The Smack Addict Podcast

Some backstage drama leads to our hero Bret (as well as our ‘antagonist’, Shawn Michaels) legitimately tossed out of the building before the show starts, so this episode of Raw had elements that were made up on the fly. And it turned out okay! The Nation of Domination is changing in big ways, Austin vs. Pillman is promoted a LOT (and might… not happen), but everything is touched by the HBK-Hitman...

It’s crowning time, as we prepare to crown a new King of the Ring, potentially crown a new WWF Champion (but almost certainly not), and we can crown one half of the tag team champions as better than the other. Spoiler: only one person actually gets crowned. In between, there’s some decent matches and some flat-out snoozes, but it does have the best-ever Shawn Michaels vs. Steve Austin match, so th...

It’s time to undo a lot of the promises that were previously made for the upcoming King of the Ring PPV, as Bret Hart can’t wrestle Shawn Michaels, but Steve Austin can! Also, Steve and Shawn defend their newly won tag titles against the LOD, but the ending is a bit underwhelming. Really, this is a night of a bunch of odd endings, with strangely decisive victories and other shenanigans. Join Matt...

It’s a night of questions: can Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels co-exist long enough to win the tag titles? What will the Undertaker do to keep Paul Bearer from spilling the beans about this mysterious secret? And how can you have Honky Tonk Man AND an Elvis impersonator on the same show? Matt and Will try to uncover answers for these questions and more on today’s episode! BONUS MATCH: Bret Hart vs...

The main event of King of the Ring comes into focus when Bret Hart says he’ll beat Shawn in less than 10 minutes or never wrestle in the US again, and Shawn says he’ll take Bret on as long as the Hart Foundation are handcuffed to the ringposts. Sounds pretty intriguing for a match that never happens, right? And what does Shawn say that ends up being partially responsible for that match never happe...

The road to King of the Ring begins here, with the eventual winner of the 1997 King of the Ring losing in the first round. Huh? Well, that’s okay, because Mankind is here with Paul Bearer, who looks like a mummy, and Bret Hart ends the show by insulting Shawn Michaels until the show simply has to go off the air. But did he do it on purpose? Join Matt and Joel as they try to break it all down. BONU...

If you’ve ever wondered what Steve Austin’s first world title main event on a PPV looked like, search no further than this iteration of the In Your House shows! Taker defends against Stone Cold, but both men are defending against the hooligans at ringside, the Hart Foundation. Also, Vader and Ken Shamrock really punch each other, and Rocky Maivia and Mankind collide for the first time, too! BONUS...

The Hart Foundation is on the prowl, looking for Shawn Michaels, but they can’t track him down. That’s going around these days, as apparently the Undertaker has lost the WWF Championship? It’s a bad look for the Dead Man, but he’s on the case. Listen as Matt and Kris break it all down, plus a… BONUS MATCH: The Hart Foundation vs. The British Bulldogs, 2/3 Falls Match, Saturday Night’s Main Event,...

Brian Pillman spends most of the show praying for the success of Bret Hart and the newly formed Hart Foundation `97, but do they receive divine assistance? Owen certainly hopes so, as he takes on Rocky Maivia for the Intercontinental Championship as his injured brother Bret watches on from his wheelchair. Also, even though Steve Austin has a WWF Championship match in two weeks, he’s still intent o...

You want to hear about a historic episode of Raw? How about a show that kicks off (in part) the Attitude Era? Well, that’s what happens when Steve Austin gets his hands on Bret Hart, and then an ambulance driver. Also, we have a couple surprise returns, and Vader is behind bars in Kuwait! Matt and Daniel break it all down!

There’s no false advertising here: ‘Taker gets his revenge, bringing the fight to Mankind (and Paul Bearer) in a decent brawl, though his spirit of vengeance is thwarted by a less-than-operational lighter. Don’t you hate it when that happens? Also, Bret Hart and Steve Austin tangle once again, this time in the main event of the show, and both men end up hobbling out, but who won? Join Matt and Joe...

This might be one of the worst episodes of Raw ever, as the WWF heads to South Africa and they forget how to record commentary for matches, apparently. There’s a PPV coming up on the weekend, but you wouldn’t really know it. It’s befuddling, it’s baffling, it’s bad, and Matt and Will break it all down for you. But at least there’s a bonus match, right? BONUS MATCH: Bret Hart vs. The Dynamite Kid,...

Half the roster is overseas yet again, so just about everyone is pulling double duty on this episode, except Owen and Bulldog, who spend half the show watching the monitor in the back and cutting in. Also, Steve Austin gets one of his first huge reactions from an excited college crowd, and Shawn Michaels is here to vent! Join Matt and Daniel as they break it down, and as they unintentionally creat...

Owen Hart and the British Bulldog are headed for a tag team separation, but wait, what’s Bret Hart doing here? After a tearjerking moment, we move onto wondering about the Undertaker, and his current relationship with Paul Bearer. All this, plus Stone Cold speaks, and Jesses Jammes comes to the ring with a six year old. Join Matt and Will as they forge the bonds of brotherhood, much like a certain...

It’s the night after Wrestlemania, and the big news is Bret Hart’s turn to the dark side the night before, which Bret cements with his (awesome?) actions on this show, and he adds a significant anti-America twist. Also, the next PPV is already in sight, and a rather odd #1 contender has been set for Undertaker’s WWF Championship. Also, this edition of Raw ends abruptly and hilariously, so enjoy as...

It’s the granddaddy of them all! Sort. It’s pretty much a one-match Wrestlemania this time around, with Bret Hart taking on Steve Austin in the legendary submission match. Daniel and Matt break down all the glory, including how glad we are that it isn’t an I Quit Match, how fighting in the crowd was still very novel, and how hard the commentators push the famed double-turn. Elsewhere on the show,...

It’s the Raw before Wrestlemania 13, and our guy Bret Hart is in a steel cage match against Sycho Sid for the WWF Championship, which adds a lot of *~*intrigue*~* as Steve Austin and the Undertaker try to help their Wrestlemania opponents! Also, we get a fairly historic Bret Hart rant afterward, and Will and Matt discuss (and decide) on who in the WWF is ‘daddy’.

This week, we go to the battlefield, as Monday Night Raw becomes Raw is War. It’s the 200th episode of the show (though it’s never remarked upon), and the visual look of the show has taken a big step forward, with another piece of the Attitude Era snapping into place. But is there more to the show than several jobber matches and an unnecessary debate? Matt and Joel look the show up and down and br...

We get international on the podcast, as the first ever European Champion is crowned in Berlin, Germany, in one heckuva match. Also, Bret Hart opens the show against HHH, and Steve Austin calls in from the good ol’ US of A with some complaints about air travel. Matt and Daniel cross the Atlantic to talk about all the action and break it all down!

Raw gets EXTREME when the Paul Heyman’s hardcore fanatics stream into the Manhattan Center on a night where most of the WWF roster is overseas. Vince McMahon promises and delivers a big surprise, a significant Attitude Era mainstay pops up in the front row, and an all-time classic tribute video debuts. Matt and Will jump through proverbial flaming tables to bring it all to you! BONUS MATCH: Bret H...

Bret Hart is the WWF Champion, but he has no time to waste, because he’s got to defend the belt against Sycho Sid! He’ll try to stave off the big Arkansan at the beginning of the show, then the middle, then at the end, but that damn Texas Rattlesnake, Steve Austin, is causing a ruckus. Also, a very famous tag team is on the show a couple years before they became stars, and Jerry Lawler starts an e...

The WWF Championship is up for grabs in a star-studded and chaotic main event, pitting four top superstars against each other for the recently-forfeited title. Also, the tag titles are defended by feuding champions, and Jerry Lawler insinuates something horrible and hilarious about Rocky Maivia’s deceased family members. Join Matt and Will for a real one-match PPV, if there ever was one!

It’s like Raw, but on a Thursday! But actually, this is an historically significant show, with Shawn Michaels forfeiting the WWF Championship just before the Final Four PPV on the weekend, due to smile-loss-related reasons (and maybe a knee injury). Also, Rocky Maivia goes for his first bite of championship gold, and the four guys who are now vying for the WWF Championship on Sunday run into each...

It’s time for Royal Rumble Raw, but conspicuously absent from the show: the Royal Rumble. But what we do have is a stadium full of people in Toronto, and two title matches! Join Matt and Will for the first two hour Raw and the last ‘normal’ Raw of 1997, before things go haywire next week. BONUS MATCH: Bret Hart vs. Chris Benoit, Mayhem 1999

A week after his big WWF Championship win, Shawn Michaels is finally back on Raw, and he’s going to confront several of the men involved in the Final Four match at the next In Your House PPV. Also, Ahmed Johnson is wandering around backstage with a 2x4, and Joel and Matt question the stopping power of a Heart Punch. BONUS MATCH: Bret Hart vs. Ric Flair, Souled Out 1998