WWE Musings

How’s It Going, Enthusiasts?   Doing all right at the beginning of the week? This has been one of the smoother Mondays I’ve had on record so, I’m not complaining. I think you can probably tell by now that I rarely do.   Anyway, let’s see what’s going on in the wrestling world. So, CM Punk continues to be at the top of the heap, this time on real TV with a guest role on the new wrestling series Heels.   He basically played one of his alter egos in Ricky Rabies, an indie backwoods type of wrestler. Well, watch the episode for the glimpse it gives of Punk in the ring. That’s probably a good preview of what’s in store for fans in the months to come. By the looks of it, Punk’s still got it.   But what really intrigues me is how Punk is on his own personal media offensive. He’s blowing up in this bitch and that seems to be the plan.   I don’t have a problem with this, it’s just not quite what I was expecting. Punk wants to blow up on his own terms and he appears to be achieving t

How’s It Going, Enthusiasts?   I hope this Friday is going well for you. There some subtler things to talk about today. Given recent events, we can now start to see how they play out. It’s a very interesting time in the wrestling world. Let’s get started.   So, let’s begin with AEW. CM Punk on TV again in character is exciting but I find it engaging for other reasons. I caught his bit on Dynamite and I couldn’t help but notice how he went from honest interaction with the audience to seguing into his match with Darby Allin as cleanly as anyone polished by the WWE. Punk is establishing that he can handle the mic to those who don’t know and the manner to which he does so comes off as highly WWE influenced. Quite eye-brow raising if you ask me. True, it makes sense. We all know it’s in his history but at the same time, we all know that their relationship isn’t the best, or at least that’s how it seems. Nevertheless, it amused me to see how the experience permeates his presentatio

How’s It Going, Enthusiasts?   So, a little spent, are we? Yeah, I know most of you are drained from CM Punk’s return. I just kind of had my fill of wrasslin’. Not for forever, it’s like being full at a buffet. It’s like there’s plenty more and I’m just stuffed. And now, I’m trying to make room for RAW . Some may come back up 😉   Before I get to that, let’s go over SummerSlam for a minute. A lot of people didn’t like it. They loved Becky Lynch’s return, hated Bianca BelAir’s squash. No one minded Brock Lesnar showing up. People thought Goldberg’s match was a waste of time. Edge and Seth Rollins delivered but everything else got yawns. Doesn’t bode well for RAW’s ratings.   I’ll say this. It wasn’t the greatest PPV but they have definitely presented worse but as for the year, SummerSlam was the lamest one thus far. Yet, in saying that, there were only 2 bad matches: Goldberg vs. Bobby Lashley and Jinder Mahal vs. Drew McIntyre. Everything else was decently executed but not

Happy Saturday, Enthusiasts!   So, before we get into SummerSlam, let’s just get CM Punk out of the way first. I can see why people like him. He is a great orator and you can see that he feels deeply about this profession. It’s easy to see how WWE could have “led him astray” both in kayfabe and real time. Given that, I hope this run is a good one. It seems to be for the right reasons and oftentimes, that’s half the battle so, I’m happy for him. I hope this relights the flame he had for professional wrestling. I admit that what WWE has to offer is not exactly the same thing.   The backbone is there, though and it will be up to them to decide how much they want to honor the tradition. So far, from what I can deduce the homage is done in some of the slapsticky bits. That’s like a nod to the old-timey way of putting on a wrestling show, I think. That’s definitely my interpretation. As for the passion, well we can all see it’s been lacking but there are glimmers of hope.   AEW c

A Good Friday to You, Enthusiasts!   It’s a strange time Go Home Show wise. SmackDown seems to be downplaying itself in anticipation of bigger news happening over at AEW. With Rampage being held in CM Punk’s hometown of Chicago, everybody is basically waiting for his debut.   I’m relatively unmoved since I never really got a chance to get into Punk. Just as I was beginning to warm up to him, he left WWE. So, I kinda don’t know what the big fuss is about but I respect that there is a fuss. Hey, I tried to get on the bandwagon. Dude, bailed.   Now, he’s poised to debut at AEW and I’m lukewarm on it but, I’ll give him a solid shot. That’s what I did the first time around and I’m more than willing to become a fan. I guess the question becomes, how long does he stay? It’s clear we all will see.   So, in response to all this, WWE has gone more or less dark. Little to nothing has been advertised for SmackDown , though we have SummerSlam tomorrow. It’s an interesting move and

How’s Monday Treating You, Enthusiasts?   Mine was very much true to form. Full of plenty I could do without. Yet, you do as you do on Monday, and trudge through.   So, what do we have to chat about this time around? Well, it’s a big wrestling week. It’s the Go Home Show for RAW ahead of Saturday Vegas SummerSlam and so far…it doesn’t seem like it. But at the same time, what do we honestly expect from RAW . They rarely factor for the upcoming PPV. We’ve got another series of rematches that I suppose we have to watch to see what’s different. McIntyre will warm-up in a Handicap Match against Shanky and Veer again and Twitter has it that Nikki Cross and Rhea Ripley will trade hands one more time. And the cherry on top is Oldman Goldberg sauntering back in to say, I’m in the title match ‘cause it’s on my contract. Boo-hoo. Early reports don’t say I’m wrong but hopefully there’s some spice in the 3 rd hour.   As for the Grapevine, the only thing that’s really floating around is

So, since I’m on vacation, this will be more a review of  SmackDown  as opposed to a chat about wrestling current events. We can talk a little bit about that, though since we now know what didn’t happen. What didn’t happen of course is no CM Punk at the debut of  AEW: Rampage.  I would think they would want more than a hour to work with for something like that so maybe Wednesday? If not then or Friday, they’re gonna wait until we forget about it or never. That’s how you do it in this industry. We have no choice but to standby. As for the night’s  SmackDown,  it was exactly where it needed to be before the Go Home Show. Yes, the opener was a bit long but that’s the gig. That’s what you do when you main event. We have to wait for you to box, you just don’t box. You gotta build the event up & that’s what John Cena and Roman Reigns did. It was a far cry from the first time they tried this and dare I say? Did Cena even come off a little proud? It did take a while for Reigns to find his

How’s Everything, Enthusiasts?   Hanging in there? Yeah, I know. Another Monday… Stay strong. So, it’s another day full of obvious news. Let’s talk about some of it. Might as well.   So, people or at least those who feel strongly enough to post on Twitter and social media platforms are up in arms about the NXT Releases, especially since word dropped during SmackDown. Well, that could be viewed as poor taste or standard procedure. “Pinks slips” tend to get handed out on Fridays. Waiting until the show may be more to limit the effect on ratings. Drop it prior you could lose viewership. Drop it after and you risk overtime.   Regardless, the only names I recognized were Mercedes Martinez and Bronson Reed. Everyone else, I’ve never heard of. I kinda think that was the point. WWE is clearly restructuring and though it always sucks when people are let go, let’s face it, an overhaul has been overdue.   The pandemic was an enlightening time for all aspects of life. We collective

  How’s It Going, Enthusiasts?   Happy Friday! So, there are few things we can talk about. I’m pretty sure you already know what they are. Let’s not waste time, let’s get into it.   The big bit of news is how AEW has done what WWE probably wouldn’t and put Malakai Black over in a big way. Cody Rhodes completed his part and took a back seat to elevate Black. I’ve seen mostly praise and to be honest, I am glad for Black. But at the same time, I wasn’t exactly impressed.   There are times I’m wondering what AEW fans are looking at. Are they so jaded by WWE that they’ll sing the praises of anything else? Like, anything? Yes, they allow wrestlers more creative freedom but has anyone ever considered that some wrestlers’ ideas may not work for a live audience? Now, AEW has an asterisk by it because its fans are more general wrestling fans so, they’ll appreciate a more Indy perspective.   I’m a WWE fan and I admit it’s not the same. To the layperson I’m just the same but to wre

  A Good Monday to You, Enthusiasts.   So, the big news is Bray Wyatt getting released. And I find myself not so much in “I told you so…” mode as, “That’s too bad…” mode but, I’m not that surprised. Given how things have been going, we all know that WWE has been trying to trim the proverbial fat and with Alexa Bliss not exactly selling the occult shtick, looks like WWE decided to cut their losses. They’ll stick to stuff they know how to sell for now and perhaps revisit the more outlandish angles later. It’s a bit of a shame because to be honest, they should have seen this coming.   I’ve been professing all the things wrong with The Fiend gimmick since it dropped. It’s really hard to sell that sort of angle in real time and if they were going to go for it, they needed to get invested in getting it off the ground, which they were not. This needed more than a ghoulish mask. The premise had to be believable, how people got sucked in had to be compelling and the repercussions of def