WWE Commentary Teams

[ProWrestlingFan]

There have been many great commentary teams in WWF/WWE over the years.

My favorite would be Jim Ross and Jerry Lawler. Those two were great together and provided with some of the best play by play and color commentary. Jerry Lawler was great as a heel commentator.

My second favorite would be the three men team of Jim Ross, Jonathan Coachman and Jerry Lawler. Those 3 were great together during 2003.

Honorable mentions : Michael Cole/Tazz , Michael Cole/ JBL, Paul Heyman/Jim Ross,

Which is your favorite commentary team and why ?

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I was torn here but I ultimately went with Gorilla Monsoon & Bobby Heenan. Listening to them bicker and get under each other's skin during tv broadcasts & ppvs was nonstop fun for me when I was growing up. They had a great dynamic chemistry and just played so well off each other that I was always entertained. Monsoon played the babyface straight man to Heenan's obnoxious/hilarious heel to perfection. You just can't mass produce or manufacture at will that kind of chemistry.

Jim Ross & Jerry Lawler came in 2nd. They too had great chemistry but it was ultimately Jim Ross that carried the team in my view. Jim Ross is someone that's such a student and lover of wrestling that you couldn't help but get into it when he was doing his thing on commentary. He was relatable and even funny when he needed to be, but what ultimately sealed him for me was his knowledge. He'd inject little bits & pieces of information on the wrestlers during their matches that helped to get the story across. Not trying to get any hate here, but Michael Cole looks to have started to do that just a little bit in some areas. For example, he's mentioned Punk's reign each week and how long it's lasted in comparison to some of the other long runs over the past 15-20 years. Little tidbits like that, to me, are interesting. Even though we can always find out info like that ourselves thanks to the net, it just makes the commentator seem more professional.

Also, how come there's no love for Jesse Ventura on the list? The Body coupled with Gorilla Monsoon or Vince McMahon could make for some highly entertaining commentary.

 

[gers09]

That's a hard one but I have to go with Monsoon and Heenan they were perfect together Monsoon was the perfect straight man always wanted things to be fair in and out the ring and Heenan was the greatest heel commenter he really had a wrestling mind. I have said it before he really was they guy we loved to hate. When they worked together they really got under each others skins but you could tell they had fun doing it and were best friends it was a shame that Monsoon didn't get to see Heenan go in to the HOF i believe he would of been they one to induct him he would of gave him a great induction


but jr and king are a close 2nd

 

[THTRobtaylor]

I actually went with Gorilla and Jesse Ventura. Heenan was a good foil but I always liked the way that Gorilla and Jesse would banter back and forth. Gorilla would often seem to mock Heenan or dismiss him while he couldn't with Jesse. Jesse was also dead on with a lot of his humor, things like "Chico Santana" and the Jesse The Body Award also worked great.

Jesse was better at being "biased" but authoritative too, Heenan would favour his guys but a lot of how guys like Rick Rude, Mr.Perfect, Big Bossman and Bret Hart got over were how Jesse would put over faces and heels if he felt they deserved it. Rude seemed important cos Jesse said he was from the off. He had anecdotes about Curt Hennig and his father, things that made people take him more seriously.

It's close, damn close, but for me Heenan was all about being the comedic figure... Jesse was the clever, witty PBP guy.

 

[MikeyTheAwesome]

My personal favorite was the trio of JR, King and Coach. We would hear the usual commentary between JR and Lawler along with some douche-bag yet hilarious remarks made by Coach that had Lawler laughing along as they would both tease JR.

JR and Lawler were great commentary and is arguably one of the best duos to commentate on RAW. With JR being pro-face and Lawler being more of a heelish commentator, Coach said a lot of things about faces that internet fans wanted to hear along with being the ***hole of the group which just made everything better.

 

[TheLoneCharles]

Any combination of Paul Heyman, JR, Gorilla Monsoon, and Bobby Heenan would get my pick.

A strong number two or three guy would be Matt Striker or Jerry Lawler.

But my personal favorite had to be Vince McMahon. I never knew as a kid that he owned the Federation, and right up until he became Mr. McMahon I always loved what he brought to the commentary. He had that voice that would pull you in, and I can see why he is on Cole's ass all the time because he isn't half of what Vince was.

 

[d3thRoW]

The Heenan/Monsoon tandem was pure gold, and likely won't ever be surpassed for my money. 1A would be Monsoon and Jesse Ventura, again hard to beat. Jim Ross + anybody else is as good as it's been for a long time, he is sorely missed on TV today. Booker T is the only one currently on commentary that makes me think he gives a damn about doing his job, or even realizes what he is supposed to be doing. Still got a lot of respect for Joey Styles as well, and what about Lord Alfred Hayes lol? Also, I'd take Tony Schiavone over Michael Cole any day.

 

[Burrows94]

I loved Michael Cole and Tazz. I thought they were a hilarious combo at funny situations yet kinda good at serious ones.

 

[suleman09]

JR and King
Simply because, i felt like they made watching Raw for me a more enthusiastic expeirence, i used to rewind the tv just to listen to something they said again. Even during the boring matches i would listen to them just for the entertainment they gave me

 

[mrpops]

1. JR/Lawyer
2. JBL/Micheal cole(These 2 were hilarious. Cole always sucked and JBL made fun of him non stop and i lol'd alot)
3. JR/Paul Heyman
4. The rest were okay.

 

[Nate DaMac]

Brain and Gorilla were the best. The banter between those 2 was unforgettable and no one has really come close to entertaining me the way they did. Even now, at a time where I find most of the old matches to be incredibly boring, I can still listen to their commentary and stay entertained.

A close second for me would be, shockingly, JR and Paul Heyman. Most people laud the chemistry between JR and King as being off the charts and they (rightfully) are called one of the best duos of all time. I just happened to prefer Heyman/JR duo a little more. Paul Heyman is what Cole wishes he could be. Heyman would intelligently find a way to side with every heel, no matter what they did and JR plays off of the stupidity of the heel commentator SOOO much better than King does.

 

[HBsam31]

Had to think about this one for a minute, but Gorilla and The Brain was my favorite. I was a kid and I really liked their bickering. They played off each other perfectly. They were at times, whether it was their intention or not, more entertaining than the match going on.
JR and The King were a close second for me. THe voices of the attitude era. Who can forget JR calling Foley off the top of the cage. GOOD GOD GOOD GOD THEY KILLED HIM. The passion that he put into matches can't be matched. Jerry Lawler was good as the wise cracking heel although puppies would tend to get on your nerves. JR more than made up for it though.

 

[HBKperfect23]

For me its not even close. I liked Gorilla/Jesse a lot, JR/Lawler were great, but no one will ever compete with Hennan/Gorilla. Simpy the best ever. Bobby Hennan is the funniest man in pro wrestling history and Gorilla was the best with having you feel wrestling was legit the way he called the match. Add in they were best friends and could play off each other all day long. Rumble 1992 still holds up as one of my favorite matchs ever and the commentary has a lot to do with it. Ill never forget when Flair dumped Sid out (YES!!!! YES!!!! YES!!!! HE DID IT!!! I TOLD YOU MONSOON!!!)

 

[Firewall_Philip_Hanan]

Although Jim Ross and Jerry "The King" Lawler is my favorite commentary team of the WWE, I find Vince and Jesse Ventura fun to listen to. It seems like they were always arguing over something. 3rd Place would be Vince McMahon and Jerry "The King" Lawler. Vince did a great job of commentating for Wrestlemania: The Arcade Game.

 

[The Brain]

You would think my choice would be Monsoon and Heenan, and while I absolutely loved those two together my favorite pairing was Monsoon and Ventura. Even though Monsoon and Heenan were hilarious together Monsoon and Ventura seemed like a more legitimate broadcast. They were more professional together. Even though they often disagreed as Monsoon always supported the face while Ventura supported the heel, they never got into an actual argument and you could tell they respected each other.

There have been many heel commentators over the years who have blindly supported heel wrestlers and simply made fun of the faces. Ventura always had a logical reason for supporting the people he did. He also logically challenged the faces and called them out for their wrongdoings. He called Hogan out for having a big ego. He called Warrior out for being a maniac with limited wrestling ability. He called Beefcake out for cutting an opponent’s hair. He called Roberts out for using the snake. He called the Rockers out for too much double teaming. We’re always led to believe the baby face can do no wrong but Ventura saw it differently and with Monsoon as his counterpart Ventura could point these things out without damaging the character.

Monsoon and Ventura would call a match as though it were a real competition. They would discuss strategy, analyze holds, and mention the possible ramifications of a result. I admit that Monsoon didn’t call a match with the same passion that Vince McMahon or Jim Ross did but I enjoyed his laid back style a little bit more. It also helps that Monsoon and Ventura called five of the first six WrestleManias together. That put the idea in my mind at a young age that when those two got together you knew it was a big show.

By the way, why is Vince McMahon not on this poll? He was good with both Heenan and Lawler.

 

[King Sheamus]

IMO no one can beat Good ole JR and King back in the glory days of the wwf Jr would get you into the match with his emotion and Jerry was a great heel who you could not help but love. They had great chemistry and there will never be a duo like them ever again.

 

[IT Factor]

Monsoon & Heenan, hands down. They had the best chemistry that a face/heel combo team should have and their commentary was always funny and insightful, while also informative and respectful to those talents that needed to be put over. Any other commentary team are just imitators and you can't beat the originals.

Although I did enjoy JR/King and also Vince McMahon/Jesse Ventura. Also, pre "corporation" Shane McMahon wasn't that bad on commentary. He did tend to oversell some things, but, he wasn't nearly as bad as Cole. And at least Shane-O-Mac was funny at times.

 

[Dilligaf]

Monsoon & Brain were absolute gold along with the early days of JR & King.

Whilst JR & King are not as good as back in the day, id prefer them to Cole, but JBL & Tazz whilst teamed with cole were really funny sometimes.

Booker T aint bad neither, but at the moment commentary whilst it isnt as good these days, you do get the odd funny quote now & then.

I think Nash should team up with Booker for SD, like they funnily did in TNA once.

 

[ThisIsLCS]

I voted Other for the team of JR/Tazz

When the brands actually Were split years ago they would pair These two up at the Royal Rumble and I Absolutely Loved them together.

 

[vampireblade]

For me it was JR/Lawler i mean these two were the voice of raw for so many years and had such great chemistry together i loved listening to them bicker and the way king just had fun with it.

 

[justtxyank]

Vince brought something special to broadcasts. He had the perfect voice for broadcasting in my mind. I really liked Vince and Mr. Perfect together.

I preferred Heenan as a manager personally, though I did like him as a commentator. I actually preferred him better as a commentator for WCW though.

 

[machokingmooney]

Monsoon / Heenan by a landslide for me, which is hard for me to say considering I grew up on JR and the King. But once King stopped being a Heel his commentary suffered severely. King is such a natural heel that having him sing the praises of Batista and John Cena every week was an incredible waste. Gorilla and the Brain consistently crack me up which I can't say about the latter part of the JR King run. Any time Gorilla lets out a "Will you Stop!" I can't control myself. I gotta be fair to flair, Heenan and Monsoon by a mile for me. But JR and King are a very strong second.

 

[Mr. HD]

I don't know about everybody else, but I could never get into Heenan and Monsoon. Maybe cause I didn't grow up with them, but even when I listen to their stuff, they're funny, but I have to take the team I grew up with: JR and King.

Both guys just play off each other so well. JR was great as the pro-face commentator and King was awesome being such a heelish supporter. It made for great entertainment and you could never get tired of listening to them. JR and King made watching RAW so much more entertaining because of their banter during matches.

It was just the little things about them like the side comments, King's laughing and random jokes, JR really getting into his job by yelling and showing so much fire and passion, etc.

Love JR and King too much. I would never go against them.

 

[KennedyKennedy]

I've only been watching since the late nineties, so I can't really say anything about Monsoon/Heenan or any other of the commentary teams pre-attitude. For me though, it's gotta be JR and The King. These dudes were just the commentary dream team back in the day. Great chemistry, very entertaining, but also knowledgeable.

Just gotta throw this in here though, when I say it's King and Ross, I mean heel King. Ever since Jerry turned face, I've gradually grown to hate his work. He used to be funny and entertaining, now I just find him cheesy and forced. Even when he was back with JR last year, the dude just doesn't do it for me anymore.

I've always hated Cole the commentator, I mean the troll character was pretty hilarious at times, but I never enjoyed his work as a commentator until JBL was taking the piss out of him. Heyman and JR made a great team, would definitely go down as my second favourite. I just loved their banter. As for the three man teams, I just generally prefer two man teams, easier to follow. Oh, and Lawler and Cole is just the worst.

 

[Owen 3:16 says I just stole your Slammy!!]

I went with Gorllia Monsoon and Bobby Heenan. Those two were great together. Heenan would say something fucked up about a babyface and Gorllia would fight back with like "Would you stop?" or "I'm going to kick you in and out, in a minute if you don't shut up!" Those two can make stuff entertaining and make you want to laugh your ass off! I love Wrestlemania 8, most of the reason why I love that Wrestlemania is because of the Commentary by Gorilla Monsoon and Bobby Heenan.