Just when you think a week is going to be quiet, CM Punk changes the culture.
Typically, I keep these introductions quite general, but truth be told this has been a very bad week for me. Without delving into personal matters, it is safe to say that the only bright light throughout the past seven days has been wrestling. What luck then that the wrestling world decided to throw so many big moments at us.
Here are just five of the best. I hope they are able to bring as little joy to your life as they have done to mine.
AEW Is Dino-Mite
Over the course of AEW’s tournament to crown their first ever World Tag Team Champions, Luchasaurus was injured and looked set to be on the shelf until January of next year. Fortunately, it seems that the prehistoric grappler shares some genes with John Cena as he returned to television this week looking fully fit and raring to go.
His is a presence that has been missed. Marco Stunt has tried to fill his giant shoes, but the diminutive performer is nowhere close to be the partner to Jungleboy that Luchasaurus is. With his return, AEW have their most popular babyface team back in play.
Initially The Jurassic Express look set to feud with The Dark Order but once that slightly unappealing program is over there’s a wealth of great clashes that we could see. The dominant Santana and Ortiz could be the perfect villains to come up against these beloved heroes. SCU could provide a sensational face versus face encounter. Really, any of the company’s teams could tear the house down alongside the odd pairing.
Whatever happens for the duo, it’s just good to see Luchasaurus back at full health.
MJF Turns Heel
Let’s group the AEW entries together this week. The company had their first PPV since their weekly TV show started and it is safe to say that it delivered. Among the many high points from Full Gear, the biggest in terms of ongoing storytelling may well be MJF finally showing his true colours by turning on Cody.
Anyone who has seen his work in MLW as an obnoxious, entitled, heel can tell you that he is easily the most hateable figure in wrestling today. He plays the role to perfection and revels in riling up everyone in the audience.
AEW has yet to have a heel that is universally hated, so MJF could be just the ticket to actually get people invested in the stories. It’s vital that there is someone fans can hate, who they clamour to see get their comeuppance and that man is Maxwell Jacob Friedman.
You can rest assured that MJF vs. Cody is going to be superb, full of emotion and wonderful storytelling. Dynamite is going to be must see with this at the forefront.
NWA Powerrr’s Best Match So Far
Since its surprise re-emergence as a weekly studio broadcast, NWA Powerrr has seen the stories company deliver the most story driven slice of brilliance available to fans each and every week. One thing they haven’t had though is a truly standout match. Until now.
Even Jim Cornette admitted that the first batch of tapings didn’t produce any contents that would go down in history. It wasn’t the main focus as they instead sought to offer something truly different from every other modern-day company. Still though, even the most unique wrestling program needs to deliver the goods in the ring from time to time. Thankfully, Outlaw Inc and The Wildcards did just that.
It should come as no surprise that two such talented teams put on a match worth watching. All four men are well travelled stars at this point, and each knows how to put together a compelling contest. What really carried this was the sense of storytelling that is prevalent throughout the promotion. Every movement had a purpose and it’s something that certain other tag teams would do well to learn from.
If you want to watch an honest to goodness great match without a dive every couple of seconds, then this is the match for you.
#ForTheCulture
Not everything that happens in wrestling takes place between the ropes. More often than not the truly important events take place far away from our television screens. Such is the case when it comes to Jordan Myles (Once and soon to be again ACH) sensationally quitting WWE.
As is always the case with issues surrounding racism, this is a hotbed for controversy. There are those who wholeheartedly support ACH as he rallies against the corporate machine, and then there are those who see his actions as unprofessional. Certainly, both sides have a point in certain aspects of their arguments, but the crux of the matter is this; he was treated in a way that, to him at least, felt racist. With that in mind it is only right that he has taken the steps we’ve seen.
Racism is sadly a very prevalent issue in modern society and the shirt that WWE produced for ACH was tone deaf and degrading. Simply put, they should have known better.
It is refreshing to see a marginalised talent stand up for themselves and leave the relative financial comfort of the WWE to ply their trade somewhere where they feel they’ll be respected as a human being.
Not everyone is going to agree with this entry, but I for one fully support ACH as he looks to make his voice heard and change hearts and minds.
CM Punk Returns
I hope Satan has a warm jacket, because I fear Hell is a tad chilly right about now.
The impossible has happened as CM Punk returned to WWE programming this past week, appearing on the new talk show WWE Backstage. Despite not being back in the ring, this is a moment that fans have been clamouring for ever since The Voice of the Voiceless left the company six years ago. It was something that seemed destined never to happen as the relationship between the two parties soured almost beyond repair but, as the WWE love to say, anything can happen in the WWE.
What this means for Punk going forwards beyond his role on the Backstage show is anyone’s guess. The potential is now there for a return to action though and that is something that has to be exciting no matter if you like the man or not.
The dream matches available for him right now are insane. Just imagine Punk taking on AJ Styles, Adam Cole, or Finn Balor. Any and all of those matches could now happen and that was previously unthinkable.
Yes, he’s only signed to Fox and not the WWE but it is a step in the right direction. He’s still seemingly in ring shape and a return from him could well mean that we get to see AJ Lee return to claim her rightful spot at the top of the Women’s Division too.
If you liked this article, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to follow all of our content that goes out daily.
You can find the author of this article on Twitter @Impers0nalJesus. Thanks for reading!