The Montreal Screwjob...and why it Worked
Posted: May 13th, '19, 15:44
A lot of coverage has been given to the Montreal Screwjob, especially here lately with the Viceland episode of Darkside of the Ring about it. And why wouldn't it? It's one of the first events of WWF's boom period and one of the scummiest things ever done publicly to a wrestler. But what I think what gets overlooked in the historical overview is why it worked.
When I say "why it worked" I don't want that to be misconstrued as the literal version of that statement. The mechanics of how Vince managed to screw Bret have been done to death. What I mean is, what separates Montreal from every rehash of the angle? And one must look no further, than WWF television.
I want to use this opportunity to state that reviewing every Raw MIGHT have been the worst thing I've ever done for WR. It was impacting my ability to enjoy wrestling, as it was just a wash of dumb B-Movie gimmicks, inset promos, regular promos, and all sorts of other junk. But what was real, was Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart.
America was in a wacky period of time culturally. The moral nanny state of the Reagan 80s was giving way to the counter culture of the 90s, with the rest of the world still stuck in the past. One must look no further than the German Raw, where Bret Hart was still being cheered as he had been for the past four years, with edgier gimmicks wisely left off the show, gimmicks like The Nation of Domination. And while we were consuming racial unrest militant beliefs, and general malcontent with our morning cereal, the rest of the world was far less into watching turmoil like it was a ball game.
Bret Hart tapping into the rest of the world's view on the US is part only part of it. Hart reuniting his family into a faction of villains crusading for family values was only part of it. All those things were just extra sauce. What really made it is the conviction with which Bret expressed his hatred for not only Shawn Michaels, but the unrest plaguing his world. In the lead up to the infamous "This is Bullshit" promo, Bret was very clear that he felt "screwed" by any and all parties who didn't like him. In the lead up to Survivor Series he would whine and complain about whatever was bothering him (Shawn Michaels especially), and send his family after everyone else. I should point out as well that April 1997 to November 1997 is the span of about 7 months. This had build to it, just like an angle.
I'm not saying that Montreal was a work, only idiots would believe that. But what I'm saying is, in kayfabe, if you're a business owner, and your most marketable icon is a guy shitting on your core fanbase, why wouldn't you go out of your way to get rid of him, even if that meant handing the barn to prima donna Michaels, which would no doubt alienate tons of people?
That said, let's look at every other attempt at Montreal. The reason why 1998's Survivor Series conclusion worked was the sheer shock of it all. And that's what booker Vince Russo understood, shock. He didn't understand how the Montreal Screwjob fit into the culture of the time, the feelings of the performers involved, and how that all just so happened to fit as snugly into kayfabe as a Screwjob could (even if Vince didn't figure out couldn't put the circular peg in the square hole right away, and doing things right, turning himself heel just happened to work out from a narrative standpoint.). Vince Russo understood shock, and none of the nuance.
I want to thank everyone for reading. I know that this is the 90 millionth thing written on Montreal, and it's not the most concise, but I thought it was high time people compared it to other attempts at recreating it.
When I say "why it worked" I don't want that to be misconstrued as the literal version of that statement. The mechanics of how Vince managed to screw Bret have been done to death. What I mean is, what separates Montreal from every rehash of the angle? And one must look no further, than WWF television.
I want to use this opportunity to state that reviewing every Raw MIGHT have been the worst thing I've ever done for WR. It was impacting my ability to enjoy wrestling, as it was just a wash of dumb B-Movie gimmicks, inset promos, regular promos, and all sorts of other junk. But what was real, was Shawn Michaels vs Bret Hart.
America was in a wacky period of time culturally. The moral nanny state of the Reagan 80s was giving way to the counter culture of the 90s, with the rest of the world still stuck in the past. One must look no further than the German Raw, where Bret Hart was still being cheered as he had been for the past four years, with edgier gimmicks wisely left off the show, gimmicks like The Nation of Domination. And while we were consuming racial unrest militant beliefs, and general malcontent with our morning cereal, the rest of the world was far less into watching turmoil like it was a ball game.
Bret Hart tapping into the rest of the world's view on the US is part only part of it. Hart reuniting his family into a faction of villains crusading for family values was only part of it. All those things were just extra sauce. What really made it is the conviction with which Bret expressed his hatred for not only Shawn Michaels, but the unrest plaguing his world. In the lead up to the infamous "This is Bullshit" promo, Bret was very clear that he felt "screwed" by any and all parties who didn't like him. In the lead up to Survivor Series he would whine and complain about whatever was bothering him (Shawn Michaels especially), and send his family after everyone else. I should point out as well that April 1997 to November 1997 is the span of about 7 months. This had build to it, just like an angle.
I'm not saying that Montreal was a work, only idiots would believe that. But what I'm saying is, in kayfabe, if you're a business owner, and your most marketable icon is a guy shitting on your core fanbase, why wouldn't you go out of your way to get rid of him, even if that meant handing the barn to prima donna Michaels, which would no doubt alienate tons of people?
That said, let's look at every other attempt at Montreal. The reason why 1998's Survivor Series conclusion worked was the sheer shock of it all. And that's what booker Vince Russo understood, shock. He didn't understand how the Montreal Screwjob fit into the culture of the time, the feelings of the performers involved, and how that all just so happened to fit as snugly into kayfabe as a Screwjob could (even if Vince didn't figure out couldn't put the circular peg in the square hole right away, and doing things right, turning himself heel just happened to work out from a narrative standpoint.). Vince Russo understood shock, and none of the nuance.
I want to thank everyone for reading. I know that this is the 90 millionth thing written on Montreal, and it's not the most concise, but I thought it was high time people compared it to other attempts at recreating it.