Embrodak Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 Punk was going Full Cena, there, even more than his AEW Second Coming. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KawadaSmile Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 1 hour ago, funkdoc said: That got ZERO reaction from the crowd too, WWE's fanbase is less chronically online news at 11 etc. etc. That might be, but I feel that a Tribute to the Troops crowd might be the worst indicative of how online the fanbase is. They'd pop big for Jade but aren't aware of a backstage fight that got considerable attention? Hmmm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sek69 Posted December 9, 2023 Author Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 Randy Orton getting monster reactions at Tribute to the Troops shows will never not amuse me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirEdger Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 Surprised that Charlotte probably blew out her knee in her match vs Asuka and no one talks about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Embrodak Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 Lol I just watched the Punk promo, and now I’m seeing other images that suggest they went full CM Poochie with it. Hunter and Punk both read the comment sections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DMJ Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 I thought Punk's promo was pretty bad last night. The brand split stuff feels beneath him and too gimmicky for his character. Punk's attitude should be "I show up wherever and whenever I want unlike at that other place that tried to control me," same as Lesnar and seemingly Orton, Logan Paul, and Cena and everyone else who has jumped between brands randomly based on who they're feuding with for that PLE cycle. I didn't like him "running down the roster" and talking about future opponents, praising the babyfaces and poo-pooing the heels. Felt very generic and aimless to me, lacked any good punchlines, felt more like he was promoting the WWE than promoting CM Punk. Cody and Cena make that stuff work because they're wholesome characters. CM Punk, not so much. Unlike his first promo, which was thin on content and short on time, this one went long without going anywhere until he said he was entering the Rumble. I think Punk believes he can go out and just "shoot" and it will be entertaining, but without a target, I wasn't hooked. I would've preferred him focusing on just Rollins or just Reigns/Heyman, for example, rather than name-dropping LA Knight and Solo Sikoa, who just aren't in the top-of-the-card mix. What's next week? CM Punk shares his thoughts on Ivar and Ricochet? The crowd was into him, but I think they would've been more into Cody and/or Cena. I hate to paint with a wide brush, but a Tribute To The Troops show is probably not the best venue for an anti-authority, self-centered loudmouth braggart to be cutting 15 minute promos. These fans want some jingoism. They want some solemn-faced salutes. They want some "I'm not the hero, YOU'RE the heroes!" praise from guys who either (a) at least played a Marine or (b) have an unironic stars-and-stripes tattoo on their neck. I really hope they don't have Punk win the Rumble and challenge Rollins. No matter how they spin it, coming in, calling yourself the The Best In The World, and then not shooting your shot at the Tribal Chief makes you look scared. It doesn't matter that Rollins' title is the "workhorse" title or whatever - that belt was a consolation prize and until Reigns drops his gold, it will not be seen as being equal to the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. Which makes sense considering the word "undisputed" is right there in the name of the title. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 On 12/9/2023 at 2:09 AM, SirEdger said: Surprised that Charlotte probably blew out her knee in her match vs Asuka and no one talks about it. Edit: nasty injury. Hope she recovers well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NintendoLogic Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 Isn't Tribute to the Troops just a regular Smackdown for the most part now? It's not like it used to be where they were held in military towns and most of the audience was troops and their families and the show was explicitly non-canon. The closest military base to Providence is Naval Station Newport, which is mainly a training station. As for Punk, he can't take direct shots at AEW due to NDAs. I'm guessing he was trying to test the waters last night to see if he could get a reaction with wink-wink insider stuff. I suspect he'll drop it since it went over like a lead balloon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KawadaSmile Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 The show is canon, but a considerable part of the crowd is still troops, veterans and whatever. I think it would be different than, say, Denver, which is usually hot. I enjoyed that Punk talked shit about some people. At least in terms of opening up possibilities, it was very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert S Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 I tried to watch an NXT show two weeks back because I wanted to "prepare" myself for Deadline. The wrestling itself was fine, maybe even good, but the skits were SOOOO bad. Let's watch the mafia eat dinner! Let's have a fake press conference of a fake dean (?) of a fake university! Let's watch a big simpleton having dinner with a 50ies-TV-style family. Let's watch a backstage argument where people are completely ignoring the camera. It felt like a mixture of an AEW b-show and Tuesday Night Titans, and not in a good way. Are they still trying to make movies? I hope the main shows are not like that because if they are, yikes. And if they are: Vince McMahon is out of the picture, there is no need to play to him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KawadaSmile Posted December 9, 2023 Report Share Posted December 9, 2023 That's actually pretty nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C.S. Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 Join us here for the NXT PPV PLE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alucard Posted December 10, 2023 Report Share Posted December 10, 2023 16 hours ago, NintendoLogic said: Isn't Tribute to the Troops just a regular Smackdown for the most part now? It's not like it used to be where they were held in military towns and most of the audience was troops and their families and the show was explicitly non-canon. This was the first time in years that they just turned SD into Tribute to the Troops and actually the first ever Live one. The last three were just random taped one hour shows thrown on FOX in the middle of Sunday afternoons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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