This came up in the comment section:
1. Given that he now has a contract with UFC, it seems like a futile gesture on the crowds' part.
1) What are your thoughts on them in general?
2) Do you feel having them during AJ Lee's return is a setback for #GiveDivasAChance?
2. If giving Divas a chance means more Bellas, I hope no one does.
I for one cannot wait for The Self Destruction of CM Punk dvd/blu ray.
ReplyDeleteObviously, the crowd just does it now to annoy Vince and Triple H, which I'm fine with if the WWE is so intent on pissing off its own fans.
ReplyDeleteAt this point I see it less as, "We like CM Punk and want you to bring him back!" and more as, "CM Punk was right, fuck this company." That's why I didn't mind when they chanted it at the Royal Rumble, but DID think it was ridiculous when they chanted it at AJ last night.
ReplyDeleteLike someone said in the Raw thread, it's a more polite 'Bullshit' chant
ReplyDelete1. It's just people trying to be clever. He isn't coming back. It's as relevant as the "What?" chants, where it just becomes part of what the crowd "does" during the show.
ReplyDelete2. Meh.
I don't mind them too much as i can picture Vince, HHH and Steph backstage being really pissed over it
ReplyDeleteI don't even think it has a motive at this point. It's just a "thing" the crowd does, like the "What?" thing that went on for years after Austin left
ReplyDeleteI think the CM Punk chant is more of a fuck you to whatever they're unhappy with at the time.
ReplyDeleteAll Steph had to do is turn to the crowd last night and go "He's not here, but his bimbo is scheduled for later".
ReplyDeleteIn other words, take the chant head on.
That's what I think it is, too. I think the bigger problem is the WWE is putting on shows that are boring the crowds, so they start doing the CM Punk chant to amuse themselves. I don't think anyone expects him to suddenly run out.
ReplyDeleteand treating them as "divas" has done more to hurt than help them. Women were over more in wwe when they were wrestlers. Chyna and Sable got more pub than all of these women put together.
ReplyDeleteEvery time Nikki says "the Bella brand" on Total Divas, I want to smack her
ReplyDeleteHi Andy Pg !
ReplyDeleteNEEDS MORE BELLAS!
ReplyDeleteChanting "CM Punk" at Stephanie is always the right move
ReplyDeleteIt's really disrespectful to the performers, you wouldn't see that in Japan, home of the best wrestling in the world
ReplyDeleteOn the Divas thing, I actually like women's wrestling. The problem with the WWE divas is they come across as models who were trained to work rather than women who have been wrestling and are good enough to be on a bigger stage. SHINE puts on some really great event full of women who out-wrestle the Divas everytime. AJ Lee feels like the last of a dying breed of Divas who are actually wrestlers.
ReplyDeleteEdit: I'm not advocating against pretty women being involved in wrestling, either. But the models should be ring girls, managers, and backstage interviewers. If they aren't going to the WWE with dreams of wrestling, why force it on them?
The question isn't WHY they are chanting "CM Punk" but the fact that crowds ARE chanting CM Punk. If the WWE could put out any type of product that was entertaining, fans wouldn't be chanting CM Punk. Correct me if I'm wrong, but at no other time in WWE's history did fans chant for a departed wrestler over a YEAR after he left. Vince should take those chants as "We're not doing it right" and panic. Instead, I"m guessing, they are taking it personally and writing off the town as a "smark town" .
ReplyDeleteGiving us more Bellas is EXACTLY what this company would do in response to AJ's tweet because, you know, trolling your paying customers is the best thing to do.
ReplyDeleteThis is where the brand split is glaring. RAW was for the wrestling women except for valet Keibler because of her flashing (and was a good valet), SD was for the eye candy. Now you're trying to get E! reality stars over as wrestlers and no one cares.
ReplyDeletePeople tune in to see wrestlers, if they want to see over-sexualized bimbo there is a lot of other places that are more interesting than a PG show
ReplyDeleteI can't for the life of me understand why fans chant it at AJ. You're supposedly a fan of the guy, why are you trying to make his wife's life more difficult? Did people really need to hear Punk say it himself that he doesn't like it directed at her?
ReplyDeleteA portion of the crowd made a martyr out of him, and the rest of them are bored and like Punk. Put on stuff the crowd doesn't hate, and it doesn't happen.
ReplyDeleteYeah the Punk chant at the Rumble was a sign that he was right about everything
ReplyDeleteAs others have said, the "CM Punk" chant has become more of a way for fans to let WWE know they don't like something. I will say, the chant had all but died out until WWE (er, I mean the WWE employed doctor who 100% on his own and w/ no prompting from WWE) decided to sue Punk & Cabana.
ReplyDeleteBecause making sense is not as important as DOING THINGS to many people.
ReplyDeleteI actually think the Bellas are exceptionally obnoxious heels, and very hateable--wonderfully so. I always enjoy being irritated by them. When I started watching they were terrible because they were supposed to be faces, but as heels they're near perfect.
ReplyDeleteNikki, in particular, has improved in the ring.
Nikki has undergone that Candice Michelle/Christy Hemme transformation from non-wrestling eye candy to perfectly capable worker with moments of greatness. Anyone who denies this is more interested in hating on the Bellas than being right.
ReplyDeleteBrie is still awful, though.
Yeah, Nikki's no Charlotte (yet?), but I think she could hold up her end WITH Charlotte.
ReplyDeleteBrie... Ugh. Wrestling is not her thing and acting is DEFINITELY not her thing.
Brie is awful--but sometimes that works, especially since she's been the lackey to Nikki's villain lately.
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying I like them, but they do such a good job being unlikeable. Compare it to Rollins, who also does a beautiful job with unlikeability.
pretty much this, although I think Nikki is still on the low end of acceptable (she is trying tho, that much seems true).
ReplyDeleteI don't even know what the fuck to think of Brie, she had a couple moments that made her look like she knew what she was doing but clearly she has no fucking clue.
AJ is just ridiculously hot. Well played Punker.
ReplyDeleteYeah but you can't say it's because they're not treated as wrestlers and then namedrop Sable. She makes today's divas look like Lou Thesz.
ReplyDeletetreated like people. How bout that? Yes, she was sexualized but she still was allowed to act like a human being.
ReplyDeleteIf that's the case, why were the overly sexualized women in the Attitude Era the most over in company history? The problem isn't them not being good wrestlers (LMAO) but that PG restricts them from being risque.
ReplyDeleteYeah if you like girls who look like they're fourteen.
ReplyDeleteCome on dude that's revisionist history. ALL Sable did was show her tits, seduce people, have bi-curious flirtatious and show her tits.
ReplyDeleteExactly - it's some of the audience just wanting to get themselves over, and the rest joining in.
ReplyDeleteThen again, there is definitely something to be said for putting on a decent show that people don't WANT to chant through.
For the most part, yeah, that's exactly what it is.
ReplyDeleteEXCEPT for when AJ's out there, then it's a bunch of idiots trying to show how cool and in-the-know they are.
Perfect explanation.
ReplyDeleteSo the tours are going to just focus on Titan Towers now right?
ReplyDeleteOr Macho Man tore you up
ReplyDeletePeople chanting 'CM Punk' when AJ comes out do realise CM Punk likely hates them, right? Even CM Punk, Mister Revolution, is going to draw the line at fans trying to sabotage his wife's wrestling to get themselves over with a nonsensical chant.
ReplyDeleteThe company would change overnight if wrestlers had some balls. Got guys like Ryder who get treated like shit and continue to sign new contracts, instead of going to TNA or Japan and getting themselves so over WWE has to hire them back. I mean shit, fucking A-Train is the smartest guy there: he left, got himself over as a monster in Japan, got himself a new contract paying more... and shrugged off stupid gimmicks because he proved himself in Japan and now he's getting the big cheques.
ReplyDeleteBut no, better to be like Ziggler/Ryder and complain about treatment without doing a damn thing to change it.
I always felt like the "what" chant was a great way to see how much the fans cared about the wrestler/angle being presented to them. I noticed that when someone was giving an interesting promo, the crowd would shut up so they could listen.
ReplyDeleteLike an actual woman.
ReplyDeleteI don't disagree with you, but in the end why would Vince et al care? People are paying money to go to the shows, buying the network etc. If people wanted to protest, stop buying their crap. Easiest way to protest...dead silence in empty arenas.
ReplyDelete