The Pro Wrasslin' Thread (WWE, WWF, WCW, TNA, ROH, NWA, NJPW, etc)

[PAOerfulone]

JWeinCom said:

Well, the CM Punk era in AEW is done. Not going to bother recapping the details. I largely sympathize with CM Punk. But, the industry isn't what it used to be. If Crash Holly had thrown shade at the Undertaker in the attitude era, there was definitely gonna be some physical consequence. But, in this day and age, if you put your hands on someone backstage, deserved or not, probably gonna get fired. Especially if it's a second time. But I'm not sure Punk really cares. For better or worse, Punk has always been a person who cares more about being right than getting along. If he was going to make it in AEW he was going to have deal with barbs and jabs and the occasional disrespect. He wasn't willing to put up with it. Maybe he should have been.

Fair to say that in the end the CM Punk experiment didn't work. This really should have been a slam dunk for all involved, but they couldn't get everyone on the same page.

I want CM Punk to come back to the WWE. Cut a promo saying people think he doesn't know when to apologize. But that he does. Then go on to do a string of apologies. To Vince McMahon, to the wonderful doctors of the WWE. Then, to the greatest pro wrestler of all time... HHH. Say that he deeply regrets that they were never able to work together at Wrestlemania, but now he wants to be able to work under such a true visionary.

Essentially make him the biggest schill in the fucking world. Then, turn him from CM Punk to GM Punk. Have him basically play HHH's authority character. He will be the most hated man in the industry by far. When he uses the phrase "best for business" there would be nuclear heat. It would be fucking glorious.

Couple things.

For starters, your Crash Holly/Undertaker comparison is... inaccurate and that's putting it delicately. That's implying that Undertaker is viewed in the same negative light and disdain as Punk is in AEW - which couldn't be further from the truth. By all accounts Undertaker is revered, respected, and admired by just about everyone who has ever worked w/ him and everyone who went through that WWE/WWF locker room while he was there damn near unanimously sings his praises and views him as THE leader, the voice of reason, a Man among men, and the Heart and Soul of that company. If Crash had done something like Perry did, he'd have been blasted, ribbed, and kicked out of that locker room and fired from the company on the spot. There's a reason he was always the judge in their "Wrestler's Court." When Taker said something, they ALL listened. And if someone messed him, they messed w/ ALL the boys. Because he earned that respect and admiration for who he is and how he conducted himself. Ironically enough, it was CM Punk of all people that actually DID throw some shade at Undertaker back when they both worked there. The story goes that while Punk was World Champion, Undertaker approached him about how he was dressed so casually, saying that he should dress more professionally since he's the champion and thus is representing the company and Punk basically brushed him off or retorted by using John Cena as an example. Gee, funny how life can come full circle like that.

CM Punk is NO Undertaker. Not even close.

Punk CLEARLY is not viewed in that same light in AEW. Or anywhere for that matter since I seriously doubt he'd be viewed much different, if at all, if he does go back to WWE. Vince, Triple H, Stephanie, Seth Rollins (and if Rollins wants nothing to do w/ him, chances are Becky doesn't either), Roman Reigns, and Kevin Owens all have beef with him, and that's just off the top of my head. And how about when he flew off the handle at The Miz over a tongue-and-cheek comment he made over "changing the culture" and he responded w/ "Go suck a blood money covered dick in Saudi Arabia, you fucking dork." And the reason for that? Because he was still butthurt over the fact that Miz main evented WrestleMania and he didn't.

Like, holy shit, dude! Let it go! Enough is enough! The dude holds on to grudges like he's dangling from a cliffside! 

CM Punk has nobody to blame but himself for how this all went down. If you view yourself as a locker room leader, you should know better than to fly off the handle and throw a tantrum like a child over something that is ultimately insignificant. And what makes it worse is that this is a repeated occurrence. Before Jack Perry, there was Ryan Neymeth and the "softest man alive" tweet. Before Ryan Neymeth, there was Moxley and "fragile ego, fragile mind, fragile body" line. Before there was Moxley, there was Jericho and his "cancer to the Locker Room" line. Before there was Jericho, there was Kenny and the Bucks. Before there was Kenny and the Bucks, there was Hangman. And when he came back this year, on a random night after Collision went off the air - the show that was made FOR him and where Tony bent over backwards to give him creative control and divide the roster so he wouldn't have to see the Elite. Out of the blue, he has to take ANOTHER shot at Hangman over something off-script Hangman said in a shoot promo a year and a half ago. Like, FFS man, it's over and done with! Move on!

Whether or not Perry deserved it is irrelevant, like I said if you view yourself as a locker room leader, you simply cannot react like that and you CERTAINLY cannot put your hands on them and MOST DEFINITELY cannot attempt to assault your boss. And Perry's comments weren't just addressed to Punk, it was also Tony Schiavane, Tony Khan himself, and others who told him not to use real glass. And he should be punished if he went against orders, but you don't go up to the dude's face and sucker punch him. None of the others reacted that way, he has no excuse to do so.

The man is unhinged. For a guy who made a career and legacy off of shooting and going off script on people, the moment someone else does the same to him, all Hell breaks loose and he throws a fit. He can dish it, but he can't take it.

That is not a leader, that is a bully.

And if anyone think he's going to just magically change going back to WWE, the very place where, by his own words, "got him sick in the first place." (And that ain't the only shot he has taken at them since he came back two years ago), then I've got a bridge in San Francisco to sell them. At 44 years old, Phil Brooks is who he is. A narcissistic, want-to-be martyr who NEEDS to be right about everything and it's always Him vs. the World. Sure, it may be great for the first couple of months during the Honeymoon phase where he's back in the Fed, he's going to all the events and autograph signings, smiling for the camera, and Michael Cole is putting him over like the good ole days. But the man is a ticking time bomb. As soon as that Honeymoon phase is over. All it's going to take is ONE thing, just ONE little inconvenience to set him off and we'll be right back here talking about him and his attitude and ego all over again. Tony Khan should have cut ties with him last year, but didn't, and look what happened. He brought him back at his own peril, and if WWE/Endeavor does the same, they do so at THEIR own peril too.

We can talk about how people like The Elite, Tony Khan, Jack Perry, etc. share blame in how this whole thing unfolded, which they do. But at the end of the day, one man is the common denominator in ALL of it.

CM Punk is his own worst enemy. And everything that has happened to him, he has nobody to blame but himself.

Last edited by PAOerfulone - on 03 September 2023