X-Pac 1,2,360 – Episode 47
Release Date: July 26, 2017
Recap by: Christopher Gaspere, PWPodcasts.com Specialist
DIRECT LINK TO LISTEN/DOWNLOAD
Top Newsworthy Items
– Madusa still thinks throwing the WWF Women’s title in the trash can is a large part of her legacy.
– Madusa has two podcasts – one for adults and one for kids – and is working on a book.
– Madusa and X-Pac both praised HHH with the attitude towards women’s wrestling.
Timestamps
00:00: The crew discusses Battleground, Smackdown, and Raw
20:27: Ad
20:57: Madusa on wrestling in Japan and her legacy
48:22: Madusa on wrestling Bull Nakano and the opportunities for women in wrestling then and now
1:06:25: Madusa on HHH’s role in women’s wrestling and getting ribbed
1:25:29: Madusa on her podcasts, surgery, and Chyna
Show Highlights
The crew discusses Battleground, Smackdown, and Raw
X-Pac is joined by TK Trinidad, Denise, and Jimbo. They began by breaking down Battleground, which no one seemed too impressed with.
Denise said it was “unmemorable,” and X-Pac agreed that “not a lot stood out” other than the New Day/Usos match, the “weird finish” to Styles/Owens, and the Punjabi Prison match. Jimbo even thought Smackdown was better than the pay-per-view.
TK thinks there are too many pay-per-views in general. X-Pac said that everyone thought the same thing back in the ‘90s when the In Your House pay-per-views started. He wondered if it “mattered to [WWE]” whether someone watches live or later on the network. He said the network has changed how they think about a lot of television.
Jimbo did like the Punjabi Prison match, especially the Singh Brothers, who he thought shined. X-Pac said the match was not “viewer-friendly” to the audience due to the cage blocking the view, the lack of near falls which invests an audience, and the fact that the cage doesn’t make any sound. He even tweeted about the cage not making sound, and Randy Orton tweeted back agreement.
In terms of Jericho showing up on Smackdown, X-Pac isn’t sure that was a long-term plan. He thinks it’s possible it was only because of the botched finish at Battleground and he was called in to drop the belt that he didn’t even have. He felt Jericho was the “MVP” of the show though.
X-Pac was “surprised” by Smackdown giving away Cena/Nakamura next week. He thinks Cena will win and face Jinder Mahal at SummerSlam. He thinks this will take Mahal from “the dance to Dancing with the Stars” if Mahal is willing to learn. Denise brought up the SummerSlam main event and how excited she was for it. X-Pac wants Joe to take the title. He thinks it’s too soon to give it to Strowman. He made the analogy of pushing someone too fast being like cooking a steak too fast, and the steak ends up being burnt on the outside and raw on the inside. He said it’s exactly what happened to Roman Reigns.
Madusa on wrestling in Japan and her legacy
X-Pac and Madusa discussed the commonalities in their starts in the business in Minnesota. They both got their start through Eddie Sharkey with a lot of help from Ky Michaelson. Madusa said it is important to “always remember those that helped you.”
She was making no money working for Eddie Sharkey, but eventually started making five dollars, which wasn’t a joke, and Wahoo McDaniel called her for AWA to bring her in to work with Sherri Martel. All Japan was on tour in the United States at the time, and she knew they were in the crowd during an AWA match against Candi Devine, so she tried to impress them by jumping off the top rope to the concrete during the match. It worked, and she was offered to come to the All-Japan dojo. She was the first gaijin to complete all three years at the dojo.
Women weren’t allowed to have boyfriends while working there, and she eventually realized that all the women were lesbians, so “I said ‘what the hell’ and joined them.” She also joked that she was glad that X-Pac wasn’t in Japan the same time she was or she “would have banged him.” She credited her time in Japan with forming her “as a person.” Her time in the WWF, during what she called “The Lost Era,” was difficult because she had to fight for her place on the card and the company didn’t have a female roster.
She was also struggling with how much the men were paid compared to her and the lack of opportunities in general for women. When she was released, she was hurt and needed to find a way to “get a little coverage” and earn a living, which was the main reason for agreeing to drop the WWE championship in the trash can on Nitro at Eric Bischoff’s behest.
She gave the impression that she’s still worried that it’s become the biggest thing people focus on. X-Pac recalled going to see her at a monster truck rally. He said she had the biggest lines for the meet and greet, and he noticed they tried to push Gravedigger more than her at the merchandise stands.
Madusa said it wasn’t much different from her experience in professional wrestling with men getting more opportunities and more pay. X-Pac interjected that he thinks their pay might have been more similar than she thought, but she still insisted the opportunities were quite different. X-Pac put her over as “a credit” to the sport, a woman who has conquered two different male-dominated sports in her life. He also said that she was just as good as the members of The Kliq who prided themselves on putting on the best show.
Madusa on wrestling Bull Nakano and the opportunities for women in wrestling then and now
X-Pac brought up a specific match with Bull Nakano in Japan she had were she got color and bled. She told the producers that she had been busted open hard way, but she had done so intentionally. She said that her matches with Nakano, who now runs a bar and has dropped two hundred pounds, were always “snug and tight” because they were trying to put on real matches.
She was disturbed by the growing trend of things like bra and panty matches. She said that the women now have so many more opportunities which she loves to see. She said women in wrestling now are “very powerful” because of that. She’s amazed that there is an entire female roster when she had to fight to get women in the company. She was asked if women need to be trained with men, and she doesn’t believe that’s true. She said that someone is “only as good as what [he or she] puts in.”
She is glad to see all of the teamwork and training going on at the Performance Center right now which is different from her days.
Madusa on HHH’s role in women’s wrestling and getting ribbed
She continued that she’s amazed by HHH’s attitude toward women’s wrestling and how he thinks that they’ll get over if they are booked no differently than the men. Madusa agrees and is glad that is finally starting happen. She said that this is just the beginning as well.
If her generation influenced this current one and opened opportunities, then imagine what the next generation of women will be like. She would also like to see intergender matches at some point and briefly discussed her match with Evan Karagias in WCW. She thinks that might be hard though because certain advocacy groups might put on pressure to not allow it.
X-Pac told her that he’s always considered her “one of the boys.” He remembered a rib where someone defecated in her bag, and the boys were waiting for a reaction, but she no sold it, which got her over with the locker room. She said she put it in a plastic baggie and showed it off. X-Pac regrets those types of actions now because they were “wrong” and bullying behavior, and he only went along with them because he was “trying to fit in.”
Madusa on her podcasts, surgery, and Chyna
Madusa currently has two podcasts. One is called Madusa Full Throttle, which is an adult show with adult language, and another show called Madusa Half Throttle for kids and teenagers, which focuses more on that audience. Right now, the podcast is covering all the Harry Potter movies.
She recently had a knee replacement, which led to her and X-Pac discussing injuries and surgeries. Mick Foley recently contacted her wanting to know what to expect from the knee replacement when he has his operation. X-Pac credits his diet and marijuana usage for his continued good health.
At the end of the podcast, they talked briefly about Chyna. Madusa said she was “fortunate to get to know her in her last months.” She had been contacted by a mutual friend in the last week of Joanie’s life to reach out to her. She talked to her two days before she died. X-Pac said he wished they would have made peace. Madusa told him that Joanie wanted to and pushed X-Pac to talk to some of her friends she had before she died to perhaps get some insight into her thoughts.
Madusa asked him how it went when they got together, particularly with HHH. X-Pac said that he “broke the bro code,” but the understanding shown by Paul and Stephanie was “amazing.” The interview ended with X-Pac plugging Paul Lazenby’s latest book, When They Were Bouncers 2. It is a “perfect bathroom read,” he said.
Score and Review (9/10)
This was a great episode of the podcast. Madusa is a frank, sincere, and energetic guest. She isn’t afraid to ask her own questions and take control at times, but always in a playful way. She lost sight of questions sometimes, but usually ended up addressing them at some point. It would have been nice to go more in-depth with some questions, but her way of answering made it difficult at times. Some people might be taken aback by her casualness and frankness, but it was refreshing to hear that Madusa lives up to her legacy as a pioneer for women. The bits about her time in Japan, wrestling Bull Nakano, and her heartfelt discussion with X-Pac about Chyna were definite must-listens.
About Chris
Chris Gaspare is a teacher from Maryland who has been watching wrestling since 1989 when he saw his first WCW Saturday Night episode and quickly rented as many NWA and WWF VHS tapes he could find in local stores. He also attended Tri-State Wrestling Alliance and early ECW shows in Philadelphia, which really kicked his fandom into high gear. He lapsed in the mid-2000s, but returned to the wrestling fold a few years ago.
For more, check out last week’s recap of X-Pac 1,2,360 with Alex Riley.
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