Saturday night at Survivor Series: WarGames, the iconic static hit of CM Punk was perhaps the most impactful of the many over the years.
With this one, Punk returned to where it all started in WWE, slamming the door on the All Elite Wrestling era of his career and reopening one only made possible by the modern Triple H era of WWE.
Make no mistake, the return had The Game’s fingerprints all over it, with his love for displaying the show copyright before a potential fade-to-black of an event aimed at tricking audiences before the big shocker.
WWE @WWE
NEVER. SAY. NEVER.@CMPunk has just returned to WWE at #SurvivorSeries!!! pic.twitter.com/0dpG6vyT5r
One could argue semantics—maybe this doesn’t happen if WWE hadn’t merged with UFC and the overarching companies seeing the massive value of a reunion with Punk.
But the actual execution—and understandable excitement over what comes next—is all Triple H and this new golden era of WWE.
There was no better way to do this return. Dropping little breadcrumbs for the rumor mill suggesting Punk wasn’t going to return and somehow keeping this a secret was part of the brilliance too (despite internet sleuths constantly pointing at the hints and going look at this!).
Drawing out the debut any longer didn’t just mean it wouldn’t have happened in Chicago. It would have meant more chants at future shows and possible derailments of events such as the Royal Rumble.
In the post-show presser, Triple H even called it one of those proverbial “lightning in a bottle moments.”
WWE @WWE
What did @TripleH have to say about the return of @CMPunk? Find out NOW!
👉 https://t.co/n3k4n54X25 pic.twitter.com/edW0wutl5B
Instead, a nice, quick shocker that creates an all-timer of a moment while also leaving fans wondering just what Punk might be up to in WWE as an immediate feud.
Because the careful, long-form storytelling of the Triple H era so far means no stone will go unturned in Punk’s upcoming promos and feuds. So yes, his immediate feud might be with Shinsuke Nakamura, answering those challenges and giving him a nice welcome-back rivalry.
But after that? The possibilities feel endless, all the way up to his winning a Royal Rumble and getting mixed in with The Bloodline and Roman Reigns.
That’s the top end and because of the history, not even the most appetizing thing Punk could do, though.
A feud with Seth Rollins for the top Raw title would be amazing, given the WWE world heavyweight champion calling Punk a “cancer” in an interview with Nick Hausman of Wrestling Inc earlier this year. That and…they could work a program around the fact that neither of them has technically main-evented a WrestleMania and now they can in this two-night era.
And in the immediate aftermath of Saturday’s event, it sure looks like Rollins was already working the angle again:
kyla 🙂 @rollinshield
oh sethie is MAD…
🎥: @righthandreigns pic.twitter.com/Xu0DdpJ2cz
Best of all, though, might be a feud with Cody Rhodes.
While some might bemoan The American Nightmare not getting the chance to finish his story, if Reigns is busy with The Rock or a more sensible family-based ‘Mania feud, Punk would make for one heck of a penultimate chapter.
The AEW storyline there writes itself. Rhodes had his reasons for coming back to WWE and so does Punk. It would give him a story-based platform to explain his reasons behind the very public fallout with AEW.
Plus, of course, an ability to address anyone who might suggest his return is hypocritical. That’s another testament to the Triple H era—the company Punk left, embittered and even in a legal battle with, is certainly not the company he’s returning to now.
Where Rhodes’ return painted AEW in a positive light, Punk’s does more harm for WWE’s direct competition because if the storytelling is right and all goes well, many of his claims and fan attitudes toward the newer promotion will gain some justification.
But that’s getting ahead of things. Feuds with Rhodes, Rollins and more, plus the must-see promos (we can only pray for an encounter with Paul Heyman) can wait. The old adage of never say never in pro wrestling has again come true, perhaps more so than ever before.
This new golden era of WWE can no better be summed up through the Punk return and another of Triple H’s comments in the presser: “For me, if our fans want it, if the WWE universe is excited to have it, then let’s go.”
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