[2021-09-05-AEW-All Out] CM Punk vs. Darby Allin

[Timbo Slice]

Revisiting this in the wake of Bryan Danielson’s debut shows two distinct ways of getting to the same point. Bryan was put in a situation where he had to face perhaps the most maximalist wrestler on the planet and basically took his style of match and outdid him in it, putting together two decades of his work into an expression of what he wants pro wrestling to be for the remainder of his career. 
 

Punk, on the other hand, isn’t as physically gifted or technically sound, and while there was a day in his career where what he brought to the table was A Whole Bunch of Stuff (or rather, much more stuff than his WWE compatriots) the one thing he could always bring to the table was an aura and a sense of story that was practically unmatched. With Bryan, you get the sense you’re  watching the most talented in-ring worker ever, but with Punk, there’s a sense that literally anything could happen, and it holds your attention perhaps in a more engaging way.

So putting Punk up against someone in Darby, while making all the sense in the world from a storyline perspective given what Darby stands for now based on what Punk stood for at his best, also made sense from an in-ring standpoint, as it led to a match that had a constant state of tension. Darby had been a lightning rod, and making Punk have to think about what he could do against someone who constantly put his body at risk meant he had to figure out ways to stop that unpredictability of overwhelming the match, because at that point, what answers could Punk possibly have?

They built to that idea incredibly well, with Punk slowly realizing that even him being at his best with the foundational aspects of pro wrestling were only going to do him so much, and withstanding Darby’s trademark bursts were going to challenge his ability to compete at points. Yet as the match went on and as Darby got more daring, his responses had to be more impactful (aside from the absolutely cheeky sit-up Coffin Drop counter), which led to the fantastic stretch run where, by the end of the match, Punk had to put him down and put him down quick. 

Inbetween those incremental steps were some amazing nuance from Punk, both from a transition standpoint and especially with his selling. He made Darby’s offense look as impactful as ever, and he made sure everything Darby did look like it was eroding his life force, questioning him even thinking that coming back after seven years was a good idea. 
 

Darby’s performance was about seizing the moment and he absolutely did that and then some. The ring post bump was sickening, and it was great to see him starting taking more and more chances when he started making his moves on Punk. His final flurry that ended with the fantastic somersault plancha really made it seem like he had Punk fighting for his life, especially given he had already survived the GTS at that point. 

I go back and forth now between this and the Danielson/Omega match, and in my review of that match, I said it was the best AEW match. I’m not sure that’s the case anymore, because this match did more with the actual psychology surrounding the match than the other, and the finality here meant more given Omega/Danielson seemed like a natural build to something more down the line. It was just great to see Punk work a match that way given he had been away for so long, and was immediately a memorable performance that added to his legacy.