I know this thread is old and everything, but I wasn't around to respond to it to begin with and...yeah.

First off, Flair is one of my absolute favorite wrestlers. Anything you got from him pre 2003 was great to see. He was a great antagonist and I loved his feuds with Hennig, Savage and even Hogan, even though they completely buried him as soon as he came to WWF in the early 90's. If you're going to bring in a high profile person like that, book them STRONG, like how Nash and Hall were originally booked when they got to WCW, like they were literally taking over. He was the embodiment of WCW over the years along with Sting. I enjoyed his return to WWE, but I honestly think he hung on way too long.

That said, Flair the man is a rotten piece of shit. He was easily one of the biggest hypocrites to ever to use his backstage power to get his way. It didn't work in later WCW, which is exactly why he hated being there. He'll bascially say anything to charm you up front then go behind your back and talk you down to management. The only people I've ever heard say good things about Flair are; Steamboat, Sting, Jericho, Triple H and Michaels, the latter 2 I'm sure the majority of good things said came from his return in late 2001. Flair might have the ticket sales only because he WRESTLED IN A DIFFERENT ERA. He wasn't always selling out all over the world by the early 90's because the WWF machine was kicking and put a lot of their competition out of business. The reason why guys like Flair worked, was a territory would use him for a few months then send him elsewhere, put over the hometown face and move on. When you had very few chances to see Ric Flair wrestle, you better get a ticket. Since WWF had national attention, PPVs and even television time everywhere, it's hard to argue why you would go out of your way to buy a ticket if you could see the same person wrestle 50 times a year on TV. Flair is absolutely right when it comes to "accomplishments". But that's like comparing movie ticket sales of the 30's and 40's to the ticket sales of today...it doesn't even come close even though movies are more mainstream nowadays.

Shawn Michaels is another favorite of mine, probably in the top 3. Since he was brough up in this thread, I thought I'd give my two cents. What you see out of Shawn nowadays is not what you would've gotten out of Shawn 15 years ago. He's quite possibly the posterchild of what a wrestler should be.

Shawn the man, huge piece of shit during the Kliq years, quite possibly one of the best guys on the roster now. He's basically one of the only main eventers I can even think of that is willing to go out there and put someone over. He's done it with almost everyone he's worked with since he came back. He knows his time in the Sun is over and he wants to let other's shine through him. Not to get religious, but this is why I feel that religion can do good through someone, it gives them a rebirth to fix their mistakes, and yes I do think Shawn is a changed person. His animosity towards Bret in the late 90's came from the fact that they both had enormous egos and always claimed something on the other, overall; thank Christ that Stone Cold Steve Austin happened and allowed for them to focus on someone who wasn't a prima donna. Everyone basically had nasty things to say about him during the 90's and nowadays most people really like him.

Now as for Bret, another one of my favorites (what can I say, I like workrate) and he's quite possibly the best worker during the 90's. Shawn was the better story teller, but Bret had some very interesting finishes and while people remember him for being "predictable", I remember him for being innovative with each of his opponents. He was a black hole of charisma though, good God. Sometimes I wondered why he was even pushed so hard over Neidhart when Neidhart clearly had charisma and ability (for a big guy), Bret worked the matches but couldn't cut a promo to save his life. Some people point to his heel turn after his return with Austin where he was cutting loose, but even then he had some terrible promos. I remember a promo where he's in a wheelchair in the ring and starts talking down Shawn Michaels and he goes on and on and on, it was terrible! His character did evolve towards the end, but it had no real place in the WWF. I've always seen his departure as kayfabed, I mean the whole "Wrestling With Shadows" documentary being there and his character at the time, really fit with Montreal...so for all I know it could've been a work, especially given how fast Bret responded. Why wouldn't they ever reveal such a thing? Well the reputation Bret has nowadays stems largely from the event itself, a lot of people stopped watching after that. It might also be partly due to guilt on WWF's end for the death of Owen, but this is all speculation from my end. Also, Bret was heavily underutilized in WCW. Here you have a big name coming into the #1 company and coming off a HUGE "scandal" in WWF, and you put him in the midcard? His feud with Goldberg was alright, but outside of that nothing much else was memorable.

As for Bret now? Yeah, he's probably a piece of shit too. But I don't think he's bitter. It's usually the FANS that dwell on Montreal more than anything else, and Bret usually only talks about it if someone brings it up. The BIG problem I have with Bret was how he ended his book, it was a fantastic read except for the last page where he ends it by saying I'll never forgive Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon can kiss my ass. I mean what is that? You're a 50 year old man, don't write like a 14 year old!

When I say Bret isn't bitter, I don't mean that he dwells on Montreal. I think he hates Shawn for a lot more than his part in the Screwjob. Most people think he's still not over it, when in fact if anyone isn't over it, it's Vince. How many times have they pulled Montreals since Bret left?

The problem with the Screwjob is ridiculous on both sides. While Bret was negociating a contract, Vince was going behind his back and literally working a deal with WCW because a previous offer from Vince had Bret working 10 years, which was something that Vince couldn't afford. Despite this, Vince PUT THE TITLE ON HIM ANYWAYS. Vince put himself in that corner. And Vince did this several times before and since then, he's not the great businessman everyone claims he is.

Is Bret wrong for holding up the title in Montreal? Absolutely! Do I think he would've shown up on Nitro and thrown the belt in a trash can? Hell no. Call Bret a lot of things, but a complete asshole towards the company that took care for him for nearly 15 years isn't something I feel he wouldn't have done.

And yes, Bret was a prima donna. The whole schtick about him losing in Canada was a fucking loon. First off, this is your last match in the company and you SHOULD give someone a rub. Secondly, you're going to a new company to build you up to great heights, so why should you matter how your depature looks in WWE? Diesel went on a losing streak, Ramon went on a losing streak, Bret could've easily lost the title and still saved face no matter what.

I'm not condoning Bret's actions one bit, but many other people held up Vince for a title for years; Michaels, Jarrett, Chyna...so it's not like it's something new. Vince weaseled around, I think Bret was willing to do business, but from what I've read about the incidents, I think if anyone was at fault, it's Vince's poor attempts to run the WWF at the time. And yes, Bret is a ridiculous human being when he wants to be. He said he would no show the Hall of Fame if he saw Shawn. Not to mention, he didn't come out at Wrestlemania 22, which was a bummer since I was there and the two big HOF names weren't present.

I'm still a fan of Bret. His overall persona now boils down to what people say to him about his career, I don't think he's bitter about anything other than Michaels. And yes, I agree that is ridiculous.