I Listen So You Don't Have To: Steve Austin Show Ep. 200

Young was on Austin's latest milestone episode Photo Credit: Lee South/ImpactWrestling.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: 200 (March 5, 2015)
Run Time: 1:45:56
Guest: Eric Young (16:22)

Summary: Austin invites former TNA Champion Young to stop by the house at 316 Gimmick Street. They talk about Young’s work on television shows outside wrestling, check in on the status of TNA and discuss the publicity obligations of being a promotion’s leading face in the media. There’s a bit of discussion about Jackie Chan, as well as the audition process in Los Angeles. Young goes over some of his favorite matches, as a spectator and participant, and describes his approach to his recent heel turn. He mentions the influence of Brian Pillman, how his early work as a comedic character helped him over the years. They ended talking about workout approaches, and Austin has a story about pooping.

Quote of the week: (Young) “The first one we recorded was the marlin episode. And man, I was in that inner tube for sometimes 12 hours at a time. We did three days of fishing. You’re a fisherman, you’re an outdoorsman, I can tell you this: Fish don’t give a fuck if you’re making a television show. They don’t care. They’re on their own time. They don’t want to get caught, you know? They’re not working with you. Mother nature hates me, hates you, hates everybody. It’s raining, it’s burning hot sun and I’m talking, they’re recording me; we probably shot 40, 50, maybe 60 hours of footage for a 21-minute show. It almost killed me.”

Why you should listen: Young is kind of an odd dude. He’s clearly a lifelong, dedicated wrestling fan (he attended WrestleMania III) and performer, who is quite serious about his craft, but he’s also got varied interests outside the squared circle. It’s easy to see why he and Austin get along so well, and their lengthy conversation here springs naturally from their common bonds. I enjoyed a TNA company man openly praising past and current WWE offerings yet maintaining a belief in the viability of his employer and its importance to the overall scene.

Why you should skip it: This chat certainly is no 200th episode spectacular. If you’ve got an active dislike of TNA, then it might make sense to take a pass. There’s nothing much from Austin in this episode you can’t glean from any of his other shows. None of it is bad, really, it’s just not groundbreaking or super revelatory.

Final thoughts: I can’t make this one a “must listen,” but I did enjoy the chat. I don’t follow TNA in the slightest, but give me Austin talking wrestling with an in-person guest over any of his email or listener caller shows, or another interview with a Broken Skull Challenge contestant or ranch roundup with Ted Fowler. If you’ve got an open mind about wrestling talk involving people who have or will never be on a WrestleMania card, you’ll be able to enjoy large chunks of this episode.