The Taz Show
652: Royal Rumble Reaction Show 2019
Release Date: January 28, 2019. (50:23)
Recap by: Samantha L. Sayre
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Men’s Royal Rumble
-Taz starts off comparing WWE to the New England Patriots because you get tired of the same people winning. Taz kinda felt this way watching the Royal Rumble. It was predictable even with Becky coming out to win the Rumble.
-Seth Rollins won and Taz has been a fan since he was Tyler Black. He is an amazing worker and isn’t attacking him, but Taz feels that WWE should have went with an up-and-comer. Taz’s prediction was Drew McIntyre and he didn’t even make final four. Suggests watching the replay if you haven’t seen it.
-Final Four were Andrade, Ziggler, Rollins and Braun. Taz thinks WWE left Ziggler in there that long to shock people who thought he was leaving the company. Drew should have been there. Those final four spots are important. He loves that Andrade was in there, but wishes Black or Dunne would have been there. Braun took John Cena’s spot after an alleged scratch because of an ankle gimmick.
-Cena shouldn’t have been publicized for the event if they knew way ahead of time he wasn’t going to be there, period. Not fair to the fans who pay for tickets. As of Friday, Cena was still being advertised. Taz isn’t saying WWE false advertised, because TV fans get a lot of bang for their buck with subscription of $9.99. Cena was just in the Rumble and not in a main event.
-Taz thought the opening of the match with Elias and Jeff Jarrett was really cool. He wasn’t crazy about some of the eliminations because they were anticlimactic. There wasn’t enough of a build. Everyone was shocked with Bobby Lashley getting eliminated in like 2 seconds, but WWE let him get his heat back with Seth’s table spot.
-Nia Jax should NOT have been involved at all in this Rumble in Taz’s opinion. He isn’t a fan of intergender matches. Jax attacks R-Truth from behind. That creates the first problem. How is Nia officially in this match? This is a lack of consistency in the WWE. In the womens Rumble, Becky had to plead with Fit Finley to let her into the match, but Nia just goes in the mens Rumble? Taz feels Becky did it the right way. It is insulting to WWE audience to allow this to happen.
-WWE hasn’t let a male do anything to a female in the ring in a long time. We saw Rey give a 619 to Nia then Orton give her an RKO before Rey and Randy threw her out. This was how it was booked. WWE did it on a PPV and not on cable TV. It is probably in the contract and would lose advertisers if a male did this to a female on cable. Taz was very surprising at the level of physicality that happened in a match she shouldn’t have even been in.
Becky vs. Asukaa
-Taz liked both were using their finishers on each other towards the end. He was surprised Becky tapped so fast and they had a clean finish. Taz said earlier in the week for WWE not to tap Becky out, but he feels no harm, no foul. Becky tapped quick in order to live to fight another day. Announcers should have explained that. He wishes Becky would have sold a little more on the apron. Having Becky come out later was a predictable booking.
Miz and Shane Win the Belts
-Taz wasn’t a fan of them winning over The Bar. God bless Shane doing a Shooting Star Press at his age. Shane hit a second wind in his life right now. All four worked together great; however, The Bar should have kept the titles. Taz liked the celebration with Miz’s dad even though it was a total work.
Sasha vs. Ronda
-Taz liked the match and liked it even more when Ronda punched the corner post after Sasha ducked. The LED light went out and the announcers didn’t mention it. They could have on replay, but it was good they didn’t. Sasha had a lot of great offense and submissions on Ronda’s arm. Taz thinks Ronda sells really well for someone not in the business for a long time. Her offense is unorthodox and rough, but athletic. Taz says she needs honed in more. Sasha is money and a star in this business. Taz thinks she is a natural and her facials were awesome in the loss. Taz isn’t crazy about the foreshadowing of the 4 Horsewomen thing. Taz yells to get your own gimmicks. Don’t copy it. Stand on your own. Be creative and innovative.
Brock vs. Finn
-Taz’s prediction of Finn going over was wrong. He was hopeful Finn was going to be the Demon. Finn had great offense and Brock took a lot of bumps. Taz says Brock sold well as Finn hit his lower body. Brock is underrated for how good he bumps and sells in Taz’s opinion. Fans are feeling like this is a meaningless title. Taz feels WWE had a chance to make newer guys in the Rumble and have Finn shock the world. Brock giving German suplexes after the matches wasn’t needed unless they are tying it in someway.
Becky Wins the Rumble
-Becky’s win was totally predictable. Taz believes that Lacey Evans is going to be a star with her 1940’s pinup girl gimmick. He said Nattie was in there too long and Mandy Rose had a good showing. All the girls worked hard. WWE injected the Becky storyline in well according to Taz, but everyone was just waiting to see how. He feels WWE has the women’s division set up better than the men’s division.
Booking wrestling is tough in Taz’s opinion especially with all the content they have. Taz didn’t get into the Daniel Bryan vs. A.J. Styles match. He feels they always have great matches and are two of the best in the world…ever. He felt overall it was a good show and you should watch the replay.
Rating: 9/10
Taz has a great way of breaking down each match or gimmick as a wrestler, but also as an announcer. I never would have seen that LED light go out and thought to make that a point in the match as an announcer. I really enjoyed his thoughts on the men’s Rumble and he talked about how various wrestlers could have been pushed in different directions. Would definitely recommend this podcast even if you watched the Rumble.
About Samantha:
Samantha is a long time wrestling fan from WV. She quit watching during college and the first part of her career, but now is back full force. One of her goals is to be a host on one of PW Torch’s WWE or All Elite Wrestling post-show podcasts. Check her out on Twitter @Sam4413
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