Greatest Match Round 1: TLC 2 vs. Bret/Owen WM10

[Everlong]

SquaredCircle's Greatest Match of All Time!

(2) TLC 2, WrestleMania X-Seven



VS

(7) Bret Hart vs. Owen Hart, WrestleMania X



VOTE NOW for which you liked better. Voting will last three days. In the event of a tie, the winner will be decided by which match had more people commenting in its favor.

[SortaCreative]

Oh... this one is quite hard.

[PorkChop]

This is the most difficult one so far, they're both great matches for different reasons.

No matter which way I vote I'll feel guilty, but I'm going for TLC 2.

[VaderBomb]

An outstanding spot fest is still a spot fest.

A technical exercise and a match that revolutionized a different breed of pro wrestling (for the better) is the clear winner.

Bret vs Owen not only paved the way for the continuation of one of the single greatest feuds/wrestling stories of all time, but it ushered in an era where big men and slow, plodding matches were becoming a thing of the past. At least for entire cards.

WrestleMania X had two matches that showed us how bright the future could and would be and despite HBK vs Razor being the more famous of the two, Bret vs Owen was the best match on the card and the second best WWF match of the calendar year of 1994 behind their Steel Cage rematch at SummerSlam.

I think that it's hard to understand just how awesome it was that WMX kicked off with such a tight, beautiful match after seeing so many cards full of hosses throughout the 80s and early 90s. Bret really was a saving grace for pro wrestling, much more so than somebody like Hogan. As far as actual wrestling goes, Bret's talent and presence brought out the best in everyone.

[Everlong]

This is really tough. I actually watched both of these again right before I put up the full list of matches that would be in this tournament, because while I have a great memory of the Bret/Owen Summerslam cage match, I didn't remember this one as well.

TLC 2 I probably watch every couple years or so, so that one's stuck with me much better.

This is a really close call for me, but I have to give it to TLC 2 for a couple reasons:

1) I think Bret and Owen had a better match than this one at Summerslam, and I don't want to vote them both through to the next round

2) I think TLC 2, much like Rock/Austin at the same PPV (though I didn't vote for that one) sort of defines an era in a way that this Bret/Owen match just doesn't. Not only are there incredible spots in this match (how many times have you seen the replay of that Edge spear?) but these three tag teams had just such great chemistry together and were willing to do whatever it took to put on an incredible show. In a way, this match is a showcase of what the Attitude Era was to a lot of people.

It's hard to compare the action of the matches themselves because they're so different. But that's my voting rationale anyway. Really tough decision for me.

[The Legend]

TLC 2 is by far the more enjoyable of these two matches. I thought the cage match Bret and Owen had was fantastic and definitely deserves to go forward. This match was good as well, but it didn't have the excitement level and the game changing design that TLC 2 had on this history of the industry.

[SortaCreative]

Had to vote for Bret/Owen but ... I could have voted the other way too.

My only issue with TLC2 is that after repeated watching it gets a little boring. Whereas Bret vs. Owen really doesn't. It's just a great match and I remember being so surprised at the finish when I first watched it.

[Viazon]

Bret Hart vs Owen Hart is a great match. No doubt about it. But I have a very special soft spot for the TLC match. It is one of the very first matches I loved. People call it a spot match. And perhaps it is. But it's exciting. There is so much going on in the match. It's non stop and it never gets dull or tedious. It's just pure madness all the way through. I remember loving it when I first watch it. I just watched it again for the first time in years and I love it just as much as I did the first time I saw it. Many people who appreciate pure technical wrestling may prefer the Owen/Bret match but to be, a good match is one that can excite you and leave you in awe and I get that feeling more from the TLC match.

[Hanley!]

I gotta go with Bret/Owen, which is still one of my favourite matches. There's a reason these guys got two matches into the tournament - their chemistry was off the charts. Both guys were great technicians in the ring and executed their moves to perfection. Put them both together and it gets even better. I really liked the Bret/Owen story, and Owen's bratty, jealous little brother act was very enjoyable. One of the best curtain jerk matches of all time, for sure.

TLC II is a blast. There are a lot of fun spots in it, but it really is just a collection of fun spots. There's nothing wrong with that at all. The match is still great fun to watch even years later. But it's not quite up to Bret/Owen. It doesn't have the same kind of story or reason to invest. It's fun, but usually I'll take the best one on one matches over the best multi-man gimmick matches. That's just the kind of wrestling I prefer.

[Kirbi]

The TLC match is basically WWE using a bunch of stuff that's sometimes complained about (needlessly dangerous spots, a ton of interference, etc.) and really pulling it off. Looking back, I sometimes don't care for the big stuff from the Attitude Era, but this was just a pile of fun, and I really liked it.

That said, in my book it's hard for even the best TLC match to beat a truly excellent one-on-one. Hart vs Hart had really great wrestling, great storytelling and psychology, and it was a bunch of fun to watch as well. I gotta give it my vote here.

That said, if I had the chance I would've put TLC2 over at least three matches that I voted for in other threads - maybe four. These are both really good matches, it's a pity that both of them can't go forward.

[Tom]

I voted for TLC 2 here.

I think TLC 2 may have been the last meaningful tag team title match on a Wrestlemania card (unless I am completely forgetting one). We had three teams that everybody was invested in, in a time when tag team wrestling actually mattered. It's a pity WWE don't promote tag team wrestling like they did back then.

Bret/Owen and TLC 2 are completely different matches so it is hard to compare them. What I feel TLC 2 did though was outdo the previous matches the three of these teams had against one another, and that was an incredible feet considering the matches these three teams participated in within the previous two years. The spots were awesome. The spear from Edge while Hardy was hanging from the belts remains one of my favourite spots in WWE history, it was amazing to watch at the time. The match was all round fun which epitomised the division and era as a brand.

Bret/Owen, although a good match, I don't think showcased anything amazing for me. It had an outstanding finish, no doubt. But I feel as if the in ring work before it isn't as good as a lot of the great stuff Bret had before this, notably his matches with Mr Perfect and British Bulldog. I also feel that the the fact that the cage match was so good from these too that I can't enjoy this one as much for some reason. It was a good match, but it never has amazed me, even when I first watched it. I certainly wouldn't consider it one of my favourite matches ever. But it certainly was a good way to open Mania that year and a great way to continue what was one of the best feuds in WWE history.

So yeah, it's very hard to compare these two but TLC 2 was more memorable, fun and the best match involving these three teams in one of the best tag team divisions in WWE history. So I have to vote that!

[Hanley!]

There's something about the way Bret and Owen (and some of the other guys of that era like Hennig and Davey Boy) executed their moves. They can make a regular suplex, or submission, or turnbuckle spot look a lot more real. Their moves all seem to have a lot more weight behind them. They're more believable.

Owen/Bret at Wrestlemania X has always been a favourite of mine, but it's not because anything really outlandish or original happened in the match. It was just a good match where every move and every sell just came off better than if two other wrestlers had been doing it instead. The first time I watched it (probably only about 10 years ago), I was surprised by how engrossed I was with this match that didn't have a load of high spots or a lightning quick pace. It's in many ways a very normal match, just done to perfection.

I think it's almost more impressive to take regular wrestling holds and create a special match out of it, rather than going out there and doing massive high spots to achieve the same thing.

[Everlong]

The voting for this closes in 7 hours, and we're tied right now. Who's going to cast the deciding vote?

[Hanley!]

Damn, TLC2 is ahead again. Come on Bret/Owen! Where are the Canadians at?

[Str8Shooter]

Damn, TLC2 is ahead again. Come on Bret/Owen! Where are the Canadians at?

I voted for Owen/Bret already!! I knew it was an uphill battle against TLCII though!

[Hanley!]

Well now I'm sad.

Having gone back and watched the cage match, I actually think the Wrestlemania X opener was the better of their matches. Hopefully the other one will get through at least.