The Taz Show, Bodyslams & Beyond (Episode 12)
Host: Taz with producer Seth
Guest: PWInsider’s Mike Johnson
Release Date: Sept. 29, 2015
DIRECT LINK TO LISTEN/DOWNLOAD
Report by: Sean Sumey, PWPodcasts Reporter
HOT TOPICS
RAW REVIEW: Taz and Seth give their thoughts on the latest edition of Raw. Believe it or not, MizTV was not Taz’s favorite segment!
MIKE JOHNSON’S WEEKLY REPORT: Hornswoggle and Sunny are having a rough week. WWE and UFC are coming to MSG. Plus, so much more.
TAZ TAKES CALLS FROM HIS LISTENERS: Taz saves a life with the assist from Tommy Dreamer. Taz gives his thoughts on the utilization of the Divas. Plus, Taz chokes out everyone’s favorite advocate!
THIS DAY IN WRESTLING HISTORY: Short and sweet. Patterson is a dirty cheater, The Roadwarriors lose big, and Arn & Tully get by with a little help from their friends.
SUBJECTS COVERED (w/Time Stamps)
(00:00-00:35) Show Intro
(00:36) Taz opens the show. Taz believes he is the only former wrestler doing a daily show. Taz will break down Raw and will take listener calls. Mike Johnson from PWInsider will be on for his weekly segment. Washington Nationals closer Jonathan Pappelbon got suspended for his altercation with teammate, Bryce Harper. Taz said he should have known better than to settle their business in public. This should have been taken care of in the clubhouse (locker room).
(07:15) Taz takes a call from Adam in Ohio. Adam was depressed in 1998 and was contemplating suicide. Adam met Taz and Tommy Dreamer at a house show in Ohio and talked to them briefly. Their conversation with Adam turned his life around. Adam dropped over 70 pounds and is now married with kids and works out regularly. Taz was genuinely touched and thanked Adam for sharing his story. Adam is also confused about Global Force Wrestling and doesn’t quite understand what it is. Taz was never particularly close to Jeff Jarrett but has always respected him and had a good working relationship. Taz isn’t really familiar with GFW and doesn’t know much about it either. When Taz has Nick “Magnus” Aldis on the program, he will talk to him about it. Taz may have Jarrett on a future show.
(13:09) Taz felt that Raw was a unique show. Taz mentioned how ambitious WWE is when they attempt to produce live TV each week to go against Monday Night Football. John Cena’s U.S. Open Challenge was answered by Xavier Woods. Taz thought it was very creative and thought Cena was great in serious mode. Cena gets the DQ win that goes right into a six-man with Cena and the Dudleys against the New Day. Hustle, Loyalty, Booty got over big with Seth. Taz really enjoyed the match. Kofi got a pinfall on Devon. Taz believes this could point to a Dudley victory this Saturday at the MSG show. Taz goes out on a limb and predicts the Dudleys winning the WWE Tag Titles at MSG.
(19:16) Taz takes a call from Matt in England. Matt thinks New Day will retain over the Dudleys and lead to a tables match at Hell in a Cell. Taz says that is a strong possibility. Taz really believes that the Dudleys will go over strong in their hometown. Taz tells a story about he and Spike Dudley defeated the Dudley Boys for the Tag Titles in the Garden. Taz said he didn’t wan’t to win because he was transitioning to an announcer. Taz then brings up the backstage segment with Triple H, Stephanie, Kane, and HR Ashley. Taz liked Triple H’s facial expressions but thought the whole segment was hokey. Big Show continues to be built up by going over Mark Henry. WWE is trying to establish this long standing rivalry between Big Show and Brock Lesnar that doesn’t really exist. Taz talks about the infamous ring breakage on Smackdown. Taz approached Vince and suggested yelling “Holy shit!” Taz said Vince wanted to think about it. Taz said he knew that meant Vince wanted to do it. Taz said when it happened a voice came over the headset and asked Taz “are you crazy?” Vince’s voice then came on and said “I told him to say that.” The voice then said “sorry, Taz.”
(29:00) Taz takes a call from John in Arkansas. John is grilling starting at 4:00 a.m. Taz is impressed. John enjoyed Raw and thought it was okay. John is interested to hear if Taz thinks the female talent in WWE can be a draw. Taz thinks the fans should respect all talent. Taz definitely feels the female talent in WWE and NXT can draw. Taz mentions the sex appeal of the female wrestlers which has been in place for sometime but feels now they are improving their in-ring work as well. Taz said the business always evolves and the fans have to be open to the changes. A lot of the talent is not making big money and the fans need to respect that and realize that all the workers just want to entertain.
(33:30-33:45) Break
(34:29) Taz gives WWE kudos for trying to make it seem like Lesnar and Show have a rivalry even though they don’t. Taz said both Big Show and Mark Henry are super quality guys and are great to have backstage. Taz said Monday was Henry’s time to do the job. Taz gets a message from a fan who is having difficulty getting the show to play on the Radio.com app. Taz realizes that the people listening are not having any issues and moves on. Taz isn’t worried about Mark Henry because WWE isn’t doing anything with him. Taz then discusses Miz TV with Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Taz doesn’t think Miz has chemistry with the female talent. Seth agrees and says that it sounds like they are exchanging lines. Taz said most of the wrestlers don’t take acting classes so they aren’t naturals at scripted dialogue. Taz thinks it’s a mistake to keep putting the talent in these situations. Seth suggests that maybe the Divas aren’t used to the talk show segment. Taz disagrees and thinks none of the Divas have figured out how to handle the environment that Miz creates. Taz then returns to the segment and talks about Team Bella coming out and then being interrupted by Paige. Taz digs Paige and said she added life to the segment. Paige teams up with Becky Lynch and Charlotte who she just turned on to take on Team Bella. Byron Saxton did a great job of comparing Paige’s wrestling family background compared to Charlotte’s family. Taz doesn’t hate Byron Saxton and will acknowledge when he does a good job. Natalya got involved and Taz felt it was overly clunky. All the talent involved is good but the angle is crowded.
WWE then played a Big Show-Brock Lesnar package. Taz appreciates WWE using his voice in the package and says they didn’t have to do that. Lesnar will be on Steve Austin’s podcast. Taz points out that Austin won’t be doing a podcast, instead it will be a sit-down interview. Taz will have Bobby Roode on tomorrow and will conduct a sit-down interview which will then be released as a podcast. Taz is sick of the word podcast and the word underscore. Taz doesn’t have a podcast, he now has a daily show. QUIT SAYING TAZ HAS AN F’ING PODCAST! Seth points out the download is a podcast. Taz said he wasn’t talking about that, but was focusing on the live show. Taz runs through the other wrestling talent that actually does a podcast. Taz points out that none of them do a live daily show.
Back to Raw. The Prime Time Players then took on Luke Harper and Braun Strowman. Taz was surprised with the finish. Luke Harper is incredibly athletic and WWE should be doing more with him. Strowman chokes out Titus O’Neil. Taz thought it looked a little clunky. Taz thinks Strowman puts on his finishing hold too slowly and methodically. Taz thinks it should be swift and with a purpose. Neville and Stardust were interrupted by King Barrett. Good to see Barrett back. Taz prefers “Bad News.” Taz hopes he gets a push.
(57:52-58:09) Break
(58:30-1:00:08) Taz does a live read for SquareSpace.com. Use promo code TAZ for 10 percent off.
(1:00:09-1:25:20) Mike Johnson is on for his weekly PWInsider report. Taz gets his news from PWInsider and always tries to give them credit. WWE announced that Hornswoggle has been suspended for a Wellness Policy violation. Mike claims that even if the talent isn’t on the road, when their number comes up, WWE sends a rep to their home to conduct the tests. Taz believes talent that comes up dirty should be used as an example. Mike then brings up the recent arrest of Tammy “Sunny” Sytch in Pennsylvania. Sunny has had several run-ins with the law over the last few years. Mike said that, obviously, Sunny is in a bad place. Taz was close friends with Chris Candido and knew Sunny pretty well. Taz mentioned Candido’s death and said Sunny wasn’t the same after that. Mike claims that WWE has attempted to help Sunny several times and she has walked out of rehab and not completed the programs. Taz said it is very sad. Taz gives Sunny credit as a pioneer and the first true Diva.
Mike runs down the card for Saturday’s MSG card and notes that this will be the Dudleys first appearance at MSG since WrestleMania 20. Taz mentioned the caller earlier who felt the match Saturday will lead to a blow-off at Hell in a Cell. Mike said that is a possibility. Saturday will also be the 25th anniversary of the debut of Chris Jericho. Lance Storm and Don “Cyrus” Callis will be appearing at MSG. Jericho will face Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens. Mike calls Jericho an overachiever. Taz hates that word and refers to it as a “Todd Gordon-esgue” compliment. Mike tries to justify his comment and mentions that Jericho has accomplished a lot for a man his size. Taz points out that he and Jericho are the same height. Taz tells Mike about his idea for Cesaro and Owens battling in an best of series for the IC Title. Mike loves it. Mike mentions how Daniel Bryan was meant to add prestige and credibility to the IC championship prior to his injury. Mike believes that Owens can do that for the title as well.
UFC will also be holding an event at MSG. Taz and Mike discuss the history of New York City battling against Mixed Martial Arts. Taz says that the former Athletic Commissioner was responsible for getting professional MMA banned in NYC is now a supporter of the sport after he has been educated. Amateur MMA is allowed in NYC. Taz is looking forward to UFC in MSG and thinks its a big step forward. Taz blames the early days of UFC as being too barbaric and giving the sport a bad name. Taz ran through the process of obtaining a professional wrestling license in New York. Taz said the guys had to have a physical prior to their shows. Taz said he has seen matches canceled due to high blood pressure, etc. Mike plugs TNA’s Bound For Glory PPV this Sunday.
(1:25:38) Taz takes a call from Leonard in Kentucky. Leonard thinks Taz was the greatest heel commentator in the business. Taz appreciates the compliment. Leonard thinks Steve Austin stole a lot of his gimmick from Taz and other guys in ECW. Taz doesn’t agree and thinks Austin is the man. Taz doesn’t like the term “mark” to describe a fan. Taz gives the history of “mark.” In the carnivals, the workers would point out attendees who looked liked easy targets. Taz said they still use this practice in casinos. A smart mark is a fan who knows all the inside news.
(1:30:26) Taz takes a call from Noah in Colorado. Noah remembers a promo that Paul Heyman cut on Smackdown years ago. In the promo, Heyman pointed to Taz and criticized him from going from a killer in the ring to an announcer. Taz then choked Heyman out. Taz points out that it was obviously planned and discussed prior. Taz said he cut promos on guys during his career that he is surprised he didn’t get more heat. Taz said he explained it to his son as “sometimes you are the windshield, sometimes you are the fly.”
(1:34:42-1:34:49) Break
(1:35:40) Taz talks about a picture a fan posted on Twitter that shows himself, Candido, RVD, and Bill Alfonso. All of them are wearing fanny packs. Taz will retweet the photo. Taz said the photo was taken at the Double Cross Ranch in Amarillo, Texas during one of the many Terry Funk retirement shows. Seth mentioned a former Taz Tale where Taz talked about shows outside when the boys would park their cars in a circle and change in the middle. Taz said the picture looked like it could’ve been from a show like that.
(1:37:00) Taz then talked about the in-ring promo with Seth Rollins, Kane, and HR Ashley. Taz thought it was a bad segment. Taz thought it went overboard and it was obvious that Rollins’s dialogue was written for him. Taz thought the actress portraying Ashley did a great job. Taz put over the beat down of Kane. Taz doesn’t like the spot where you put a guy’s leg in a steel chair and stomp on it. Taz always felt it was dangerous and doesn’t like it. Taz doesn’t know how Kane changed so fast in the ambulance. Taz didn’t like that Kane stopped selling the ankle. Taz understands the gimmick but still didn’t agree with it. Kevin Owens and Rusev ended when Ryback interfered. Taz isn’t sure where that is going.
Paul Heyman then came out and cut a promo hyping Lesnar vs. Show. Taz felt Heyman should’ve backed down when Show came out. Taz said it is probable that Heyman was told not to sell it. Reigns and Wyatt fought to a double DQ. Taz felt the match was very physical. Taz wasn’t sure why they brawled into the crowd considering all the recent issues with fans jumping the barrier. Taz thinks WWE is trying to tempt the fans now that they are starting to charge people. Taz described a hypothetical situation where a fan eats an elbow from Roman Reigns. Taz thinks the wrestlers are covered in that situation.
(1:48:40) Taz takes a call from Aaron in Canada. Aaron wants to know if Taz feels the brawl between Reigns and Wyatt going into the crowd was risky considering the recent issues with fans. Taz pointed out that Aaron was on hold and that listeners on hold do not get a live feed of the show so Aaron wasn’t aware that they just discussed that issue. Taz felt it was risky but understands why WWE allowed it.
(1:52:00) Seth tells a story about attending a TNA show in New York where Magnus, Bobby Lashley, and Low Ki were brawling in the stands. Seth said it was terrifying being that close to the action because the guys were so huge.
(1:53:14) This day in wrestling history. In 1979, Pat Patterson defeated Bob Backlund with the assist of brass knuckles. The decision was then overturned. The Roadwarriors ended their longest tag title run when they lost the AWA belts to Jimmy Garvin and Steve Regal. Arn & Tully won the NWA Tag Titles from the Rock ‘n Roll Express after the Midnight Express jumped the R’nR prior to the match.
(1:54:08) Taz closes the show.
RATE & REVIEW
6 out of 10: This was another solid episode of The Taz Show. I got worried for a second when Taz started mentioning people having trouble listening to the show on the Radio.com app. Taz recovered and quickly realized that everyone listening would not be able to relate and ultimately wouldn’t care. This was a good thing. Taz still throws that phone number out there in mid-conversation. That can be distracting. It was frustrating when the last caller asked a question that Taz and Seth, literally, just talked about, but I’m glad Taz took the opportunity to explain that the listeners can’t hear the show while on hold. Still, I feel the call screeners should be proactive and disconnect callers once their topic is addressed. Mike Johnson was informative and went into more detail on his news items. It wasn’t just the standard info that you can find online. I like how Taz works his personal experiences into the conversation. It shows that he really is listening and is engaged in what is being discussed. Taz comes off as very personable. He gives so much time and attention to each caller that you can really see how grateful Taz is to his fans and for their support.
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