CM Punk/Kevin Nash Angle On RAW
ONE TYPICAL STEP DOWN
I am not a writer that likes to focus on the negatives of my wrestling. I'm not Mark Madden and can actually find the good in the products that I follow week in and week out. It's more difficult when you follow the business the way we all do because you stop watching it as a "fan". Everyone of us in the IWC are a critic. An armchair quarterback. A backseat driver. We are the hardest to please.
Then there are storylines that come along ever so often that make you forget that fact. You get lost in the moment. Caught up in the suspense. You simply mark out.
The overnight success of CM Punk is one of those times. Or at least, it has been for me until recently. As a matter of fact, it was the night after SummerSlam that changed it for me. I was already on the fence with things once Triple H became the new COO and re-signed Punk just like that. Punk coming back to television so quickly isn't the direction I wanted to see them go with him. They did, so I sat back and gave it a chance.
The "go home" edition of Raw before the big pay per view was very bland and "typical". It felt like every other Raw has felt for years since Punk cut that very first "shoot" promo. I wasn't a huge fan, but again, I was still hopeful and anxious to see how it all played out.
Kevin Nash returned at SummerSlam and I got sucked back in again. Whether you're a fan of Nash or not, nostalgia is great in doses and it's worked twice now for the former WWE, WCW and TNA star (his return at the Rumble was excellent and the live crowd that night certainly agreed). Why did Nash show up and attack Punk? Who was behind it? And how would Punk retaliate?
The following night on Raw was a bit confusing and left fans clueless on who was actually behind the "text message". We got a good exchange of words between Punk and Nash, but everything was left unresolved and unclear. Some people took that as WWE slowly building the reveal and praised them for not rushing things. I would have done the same if it wasn't so cotton-picking confusing.
We get to last week's Raw and it's more of the same. We still have no clue as to who actually texted Nash, but I'm afraid the majority of fans have already stopped caring. If they haven't yet, they are probably on their way. There are times when the slow burn of an angle works, but without throwing logic completely out the window, the reveal is probably going to be a disappoint any way they go at this point. Whether it's Stephanie, Vince, Johnny or Hunter…they will each have the same effect.
I am a HUGE fan of "reality" and "shoots" being worked into a wrestling angle – IF done right. WWE had done EVERYTHING right, as it relates to CM Punk's recent transition into a true, bona fied Superstar on Raw. That is, up until a few weeks ago when everything seemed "typical" again.
Of all the directions they could have taken with CM Punk and more recently, the "who did it" angle with Kevin Nash, I'm afraid momentum has already come to a screeching halt. Is there a chance they can regain it going forward? Absolutely – and if they do, I'll have them going the opposite direction in a future edition of this column, but for now, I'm not running to my 55" tv on Monday nights at 8:00 like I have been. I'm skipping leisurely at best.
This time next week, I could be back to using my DVR for Raw and watching Monday Night Football live.
Raw is still better today than it has been, but I want "great" again. Raw is back to being "typical" and the new CM Punk is supposed to represent the complete opposite of that. Let him.
Do you agree? Do you think I'm being too critical of the recent direction WWE has taken with the main storyline on Raw? I want to hear from you – honestly. Follow me on Twitter @RealityofChris or email me your thoughts at wzchriscash@yahoo.com. You can also discuss this article in the comments section below and in WrestleZone's official wrestling forums. I'll be back next week as we continue to follow the progress of today's wrestling superstars.
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
