In the immortal words of San Andreas resident Carl Johnson, “Ah crap, here we go again.”
AEW CEO and GM Tony Khan announced during the May 31 episode of Dynamite that the promotion’s biggest name, CM Punk, was returning to the company beginning with the premiere episode of AEW’s newest television show, Collision, which is reportedly being dubbed “The Second Coming.”
The announcement comes after nine months of sneak dissing and mudslinging from both sides of this proverbial ego-measuring contest between Punk and The Elite. Khan’s announcement, in theory, would mean the end to all of the nonsense, which in this case, means pretty much anything that does not involve making money for AEW.
In reality, the real work is just beginning for Khan and the rest of the promotion’s staff.
Let’s make one thing clear: Yes, I do believe Khan’s announcement was an effort to help boost slumping ticket sales — not necessarily for the first episode of Collision, which takes place in Punk’s hometown of Chicago and is already nearly sold out.
This is more about the ensuing episodes of Collision, which have reportedly not sold as well. From that standpoint, AEW made the right decision. I understand that fans still love the element of surprise. “But imagine the pop,” some fans say.
But you can’t promote a business based off “the pop.” You have to advertise what you are trying to sell, and in this case that means, telling everyone Punk is going to show up, unlike “The First Dance” in 2021 when Punk appeared unannounced (we all knew anyway, but still).
Believing that surprises are the way to go in wrestling is more a product of us being conditioned after watching multiple promotions repeat said formula for the last quarter century. It’s just that no other entertainment entity follows that model.
If Drake has agreed to appear at an awards show, you better believe that awards show will announce it ahead of time. The NFL spends months promoting the Super Bowl halftime show, and that’s not even why most people are watching the game. But you wouldn’t be able to tell with the way the NFL promotes it.
The reality for AEW is that it could not afford to keep Punk as a surprise because of those lagging ticket sales. As it is with the Khans’ Jacksonville Jaguars, business is pretty good in the United Kingdom. When it comes to All In, business is booming there. Back home, there’s a different story to tell.
And while the story may change for the better for the Jaguars gaining a division title, a playoff win last season, and overall stability, AEW hasn’t exactly been hitting on all cylinders since Punk abruptly left last September.
So fine, AEW has issues selling tickets. So what? Punk is back, which means all is well with AEW’s world again. Right?
Not quite.
The task ahead begins with managing the egos and personalities on AEW’s roster, which apparently, the promotion didn’t do well the last time Punk was around. Wondering if two sides can coexist has become fodder for bad WWE storytelling over the years, but for AEW, it’s a legitimate concern.
After all, despite all of the headlines that came out of All Out and the ensuing months, what did AEW actually gain from all of it? I would argue nothing other than making it look like AEW ran a sloppy shop. AEW can ill afford to revert back to that perception.
This all could be made even more complicated if AEW follows through on the reports that some sort of brand split could be on the way. Who goes where? Who’s considered to be one side of the Punk-Elite divide versus the other? Add that to the list of things AEW decision makers could lose sleep over.
The work also extends to the on-screen product, which some believe (myself included) has taken a step back since Punk’s sabbatical. It wasn’t a huge regression, but it was a step in the wrong direction nonetheless.
Now Punk is back, which means there are no excuses for AEW. The on-screen product simply must improve.
It is time for AEW to get its stuff together, right the wrongs of last year, and get back to producing the best television product in wrestling. If you haven’t noticed, WWE has done its own backsliding in quality since WrestleMania. AEW has largely been unable to capitalize, but now that Punk is back and healthy, maybe that can begin to change.