tiger_rick

If you can hear me down there, I've genuinely tried to stay away from that and will return to that position. Just for you, buddy.

I think you missed a point. By fucking miles. It's garbage and they're cunts. That has never been a debate. You are welcome to like it. That's your right.

WWE's brand of garbage is well liked, that's true, but if AEW was just in a bit of a recent slump because WWE's business is doing very well, then I don't think you'dworry too much, but the problem is it's been coming for 18 months to 2 years. Dynamite hasn't been over 1m viewers since Feb 2023. Pictures of half empty arenas have been a regular thing since 2022, and that's even if you ignore all those bad faith pricks on social media. PPV buys are dropping, with All In being an outlier - though more PPVs will also explain that. The booking has been very hit and miss for yonks too. That's before you get to all the other drama. Whether I'm watching or not, I completely credit AEW with the boom in the industry. I dread to think what it looks like if there's only Vince's WWE past 2019, especially through the pandemic. I'd love them to succeed but they're not. Good shows are fine and I'm happy for fans that they get to enjoy them but if we're looking bigger picture, which I think this naff decision really is, then they need to be doing more to ensure those good shows are part of a bigger strategy that just does not seem to be there.

What's the reach? I said I hear they're producing some good shows but the lack of buzz is backed up by all the metrics. They've really struggled and I think there are plenty of chickens over the last couple of years that are coming home to roost. I don't know, I haven't watched it. But the point was that they put this majorly petty shit on TV at a point where critically, at least, some people like what they're doing. Seems ludicrous. They've always been like WCW, and in a lot of ways that was a positive. The network, the production, the voices, the C shows and a lot of the booking gave that great pang of nostalgia. Sadly stuff like the bloated roster, the lack of control and the every growing content have given bad WCW vibes. WCW were around a long time, rode one great peak and fell and fell to their death. I don't see AEW going anywhere while Tony wants to spend his money but the peak and fall is very similar but massively sped up.

I think it does. It didn't but neither did waving your cock around on an aeroplane. And now it does. In all sorted of contexts. Imagine Perry Saturn taking liberties with Mike Bell these days? That's not going to be a slap on the wrists now. There's always context. Two guys coming to blows will always happen and I think you'd accept that in a physical environment. But an unprovoked assault is as unacceptable there as anywhere these days.

WWE have a very good locker room and a well established management structure, that's undeniable. But he's fallen out with people everywhere he's ever been, including them and including his best friend. Maybe he's finally grown-up though, who knows?

What was the last backstage fight that was reported in the WWE locker room? Genuine question. Because I can't recall one for yonks. I don't think that's an acceptable part of the industry any more. I certainly don't think Punk will be employed if he does that to Ricochet or something next week.

You do look like a tit. And the spirit it's intended is that I think you're too good a guy to keep looking like a tit. I have some comments on WWE and my only experience of them for 3 years is from here, twitter and podcasts, so I completely understand that, but you literally tell us in posts that you watched stuff. Seriously, just don't watch or don't berate. i think that's easy.

Bacon is right, certainly the reaction I've seen is exactly that. A minority who think it's vindicated AEW's decision to get rid, who probably thought it anyway, and a majority who think it makes Punk look great, who probably thought that anyway. On the Punk aspect, his explanation in the interview made him sound like a dick who I'd not want in my locker-room. The footage backs it up. But if people thought he was OK after he literally outed himself as a knob, they're not going to care.

Scorcher, please take this in the manner it's meant. You make yourself look a tit when you post this shit about WWE and WWE fans when you watch them all the time. If you're just stealing their content, that doesn't make it any better. Why don't you either not watch them or not pretend you're above it all? It'd make a better impression. Genuinely.

I don't care about the footage, I don't care about CM Punk and, given I don't pay them or watch them anymore, I don't suppose I care that much about AEW. However, I really do care about there being viable pro-wrestling companies for workers and fans. So my opinion on the showing of the footage is the same as my general opinion on AEW. I don't know what they're doing. I used to think I did. The execution wasn't always great but the plan to establish an alternative product that felt like it was sport and allowed individuals to help themselves flourish, to establish a relationship with WBD and a catalogue of content, to sign and develop their own future stars working on Dark shows and to use big TV specials between building to 4 big annual PPVs was a sound one. That clicked 2-3 years ago and they felt like the better alternative for a good while. They've completely lost their way with the content, content, content approach, abandoning loads of the things that made them different, signing horrible people who were on the scrapheap for a reason and turning their innovative, creative environment into a fucking shitshow. I'm watching from afar these days but it's depressing to see the lack of buzz about the place, the lack of arses in seats and the terrible decisions being made out of desperation. Even when what I'm hearing is that they're on a run of solid enough shows, they can't help themselves but put this petty shit on TV. They're like WCW in 5x fast forward. Sad.