Whoa whoa whoa!! Don't put ECW in there. ECW was all about working together and trying to make the other person better. ECW was the home for the homeless, who needed to find themselves. When they did, they went one to different places and were appreciated.
Plus for a company gone for decades, the name is still chanted and the vibe is still copied by every promotion out there.
Well, I think that was the author's point. While ECW had a great many faults, it was the last good example of the "independent" really striving and working, regardless of the level of failure and toxicity in the end. Punk believes he is still that: the untouchable, virtuous hero that still has an edge. The author feels that concept really truly died some time ago and it should stay in the past. But in all fairness to Punk, he was one of the most popular if not THE Paul Heyman Guy. It is one more aspect that might lead him to believe he is that anarchistic anti-hero to be loved. Like a Wolverine or Deadpool. The reality is that he is the much closer to a villain akin to an Edward Nigma that tried to be a good guy but went right back to being a full blown POS villain Riddler when he didn't get the recognition he wanted.
ECW had no faults, it had no toxicity. Even Paul Heyman did nothing out of greed, he did it out of over-reaching for the wrestlers. He lost money, he lost his time and drove himself crazy. That company at the end was the same as it ever was and they tried to maintain even when all was lost. Punk was a Paul Heyman guy to the people, who saw him in RoH and IWA Midsouth. What showed up in OVW/WWE was an ego driven maniac, who believed with that signing that he was the best ever. When he wasn't even the best ever on the indies. Anti hero?....lol. See what you said is why he is that way, people make him out to be more than he was or ever will be. He's not even a top tier villain, he's more like Mole Man, every knows him and he's been around but in the end no one really worries about him....lol
My guy you are woefully misguided or uneducated if you think that ECW had no toxicity. Like I LOVE me that company, but that locker room was filled with a bunch of toxic people. Both in terms of their rampant drug use & behaviors, and their scheming to not put other guys over.
Shit, Paulie was probably the worst of it! There's a reason why a lot of former ECW guys either don't like him or aren't close to him. Paul lied to his workers on the regular.
ECW had some faults. Did it bother me personally? Not at all. It is still to this day the most entertaining thing in the world of professional wrestling I personally have ever seen. And I respect all of the individuals that took part in it and left their blood and sweat in the ring. That fought through serious injuries and drug issues in order to entertain me on a regular basis. Nothing will ever come close to it. I couldn't say that it wasn't toxic due to a lot of wrestlers not being paid and all of the BS that Paul Heyman fed people. He is one of the best con men to have ever existed and I do believe a lot of the time he was as such just to keep ECW going. He had a good career beforehand and has carved out a fantastic one afterwards. But that didn't make everything roses, just like it didn't make everything bad.
But, digressing from Punk here. I believe that he has one of the biggest egos of all time. That existed before any relationship he had with Heyman. I wouldn't be surprised if he learned a thing or two from Paul in the self inflating, bs-ing regard. But, it didn't get any better during his WWE title reigns. Or his failure in UFC. And clearly not any better with this AEW run. Was I a CM Punk fan? Absolutely. I have to take a certain responsibility for helping create the monster he became. And while I view him as a piece of garbage now, my point was that HE still views himself as this Anti-Hero type individual, possibly even a top tier villian that had this "code" that will always mean he is wronged. In reality he is just a self important person that probably suffers from Anti Social Personality Disorder, at the very least. There was a point where he was good at selling himself, as many successful Pro Wrestlers are. That has dwindled with each passing year as his poor mental health degrades. Just my take. Have a good one, brother.
Great article, I would consider myself a big fan of CM Punk in the ring - and that there would seem to be plenty of blame to go around in this mess - but couldn't argue any of your points here.
The positivity of his return was genuinely incredible to see but CM Punk/Phil Brooks seems to be predisposed to permanently feel he is always, and unquestionably, unfairly wronged somehow, simultaneously professing that he's doesn't care about it but never letting it go, and it is poisonous.
It's hard to accept that the company that saved wrestling, the company that my family & I have supported at great expense & fervor since its inception, is now being poisoned from top-to-bottom by this fucking cancerous cunt.
Great article. Your summary of why people originally gravitated to AEW hit me hard and as much as Punk tried to fit in with the ice cream and Sting cosplay his true colours have well and truly revealed themselves now.
Even if I wanted to nitpick on anything that was said in this, I couldn't find anything. I remember 1 year ago, when he returned, I felt genuinely excited because I thought over time, he had been away for so long that he would try to get along and help the younger generation in that locker room. Little did I know, his natural disdain for human life in general would rear his ugly head again. The comparison to 1996 to 1998 Shawn Michaels couldn't be more à propos. The only difference is that Punk's straight-edge mentality differs from HBK abusing pills & drugs to fuel his bitterness and discontent. I feel sad honestly that Tony Khan has seemingly chosen the man who screwed everything in the locker room over the people he started AEW on day 1.
If we're comparing Punk to Shawn Michaels at his worst, that also means in just a few years time there's still always the possibility he has a wake up call and turns his attitude around to the point where we're praising him again.
But the weird part is, even tho Michaels was just as toxic, possibly more so, we as fans still unbelievably look back at that time and almost cherish it fondly. We laugh at all the crazy things Michaels said & did back then. Will we eventually do the same with Punk?
Shawn at least had drugs and his addiction problems to at least bear some of the blame for his behavior at the time. When he came back, he was a different man. If Punk really is as "straight edge" as he claims, what's his excuse?
Good read, thank you for this piece its well written and is engaging to read. Your descriptions of the events and people are great. I loved you giving John Cena the respect he actually deserves. It was weird watching about a month ago Cena rewatching his first match and knowing just how hard he pushes himself and how utterly critical he is of his own shortcomings and believes he can always do better.
100% on point. You just got yourself a new subscriber.
Hey, that's great!
Same here.
Whoa whoa whoa!! Don't put ECW in there. ECW was all about working together and trying to make the other person better. ECW was the home for the homeless, who needed to find themselves. When they did, they went one to different places and were appreciated.
Plus for a company gone for decades, the name is still chanted and the vibe is still copied by every promotion out there.
Well, I think that was the author's point. While ECW had a great many faults, it was the last good example of the "independent" really striving and working, regardless of the level of failure and toxicity in the end. Punk believes he is still that: the untouchable, virtuous hero that still has an edge. The author feels that concept really truly died some time ago and it should stay in the past. But in all fairness to Punk, he was one of the most popular if not THE Paul Heyman Guy. It is one more aspect that might lead him to believe he is that anarchistic anti-hero to be loved. Like a Wolverine or Deadpool. The reality is that he is the much closer to a villain akin to an Edward Nigma that tried to be a good guy but went right back to being a full blown POS villain Riddler when he didn't get the recognition he wanted.
ECW had no faults, it had no toxicity. Even Paul Heyman did nothing out of greed, he did it out of over-reaching for the wrestlers. He lost money, he lost his time and drove himself crazy. That company at the end was the same as it ever was and they tried to maintain even when all was lost. Punk was a Paul Heyman guy to the people, who saw him in RoH and IWA Midsouth. What showed up in OVW/WWE was an ego driven maniac, who believed with that signing that he was the best ever. When he wasn't even the best ever on the indies. Anti hero?....lol. See what you said is why he is that way, people make him out to be more than he was or ever will be. He's not even a top tier villain, he's more like Mole Man, every knows him and he's been around but in the end no one really worries about him....lol
My guy you are woefully misguided or uneducated if you think that ECW had no toxicity. Like I LOVE me that company, but that locker room was filled with a bunch of toxic people. Both in terms of their rampant drug use & behaviors, and their scheming to not put other guys over.
Shit, Paulie was probably the worst of it! There's a reason why a lot of former ECW guys either don't like him or aren't close to him. Paul lied to his workers on the regular.
ECW had some faults. Did it bother me personally? Not at all. It is still to this day the most entertaining thing in the world of professional wrestling I personally have ever seen. And I respect all of the individuals that took part in it and left their blood and sweat in the ring. That fought through serious injuries and drug issues in order to entertain me on a regular basis. Nothing will ever come close to it. I couldn't say that it wasn't toxic due to a lot of wrestlers not being paid and all of the BS that Paul Heyman fed people. He is one of the best con men to have ever existed and I do believe a lot of the time he was as such just to keep ECW going. He had a good career beforehand and has carved out a fantastic one afterwards. But that didn't make everything roses, just like it didn't make everything bad.
But, digressing from Punk here. I believe that he has one of the biggest egos of all time. That existed before any relationship he had with Heyman. I wouldn't be surprised if he learned a thing or two from Paul in the self inflating, bs-ing regard. But, it didn't get any better during his WWE title reigns. Or his failure in UFC. And clearly not any better with this AEW run. Was I a CM Punk fan? Absolutely. I have to take a certain responsibility for helping create the monster he became. And while I view him as a piece of garbage now, my point was that HE still views himself as this Anti-Hero type individual, possibly even a top tier villian that had this "code" that will always mean he is wronged. In reality he is just a self important person that probably suffers from Anti Social Personality Disorder, at the very least. There was a point where he was good at selling himself, as many successful Pro Wrestlers are. That has dwindled with each passing year as his poor mental health degrades. Just my take. Have a good one, brother.
Great article, I would consider myself a big fan of CM Punk in the ring - and that there would seem to be plenty of blame to go around in this mess - but couldn't argue any of your points here.
The positivity of his return was genuinely incredible to see but CM Punk/Phil Brooks seems to be predisposed to permanently feel he is always, and unquestionably, unfairly wronged somehow, simultaneously professing that he's doesn't care about it but never letting it go, and it is poisonous.
Great job, I’m from Chicago and this man is a cancer
Great article.
It's hard to accept that the company that saved wrestling, the company that my family & I have supported at great expense & fervor since its inception, is now being poisoned from top-to-bottom by this fucking cancerous cunt.
Thank you for saying what most of us are feeling.
Fucking FANTASTIC article that hit every note on the head.
Bravo!
Someone finally calling out the bullshit artist that is Punk, after all these years with his fans still drinking his kool aid.
Amazing work.
Great article. Your summary of why people originally gravitated to AEW hit me hard and as much as Punk tried to fit in with the ice cream and Sting cosplay his true colours have well and truly revealed themselves now.
Even if I wanted to nitpick on anything that was said in this, I couldn't find anything. I remember 1 year ago, when he returned, I felt genuinely excited because I thought over time, he had been away for so long that he would try to get along and help the younger generation in that locker room. Little did I know, his natural disdain for human life in general would rear his ugly head again. The comparison to 1996 to 1998 Shawn Michaels couldn't be more à propos. The only difference is that Punk's straight-edge mentality differs from HBK abusing pills & drugs to fuel his bitterness and discontent. I feel sad honestly that Tony Khan has seemingly chosen the man who screwed everything in the locker room over the people he started AEW on day 1.
This is flawless. Got me to subscribe.
When talk emerged that Punk was coming to AEW, I feared he’d be problematic. Never imagined he’d be this level of toxic. I hope he’s gone for good.
If we're comparing Punk to Shawn Michaels at his worst, that also means in just a few years time there's still always the possibility he has a wake up call and turns his attitude around to the point where we're praising him again.
But the weird part is, even tho Michaels was just as toxic, possibly more so, we as fans still unbelievably look back at that time and almost cherish it fondly. We laugh at all the crazy things Michaels said & did back then. Will we eventually do the same with Punk?
Shawn at least had drugs and his addiction problems to at least bear some of the blame for his behavior at the time. When he came back, he was a different man. If Punk really is as "straight edge" as he claims, what's his excuse?
I think that time may have passed. HBK was in his early 30s in the mid 90s. He was 44 when he retired for the second time. Punk is 43 now.
I've never even seen AEW and I barely follow wrestling, but this is a great piece of writing. Well done.
this just may be the best wrestling article of the year.
Truth spoken Sir. New subscriber you have earned.
Welcome!
In the immortal words of "Mean" Gene Okerlund - Longfellow couldn't have said it better.
Good read, thank you for this piece its well written and is engaging to read. Your descriptions of the events and people are great. I loved you giving John Cena the respect he actually deserves. It was weird watching about a month ago Cena rewatching his first match and knowing just how hard he pushes himself and how utterly critical he is of his own shortcomings and believes he can always do better.
Just signed up, loved your Shamrock book
Thanks for reading!