The disc I owned didn’t want to play any of the extra features. It kept freezing, and I couldn’t locate the disc anywhere online either. I guess we’re just going to have to do without it. You can click if you missed part one.
WWF Heavyweight Title: Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart (9/29/94).
This was from the very first “WWF Action Zone. It was after their cage match at SummerSlam ’94. Analysis: Aside from the weak finish, this was a really strong effort. Frankly, I could watch these two wrestle every day. Their fluidity, smoothness, and crispness together were on a nonpareil level; it was like watching poetry in motion. The entire feud was so effectual due to how relatable was, since there are so many people who could sympathize with Bret, for having to deal with an overly jealous brother, and there were others that actually could sympathize with Owen, for having to take a backseat to his older brother. For sure, though, it was easier to dislike Owen. He was so amazing at being a self-righteous and contemptible heel. There is nothing better in wrestling than a feud that has well-defined characters, who behave in an understandable manner, no matter if they’re face or heel. It’s called making characters human. *** ½
Bret Hart vs. Hakushi (w/Shinja) (5/14/95)
Analysis: Good match, although it does not hold up well. When this DVD came out, American fans were more accustomed to a puroresu-esque style and that was because people like John Laurinaitis brought the style over to America. They were also on different wavelengths at times, which marred this as well. Hakushi was more focused on shoehorning in his trademark spots in while Bret was more focused on narrating a coherent story. *** 1/4
WWF Heavyweight Title: Big Daddy Cool Diesel (c) vs. Bret Hart (Survivor Series 1995)
This is part three of the Bret vs. Diesel feud. At King of the Ring ’94, Diesel defeated Bret by DQ. At the Royal Rumble, the referee threw out the match because of interference. This time, there must be a winner. Analysis: This may have started tedious for some, but it progressively escalated to an intensified culmination. Diesel was too gigantic and powerful for Bret to handle and that made Hart take advantage of the No DQ stipulations, restoring to underhanded tactics. Because of how the story was told, the fans could understand why Hart had to use underhanded tactics. There was just no other way against the uber-monster Diesel. Hart’s character portrayed a protagonist who desperately wanted to discover weaken the uber-antagonist but also protect himself from being seriously injured. The booking walked a thin line here between desperation and heel turn with Bret, but everyone involved told the story in an apt and efficacious manner.
Honestly, Hart could adapt to about anyone he worked with and refashioned his style for the psychology and story to be believable. By no means was this a carry-job, though. Nash was great in his role, plus he sold the knee very well, exhibited great in-ring characterizations and wrestled how a heel big man should. **** 1/4
WWF Heavyweight Title: Bret Hart vs. Davey Boy Smith (In Your House V)
Leading up to this, Davey Boy Smith kept bringing up his victory at SummerSlam 1992 to play mind games with Bret. Analysis: This was hard-hitting, physical, and heated. Bulldog bumped around like a fish out of water and was as good as their Summerslam match. The only differences were the importance and breathtaking atmosphere. Not much else to say about this one other than it was great. ****
Submission Match: Bret Hart vs. Steve Austin (Wrestlemania XIII)
These two were incredibly gifted wrestlers just clicked with each other. On an otherwise uninspiring WrestleMania card, these ring magicians defined the suspension of disbelief. This had nuclear heat, giving off a notion that they sincerely wanted to kill each other. Analysis: This had everything you could want in a brawl: intensity, hatred, psychology, storytelling, tons of color, conceivable selling, facial expressions, which helped articulate the narrative, an incredible atmosphere, and truly elegant booking. They pulled off what McMahon wanted them to do: a double-turn. Hart turned into a narcissist heel that only was concerned about winning, and Austin turned into a venerated babyface.
While Austin wasn’t a conventional babyface, this ended up revealing some of his inner face-like qualities, such as his resiliency and perseverance. The finish exemplified those two exact things, as he refused to tap out to the Sharpshooter, causing him to pass out from the pain. This was significant, historical, and flat-out tremendous. I cannot think of a match that was better than this one in WWE’s history. *****
World Heavyweight Title: Bret Hart (c) vs. Undertaker (One Night Only ’97)
After their controversial Summerslam match, these two locked up again in the United Kingdom. Analysis: Bret tried to trade strikes against the Undertaker until he quickly realized that it was an asinine idea to trade blows with the “Best Pure Striker in the WWE” (thank you, Cole). He the became more opportunistic, triggering Taker into a mistake that made his knee a vulnerable target.
Hart portrayed some of the most intense and calculating limb work, though Undertaker’s consistent and believable selling made it look even better. He moved around as if he could hardly put any pressure on his leg, adjusted to the injury by not doing moves would put duress on it, and displayed immensely agonized-looking facial expressions. Awesome limb psychology that’s solely missing today.
This was paced in a way where every moment came off as important, and they maximized the significance of each spot by way of executing moves with force behind them and selling them in a spectacular manner. Everything was fundamentally sound with every spot being tremendously crisp. This told a handful of compelling stories as as well effortless transitions that easily shifted from one story to the other.
What is this missing from receiving the full monty? A properly booked non-finish. I understood why they protected Undertaker here; he was involved in a heated feud with Shawn Michaels, and the pay-off was the first ever Hell in the Cell match; therefore, they had to make him look as strong as possible heading towards it.
Be that as it may, they could have still done a better non-finish. I am a fan of finishes where a heel does something so cheap or offensive that it sends the face over the edge and causes him to get DQ’d. For that reason, I believe a finish like that would have been ideal for this. I obviously still vehemently recommend this match, especially to those who prefer substance over style. **** 1/2
Owen Tribute: Chris Benoit vs. Bret Hart (10/04/99)
This was one of the greatest moments in Nitro history. Analysis: This was proof that the little psychology ideas can all add up to one big thing, and those ideas can make a huge difference between something that’s good or bad and something that looks real or fake. They made this look a real as possible by way of augmenting in little psychology ideas, such as the way they put lots of snap behind their punches, the way they moved their head when selling a punch, the way they fought for a submission hold, because their opponent was trying to stop it, and the way how a move or counter realistically and naturally fitted into each part of the match.
These two never got away from what a wrestler’s ultimate purpose was supposed to be, finding ways to win. When a wrestler truly shows he wants to win, fans rally behind him and thus become emotionally invested in what they do.
Granted, back-and-forth matches, with a fast pace and tons of crazy high spots, can be good popcorn entertainment and will likely receive “This is Awesome” chants, but when winning is not the real purpose of the match — the high spots and sheer craziness are what’s getting over with the crowd, not the wrestlers themselves.
This was almost unadulterated with the only real thing marring it were the commercial breaks. It had superb psychology, crisp moves, ultra-realistic chain/mat-wrestling, and amazing emotion. This was the greatest Nitro match ever. **** 1/2
Final Verdict: No doubt, disc 3 picks up where Disc 2 left off. There are oh-so many important, historical, and awesome matches on both discs. Bret Hart was one of the finest in-ring workers of all time. If I were going to wrestle someone in their prime, he would be on the very top of that list. He never injured anyone in his career, yet he could make everything look extremely real. He was a firm believer in the philosophy of give-and-take, always wanting to make someone else look credible, even if they were booked to lose. He was someone who always could adjust to the wrestler’s style he was working with by changing up his and was one of those wrestlers who could envision ideas in his mind that would work and then execute them exactly how he schemed it out. There weren’t many, if any, wrestlers better than Hart at telling a compelling story in the ring, either. His in-ring career was an elegant representation of art.
From all the DVDs I’ve seen, this had the greatest collection of matches up to this point.
