punkenhead

Not sure if this is the right place for this; but seeing as it peripherally relates to AEW in the concrete and WWE in the abstract, I will post my question here. If this is a dumb question, apologies. What are the odds that AEW would come to terms with CM Punk without some kind of verbiage regarding a non-compete clause? Terminating him for cause implies not paying his contract, but would it not have been smart business to pay him a portion of his contract in exchange for agreeing to a non-compete? Knowledge of this non-compete would certainly temper the expectations of WWE fans in regards to a CM Punk appearance anytime in the near future.

This first show was a roller coaster. Not in the sense of being the most exciting ride I have ever experienced, but in the sense of being entertaining while still having plenty of ups and downs. The ups: Buddy and Andrade tearing down the house while staying (mostly) grounded (It will be interesting to see if Andrade can pull off face when he is so naturally a heel). Skye Blue looking strong in front of her hometown crowd (much stronger than her mama's slaps anyway). Powerhouse Hobbs promo (He looks and sounds like an absolute star). Joe/Punk standoff (nostalgia hit me hard with this one. It took me back to 2004, which is so long ago that it probably meets the flippy fisty criteria of not being cutting edge). The downs: The announce team (on a positive note, I'm going to learn Spanish so I can just enjoy the SAP with the SAT going forward). Wardlow/Luchasaurus had its moments but was not a good effort overall (I get where they are going with this, and Christian is awesome, but I don't want to see MJF/Wardlow redone. I will never care enough about Luchasaurus for that to work. Also, how do you screw up Wardlow? He is athletic, talented, has a look that the ladies and gentlemen seem to dig, and is a genuine sweetheart in real life. This should be a no brainer). The ups and downs: Punk's opening promo (I felt like Punk reined himself in pretty well here for the most part and got his point across. However, if there is any truth to Zaslav calling Punk One Bill Phil and the reasons behind it, how does that change the power dynamic of AEW? Network executives badmouthing EVPs has to be seen as diminishing to their legitimacy and power, I would think). I agree with the person who said that Miro's return should have been a surprise. I was very happy to see him, but I feel it would have come across better if he would have just answered a Tony Nese challenge. I am always happy to see The Acclaimed, but the whole Daddy Ass schtick is starting to grate on me a bit. (While I am griping, The Acclaimed are still super over, but seem to have been relegated to the outside looking in as it regards the tag division). Overall: I can definitely see this show being required watching. It felt completely different than any other wrestling show currently on, and that is a good thing. I am glad to see Lexy Nair getting a bit more air time, and I would love to see some RJ City in the mix as well.

Late to the party in watching this week. Luckily, I have nothing overwhelmingly salient to add to the discussion. I will simply say that I agree with a few things: Big Bill is low key very good and Swerve is very, very good. The heat for Callis/Takeshita was incredible. Whoever said that Takeshita has the heel glare down was spot on. Bullet Club Gold on the mic were, well, gold. I know they will be adding new members because, that is what Bullet Clubs do, but I am enjoying the Switchblade/Rock Hard dynamic at the moment. I really like Kris Statlander, so I hate to ask this question. Does it seem like she lands very hard on her knees on the 450? I can't imagine that surgically repaired knees will hold up that kind of repeated abuse, but I would be glad to be proven wrong. I wasn't a big fan of the main. I am not as vehemently anti-Adam Cole as many seem to be, but I would not go out of my way to see him perform either. Are their any Adam Cole super fans that would like to explain what I'm missing?

I am a bit of a HEY! (EW) connoisseur. I have enjoyed every time that RJ City comes close (or succeeds) in getting his guest(s) to break. This episode was very different. Shida was enchanting and effervescent and played off RJ very well. RJ, for his part, was laughing with Shida, instead of at Shida, so to speak. All in all, it was a very good episode.

Hell yeah! Sometimes you think you have gone too far, but you just have to go one step beyond!

Back in my day, all you needed to impress a woman was an '82 Mustang 4 cylinder, a mullet, and an "I broke Wahoo's leg" shirt.

Redneck is a state of mind, not geographical.

I am normally not a fan of Brian Cage matches, nor did I ever think I would be in a position to be his defender. Tonight's match being flat was NOT the fault of Brian Cage. From a storyline standpoint, he did exactly what he was supposed to do. From an in-ring standpoint, I feel like Daniel Bryan called a flat match. Maybe he underestimated what Cage was capable of physically in the ring, and called based on that; but Cage did fine with what he was given. The opener was great. Lexington loves Ricky Starks! Daniel Garcia is awesome and continues to show ever increasing charisma and personality week by week. Lexington loves Takeshita! MJF with the "not the first time a Jew had to hide from a blue eyed man" line? I did Nazi that coming; Anne Frankly, it shouldn't have been said. Wow! Buddy Matthews is really good at the whole wrestling thing. Ruby Soho and Toni Storm just walloped the stuffing out of each other. It was a ton of fun to watch, although I can never tell if Ruby is a brilliant seller or always on the cusp of a concussion. The main. What can I say? I was already in tears before Mark came down. I saw the one tag title and thought "Man, he should have had both". Then he pulls the other one out of his shirt. I lost it. Brilliant match. I don't know how they managed to do it. I knew he was going to hit the Jay driller, but the false starts added to an already poignant match. Well done. Having watched a lot of Briscoe promos the past week, I am not suprised by Ian Riccaboni's statement that Mark is the smartest man in the ROH locker room. If you pay attention, you will notice some of the pacing and words he chooses; and you will see that there is a lot going on there.

Just now getting around to Dark Elevation. Garcia and Blackwood had a very nice match, which was expected. Blackwood looked especially crisp in this, and Garcia is really starting to let his personality come through in his matches. I enjoyed everything about the eight man tag. Ethan Page was especially good, and I don't see why people give him grief. I like Brian Cage the person. I have never really enjoyed many Brian Cage matches, but the Willie Mack match was the gift that kept on giving. I can only assume this is due to the nearly godlike abilities of Willie Mack, who really should be wrestling on TV on a regular basis. I relish in the silly, so I really liked the Prince Nana/Dark "Odor" backstage segment. ("That's not a person, that's a wall.")

I have to ask. Is someone backstage trying to sabotage Ricky Starks? "Make sure to make fun of a person's speech impediment" doesn't seem like very sage advice to give. I love AEW, and I will always watch and root for them. Having said that, between the misogyny and ableism lately, you would think it was AEW courting the Saudis, not Vince. Do better AEW.

And his bevy of ladies who do not practice vehicle safety in any way shape or form?

So, AEW and NJPW have a working relationship. Why not have a small group of NJPW wrestlers front row next week (including Mercedes)? You could work it one of two ways. Either Toni Storm gets attacked at the beginning of the show and Saraya asks Mercedes to fill in on short (no) notice, or Saraya and Storm get attacked during the match by Shida, Hayter, and Baker. Then, Mercedes runs in to help make the save. On an unrelated note, I would like to second the comment someone else made about signing Billie Starkz. There is no downside at all to giving her a Nick Wayne contract, and there is a huge upside. She is legit.

Also, are we thinking Comoroto gets added to HOB as a 5th member or as a replacement for one of the originals?

Ricky Starks looked strong in defeat, but it certainly seemed like he was quickly swept to the side in favor of Danielson/MJF. I think he has shown his worth as an upper tier performer, and it would be a shame to see him quickly slide back down the card. All the matches tonight were good or better...not a single clunker in the bunch. Maybe I am old and cynical, but if I paid for 2nd through 4th row seats, I would be pretty pissed off having to stare at the asses of Muscles Meltzer and crew all night. Did they ever sit down? Again, maybe I'm old, but does anyone else have to constantly crank up the volume during backstage interviews and crank it down during in ring action? You would think they could level that stuff out and make it consistent.

Gimmick infringement! I'm just a poor dude from Tennessee who is not running the #2 wrestling promotion in North America.

Is it possible that Malakai's "unfulfilled promises" are related to Cody? When Cody left, things changed? HOB have certainly been featured as prominently in AEW as 90% of the roster, so it isn't like they have been buried. It also might have just been unrealistic to put a title on someone held together with baling twine and gumption. I support people taking a step back, if needed, to recalibrate and recharge. However, if this turns out to be a ruse on Black and Buddy's part to rejoin WWE, that would be low. At any rate, I am all for Brody King and Julia Hart remaining together. Brody is an absolute delight, and it is fun watching Julia get more comfortable with her character with every appearance. .

Have you seen Larry? He hardly screams "killer". He is like the canine version of CM Punk.

As an animal lover, if Kenny Omega's main role in all this is that he passed Larry to Megha Parekh to keep him safe then God bless that man and straight up fuck crazy eyed Ace Steel and thin skinned CM Punk. The man should be lionized, not suspended.

I don't know if this has been covered already, but during the Hangman/Danielson match, William Regal talked about how he does not know Hangman. He stated that he has never talked with him. Was he throwing shade at Hangman and lending credence to what Punk said about Hangman not taking advice, or am I reading too much into it?

I think you too greatly elevate the influence fightful has to be a needle mover. Whether they stirred the shit or not, it all goes back to Punk's unprofessional reaction. How are you going to be in a business like pro wrestling and be that thin skinned? The issue should have been handled more professionally, if Punk truly does care about "the boys in the back" like he purports. He intentionally made the focus of the PPV weekend about him and not the company and the workers who put on a good show. He totally killed the buzz for MJF's return. He totally shit on the hard work of everyone involved. Those are not the actions of a professional, even before throwing hands entered the equation. Also, unless Ace Steel is a world renowned chair flinging marksman, it makes no sense that he would be flinging furniture in the same room where he is worried for his wife's safety. I just worry for Larry's mental health through this whole ordeal.

Your takeaway from all this is that SRS needs to be held accountable for the actions of a thin skinned individual? Nobody forced Punk to bring up Colt Cabana. Nobody forced Punk to throw hands. If you were in a staff meeting and started talking shit about your co-workers and superiors in front of your boss, then became involved in a physical altercation with your superiors, would you have an expectation that your actions would be seen as sympathetic or justified, or would you expect to be suspended/fired/arrested? Even if someone did leak information about Punk/Cabana, so fucking what? It boils down to whether you are a professional or not. Punk shit all over his co-workers, took the wind out of every raised sail after the PPV, and basically did not put his company first...all over something that should have been addressed back in May, in a staff meeting (not like the one in my scenario above). And, all over something that the majority of fans had no idea was even a thing, nor cared about if they did.

So, I have been thinking about the possibility of an AEW Women's show. I was against it originally, as I felt that it segregated the performers from the main show. Now, however, I am of the mindset that it is a great idea. Have a women's only YouTube show, with weekly recaps on Dynamite and/or Rampage. The women end up getting more exposure, more reps, and greater character development, and the recaps take less time than a full match. Of course, big matches would still be on PPV. My only caveat is that TK needs to keep his hands off this show. It needs to be booked and produced by others. Thoughts?

After watching the media scrum, my illusion of AEW as roses and sunshine has been shattered to say the least. Whether the words Punk spoke were actually true, his truth, or just bullshit, the place to do it was not during a media event. Let's not even get into the fact that Punk basically confirmed the stories about him considering taking his ball and going home were true ("jeopardized a million dollar gate"), but what hypocritical horse shit to talk about how you want to help a company and its young stars only to completely bury them, along with the person sitting next to you who employs you. There are those who say this is a work, but what sense does it make to bury everyone in the company so aggressively? What is the payoff? It didn't feel like Punk was raging against the machine to advance an angle. It just seemed like he is very thin skinned. Kicking against the pricks when you sharpened them yourself is never advisable.

Jamie Hayter was the absolute star of the women's four way. I agree that Hobbs needed the win more than Starks, but that one hurt. The ladder match had some moments, and I was glad to have been proven right as to what Stokely was recruiting for the past weeks. I did not see The Acclaimed and Joe getting the biggest non-CM Punk pops of the night. The Acclaimed are super over, but are they over enough to not NEED the titles?

I think the main take away though should be that something big should be done with Ricky Starks, and soon.