There’s been a lot of comparisons since Monday of CM Punk’s promo with The Nexus début last year. Both happened in June, both ended the show, both involved John Cena and most importantly of all, both have spiked Internet fans interest like nothing else in the previous few years. Making the comparison to last year, when the Nexus fizzled out fairly quickly, one might be worried that CM Punk’s revolution could go the same way. But thankfully there is one key difference, Punk is ready, Nexus wasn’t.
The problem with creating a group of rookies is that they are exactly that – rookies. OK, Daniel Bryan has more experience than most of the WWE roster, but he left after one week. And even his inexperience of the system showed through on the opening night when he choked Justin Roberts – heck, Heath Slater was moments away from getting the chop too for the same choking idea. Bryan and Wade Barrett were the only two people ready for that angle, and one didn’t make it to the end of the week.
The Nexus as a group was far stronger than the sum of its collective parts, that was the problem. Call them a group all you want (the word ‘nexus’ means core), but eventually they had to be exposed as singles performers. Be it on the microphone or in the ring. Wade Barrett held up an end very well but the rest (sans Bryan) didn’t deserve a promotion from NXT, not yet at least. Yes, having them lose at Summerslam was a mistake, but it would’ve only delayed the inevitable, the old phrase ‘you are only as strong as your weakest link’. In The Nexus’ case, there were a number of weak links that weren’t able to sustain the weight of the angle being applied (although this isn’t to their individual detriment).
Punk on the other hand is a different story. He’s ready. He is as all-around a performer as they come. There is no weak link with him, certainly nothing that could restrict the potential story telling ideas that could be on the table. I’ll be shocked if Punk was given carte blanche to go out on Raw and say the things that he said without a concrete signed contract offer in the book – even if there are some compromises involved.
The scope for this angle is vast. Such is the situation and such is Punk as a performer. The Nexus was always going to be limited because they couldn’t constantly rely on Barrett – and believe me they got as much as they could out of him at the helm. Once the constituent parts were exposed, the angle broke down because those individuals had no right being there. The beauty is that Punk does, and providing the story is right, he and Cena can blow this one sky high.
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