Edge & Christian’s Pod of Awesomeness Recap
Episode 16 with Samoa Joe and a chat with Pete Gas
By: Jeff Indelicato
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“For The Benefit of Those with No Time” (Top Stories)
- Pete Gas has a new book that is now available.
- Samoa Joe feels that in ROH he had the best chemistry with either C.M. Punk or Homicide.
- His first offer from TNA was to be Johnny Fairplay’s bodyguard named Reality Joe.
- His initial debut in NXT was one of the few times that he actually felt nerves.
- Understands that his feud with Brock is his opportunity to shine and wants to exceed expectations.
“5 Second Pose of Timestamps”
0:00: Show Introduction/Banter
12:20: Phone Chat with Pete Gas
1:00:00: Beginning of Samoa Joe Interview
1:15:00: Time with Ring of Honor
1:29:00: Time with TNA
1:42:00: Move to NXT/WWE
1:59:00: Wrap Up & Close
“You Think You Know Them” (Recap)
Opening Intros/Banter 0:00-12:20
The boys banter about who is more prepared for their weekly episodes, which Edge clearly believes is him. They talk about the lineup for their show, including Samoa Joe, who Edge reiterates that his match at Great Balls of Fire with Brock is main event worthy. Christian wonders if it’s because the company didn’t know how good it would be until the feud got under way. They then let the fans know they will both be in London for a Comic Con at the end of July.
A Phone Conversation with Pete Gas of the Mean Street Posse 12:20 – 1:00:00
We then move on to a chat with Pete Gas of the Mean Street Posse. He has written a book that is now available titled, Looking at the Lights. He thanks them both for having him on the show, and credits the former tag team champions with enhancing his development throughout his time with the company. Edge & Christian both acknowledge that Pete was humble back then, and they wanted to help him succeed. In Edge’s mind, it was hard for them to debut under the massive machine that is the WWE, even with some experience under their belt, so he could only imagine what it must have been like to have no experience, and also be friends with the boss’ son. When the Posse came in, E & C appreciated how they conducted themselves and noticed how hard the duo worked.
Pete admits that they didn’t expect to be with the company long, but after they started getting good reactions from the crowd, the storyline was extended. He loved going to work every day, and was sad when it came to an end.
For the fans out there who only knew the characters, it turns out that Pete Gas may have lived in Greenwich, CT, but in truth, his Dad was a plumber, and they were considered middle class. Growing up, he met Shane, who was always down to earth, and that’s how they became friends.
Throughout the chat, all three banter, and give each other trouble, which is something that Pete misses the most. They talk more about the good ol’ days, and Pete mentions how he always wanted to be a wrestler, and was willing to do what it took to make it. He mentions a conversation he had with Bob “Hardcore” Holly, who heaped praise on him and the Posse, and acknowledged that he and a lot of the other wrestlers tried to break them, but Pete always had a smile on his face. He appreciated his time in the ring, and understood they had to earn respect. Edge notes he is glad that things have changed backstage with the how wrestlers are treated, in and out of the ring.
They talk some more about their time together backstage, and how fun it was to have Pete on their WWE Network show last year. Edge even wrote the forward to Pete’s book. They plug it again, and thank Mr. Gas for being on the show.
Interview with Samoa Joe 1:00:00 – 1:59:00
We quickly move on to the interview with Samoa Joe. This interview is taking place at Joe’s house with Christian sitting in Joe’s office chair and making himself feel at home. They have been friends for a long time, so Jay is thrilled to see the journey that Joe has taken, culminating with his current position in the WWE, and being in the main event against Brock Lesnar, while holding his own against The Beast. Joe acknowledges Brock has always been in his sights, so he has been looking forward to this feud for a while.
Edge notes that it took Joe a long time to eventually make his debut in the WWE. Was it by choice? Joe says that part of it was choice, while another part was the opportunities that he had been presented. When he first began wrestling, he was scouted by Jim Ross & Gerald Brisco; but he wasn’t what the company was looking for at the time. Due to this, he focused on building his career on other platforms, including Japan. Christian asks if not being what the company was looking for was deflating. Joe doesn’t feel it was deflating, as much as that it just made the path clearer on how he would go about building his career. The goal wasn’t to show WWE what he could do, but instead, it was to work hard, and be good at his job. It really wasn’t a big knock to him because it was early in his career, and he was still learning how to wrestle.
He slowly began learning and building his craft when he moved to Ring of Honor, which is where he was given the opportunity to flourish, and had a great relationship with Gabe Sapolsky. They both had similar ideas for how to build his character, and book his career, which led to him being undefeated for two years, and becoming the champion. Edge acknowledges that this was around the time when he first started paying attention to the company. Christian explains how ROH had a niche audience, but it gained a following, and had a great roster, including C.M. Punk and Daniel Bryan. Joe loved how the fans were fully invested which made it fun to go to work. Edge adds that it was interesting to see someone like Bryan take that different style and bring it to the WWE, which has become part of the norm now.
Speaking of his time with ROH, who does Joe think he had the best chemistry with? It’s a toss-up, but for him, he feels it would either be C.M. Punk or Homicide, as both feuds were special. Christian adds that the wrestlers were of different styles, and that having that different dynamic will make it special on its own.
After ROH, he moved on to TNA; however, it took a few offers to finally bring the Destroyer to the company. The first offer was to bring him in as Jonny Fairplay’s bodyguard under the name “Reality Joe”, and in addition, he had to leave ROH immediately. He declined that offer as he not only was still the champion, but had a very good relationship with ROH, and was not willing to just pack up and leave. Eventually he signed, and had a great career with TNA, spanning the course of nine years.
Understanding that he was with TNA towards the beginning, was there frustration when a past star from WCW or WWE would come in to be slotted into the main event? For Joe, there was, but it wasn’t directed at the wrestlers as it was towards the booking committee. Surprisingly, the financial details in his contract were the same, whether he worked the main event or opened the show. Therefore, there was no incentive from a financial standpoint to be in the main event. He, along with the other wrestlers, petitioned and worked hard to prove themselves as worthy of the main card, but it was more related to the passion in their work. Christian humorously acknowledges that he was one of those WWE guys that came in, but he never got the sense there was any negative feelings towards him. He makes sure to note he was one of the wrestlers who vouched for Joe, and was adamant that Joe defeat him.
As he continued to spend time with the company, Joe felt he was just spinning his wheels, and didn’t see any new opportunities with the company. In addition, he just wasn’t happy, which was becoming obvious to those close to him, so he made the decision to leave. This led to many stars vouching for him to join the WWE, which led to a conversation with Triple H, and him signing with NXT.
Joe has always had a cool and calm attitude towards his work, but he acknowledges that his debut in NXT was one of the few times he actually felt nerves. In the past, he knew what to expect from the people that he worked with in TNA; however, NXT is a different organization with different workers, and expectations. Edge wants to know if he had that same feeling when making his debut on Raw. Joe believes he did, but it wasn’t as nerve-wracking, and not as glamorous because he was under the ring.
Christian notes that Joe being on the roster allows the opportunity for dream matches to come true, mentioning the feud with Shinsuke Nakamura. Joe thought those matches were great, and mentions how cool Nakamura’s personality is, and how he has a different way of looking at things. Fun fact: Shinsuke loves to surf!
Edge loves how the feud with Brock has been a success, and how not many guys on the roster can compete with Lesnar like Joe can. He reemphasizes the fact that this is a WrestleMania worthy match. To add to that, does Joe feel Brock brings something more out of him? Joe believes so, and feels Brock is every bit of the super athlete that everyone says he is. When you compete against him, you have to be all the way in and ready to go, which he thrives on, and they all feel Brock is the same way. Joe says that every time that you are given an opportunity, you do everything you can to succeed, and he knows that this his chance. Edge adds that, if memory serves him, no one besides the Undertaker has had a pull-apart with The Beast, so it shows what the company sees in him, and advises to not lose sight of that. Joe knows that expectations are high, and is looking forward to exceeding them.
Close 1:59:00-2:04:00
E &C thank their guest again, and move towards the end of the program, noting how they are both trying to read more books this year. They wrap up the show by encouraging everyone to follow the show on Twitter @EandCPod, E-Mail them at ecpodofawesomeness@gmail.com, and to call their Voicemail at 929-367-8204.
Jeff’s Take: 8 Kazoos out of 10
Nice work from the duo this week. Joe just comes across as a very cool individual, and he and E & C have great chemistry. As I’ve noted in the past, phone interviews are still good, but you can definitely see a difference when there is a personal interaction, which was the case with Christian being at Joe’s house. Interesting chat with Pete Gas as well. Good to hear a little bit about him and his life, while learning more about his relationship with E & C, which I wasn’t really aware of. Feel free to follow me on Twitter @the_Indel or send me an email at indelpw@gmail.com. See you next week!
About the Author
Jeff has been a fan of professional wrestling since he was knee high to a grasshopper (little kid), after coming across the Wrestling Challenge episode after WrestleMania 7, and has not looked back. His passion has led him to winning wrestling trivia contests in his city, and even won him his Senior Talent Show by dancing to Shawn Michaels theme song. When not annoying others with wrestling talk, he loves spending time with his family and friends, and focuses on his other passion: movies.
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