_Survivor Series_ has never been my favorite WWE pay-per-view, mainly because it's so chaotic that it's hard to follow all the action. This particular PPV was no different, starting with a match between eight guys (four tag-teams) that I have zero interest in. This was followed by another match that was about as exciting as watching grass grow. Following this was a US vs Canada match and apparently, between the previous PPV event and this one, "Golddust" (Dustin Runnels) has essentially "turned heel" by leaving his wife ("Marlena", his real-life wife Teri Runnels) and child, and now he's turning his back on the fans by walking out in the middle of the "Survivor" match with his teammates: Vader, Steve Blackman, and Marc Mero. Since I'm playing "catch-up" on the last 40 years of WWE stuff, I have no idea what all happened but the match was a typical Survivor Series 8-man tag match with a typical ending. Next up was one of the more entertaining matches of the night as Kane makes his pay-per-view in-ring debut against "Mankind" (Mick Foley). The match was pure mayhem, as you would expect, but made up for some of the dullness we've endured so far. Now we come to one of the better "Survivor"-type matches, where the "Legion of Doom", teaming with Ahmed Johnson and Ken Shamrock, face off against "The Nation of Domination". And, as you might expect, there wasn't a great deal of technical holds and counterholds in this match; it was pure brute strength, and a great show. The next match was the IC Championship match between "Stone Cold" Steve Austin vs Owen Hart. I will give Owen credit: I liked him as The Blue Blazer, but hated him as the character he portrayed as Owen Hart. While I know this is all scripted and written beforehand, I still thought it was an _extremely_ tacky spin to have Owen wearing a t-shirt that proclaimed _"I Just Broke Your Neck"_ after he literally did just that in a previous match with Austin, almost ending Austin's career and leaving him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. I understand it was purely a hazard of the sport and never intentional, but I found it to be in very bad taste to "brag" about something that could have had not just career-ending but life-altering ramifications, as well. Not really something to be joked about or tossed around so cavalierly. The match itself was surprisingly short (possibly a medical clause in Austin's contract?) with a quite sudden and unexpected ending. The main event, however, is the "shock heard 'round the world", the infamous "Montreal Screwjob" that has gone down in pro wrestling infamy as possibly the worst and most treacherous ever by a wrestling promoter. If you hadn't been convinced up to this point that Michael Hickenbottom was Vince's "Boy Toy" behind closed doors, this match should be proof enough. Vince was ringside for the entire match, screaming obscenities and threats at Bret Hart while Bret continually rained down hell on Hickenbottom. It _was_ interesting watching the match in its entirety, however; it definitely put things in a much clearer perspective than just reading about it in the plethora of articles and blogs floating around the internet and/or watching short clips of the end of the match. The ending was so abrupt, so sudden, and so unexpected that you can watch referee Earl Hebner jump from the ring a split second after the three-count and "head for the airport" (Hebner's own words years later on a _Dark Side of the Ring_ episode about this particular match.) Additionally, after sitting through the match in its entirety, it becomes clear that not even Michael Hickenbottom ("Shawn Michaels") really knew what had happened or why the match had ended so abruptly. He was CLEARLY being told by Paul Levesque (Hunter Hearst Helmsley), Jerry Brisco, Pat Patterson, and others to _"Just go...just go...just GO..."_ as they escorted him rapidly from the ring back to the dressing room area as he (Michaels) looked confusingly backward toward the ring as if trying to figure out what had happened. Again, after watching the match - and the whole card - in its entirety, you can see that this was definitely a "screwjob" by Vince McMahon after Bret Hart had made it known that he (Hart) was leaving the WWF. First time I've seen the match in the environment of the entire PPV card, and yes, it definitely helps one to see just how big a betrayal this was. I know they managed to patch up their differences (after many years), but it's certainly easy to see why Hart - and many many others - would not trust Vince McMahon after such a low blow. Vince McMahon may have been a tremendous promoter (and there's no denying that) but wow...what a sorry human being.

The good old Bret Hart/Shawn Michaels **Montreal Screwjob**!