This Christmas, Jack Perry should consider sending CM Punk a basket of Mindy’s Bakery Muffins.
I am not being sarcastic or dry. If you want satire read my Valentine’s Day piece on what wrestling taught me about love (here). Since All In, Jack Perry has trended numerous times on X without even being mentioned on AEW programming.
Yes, there were hints during The Devil storyline last year with the recurring use of glass. On Reddit, there are various threads that ironically, almost like CM Punk himself, either discuss the former Jungle Boy as the hero AEW needed or the dumbest man in wrestling who has killed AEW.
That’s not my opinion, but examples of the broad spectrum of opinions fans across the internet have shared. Regardless of love, hate, or indifference, folks have and are still talking about Jack Perry.
Especially since Perry showed up at New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Battle in the Valley. Clad in black, sporting a beard like a man who lived in a cabin for months and tearing up his AEW contract, Perry had folks talking.
The scapegoat armband made it plain that this new character is leaning into the discord. It also has a bit of a whiff in the attitude of one CM Punk.
It’s a move that may save one of the Four Pillars’ careers from a nosedive into irrelevance. Without the alleged incident backstage at All In, the conversation right now would be different. Before discussing why some fans should give Perry a second chance, we need to analyze what went wrong.
Four Pillars Mythos
The mythology of the Four Pillars by MJF was incredible in highlighting AEW’s focus on building new stars. At a time when it felt like WWE’s focus remained on making the brand the biggest attraction, the concept of the Four Pillars made it clear that the four young men who had impressed would ascend to be AEW’s future.
MJF, Darby Allin, ‘Jungle Boy’ Jack Perry, and Sammy Guevara. A modern take on All Japan Pro Wrestling’s ‘Four Pillars of Heaven.’ Watch them grow.
Each wrestler was/still has their unique features. In the former Jungle Boy, there is more than a pretty face and a famous father. Perry is more than an athlete who can perform in high spots. In-ring, Perry’s timing, selling ability, and how he emotes when he is beaten down and then fires back up made him an easy babyface to route for.
His initial tag team run as part of The Jurassic Express allowed Jungle Boy to take the punishment like Ricky Morton and gave Luchasauras one of the best hot tags in wrestling at the time. And in singles action against Chris Jericho, MJF, and Dax Harwood, Perry could make you buy into him.
You wanted him to overcome. Especially in battle royals where Perry is undeniably a specialist. Performing high-risk, emotive near-elimination spots, his Casino Battle Royal win at Double or Nothing 2021 was a keystone moment in his career development.
The problem came in that Perry’s strengths, his ability to emote were showcased best in the ring. Not on the microphone. Not as an actor. Like three of the other pillars, Perry’s growth has been unequal.
Not Load Bearing Pillars
Skipping ahead to Double or Nothing 2023, two years after MJF first coined the Four Pillars phrase, Allin, Guevara, and Perry were prematurely exposed. In my analysis of AEW’s 2023 tournaments, I discussed the overly long build and exposed how the latter three pillars were/are still under construction.
It’s not that the pillars are cracked or crumbling. Allin, Guevara, and Perry were shown to not be on the level of the devil in terms of microphone and character work. They could not share the weight of responsibility. Perry was exposed as a less defined character when not competing in the ring. This further pushed fans to turn on him.
If there was an underlying storyline hint Perry was supposed to turn heel, the clues were too subtle or acted well. For example, Perry’s poolside promo and Perry’s teasing using the AEW World Championship to secure the win at Double or Nothing (dovetailing to a story thread with his feud with Christian Cage).
The match was nirvana; the road there was hellish, and Perry was left exposed. This perhaps demonstrates the biggest paradox in Tony Khan’s booking philosophy. On the one hand, Khan likes to tell long-term stories. Sometimes this detrimentally drags and harms wrestlers’ characters.
Yet at the same time, Khan rushes past some story beats, and key plot moments of character growth for the sake of a match. Although the issues of Perry’s character work were not new.
The Missing Piece
Hints were there before the Four Pillars feud that Jack Perry was not a fully defined character. What should have been a breakout feud with former mentor, Christian Cage, was not a whole failure. The feud went longer than it should have due to Christian’s injury, causing a disconnect in the storyline.
However, Perry’s cage match with Luchasauras over-delivered as a blood feud. Luchasauras felt like a demon and Perry a demon-slayer. When Jungle Boy finally got a hold of Cage in a Last Burial Match it was the most dynamic version of this stipulation.
It was cathartic, but its impact lessened due to the long run of the feud weaknesses in Perry’s characterization, and inability to keep evolving the narrative.
The emotional crux of the feud rested on Cage targeting Perry’s deceased father, Luke Perry. Perry’s inability to emote on the microphone put a self-imposed ceiling on how far fans could invest in him.
His inability to evolve from boy to man was clear when the best insult of the feud came early when he called Cage a rude synonym for a cat. Jungle Boy did not grow on the microphone to a jungle man. More like Jungle Teen. This was not the ideal destination.
Ham-Strung Heel Turn
Then when Perry turned heel on Hook (whose booking I have covered here), AEW’s sink-or-swim approach to promos continued to harm Perry. In-ring, Perry’s two matches with Hook, as well as with Rob Van Dam were strong showcases of Perry’s skills with a growing confidence at playing the heel.
The issue was the disconnect between in-ring abilities and a clear character. Which also was not helped by an ill-fitting choice of classical music. Nor a confusing narrative of Perry’s FTW Championship reign.
Although returning to the concept of sink or swim, despite the material and verbiage not always connecting, Perry did commit. Perry tried different things in both his speech and presentation to present himself as an egotistical heel, but Perry did not push this to eleven.
The Scapegoat as a Perfect Restart
It’s strange how in a performative sport that emphasizes safety and cooperation, real-life backstage fights and issues often spur and create potential pivotal points in a wrestler or promotion’s fortunes. Nia Jax bloodying Becky Lynch only strengthened the latter’s rise to superstardom.
The Montreal Screwjob became a turning point for WWE’s fortunes. Hell, even CM Punk changed the wrestling landscape on multiple occasions when controversially speaking his mind in worked shoots, podcasts, and press conferences. Why not the same for Jack Perry?
At least for now, Perry’s wrestling career is going to be inter-spliced with CM Punk’s whether he or most fans like it or not. This excursion to New Japan could be the fresh change, the reinvention Perry needs to craft a new identity, a new character. Like in the territory days, wrestlers moved on and rebuilt themselves anew elsewhere.
Capitalizing on this is smart and may in the long-term save what would surely have been a flat-lining heel turn.
Already with a vignette teasing the new direction, Perry has a clearly defined character and an in-built story. This fills in some of the missing puzzle pieces. What Perry will need to deliver on long-term is microphone skills and emoting. When he returns to AEW, I would not be shocked to see him join his ‘Cali Clique’ friends.
Controversial incidents don’t always lead to success (i.e. Chris Jericho and Goldberg’s backstage fight, Edge/Matt Hardy/Lita’s love triangle only helped Edge’s longevity). However, what it gives Jack Perry is an opportunity to carry a weight he wasn’t capable of before.
Raise his stock to prove why he still could be a pillar of AEW.
Why Perry Deserves a Second Chance
Tribalism clouds a lot of fans’ judgments of wrestlers. Fans’ parasocial relationships with their preferred side create bias and make the dehumanization of “other” wrestlers easier. I’ve read a lot of extreme things, like how Jack Perry should never be allowed to work in wrestling again. To these folks, it might be useful to consider the wider context.
Allegedly, the environment backstage at AEW after CM Punk’s return was a pressure. Weekly there were reports of incidents related to unresolved tension between The Elite and Punk’s sides.
Even before Punk’s return, there were a series of alleged fights between co-workers. Eddie Kingston supposedly got into a scuffle. Andrade and another pillar, Sammy Guevara came to blows. Guevara then performed on that same night.
If true, on multiple occasions, management failed to address issues, make meaningful consequences clear, and enforce discipline firmly.
I am a high school teacher, and this looks comparable to a teacher who ignores escalating poor behavior. It doesn’t get better. It snowballs. The students get used to this is how things are. That bad behavior becomes standard. They’ve learned it’s okay to behave this way.
Their peers are doing it, so why wouldn’t you do the same? Jack Perry mouthed off to a camera on a pre-show after other talents, like Punk, did the same on social media, on live TV, and in a dark segment.
If someone else, or multiple people get away with it, logic dictates you would also get away with it. This behavior was normalised. It’s the teacher/management’s job to set the rules and enforce them consistently.
Clean Track Record
Wednesday!
We celebrate 52 years of NJPW, Jack Perry makes his debut against Shota Umino, and New Japan Cup gets underway!
LIVE in English on @njpwworld!https://t.co/S6Vqqskt5V#njpw52nd #njcup pic.twitter.com/VX9wEMBhGm
— NJPW Global (@njpwglobal) March 2, 2024
The idea of damning a wrestler for one on-screen issue that resulted in a backstage altercation, in the grand scheme of wrestling history, is ludicrous. Wrestlers fighting backstage is an aspect of the business’ history.
While it’s archaic and in the modern day, this is more unacceptable because in theory things should have moved on, the reality is if one man is punished, so should everyone, depending on their track records.
When looking at Jack Perry’s record, the only negative ever said about him is that he’s friends with The Young Bucks. This has been said on screen by Darby Allin in a promo and a brief spat on X with The Gunns. It’s hardly the stuff of destroying the integrity of the business or AEW’s reputation.
Also, generally, how many wrestlers who have worked with Perry have outright said he is a horrible human being? On character witness told the audience on the 15th September episode of AEW Dynamite, someone rather telling:
“Let’s be honest, Jungle Boy doesn’t ever rub anyone the wrong way. If you got a problem with Jungle Boy, the chances are you’re the problem.”
The prophetic words of CM Punk.
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – AEW – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world. As well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can catch AEW Dynamite on Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TBS. AEW Rampage airs on TNT at 10 PM EST every Friday night. AEW Collision airs Saturday at 8pm Eastern on TNT. More AEW content available on their YouTube.
