Host: Taz with producer Seth
Guest: Bobby Roode
Release Date: Sept. 30, 2015
DIRECT LINK TO DOWNLOAD/LISTEN
Report by: Sean Sumey, PWPodcasts Reporter
HOT TOPICS
– HUMP DAY PROMOS: The first batch of promos are in and there are some real gems in there. A rivalry is formed between two listeners and there is a bit of controversy involving the finalists!
– BOBBY ROODE INTERVIEW: “The IT Factor” is on the line and is gearing up for Bound for Glory.
– TAZ TAKES CALLS FROM THE LISTENERS: Negative views on NXT talent, James Storm’s chances in WWE, WWE Creative, and a little deja vu gets covered!
– THIS DAY IN WRESTLING HISTORY: Japanese icons, Shea Stadium and political debates. What more do you need??
SUBJECTS COVERED (w/Time Stamps)
(00:00-00:37) Ads
(00:38-01:15) Show intro
(01:16) Taz opens the show and will be debuting Hump Day Promos today. Taz encourages people to keep sending in their promos tohpmtaz@cbs.com. Taz will be speaking with Bobby Roode later in the show. Taz mentions that he promoted Bobby Roode being on the show and TNA did not return the favor. Taz said he is unfiltered and wears his emotions on his sleeve. Taz does not hate TNA. Taz thinks TNA should have shown respect and returned the tag on Twitter when he posted about today’s shows. Taz talks about a super fan named Lance who sent Taz a tweet letting him know that Paige has talked about her wrestling family on Steve Austin’s podcast. Taz asked Lance to call in. Taz said he doesn’t consider that “common knowledge.
Taz wants to know why he gets backlash when he tries to put over Byron Saxton.
(09:24) Taz talks about SMU basketball coach Larry Brown getting suspended by the NCAA. SMU loses nine scholarships due to this incident. Taz said he wouldn’t let his kids go to a school that was involved with this. Brown was suspended for his alleged involvement in academic fraud involving one of his players.
(11:17) Taz takes a call from Dave in New York. Dave is an over the road truck driver. Dave wants to know about WWE wrestler Taz taking on WCW wrestler Mike Awesome in ECW. Taz acknowledges that he has talked about this several times. Taz doesn’t want to assume that it is common knowledge. Taz says he was only in WWE for a short amount of time when this happened. Bruce Pritchard called him and said they were concerned that Awesome was going to take the ECW World Title to WCW and trash it. So, Taz was sent in to take the title. Seth urges fans to check out Episode 9 of the Human Podcast Machine that covers this angle in great detail.
(14:38) Taz takes a call from Harry in the U.K. Harry thinks WWE Creative doesn’t get enough credit. Harry feels that the main event feuds only get 20 minutes each week to further the story. Harry said it must be difficult to keep things compelling. Taz agrees and adds how much original programming WWE does each week. Taz said that when he was on the roster, there were few writers who helped him out.
(17:40) Taz is ready for Hump Day Promos. Taz isn’t sure what the prize should be. Taz might give them a t-shirt and/or hat. Taz is not going to buy you a meal at a diner. They even have an intro for the segment that includes portions of promos throughout the years including one by Taz.
The first one is Gary Limertone. Gary wants to know why Taz would take time out of his day to belittle someone of his caliber by asking why he should be champion. Taz interrupts and explains to the listeners that the topic is what you would do if you were World Champion. Gary continues. Gary urges Taz to try him because he will become just another victim. Taz rates Gary a 7 out of 10. Taz is limiting the promos to 45 seconds. Seth gives Gary a 6. Seth warns that he is biased because he has already heard all of them.
Number two is Ethan Fisher. Ethan tells “kid” that this Sunday is his chance to take the gold. Ethan says that you are going to wind up on your back and you can do nothing and like it! Taz says it was pretty good. Good pacing, decent inflection. Taz explains what inflection is. Taz gives examples of how you can alter your inflection. Taz references a clip of Eric Bischoff auditioning for WWE back in the day and having to cut a promo on a broom. Taz gives Ethan a 6 out of 10. Seth gives Ethan a 6 as well.
Number three is Ian Hernandez from San Antonio (smoke detector guy). Ian is the world’s sexiest cowboy. Taz stops the tape and points out that he can still hear the smoke detector in the background. Taz begs Ian to change the battery. That tape continues. Ian is the hottest thing in professional wrestling. Ian references his smoke detector in his promo. Taz digs the promo. Taz gives Ian a 9 out of 10 and tells him to work on pacing. Seth also gives a 9. Taz said Ian fit six pounds of bologna in a three-pound bag.
Number four is Dave Silva. Dave is using a gruff voice. Taz loves it. Dave is from dirty south Texas. Dave cuts his promo on Ian. Taz gives it a 10. Taz is loving it. Seth also gives Dave a 10.
(31:11-32:35) Taz does a live read for SleeperBot.
(32:36-32:50) Break
(33:40) Taz takes a call from Frank. Frank is a big TNA fan and met Taz and Mike Tenay before. Frank wants to know if James Storm would fit in NXT or WWE. Taz said absolutely. Taz described Storm as a good mix of old school and new school. Taz thinks Storm would do better in NXT. Frank digs Storm’s throwback look.
(35:56) Our next promo is from Gerald Sarmiento. Gerald is the Jiu jitsu Jew. Taz already gave Gerald a 20 out of 10. Gerald is claiming to be the son of Barry Harowitz. Gerald’s stepdad is Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat. Taz dropped Gerald down to a 5 out of 10. Taz acknowledges that Seth is the Kung Fu Jobber. Taz does not like that Gerald stole Seth’s gimmick knowing that Seth would be judging it. Seth gave Gerald a 6 out of 10 because he’s Jewish.
The next promo is from Jesse Frederickson. If you’re his friend, you can call him J-Fred. Taz stops it because he loves his marketing. J-Fred is your mother’s favorite. J-Fred thinks Seth puts people to sleep. Taz gives him a 7 out of 10 and tells him to work on his inflection. Seth gives him an 8 and gave props to his attitude.
The next promo is from Jose Mario. Jose is talking….very….slowly. Taz says he is boring. Taz said the verbiage was fine but he is only giving him a 3. Taz encourages Jose to send in another promo. Seth gives him a 4.
The next promo is from Slim McCann. You give Slim 45 seconds and he wants to know if you know who he is. He also says it doesn’t matter if you do or not. Perfection doesn’t have a name. Slim is the alpha and omega. Slim throws in his Twitter handle. Taz gives him a 9. Taz thinks he should crescendo toward the end of his promo. Seth gives him an 8. Taz says the promos don’t have to be full of screaming and yelling. He doesn’t want them to be controversial.
(49:23) Taz takes a call from Jared in Australia. Jared is digging the Hump Day Promos. Jared asks Taz about the negative opinions online for Baron Corbin, Mojo Rawley, and Dana Brooke. Taz doesn’t agree with people that are negative on them. Taz said they are still growing and that is the reason for NXT. Taz puts over the upcoming NXT Takeover show. Jared thinks that people are harder on NXT talent that didn’t come from the independents. Taz thinks it’s unfair for people to judge the talent that way. Taz said the talent will get better. Talent can only improve in front of a crowd. Some talent is better at ring work, some excel at mic work, but the only way to improve is to get on shows. Taz doesn’t think talent should be getting buried for trying to get better. Taz mentions talent like Finn Balor who spent extensive time on the independent circuit. Taz says that guys like Balor perfected their craft before they got to NXT. Guys like Corbin didn’t go through the indies and are getting their experience now.
(55:23) Taz takes a call from John in Arkansas. John loves promos. John is a huge Jake Roberts fan. Taz remembers John from yesterday when he was grilling pork chops. From now on, Taz will know him as “Pork Chop” John. John gives a shout out to “Superstar” Billy Graham. Taz encourages John to send in promos. John thinks the art of the promo has been lost with today’s talent.
(59:53-1:01:25) Taz does a live read for MackWeldon.com. Save 20 percent off your order with promo code: TAZ
(1:01:26-1:01:42) Break
(1:03:28) Taz takes a call from Dave in New Jersey. Dave is digging the Hump Day Promos. Dave asks Taz if it is true that WWE doesn’t like it if you have a regional accent. Dave references claims that Sunny has made about that topic. Taz says it’s true to a point. Taz mentioned how he has a heavy accent. Taz then counters with Jim Ross and his accent and says Ross was the voice of WWE for years. Taz said in TNA they had issues with A.J. Styles and his Southern accent. Taz always felt that it was part of who A.J. is and didn’t take anything away from his character.
(1:07:22) Taz plays a promo sent in by Static. Seth says a few people sent in their promos on video. Taz likes that and says that when they add the video aspect to their show, they will play them. Back to Static. Static is a New Yorker. He wants people to be a Static Addict. Taz likes it. Taz gives him a 9.5. Seth gives him a 9. Seth says the video is good too because Static has a menacing look. Taz warns fans that the prizes are used. Taz said the hats and t-shirts have been worn around the office.
(1:10:21) Taz takes a call from Ian in San Antonio. Ian is a little hot because the listeners are calling it out. Ian tells the listeners to suck it. Taz points out that Dave Silva is calling Ian out. Taz plays Dave Silva’s promo for Ian. Ian says Dave Silva is a Demolition Legion of Doom white trash wannabe. Ian says he is going to take down Dave Silva. Ian cuts another promo. Taz calls Ian out for going over about 3 minutes on his promo. Taz asks Ian if he wrote down his promo before calling in. Ian reminds Taz that he is blind. Taz told Ian to stop bringing that up and making him feel bad. The smoke detector beeping continues. Taz loves Ian.
(1:16:48) Taz plays a promo from Kevin Cross. Kevin says 45 seconds is quick for some but for others it lasts a lifetime. Taz gives him a 15. Kevin has background music. Taz describes the video and says it is awesome. Seth gives Kevin a 10. Taz ranks the winners as Kevin Cross, Dave Silva, and Ian Hernandez. Taz tells Seth to get in touch with the winner and get him a t-shirt and hat. Taz finds out that Kevin Cross is an independent wrestler. Taz feels bad and says that ideally he wants fans not wrestlers sending in promos. Taz said it would be unfair if Randy Orton started sending in promos to get his t-shirt and hat. Taz will still proclaim Kevin as the winner but he will give all three entrants prizes.
(1:23:09-1:23:37) Break
Bobby said he learned a lot from Bubba Ray Dudley from traveling with him. Bobby said he picked his brain constantly. Bobby talks about his early days in Canada. Bobby thinks he should have been a wrestler in the ’80s because that is more his style. Taz believes that is why Bobby and James Storm were such a great team because they are both old-school. Bobby talks about working anywhere he could when he first started because he was trying to get noticed. Bobby credits Scott D’Amore with getting him a chance with TNA. Bobby said Jeff Jarrett had a few Canadian wrestlers to choose from and he selected Bobby. Bobby felt he was ready for a main event opportunity early but was patient. Taz credits Bobby for his training and nutrition. Bobby said he started working out in 10th grade and it became a hobby. Bobby forces himself to go to the gym to keep his body ready and loose. Bobby loves working out and takes pride in his body. Bobby utilizes the gyms at the hotels they stay at. Bobby played lacrosse in high school. Both Taz and Bobby’s sons are lacrosse players. Bobby still lives in his hometown he grew up in. Bobby spoke about his son’s lacrosse and the travel that comes with it. Bobby is a big Toronto Blue Jays fan, not necessarily a huge baseball fan.
Taz tells Bobby how he is a little hot at TNA for not tagging him back about his interview with Bobby. Bobby jokes that maybe Bobby is the one that has heat with TNA. Taz plugs Bound for Glory and wishes Bobby the best. Bobby misses having Taz around at TNA. Bobby said he would always go to Taz to bury people, if Taz wasn’t around, he would go to Bubba. Bobby said Taz and Bubba would then go to each other to bury Bobby. Taz said that now Bobby has Tommy Dreamer who loves everyone and won’t bury anybody. Bobby said he can’t understand Dreamer because he always has food in his mouth. The interview ends with Taz and Bobby joking about getting Eric Young on the show.
(1:53:36-1:58:08) Taz begins wrapping up the show. Taz hypes NXT and said it should be good. Taz also hypes Ring of Honor and TNA. Taz again mentions TNA’s Bound for Glory pay per view this Sunday. Drew Galloway will be taking on ECIII for the TNA World Title. Taz wishes TNA luck. Taz thanks the fans for sending in their promos. Taz asks Seth for more information on Kevin Cross. Seth reveals that Cross appeared on WWE TV filling in for Titus O’Neal as a partner for Darren Young. Cross is also currently signed to Global Force Wrestling.
RATE & REVIEW
8 out of 10: I felt this show was very entertaining. The higher rating can be attributed to the Hump Day Promos. It is a novel concept and I give Taz credit for going out on a limb and trying something new. The way the promos were presented was respectful toward the entrants and fun to listen to. This could have been a flop but Taz did an excellent job in engaging his audience. I was surprised at how much of the show was dedicated to the promos but didn’t find it to be overkill. I don’t know how involved the call screeners are for the show, but they shouldn’t have allowed on the caller who asked about the Mike Awesome angle. This is just my opinion. This was discussed just last week when a caller asked about it and Taz did a Taz Tale episode on the Human Podcast Machine months back. This isn’t like terrestrial or satellite radio where you might have a casual fan tune in. The listeners of Taz’s show are going out of their way to download apps and go to websites to hear the show. They are going to be more familiar with content of the show. I might be nitpicking but that is why this is a review. I enjoyed the interview with Bobby Roode. You can tell there is a genuine friendship between Taz and Roode. Seth does a good job of not getting in the way when Taz is interviewing someone. There are other podcasts out there with cohosts and the dynamic is not always conducive to conducting interviews. Overall a very good show and I look forward to the next Hump Day Promo edition.
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