The Story of Wrestling

Alasdair takes another sidestep out of the usual discussion to explore how wrestling compares with other kinds of collaborative performance like improv and Dungeons and Dragons. And who better to do that with his own Dungeon Master? Gideon Bautista is a writer, actor, wrestling fan, and longtime D&D player, and he joins Alasdair to discuss how putting together a campaign is like booking a wrestling show. Is playing Dungeons and Dragons like being a wrestler, or is it like being an audience member, liable to take over the show at any point? All that plus plenty of love for WWE's newest Hall of Fame inductee, Dave "The Animal" Batista, or Hollywood star Dave Bautista, if you prefer. Is he the most talented actor to ever come out of a wrestling ring? Gideon explains how his fellow Bautista made use of classic Meisner technique in his famous promo on the road to this year's WrestleMania, which Shakespeare character the Animal most reminds him of, and how his 2009 heel turn on Rey Mysterio is absolutely chilling. It's a fun, free-ranging conversation about the mechanics of acting and storytelling in wrestling, so come listen!

The team reunites this week, as Kyle rejoins Alasdair for a look back at a fun week in wrestling. Uh, except Survivor Series. We didn't get to that. But my goodness, is there still a ton to talk about! We look at the two explosive WarGames matches from the latest NXT TakeOver, then segue to a look at the latest episode of Dynamite. Are we all ready for Nick Jackson, singles star? Does Darby Allin have a ceiling? Why do we hate MJF so damn much? All that plus an extended look at how AEW is slowly building up its women's division, even as that remains the area where Dynamite is still the farthest behind what WWE is doing...

For the first official episode of the podcast's bold new era, Alasdair is joined in by Luis Paez-Pumar, late of Deadspin, a good website. We were planning on really only talking about AEW and Full Gear, but then C.M. Punk had to... well, not technically rejoin WWE, but do the next closest thing. Also, AEW head Tony Khan may not be stepping into the ring anytime soon, but he's proved himself quite happy to hit some serious moves on Twitter, and this simply must be addressed. Then we do look at what worked and what didn't about AEW's first pay-per-view now that Dynamite is up and running. (Spoiler alert: Emi Sakura, please listen to this. Scorpio Sky... maybe less so.) Be sure to check out what Luis and all his former colleagues are up to by following @UnDeadspin on Twitter!

From out of nowhere, the podcast lives! After more than a year's hiatus, Alasdair has dusted off the podcast, with plans to start talking wrestling again now that there's so much (mostly outside WWE, we'll get into that) to talk about. As is typically customary for podcasts, there are plans to, uh, have *other* people on as well, but some last-minute scheduling snafus means Alasdair is by himself for this one, channeling his best heel-era Seth Rollins in the first segment of Raw to cut a 40-minute promo about why the podcast went away, why it's back, and what's next. Consider this a little reintroduction before the fun really starts back up again.

It was a massive WrestleMania weekend, and Alasdair and Kyle are here to work through all of it. We save the perfection that was NXT TakeOver: New Orleans for the end of the show, especially since the brilliance of that ladder match and that unsanctioned match have our brains still melted days later. In the meantime, we talk about what worked and what didn't from WrestleMania 34. We're here for the wrestling goodness of the Intercontinental Championship match, the great storytelling and even greater followup for the SmackDown Women's Championship match, and the shocking brilliance of the mixed tag. Plus we try to figure out what was the deal with the increasingly bizarre main event matches.

Just in time for NXT TakeOver comes our big look at WrestleMania weekend! Alasdair has been going through a whole bunch of stuff lately and is fighting off a cold, so Kyle steps up to carry him much like we assume John Cena would carry the Undertaker if that matches actually happens. (It's going to happen, right? Right!?) We talk through all the matches for both TakeOver and Mania, and why Rusev should win all of them. Well, except the NXT North American Championship, where literally any of the contestants are great picks. Also, seriously, should Rusev just wrestle Cena as the Bulgarian Badass? That and other, non-Rusev questions are all answered within!

Yes! Yes! Yes! That chant can mean only one thing: EC3 got fired on TNA! (What? There were three yeses.) FINE, let's talk Daniel Bryan and his big return to in-ring action. Kyle especially is over the moon about this, and we consider just what it means for WWE to suddenly have another bona fide main eventer at its disposal and the potential stories it can tell. Plus we talk about the Ultimate Deletion and what the future could hold for Bray Wyatt, which Alasdair is pretty convinced will involve a whole lot of Bo Dallas. Plus we pay homage to Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa, the wrestling-loving grandmother who stood up to that bully Ciampa, and the glorious British shithead that is Zack Sabre Jr.

It's Fastlane time! And... Alasdair and Kyle try to bring their trademark positivity and optimism to this, but even we have our limits. We discuss just why this whole main event feels like such a mess, throw out an alternative or two, and then try to drag ourselves away from Sunday's action as soon as possible. We talk NXT and future callups, and Alasdair checks in with a report from last weekend's Manhattan Mayhem event from Ring of Honor!

Alasdair and Kyle do something they have been putting off for far too long and turn their attention to SmackDown Live, whether SmackDown Live wants it or not. We start positive by looking at the fiery promo battle between the Usos and the New Day, and we're still insistent that, whatever else you might say about it, the actual match between Charlotte and Ruby Riott ought to be pretty good. Bobby Roode vs. Randy Orton is the rare bout where somehow both faces need to turn heel. Is Shinsuke Nakamura doing anything before WrestleMania? And don't worry, we have plenty to say about the six-pack challenge for the WWE Championship, with a little side conversation about the Elimination Chamber thrown in!

We're back from a week off to get you ready for this evening's Elimination Chamber. Kyle pays tribute to the glory of Seth Rollins, while Alasdair nods along sagely. We consider how that incredible gauntlet match has set things up for tonight, plus where Rollins can go from here on the road to WrestleMania. Honestly, we try to figure out where about half the roster could go on the road to WrestleMania, and it feels weirdly difficult at this point. At least Alasdair remains absolutely convinced we're getting A.J. Styles vs. Shinsuke Nakamura. Don't you dare take this away from him. Plus we have some thoughts on the latest developments in Johnny Gargano's story in NXT!

Alasdair and Kyle dive back into a couple classic Elimination Chamber matches to get ready for the big pay-per-view in two weeks. We look at the first ever such match at Survivor Series 2002, and how so much of it feels like a rough draft for what later iterations would perfect. Then we consider the match from 2014 featuring Randy Orton at his best defending the title against Daniel Bryan, John Cena, and more. When the matches feature 12 wrestlers, 11 of them are former world champions, and the odd man out is Cesaro, we're in for a seriously fun week of talking classic wrestling.

Kyle and I will be recording later this weekend, and we will be looking at a pair of past classic Elimination Chamber matches to get ready for the upcoming pay-per-view. If you want to watch ahead of time, they are the 2002 match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Survivor Series and the 2014 match from the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view featuring Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton, and more!

With an incredible Royal Rumble weekend behind us, Alasdair and Kyle start preparing for the Elimination Chamber and Fastlane. But first, we try to figure out what's realistcally next for Kane, what could ideally be next for Kane, and just generally what purpose Kane could usefully serve in 2018. We feel like we owe him that much. We consider what the Miz and the Intercontinental Championship could be doing, as well as who else is likely to fill out the slots in the men's Elimination Chamber match. Plus we discuss the SmackDown titles scenes with plenty of talk about Rusev, Sami Zayn, the Bludgeon Brothers, and more!

We wrap up our weekend in Philadelphia with our emotionally spent, frequently hoarse reactions to Sunday night's Royal Rumble pay-per-view. The handicap match was better and way more simply booked than we had expected, and the Raw tag team match furthered Jason Jordan's story in spectacular fashion. Beyond that, well, the other two non-Rumble matches didn't do a whole lot for us. But the Rumble matches, my goodness, those were both something very special. We try to break down all the stories and little moments of awesomeness from both Rumbles, all while celebrating just who emerged victorious from each contest. What a weekend...

Alasdair and Kyle are recovered from the incredible, emotionally exhausting draining experience of going to NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia! We have some spoiler-free praise for the pre-show matches set to air on next Wednesday's show that feature Roderick Strong, Tyler Bate, TM-61, and more. We then break down a card that has some all-time great stuff and some wonky stuff, with more of the latter early on. We look at how injuries affected the storytelling in the tag and women's title matches. We praise Velveteen Dream and his limitless potential, even if he still has things to figure out (which, you know, he's 23 years old, so that's fine). And then we have nothing but praise for Aleister Black and Adam Cole, which would be the match of the night if not for Andrade "Cien" Almas and Johnny Gargano melting our minds and our hearts with pure wrestling perfection.

We're coming at you live from Philly! Alasdair and Kyle are together in the same room at last to break down the Royal Rumble before they head off to NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia! We're excited about the tag title matches, confused about the heavyweight championships, and just generally prepared to be watching the two Rumble matches for hours upon hours. With so many open spots, who might show up? Who will emerge victorious, and why is it Rusev? We've got all your answers as we give you the second of our Royal Rumble weekend episodes!

It's Royal Rumble weekend, and Alasdair and Kyle are headed to Philadelphia! We'll have a bunch of episodes coming at you from our trip, and we run down the entire bonkers schedule that we have ahead of us. First up though we have to struggle through technical difficulties one more time to bring you this preview of NXT TakeOver: Philadelphia, which might be the first TakeOver we can recall in which we're most excited about the championship match. But there's plenty to like about the other four matches, and we break it all down as we get ready for the likes of Ember Moon and the Undisputed Era to defend their titles. Plus we take a few minutes at the end to discuss the all-important question of 205 Live's General Manager. Oh and thanks for giving us so little to talk about, Raw 25, we owe you one!

Kyle and Alasdair have another round of awesome listener questions. We consider whether the returns on Raw 25 will throw off the thrill of the legends who might be in the Royal Rumble. We look at just who we want to see show up in the first ever Women's Royal Rumble. We try to work out just how the WWE Championship match can work out that isn't just all Shane McMahon all the time. And we have take a look at what else we're getting excited about for NXT Takeover: Philly and the Royal Rumble!

Alasdair and Kyle are here to answer your questions as we continue on the Road to the Road to Wrestlemania, otherwise known as the build to the Royal Rumble. But first, we discuss the all-over brilliance of Jason Jordan, the most wonderfully annoying wannabe in WWE, and the incredible coolness of the Balor Club. We're asked to pay our respects to the Miztourage, all-time great stable. We debate who should win the inaugural Women's Royal Rumble. We wonder what Braun Strowman could do at WrestleMania if he's not involved with the Universal Championship. And we look at the women of NXT and who has us most excited about their potential.

We keep it simple for our first episode of 2018. Recording the night after New Japan's Wrestle Kingdom, we look at the most Canadian match ever (give or take the Harts, Edge and Christian, and Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn), as the twin toasts of Winnipeg Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega went at it for 36 glorious minutes. Check out this match if you haven't, or give us a chance to explain why this is worth watching, as it fuses the best of WWE and New Japan, with a bit of old-school Ric Flair-style psychology thrown in. Then we look at the bizarrely muddled main event scene on SmackDown and try to figure out who to root for other than Alasdair's beloved adult son A.J. Styles. We also are all-in on Jason Jordan, proto-heel.