PWTorch Livecast Tuesday
Hosts: Wade Keller & Jason Powell of Prowrestling.net
Airdate: November 3, 2015
DIRECT LINK TO LISTEN/DOWNLOAD
By Nick Gould, PWPodcasts Reporter
TOP SUBJECTS COVERED
- Ratings up, viewers down, but quality-wise Raw is “solid.”
- Everybody talks too much, if by ‘everybody’ you mean Bray Wyatt.
- Speaking of Wyatt, why has he turned into a caricature of himself
- Taker, Kane, and baby demon?
- Reigns is getting the title, but when?
- Tag Team Wrestling – too much, too little, or just nothing meaningful?
SUMMARY OF THE SHOW
– (0:00) Intro Theme.
– (0:32) Wade welcomes listeners to the show, introduces himself, PWTorch.com, and the format of the show, and updates listeners on upcoming Livecasts this week.
– (4:35) Wade introduces Jason Powell from prowrestling.net. Wade notes that he felt that this week’s Raw was generally a good show, largely due to some of the interviews before/after matches, the overall build (and element of surprise) to the main event, and an absence of some of the more frustrating issues seen in recent Raws. Overall, Wade felt it was a solid show, which didn’t test his patience. Jason agrees that the show was solid, and liked the tie-in with Survivor Series with the main event of Raw, which also forwarded the Rollins-Reigns program. Jason also points to a lack of ‘filler’ on the show as another positive.
– (13:42) Rob from Rochester calls in. Rob notes the abundance of tag teams across WWE product and feels WWE is showcasing more tag matches than it needs to, leading to less opportunity for singles matches. Wade notes that he’s a fan of tag-team wrestling generally. In terms of the current product, he feels that the presence of several tag-teams on Raw helps to shore up a thin singles roster, whilst also allowing for a variety of different types/styles of tag-teams to be presented. Jason likes the renewed emphasis on the tag-team division, although he does feel that WWE needs to flesh out the characters of most teams other than The New Day in order to fully develop the division. He likes Barrett and Sheamus as a team, but thinks that Barrett needs to lose the ‘king’ gimmick and that Sheamus needs to unsuccessfully cash in his MITB briefcase before the team can move forward as a tag-team. Wade feels that WWE needs to do more to develop a sense of purpose for many of its current tag-teams for them to really have an impact with fans.
– (18:25) Matt from Carolina is next up. Matt asks whether Roman Reigns wins the WWE World Title at Survivor Series as a babyface. Jason doesn’t feel as though a heel turn is in the pipeline for Reigns, and feels there’s more of a chance that Reigns wins at Survivor Series than not. Wade agrees with Jason’s logic, although he thinks we’ll see Rollins retain, leading to a rematch in December. Wade notes that Reigns has upped his game recently, though still has a way to go. Jason feels Reigns is fine as a babyface for now. Matt can’t understand why WWE continues to push Reigns when he’s clearly not the choice of most fans. Wade points to the current formulaic and ‘corporate’ perception & presentation of Reigns, and compares this with Lex Luger’s run.
– (23:33) Scott from New Jersey reports that he has enjoyed the past two weeks of Raw, largely because of the positive booking of the U.S. and IC Titles/champions. Jason feels that the jury is out on the prospects for the U.S. Title in the next few weeks, particularly given the confused start to the Del Rio/Zeb Colter partnership. Jason likes Kevin Owens as IC Champion, and feels that Owens just needs the right opponent to take the IC Title up a few notches. Wade feels there is a slight redundancy in having three rather than two singles titles, although is pleased that WWE seem to be doing something meaningful with all three titles. He notes that Owens’s interactions with Rollins and Reigns not only added an element of freshness to Raw, but also helped to legitimize Owens and the IC Title.
– (26:23) Wade moves on to discuss ratings. He announces that Raw scored a 2.32 rating this week, down from last week. Wade notes that total viewership was down to year-low mark. Wade notes that ratings are about what would have been expected, and also explains that the low viewership numbers are neither shocking nor dramatically lower than recent weeks. Wade announces the viewership figures as 3.375, 3.2, and 3.2 million viewers for the first, second, and last hours of Raw. Jason notes that WWE still need to be worried about their overall numbers.
– (33:08) D.J. from Miami calls in. D.J. notes that Stephanie McMahon mistakenly plugged Survivor Series as being in two weeks, rather than three. Wade also notes Michael Cole mistakenly identifying the wrong Uso as the returning brother. D.J. asks two questions. First, is Sheamus cashing in at Survivor Series, or at least teasing one as a way to interfere and cause a DQ? Jason feels this would be a bad move, and that a better option would be an unsuccessful cash-in on Raw the following night. Neither host feels a World Title reign for Sheamus would offer much benefit, although both do suggest possible methods of unsuccessful cash-ins, largely as ways to further the Reigns-Rollins storyline. D.J. moves on two his next question, which relates to the Undertaker-Wyatts program, asking whether we’ll see this lead to a match at WrestleMania. Jason feels a win over Taker would help elevate Wyatt, but doesn’t feel this should happen. Jason isn’t sure who Taker could face at WrestleMania, other than John Cena. Wade notes that he would like to see more from Rowan, Harper and Strowman in the Wyatts’s promos, as this would add depth to the stable. Jason feels that Bray Wyatt’s current character trajectory is taking him away from ‘dark, cult leader’ and into ‘hocus-pocus nonsense,’ which he feels is a negative. Wade agrees.
– (41:56) Eric from Grand Rapids asks what’s next for Rusev, and whether Jack Swagger will be Del Rio’s first challenger. Jason feels we’ll see an issue develop between Swagger and Del Rio, and feels that there might be some benefits in Swagger being presented as Del Rio’s challenger, although doesn’t know if we’ll see it immediately. Wade feels that all signs point to WWE cooling on Rusev. The hosts discuss the rushed transition of Summer Rae to the Breeze-Ziggler program, and notes that it might be the best time for Rusev to be injured.
– (46:15) D’rell from Georgia fires three questions. Is an Owens-Reigns IC Title program on the cards? Do the hosts agree that Seth Rollins feels refreshed as a character by less involvement from/with the Authority? How do the hosts feel about a Balor-Crews program in NXT? Wade notes that the minimal presence of The Authority on Raw this week was one of the positives of the show. Jason doesn’t see Rollins coming out of his program with Rollins as the champion, although isn’t sure who Reigns would face at WrestleMania were he champion. However, neither host can think of a great opponent for Rollins at WrestleMania should he remain champion. The hosts discuss some of the possibilities for a current/recent NXT star as an underdog winner of the Royal Rumble, as a Reigns win in the Rumble would make little sense. Wade doesn’t feel Vince McMahon thinks a feud over a secondary title is in Reigns’ interest, and nor does Jason. Wade notes he’s looking forward to seeing the Balor-Crews match, and likes the presentation and build-up to the match (and the quality of NXT in general).
– (55:32) Kyle from Maine is up next. He notes that Bray Wyatt’s initial presentation seemed to be a demonic, legitimate heel, but feels that so many losses in big matches and programs have defined his character down. He asks whether WWE takes Bray for granted, and asks who we’ll see with Taker and Kane opposite the Wyatts at Survivor Series. Jason agrees with Kyle’s assessment of Bray’s push. Jason isn’t sure whether Taker and Kane will have partners at all. Wade isn’t sure either, although feels using Finn Balor as their partner wouldn’t be a great way to introduce him. Neither host is sure that a Taker/Kane vs. The Wyatts match is what we’ll see at Survivor Series. Jason feels that Sting, if healthy, would be the logical option for a partner, although both hosts note that this is a big ‘if.’
– (1:03:45) Shaun from Stamford notes that Jim Ross recently discussed the difference between working ‘stiff’ and working ‘snug’ and asks which category Brock Lesnar falls into. Wade reports that his understanding is that Brock works ‘stiff’ with an opponent who wants him to, but that generally Brock is not known for being a danger to others. He points out that Brock’s precision and control of his body make him good at seeming to work ‘stiff’ consistently. Jason agrees.
– (1:07:56) Wade wraps up the show with details of PWTorch.com, future Livecasts, and PWTorch’s social media presence.
– (1:12:57) Outro.
SCORE & REVIEW
7.5 out of 10: This week’s Tuesday Livecast loses half a point for me. There’s nothing specifically ‘wrong’ with this week’s show, there’s no discussion points that seem to be missed, and the show is generally really tight, with little time wasted. I can’t help but feel that there’s something that’s not quite ‘Tuesday Livecast’ about this week’s Tuesday Livecast.
I’ll explain: Wade and Jason get through a good amount of callers and topics, and answer/address each topic raised. To me, though, it feels like we’re missing some of the exploration and explanation of the topics the callers brought up. In previous weeks I’ve been critical of parts of some Tuesday Livecasts that have felt slightly meandering or answers/discussions that have strayed far from the point of the original topic. However, the strongest positive of Wade and Jason’s Livecast is the level of depth each host can go into in answering a simple question, which I feel really helps enhance my viewing experience of Raw each week. There is, of course, a balance to be struck in going into detailed exploration whilst remaining focused on the topic (and the show overall). This week, I felt a little as if the Livecast addressed a range of topics, though more superficially than usual.
On this basis, I think this is one of those shows that regular listeners might get little from. If you’re new to the Tuesday Livecast and have always wanted to check the show out but haven’t yet then, strange as it may sound, this is probably a good show to listen to, as you’ll be able to get a good feel for the format of the show without feeling too challenged by some of the discussion points.
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