Boom! Studios has become the home for untold stories in and out of the WWE ring with its ongoing WWE comic series. However, the publisher will retell classic stories and even imagine a change in wrestling history in a new anthology comic.
The WWE Survivor Series 2017 Special , which arrives in stores this November, will rework classic stories of Survivor Series past and even give a “what if” cover involving the Montreal Screwjob.
Writers Kevin Panetta (Zodiac Starforce), Ryan Ferrier (Kong on the Planet of the Apes), and Julian May (Saga of Pilocene Exile), and featuring art from Brooklyn Allen (Lumberjanes), Kendall Goode (The Doorman), and Kelly Williams (The Cabinet) will all be involved in this special anthology
“Anyone who's familiar with Survivor Series knows it's chock-full of firsts,” says BOOM! Studios Editor Jasmine Amiri. “Survivor Series is where The Rock and Undertaker both debuted. It is where The Shield first arrived. And of course, it’s where the Gobbledy Gooker first flew into our hearts. Continuing that tradition, we'll be debuting our first Survivor Series special this year and loading it up with epic matches and stories throughout WWE history.”
This special oversized, stand-alone issue celebrates one of the top four WWE pay-per-views and will include short stories tied to key matches, including the Brock Lesnar and Goldberg showdown in 2016; the 2016 Team Raw vs. Team Smackdown Women’s Elimination match; and the aforementioned Montreal Screwjob, by far one of the most controversial (and infamous) match in WWE history.
For those unfamiliar, the Montreal Screwjob has become infamous for the way it blurred the lines between entertainment and reality in the WWE. In the Summer of 1997, Bret “The Hitman” Hart won the world championship at SummerSlam weeks prior to Survivor Series. However, once Hart won the title he signed to WCW, the WWE’s (then known as the WWF) biggest rival, and was ready to jump ship once his contract expired.
Vince McMahon, the president of WWE, did not want Hart to leave the company as champion. Shawn Michaels was the next star to take the belt but backstage, Michaels and Hart did not, to put it lightly, get along and Hart refused to drop the title to him in Montreal, Hart’s hometown and the site for Survivor Series 1997.
All sides agreed that the match would end in disqualification, so Hart would retain the title and drop the championship to Michaels at a later date, but McMahon had a different idea. Without Hart’s knowledge, McMahon instructed referee Earl Hebner to end the match when Michaels put Hart in the Sharpshooter (Hart’s signature move) without Hart actually submitting.
This led to the term “Montreal Screwjob” being coined in wrestling circles and years of animosity from the McMahon and Hart camps. Eventually, the air would be cleared and Hart was eventually inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame and the Montreal Screwjob has since been referenced on WWE TV on numerous occasions.
The WWE Survivor Series 2017 Special will release in November. Boom! Studios does release a WWE ongoing comic from writer Dennis Hopeless and artist Serg Acuña that you can pick up today.
Are you interested in reading this WWE special comic? Let us know if you’re interested to see how Bret will “screw over” Michaels in the comments section below.
