No Jim Cornette Experience this week. The podcast week in review, brought to you by Snack Basket.
The Usual Suspects
Talk n’ Shop (11/29/14): It’s Karl, Rocky, and Doc this week, as they basically mess around for a half hour. Not their best outing but decent enough. Doc tells a lengthy tale of buying a hoagie and getting ripped off, which isn’t great, but everyone giving him a hard time for a crap story is pretty great. THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE
MLW Radio (11/30/14): Konnan, Disco Inferno, and MSL get together to talk all kinds of issues, from college football, Ferguson and Konnan’s recent “arrest” (he was just yelled at by security at a football game). They don’t get to any wrestling talk until 49 minutes into an hour long show, and even that isn’t so great. THUMBS DOWN
Piper’s Pit (12/1/14): RD Reynolds joins Piper to discuss the re-release of the Death of WCW. Piper was actually in WCW, but a lot of the information is a surprise to him. RD does a great job playing along with Piper and giving history, and Piper chimes in with personal anecdotes. I think the fact that Piper didn’t think there was anyone who could be elevated in WCW is pretty telling. THUMBS UP
Steve Austin on the WWE Network (12/1/14): Figured I should include this here. The idea of Vince McMahon sitting down for an interview should arguably be more interesting than the recent Punk outings, but Austin won’t follow up with some crucial and obvious questions, and Vince refuses to take any blame for anything. But I think there is some insight (or at least reinforcement) into Vince’s mindset, even if what you learn isn’t all that flattering. THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE
Who’s Next With Goldberg (12/2/14): Five time Pro Bowler Fred Smerlas joins the show to talk about how the NFL sucks and the players are all pansies. Fred actually has some great stories (the story of a player pooping in a towel and throwing it at a coach would like crash the internet today), but the ceaseless complaining gets to be a bit much. THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE
Steve Austin Show (12/2/14): Part 2 with Bray Wyatt, but first it’s Teddy Fowler asking Steve questions about wrestling. It’s a lot better than the usual Fowler segment, but the questions are rudimentary and you won’t learn a lot. Bray then joins for a brief discussion on his gimmick and his brother. It’s another decent but not great segment with Bray. THUMBS IN THE MIDDLE
Talk is Jericho (12/3/14): Former AC/DC drummer Chris Slade is on to talk his time with the band and his run-ins with legends like Elvis, Jimmy Page, and David Gilmour. It’s the rare musical interview that’s thoroughly enjoyable. Jericho also gives his side in regards to CM Punk’s comments and his history with Punk08:. <Slade’s interview starts at 28:25> THUMBS DOWN
The Ross Report (12/3/14): Apparently the monologue was recorded last week, since there’s no mention of either Punk or Austin interviewing McMahon (and putting over JR), which is disappointing. Then Bob Holly joins the show for a great comprehensive interview on his early days breaking in, changing his name, lasting so long in the WWE, and hashing out the Brawl for All with JR. Great listen. <Bob’s interview starts at 22:48> THUMBS UP
Bauer & Pollock (12/3/14): The duo are back for the first time in a few weeks with a show packed with news, covering the Punk podcast, Austin/McMahon, NJPW, the Over the Top format, Bellator, and a lot more. Having so many topics and blasting through them makes for an enjoyable episode, which makes me wonder if the show wouldn’t be better off moving to a bi-weekly format. THUMBS UP
Art of Wrestling (12/4/14): CM Punk is back with Colt, although they don’t answer listener questions due to an overwhelming response supposedly crashing Colt’s inbox. Several topics, such as the Punk chants and whether he’ll ever return are addressed, and Punk tells a few mote stories of WWE nuttiness, including one where he was going over the Shield in a handicap but had to constantly be reminded to keep Roman Reigns strong. It doesn’t compare to last week’s episode at all, but still an enjoyable listen. THUMBS UP
Steve Austin – Unleashed (11/20/14): The description for this show indicates the whole thing is a behind the scenes peak into Stone Cold’s interview with Vince McMahon, but that’s only a brief part of the show, and what’s stated isn’t that interesting. The rest is Stone Cold and Teddy Fowler just talking nonsense like old TV shows and Steve finally realizing he had the new U2 album. THUMBS DOWN
Talk is Jericho (11/21/14): Jericho is joined by Adrian Neville and Sami Zayn. Both guys, and especially Sami, just come off like the nicest guys in the worlds. Lots of wacky talk about Archie comics, Zayn’s old man fashion style, getting advice from Raven, and a lot more. Jericho also talks to Jeff Rouse, bassist for Fozzy, which sounds awful, but it’s actually a pretty decent segment. Rouse has some great stories about the nascent Seattle music scene and opening for Nirvana. THUMBS UP & BEST OF THE WEEK
