Would The Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels of 1995 worktoday?
- Thread starter quink987
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theBec2101
Championship Contender
Yes they could. They really werent racy or anything in promos and such. The events of them leading up to the iron man match was pretty much of promos and videos of them training. I dont think the attitude era was truly in affect till a little later and more outrageous
Of course they could and would work today. Is your brain operating pal? The wrestling world has less superstars today then it had in 1995 (also a pretty stale time for WWF and WCW tv). John Cena is the only guy today that would stand above these two. Guys like Punk, Brian, Sheamus, and Orton would be lost in the mid card- similar to how they don't draw today. WWE used Hart and HBK to keep the train rolling. They didn't have to bring in the Rock to add interest. Plus- Shawn Michaels was developing into a really cool character and would be an essential start to the attitude era. A time when both guys were towards the very top of the card.
I just don't understand this topic- how could HBK and Bret Hart be lost in the mid card of todays current product when all of the top guys except Cena are true mid-carders. If they werent- the main events for the big 4 PPVs wouldnt feature main events with part time workers, like HHH, Taker, Rock, and Lesner (maybe stone cold some day).
I just don't understand this topic- how could HBK and Bret Hart be lost in the mid card of todays current product when all of the top guys except Cena are true mid-carders. If they werent- the main events for the big 4 PPVs wouldnt feature main events with part time workers, like HHH, Taker, Rock, and Lesner (maybe stone cold some day).
Yeah they would work today, and they would be head and shoulders above the rest. There are less stars today than in 95. They would rise to the top rather fast. The didn't do anything to racy until after their ironman match, and like an above poster said the build to the ironman match was just them training and talking about Shawn's boyhood dream. They would easily be able to do the pg stuff. I think they would be just as successful today if not more so.
yea i kinda wondered where some wrestlers would be in a diffrent era... i think they would work, but i think HBK would some how have to change his gimmick just because i dont think his old school pretty boy thing would work in todays WWE PG ERA. And i also think Brett heart would have to get better at his mic skills, because i heard him talk and the first thing i said was, O WOW... because hes way to corny and hes always messing up his words.. but yea i think all they would need are little adjustments, and they would work.
donfryeismyhero
Pre-Show Stalwart
The lack of real stars would most certainly make Bret & Shawn big time players in todays WWE. In terms of where the product is now i.e. PGTV, the WWE was pg before such things were labeled on tv back in 95. Both Hart & Michaels had a huge following back then & could easily be equal to or even surpass Cena in today's environment, especially HBK who ozzes charisma. In a battle of wits, I'd pick HBK or Cena any day.
SinCityBlitz
Crossface Chickenwing
Like Don said HBK and Bret Hart wrestled most of their careers in PG rated shows. So of course it would work.
I think Bret vs. Shawn would excel in any era. There is still a portion of the audience that appreciates technical wrestling that has a wonderful story to tell. It has a classic plot: The old traditionalist trying to defend his turf from the young hip upstart who defies old school values. Remember this, Shawn has been working with Bret for 10 years leading up to the infamous "Screw job".
They squared off in tag teams against one another. They dualed over the then prestigious Intercontinental Championship and their first meeting for the WWF title came at Survivor Series 1992! They even competed in the first WWF ladder match that same year! Their chemistry was in the making for ten years.
Everybody remembers WM12 and the Iron man match. They had history prior to that, but anyway, their story is just a great one to tell in any era of WWF including now.
I always say this and I say it now, the closest thing we have to Bret vs. Shawn is Punk vs. Bryan. These two have a history that dates back to the ROH days which translates into great matches we see between them today.
Thats what makes these two rivalries so great. The competitors spent years getting to know each other and being able to grow into great rivals, the same way that Flair and Steamboat grew together.
Yes, Shawn vs. Bret would be relevant today.
On a side note...I would have liked to see Angle and Benoit blossom in to one of wrestlings greatest rivalries! their matches were always above and beyond!
They squared off in tag teams against one another. They dualed over the then prestigious Intercontinental Championship and their first meeting for the WWF title came at Survivor Series 1992! They even competed in the first WWF ladder match that same year! Their chemistry was in the making for ten years.
Everybody remembers WM12 and the Iron man match. They had history prior to that, but anyway, their story is just a great one to tell in any era of WWF including now.
I always say this and I say it now, the closest thing we have to Bret vs. Shawn is Punk vs. Bryan. These two have a history that dates back to the ROH days which translates into great matches we see between them today.
Thats what makes these two rivalries so great. The competitors spent years getting to know each other and being able to grow into great rivals, the same way that Flair and Steamboat grew together.
Yes, Shawn vs. Bret would be relevant today.
On a side note...I would have liked to see Angle and Benoit blossom in to one of wrestlings greatest rivalries! their matches were always above and beyond!
RockandSock
Dark Match Jobber
REALLY? how old are you 12? Bret "Hart" not Heart had a stroke that is why he cannot cut promos anymore. In 95 he was not the best at cutting promos but still better than most guys now. Watch his feud with Shawn after he turned heel in 97. Hart was a 5 time WWF Champion during a time there was more competition. Him and HBK would of had 20 championships if they wrestled in the PG Era.
enviousdominous
Behold my diction
The feud that they had, is what the WWE pretends to have today. Notice how often they call Cena "polarizing" in that he seems to get half boos and half cheers. I wouldn't call him that because it's lame to assume that the children he panders too have any real concept of his wrestling talent.
The WWE got lucky with the Bret Hart Shawn Michaels feud. Wrestling fans of that era were a passionate bunch, and they had patriotism fueling their fervor toward their favorite of two very talented individuals. The WWE would do a show in Canada, and Bret would blow the roof off the place just by cutting a promo. In the US, Shawn would get the same reaction. Their feud meant that fans really cared about tuning in every week and filling those seats if only to shout back at fans on the other side of the border, so basically money was what it meant no matter which side you were on.
This doesn't apply to Cena because if you love him you buy his crap, if you hate him you DON'T buy his crap. The "We hate Cena" shirts don't sell like a Bret Hart shirt would have to someone who hated Shawn Michaels back in the day.
The WWE got lucky with the Bret Hart Shawn Michaels feud. Wrestling fans of that era were a passionate bunch, and they had patriotism fueling their fervor toward their favorite of two very talented individuals. The WWE would do a show in Canada, and Bret would blow the roof off the place just by cutting a promo. In the US, Shawn would get the same reaction. Their feud meant that fans really cared about tuning in every week and filling those seats if only to shout back at fans on the other side of the border, so basically money was what it meant no matter which side you were on.
This doesn't apply to Cena because if you love him you buy his crap, if you hate him you DON'T buy his crap. The "We hate Cena" shirts don't sell like a Bret Hart shirt would have to someone who hated Shawn Michaels back in the day.
The Fabulous Rougeau's
Championship Contender
Anyone who is considered an all tie great and has the skills and charisma to complement their stellar in ring work would work at any point in WWE history.
donfryeismyhero
Pre-Show Stalwart
I'm not too sure about that. What got Stone Cold & The Rock over was the fact that they weren't PG wrestlers.
I'm not sure if you were too young or maybe not a wrestling fan in '95 to '97. If you were you would know that Bret was pretty vocal about the direction WWE was taking into TV14. He hated the fact that wrestling wasn't a safe place to take your kids to. My point being, of course his character would work on today's current roster. Plus given the fact that right now your WWE champion is smaller than Bret ever was and so is Daniel Bryan and other guys that compete in the main event scene. That would mean that Bret, or Shawn for that matter, would be able to have some pretty good technical matches against these guys. Bret was never that great on the microphone, but he was good enough to get by. They also didn't script their lines back then, so whatever Bret or Shawn came up with in their promos, they did it on their own.
The Hillside
Pre-Show Stalwart
They will easily fit in the main event today.
Both kids and mature wrestling fans buy into submission, technical and high-flying specialists.
Daniel Bryan or Rachel Steamboat can be easily turned into today's Bret Hart. I say put the WWE Title on them, turn them face and ask them to put on 3-4 start matches every week and give them a simple no non-sense gimmick like Bret Hart. Fans will buy into it just to see some action and a mature technical specialist wrestler.
CM Punk, Edge and John Morrison are close to modern HBK, two of them are already main-eventers while Morrison can easily become a popular main eventer too.
If you asked me about wrestlers like Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Sgt. Slaughter and Ultimate Warrior would fit in today's modern WWE main event, then I would say 'it's complicated'. Providing they were mostly about gimmicks and few major moves that got them over.
Both kids and mature wrestling fans buy into submission, technical and high-flying specialists.
Daniel Bryan or Rachel Steamboat can be easily turned into today's Bret Hart. I say put the WWE Title on them, turn them face and ask them to put on 3-4 start matches every week and give them a simple no non-sense gimmick like Bret Hart. Fans will buy into it just to see some action and a mature technical specialist wrestler.
CM Punk, Edge and John Morrison are close to modern HBK, two of them are already main-eventers while Morrison can easily become a popular main eventer too.
If you asked me about wrestlers like Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, Sgt. Slaughter and Ultimate Warrior would fit in today's modern WWE main event, then I would say 'it's complicated'. Providing they were mostly about gimmicks and few major moves that got them over.
donfryeismyhero
Pre-Show Stalwart
Well, when it comes to Hogan, Slaughter & Warrior, I think they'd be met with the same reception that Cena is met with in today's environment. The kids would love them while the older audience would much rather see more believable stars. Savage I think would be met with approval from both ends of the WWE fanbase as he was a great worker who could talk & was colorful enough for the younger folks.
The Fabulous Rougeau's
Championship Contender
That's what got guys like Val Venus, Godfather, Billy Gunn and others like that over. Austin and Rock fall into that Bret/Shawn mold. The only difference being we got to see both Bret and Shawn in 2 era's while Austin and Rock were only in one. However, Austin and Rock we both good in the ring, better on the mic and had unreal levels of charisma. Sure there characters would have to be tammed, but they have enough ability to make it work with the right push behind it.
I'm going to go with the majority on this one. The WWE in 1995-96, aka the New Generation, was still pretty similar to what we have in the PG-era today. Bret and Shawn worked, at first, because of their abilities and their in-ring chemistry. I actually was listening to an interview with HBK last night from Arda Ocal's show, The Score, that was comparing his feud with Bret to C.M. Punk's feud with Daniel Bryan. HBK basically said it was an honor not only for him, but for Punk/Bryan to be compared to that, essentially because without one you couldn't have the other. He also said without Steamboat and Flair there probably wouldn't have been a Michaels/Hart feud that worked so well.
I think the point is that, in any era of wrestling, good competition will likely win out at some point, no matter what the storyline. So, yes, I think Hart and HBK would work well today, especially if you're talking about 1995-96. Keep in mind these two had some great matches in the early 90s as well. Survivor Series '92 comes to mind and the first ladder match in the WWE. Also keep in mind that it wasn't until late '96-97 that their feud started to actually become personal, which only heightened their matches.
I think the point is that, in any era of wrestling, good competition will likely win out at some point, no matter what the storyline. So, yes, I think Hart and HBK would work well today, especially if you're talking about 1995-96. Keep in mind these two had some great matches in the early 90s as well. Survivor Series '92 comes to mind and the first ladder match in the WWE. Also keep in mind that it wasn't until late '96-97 that their feud started to actually become personal, which only heightened their matches.
donfryeismyhero
Pre-Show Stalwart
But Rock & Austin started their WWE careers in a PG environment although when Rock debuted, it was starting to slowly change in the other direction. Austin & Rock weren't getting over until they started to use colorful language and as Stone Cold used to say, turning up the violence factor.
MrMojoRisin
Championship Contender
What got Austin and the Rock over was the fact that they were entertaining.
Take away the swearing, Austin's beer and the Rock's innuendo... and there was still so much more to both of them that those same characters get over in any environment.
donfryeismyhero
Pre-Show Stalwart
Disagree. They were both very generic before they started to push the envelope, especially Rock. I might give a little credence to Austin as he was showing some potential to get over as 1/2 of the Hollywood Blonds with Brian Pillman but unfortantly, politics never allowed for that team to truly get the chance to really get over. Rock could never have gotten over as a babyface without swears & the innuendo. He tried and what happened was people started chanting "Rocky sucks" & "Die Rocky die". History speaks for itself.