Smark Out Moment

Welcome to another edition of Cheap Pop and Cheap Heat from Smark Out Moment! Each week, we break down the world of professional wrestling and examine two of the polar opposite ends of the spectrum: one thing that was by far the worst thing (Cheap Heat) and the best thing (Cheap Pop) to happen over the past 7 days in sports entertainment. So, what went down this week that we loved and hated about the business?



Rumours of his audition with FOX TV had circulated for weeks, but I was still genuinely, and pleasantly, surprised to see CM Punk return to the WWE family as part of the WWE Backstage show. Yes, strictly his employers are FOX, and so most of his communication will be them and not Triple H or Vince McMahon, but this is still a monumental change in the landscape.

Following his infamous interview on the Colt Cabana podcast, and the subsequent years of snide tweets, disparaging interviews, and dismissive attitude, any sort of association with WWE, even by proxy, seemed almost impossible.

Admittedly, I became a fan of CM Punk around a decade ago, and thought that he was a man of great personal belief to leave a company he did not feel was appreciating him, but my respect for him began to wane as he continued to act curmudgeonly about wrestling to the point that he seemed ungrateful for the wealth and fame that it had given him. Regardless, I like him too much as a performer and personality to hold this against him forever, and his return here is clear evidence of a softened stance to the sport.

Inevitably, the question of when will he wrestle is already being floated, with some WWE superstars already pitching themselves as future opponents for him, but let us just take stock and enjoy what we have here for a little while first. He was a master of the promo and commentary, and there is no way that his presence here will not make this a must watch show.



Why are we still getting these Alistair Black door promos? These have been running since April, and the only person to step up has been Cesaro, and, with that feud firmly in the rear view mirror, what is achieved by carrying it on? It has become incredibly repetitive, and the promo barely deviates week to week. Though, that no more opponents have knocked is largely down to Black being out with a knee injury, but, in which case, why keep these going for such a lengthy amount of time?

I can understand wanting to keep him in the fan’s thoughts, but is out of sight and out of mind not sometimes better? The sizeable pop when a star returns from injury is always bigger if you have heard nothing about them for weeks on end. I could understand if there was something exciting to say in each of them, but, after more than six months worth, there really is not.


So there you have it, my two choices for the week. What do YOU think are the Cheap Pop and Cheap Heat this week in professional wrestling? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!