Harley Race introduced arguably the most famous and pimped Nitro match ever, the Owen Hart tribute match from Kansas City, the building where Owen died.

Benoit wears an Owen t-shirt to the ring. The announcers are really respectful and serious here, which I appreciate. Both men get an intro and stay in their corners. It definitely captures some of the emotion that must have been felt during that night.

A lot of the early stuff is mat/hold/submission based wrestling, all under the great banner of technical wrestling. It’s basic, it’s classy for the moment, and it’s well executed. I’m honestly grading this on a harsher curve because it is the “obvious choice” as the top Nitro match, but so far it’s really living up to memories and the pedestal where it was put.

I like that the holds are wear down maneuvers and reversals, and not true submissions. There are a few Owen chants from the crowd. The announcing is really deep here, giving you a lot of background and texture. The wrestling is flawlessly snug and “real” looking, as opposed to spot-to-spot choreographed-looking. Bret’s knee to the abdominals and short leg drop were under rated moves in his repertoire. Benoit brings the chops, and a liontamer-like Boston Crab.

This match is fascinating in that there is no storyline or heel-face interaction, or tangible drama to buoy it, and yet because of the circumstances it has meaning and feeling to it.

The progression is nice as Benoit has the knee to the abs scouted the second time. We get one counts off back breakers or back body drops, which I love. There really are no big moves in the first ten minutes, and Bret ends up being the default Babyface over time. Sometimes, especially when Bret is in control, the match – or the moves – get a bit monotonous, but when they create movement the match moves, and the counters are like Lucha in the way they flow. Benoit pulls out a tombstone pile driver that gets a solid near fall, and they are both selling the totality of the match.

The idea that the pressure is on Bret because he is wrestling for his brother is a compelling one the announcers introduce. Benoit ends up using that knee lift to the abs on Bret. Also of note is the way Benoit would take a bump off a choreographed drop kick miss. These guys are both so willing to bump well for each other. I’m not as big a fan of the suicide dive by Benoit, as it looked too set up. All the near falls after the second commercial break are tight, and it’s a tragedy that the entire match isn’t available to anyone without commercial cutaways lost.

A dummy moment: Bobby Heenan has no idea these two have wrestled against each other on Nitro, including a few months before.

Bret focuses a lot of his late work on the back of Benoit, I’ll assume getting ready for the Five Moves of Doom. I’ve finally realized that both Benoit and Hart are very impressive in delivering or executing moves in the first half of matches, but all too often I’m not sure where the story really is until later in the match, when they pick something to focus on. Bret’s match with DDP or Booker T on this set seemed more compelling because it appeared to utilize more story telling devices through body language. Perhaps that’s the handicap of this ROH-like match.

They get a great double ten count after a Hart superplex that shows the crowd still engaged twenty minutes in. It’s also something HHH and HBK both wish they had in some of their more masturbatory wrestling matches. Sharpshooter tease into a crossface. Bret gets the ropes. Three Amigos from Benoit. He’s getting some heat as he hits the diving head butt. Two count. “Let’s go Bret” chant. Bret ends up hitting Benoit with a pile driver of his own. I like the little tit-for-tat these guys have going on, a lot of it style similarities. A lot of movement and reversals in this final stretch. The only thing it’s missing is palpable desperation by its characters. Bret has a great block of the Crossface, and moves it into a Sharpshooter for the tap out win in about 27 minutes.

It wasn’t dramatic, but it had feeling. Bret looks to the sky afterwards and sends off his brother with a salute. They embrace. Very- very good match, but given the reason for having it, I wondered at times where the heart and emotion was. These men are great because they are wrestling machines, but sometimes I think that’s what holds them back from having matches that transcend four and a quarter stars and wrap you up with feelings. It’s not about work rate at that point. The emotion conveyed compliments the work and hopefully transcends a simple wrestling contest. Bret only did it once, with Austin, but that run was the closest he would come to a character that could make for a five star match. Benoit did it with HHH and HBK, ironically, and had his real moment with Eddie. That’s what I wished for this match, and it fell just short. 3 ¾ and 7.2/10.

Okay, we have officially entered the era where I was giving up and barely watching, but still following online. I don’t remember this match or it’s context in the slightest. Sting had apparently turned heel, which you’d think was a big deal, but there were almost playing it like he was a tweener coming to the ring. He’s still doing his face shtick. Benoit is wearing a shirt that has to do with some group called Revolution, but I don’t remember what it was, and he’d be gone to the WWE within months. Honestly, this was during some weird holding pattern if I remember correctly, as Bish was fired and Vince Russo and Ed Fererra had been hired, but weren’t starting until October.

One thing this set teaches me is how frustrating Sting was a wrestler for the time he did bother to wrestle (exclude Fall ’96 almost to Jan. ’98). Essentially he rules Benoit here in the early part of the match, causing Benoit to bump like crazy for him and roll out several times. When he does get hit with a big move he simply no sells it. Thanks bud. Benoit’s working hard. Sting is being Sting.

Benoit works on the legs of Sting, and Sting sure doesn’t make it easy with his selling and movement. A moment of Zen arrives in the form of a perfect Muta Lock by Benoit. This is like pulling teeth for Benoit, who isn’t seen by the fans as being in Sting’s league, while trying to pull a logical match out of the guy. Maybe it’s a style point I just don’t get. Sting comes back and is perfectly fine. You better believe Benoit sells the balls to the post, etc. On the positive side it looks like sting worked light on guys, so no one is getting injured.

Sting’s control segment is ostensibly the heat segment, but that confuses me as Benoit was acting like the heel earlier. Benoit’s hope spots rule, but Sting won’t really sell much of anything to lend credibility. He’s never in danger, this guy! He’s firmly the heel now though, and he gets some react for it. Benoit makes his offense look like a million bucks. This has really picked up as far as the structure and psychology is concerned. Benoit’s comebacks and fails are fun, and the fans are behind it. Oddly enough, they don’t care as much about Sting’s offense. The real comeback is quick, Benoit nails the diving head butt, and we’re into the near falls 13 minutes in. It’s been well paced.

Two suplexes into the Crossface. Sting grabs the ropes. Lots of reversals and moment, but we got a ref bump. Benoit hits a sick pile driver. Sting is actually letting Benoit hit his stuff here, though I can’t say he’s committed to selling it. Lex Luger in to kill this match with a baseball bat shot. Sting wins. Lots of famous wrestlers come in. This is all to set up next week’s six man tag. That doesn’t help me. Got good for a while, but nothing that’s gonna shoot it to the moon with that finish. 3 ¼ and 6/10.

Raven and the dress wearing Saturn are babyfaces at this point. Benoit and Malenko are dastardly heels, and part of a forgotten Four Horseman incarnation of which I think I was the only big fan. The Horseman theme with the horse gallop at the beginning still gives me chills. If it wasn’t for Mongo that was a great materialization of the group. Enough about the Horseman.

Saturn works his butt off from the start, and the Horseman bump around for him. He hits a dive. Whoa! Raven and Saturn actually do a modified Total Elimination (The old Eliminators finisher in ECW that Saturn probably came up with), Raven doing a closeline instead of a kick. It looks awesome. And they get a near fall out of it – which also enhances the story. They have a few good tag team moves that send the heels to the outside, and get Benoit/Malenko a heckling chant. Benoit always worked hard, but Raven seems really motivated in there with him, and their exchanges have speed and emphasis. Raven looks muscularly the largest he ever was here, so he’s carrying weight too, making it all the more impressive. The faces stay one step ahead in the ring.

Perry Saturn’s suplexes, and granted he’s throwing around a smaller Malenko, are really great. I know after his injury in ’97 he used them more and got heat from his old friend, Taz, but Saturn was built to throw suplexes like that. It works in bursts, and gets the crowd going while moving the match along. Going further, Raven and Saturn were a really good tag team I’d totally forgotten about. They cut off the ring, each have great control segments, they have quick tags and share time well, and most important they have some solid double team moves for when they do tag.

The match is 70-30 Raven/Saturn until we hit a commercial break, and when we come back the Horseman are in control. Malenko and Benoit at this point had no real concept of connecting with an audience. They do work as if it’s a real sport, but the arena is empty. Raven has figured out how to curry favor with the faithful by this point, and Saturn gets it by proxy. The heels do know how to work on the leg though, and they capture Saturn while the crowd claps to inspire him. Raven gets the hot tag and manages to work in is drop toe hold into a chair spot (it’s “Raven’s Rules”). A minute of all four in the ring commences but it has the feel of guys hesitating in wait for contrived spots. The spacing isn’t there and Raven’s punches fall flat for me. This leads to Arn Anderson interfering (that looked like crap), and Saturn catching Malenko and hitting the Death Valley Driver for a good finish in roughly 13 minutes. Solid stuff that at times looked great, and other times looked plodding or awkward. Bonus: Bam Bam Bigelow challenges the tag champs (Raven/Saturn) as they walk back stage, calling them “turkeys” Terrific! 3 ¼ and 6.2/10.

Four of my favorite cruiserweights ever lock it up in a tag title match. And the best part? They’re in Canada!

Benoit beats the piss out of Kidman early, and it’s so violent that even I wince. The crowd isn’t as live and in awe of this as I would be. Kidman gets a small comeback and gets out. Malenko then dominates Rey Jr. with holds, and then the Horseman cut off the ring. Rey’s speedy hope spots are wicked on, but Malenko/Benoit get the better of him. The story is the Horseman are too tough, but Kidman/Rey Jr. work from the bottom with flashy moves and quickness. Malenko’s top rope gutbuster is the biggest highspot by mid match, and naturally leads to the heels working over the midsection of Kidman for the heat segment (includes a commercial break). This match has had stiff action and good intensity throughout, but doesn’t have an important or peak feel to it yet.

Small random opinion: Malenko’s float over to a pin is the best I’ve ever seen. Also, the tag moves of Malenko and Benoit ruled. They were very under-rated as a team. Unfortunately, the heat on Kidman wears on and I don’t feel it. Benoit and Malenko are so great, but because they don’t project to the crowd at all, no one cares to react to this beautifully executed match, and even I become bored at home. They are having a match for themselves right here. The heel cheating is great, but it doesn’t get the reaction you’d hope, and the crowd isn’t dead, but they are entertaining themselves.

Malenko and Rey Jr. do big moves at the end to each other, but the finish is Raven coming down with Saturn and DDTing (Great move execution to pop the crowd) Malenko. Rey covers and we’ve got new tag champs in nine minutes shown – so probably 13 minutes. I’m conflicted on this match, because the execution was awesome, and the crowd was there at the end, but it seemed to lack heart, or maybe soul would be a better way of putting it. Still, I’d rather have this type of wrestling style on my TV for ten minutes. 3 and 6/10.

Very cool. Two of my favorite ECW transplants (well four, but I’m referring to Saturn and Raven) meet up with a great unrecognized tag team that was a part of the Four Horseman at this point. At Spring Break no less.

This is odd. Last year Raven had a match where he was booked to get the crap kicked out of him at the spring break show by Chris Benoit. This year, he’s out by himself to get the crap kicked out of him by Benoit – and Malenko. Really solid and strong style methodical beating on Raven here. He refuses to give up, even when put in the Texas Cloverleaf and the Crippler Crossface. A bit creepy to Benoit yelling, “Now it’s time for some pain” in the post – well, Benoit World.

Saturn comes out in a dress while they beat on a lifeless Raven, turns (I guess) on the Horseman, and suplexes everyone to hell. Now we’ve got a good match. Too bad this crowd really sucks reaction wise. Raven is out, so now the Malenko/Benoit team methodically beats the crap out of Saturn. I say methodical only because of the lack of reaction, it’s actually a pretty sweet display of wrestling. After a while watching a beating without much bumping (kicks and punches), I’m not really sure where this should go. It’s solid, but it’s like a machine, which is an apt criticism of these work rate guys. No true connection to the audience at times. Raven comes out for the babyface tag and clears everyone. Nifty move where Saturn gets out of the Crossface, back trips Benoit, and transitions into the Rings of Saturn submission. Suddenly the crowd is alive for these new babyfaces.

Decent to very good finish setting up the future, as Raven cuts off a Dean Malenko belt shot to Saturn with one of his own, and the ref rings the bell for a DQ while Saturn is about to make Benoit tap. That developed into a compelling story and turn some guys faces. 3 and 6.2/10.

This is not the famous match the two would have in late 1999 in memory of Bret’s deceased brother, Owen Hart. We’ll get there. This is a forgotten match from Nitro unearthed on this set, and I’m excited because I don’t remember it off the top of my head.

Hart comes out to the NWO music. What a waste this WCW run was for his career. I dig the way Hart starts out with subtle heel tactics, hair pulls and possible eye rakes, and slowly becomes more heelish. Benoit tries to grind him out with some technical holds, but Hart’s cheating short cuts win out. Hart is carrying the match with his selling and sudden movement, because what this match is lacking is a lot of movement or intensity as it moves forward. Hart manages to beat him on the outside and get back in to get the crowd booing, but Benoit wasn’t much of a face here.

Hart nailed an excellent pile driver for a near fall. Tony calls it a “Tombstone pile driver”, which is not the move or the right company. Heenan’s no better, claiming both men are from Calgary. They were to worried about each other half the time, and Tenay would step in to clear the air. We get a commercial while Hart works him over, but this is rather uninspiring considering the two talents.

Harts frustration and Benoit’s come back totally elevates this in a matter of seconds. Benoit comes all the way back, both selling, but misses the diving head butt. Top rope superplex and a great near fall on Hart. Benoit’s frustrated now. He switches into the Crippler Crossface, but Bret makes the ropes. Stevie Ray of the NWO is out to distract while Hart clobbers Benoit from behind with “an object” made to look like brass knux. But he goes further, which I give style points for, as he rolls Benoit over on him. He lets Benoit get a two count, kicks out, and throws him in the Sharpshooter for the win in about 15 minutes. It became what I was looking for as a fan as the story unraveled, but it didn’t have the punch for me that other matches on this disk did. Better than the lesser Booker-Benoit match, but you didn’t fully feel the struggle. 3 ¼ and 6.7/10.

I feel like I’m in a time warp by this point, seeing more Benoit than I’ve seen since the man went crazy in June ’07. Nice to see a varied opponent from Booker. Fit Finlay should make for an excellent match up as we’ve hit a hot streak of Nitro matches in ’98.

This match has the benefit of a very vocal Long Island, NY crowd that gets on Finlay heavy right away. Finlay plays an excellent heel here, complete with selling the crowd chants, begging off, and eye pokes. Crowd is more against Finlay than for Benoit, but they do love their chops. Finlay cheats and Benoit comes back with stiff offense. Simple formula. They had a commercial break in the middle of this. Bummer.

Into the last third of the match Benoit comes back with two German suplexes, but they both sell as he doesn’t get a third. He misses the diving head butt and the crowd chants “USA” to amuse themselves. Cute. Both guys really go all out, with Benoit refusing to lose. He reverses a pile driver into the cross face for the tap out win in about 11:30. In a lot of ways I liked this more than the Booker T-Benoit matches on this disk. A good heel-face dynamic with an engaged crowd and a natural flow. 3 ½ and 7.2/10.

Right away this match seems more important than the last two. Not that they weren’t, or that the guys weren’t very tight early, but this starts with a stare down, less movement, and quick reversals. It’s a good natural progression from earlier matches since this is deep in their series together. You can tell Booker especially feels like ever missed move is a missed opportunity. They also seem a bit more 50/50 in this one, and not it an even-steven way.

Booker does have the early advantage. The announcing the whole series was good, but Tenay actually adds something with a comment about the guys watching tape of their prior matches. Benoit ducks the flying forearm, which he’d been hit with in prior matches. The crowd is completely distracted by something in the crowd unfortunately.

It’s working out to have the same layout as the other matches. Hopefully the middle third will mean more with Benoit in control, which I think was solid but a bit dull in the others. He’s always trying to grind a guy out with rough offense, and in some cases it’s not engaging because it looks like a collection of moves. I can’t believe I’m saying that about Benoit, but I guess it’s on Booker to show more with his selling too. Benoit hits the diving head butt, but sells with Booker on the mat.

Here we go. Last third again. Stevie Ray comes down to support Booker with tough love. He pulls him out of the ring and shakes him up a bit. It seems to work, so it’s got story telling points. Both guys really sell fatigue after every move. Booker shows fore with a comeback. We’re at 11 minutes as Benoit pours it on, refusing to back down. Decent drama with Booker in peril. Great finish comes moments later with a Booker roll up and win. You’d have to see it. Looked great. Stevie Ray pulls Benoit off an exhausted Booker T. 3 ½ and 7/10.

Instant rematch, which is to be expected given this was part of the great seven match series between the two men. Given that this was was put on either Benoit’s WWE DVD or a Booker release, the expectation is this is high end stuff.

I love the way Booker starts out with the shoulder movement and stutter step before lock ups. He could really go as a singles wrestler during the Nitro era. I even liked him when he came in to WWE in 2001 with some good matches with Kurt Angle and The Rock. Boy it went downhill from 2002 on.

Same basic pattern of a match as the last time, with Booker the quick starter and Benoit getting a little dirty to take control. Booker could throw a running elbow off the ropes about as well as Benoit at times, and these two have excellent timing together. Benoit again works the mid section front to back. Finlay out again to scout. Maybe he’s the TV champ here (I said Cruiserweight last time). Booker with a long chin lock that didn’t quite have any life to it. One of the few small marks against it. They haven’t gone past second gear yet. Benoit back with a German suplex and they both sell great.

We hit what I expect to be the final third of the match almost eight minutes in. Nope, Benoit reverses unbelievably well into a sick Crippler Cross face for the tap in 8:23. This was eerily similar to their last match, with a rest hold in the middle that took about a minute out of the flow for me. Bad use of a submission, and I could have used a counter out of the crossface just one at the end. Really pedestrian considering the talent, though a terribly solid bout that’s worth a view. 3 and 6/10.

Match one of the semi-famous best of seven series between these two. I’m pumped. I remember these being great. The only downside is not seeing them all, since a few matches happened on Thunder and one on PPV.

The first two minutes of this match are so much better than the openings of 90% of TV matches. Tight lock up, solid chops and psychology, and a story developing. Booker is the better after two Benoit powder outs, as he just out-quicked the man, including a beautiful roll up attempt. Booker counters an early Cross Face attempt perfectly.

Benoit goes to work on the mid section and has the advantage. A typically solid Benoit control segment where everything is really measured and hard as nails. The crowd is behind Booker, but not completely. It does get a tad dull during the middle with Benoit controlling. Maybe methodical is a better term for this level of talent. Booker definitely sells a beating. Benoit uses rear chin locks as the rest hold of the day.

They seem to lose the crowd except for the impact of big moves, but get them back after Booker’s comeback with a series of reversals. Booker takes control, but misses the Harlem hangover. Finlay is the cruiserweight champ at this point and comes out on the ramp to scout. Benoit hooks in the crossface. Benoit wins in 11:45. These guys can do better, but this was appropriate to start the series. 3 ¼ and 6.5/10.