Tim Kail's Wrestling Journal, 6/2/25

CM Punk arrives on RAW

I've hit a wall with Monday Night Raw.

The past few weeks, I've turned it on and just felt a vague sense of disinterest. Some of that feeling is on me, but some of it is the result of the weekly program. I'll take responsibility for my mood going into it. If I watch it reluctantly, it's not going to be a good time. If I, instead, just relax and let the show wash over me, it's usually a success.

RAW is responsible for its rigid structure, however, one of my main turnoffs. The opening scene this week between Sami Zayn and CM Punk felt ill-conceived and forced. I couldn't help but see parallels between AEW's A-story and WWE's A-story. Both involve champions holding a title "hostage" as a collection of benevolent characters endeavor to "rescue" said title. Sami interrupted Punk to give him little more than a pep talk, explaining why he needed to win his MITB qualifying match. It didn't feel like a natural interaction between these characters. The pair had to thread a fairly convoluted needle; Sami, dejected from losing his MITB qualifying match last week, interrupted Punk in an effort to inspire him to win. Reason being, if Rollins won, that would spell doom for the WWE. 

The disconnect comes from the fact that the stakes aren't actually that high, despite Sami's somber warning. If Seth Rollins wins the MITB and then cashes in for one of the main titles the WWE isn't going to cease to exist. Seth Rollins is merely the leader of a powerful group bent on gaining more power. Their goal isn't to dismantle the WWE, it's to simply sit atop its’ proverbial throne. So Sami's warning to Punk feels simultaneously hollow and an overreaction. I understand the scene was meant to apply pressure to Punk, and raise the stakes of the main event, but it just read as overwrought.

That's when I decided to go to bed early. Sleep was preferable.

For the latest episode of the podcast I watched and reviewed the latest episode of Dynamite.

I enjoyed that experience a lot more than RAW, because the structure of the show feels less rigid. There's also a greater focus on good wrestling matches.

Watching Dynamite for the first time in months, I was struck with the following realization: in AEW, wrestling matches happen regardless of whether or not any particular talent in that match is feuding.

The conceit of the show is that professional wrestling is a sport, not a soap opera. In WWE, it's the exact opposite. Matches tend to only happen in WWE between feuding superstars or superstars who are, at the very least, tangentially connected to a narrative. In WWE, narrative drama is the thrust of its fictional universe, not wrestling matches as "athletic contests". There are strengths and weaknesses to either approach, but I'm at a point in my life where I prefer AEW's philosophy. I also like that AEW is a little more naturalistic in its presentation and even, at times, a bit messy. It more closely reflects how a wild world of colorful characters might operate, where WWE's streamlined presentation often feels prescriptive.

Both companies have yet to present an interesting, original take on the "backstage" world of professional wrestling, though. Why neither thinks to film that part of the world "as it is" remains beyond me. I long for a day where nondescript offices are no longer the setting of these backstage scenes.

But I digress. None of this is too important to me right now.

My dog, Rocky, has been undergoing chemo-therapy for the past month and his condition is not improving. He's still his spunky little self, but chemo has not clearly helped him. If he's in pain, he's hiding it. But his lymph node only gets bigger when it should be getting smaller. If it turns out this protocol isn't working then we'll have to switch to a new protocol. Meanwhile all these doctor visits and therapy sessions cost a small fortune. We don't know how we're going to pay for it as our savings continue to dwindle.

Meanwhile, I've begun work on my first feature film This Is Love, a meditation on modern marriage. Rocky is a scene stealer in it. I'm going to try to get as much of him in it as I can before he leaves us. The uncertainty of how he's going to go is only made worse by the certainty that he will eventually go. It's our job as his parents to give him what the oncologist calls a "soft landing". How and when to do that is a bit of a mystery. We just have to wait for him to give us the signal that he's done fighting, and it's time to let him leave this world for whatever may, or may not, come next.

I'm still not over losing Brenda, my first dog with my wife. I still think about her as if she's with us. I miss her. I'm preemptively devastated by the loss of Rocky. I don't think I can handle having another dog and going through this again for at least a year. The death of an animal is tragic because they're just so innocent. All they want is to eat, play, and be loved. Death feels like an afront to their very being, a completely unnecessary villain come to snatch them away from us. But Death is here, standing in a dark corner of the room, watching patiently.

Needless to say, forgive me for not really caring about pro-wrestling right now.

Whether or not John Cena's heel turn is a success or a failure remains low on my list of priorities. Though I will write that I think it has fizzled. He hasn't had anything new to say and he hasn't had a strong counterpoint. It feels like we're just biding our time before a real challenge emerges. I think my biggest issue with his turn, at present, is that it doesn't ring true. When he speaks, I feel more like he's playing a character than he is speaking from the heart. The same is true for his wrestling style as a heel.

My hope is that, like many modern wrestling narratives, it can course correct at the last minute, possibly when he’s posed with a moral dilemma, to help a wrestler in peril or not (and then he decides to help).

It’s a tall order, but I hope Cena finds a natural way to become a good guy again. I hope his inevitable farewell speech is consistent with the character, incorporating his time as a heel rather than ignoring it or allowing it to function as an aberration in his career.

Alrighty, that about does it for this journal entry. Despite my general disinterest in present narratives, I remain optimistic about Money in the Bank this Saturday. Keep your ears out for a new episode of the pod where I review it next Monday.

Thanks for reading. May the Moment of Pop be with you.