Slow week this week. Still no Goldberg show, Jim Cornette took the week off, Taz only had 2 reaction shows, and Piper skipped another week, but he promised “PIPER’S PIT POD is app 6-8 days from it’s face lifted and a new Attitude approach! YOU’LL LOVE IT! But some….I’ll let it speak for itself!” That clears things up.
The podcast week in review, brought to you by Flex Belt.

They said it…

  • “Have you got any god damn good news?” – Terry Funk after Ric Flair recaps the last few weeks
  • “I have a hard time keeping my clothes on on the airplane now. Certainly not in the 80’s.” -Ric Flair on why he’d have a difficult time in the business today.
  • “I’ve done so much flip flopping shit I’m still dizzy.” – Big Show on his many turns

The Usual Suspects

Talk n’ Shop #51 (6/20/15):A packed house, as Rocky is joined by Bobby Fish, Nick Jackson, Kyle O’Reilly, Trent Beretta, and Chase Owens in a Best of the Super Juniors special (or a “No Bald Guys Allowed” special). With such a packed room, the show can get a bit chaotic at times, but there’s still a lot of laughs to be had, and even without Doc Gallows, the show thankfully remains disgusting. A nice rebound episode. THUMBS UP

MLW Radio #184 (6/21/15): Konnan is back, which is oddly never outright stated in the show description . He and Court have a chat about current wrestling (including rundown of the pros and cons of TNA, Lucha Underground, & ROH) and discuss TNA’s future, with Konnan dropping some tidbits on the company’s attempted recruitment of Rey Mysterio. Also features a David Bixenspan shoutout. It’s great to hear Konnan back and this is a fun show. THUMBS UP

Steve Austin Show #231 (6/23/15): Steve talks to Tom. Who is Tom? Tom works on the crew of the Broken Skull Challenge. Austin was a little hard up for a guest, in case you couldn’t guess. They talk about Tom’s time in the Navy, production work, tipping, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and binge watching television. I’m sure Tom is a great guy, but who cares? You can’t basically grab a guy off the street and expect it to be an enthralling podcast. THUMBS DOWN

WOOOOO ™Nation #8 (6/23/15) Ric and Conrad welcome longtime Flair rival Terry Funk to the broadcast. They talk about their famous feud in 1989, Terry’s hardcore exploits in Japan, and more, but the bulk is both men just chatting about their peers and their endless misadventures in the good old days. Both men have a blast and rattle off about a dozen great quotes, and Funk is far more engaged here than he is on other podcasts. The show description describes this as an “Instant Classic” and while that’s a little overstated, it’s not that far off. THUMBS UP & BEST OF THE WEEK

The Ross Report #71 (6/24/15): Torrie Wilson is the guest this week. It sure didn’t sound interesting, but this was way better than I expected. She talks about basically waltzing into WCW, moving over to the WWE, relationships with wrestlers, the Al Wilson-Dawn Marie storyline, having a blowup with Sable, and what a swell guy Alex Rodriguez is. Add in Ross reigning in his pervier aspects and you get a very overachieving podcast. <Wilson’s interview starts at 20:23> THUMBS UP

Talk is Jericho #154 (6/24/15): The Great Khali is the guest as part of Giant Week. English isn’t Khali’s first language and he has a thick accent, so you have to pay attention to this one. Thankfully, Jericho translates at points, as he and Khali discuss being a policeman in India, coming to the US to train, working in Japan, working with Undertaker & John Cena, the Punjabi Prison match-up, winning the World Title, his health, making movies, and much more. It’s a fun interview, and Khali really does come across as a great guy. <Khali’s interview at 20:22> THUMBS UP

Bauer & Pollock (6/24/15): B&P get right down to it with discussion of a possibility of a Global Force/TNA merger, but there aren’t any real scoops to be had. They also recap recent events of Tough Enough & Lucha Underground, the passing of Buddy Landel, Ring of Honor, New Japan, AAA, Bellator, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, Aldo/McGregor, and more. Court also drops the scoop of Jeff Jarrett possibly being seen at TNA which turned out to be prophetic. THUMBS UP

Art of Wrestling #256 (6/25/15): Colt talks to European wrestler Tommy End. They jump around a lot, hitting on End’s father growing up in a cult (!), martial arts, Netherlands culture, and the process of improving yourself as a wrestler. There aren’t a lot of stories about wrestling, just thoughts on making headway in the business. End is a very interesting guy, and even if you’ve never heard of him this is an enjoyable listen. THUMBS UP

Steve Austin – Unleashed #232 (6/25/15): Hey, an actual interview, as Steve talks to “The Patriot” Del Wilkes. The first part is an in depth discussion of the Wilkes’ prescription pill addiction and the crazy lengths he went to feed it. Then they get into his college football days, transitioning to wrestling, working in Japan, stories about Wahoo McDaniels, Stan Hansen, and Doug Furnas, getting sent to jail, finding God and rebuilding his life, and the Kickstarter to fund a documentary about his life. It’s a thorough and honest interview. THUMBS UP

Talk is Jericho #155 (6/26/15): Weeeeeell, it’s the Big Show as the guest to close out Giant Week. It’s a long, encompassing interview (90+ minutes) covering basically everything you would want. They jump around, but they do cover growing up with acromegaly, getting into wrestler, smoking, the GAINT, why he left WCW, getting chewed out by the Undertaker, getting sent to fat camp by JR, Floyd Mayweather, Akebono, the JeriShow Team, and a lot more. Really strong show and you can’t help coming away respecting Show. Most weeks this would easily be the best show. <Show’s interview starts at 16:36> THUMBS UP