Posted By
Joe Gagne on May 29 |
0 comments
This week did see the return of Bauer & Pollock, with Jason Agnew joining them for a short breaking news show about the Ring of Honor/Destination America news. It was an OK summary of the events, but didn’t have much in the way of scoops.
The podcast week in review, brought to you by Dollar Shave Club.
- “There’s no way if I wasn’t involved with this podcast that I’d listen to it.” – Rocky Romero on Talk n’ Shop
- “The first match of my life was in Wichita, Kansas, against Omar Atlas, and I got disqualified, right? The last match of my career was in Winnipeg, Canada, against Tony Atlas, and I got disqualified.” – Jesse Ventura
- “I was the most prepared fired guy of all time.” – Brian Myers, on expecting to be let go from the WWE
Human Podcast Machine #25 (5/22/15): Another fantasy draft edition, this time of the top ten underrated workers. What does underrated mean? They didn’t clarify beforehand, which leads to much less overlap than usual, as well as everyone critiquing the hell out of each other’s picks. Tenay drops some great history on Gordman and Goliath too. Taz also reads some suggestions from Twitter , much to the (hilarious) disgust of Tenay.
THUMBS UP
Talk n’ Shop #47 (5/23/15): A special on-the-road edition of TNS finds Karl, Doc, Rocky, and Pepper Parks on their way to the second ROH show in Toronto. Silliness ensues, as topics discussed include: disappointment in not getting turned around at the border, pooping while standing up, drinking while in AA, who is Milky, #whitedickhair, stealing from the boys, and fans spitting in Gallow’s mouth. If you couldn’t tell, this one leans pretty hard on the Gross Scale, but it is an extremely fun show.
THUMBS UP
MLW Radio #181 (5/24/15): Court, Greeny, and MSL talk about the recent news, including Kevin Dunn’s possible replacement, WWE’s big shows, and the TNA e-mail rumors (which they appeared to have heard independently of the Voices of Wrestling report). Also some Mad Men and Mad Max talk if that’s your bag. An OK show, but I surmise this week will end up being a lot more interesting.
THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE
Piper’s Pit #60 (5/25/15): Piper’s old running buddy/rival Greg “The Hammer” Valentine makes the rounds. He and Piper discuss their famous dog collar matches, growing up the son of a famous wrestler, and what’s wrong with wrestling today (Spoiler: Greg wants jobber matches back). Greg was a solid guest who certainly isn’t overexposed. But dragging things down is Earl Skakel, who doesn’t add a lot (although he does make a timely Michael Vick dog fighting joke).
THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE
Steve Austin Show #223 (5/26/15): Part 2 with Josh Barnett features a very ramshackle interview as they bounce all around from pro wrestling to Josh’s upcoming fight with Roy Nelson to whiskey drinking. I liked the more focused part 1 better, but Josh is always a solid interview and he plays well off of Steve.
THUMBS UP
The Ross Report #67 (5/26/15): “Nightmare” Danny Davis is the guest this week. I was dreading this at first because I’ve already heard Davis’ stories on Colt Cabana and Steve Austin’s respective shows. But thankfully, he breezes past his wrestling career and they spend the show discussing the training of the big stars that came out of OVW. You get personal remembrances of John Cena, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, and CM Punk in their formative days, and it’s all very interesting. And to Ross’ credit, he’s cut way back on the endless monologues, which makes for a more easily digestible show.
<Davis’ interview starts at 15:52> THUMBS UP
Talk is Jericho #146 (5/27/15): Y2J kicks off the show addressing his recent troubles with hackers taking over his social media. Then Jericho talks to Jesse “The Body” Ventura about his days in the military, how he got into wrestling and why he had to stop, being a heel commentator during the boom period, being a bodyguard for the Rolling Stones, working with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and plenty about the JFK assassination and 9/11. Say what you want about Jesse, but he’s always an engaging interview, and this is a super fun show. Also, Jericho thinks the Manhattan Project involved time travel? Jeez, read a book.
<Ventura’s interview at 16:37> THUMBS UP & BEST OF THE WEEK
WOOOOO [emoji]8482[/emoji]Nation #4 (5/27/15) Ric and Conrad talk to WOO “Mean” By God Gene Okerlund for a brief interview. They spend the first ten minutes or so on the AWA and the legacy of Verne Gagne, before Okerlund’s jump to the WWF during its boom period, and then finally the move to WCW. There are some tall tales here to be sure (WWE has done a great job cultivating Hispanic starts and is apparently drawing million dollar gates regularly these days), but Gene is a fresh voice and he and Flair are clearly having a lot of fun.
THUMBS UP
Art of Wrestling #252 (5/28/15): The former Curt Hawkins, Brian Myers, makes his second appearance on the podcast. The first was while he was still in WWE; the second is focused around life on the indies after being a low card WWE guy. They talk about Myers’ wrestling school, working with the Rock (and introducing him to Kevin Steen), and marketing yourself as an independent wrestler. Myers wasn’t high on my list to be a return guest, but this was a funny and interesting show.
THUMBS UP
Steve Austin – Unleashed #224 (5/28/15): Part 2 of an interview with Sirius XM host Sam Roberts. Where’s part 1? It’ll air Tuesday. Austin had a hole in his audio schedule and needed a show, and since there were swears in the latter half, they’re airing part 2 first. Got that? Anyway, Roberts hosts a wrestling podcast and he’s popped up on Countdown shows, and he and Austin talk about his fandom, interviewing wrestlers, and crappy food. Roberts seems like a nice guy, but this show did nothing for me.
THUMBS DOWN
The Jim Cornette Experience #79 (5/28/15): Jim Cornette, of all people, has the hot scoops as he talks to Dave Meltzer about the ROH move to Destination America. OK, they had actually planned out a show weeks ago and the timing just worked out, but still. It’s a comprehensive overview of the TNA situation since moving to DA, along with some added discussion of concussion lawsuits. If you follow Meltzer’s usual audio exploits you were learn anything new (except maybe Vince Russo hit up ROH for a job), but it’s always good to hear Dave outside of his usual confines. The opening to the show, where Jim and Alice discuss the Duggar situation, is toxic and should be avoided at all costs. <Meltzer’s interview starts at 25:27>
THUMBS UP
Talk is Jericho #147 (5/29/15): Kevin Owens is the guest this week. He talks to Chris about training in a flea market, learning English from Jim Ross, the advice he got from Steve Austin, what goes into a WWE tryout, moving his family to Florida, his fandom of Owen Hart, working with John Cena, and a lot more. Owens is very open, and even if you’ve heard him on other interviews and shoots, this is still a very worthwhile outing. Jericho also pays a fitting tribute to former TIJ guest Daniel House, who recently passed away.
<Owens’ interview starts at 18:38> THUMBS UP