A Cure for the Common Podcast: A WWF 1997 Retrospective

After seven years of carefully dissecting the year that was 1997 in the WWF, Tom and Kellen and ready to make their proclamations of the very best, worst, and most interesting wrestlers, matches, and promos of the year. Following that they announce their next, much shorter wrestling review project.

The final week of 1997 shows why Faarooq's grip on The Nation of Domination is weakening thanks to The Rock (and his own questionable management). Meanwhile, mystery boxes abound, and Owen Hart tries to get his revenge on D-Generation X!

Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon's run on Shtogun continues in a match that the ring simply could not contain. Meanwhile, on Monday Night Raw, there's a special Christmas episode, and Shawn Michaels is in a very giving mood as he is forced to defend the European Championship against HHH. Kellen and Tom review Shawn's championship history in despair.

After taking some time to discuss the then-current passing of Hana Kimura, Kellen and Tom review an interesting week of programming, featuring Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon vs Jeff and Matt Hardy on Shotgun in the dream match you never realized you wanted. On Raw, Vince McMahon explains why Kellen and Tom named the podcast as they did, and Steve Austin encourages The Rock to take up a new hobby.

Bow bow, are you ready? It’s the final PPV of the year, D-Generation X, and that means we have Shawn vs Shamrock, Austin vs Rock, the real Vince McMahon, The Blackheart, The Bootcamp, Butterbean, and blue-eyed Babyface Jim Cornette. Also Jeff Jarretts new music, a 20-minute detour into the history of TNA, and Don Callis giving some really bad advice. And if you think that description was all over the place, just wait until you hear about this week with New York, Free for All, the PPV, and Raw.

On the final week before the D(e)-Generation X pay-per-view, we scramble to fill out the card and actually get some build. The semifinals for the Light Heavyweight Championship tournament, kind of. Ken Shamrock continues his rivalry with Shawn Michaels, kind of. And Stone Cold Steve Austin drives The Rock absolutely berserk. That one is actually really awesome, and you should hear what Kellen has to say and what Tom had to miss out on.

D-Generation X recruits two of their most unlikely members ever, Goldust continues to be on the mend, Steve Austin becomes the greatest stage tech in the history of wrestling, and The Rock reminds us that beepers were once a thing. Meanwhile, our opening contest serves as another big step towards the Attitude Era as The Legion of Doom defend their Tag Team Championships against The Road Dog, Billy Gunn, and new entrance music.

On Week 46, Vince McMahon sits down with Jim Ross to say "Bret screwed Bret." How will Kellen and Tom side on the matter? (If you've listened to us before you probably know.) Meanwhile, The Rock and Stone Cold continue to make each other's acquaintance, and Rick Rude manages to be in two places at once.

It's official! This is the last time anyone anywhere ever will talk about Montreal! Who was right? Who was wrong? Was it a shoot? Bret, Vince, and No. It's the 1997 Survivor Series all decided right here for all time! You won't want to miss this! Also featuring other stuff: New York, Raw, and the first Rock v Austin segment.

Tom and his roommate Chris live in Bristol, England. Kellen and his wife Jen live in Madison Heights, Michigan, USA. It only makes sense that the first place they would meet in person is Tokyo, Japan. Tom and Kellen discuss their simultaneous vacations with a heavy emphasis on their shared experiences at Tokyo Joshi Pro Wrestling's TJP '20, as well as both nights of New Japan Pro Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom 14 in Tokyo Dome and New Year's Dash.