10 Weird Ways We Remember Legendary Wrestlers
2. Bret Hart: Embittered
Bret Hart is a particularly sore entry because he's too often portrayed as an aberration - as if bitterness is somehow exclusive to a man who is justified in it more than most.
The man was loyal to a fault in a ruthless industry bereft entirely of it. He dedicated himself to his portrayal of a hero with so much conviction that it was his undoing. There's no memes in that; it's borderline tragic, especially since, as the years withered, so too did in any sense of karma.
We should instead remember Hart for his Excellence. His much-vaunted (and self-publicised) safety record. His consummate professionalism in the face of near-constant relegations. His ability to retain a core audience spellbound by a level of technical storytelling nous so ingenious that he fostered a lifelong appreciation of the very craft. His countless classic matches. His ability to work to such an extent that he obscured patent bladejobs - wasn't it a coincidence that the claret always poured from the forehead? - with unparalleled slight of hand.
And, yes, a great promo game for which he is never apportioned due credit.