Now THAT'S a heel!

I cannot believe MJF did the Punk RoH heel turn line.

Holy fuck that was amazing.

Now that's a beautiful sight to see, all that wonderful blood.

Just realized that Tony could air stuff like Sami vs Owens on the AEW channel now. This could get fun.

Mar 3, 2022 2:13:34 GMT c said:

I cannot believe MJF did the Punk RoH heel turn line.

Fucking perfect.

This is already the best go-home show I've ever seen and there's still two matches left.

Beef fight promo!!!

Hum... Mercedes and Rosa teaming long term would be a sick fucking team.

Well, judging by the finish, I'd say the Doc's gonna retain on Sunday.

Fucking shit Rosa is going to lose on Sunday. Fuck. Boooooooooooooooo

HOOK's doing the Buy-In! That's great!

HOOK GOING TO REVOLUTION BAYBEEEEE

How that NO-DQ rematch looking now?

Oh yeah, it's gonna be awesome, when Wardlow turns on MJF.

Fuck, Cole vs Page is going to be hot this weekend.

For those who never seen it, here is the Punk promo that MJF referenced tonight with the snake in the grass and the devil convincing the world he does not exist lines.

Background, Punk on his final RoH date before heading off to WWE wins the RoH title.

Full promo.

Tony Khan really said "FUCK YOU" to all his message board buddies and to RT specifically.

Mar 3, 2022 3:33:24 GMT KITN said:

Tony Khan really said "FUCK YOU" to all his message board buddies and to RT specifically.

I don’t blame him.

What’s the price? I assume he didn’t do it for anything more than dirt cheap.

Not cheap that is for sure. He bought all three libraries it sounds like, and the fed itself. Gonna be 10+ million at least.  Looking quick they are estimating 40 million.  Reason the price is so high is there were several people looking into buying the fed, but at lower rates than they wanted.  Tony likely got it at a discount because he wants to preserve it.  

I'm going to continue this in the proper thread in RoW

MJF and Punk stole the show last night. What a callback and what a segment. Their feud has been great so far and I can’t wait for the dog collar match now.

If the dog collar match lives up to hype, I think Punk/MJF will be pretty handily my favorite AEW feud so far.

Mar 3, 2022 2:01:51 GMT RT said:

P&P realizing that it wasn't Jericho, they've just not been that good all this time.

Yeah I didn't get that. Why are P&P buddies with Jericho again? Something happen in the Battle Royale?

The CM Punk vs MJF angle is the best thing I have seen in wrestling in a long time. It's a storyline with raw emotion, amazing acting, which weaves its way in unpredictable directions, and doesn't dumb anything down or undercut anything.

I said last week that MJF's promo was one of the best I have ever seen and should go down in history. I wasn't kidding. People may think I am exaggerating, that it was just a "normal" great promo, not a "GOAT" great promo, and maybe they're right. But I'll stick to my guns.

There were so many ways they could have undercut that promo. But they didn't. Right after MJF's speech, CM Punk came out and with complete sincerity asked "is that true?". Selling the promo. It's as important as selling a wrestling move. MJF, after kicking CM Punk low, could have burst into a grin, guffawing, "I gotcha Punk! I got all you suckers!" That's cheap, and would have ruined everything. The MJF of 2021, the MJF who did a ballroom song and dance with Chris Jericho, would have done that. Not this MJF. CM Punk, both in kayfabe and reality, has brought out a new side of MJF, and it's wonderful to see it unfold.

MJF has graduated from a caricature cheap heet heal - a very good one - to a true heel. A human being with his own demons, a tortured soul. He bared his soul to the world, and we believed him. Either because he's a phenomenal actor, or because his story is true. Probably both. But why did he do that? In kayfabe, he revealed his dark secret and personal torment because Punk got under his skin like nobody else before. But that's not the only reason. He did it to get into Punk's head, and his plan worked perfectly.

CM Punk is a master on the microphone, and his response to MJF's GOAT promo was outstanding. His promo had a theme - "who's the bad guy?" He talked about MJF's horrible actions, and later referenced his own equally horrible actions. By doing that, not only does he tie MJF's past (and present) to his own past, but he references AEW's past, which adds depth. We always bitch about how WWE forgets about past rivalries, two guys who had a blood feud are suddenly buddies three months later with no explanation given. AEW respects its own history, and that's fantastic.

Another aspect of this angle I love is how modern and progressive it is. The feud is deeply instrospective, grown men revealing their emotions, and even trying to help one another to heal (I typed "heel" first. Ha!) Imagine Hulk Hogan or Steve Austin or The Rock cutting that kind of promo. It wouldn't work. Their characters are too macho, too riddled with testosterone. To show any kind of weakness, especially emotional, would kill these cartoony characters. This is how AEW sets itself apart from sports entertainment.

Of course there's the big twist, that MJF is, as he put it, the devil. Yet he wasn't taking Punk along for the ride. I still believe MJF was telling the truth, but he's made a choice not to repent for his actions, not to shake Punk's hand and forgive him, but to take the opposite road, towards pure evil. Using Punk's own words against him is the cherry on top. Not just because it's a callback to the past, but because MJF, as a massive fan of CM Punk, would have watched that moment in real time. He wanted to be just like Punk. He still does want to be just like CM Punk. The CM Punk from 15 years ago. And he got to do just that - enact his sick childhood dream - against the man himself. Against a different CM Punk, not a CM Punk that MJF respects. A CM Punk that MJF hates.

Absolutely perfect storytelling. Already Feud of the Year and if anything manages to top it, then 2022 is set to be a brilliant year for pro-wrestling.

Mar 3, 2022 22:09:37 GMT Emperor said:

The CM Punk vs MJF angle is the best thing I have seen in wrestling in a long time. It's a storyline with raw emotion, amazing acting, which weaves its way in unpredictable directions, and doesn't dumb anything down or undercut anything.

I said last week that MJF's promo was one of the best I have ever seen and should go down in history. I wasn't kidding. People may think I am exaggerating, that it was just a "normal" great promo, not a "GOAT" great promo, and maybe they're right. But I'll stick to my guns.

There were so many ways they could have undercut that promo. But they didn't. Right after MJF's speech, CM Punk came out and with complete sincerity asked "is that true?". Selling the promo. It's as important as selling a wrestling move. MJF, after kicking CM Punk low, could have burst into a grin, guffawing, "I gotcha Punk! I got all you suckers!" That's cheap, and would have ruined everything. The MJF of 2021, the MJF who did a ballroom song and dance with Chris Jericho, would have done that. Not this MJF. CM Punk, both in kayfabe and reality, has brought out a new side of MJF, and it's wonderful to see it unfold.

MJF has graduated from a caricature cheap heet heal - a very good one - to a true heel. A human being with his own demons, a tortured soul. He bared his soul to the world, and we believed him. Either because he's a phenomenal actor, or because his story is true. Probably both. But why did he do that? In kayfabe, he revealed his dark secret and personal torment because Punk got under his skin like nobody else before. But that's not the only reason. He did it to get into Punk's head, and his plan worked perfectly.

CM Punk is a master on the microphone, and his response to MJF's GOAT promo was outstanding. His promo had a theme - "who's the bad guy?" He talked about MJF's horrible actions, and later referenced his own equally horrible actions. By doing that, not only does he tie MJF's past (and present) to his own past, but he references AEW's past, which adds depth. We always bitch about how WWE forgets about past rivalries, two guys who had a blood feud are suddenly buddies three months later with no explanation given. AEW respects its own history, and that's fantastic.

Another aspect of this angle I love is how modern and progressive it is. The feud is deeply instrospective, grown men revealing their emotions, and even trying to help one another to heal (I typed "heel" first. Ha!) Imagine Hulk Hogan or Steve Austin or The Rock cutting that kind of promo. It wouldn't work. This is how AEW sets itself apart from sports entertainment.

Of course there's the big twist, that MJF is, as he put it, the devil. Yet he wasn't taking Punk along for the ride. I still believe MJF was telling the truth, but he's made a choice not to repent for his actions, not to shake Punk's hand, but to take the opposite road, towards pure evil. And using Punk's own words against him is the cherry on top. Not just because it's a callback to the past, but because MJF, as a massive fan of CM Punk, would have watched that moment in real time. He wanted to be just like Punk. He still does want to be just like CM Punk. The CM Punk from 15 years ago. And he got to do just that - enact his sick childhood dream - against the man himself. Against a different CM Punk, not a CM Punk that MJF respects. A CM Punk that MJF hates.

Absolutely perfect storytelling. Already Feud of the Year and if anything manages to top it, then 2022 is set to be a brilliant year for pro-wrestling.

POST OF THE YEAR!

Beautifully and eloquently put, Emp. You captured my entire feelings about this wonderful angle. Truly one of modern day wrestling’s finest stories told by two greats. It’s been cinematic in how it’s been told, it really has. Can’t wait for the Dog Collar match.

Mar 3, 2022 21:56:32 GMT Emperor said:

Mar 3, 2022 2:01:51 GMT RT said:

P&P realizing that it wasn't Jericho, they've just not been that good all this time.

Yeah I didn't get that. Why are P&P buddies with Jericho again? Something happen in the Battle Royale?

Since splitting from Inner Circle, they’ve lost two matches. So they went back to Jericho as if to say “ok, you weren’t the problem. Clearly we have work to do.”

However it could also be a double turn and they’ll cost him his match against Kingston on Sunday.

Dog Collar should be an absolute blood bath. Both guys did a dog collar before, Punk with Raven, MHF with Ethan Page, and both were really good matches.