Happy Canada Day: The Top Canadian Moments in Wrestling

July 1st is Canada Day. This is a very special year as Canada turns 150 years old this year, which is only slightly older than Terry Funk.

Anyway, the best possible way to celebrate this event is by mentioning some of my favourite (with a "u") Canadian moments in wrestling history. Now, this is big moments that have prominently featured Canada, not just moments that involved Canadian wrestlers.

I even tried to include some that don't involve Bret Hart at all.

Honourable Mention (with a "u"):
Brock Lesnar wins the Universal Title 

Yes, he's Canadian now! We count that.

Honourable Mention (with a "u") Number Two:
The Mountie's Theme Song

This theme itself is great, in a terrible way, but even better is that the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) took legal action against Rougeau to prevent him from using the Mountie gimmick in Canada, which led to the Quebecers using a version of this theme called "We're Not The Mounties."

Okay, now onto the actual list.

Edge versus John Cena in Toronto

This TLC match was a big moment for Edge, a big moment for the Toronto crowd, and a damn good match at that. It probably features Canada much less than any other moment in this list, but it's certainly a big moment in Canadian wrestling history.

Lance Storm Wins All The Titles

Not only did Storm win the WCW United States, Cruiserweight, and Hardcore titles at the same time, but he gave them new Canadian names: the Canadian Heavyweight Championship, the 100 kg and Under Championship, and Saskatchewan Hardcore International Title (S.H.I.T.) Yeah, that title was definitely shit.

"Who's your daddy, Montreal?"

This is heel Shawn Michaels at his best. I don't even need to type anything else here. Just watch it.

Trish Stratus Retires

Trish Stratus retired from full-time competition after winning the Women's Title in Toronto. And she did it with the Sharpshooter. This was the same PPV as the Cena/Edge match mentioned above, so Canada got a lot of love on this show.

Rock versus Hogan

Neither of these competitors are Canadian, but the Canadian crowd definitely had an impact on the match, cheering Hogan and throwing the entire match (and the nWo angle) off course.

Bret Hart Tricks Goldberg

Bret Hart cut a pretty good promo on Goldberg, flattered the Canadian crowd, got a cheap pop out of wearing a Leafs jersey. Then he let Goldberg spear him only to reveal a steel plate underneath his jersey. It was a pretty clever segment, to be honest.

The Hart Foundation's Canada/US Feud

I'm going to write an entire post one day on why the Bret Hart vs Steve Austin feud (and by extension the Hart Foundation vs the USA feud) was the greatest feud in wrestling history, but I'll just say a little bit about it here.

This was an incredible angle that got so many different wrestlers over. And not just that, it made shows feel important. Raw was held in the US one week and Canadian the next, and each show had a completely different feel, with different people being cheered and booed depending on the venue. That in itself made each episode interesting and worth watching.

Which brings me to...

Canadian Stampede

This was the greatest moment in Canadian wrestling history. Period.

The entire In Your House: Canadian Stampede pay-per-view was great, and one of the best non-"big four" pay-per-views in history. But that moment right there, where the entire Hart family celebrates in front of the Calgary crowd, is the greatest Canadian wrestling moment ever.

It's even more memorable when you consider that Owen Hart, British Bulldog, and Brian Pillman are no longer with us (not to mention Stu and Helen Hart). Plus, a young Natalya even made an appearance.

Is there anything I missed?

"GLOW" Season 1, Episode 1

Alison Brie? The 80s? Professional wrestling? Netflix couldn't have created a show more custom-made for me unless they also included "wasting time on social media."

Oh, what's that? I'm a complete stereotype of my age and gender? I see.

Anyway, this is my review of the first episode of GLOW. Let me start off by saying Alison Brie does nudity. I mean, I enjoy professional wrestling and also acting. That's it. Also, this review contains spoilers.

So, basically, the plot of the show is that Alison Brie is an actress who goes to an "audition" that turns out to be a casting call for Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling. Coincidentally, accidentally becoming a wrestler is the same way Roman Reigns got started.

Brie finds herself in a big gym with a bunch of other women and the promoter tells them that he's starting a wrestling TV show and that he needs women wrestlers. None of the women are actual wrestlers, so they'll have to learn as they go. In all seriousness, this is how I imagine ECW starting, but Paul Heyman may have required less nudity (or possibly more).

"If I call your number and say 'thank you,' you've been cut, so dry your tears and leave the ring," says the promoter/director at the first "training session." Now that I think of it, maybe he's more like Vince McMahon than Paul Heyman.

Basically, the promoter wants to take advantage of wrestling's popularity (remember, this is the 80s) and start his own promotion that is all women. What he's really dreaming of is that one of these women will be the female Hulk Hogan, hopefully without the racism.

A fun note is that John Morrison plays their trainer. Annnnddd... cut to a montage of forward rolls and running the ropes. Alison Brie gets cut from the audition by giving her character too much backstory and motivation and not just following "basic direction" so it's like we're watching modern day WWE all of a sudden.

Anyway, Alison Brie is also sleeping with her friend's husband. That's where some more nudity comes in. It's also relevant to the story, of course, and I'm sure this major plot point will be a key storyline in the show.

After she's been cut. she's robbed by some "almost teenagers" and the aforementioned friend comes to pick her up, since her car keys have been stolen. She then goes to scene study class and the coach falls asleep while she is talking. Basically her life is bad, her career is non-existent, and men keep treating her badly.

Desperate to make something in her life work, she starts to study WWF and NWA shows (mostly Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair) to learn from the characters and create her own wrestling persona. She walks back in, with (pretty terrible) wrestling make-up and a costume, and attempts to get back on the show when..... her friends bursts in calling her a "husband fucker!" See, I knew that earlier sex scene was important when it happened, THAT'S why I watched it so many times.

The ensuing fight impresses the promoter who starts dreaming about what his promotion could actually look like, while the two women are continue to fight in the ring.

That's it for episode one. It was quite good and there's a lot of potential here. I'll be watching the rest. I probably won't be reviewing every individual episode, but I will do one at the end of the season.

Did I mention the Alison Brie nudity?

Overall, two thumbs up so far.

Really Terrible Wrestling T-Shirts

Yes, a post like this has probably been done about a million times elsewhere, but this is Wrestling Shame, so it needs to be done here too.

Remember 1996 when the nWo and Austin 3:16 happened and being a wrestling fan was cool again? And remember when people could wear wrestling merchandise in public and not be immediately mocked for it?

It seems like so long ago.

Well, do you remember when the APA had a shirt that read "ALWAYS POUNDING ASS" and we were supposed to just pretend that it wasn't about anal sex?

How about the time Kane had a shirt that had a burning cross on it and we were supposed to not immediately think of the KKK?

Or maybe one of the Rock's many terrible t-shirts:

WWF went through an "ass period" in the late 1990s/early 2000s.

Steve Austin once had a shirt that said "WHEN YOU HEAR THE GLASS... THAT'S VINCE'S ASS" but I can't find a photo. I'm not sure who would wear a shirt that says "THAT'S VINCE'S ASS" or "U BRING THE ASS!" on the back.

But it gets worse.

Imagine owning all of these "ass" shirts and wearing them regularly.

Oh God WWF.....