I think, like Doc said, that Shawn had a number of classics his own that you could position opposite some of those Bret matches you list. Having said that, I don't want to argue too much as I would sooner take Bret over Shawn any day of the week! And I love to see someone giving credit to Bret's less heralded, but no less impressive successes in the ring - like, as you say, giving Yokozuna his best competitive match by some distance at WrestleMania IX.
I believe I've seen that before! On the opposite side, there's a great video of Bret (or it might be Diesel...) discussing the psychology behind their Survivor Series 1995 match that's well worth a listen.
Savage isn't my favourite ever, but he is the man I consider to be the greatest of all time, so you won't find me arguing his place high on your list! You will, however, find me arguing with you in saying that I prefer Bret to Shawn and it isn't even close!
Another story of the New Gen - great wrestlers having their talents forgotten because of the overwhelming memory of odd gimmicks and characters!
"His worst matches were other wrestlers' greatest matches." I love that line. Sums Bret's talents up perfectly, I think, and he was the prime example of someone turning dust into gold when it came to the stories he was fed, largely because of how he wrestled in the ring. His passion was infectious. I am in complete agreement with your opinion.
Seriously, dude, there's only so many times I can say it - get yourself to the CF and get writing columns already! Every comment is one in its own right, haha!
As for the Steiners match you bring up, it was one I considered including but, frankly, I just don't care that much for it, especially if you mean the bizarre Quebecers Rules Match they did on Raw.
I'm not sure I could disagree with you and Doc more! I totally understand why people might dislike it though - it's a massively subversive tag match, one that totally upends genre convention. It doesn't look like any other tag team match (or not many, anyway) and so I think it is inherently divisive.
I love it though, for those very aspects.
Glad you were able to find it! It's a cracker!
That's interesting to read - I don't hear many stories of Shawn's title reign turning people away from WWF and towards WCW. I'd be fascinated to hear more about that. There's no denying that Shawn's push makes Reigns' treatment over the years appear positively subtle. The Tell Me a Lie video feels like the peak example of one of the most heavy-handed and tonally misjudged pushes in the company's history, and what I find ironic is that pretty much the entire way through Shawn looks uncomfortable playing the role they'd given him anyway. The whole escapade felt, and still does, like a Vince McMahon vanity project.
Yes! Applauding you for your answer, my friend, I couldn't agree more even if I wanted to!
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