Good morning and good…well…good Saturday morning. First off, I apologize for the lateness, as frankly this week TOTALLY got away from me. I looked up yesterday afternoon and realized it was Friday. In any event, last week was my 29th birthday, 2 year wedding anniversary and I was performing 2 plays a total of 4 times. I assume you’ll understand. I’m totally ready, willing and able to pull the birthday card to get out of a column.
Nevertheless, I got thinking about one of the downsides of writing this column on Fridays. That being, of course, the fact that despite being a HUGE fan of CM Punk (and I have been since probably 2005 or so), and despite loving every aspect of his ongoing angle on Raw, the topic is totally beaten to death by the time the rotation comes around to me. Guys like Mike Gojira, Jonah Kue, Pulse Glazer and Rhett Davis–and seemingly everyone else–have weighed in. So, while discussing the merits of the ROH SBG deal (too dry) or the seemingly imminent departure of the Kings of Wrestling for McMahon-land (maybe next week?) could be interesting, I would really like to get an opportunity to discuss this whole Punk thing as well. And gosh darn it, that’s what I’m going to do.
Well, sort of.
One of the most odd complaints I saw on the net after the events of last Monday night (ably recapped elsewhere; I’m sure you’ve seen the YouTube footage) was the decidedly peculiar sentiment that people weren’t on board with the idea of Punk’s music being changed to “Cult of Personality” by the funk-metal band Living Color. I will, however, put the song in, because I have always loved that song:
Oh yeah, that’s the stuff. Now, it staggered me reading these responses. Granted, not many were from Inside Pulse readers, as I like to think that you all are a pretty bright lot that see what’s going on. I could only think that some of these responses were coming from people who don’t pay attention to lyrics in music, never saw his ROH Title run or simply are too young to appreciate everything amazing about the song as it relates to the character. Therefore, I’d like to present some excerpts from the lyrics to Cult of Personality.
I know your anger, I know your dreams
I’ve been everything you want to be
Oh, I’m the cult of personality
There were people after Punk cut his now famous June 27th worked shoot promo that compared it to his Austin moment, and like Austin, Punk’s success and connection with the promo stemmed from his being fed-up at work. People could relate. Punk has said many times that he is the voice for the voiceless. Originally this was due to his status as the leader of the Straight Edge Society and his speaking up for those who “follow the X,” as it were. Regardless, the nature of his role has clearly expanded and this is reflective of it. It takes other aspects of cult leadership as well, which Punk’s character has always been–at least since his initial heel turn–the cult leader will tell you anything you want to hear and listen to all of your complaints–so long as they don’t conflict with his goals–because there’s nothing they want more than you believing that you’re marching to the beat of your drummer when you’re actually marching to his.
Neon lights, a Nobel prize
When a mirror speaks, the reflection lies
You don’t have to follow me
Only you can set me freeI sell the things you need to be
I’m the smiling face on your TV
Oh, I’m the cult of personalityI exploit you, still you love me
I tell you, one and one makes three
Oh, I’m the cult of personality
Another nice section. You can’t trust your reflection in the mirror, you can only trust me, despite the fact that I’m selling you snake oil. Moreover, I’m giving you the illusion of choice in telling you that you don’t have to follow me, because I’ve presented an alternative that is so undesirable that you’ll obviously follow. Regardless of what I tell you, regardless of what I do to you, you’ll still follow me because (1) I have the charisma–the cult of personality–that makes you love me no matter what, and (2) I have so wholly convinced you that any other path would be disastrous that there isn’t anywhere else you’ll go. The line of “I exploit you / Still you love me” is probably one of my favorites in the entire song as pertains to Punk and his current character/situation.
You gave me fortune, you gave me fame
You me power in your God’s name
I’m every person you need to be
Oh, I’m the cult of personality
Now, this one’s pretty obvious. The people Punk is exploiting gave him fortune and fame, and we were essentially the ones who gave him the power of the WWE Championship by taking him over McMahon and Cena. Yes, I know that the fans didn’t book the segment, write the angle, etc., but WWE has always sold the idea of the fans giving wrestlers power to move through obstacles they “wouldn’t otherwise be able to.” In that sense, the Chicago crowd gave Punk everything he needed.
Now, I’m probably not supposed to link out to places like With Leather, but I’ve done it in the past, and their blogger who covers WWE Monday Night Raw (among other things), Brandon Stroud, said everything about the CM Punk situation more perfectly than I ever could. If you’re not reading him, I highly recommend that you do so. The man is funny and he really knows his stuff.
For instance:
People saying Cult of Personality doesn’t “fit†him are weird. Like, do you think Killswitch Engage is “punk music� It fits him because it’s explaining to you exactly what he’s doing — he’s drawing you in with his unstoppable charisma and personality, then using it to tell you whatever he wants, which makes you do whatever he wants you to do.
Exactly. People complained about things like lyrics “comparing Mussolini to Kennedy.” Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. It’s not a comparison, it’s a dichotomy (yes, I grasp that a dichotomous relationship is essentially a version of comparison; bear with me). The idea is that both men had that innate ability to draw you in. Just like later in the song it discusses Stalin and Gandhi. Both men could draw you in and make you follow them. Some chose to use that power for good, some for evil. It speaks to the way people are cognitively hardwired such that if they hear something they agree with, then virtually nothing will ever persuade them that it is not true.
Now in addition to why this angle isn’t rushed, here’s the simple explanation, taken Cliffs Notes style from Mr. Stroud’s absolutely pitch-perfect breakdown at With Leather:
When McMahon realized what he had done–and how Punk had played everyone–he decided to go on with his company as though Punk never existed. The obvious conclusion. Now there’s a hang-up. First off, WWE has trained their audience such that if someone doesn’t show up on TV, he doesn’t exist. They know those pops won’t last forever, if he’s gone too long. This is not something you want to do with your hottest character in years, and I can’t blame them for being leery of walking the line with it. Obviously, Punk wouldn’t be gone forever, but some people were wishing he was gone for longer and here’s why that doesn’t work:
The obvious first step to erase Punk from history is for McMahon to crown a new champion, so the tournament is the only logical conclusion to that. However, a monkey wrench is thrown in when McMahon–fresh off lecturing us about how no one is bigger than WWE–attempts to make himself as such by interrupting and postponing the finals to fire Cena. Only his plans get scrapped by the emergence of Triple H to drop the bombshell on McMahon. So now, McMahon is out of power, but Triple H recognizes the need to move on, so the tournament is allowed to come to its logical conclusion. However, Triple H also needs to establish his power by setting up a title match of his own–and likely expediting the process of trying to get the belt back on to Cena–who clearly Triple H and the board felt was wronged by McMahon. Why else would Triple H save him at that moment?
Once the belt is back on Cena, WWE can proceed completely as though CM Punk had never existed whatsoever. The only thing that can wreck those plans is if CM Punk SHOWS UP. At most, this could have been put off for a week, to “let Rey get fresh” for his defense against Cena. If Cena has multiple defenses, he starts to look like a legitimate WWE Champion (moreso than the previous however-many times he held the belt), which clearly he is not supposed to. Punk is the legitimate champion, as he was never beaten for the title, and the company is trying to sweep him under the rug. To quote Mr. Stroud:
That’s Punk’s game. He either had to
1) Show up when somebody was named WWE Champion, a crown that is rightfully his, or
2) Show up when Cena regained the title, which was frankly inevitable.So now Punk has created a reality where nobody but him can be the “real†champion.
Why? Because CM Punk is all about CM Punk. He wants everyone to pay attention to him because, as Stroud said, “he is an asshole who is lying to you.” He is the Cult of Personality, and for better or for worse, we’ve all been sucked in.
