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After getting some really positive wrestling vibes from the CM Punk return on Friday I decided to watch SummerSlam live on Saturday. I hadn't watched a PPV since Royal Rumble 2020 but do keep up with the product via reading/watching recaps. I tuned in ready for some fun... and by the time Lesnar/Reigns had their stare down I was wondering what it would take for me to watch another WWE PPV. Everyone talks about how bad the booking is, but for me it was the presentation. Nothing about it feels organic or reactive. On commentary it's repetitive statements (Cena has a chance! John has a chance! Big match John!), mind-numbing hyperbole (Cena-Reigns is two faces on WWE's Mt. Rushmore!?!?) and endless buzz words. Even worse, though, are the CONSTANT CAMERA CUTS. Let me watch the match. Stop zooming in and out for punches! I can't be the only person that feels that way, right?
That is all part of the booking/creative process that Vince dictates.
Thoughts on Roman Reigns’ CM Punk comments, where he said he isn’t an A player?
I was kind of taken aback by them to be honest. I like and respect Roman and think he is a great wrestler and a good person so I won’t attack him on this. He has a right to his opinion but honestly, I do have to wonder if this is a situation similar to when John Cena was taking shots at The Rock before he came back,
What do you think of Booker T saying that Punk’s return promo was not good?
Like with Reigns above, I think Booker has a right to opinion. I 100 percent disagree with his view obvious since I said here on the site that his return was absolutely perfect to me. It got a ton of eyeballs on AEW and brought a LOT of traffic and subscriptions to this site. So while Booker has a right to his opinion, I disagree with it.
Do you think Booker said that to appease Vince McMahon?
With Booker, and also Roman, I can’t say I “think” it. But do I wonder it? For sure. Punk came back and was never mentioned by name so only the hardcore fans knew, and they did a great number. Then many millions watched it on YouTube after the fact. If Vince McMahon didn’t see AEW as competition before, he has to now so I wouldn’t be surprised to hear more people who work for him criticize AEW and its workers. That is what happens when Vince feels people are getting too close.
It's often said that Vince should retire, but probably never will. However, do you think WWE can realistically afford him to retire? Since, in the eyes of casual fans and stockholders, Vince IS WWE and always has been, do you think the stock price would take a significant hit if Vince retired, or in a worst case scenario, died? I would imagine that there's a lot of people within the company, and the McMahons personally, who could stand to lose a lot of money if that happened.
I think there would a drop at first for the stock, it’s usually what happens when someone like Vince leaves. If it happened tomorrow, I think it would rebound because they have a lot of good deals in place. There may even be some people who would buy it if Vince left. They may feel he has lost his touch but if he weren’t there, things would improve.
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