Timbo Slice

There’s still an opportunity to do business here. But this part is what determines that.

That’s a good one.

Tony sees it that way; problem is that the talent involved takes these things way too seriously already, as evidenced by how both sides have acted. The other issue is that both sides have valid issues here, which blurs how folks can treat either side. It’s better if there are defined roles coming out of something like this.

Everyone did this to themselves: -The Bucks and Omega did it because they’re the leakers to Meltzer and the like to sow the seeds of discontent with Punk. -Punk did it because he reacted with the unheralded vitriol that made him leave the business in the first place and the first sign of malice was an opportunity to give into his worst impulses. -Page did it because he worked himself into a shoot and it made things difficult to actually confront Punk about it because in his eyes, he should be the face of the company, worked it into multiple promos related to Punk, and then more or less did what his on-screen character did in the locker room. -Tony did it because he grew up reading dirtsheets and thought using them as a vessel to drive “organic” interest in the product no matter how it actually manifests itself is worthwhile because that’s what got him interested in wanting to do this shit in the first place. -And the sheets did it because they run a perpetual motion machine that when actually confronted with needing to report on something, show their collective asses because their sources are obvious and their behavior screams, “How can I get more clicks off this?” The ecosystem that allowed this to fester is something that won’t go away anytime soon, and the fallout from it is not going to be as interesting as anyone hopes. It will be sudden, it will be dumb, and it’ll end with whoever decides to take a side saying the other person did it. Also, people saying Cody was smart for getting out as if he could see this coming: The only difference between Cody and Punk is that Cody knew he had a backup plan and went that route instead of confronting folks more than he already did. He was just as isolated as Punk was, he was trying to craft his own narrative given how the locker room had been shaking out, and he believed his own bullshit enough that it turned folks off. And if folks think he’s the guy once he comes back now that Paul is in charge? Cmon now.

Has to protect his sources now, doesn’t he?

People want to be backstage so much they’re surprised it’s being put out there like that. The dirt sheet promotion to end all dirt sheet promotions. Tony Khan breaking and rebuilding the wrestling news cycles in the span of a single evening. An incredible moment.

Dude setting up his next half dozen programs.

The EVP stuff reads like how to set up more stuff with Page/Omega down the line. Omega has been shooty with Ospreay and that’s just a continuation of it. And then the first question using Colt’s shoot name almost screams setup. Punk knows exactly what he’s doing in both situations.

Was that way in June, too. It’s such a terrible thing to make it the only way to watch it.

Honky Tonk Cage

But what else could he have? That’s the issue about making big statements like that. Cole’s return already should have happened so that’s a no go, too.

She-Hulk is trademarked and AEW’s parent distributor houses the DC universe so that’s probably why he had to avoid saying it at all costs.

A lot of that has to do with the rather predictive nature of the results so far.

I’m on a long drive that was gonna put me back home around 3 hours in so I’m not upset about getting the replay. Because even the purchased stream is garbage.

The card is as follows: All Out Zero Hour Card: Tomohiro Ishii vs. Eddie Kingston Pac (c) vs. Kip Sabian - Singles match for the AEW All-Atlantic Championship Hook (c) vs. Angelo Parker - Singles match for the FTW Championship AEW All Out Card: Jon Moxley (c) vs. CM Punk - Singles Match for the AEW World Championship The Elite (Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks) vs. Adam Page and The Dark Order (Alex Reynolds and John Silver) - Tournament final for the inaugural AEW World Trios Championship Toni Storm vs. Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. vs. Jamie Hayter vs. Hikaru Shida - Four-way match for the Interim AEW Women's World Championship Claudio Castagnoli vs. Wheeler Yuta vs. Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Rey Fénix vs. Rush vs. Andrade El Idolo vs. Dante Martin vs. TBD - Casino Ladder Match Swerve In Our Glory (c) vs. The Acclaimed - Tag team match for the AEW World Tag Team Championship Bryan Danielson vs. Chris Jericho Jade Cargill (c) vs. Athena - Singles Match for the AEW TBS Championship Jungle Boy vs. Christian Cage Wardlow and FTR vs. Jay Lethal and The Motor City Machine Guns (Chris Sabin and Alex Shelley) - Six-Man Tag Team Ricky Starks vs. Powerhouse Hobbs House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King, and Buddy Matthews) vs. Darby Allin, Sting, and Miro A packed card that is also varied, and is basically a lock to go 6 hours+ including the zero hour stuff.

The streak is over. I didn’t do the thing this time. Rejoice.

Fucking GOAT right there.

Given those mental health issues, I imagine him being with Zelina on a more regular basis would also be a boon for him.

Interestingly enough, the main event from this week recycled some bits from the famous 6-man tag from PWG where Ospreay hit the cutter to counter the Meltzer Driver and then did the SSP version, and the first thing that came to mind was how it seemed muted because of the production. I still think they’re trying to find their way capturing all the styles. They need a few more wide shots, they cut to the crowd too much. A bit more simplistic production goes a long way.

I think people underestimate how many fans think Punk is riding the coattails to an ascending promotion.

The quick response to this is that Punk represents a completely different ideal than what AEW was before him, and it’s being used as a cudgel against him due to how much it has changed the product to revolve around him in a lot of ways. The narratives around his character does him no favors, either, but at the same time, AEW’s fanbase is fickle at large with issues like this. It’s why Page’s angle with Punk was about “protecting AEW.” It was a turnaround against Punk from his WWE days when he was in Page’s shoes. Tony knows this stuff and it’s what he thinks is going to make him money.

I understand why people want to distill Tony’s comment down to a singular issue but there’s so much that goes into why that presentation isn’t as equitable as it should. Tony cites numbers as his driving force, but when given the opportunity, the women who have gotten run have, outside of a short time with Britt, not done well with it. And I’m not talking about the subjective nature of their work or their character or what have you. It hasn’t drawn folks in for the most part. Stephanie’s Women’s Revolution (TM NXT/WWE, all rights reserved) was a combination of not only being given the time, but making the most of it. People were ready for the women to shine, and the character work got folks invested to the point when, on NXT’s biggest stage at that point, Sasha and Bayley made them and the other women undeniable. Britt cooled down significantly after frankly being overexposed (playing the same insider note over and over again does her no favors) and Rosa had heat when they crossed paths. But once given the chance, Rosa couldn’t hold viewers herself. Jade has had some decent pings, but her booking has been scattershot as time constraints for the other talent Tony has brought in (yes, namely men) have gotten more shine. It’s not just one thing or the other. Toni should get the title on Sunday and it’s not going to be A Big Deal because as good as she is in ring, she’s not really compelling. Lest we also forget what happened with Ruby Soho once she was given her opportunities, which was sad given what we had seen with her previously. Becky’s moment went viral because she got an uncommon situation presented to her and she went enough off the beaten path that folks took notice. Rosa and Britt did something similar with their street fight, but everything fell apart once the follow through actually happened. AEW does give women some of those opportunities (but not enough of them), and that has to do with a bloated roster, Tony’s penchant for not using same talent every week, and women with weak character development overall. Tony has too many toys at his disposal to know what to do best with many of them, and it’s making many parts of the roster seem like afterthoughts.

Again. Don’t think the work is in question. The path to get there certainly is. Compelling stories do matter, though, and the drama surrounding the company has been more compelling than the stuff once the curtain opens. They have to find their balance again.

Also, did you know there’s a PPV on Sunday? Without a main event announced? Wild.

Just keeping the streak going.