PWTorch Livecast Review
Wednesday Livecast Interview with Pat McNeill
Guest: The Sheet Sandwich
Release Date: August 5, 2015
DIRECT LINK TO LISTEN/DOWNLOAD
Recap by Joel Tesch
Top News Items
– Interview with Les Moore and Hugh Little of wrestling web site Sheet Sandwich, which focuses on covering the wrestling media.
– What is the reaction Sheet Sandwich gets from the media outlets they cover?
– Good overviews and analysis on a wide variety of current topics and trends in the wrestling industry
Topics Discussed (w timestamps)
– Roddy Piper is here to chew bubblegum and kick ass (soundbite) – 1:00
– “Hello You People”/Introduction – 2:03
– Pat Introduces Les Moore and Hugh Little of Sheet Sandwich – 3:00
– Moore discusses the origins of Sheet Sandwich – 4:18
– PWTorch’s Travis emailed question in regard to his Livecast reaction to Hogan’s racist scandal – right reaction or epic meltdown? – 7:58
– Discussion of pros and cons of Brock’s current run in WWE and how it affects the rest of the talent – 10:10
– Has the Sheet Sandwich ever made a wrestling media outlet angry with something they’ve said/written? – 16:51
– Moore discusses his journalism background – 19:38
– Discussion on whether the wrestling insiders downplay the success of 1988’s Bunkhouse Stampede PPV (especially vs. Starrcade) – 26:50
– Pat asks Moore and Little to name one thing PWTorch does well and one thing that needs improvement – 36:05
– Moore discusses the “Death of WCW” book – 42:55
– Discussion of ROH and analysis of their contracts – 45:30
– Tough Enough Predictions – 56:57
– Discussion of G1 Bullet Club – 1:00:00
– Sign off – 1:11:26
Episode Highlights
– Moore described starting Sheet Sandwich after being a member/subscriber of most wrestling newsletters and sites and decided to start a site that actually covers those media.
– Moore brought long-time friend Little aboard for his perspective as a wrestling fan who had never been an “insider dirt sheet” subscriber. He’s a fan, but one with a fresh outlook.
– Travis questioned Les and Hugh about their characterization of his reaction to callers during his Livecast two weeks prior in regards to Hogan’s racist rant as an “epic meltdown” instead of being “the exact right reaction.” Pat, Les, and Hugh agreed it was “high, volume, high-passion” and it was both an epic meltdown and the right reaction. Little said the message was on point, it just went “0 to 60.”
– They were asked about whether WWE needs a part-time Brock Lesnar while they have full time talent like Cesaro, Bray Wyatt, etc. that aren’t being given a big push. Little said they do need Lesnar, as they need a legit main event PPV draw. However, they also need to simultaneous build up stars like Reign, Ambrose and Wyatt. He said it’s less the presence of Brock and more the poor booking of the rest. Moore used Rollins as an example of bad booking making the champion look too weak. Pat said Lesnar is helpful because he’s the only one with clout enough to tell Hunter, Vince, Steph, etc. that something is stupid.
– When asked about Zack Ryder being the source for the Wrestling Observer, as he tweeted previously, Little admitted he didn’t really think that and did not know who the sources are. Pat suggested that there are many people that are sources for different aspects of WWE. Moore said he has sources, but it’s more feedback-oriented as opposed to “here’s the dirt.”
– Little said that Alvarez has given little digs to him about getting things wrong, but it’s been in good humor. Other than that no other media has really gotten angry (publicly) about anything they’ve said or written.
– Moore discussed his journalism background. He has a bachelors in journalism and wrote for his college newspaper. He then wrote the sports beat and local news for local and regional news. He got out of that due to the late nights and early deadlines.
– In regards to the 1988 Bunkhouse Stampede being underrated by “wrestling insiders,” they suggested that it was more national tv exposure for Starrcade. Pat suggested that it suffers due to the prominence of pushing Dusty Rhodes, who was overstaying his welcome at the point. Pat also pointed out that the Stamped went unopposed, vsersus 1987 and 1988 Starrcade which had Survivor Series competing against it (which led to fewer buys for Starrcade than the Stampede).
– Moore asserted that the Torch does very well with audio (the amount, the mix, the co-hosts, the live shows, etc.) and providing the Newsletter in both Text and PDF. As an area for improvement, Moore suggested consistency and simplicity in web site design and navigation (especially in the archived section). Little put over the weekly opinion piece in the Torch Newsletter. Little mentioned the Torch’s board and interaction as an area for improvement.
– When asked about the “Death of WCW Book,” Moore said he’d grade the original (he hasn’t read the revised and expanded version) a B. It was clearly written from a “doom and gloom” angle as opposed to a totally objective standpoint. However, from that point of view it was a good book. A satisfying overview of a company that was on top of the world in its industry and then screwed it up in a short period of time.
– Pat discussed ROH’s contracts being structured more to keep talent from going to TNA or EVOLVE or Lucha Underground as opposed to WWE (if WWE really wanted to buy out someone’s contract they could). Pat guessed Roderick Strong’s new contract to be a one-to-two-yearyear deal. Moore suggested the contract was less about protection from TNA or Evolve and more about protecting from NXT/development signing by WWE. Suggested Dalton Castle is one ROH should protect. In regards to Gabe Sapolsky, Moore does not see a scenario where he would return given all the that he has going on now.
– Little predicted ZZ to win Tough Enough. Pat pointed out that Miz’s save backfired as he likely was trying to get ZZ out. Moore predicted ZZ on the guys side and Sarah Lee on the women’s side. Neither watches Tough Enough consistently, though they follow the results and coverage.
– Little put over G1 and Bullet Club big time. He’s enjoying the straightforward storytelling and consistency of characterization.
Score & Review
8.0: A really enjoyable interview and conversation. Pat McNeill, Les Moore, and Hugh Little had an easy rapport and were able to tackle a wide range of wrestling topics. Moore and Little both conveyed fun personalities and had interesting discussion points. One great thing about interviewing other industry journalists is not only the range of topics able to be discussed, but also the interviewees willingness to openly critique and analyze (which is something that is sometimes tough with those who are working for, or hoping to work for, the wrestling entities out there, as they don’t want to step on toes or be seen as dishing dirt).
The Sheet Sandwich is a pretty unique media outlet, as it covers the wrestling media as opposed to just the wrestling industry, and it was interesting to hear its story. On the other side of the coin, there was no real news broken here…more of an analysis of current events and trends. Pat was great in adding in his own two cents where appropriate and keeping the conversation moving forward. If you want to get a good analysis on what was going on in the wrestling industry in a variety of facets at this point in time, this is a podcast to which you’ll want to listen. [One note: it was occasionally a little hard to tell whether it was Moore or Little answering a question. If my review has misattributed a quote or answer, I apologize.]
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