I Listen So You Don't Have To: Steve Austin Show Ep. 188

Austin taking listener calls in this week's Unleashed
Photo Credit: WWE.com

If you're new, here's the rundown: I listen to a handful of wrestling podcasts each week. Too many, probably, though certainly not all of them. In the interest of saving you time — in case you have the restraint to skip certain episodes — the plan is to give the bare bones of a given show and let you decide if it’s worth investing the time to hear the whole thing. There are better wrestling podcasts out there, of course, but these are the ones in my regular rotation that I feel best fit the category of hit or miss. If I can save other folks some time, I'm happy to do so.

Show: Steve Austin Show Unleashed!
Episode: 188 (Jan. 22, 2015)
Run Time: 1:16:53
Guest: Ted Fowler (40:40)

Summary: Austin is taking calls from listeners again. Topics include the Royal Rumble, Broken Skull Challenge, action figures and T-shirts and Davey Boy Smith and. He chats with Ted Fowler for about 10 minutes, primarily about life in Texas and Los Angeles. Going back to the phones, Austin admits he hasn’t watched much of the WWE Network shows (and won’t be on Legends House.) He discusses if Vince McMahon is too busy, gives his limited thoughts on WrestleKingdom 9, explains the challenges of working in a Royal Rumble, laments the recent trend of referee anonymity and tries to explore the future prospects of Roman Reigns.

Quote of the week: “It’s a very structured environment, and so reaching for that brass ring is a little bit easier said that done. I long for the days of the wild, wild West, guys just going out there and going for it. But it’s a different system now. It could be fixed, it could be brought back, but we’ll see if it ever will be.”

Why you should listen: Davey Boy Smith fans will want to seek out Austin’s praise (he thinks Smith needs to be in the WWE Hall of Fame). Anyone who enjoys an era where WWF referees were known by name will be happy to know Austin is on their side.

Why you should skip it: This one seems to cover a lot of familiar territory, notably Austin recalling the design of various T-shirts, working in a battle royal or Royal Rumble, trying to solve the Reigns problem and especially venting about life in LA.

Final thoughts: The best I can say for this episode is it’s a good reminder how strong Austin is at podcasting. His ability to quickly engage a total stranger (and make them feel his conversation equal) is remarkable, and the chemistry he has with a longtime friend like Fowler enable him to basically create a compelling character for his audience out of a person we’d otherwise have no real interest in getting to know. But if you’re a regular listener, you already know these things and very little of what’s talked about on the episode will come off as new or interesting.