Why WWE Needs A NEW Pipebomb Moment
Making the brass ring a reality.
When CM Punk delivered with his own incendiary words his infamous, awesome Pipebomb promo on the June 27, 2011 RAW, change was not on WWE’s agenda. Punk was simply instructed to sell a pay-per-view with the near-full creative license he was so disgruntled without.
This disgruntlement manifested as an astonishing tirade against the philosophy marring the entire company. He threatened to leave with the WWE Heavyweight Title, but the subtext was clear: he was going to stay and drive us forward into a new meritocratic era in which in-ring work, devised promo skills and crowd reaction would dictate what we see on flagship television - not the drastic, out-of-time whims of a “millionaire who should be a billionaire”.
Did anything truly change in its aftermath?
On the surface, very little.
Promos remained scripted, all too often to a risible extent. John Cena remained the face of the company. Punk, the iconoclastic rebel, found himself in the role of scab as The Miz - a company man if there ever were one - led a revolt against the WWE machine in one of several abandoned, inexplicable storylines. The simmering tension between CM Punk and Triple H ultimately resulted, after an unflattering PPV match and a sudden, nonsensical peace treaty, in babyface Triple H Vs. Kevin Nash (!).
CONT'D...