Federation’s No Mercy 1999 pay-per-view, The Hardy Boyz faced Edge and Christian in a Ladder Match for the chance to win $100,000 and the managerial services of Terri Runnels. Gangrel accompanied the Hardys to the ring but was soon after ejected when he tried to hand the Hardy Boyz a ladder. When the Hardys won the match, Terri Runnels became their new manager when the Hardys split from Gangrel.
The Hardy Boyz and Edge and Christian continued their feud for much of 1999 to 2001, while Gangrel eventually faded away from the World Wrestling Federation. Although Gangrel had been the head of the Brood and New Brood, the tag teams involved in his groups gained more fame and prestige than he did, with both teams having tag team and singles success.
Sources:
Online World of Wrestling
World Wrestling Entertainment
Jillian Bost - Jillian Bost is an experienced writer with interests ranging from Victorian literature to 1980s pop and professional wrestling.
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