Mike Tenay

[YOUcanCALLmeCRACK]

So there have been some rumblings of how disappointed some people are lately with Mike Tenay. I think everything could be summed up by a section from DK Savior's BFG review:

Finally, and this is my biggest gripe of the entire evening. MIKE TENAY. He absolutely sucks at announcing. Some of the great action they ahd, and he was so mono toned and sounded so disinterested throughout the night. He would get excited and certain points, but every finish, he would say things like, "And Tara win the title", or "Five Star and RVD got him". Put some fucking hype it man. If you're disinterested, give it up. Do something else with yourself. He makes Michael Cole sound awesome. How about saying something like, "Hardy nails the Twist of Fate. He's got him covered. 1...2...3, WE HAVE A NEW CHAMPION. JEFF HARDY WINS THE TNA TITLE!". I'll gladly move down to Orlando and announce next to Taz if Tenay is going to just snooze his way through matches. Bound For Glory was the best PPV of the night, and it could have been even better if Tenay would have done a better job announcing. I scowl when I watch and here in a bland and emotionless voice, "Magnus has to tap", or "Storm with the Last Call again and he covers Roode for the pin". Major Gripe with that one.

So I did a little research and found out Tenay's problem: it's Taz! When Don West was with Tenay, he would get all excited and Tenay would feed off of that. Taz, for the most part, is laid back. It is hard for Tenay to get pumped up when your colleague is lacking in energy. Below are some clips during and post the Don West-era. Do you think that there is a difference in Tenay's intensity? Could just be me.








Borash in this one but same rule applies:

[magglis]

I don't know man i love Tenay and Tazz they are both to weird funny.In BFG they were pretty good

[Rockstar83]

Mike Tenay thinks TNA or "Impact Wrestling" is WCW.

[Dameduse823]

Interesting idea and I can agree with you about it being difficult to get worked up when the guy your talking to is pretty mellow but for someone who's been on commentary as long as him he should be able to play his part. Look at Joey Styles, he was exactly as over the top when he was working with King and Coach as he was when he was on his own

[Ozzy Mandias]

This is all very interesting considering the travesty that is going on at the other mob. I'm hoping someone might be able to back me up on this but I read somewhere that Jerry Lawler has admitted to being uninterested in commentating. MY GOD does it show. He is infectiously dull, making MC worse in the process. Now I respect all Lawler has done in the ring, and on the desk in the past. And I understand he just had a heart-attack and all that but the WWE needs to remove Lawler. He is just bad. I even go as far to say that Booker T was better than the current Lawler, and JBL might just be the best commentator in Wrestling today. Tenay and Taz are Joey Styles and Jim Ross put together next to The King at the moment.

[Cabers]

I have noticed a big change lately in Tenay i think he may be considering finishing up.

[tommytopographic]

It's an interesting topic, im suprised they have stuck with the Taz/Tenay team for so long considering how little chemistry they have. The best period for TNA commentary for me was the brief period when they had Don West turn heel, it was entertaining and had real promise but they dropped West from commentary the moment Taz became available. A move they made because of his 'big time' WWE connection and not for his talent on commentary in my opinion.
Taz is likeable enough but very rarely says anything interesting or funny, Tenay hasn't got the voice for play by play, horribly shrill and grating imo, but i thought he was perfect as the '3rd man' on commentary in WCW, offering knowledgeable insights. The question is do Tenay/Taz add anything to the product and the answer is an emphatic no.
Hell id bring back Shiavone, in my opinion one of the most underrated commentators out there, i always preffered him to JR. He has a great sportscasters voice and is one of the best at hyping the big and small events and storylines.

One thing i always find oddly funny is when Tenay and Taz are on camera together, when one is talking the other will pout, if u haven't noticed it watch out for it!

[HCollins-TNA1]

It's an interesting topic, im suprised they have stuck with the Taz/Tenay team for so long considering how little chemistry they have. The best period for TNA commentary for me was the brief period when they had Don West turn heel, it was entertaining and had real promise but they dropped West from commentary the moment Taz became available. A move they made because of his 'big time' WWE connection and not for his talent on commentary in my opinion.
Taz is likeable enough but very rarely says anything interesting or funny, Tenay hasn't got the voice for play by play, horribly shrill and grating imo, but i thought he was perfect as the '3rd man' on commentary in WCW, offering knowledgeable insights. The question is do Tenay/Taz add anything to the product and the answer is an emphatic no.
Hell id bring back Shiavone, in my opinion one of the most underrated commentators out there, i always preffered him to JR. He has a great sportscasters voice and is one of the best at hyping the big and small events and storylines.

One thing i always find oddly funny is when Tenay and Taz are on camera together, when one is talking the other will pout, if u haven't noticed it watch out for it!

I like Taz and Mike Tenay..... They work well but no where like Tenay and Don West did...... The thing about Don and Mike it was all about wrestling and commentating.... Now with Taz he adds comedy more then often, which is alright with me....

But I agree I would bring Tony Shiavone in myself even add him as 3rd member to the broadcast.... Slowly move Tenay off the show to Xplosion or If TNA would add another 2ndary show on Spike or where-ever!!! Tony was a great announcer and interviewer and under-rated due to he was pretty much Jim Ross secondary in the early years of WCW.... But you got to think who taught JR, Tony and Gordon Solie and Bob Caudill and David Crockett....

[tommytopographic]

I like Taz and Mike Tenay..... They work well but no where like Tenay and Don West did...... The thing about Don and Mike it was all about wrestling and commentating.... Now with Taz he adds comedy more then often, which is alright with me....

But I agree I would bring Tony Shiavone in myself even add him as 3rd member to the broadcast.... Slowly move Tenay off the show to Xplosion or If TNA would add another 2ndary show on Spike or where-ever!!! Tony was a great announcer and interviewer and under-rated due to he was pretty much Jim Ross secondary in the early years of WCW.... But you got to think who taught JR, Tony and Gordon Solie and Bob Caudill and David Crockett....

Anything before Monsoon, JR an Schiavone is really before my time! thanks for your opinion friend. I can't agree on Tenay/Taz, although i have grown used to them now out of sheer familiarity, i still don't think that duo adds anything to the product. I often watch impact and think 'if only the commentary team were better' and that really shouldn't happen on the company's flagship program. As much as iv tried to like them as a commentary team, i can't get round the fact that they suck, imho.

[Automatic]

You're right.
It's Tazz who drags Tenay down to his level of desinterest.
Just pay attention when Borash fills in for Tazz. The quality rises exponentially.