19 years ago this month, I started publishing the Counterfactual; each December I write an anniversary comment as part of the build to the Rumble. This is that.
As you likely know, I'm wrapping up the Counterfactual...for the most part.
Here's the most part - last month was the last Survivor Series, this preview is for the last Rumble, Wrestlemania 40 is the final Wrestlemania, Summer Slam 2024, the 150th WWF PPV, is the final show; there will be wrap up posts in September/October/November (I will not have a post for Survivor Series 2024, which will feel weird) and then a year from now, the 20th Anniversary, I will stop.
That's the most part.
Here's the other part - in addition to the narrative posts, I have some additional posts that I update after each event (each show has a post dedicated to the history of the event, also, off line, I keep running tallies for best matches of all time and top big match wrestlers of all time and there are some posts I update occasionally to reflect that
I may continue to do that. After doing this for 19 years, I've found that I use thinking about the upcoming booking as a....coping mechanism/mental reset, whatever you might call it. It seems unlikely that need stops cold next September.
So - currently, while I won't do any more new posts, no more narrative posts, I am likely to, for the time being, continue to book those shows and update that stuff. I do have a penciled in book for Survivor Series 2024, for ex.
How I'd suggest one thinks about that is that it's not part of the story - the story ends at Summer Slam next year; its the difference between David Chase making more episodes of Sopranos and David Chase giving some graduation speech where he talks about what happened to Tony after the blackout. It's dicta.
An unintended consequence is a bit of a multi-verse; my years long thought was to bend the story back around such that it was plausible that after my last event, the promotion could return to its real life status for its next event - it's one of the reasons behind the Counterfactual Bloodline, for example. This change changes that for me - but for you, you can decide whatever makes sense for you, as my part in the story ends at Summer Slam next year.
For the most part.
Here's the one caveat - if circumstances eventuate that ten years from now I've maintained booking these cards on my own - and if this space still exists - and if there is, in fact, a Wrestlemania 50 - I'll come back and do that event. Good Lord willing and the Creek Don't Rise.
Here's the card.
WWF Title v. "The Bag": Cody Rhodes v. CM Punk
IC: Drew McIntyre v. Jey Uso
Tags: Triple Crown (Styles/Nakamura w/Mysterio) v. Kevin Steen/Sami Zayn (w/Gargano/Ciampa)
Womens Title: Asuka v. Jordynn Grace
Womens Tags: Bianca Belair/Bayley v. Horsewomen (Baszler/Stratton)
Number One Contender: Roman Reigns v. Walter (w/Heyman)
IC Number One Contender: Elimination Chamber: Bron Steiner v Jimmy Uso v JD McDonaugh v Santos Escobar v Dom Mysterio v LA Knight
Prince Devitt v. Logan Paul (w/McAfee)
Ricochet (w/ BWI) v. Carmelo Hayes (w/Williams)
Falls Count Anywhere: Randy Orton v. Damien Priest
Kairi Sane v. Liv Morgan (Special Guest Referee: Iyo Sky)
Unsanctioned: Bronson Reed v. Andrade
Rhodes v. Punk
Reigns v. Walter
-At Survivor Series, Walter won the tournament to give him the title shot - but, you know, plans change. Pretty quickly, Reigns makes a compelling case (1) he held the title for a year and never got a rematch (2) he and Walter were the final two in the battle royal that was to determine the top contender until Walter's partner tore down the ring and (3) Reigns wasn't in the tournament. Heyman makes a deal, yes, Roman/Walter will wrestle at the Rumble - and the winner there will, no questions asked, go to Wrestlemania 40 to challenge for the WWF Title.
-The build to the Rumble largely focuses on Punk, not just in his match but throughout the programming, everyone in the promotion has to weigh in on CM Punk's dramatic, never expected, return to the WWF.
-Punk makes clear he's back because WWF is the place to be in 2024, Wrestlemania 40, WWF 150, and because of another number - the number 4. 4 men have had the greatest prize in wrestling, the WWF Championship, 3 times.
Bret Hart
Owen Hart
Bryan Danielson
CM Punk
Punk says he's here for one reason - one reason - to become the only man ever to win it 4 times.
Punk says having been away from professional wrestling for so many years, he had a chance to gather his priorities - and after some time in another promotion getting his legs back, he decided now was the time to step into immortality.
-Cody has to agree to the shot - why he does so is what's in Punk's bag. Punk never actually reveals whats in the bag, its his AEW title belt, but AEW watchers know whats in the bag, and Punk makes it clear without using the words thats whats in the bag. The build to Cody/Devitt focused on the AEW stip where Cody gave up the right to ever challenge for the AEW belt, that was framed as a primary reason he left a promotion he helped start - so WWF fans have just spent several weeks with that element of Cody's motivation front of mind. So now, when CM Punk returns, bag in tow, essentially offering Cody a Title v. Title match, he can't turn it down.
-Cody is just focused on Punk and the bag in the build - Punk on the other hand has multiple segments to do (no physicality, Punk's first bump is coming at the Rumble). He and Cody get personal (I'm more CM Punk than you was an IRL line that stung); Punk does a Heyman Hustle to both build a possible Mania match with Walter and to re-establish the Heyman/Punk feud (Heyman came back to WWF with Lesnar specifically to go after Punk, feeling Punk was using the ECW Title as a prop, Punk felt it was a tribute, and the two never got on the same page, remaining adversaries) They needle each other pretty good (Heyman can say something like "what - Jason Priestly doesn't have any adult children you could slap around" - Punk might say something like "I'm the only ECW Champ you don't still owe money to" - this should be a heavily promoted segment, there's an element of the fanbase which will want someone to really go after Punk, and Heyman's in position to do that. The segment ends with a Walter/Punk nose to nose.
-Also much looked forward to would be the Reigns/Punk promo - Reigns has been talking about Punk for years now, Punk thanks him for being unable to keep his name out of his mouth, it got him off his couch and a few million dollars from the other promotion. Reigns is able to say to Punk's face what he's been saying as the cornerstone of his rebooted character, Punk's throwing down the WWF title is the original sin that created every terrible thing that has happened in wrestling since, Reigns worked to unwind what Punk has laid down - he took out all of the Punk wanna-bes, but now, at Mania, if he gets the chance to wipe Punk off the face of the earth, it will be the highlight of his life. There's also a Punk/Steen backstage spot - Punk stops Steen, says he knows he got into some heat with Steen's friends at the other place, wants to know if he and Steen are cool. Steen says "nope" and leaves.
-Reigns and Walter have now been in their program for well over a year, Reigns is why Walter and Lesnar got together in the first place, Walter/Lesnar is why the Reigns group eventually fell apart, Reigns is why Rousey retired, and now here they finally meet 1 on 1, winner to go to Mania to face the winner of Cody/Punk.
McIntyre v. Jey Uso
Styles/Nakamura v. Steen/Zayn
-McIntyre and Uso are both heels, they largely stay away from each other in the build (until the McIntyre group wipes Jey out in the go home) McIntyre is cock of the walk, everything has been proven correct - he left Hooligans to join Roman and won the tag belts, he left Roman to form his own thing and now he has the IC belt and Roman has nothing. He clowns Roman - and by proxy the whole family (Hooligans and Usos feuded on and off forever, then Roman's group feuded with Usos) Drew retcons the decision not to include the Usos in Roman's group, saying he was a voice against them - he said they didn't have it on the inside and Roman eventually agreed (Roman's not including the Usos in his group is what split Jimmy and Jey up, Jimmy is a babyface, Jey a heel). Jey just keeps beating people, he's not turning, maybe within the context of this program fans are more likely sympathetic to him as its Drew who now has months of promo time to build this character, but he's not turning.
-The tag title match might be the first tag title match in promotion history where all 4 men were former WWF Champs (and 3 of them have triple crowns). Its an all babyface match - but the tension gets ratcheted up given the history among the 4 (Steen was WWF Champ when Styles/Nakamura invaded in the big Bullet Club angle, Styles was a babyface teaming with Zayn in their program against Danielson/Steen) - Styles goes to Rey, who is really in an emeritus position now, and asks him to join Triple Crown (because he's got one too) and Rey is the one person in the locker room who most has reason to dislike Steen (Steen and Rey were a team, Steen turned on him - Rey had gotten Steen fired, so there were reasons) Rey joins for a 6 man with either Gargano or Ciampa having to take the fall for the other side. Meanwhile, Steen/Zayn have Gargano/Ciampa ready to commit to a reformation of GDI, but they all decide to table it until the night after the Rumble.
Asuka v. Grace
Sane v. Morgan
Belair/Bayley v. Baszler/Stratton
-Asuka essentially steps out of her storyline for this build, she's a heel, however, Grace is leading the invading TNA force (force is a little excessive, this is the Joe Hendry, et al, stuff they do a IRL a few months later, we're shifting it in time to combine with this program) so within this build, Asuka's the babyface on WWF TV and a heel when she appears on Impact. That main womens program (Asuka/Sky/Sane) continues with the other two participants, Sky and Sane are heated with each other coming off Survivor Series, that tension continues during this build - and when Sky is named special guest referee for the Sane/Morgan match, that becomes the focus. The Horsewomen heat up, they get singles wins and they challenge the babyface womens tag champs.
Elimination Chamber
Orton v. Priest
Andrade v. Reed
-It's a very special year, as Linda McMahon opened the RAW after Mania by previewing - and part of that is an Elimination Chamber match plopped in the middle of the Rumble. Winner gets the IC shot at Mania, the conceit is none of the 6 wrestlers has ever been IC Champ (or WWF Champ, as a matter of fact) it's a real proving ground match, these are guys positioned as important for the future.
3 Babyfaces: Jimmy Uso, Bron Steiner, JD McDonaugh.
3 Heels: LA Knight, Santos Escobar, Dom Mysterio
Jimmy has to get promo time and he has to show fire - Jimmy got mopey when Roman didn't pick the Usos, whereas Jey got pissed and mopey isn't an appealing character trait, but Romans squad blew up, Jey is now wrestling for the IC Title - and here Jimmy is, with the biggest chance of his career, in the most dangerous match in the sport.
Steiner was just Dark Ride champ and is here to be a wrecking ball.
McDonaugh is aligned separately with Devitt and Sheamus, he's the workrate white meat babyface.
Lets talk about LA Knight.
In the back half of 2023, the Clique blows up. After Summer Slam, when Knight stole the pin from Riddle, Michaels asks to talk to him in the back (there's an office set up, with a nod to Michaels role with developmental). Michaels admonishes Knight - but also says Knight's....doing what kind of looks like cosplay, Michaels understands tributes to past wrestlers, but Knight is making it a lot of his personality.
Knight says its cool - but its not cool, and he doubles and triples down, becoming a full cover band, eventually Riddle gets fed up and the Clique breaks up - Michaels again brings Knight into the office, again trying to straighten him out, Knight says its cool - its cool - and then superkicks Shawn and throws him through a plate glass window.
Michaels disappears - Knight beats Riddle multiple times (poor, dumb, coked up Matt) until he leaves the promotion. Knight's cosplay act rolls on.
Escobar leads his heel stable
Dom is part of his heel stable - Defiance added Ripley at Survivor Series and the group - Priest/Dom/Reed/Ripley stomped Orton out. Orton returns, gets promo time - he'll fight all 4 of them if he has to and a Falls Count Anywhere stip is added to the rematch with Priest.
Reed hit his move on Flair at the PPV, Charlotte got stretchered out and she is gone, gone, gone, her career in jeopardy, Reed cuts a couple of promos about how much he enjoyed doing it, about how feeling the crunch of her bones was thrilling and he thinks, on some level, she liked it too.
About a month in, Reed is wrestling a match against an enhancement talent and a fan comes out of the crowd and attacks him - the match instantly stops, the opponent and official both attempting to help Reed, as they would if it were a shoot attack - but everyone then realizes who it is - Andrade, who wrestled at AEW weeks before, and who was always under a mask in a different persona when he was in WWF, is here - he is Charlotte's husband, and that's never been acknowledged on either promotions show before - he lays in shoot punches to Reed, ideally busting him open - it's a wild scene - agents come out from the back, random babyfaces and heels come to the ring out of their gear, the announcers treat it like its a shoot.
Cole flies out to Andrade's home, they do a shoot style interview, Andrade says Charlotte will eventually be fine but he does not want her to wrestle again, he says Reed is a coward, a man who hurts a woman is not a man - he had to quit AEW to show up on RAW - WWF will not let him back in the building - he can't sleep - Andrade starts screaming at the camera - "on sight, Reed - on sight, you bitch" Andrade grabbing the camera. Reed will cut another antagonistic promo, talking about Charlotte's bones underneath him - that its too bad she won't return to the ring, maybe Reed will have to go find her. Andrade posts a video via social media that they put on TV, he signs a hold harmless waiver - WWF won't let him in the building, they won't sanction a match since he doesn't work there - Andrade says he waives liability - he wants Reed at the Rumble in an unsanctioned match. Reed accepts.
Devitt v. Paul
Ricochet v. Hayes
Finally, two never before seen workrate matches; Logan Paul comes in hard after Devitt - Devitt looks washed to him, Paul has experience with retiring some of these old washed wrestlers, they set up that match; and Ricochet's stable (BWI) feuds with The Culture, leading to this singles match.
It's a good card - CM Punk is back, it's Rumble 2024.
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