The Taz Show - Raw Review (Oct. 6, 2015)

The Taz Show, Bodyslams & Beyond (Episode 12)
Host: Taz
Release Date: Oct. 06, 2015

Report by: Sean Sumey, PWPodcasts Reporter

HOT TOPICS

– TAZ REVIEWS RAW: Taz gives a match by match and segment by segment breakdown of Raw. Taz is always honest with what he liked and didn’t like.

– PWINSIDER MIKE JOHNSON IS ON THE SHOW: C.M. Punk injured, John Cena taking time off, Mike gives his opinions on the MSG Live show and what it was like in-person.

– TAZ TAKES LISTENER CALLS: Taz lays the smackdown on Ian from San Antonio!

SUBJECTS COVERED (w/Time Stamps)

(00:00-00:22) Ads

(00:23-00:58) Show intro

(00:59) Taz opens the show. Taz will review Raw. Also, PWInsider’s Mike Johnson will be on for his weekly report. Taz will also touch on C.M. Punk, Rich Brennan, and more. But first, Taz wants to discuss the Detroit Lions and their defeat at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks, 13-10. Lions WR Calvin Johnson makes a catch late in the 4th quarter. Right before Johnson crosses into the end zone, Kam Chancellor punches the ball out and prevents the touchdown. As the ball is dribbling around, K.J. Wright bats the ball out of the end zone. The officials rule it as a touchback. Taz said the officials realized they blew the call. Also in the NFL, Joe Philbin of the Miami Dolphins lost to the Jets in England. Once the team returned home, Philbin was fired.

(06:19) Taz discusses C.M. Punk’s shoulder injury. Taz first heard the news from Mike Johnson. Taz is fighting back a sneeze. Taz had too much pepper on his breakfast. Taz said he will make sure he sneezes directly into the mic. Taz will go into deeper detail with Mike Johnson later in the show. Deeper detail on the C.M. Punk injury, that is, not Taz’s sneezing. Taz then transitioned to Rich Brennan getting the opportunity to cover the MSG Live show for WWE. Taz admits that he has been hard on Brennan but acknowledges that he is still learning. Taz believes Brennan came from Booker T’s promotion in Houston. Taz says you need to have thick skin when you are a new announcer. Taz felt Brennan did a really good job. Taz felt there were a couple times where Brennan miscalled a move. Taz said many people have done it, but it is more noticeable when someone is new. Taz thinks Brennan’s voice is similar to Kevin Kelly, but he feels he looks like Michael Cole. Taz said that combination means he is a freak.

(12:04) Taz takes a call from Frank in Georgia. Frank wants to know why WWE cut back on pyro. Taz said that the main reason is budget. Taz feels that most people assume pyro doesn’t cost anything. Taz said that for his entrance, he had concussion pyro. Taz also wanted smoke because everyone else had huge fireworks. Taz also pointed out that WWE has to deal with fire marshals in each city. There are some guys who are known for their pyro such as Chris Jericho and Brock Lesnar. When Taz came to WWE, they had to do test walk throughs to get the entrances perfect. Taz said people assume the loud boom is on the stage when in fact, it comes from under the ring. Taz can’t remember the exact number for how much the opening of Raw used to cost, but Taz can assure us it was over $1,000.

(17:00) Taz takes a call from James in New York. Aaaand the call was dropped. Taz almost sneezed. Taz doesn’t want his head to explode from holding in a sneeze.

(18:37) Taz continues the pyro talk. Taz mentions the pyro used at concerts as an example of who else utilizes pyro. Taz said every time Kane came out and Taz was on commentary, you could feel the heat from the flames for Kane’s entrance. Taz said any fan who has attended a live show can tell you the same thing.

(21:02) Taz takes a call from Matt in the United Kingdom. Matt wants to talk about the angle with the Kane split personality. Matt asks Taz for his prediction. Taz feels Kane will not be winning the World Title and Corporate Kane will be fired. Taz feels they are building to a Rollins and Triple H feud. Matt also noticed that WWE has cut back on pyro. Matt mentioned how Kane used to have pyro on the stage when he came out and now it is only on the ringposts. Taz mentions again that WWE is building heavily on Seth Rollins. Taz feels Rollins is still growing as a talent. Taz told a story about talking to Vince McMahon prior to signing with WWE. Taz mentioned people having a spot and Vince cut him off and said, “No one has a spot.” Taz felt this was a sign of how competitive WWE is. Taz puts over Rollins for his conditioning and his ability to knock it out of the park every time he is given the chance.

(25:47) Taz takes a call from Adam in Connecticut. Adam mentions stories of Vince freaking out over low ratings. Adam wants to know if Taz is seeing that in the product. Adam mentions WWE having New Day be more serious and having Lesnar appear on the show. Taz repeated the example of how competitive Vince can be. Taz said Vince is a control freak and wants to win. Taz said it is true that Vince reacts to the ratings. Adam enjoyed the Wyatts vs. Reigns, Ambrose, and Orton. Adam felt that should have been the match at the last PPV instead of Jericho. Adam also would have preferred Cesaro.

(30:20-30:56) Break.

(31:11) Taz takes a call from Cole in Florida. Cole mentions the pop for Cena each week and how a lot of smart fans want Cena to turn heel. Adam feels that is a bad idea. Adam thinks Cena should go on a losing streak and that will satisfy the hardcore fans. Taz yells at Cole for the background noise and accuses him of driving with the window open. Cole apologizes. Cole continues that Cena could go on the losing streak and help put over new talent. Taz agrees and said it is a great idea. Taz said Cena is a made guy and wouldn’t be hurt from putting guys over. When Taz was around Cena, he felt he was very humble and not a selfish guy, but Taz hasn’t been around him since he became the main guy.

(35:30) Taz begins his break down of Raw. Raw started with Lesnar and Paul Heyman coming out. Taz liked how WWE used some old footage of Lesnar breaking Undertaker’s steak and then the tap out angle from their Summerslam match. Big Show interrupted the promo. This surprised Taz because he felt that Show’s loss to Lesnar may have been Show’s last match. Lesnar lays out Big Show. Taz wasn’t sure why this was needed. Backstage, Stephanie explains to Rollins that he will be in a tag match later against the Dudleys. This was followed by Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns, and Randy Orton vs. The Wyatt family. Taz liked how this match lasted several segments. RKO and a spear on Luke Harper leads to a victory for the babyfaces. Taz felt it was a good ending. Neville then got destroyed by Sheamus. Taz felt this was not good booking. Neville is too talented to be wasted in this manner.

(41:53) Taz takes a call from Ian in San Antonio. Ian said he could hear the show while he was on hold. Taz wants Ian to send in another promo in for Hump Day Promos. Ian congratulates Seth on the birth of his child. Ian busts Taz’s balls for not taking his call yesterday. Ian enjoyed Raw. Taz warns Ian to get to the point. Taz eventually hangs up on Ian. Taz tells Ian to get batteries for that smoke detector.

(45:42) Taz continues with his Raw rundown. Taz says its possible that they had to cut time for the Sheamus and Neville match. Taz said it does happen from time to time. Taz would love to see a 20-minute match between Sheamus and Neville because they could do so much together. Taz would love to wrestle Neville because you could do anything with someone like Neville. King Barrett was out there for commentary. Taz said the match was so short that no one benefited from it. Then, Corporate Kane cut a promo and was interrupted by Seth Rollins and then Stephanie McMahon. Stephanie announces the match for Hell in a Cell where Rollins will defend his title against Kane. If Kane loses, Corporate Kane loses his job. Taz likes the angle and is enjoying the build for Hell in a Cell. Taz believes WWE does a great job building up their special events considering they are on the Network and the majority of fans are going to watch them regardless. Taz is hot. The AC in the building doesn’t come on until 9:00 a.m. Taz is tired of getting pushed around. Taz thinks it might be due to his height. Taz said WWE did the same thing. They didn’t care that he was throwing suplexes left and right and tearing it up. He is under 5’9″ so he doesn’t matter. Taz is happy that now, undersized talent is getting a push. This is true with the males and the females.

(56:46-57:42) Break.

(58:00) Taz said if he was a female singer, he would sound like the girl singing in the song coming back from break.

(58:28) PWInsider’s Mike Johnson is on the line to give his weekly report. Taz brings up C.M. Punk’s injury and asks for an update. Johnson confirms it is a shoulder injury and it isn’t believed that he will require surgery. Punk is continuing to do cardio work and any type of training he can do with the injury. Johnson mentions that Punk is no longer in his 20s and it may take him longer to heal than it did before. Taz hears that Punk is fully dedicated mentally and physically. Both Johnson and Taz admire Punk for going after his dream when he could easily just sit back and retire. Johnson brings up Cena taking time off. People are speculating what it could be. Johnson says that he is hearing it is something personal and not a bad thing. Taz said it isn’t always the fans’s business to know what they guys are doing, especially on their own time. Johnson is lost for a short time.

(1:05:39) Taz takes a call from Anthony in Connecticut in the meantime. Anthony says that he can remember watching Taz at the Elks Lodge and getting his autograph. Anthony also remembers Taz trying out radio on K-ROCK back in the day. Anthony has to call out Taz for abandoning the Jets and going to the Buffalo Bills. Taz points out that Buffalo is the only New York team because the Jets and Giants play in New Jersey. Anthony gives some history about how the city would not give either of the franchises money for stadiums. Anthony says the franchises could have moved out West but chose to stay in the area. Anthony says now that the Jets are having success, Taz left. Taz is fine with it and appreciates Anthony’s opinion.

(1:09:22-1:21:45) Mike Johnson is back on the line. Johnson goes back to the discussion about talent and their personal lives. Johnson agrees but says personal lives should only be reported when it affects the product. Johnson gives the example of someone getting a DUI. Johnson then mentions how Cena and Nikki Bella are dating, but they don’t report that because it doesn’t come up in the WWE storylines. Johnson attended the MSG Live show. MJ thought the majority of the show was good but feels WWE made a mistake by having a lot of non-finishes. Taz asked what the crowd reaction was like when Kane appeared. Johnson said there as definitely a reaction. Johnson felt the MSG show could have been something special but instead was booked like another three-hour Raw. Taz mentioned the look of the MSG show. Johnson agreed and said the ring was lit up and the fans were kept dark. Both Johnson and Taz would like to see more of that.

Johnson suggested having the fans lit for most of the show and then bringing the lights down when the matches start. Lucha Underground starts taping November 14 in Boyle Heights. Tomorrow, both Tammy Lynn Sytch and Jimmy Snuka have their preliminary hearings in Pennsylvania on their legal issues. WWE may be signing additional talent from Tough Enough. Taz recently ran into one of the cast members from Tough Enough and believes they will be on the roster at some point. Johnson brings it back to Lucha Underground and says how he loves the look of the show. Johnson was always a huge ECW fan. Taz asked how Johnson felt when talent left ECW for WWE or WCW. Johnson said he never held it against the talent because it was obviously a step up. Johnson heard that The Bunny is returning for Adam Rose. Taz does not want to see the Bunny.

(1:21:48) Taz takes a call from Chris in New Jersey. Chris mentions Finn Balor tweeting out the picture of him in front of TNA Headquarters. In response, Matt Hardy posted a picture of the X-Division Title match and said it was a perfect opportunity for Finn Balor to be one of the participants in the cruiserweight match. Finn Balor then responded and said he had more important things to do like stand in a field of mud. This was accompanied by a picture of Balor and Enzo Amore standing in mud somewhere in Tennessee. Taz didn’t see that but looked it up right then. Taz thinks it is hilarious. Taz gives Hardy credit for defending his company. Taz doesn’t believe Finn was taking a shot at TNA, but was instead picking on DX when he posted the pic in front of TNA headquarters.

(1:25:08) Taz returns to his Raw review. Paige lost to Natalya. Taz was surprised that Natalya went over. Taz is in favor of a Natalya push and felt the announcers did a great job explaining how they used to be friends. Intercontinental champion Kevin Owens then faced Sin Cara. Taz thought it was going to be a squash.

(1:26:51-1:27:20) Break.

(1:27:47-1:29:25) Taz does a live read for Harrys.com. Use the promo code TAZ and get the starter set for $10.

(1:29:34) Taz claims that his producer, Seth, interrupted a post-game interview with Kam Chancellor. Taz then plays audio of the interview. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t really Seth. Funny to hear, though.

(1:31:05) Owens defeats Sin Cara. Ryback run in. Owens powders and leaves…through the audience. Taz said a lot of his listeners tweeted him when that happened. Taz still feels that WWE is punking out the fans who want to interrupt the show. Then we saw Cena and Roman Reigns with the breast cancer survivors. Taz thinks it was a nice touch. Taz said he respects WWE for helping out a good cause. The Dudleys then faced Seth Rollins and Corporate Kane. Taz liked the camera work and how it laid out the angle for the fans between the two versions of Kane. The Dudleys attempt to use the table and get dropkicked by Rollins. Demon Kane comes out and eats a 3-D. Rollins tries to take advantage and ends up getting chokeslammed through the table.

Team BAD then faced Team Bella. Taz really liked a Northern Lights Suplex by Alicia Fox. Taz said it was one of the better ones he has seen in a while. Taz puts over the NXT:Takeover event headlined by Sasha Banks vs. Bayley. Summer Rae and Rusev were then out for a promo. Summer proposed to Rusev. Taz liked the video package showing the softer side of Rusev. Taz was entertained by the segment. John Cena then had his U.S. Title open challenge. Taz was hoping it would be someone new, maybe from NXT. Ziggler’s music hit and Taz thought it might be good if Ziggler was in serious mode. Instead it was New Day. Taz thought Big E. might get the U.S. Title because of the rumors about Cena taking time off.

(1:42:30) Taz takes a call from Gary in Connecticut. Gary feels like Taker and Lesnar are being fast-tracked to benefit the Network. Taz points out that WWE is trying something different, but respects Gary’s opinion. Gary also admits to sending in a promo that Taz played last week where Gary had to rush at the end and screwed up Taz’s old line. Gary said he was recording it outside at work and some of his co-workers came out for a smoke break and he had to rush. Taz laughed and said he remembers what Gary is talking about. Taz encourages Gary to keep sending in promos, but warns him to not mess up his promos again. Taz loves the interaction with the fans. Taz feels that he has a better opportunity to talk to the fans on his show than he would on the street because he is in “Taz mode” for his show.

(1:47:17) Taz takes a call from Darren in Toronto. Darren points out that Cesaro hasn’t been on Raw for the past two weeks. Taz said he may be put on the backburner for some reason. Darren said he has been used on Superstars or Main Event. Taz said that IS the backburner. Taz said when WWE is building someone up for something, they will sometimes put them in limbo until they are ready.

(1:54:34-1:57:12) Taz hypes tomorrow’s show and is excited for Hump Day Promos. Taz closes the show as music plays us out.

RATE & REVIEW

6 out of 10: This was a solid show. There were more calls from the listeners than usual. If you are a regular listener, you will start to pick on the same people calling each day. I thought it was funny hearing Ian from San Antonio appear to get a big head. As soon as Taz sensed it, he nipped it in the bud and hung up on him. I must say this, Taz comes off as a genuinely nice person. I have yet to hear him get upset with any of the callers even when they ask about things that were already covered. Taz has disagreed with callers on several occasions, yet he manages to keep the conversation respectful. It is always interesting when Mike Johnson is on. You can tell that he and Taz are friends and it isn’t just a throw-away segment. As always, I welcome your comments and critiques.