Edge & Christian open today’s show speaking about last Sunday’s TLC PPV.

Christian thought it was good that there was only one TLC match on the show, because if you have three or four of those matches on the same show the fans grow weary of it by the end of the night. Christian thought the show was pretty good but it didn’t ‘blow his socks off’.

Edge says that he just doesn’t get the fascination surrounding Asuka, but he thought Emma had a great showing on this night. Christian points out that when there’s that much hype surrounding a performer it becomes nearly impossible for the performer to live up to people’s expectations. Nonetheless, he thought Asuka’s presentation and facial expressions were good.

Edge couldn’t comprehend how Asuka, Emma and that match’s Producer thought it was good idea to utilize an ankle lock in that match when Hall of Famer, Kurt Angle was making his long-awaited return to the ring in the main event later in the show. This is a sign to Edge that someone just doesn’t have a mind for the business.

Christian says he really enjoyed the Elias segments. Edge agrees and points out that Elias is a throwback to Honky Tonk Man and Jeff Jarrett in his ability to get heat through his music gimmick. Edge and Christian both agree that Alexa Bliss and Mickie James had a good match, and they add that Mickie James is a great babyface while Bliss is a really good heel.

Edge and Christian really enjoyed the A.J. Styles/Finn Balor match. Christian says if he had his way, he would have taken 7 minutes from the main event and given it to Balor/Styles. He points out that these guys can certainly work together again in the future and they might even be able to top this match. Edge gives credit to Styles for flying across the world at the last minute and still putting on a great show.

Christian thought the main event was somewhat of a cluster and he felt that there needed to be more on the line. He also wanted to see traditional Kurt Angle, coming out to his music and wearing his singlet, but he understands that WWE wanted to give fans something special. This also saves Angle’s true return for a bigger show. Edge gives credit to Kane, who made his in-ring return in this match as well and looked like he hadn’t missed a beat.

Edge & Christian welcome Sami Zayn to the show.

Zayn informs that he started wrestling in a back yard and received his professional training in a back yard. He jokes that he hopes to finish his career in a back yard as well. He began his career wrestling around Quebec in 2003-2004, but once he started to travel to the United States to wrestle with Kevin Owens he started to understand the business rather quickly.

He mentions that he felt like he was learning everything rather quickly, but there were still some subtleties that he was lacking in the ring. His timing was still improving and he needed to adjust the order in which he performed some of his moves. He began to realize that you had to start with the smaller things and progress to more complicated, advanced moves as the match escalated.

Edge credits Zayn for being able to wrestle so effectively in a mask for a number of years. He points out that it’s very difficult to express emotion while performing in a mask, and Zayn was able to do that and build a fan base around the world. Zayn mentions that he thought NXT was planning on keeping his character the same, so when he had to retire that character it was a very hard day for him.

Zayn initially thought his in-ring style would be too much for WWE, but Triple H actually loved it so he hasn’t had to change much. He admits that taking his mask off and exposing his face brought a new level to his character. Edge says that Zayn’s facial expressions were very good right from the start, which is somewhat surprising for someone who spent most of their career in a mask.

Zayn says he’s very proud of the match he had with Nakamura in NXT. He knew they had put together a great story and it had the chance to be a great match, but when he made his entrance and stood in the ring awaiting Nakamura’s entrance, he knew it was going to be special. The fans were lively right from the start, and he knew they were going to tear the house down. He believes that great matches always stand the test of time, and he thinks this match will be able to hold up years from now.

Zayn believes that professional wrestling is at its best when there are good characters, great action, and captivating stories. The business can survive with only one or two of those things clicking on all cylinders, but when all three factors are maximized the entertainment level increases considerably.

He says that he’ll never forget his main roster debut with Bret Hart introducing him. He received an  incredible reaction in his hometown of Montreal that night, and he’ll never forget that memory. He admits that his memory of the match is somewhat cloudy because of the shoulder injury he suffered. His shoulder popped out of joint during the match and he popped it back in, but he was very surprised to hear after the match that it was going to require surgery.

Zayn informs that Vince McMahon’s mind works in a different way than everyone elses. His idea of a ‘heel Sami Zayn’ was completely different than what Zayn was picturing in the beginning, but McMahon was certainly right. McMahon urged Zayn to play this ‘happy, smiling heel’ that has garnered Zayn significant heat since day one. Zayn admits that he’s still figuring out how to work as a heel in the ring because he’s wrestled as a babyface his entire career.

Speaking about his relationship with Kevin Owens, Zayn says he and Owens have measured their success against each other for so many years. Watching Owens have so much success in WWE while he struggled to gain his footing was frustrating for him because he knew he could do so much more. He was extremely happy for Owens, but he knew when the time was right he’d be able to step up to the plate in the main event scene as well.

That sums up this week’s episode of E&C’s Pod of Awesomeness. You can listen to the show yourself anytime here, and I’ll catch ya tomorrow for another recap!