Aug 21, 2021 4:07:43 GMT System said:

People have been understandably agitated and down lately on all socials.Today my socials are flooded with people happy and overjoyed as they briefly forgot the BS that’s going on at the moment and are happy one of their favourites finally returned to the squares circle.

That’s what Pro Wrestling is about.

Hats off to AEW.

I can't give them enough credit for bringing Punk back. You make a great point, we need this at the moment.

I'm, all in. You got me AEW, you finally got me.

WWE Fans: "Where oh where is our ice cream?"

WWE: "Here's a shirt, go fuck yourself."

AEW, the night CM Punk debuts: "Here's 14,000 FREE ICE CREAMS."

For those who missed it.

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times.

DAMN, it feels good to be Elite.

All Out tickets are going for $1000 a piece now according to Alvarez.

Needle moved.

The last time I remember anything like this it was the famous September 14th 1998 episode of WCW Nitro where Ric Flair who had a public falling out with the company returned after this long build-up involving the reformation of the IV Horsemen. The outpouring of emotion that night was unreal and Meltzer described it as one of the greatest Pro Wrestling moments of all-time, I think this was right up there.

Firstly, AEW deserves credit for landing the signing. I'm sure Punk is being well looked after financially but Punk would not have been as motivated if AEW hadn't gained his trust. You can tell that Punk was still very leery of the company two years ago when he appeared at Starrcast, so for AEW to win over one of the most stubborn Pro Wrestlers is a testament to how they've managed the company.

Second Punk deserved this moment. He was a pivotal figure behind the indie boom and that desire for an alternative after the events of 2014 and the fall-out of the Art of Wrestling podcast. Fans never got a chance to show their appreciation and for a time it felt like Punk wanted nothing to do with them. While I can see where you're coming from Blindy I think it was important he pointed out that he never hated the industry and just what happened over in the WWE.

AEW hit a home run tonight. They've had some solid triples and doubles, but tonight was one of those moments that will go down in wrestling folklore.

Moving forward, I expect there to be a honeymoon period and Punk will be able to get away with a greatest hits. What I'm hoping to see is him evolve his style and acclimitise to AEW and have an influence on others.

Punk not interested in greatest hits he said with Renee.  He wants to do new things, which is why he went to AEW.  A lot of talent there he never worked with that he wants to do stuff with.  He very much has a lets see what happens attitude and likely will move in a new character direction.

And yeah was not really hyped for his return until he came out.  Absolute homerun and AEW's first really big moment.  They had good moments before, but nothing on this level.


More Punk news. He takes on a lot of questions.  Took two years to land him basically and basically came down to getting to know Khan.

The pop was insane. My slight concern was that scalpers tickets were going for $1 in the days leading up to the show and that it wouldn’t be full, but this didn’t manifest itself in any real way. The pop was so loud it took me a few seconds to realise it was his WWE music. Punk is a top 5 all time promo and it showed. It’s so easy to him. I could do without the Fed Bad stuff but I get it and it plays to that audience. The rest of the show was solid. The tag match was good, the Cargill squash was ok although they need to be careful with her because she isn’t really over yet. Nice to have a quick main event for once. A nice change of pace. The more I see Garcia the more I fall in love with him, what a God given in-ring talent.

AEW is a hot ticket and I’m loving it right now, my only gripe is that I hope their identity grows something bigger than ‘not WWE’ at some point, but I know it sells tickets and draws ratings so I don’t anticipate it ending soon. It’s a minor gripe, AEW are mostly getting it right at the moment.

CM Punk's return even got me to post in the AEW thread. I've only paid attention to this and Sting's return and CM Punk debuting in Chicago blew that out of the water, this coming from a life long Sting fan, a truly incredible moment. Well done AEW, onward and upward from here. Beyond wrestling we need more moments like these in general, couldn't agree with System more.

Yeah that is what was crazy, it was so damn loud from the opening Punk chants you could not hear the opening of Cult of Personality. The venue was basically full, pics showed it was filled.

Garcia won over Kingston early, and that will go far for him. Eddie may not be in charge in anyway, but his word goes a long way it seems. AEW has the chance to really mold his rise into something truly special as well since he was totally unknown before now.

I did not put two and two together until someone posted about it tonight on my facebook, but Garcia almost had his career ended two years back. He got into a really nasty car wreck when a car he was in hit black ice and went through a guardrail cutting the car in half. He ended up with fucking shattered leg, breaking it in four spots. His leg is covered in nasty scars.

So curious if his old finisher will appear. A gif someone posted to Kingston not too long of his old Pyramid Driver.

Imagine being Daniel Garcia. 22 years old, two years after that accident. You went from being a rising star on the indies and now you've wrestled THREE TIMES on national television, in arenas full of thousands of people, and you just main evented arguably the biggest episode of wrestling television of the last twenty years against one of the biggest stars in wrestling right now.

What a wild fucking ride. 

He was on TV more than three times. He did 205 live and NXT as well. Khan put him over big time to Punk tonight in the Q&A saying he expects big things from him.

I mean, yeah, he was on NXT and 205 Live as "local Competitor", basically. He's been FEATURED on AEW. He got PROMO TIME. He's main evented TV.

I think I've watched that entrance atleast 10 times now, and it doesn't get better than that.

I don't know how many times I've gone back to watch MITB '11 and countless other matches from that era, that music, that pop - there isn't a better entrance in wrestling.

Good to see a smile on Old Man Punk's face.

The United Center needs to bill Punk for a new roof. What a fucking pop. What a reaction. What a promo. What a moment! I’m all in for all out.

I've never been a CM Punk guy - obviously an all-time great promo, but never cared for him besides that. But yeah, absolutely monumental moment in wrestling. Once in a generation pop. Pro-wrestling is going through a huge change right now, largely thanks to AEW, and the re-emergence of CM Punk is going to be talked about as one of those milestone moments.

I have no objections to the promo. You can crudely dismiss it as tired old WWE bashing, but you could tell CM Punk was speaking from the heart and expressing his true feelings. It just helps that Punk's experiences align with what the AEW audience wants to hear. He didn't dwell on it for too long though.

Rest of the show was fun. Particularly liked the main event. As everyone else has said, Daniel Garcia is endlessly promising. He's a young talent given the exposure he needs in exactly the right way. Match against Sydal was awesome. Match against Moxley was a great exhibition for his wrestling style. Sky's the limit.

Aug 21, 2021 5:22:40 GMT c said:

For those who missed it.

Listen carefully around the 2:20 mark.

Mark Henry 😂. Oh shhhhit! :lol:

I've gone back and watched the show again, (ok, just Punk and main event) and this feels like AEW finally taking itself seriously. 

And look, I've said enough positive things about AEW today, that it's time to throw some shade. That previously statement I made about AEW finally taking itself serious, it isn't coincidental it's due to a lack of EVPs on the show. The Elite are so cringy (understandably, they're heels.. but) and Cody is just so shoot arrogant. A lot of my issues with AEW are with The Elite and friends and I've previously lumped the entire roster in the same basket. 

If they can put Mox, Kingston, Punk, Darby, Omega (toned down), Christian, Black, Almas, Brit, and even Miro now on the same show every week, with the prospect of Buddy Matthews coming very soon, it could be a hell of a show. I think Jericho needs some time off, a bit of a 'absence makes the heart grow fonder' type of time off and it will give Sammy an opportunity to run on his own, and they really need to ground and centre MJF's character, so he doesn't feel so much like a teen movie bully. 

And I did like the free Ice Cream bars. WWE will so often promote it's grand gestures, but taking the time to thank 14,000 people for the night, what a nice gesture. 

Any talk of AEW getting its own forum in the mod room?

Isn't that what other wrestling is?

I know it's not something that is gonna happen every week, however, I love the atmosphere AEW has created with these early episodes of Rampage. Between Christian Cage, winning the Impact heavyweight championship, from Kenny Omega on the first episode, and now obviously CM Punk making his AEW debut last night, it gives off that anything can happen vibe and makes Rampage must Watch TV, at least for me anyways.

Aug 21, 2021 6:17:21 GMT Big Pete said:

The last time I remember anything like this it was the famous September 14th 1998 episode of WCW Nitro where Ric Flair who had a public falling out with the company returned after this long build-up involving the reformation of the IV Horsemen. The outpouring of emotion that night was unreal and Meltzer described it as one of the greatest Pro Wrestling moments of all-time, I think this was right up there.

Firstly, AEW deserves credit for landing the signing. I'm sure Punk is being well looked after financially but Punk would not have been as motivated if AEW hadn't gained his trust. You can tell that Punk was still very leery of the company two years ago when he appeared at Starrcast, so for AEW to win over one of the most stubborn Pro Wrestlers is a testament to how they've managed the company.

Second Punk deserved this moment. He was a pivotal figure behind the indie boom and that desire for an alternative after the events of 2014 and the fall-out of the Art of Wrestling podcast. Fans never got a chance to show their appreciation and for a time it felt like Punk wanted nothing to do with them. While I can see where you're coming from Blindy I think it was important he pointed out that he never hated the industry and just what happened over in the WWE.

AEW hit a home run tonight. They've had some solid triples and doubles, but tonight was one of those moments that will go down in wrestling folklore.

Moving forward, I expect there to be a honeymoon period and Punk will be able to get away with a greatest hits. What I'm hoping to see is him evolve his style and acclimitise to AEW and have an influence on others.

I think Punk could have done without the shots at WWE but I get it, they treated him bad at the end. But much like with Moxley and C Rhodes, he found his wife because of them, he became a household name in wrestling because of the platform and his wallet was healthy because of the platform. Even with all the back and forth with McMahons and HHH, which they messed up, I think Punk benefitted more from them more than anything. He was smart to seek a 2nd opinion no doubt with the doctors........................

Punk isn't in position to be so sought out by AEW or UFC without the WWE ride. 

Aug 21, 2021 15:05:06 GMT Blindy said:

Aug 21, 2021 6:17:21 GMT Big Pete said:

The last time I remember anything like this it was the famous September 14th 1998 episode of WCW Nitro where Ric Flair who had a public falling out with the company returned after this long build-up involving the reformation of the IV Horsemen. The outpouring of emotion that night was unreal and Meltzer described it as one of the greatest Pro Wrestling moments of all-time, I think this was right up there.

Firstly, AEW deserves credit for landing the signing. I'm sure Punk is being well looked after financially but Punk would not have been as motivated if AEW hadn't gained his trust. You can tell that Punk was still very leery of the company two years ago when he appeared at Starrcast, so for AEW to win over one of the most stubborn Pro Wrestlers is a testament to how they've managed the company.

Second Punk deserved this moment. He was a pivotal figure behind the indie boom and that desire for an alternative after the events of 2014 and the fall-out of the Art of Wrestling podcast. Fans never got a chance to show their appreciation and for a time it felt like Punk wanted nothing to do with them. While I can see where you're coming from Blindy I think it was important he pointed out that he never hated the industry and just what happened over in the WWE.

AEW hit a home run tonight. They've had some solid triples and doubles, but tonight was one of those moments that will go down in wrestling folklore.

Moving forward, I expect there to be a honeymoon period and Punk will be able to get away with a greatest hits. What I'm hoping to see is him evolve his style and acclimitise to AEW and have an influence on others.

I think Punk could have done without the shots at WWE but I get it, they treated him bad at the end. But much like with Moxley and C Rhodes, he found his wife because of them, he became a household name in wrestling because of the platform and his wallet was healthy because of the platform. Even with all the back and forth with McMahons and HHH, which they messed up, I think Punk benefitted more from them more than anything. He was smart to seek a 2nd opinion no doubt with the doctors........................

Punk isn't in position to be so sought out by AEW or UFC without the WWE ride. 

I think he had to address the elephant in the room because until Starrcast he did whatever he could to distance himself from Pro Wrestling. Drawing that distinction I feel was important for his explanation and honestly I thought he was pretty measured. Didn't he basically say that the WWE wasn't kind to guys like him? Which to be fair is a historically accurate thing to say. Although it kind of came out funny from a middle class white guy - I get it, but I thought he was about to break into Ben Folds.

The important thing was the take-away isn't that he's here to spite the WWE, but he's here because he wants himself a piece of Darby Allin.

New favourite moment of last night - Punk trying to hide his disdain for Bixenspan at the scrum 😂

Aug 21, 2021 12:33:05 GMT Todd said:

Any talk of AEW getting its own forum in the mod room?

I'd hold off until AEW overtakes WWE.  And I don't know when, or if it will ever do that.

Aug 21, 2021 15:40:26 GMT Todd said:

New favourite moment of last night - Punk trying to hide his disdain for Bixenspan at the scrum 😂

Bixenspan is such a loser He failed like 4x to get on the call. 

He tried to ask about Punk's relationship with Colt Cabana without actually saying his name. Punk said enough with the gossip BS. 

Aug 21, 2021 15:48:30 GMT CM Punk'd said:

Aug 21, 2021 12:33:05 GMT Todd said:

Any talk of AEW getting its own forum in the mod room?

I'd hold off until AEW overtakes WWE.  And I don't know when, or if it will ever do that.

I can’t be arsed to research this, but I’d be quite confident more posts are made about AEW than WWE in this place. Also, new AEW fans may be signing up, and we don’t have AEW named at all on the front page.

Not a mod anymore so feel free to tell me to mind my business, it’s just a suggestion.

Aug 21, 2021 15:48:30 GMT CM Punk'd said:

Aug 21, 2021 12:33:05 GMT Todd said:

Any talk of AEW getting its own forum in the mod room?

I'd hold off until AEW overtakes WWE.  And I don't know when, or if it will ever do that.

I can see the reason, for wanting AEW to have it's own forum, although I'm indifferent either way.

Back when WWE was getting weekly party threads (prior to the general thread being made), they would only get a handful of posts, where as the party threads for Dynamite usually go three - four pages (looking at the last couple threads), so there is definitely more interest in AEW, than the WWE.

Aug 21, 2021 12:33:05 GMT Todd said:

Any talk of AEW getting its own forum in the mod room?

There is now!

I woke up chanting CM Punk this morning. Watched the pop on YouTube twice already.