AEW - AUGUST 2023

[Jrag]

This Punk AEW run has somehow been wildly underrated by the IWC as a whole. Not as much here. It is sort of wild to me that people can’t separate on screen and off screen to such a degree that it is hampering their enjoyment of an all time great pro wrestler revitalizing his career. I guess Punk can’t separate on screen and off screen either so hey I get how we got here. 

Hope it’s not over, but if it is that was a hell of a way to go out against Joe at Wembley. Incredibly fun match with an incredible huge crowd and they delivered in a way some were doubting if they still could.

And this run of Collision has been my favorite pro wrestling tv show in ages. I do not think they will be able to replicate it once/if he is gone. I hope they try.

I’m not the type to put a true ranking out of my top 10 AEW matches ever or anything, but for my money that Punk/Kingston sprint is as good any wrestling match this company has put together. The MJF/Punk feud made Max in a way his other feuds with more established stars didn’t or couldn’t.

Does his lack of athleticism sometimes get in the way of what he is trying to do? Sure. Are the shooty promo battles not for everybody? Definitely. But Punk’s peaks as a performer are, in my opinion, almost unmatched in all of wrestling history.  Punk/Joe, Punk/Cena, Punk/MJF.  
 

There is a lot of “tarnished his legacy” talk out there, but I don’t think we will look back on this run with that view. This is his legacy. Egocentric, erratic and GREAT.

[hammerva]

5 minutes ago, Phil Schneider said:

Eddie is a pro, he and Hero beat each others brains in when the beef between them was a lot rawer then it is now, I am confident he wouldn't have any issue working for or with him. He basically said as much in the Ringer interview I did with him

https://www.theringer.com/2023/4/1/23666008/eddie-kingston-roh-supercard-of-honor-claudio-castagnoli-feud-interview

 

Eddie probably has more heat with Punk right now than Hero. 

[John from Cincinnati]

1 hour ago, Zakk_Sabbath said:

Part of me is beyond over it, and wants them to lean into it and cut their losses with MJF cutting a 'Took his ball and went home'-style promo this week (adapted for the circumstances, naturally).

This would be a strange echo of Punk’s promo on the go-home Dynamite before the dog collar match, where Punk referenced the Austin “took his ball and went home” stuff as the framing of much lesser men.

28 minutes ago, Jrag said:

I’m not the type to put a true ranking out of my top 10 AEW matches ever or anything, but for my money that Punk/Kingston sprint is as good any wrestling match this company has put together. The MJF/Punk feud made Max in a way his other feuds with more established stars didn’t or couldn’t.

I’ll go you one further: my favourite AEW trios match is Punk/Darby/Sting vs MJF/FTR.

[(BP)]

My beef is that Punk has halved his potential opponents, and even though it’s a work, only doing business with his friends and supporters kills a lot of intrigue around his programs and matches. Everything else is secondary. I like AEW’s presentation and roster, but I’ve come to terms with being more into it overall when Punk is there. 

If the situation really is unsustainable, their best bet is to build Collision around Danielson, give him creative, and let him use people he wants to agent for and train. Benevolent Punktatorship. 

[Kevin Wilson]

Phil swoops in with the plug, I respect it.

While I think everyone's heart is in the right place, not all issues can be fixed by everyone getting in the same room and talking it out. First of all, the room would have to be so big they'd need to rent the banquet hall at a Best Western. Punk has issues with Jack Perry, Elite, Omega, Daniels, Dolph's brother, maybe Miro now, definitely Cabana. Do you think Punk wants to sit and talk it out with Cabana? Or are we only making people talk that Punk wants to talk to? And if you get them all together, does that magically mean they will be able to sort it out? Does Punk seem like the type that will admit to what he did wrong or does he just want an apology? It sounds good on paper but people mad at each other that try to talk it out can sometimes lead to chairs being thrown, we don't know how they are feeling and if they all collectively are interested in even talking.

[worldcupfever]

With no Punk, you wouldn't have to build Collision around anyone, would you?  You could have the full roster in the mix and still maintain a different format than the Wednesday and Friday shows.

[Matt D]

13 minutes ago, (BP) said:

My beef is that Punk has halved his potential opponents, and even though it’s a work, only doing business with his friends and supporters kills a lot of intrigue around his programs and matches. Everything else is secondary. I like AEW’s presentation and roster, but I’ve come to terms with being more into it overall when Punk is there. 

I see what you're saying but we're about six months from that mattering. Just last Saturday they did exchanges with Punk vs White and Punk vs Swerve that could have been programs. 

[worldcupfever]

18 minutes ago, (BP) said:

My beef is that Punk has halved his potential opponents, and even though it’s a work, only doing business with his friends and supporters kills a lot of intrigue around his programs and matches.

Business could pick up if Chuck E. Smooth is available.

[Zakk_Sabbath]

22 minutes ago, (BP) said:

My beef is that Punk has halved his potential opponents, and even though it’s a work, only doing business with his friends and supporters kills a lot of intrigue around his programs and matches. Everything else is secondary. I like AEW’s presentation and roster, but I’ve come to terms with being more into it overall when Punk is there. 

 

8 minutes ago, Matt D said:

see what you're saying but we're about six months from that mattering. Just last Saturday they did exchanges with Punk vs White and Punk vs Swerve that could have been programs. 

I know this isn't really the conversation, but Id argue this is the issue with *any* kind of roster splitting, whether informal or not - if I were a Punk guy I would simply have no reason to tune in on Wednesday/Friday. What BP said is IMO the exact reason why every time WWE does one of these roster splits, it falls apart 3 years later with constant 'Supershows' or 'Roman and Cena are free agents now :)'

Edited August 29, 2023 by Zakk_Sabbath

[Octopus]

With Collision creative talks, I recall This Article that said Dax, Danielson, Washington, and Jimmy Jacobs were doing some of the Collision creative. I heard elsewhere that with Danielson’s injury he hasn’t been recently. 
Out of the shows, Collision has been my favorite. Such a different feel from Dynamite. I loved the FTR vs BCG series. Seeing Starks shine as a prick is fun. CenaM Punk is super fun and has a certain edge to it that Cody (yes, I did love me some Cody) didn’t. I really enjoy so much flowing through Punk on just this show. He’s enough of a prick and captivating personality that it actually makes sense to have so many people wanting to fight him. It low key makes more sense than when you have a super heel or face and only one person is currently made at them. Collision did a good job threading that needle. 

[Technico Support]

2 hours ago, For Great Justice said:

If he’s gone, I vote giving the Collision book to Chuck and Trent 

YOUR new TNT champion, "No Gimmicks Needed" Steve the Samurai!

[John from Cincinnati]

25 minutes ago, worldcupfever said:

With no Punk, you wouldn't have to build Collision around anyone, would you?  You could have the full roster in the mix and still maintain a different format than the Wednesday and Friday shows.

There’s something to be said about the Saturday show benefitting from a sense of exclusivity. And there are some people who would just want to do their own thing that would break the vibe. Too much Moxley and Jericho and this is just (at best) more Dynamite, which is not what it needs to be. 

[John from Cincinnati]

Are… are they ghosting him?!!

 

 

 

[Octopus]

I said I’d be happy with 8 months of Punk centered Collision. If he’s let go or on a long hiatus, I’ll be disappointed. We only made it about 2 months! 

If we go into a Punkless era of Collision, I hope it maintains its vibe. Maybe bring in Athena to be awesome. Have FTR tag feuds. Bang Bang Gang vs La Facción Ingobernable or something. Have Hobbs and Miro eat each other. Samoa Joe can chop people too.  

[Zakk_Sabbath]

7 minutes ago, Octopus said:

we go into a Punkless era of Collision, I hope it maintains its vibe. Maybe bring in Athena to be awesome. Have FTR tag feuds. Bang Bang Gang vs La Facción Ingobernable or something. Have Hobbs and Miro eat each other. Samoa Joe can chop people too.  

Man, this is like, literally all shit I want to see. I've been a bit glib for obvious reasons, but on the real, Collision's gonna be fine.

[Web Conn]

I said when AEW was just starting that CM Punk probably wouldn’t work out then he behaved himself for a year and I was duped into thinking it was gonna work. But as of right now I don’t think it’s working.

[Dog]

https://www.si.com/fannation/wrestling/news/report-cm-punk-jack-perry-incident-leads-to-suspensions

Quote

All In was scheduled to start with Punk against Samoa Joe. But due to the altercation, there was a quick-but-significant discussion about having a different match -- the six-man tag pitting Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi, and Hangman Page against Jay White, Juice Robinson, and Konosuke Takeshita -- open the show.

The wrestlers in the six-man tag were prepared to start the pay-per-view, but that turned out to be unnecessary. Punk and Joe opened the show as planned after Samoa Joe spoke with Punk, multiple sources confirmed. To the credit of Punk and Joe, their match took place without issue.

It's kind of awesome that two of the guys Punk hates so much were ready and willing to help clean up yet another one of his messes. 

Edited August 29, 2023 by Dog

[Matt D]

Hear me out: a six-month Eddie Kingston vs RUSH feud.

[Octopus]

1 minute ago, Matt D said:

Hear me out: a six-month Eddie Kingston vs RUSH feud.

Why so short? Kingston holds grudges for life.

[Brandon Bones]

I don’t know.  Punk doesn’t have a lot more credit left on the card to spend before this turns into a “Van Halen is never getting back together” thing.  Where being a fan is just so continually disappointing that it’s just not worth it anymore.  
 

Yeah, I know that Roth and VH eventually reunited.  But by then who could give a fuck?  
 

Every time I go on this board or a news site.  There’s Punk getting into some shit with somebody.  It used to be endearing when he was punching up to Vince, HHH, and Nash.  But now it’s Nemeth, Hangman, Jungle Boy, and (allegedly Cabana to spark it all off).  Whisper whisper.  
 

Yeah, he’s a great tenured character to have on the roster.  Worth every penny in that capacity.  The attention, t-shirts, big marquee matches.  Yeah he brings all that to the table.  His Bret Hart tribute band works for me.
 

I was over the moon when Punk came back.  The thumb to the eye that it was to the E.  Chefs kiss.  Showing you can survive the the corporate behemoth that it has overgrown into.  
 

Much of AEWs narrative is painted in the same colors.  This should be a natural fit.  And I don’t disagree that the glass spots is both a bad idea and nothing I really need to see.  But I can understand why if it’s “Punk” pulling a lever to kibosh an idea in the face of other allowances… I’d be real WTF about it too especially when I’m a younger guy trying to make my name in the shadow of another name.  That’s pass interference on your own teammates.

Jack found out when he wasn’t booked to win the Pillars 4 Way that he wasn’t the chosen one.  MJF has more yet in the tank and the stars are not yet aligned.  He has certainly busted his ass to get what he has.  So I’d relate and empathize if he at all felt passed over holding a pretty solid resume.
 

I’m speculating, of course.  A lot of motherfuckers could learn a thing or two by letting go of a thing or two.

 

[Technico Support]

9 minutes ago, Brandon Bones said:

It used to be endearing when he was punching up to Vince, HHH, and Nash.  But now it’s Nemeth, Hangman, Jungle Boy, and (allegedly Cabana to spark it all off).

Funny how all Punk's behavior in AEW makes it really clear that his gripes back in the day were never about Punk being mad at the establishment for not giving all the young guys a chance and only pushing part timers and old guys.  It was only about them not pushing Punk to the heights he thought he deserved. 

Edited August 29, 2023 by Technico Support

[porksweats]

17 minutes ago, Matt D said:

Hear me out: a six-month Eddie Kingston vs RUSH feud.

That means we'd get Eddie Kingston vs Preston Vance in the build, I'm sold.

[Octopus]

To piggyback off of that. Whether true or not, the reports were that JungleBow was already asked not to use glass by Tony Schiavone and others. His little comment (to me at least) came across not just disrespectful to Punk but the whole company. Again, I’m going off of all the dirt sheets so maybe I’m entirely wrong on this. Saying all of that, Punk should have enough self control to not get into ANOTHER fight when he’s back from a previous suspension. I don’t know anything, but everyone is coming off like children. 

Jungle Boy not being the chosen one: I’m biased here, so I guess more thoughts from others would be helpful. I feel like the brief pillar feud was almost like a test to see who is ready out of that bunch. Darby came across good. Guevara was kinda booked weird but did alright. MJF is the champ for a reason. I was very underwhelmed by Jack Perry. Until his recent turn, I have been as well. He might be hitting something with his leather jacket prick gimmick though. 

[Zimbra]

Shit, do a whole LFI v Eddie/Lucha Bros feud while Pac is out then do Eddie/Pac when he comes back.

[TheVileOne]

Fightful Select is now reporting that CM Punk has not been informed of his apparent suspension. This is an utter shitshow. Tony Khan has once again completely and utterly failed as a company head, and he needs to hand over these duties to someone else because he clearly has no idea what to and how to manage wrestlers who hate each other and can't be around each other.