Something to Wrestle with Bruce Prichard

[SomethingSavage]

6 hours ago, Pterois said:

I agree with Conrad' stance, if someone is nice with me and the people I care, I don't care if he's a dick with others people. As far as the scandal in Germany is concerned, I don't see the problem. If Bradshaw was a face, I understand why it would bother people, a face is not supposed to do nazi salutes. But he was a heel, it makes a humengous difference ! It's a good way for a heel to get heat. Why do people find normal to see nazi salutes in a movie and not in a wrestling show ? Wrestling isn't real, it's a scenario for god's sake !

I find compelling the JBL PPV matches during his title reign. The match with Taker at summerslam 04 is the only one until the last one that sucks. The match with The Undertaker from No Mercy is pretty compelling, the finish is amazing. The Sseries match with Booker T is great. I rate ****1/2 The 4-way between him, Booker T, Eddie Guerrero and The Undertaker from Armageddon. The triple threat between him, Angle and Show from Rumble 05 is solid. The cage match with Big Show from NWO 05 is pretty compelling. Finally, the Wrestlemania match with Cena sucks.

Don't sleep on the Eddie cage match from SmackDown or the two Hardcore Holly matches either.

And there's a really fun, overbooked Last Man Standing match with Kurt Angle from TV as well.

I dig the title reign overall. Like I said, I hated it in real time and couldn't wrap my head around the idea that this guy was plucked from the lower card and forced into a main event spot overnight.

But the JBL push is a thing now, and it's mostly owed to how well this actually panned out in the end. Like it or not, the dude was successfully elevated. Compare that to a Jinder Mahal or something, where it's a clear case of things not clicking.

JBL could talk. He took some big, nasty bumps. He stooged. He cowered. He showed ass. It was basically like seeing the Honky Tonk Man template lifted & applied into a main event spot. And I gotta tell ya - as far as vulnerable heel champs go, Bradshaw is far from the worst.

[C.S.]

21 hours ago, El-P said:

Yeah, amazingly embarrassing, as was Bruce's "explanation". Even Conrad had to slip in "Aren't you supposed to take care of the people you work with ?". So what if PE didn't want to do this or that spot ? Toxic jock bully mentality.

The one thing I found interesting is that, without really admitting to it, Bruce actually painted the picture of Bradshaw not being that tough of a guy, which is often the case with bullies.

Yes, it was amazing for completely the wrong reasons. But as a viewer, I knew something was up because it felt so much more memorable and hard-hitting than most APA matches (or matches in general). As it turns out, that's because APA was really potatoing the hell out of Public Enemy.

Want to hear something even more fucked up? When The Dudleys came in, their first matches were with APA. Of course, APA had to "test" the new ECW guys to make sure they weren't Public Enemy 2.0. They beat the hell out of The Dudleys every night. Bubba Ray and D-Von's response: "Thank you very much." 

"Respect" in the wrestling business is such a weird and fucked up thing.

What was Uncle Brucie's explanation for the Public Enemy match?

And yeah, we already know Bradshaw isn't as tough as he thinks. The Brawl for All was proof of that. So was the alleged Joey Styles incident (if it actually happened). 

[El-P]

56 minutes ago, C.S. said:

Want to hear something even more fucked up? When The Dudleys came in, their first matches were with APA. Of course, APA had to "test" the new ECW guys to make sure they weren't Public Enemy 2.0. They beat the hell out of The Dudleys every night. Bubba Ray and D-Von's response: "Thank you very much." 

Yeah, it's fucked up. Also, it takes one to know one, so Bubba knew what he was up against. He was also smarter politically.

57 minutes ago, C.S. said:

What was Uncle Brucie's explanation for the Public Enemy match?

PE all of a sudden didn't want to do a table spot because "They liked to dish out but wouldn't take it", which is hilarious (well, not really, but you see what I mean) considering PE made their name by taking stupid garbage bumps, and that includes WCW. So there, APA had to "made them take the spot" in the ring, which is how you do business in a line of work where you're supposed to work together and protect each other.

[Afro Steel]

Anything notable from the RAW watch-along? I think this makes the first time I've skipped consecutive episodes, as I've found their watch-along episodes to be bland regardless of the subject.

[Johnny Sorrow]

4 hours ago, Afro Steel said:

Anything notable from the RAW watch-along? I think this makes the first time I've skipped consecutive episodes, as I've found their watch-along episodes to be bland regardless of the subject.

I'm not done with it. Since I'm never going to sit on the coach and watch a show while listening to a podcast, watch along shows are hit and miss. But so far there's been some good conversation about things that aren't happening on the screen.

[Alucard]

On 5/6/2019 at 5:27 PM, SomethingSavage said:

Don't sleep on the Eddie cage match from SmackDown or the two Hardcore Holly matches either.

One of my favorite things of that era was little mini-feuds of TV matches like this, loved the little series with Holly being presented as a threat, real solid matches. Holly was a great random TV match worker around this time.

[SomethingSavage]

On 5/13/2019 at 8:34 PM, Johnny Sorrow said:

I'm not done with it. Since I'm never going to sit on the coach and watch a show while listening to a podcast, watch along shows are hit and miss. But so far there's been some good conversation about things that aren't happening on the screen.

I've never actually watched along with any watch-along podcast. I listen at the gym, while commuting, grilling, doing yardwork, etc. I mean, it's not like it's a requirement or a prerequisite to enjoy the conversation.

Things are fairly easy to follow. If anything, I'd imagine it would be more distracting than anything to try to watch a show and focus on the podcast audio simultaneously.

On 5/13/2019 at 4:05 PM, Afro Steel said:

Anything notable from the RAW watch-along? I think this makes the first time I've skipped consecutive episodes, as I've found their watch-along episodes to be bland regardless of the subject.

There's nothing groundbreaking to be found here, but it's a decent little listen. Both guys are having fun and talking about random stuff throughout the show.

My main takeaway was Bruce randomly busting out a Lance Russell impression at times. So there's that.

Conrad goes into a bit of a sidebar about television ratings and fan criticism that I wish they would've delved into a bit more as a broader discussion, but it just kind of petered out.

There's a Q&A episode coming up in a few weeks, and they sort of teased that there would be some discussion about past versus present booking philosophies. If they actually adhere to it, then that could be interesting.

[SomethingSavage]

Well, 2004 is apparently the new 97/98 for Conrad. We're getting every major show from 04 each month right now.

And, to be fair, I dug the Mania XX and Backlash 04 episodes. But the rest have been pretty lackluster. There's just so much overlap and redundant stuff when they cover things this way.

Booker T's bizarre voodoo gimmick lasted all of one month, and it was absolutely terrible. I'm talking embarrassingly awful. You just know that was a Bruce Prichard project, too. He had his hands all over Taker's programs at this time.

Booker T as Papa Shango isn't a thing I ever needed or wanted to see, but I'm not even going to pretend that Booker would've been incapable of getting it over in the long run. Booker is pure entertainment, and the guy was able to spin the dated King gimmick into something special later on.

Plus it's pretty impressive how the Shango shtick was refined into a fun, indulgent act for the Boogeyman shortly thereafter.

Kenzo Suzuki. Rene Dupree. Mark Jindrak. Luther Reigns. Mordecai. Heidenreich. Snitsky. Ugh. These guys were once groomed like the heirs apparent for WWE main event stardom.

I mean, shit on him all you want - but is it REALLY any wonder why somebody like Ken Kennedy was capable of convincing them he was the next big thing at one particular point in time? Compared to that crop, dude looks like a surefire slam dunk.

[El-P]

On 5/26/2019 at 9:39 PM, SomethingSavage said:

Well, 2004 is apparently the new 97/98 for Conrad. We're getting every major show from 04 each month right now.

And, to be fair, I dug the Mania XX and Backlash 04 episodes. But the rest have been pretty lackluster. There's just so much overlap and redundant stuff when they cover things this way.

Yep. How many time do we need to hear about the JBL vs Eddie angle at Mother's Day ?

I thought this episode was dreadful. Long, boring rants about ratings. Usual bitching about "people who have never worked in pro-wrestling". His way of defending Johnny Ace was not only redondant with the usual "It's a thankless job" bit, but exposed by Conrad as completely ludicrous when he asked his Vince just wanted athletes when JR was in position then changed his mind once Johnny Ace got there. 

Bruce sounds totally disinterested and acts more like a WWE drone than ever. We've been saying that for a long time, but this has jumped the shark pretty bad (and the really good, thus far, JR Podcast actually hurts it pretty bad too).

[rovert]

Totally with you EL-P.

[sek69]

On 5/26/2019 at 3:39 PM, SomethingSavage said:

Mordecai.

Man, talk about one of the more forgotten fuck ups in history. Dude was set to get the rocket push leading up to a Mania match with Taker, only to get in a bar fight that led to lawsuits and WWE completely dropping everything. 

[El-P]

Nah, that's his fault he moved slowly like Taker, it did NOT came from creative, it was ALL his doing and that's was why it didn't work, although, he was a great worker. Yeah, Brucie, sure...  Wonder what he'd say about Mox opinion on WWE's creative process. Maybe Mox has no say because he never worked in creative either...

[flyonthewall2983]

How was yesterday's Q&A episode?

[SomethingSavage]

On 6/1/2019 at 7:52 PM, flyonthewall2983 said:

How was yesterday's Q&A episode?

Pretty fun. It's a rapid-fire, one-hour session. Quick, easy listen.

I generally dig these Q&A episodes, because it gives them a chance to touch on talking points from a wide range of periods. Conrad mixes things up here, which is refreshing.

There's nothing extraordinary, but they touch on everything from Tito Santana & Dino Bravo to Hade Vansen & Gunner Scott.

Bruce does torpedo a couple of questions, but you were already getting that BEFORE he went back to work for the company. It is what it is.

[Afro Steel]

Boy, Bruce can really spin some shit. Claiming the JR/Dr. Hiney bit was "done out of love." That's like a play right out of the abuser handbook.

[El-P]

56 minutes ago, Afro Steel said:

Boy, Bruce can really spin some shit. Claiming the JR/Dr. Hiney bit was "done out of love." That's like a play right out of the abuser handbook.

Wow. Especially considering what JR had to say about it on his podcast. Maybe that's how Conrad is gonna do, counter-program his own podcasts. Anyway, I've been done with Brucie's show a while ago and stuff like this totally makes me not regret my decision.

[SomethingSavage]

It was pretty awful hearing him try to put a positive spin on that. As much of a dick move as it was, I applaud Conrad for asking how Bruce would've felt if they had made fun of his wife's illness that way.

JR made it clear that it hurt his feelings and came IMMEDIATELY after his operation - so even the claim about them only doing it after they knew he was out of the woods is bullshit. As someone who has family members with intestinal issues and Crohn's disease, I can tell you it definitively doesn't work that way.

The show has been hit or miss for a long time. There wasn't a whole lot to the JR episode, although I enjoyed the '94 KOTR episode recently. The less said about anything from '99, the better though.

I understand time constraints and other factors play a part, but I hate how Conrad falls into these patterns with his selections. Last time, it was 97 and 98 Attitude Era overkill.

This time, it's 1999 week to week & month to month. It's so much same/same. If I ever hear another Master P or fucking Ministry of Darkness discussion one more single time in my life, it'll be twice too many times.

[Afro Steel]

About 45 minutes into the Jericho episode and I've almost turned it off twice because Bruce seems incapable sometimes of conceding that the WWE doesn't always utilize its talents. Not only that, but in these defenses, he often comes off as snarky and heavy-handed as the newsletter-reading fan he loathes so much.

[SomethingSavage]

Ugh. Yeah, that Jericho episode was brutal. So redundant and by-the-numbers. No new talking points or insight to be found.

The only interesting thing from Jericho's early WWF career was the tension with Triple H and friends. But Bruce won't even approach that.

The only fun thing from Jericho's early WWF career was the brownie story during the initial meeting with Vince. And, despite the fact that he was there in the house for it, Bruce doesn't even mention it.

They basically skip right past anything amusing or slightly interesting & just go over results and stories that have already been told time & time again by Jericho himself.

In fact, yeah. Just bypass this and seek out the Talk is Jericho episode with Conrad from 6 months ago. It does a much better job of covering this stuff.

[Afro Steel]

Jericho episode was like a stew of the elements that make the podcast dreadful at times:

- Multiple anti-Meltzer rants

- Subject matter that tackles a ton of stuff that's already been covered on the podcast

- Bruce unwilling to concede that something wasn't any good, usually using the nonsensical "we were trying to tell a story" excuse

- Bruce turning into a pompous jackass when pressed about questionable decisions (i.e. Jericho losing pretty much every PPV match early in his run)

- Conrad not pushing back at all on flimsy reasoning by Bruce

- Ad reads done in the voice of deceased wrestlers

[SomethingSavage]

What's worse is that Conrad was there with Jericho when Chris gave his own version of events, so this was a prime opportunity for Conrad to get Bruce's thoughts on things.

The funny "two brownies" story is just one example. But with alllllll the talk about bad booking and Jericho's loss record, it's ridiculous that Conrad didn't even once refer to Jericho's explanation.

Instead of asking about Vince's reaction to Jericho's first promo or the hokey facial expressions, Conrad simply rushes past everything to get to the next results reading. It's really disjointed and flat. There's no real time taken for exploration or insight at all.

[El-P]

This podcast was dead the day Bruce got back on WWE's paycheck. Well, it had mostly jumped the shark before that point, but it was done then. Bischoff I have no idea, I just quit after a streak of awful shows where the rants had come back in strides. The JR one started off well, but I feel like there are already kinda cruising. Conrad has been wearing himself too thin with doing too much podcasts, talking about the same subjects multiple times. (and I forgot the Schiavone one was still going on, and I actually started by this one which was really cool before it turned into a complete unfunny joke)

From now on I think I'm gonna give any of those a chance only if I hear some really good feedback here.

[SomethingSavage]

I still like some of JR's shows here and there, but yeah. I'm certainly starting to feel the burnout when it comes to wrestling podcasts in general. I've taken several breaks, but they're becoming a more regular thing more often lately. There's just so much redundancy in what's being covered & how it's being covered.

[Afro Steel]

In the latest episode, Conrad alludes to JR not being happy with Bruce's claim that the Dr. Heiney was done "out of love." Bruce gets prickly and Conrad quickly moves on. 

That was probably the most interest bit in the episode. I just do not care at all about the Attitude Era at this point. I get that their main demographic is dudes who think the AE is the best thing to ever happen, but we've covered pretty much every angle of this era since the show's inception. 

Looking forward to the Summerslam 89 episode, though I don't know why every episode about that era has to be a watch-along.

[El-P]

4 hours ago, Afro Steel said:

In the latest episode, Conrad alludes to JR not being happy with Bruce's claim that the Dr. Heiney was done "out of love." Bruce gets prickly and Conrad quickly moves on.

Bruce has been exposed badly by JR's podcast. It's not like anyone had mistaken Brucie for anything but a WWE shill anyway, but really... Remember when Bruce apparently didn't give a fuck because he never thought he could work for WWE again and this podcast was a lot of fun ? Yeah, me neither. Seems like in another lifetime.