BruiserKC 0 Report post Posted March 22, 2006 Bret Hart's legacy is pretty secure. He was somewhat of a throwback, to the days when you could tell the story in the ring with wrestling, not with a cartoon gimmick. He was definitely one of my all-time favorites, he used psychology better than most wrestlers are able to do so. What is really important to note, IMHO, is that while Bret was forced to retire, that meant he didn't stick around longer than he should have. Ric Flair's legacy today is becoming severely tarnished by his sticking around WAY longer than he needed to be. Yes, Flair can still go but watching Flair-Edge or Flair-Benjamin is not like watching Flair-Windham or Flair-Steamboat. Jerry Lawler was a solid wrestler in the 80s, now he's either cannon-fodder for jobbers or a kid in puberty with his lust for breasteseseses. As for the Montreal screwjob...I think most of us wish Vince would just let it die. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shanghai Kid 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2006 I think people who grew up watching wrestling during the mid 90s will always hold Bret in high regards. From 92-97, the audience wasn't as huge but Bret was pretty much "the guy" to the audience who was watching. He was the guy in between the Hogan/Austin era, what I like to call the Bret/Shawn era since those two held it together. If you started watching wrestling 97 on, than your probably thinking of Bret as just the "screwjob" guy, but for the most part his legacy is as secure as anybody. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Masked Man of Mystery 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2006 I think people who grew up watching wrestling during the mid 90s will always hold Bret in high regards. From 92-97, the audience wasn't as huge but Bret was pretty much "the guy" to the audience who was watching. He was the guy in between the Hogan/Austin era, what I like to call the Bret/Shawn era since those two held it together. If you started watching wrestling 97 on, than your probably thinking of Bret as just the "screwjob" guy, but for the most part his legacy is as secure as anybody. Bret Hart was one of those "it" guys for me who I loved the second I saw, and I didn't start watching wrestling until 1999. Although part of my initial Bret love came from WWF Warzone which I rented on a whim before I was watching and got darn good with Bret after I bought it. I didn't learn about the screwjob for like 3 or so years after. Thank God for video and DVD Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cabbageboy 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2006 It's an interesting thing to ponder, what would have happened had Bret simply relinquished the belt after S. Series 97, rather than get screwed. Personally, I think things would have gone just about as planned. They would have moved the title to Shawn (they can have a tourney with him and Shamrock as the finals, Shamrock being a Cinderella finalist) at the D-X PPV. From there you build Austin up as he recovers from the neck injury, then you just do the Tyson WM build. I don't think much of anything would change in the long term. The only thing that would change is Vince's effectiveness as the evil boss. WCW would have likely still gone in the tank and the WWF would have dominated, just a bit later than it turned out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cheech Tremendous 0 Report post Posted March 23, 2006 Overall, I think that Bret's legacy is fine. A lot of people on this board and on the internet in general tend to overstate his importance or relevance to the business. The fact is, he and Shawn ruled wrestling when things were down and out of the public eye. To the average wrestling fan, they just sort of bridged the gap between the Hogan era and Austin/Rock era. Bret did the most with what he had, but he will never crack the upper echelon of Hogan, Savage, Flair, Andre, Rock, Austin, HHH, etc. He fits on that rung right below, which is okay, but probably not how he wants to be remembered. The Survivor Series thing will always define him to the casual fan because he played an integral role in creating the Austin and McMahon characters that ruled the Attitude era even though they never saw him. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest fanofcoils Report post Posted March 24, 2006 Most fans could care less about Bret's "workrate", the guy had a boatload of charisma and his interview skills are completely underrated and he really made you connect to what he was saying. He was charismatic and the "workrate" added nothing to his marketability just like how workrate is in general. It isn't workrate what matters it is charisma. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest fanofcoils Report post Posted March 26, 2006 Did Bret Hart and Vader ever have a 1 on 1 match in 1996/1997? If so how good was it? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianGuitarist 0 Report post Posted March 26, 2006 They definitely had a match in August 97. It was on free tv, but I don't remember which. Sorry. I got nothin. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aero 0 Report post Posted March 26, 2006 I think they also fought at Thursday Raw Thursday in Feb. 97. I haven't seen the show since though, so don't know about quality. They had a title match on Friday Night's Main Event (which ended in a DQ run-in from the Hart Foundation) in August 97, and then a No Holds Barred title rematch shortly after on Raw. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CanadianGuitarist 0 Report post Posted March 26, 2006 I think they also fought at Thursday Raw Thursday in Feb. 97. I haven't seen the show since though, so don't know about quality. They had a title match on Friday Night's Main Event (which ended in a DQ run-in from the Hart Foundation) in August 97, and then a No Holds Barred title rematch shortly after on Raw. That's the one I was thinking of. I thought it was on a Friday, but somethin didn't quite add up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pochorenella 0 Report post Posted March 27, 2006 It's been 8.5 years since Montreal, the guy's had a stroke, and I think he realised that there's more important things in life then continuing to be bitter and hating on Vince. Yeah, now he realized the most important thing is continuing to be bitter and hating on Shawn Michaels. Bret Hart's legacy on wrestling is secure, without a doubt. Although I do think his WCW run hurts it somewhat, no matter what some say - it's forgettable, no one remembers it, etc. - people DO remember it, because it was terrible. We just don't WANT to remember it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Black Lushus 0 Report post Posted March 27, 2006 Bret gets a reprive for his WCW run, NOBODY was booked properly in that span of time. The exceptions would be Booker T and DDP, I suppose...maybe Scott Steiner...the rest was crappy all the way around. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Just John 0 Report post Posted March 31, 2006 Bret's WCW run is like Flair's current WWE run. It's sad to watch, but in the end, people will remember the good things he did in the prime of his career. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Annabelle 0 Report post Posted April 1, 2006 the screwjob was the best thing happened to hart's legacy. people woulda become apathetic towards him after wcw. it was a downer for him. his retirement & postwrestling life wouldn't mean much. but the fact that this screwjob is constantly brought up, the chance he may show up again for retribution or whatever intrigues people. its an intriguing situation. more people care & follow hart's postwrestling life than anyone else in the history of wrestling. he's above hogan. he's above savage. he's above andre. not for his wrestling. but how he went out. he was responsible for the wwe's big run, too. obviously people cared about what bret did as a wrestler if they made an 8 year storyline out of the asshole boss whose underhanded shenanigans & corruption makes him the most hated man in the company. anyone who disagrees with me is an idiot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wrestlefreak 0 Report post Posted April 1, 2006 but the fact that this screwjob is constantly brought up, the chance he may show up again for retribution or whatever intrigues people. I know what you mean, but only marks really believe he's ever coming back. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jericholic82 0 Report post Posted April 2, 2006 Most fans could care less about Bret's "workrate", the guy had a boatload of charisma and his interview skills are completely underrated and he really made you connect to what he was saying. He was charismatic and the "workrate" added nothing to his marketability just like how workrate is in general. It isn't workrate what matters it is charisma. exactly I wa s a big Bret fan back in the eraly 90s, because of his character, no this skills. He was aguy who wa s atrue good guy and never backed down form a challenge and was a true fighting champion. Plus had a great look. His charisma is underrated IMO. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
World's Worst Man 0 Report post Posted April 2, 2006 Most fans could care less about Bret's "workrate", the guy had a boatload of charisma and his interview skills are completely underrated and he really made you connect to what he was saying. He was charismatic and the "workrate" added nothing to his marketability just like how workrate is in general. It isn't workrate what matters it is charisma. Because clearly his story-telling ability had nothing to do with helping him get over with the crowd. Of course not. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
