The Brain Buster 7.28.13: CM Punk as Wolverine

It’s not a secret that CM Punk is a big fan of comic books. As he ended his two-month hiatus from professional wrestling at WWE’s Payback in Chicago, the first thought I had as he approached the ring was, “Man, I love his Wolverine look.” He was sporting the infamous Wolverine facial hair, or as I refer to it: the reverse goatee. As the weeks progressed, I noticed little changes in Punk’s promo demeanor. His delivery was different. He spoke more directly and to the point. His tone was a bit monotone in a manner that said “I’m not playing around.” It all reminded me of the very same beloved Logan. The comic book fan in me will not allow myself to say that Punk is channeling solely Wolverine – certainly his initial promo directed towards Paul Heyman after Money in the Bank screamed of the Punisher’s influence – but after meditating on the similarities between Punk’s character and his real life, it became very clear how fitting those chops are for him.

If speaking generally, Punk and Wolverine share many of the same main characteristics. Wolverine and CM Punk both share a number of qualities, the first being their anti-authoritative stance. They are both loners. Even though they have both belonged to their respective groups, both Punk and Wolverine are single entities traversing against their own demons and faults. Both Punk and Wolverine possess the inherit need to do things their way, which enables them to tell their boss, whether its Vince McMahon or Charles Xavier, to screw off and break away from the pact. There is a reoccurring story of Wolverine constantly arguing with Cyclops, the leader of the X Men, over what is the right action to perform for several battle scenarios. Wolverine usually wants to strike head on, and Cyclops usually wants to take a more guided route. This passion to do things his own way is what makes Wolverine such a great comic book character. It’s what gives him the ability to have a traveling personality. We can see the same in Punk. Think back to when CM Punk was brand new in WWE, and he had to make a decision to join either the ECW Originals or the New Breed. He initially chose the New Breed, but ended up sabotaging them a week later. During his brief stint, you could see that he was having difficulty taking direction from their leader, Elijah Burke, and subsequently turned against Burke. He proclaimed himself his own man and did not join either group, although he did help the Originals in several matches. The anti authority bled into his conflict with the WWE. Despite knowing the need of wrestlers in WWE’s current lineup, Punk was ready to walk out because of the politics and tactics taken by management. John Cena tows the company line and does what is best, not just for him, but for the entire universe. It’s similar to what Cyclops does for the X Men. Punk stood in defiance to management in order to help the WWE improve on their product. He served as Wolverine, defying a group logic in order to perform what he believes is the correct action. Punk and Wolverine have belonged to groups, but constantly find themselves working alone. Whether it’s because they are both extremely stubborn, or a result of their maturity into adults, they both share the loner, anti-authoritative characteristic.

The next characteristic they share, and one I can’t stress enough in the comparison, is toughness. Wolverine may be considered the toughest character in the Marvel Universe, and I dare say the same accolades can belong to Punk in his respective universe. In fact, when Marvel faced the decision on what to name their new superhero, they were considering either the Wolverine or the Badger. The Wolverine eventually won (imagine the Badger), based upon Marvel’s research of the animal. The wolverine is not the biggest or strongest animal; however, it is incredibly relentless and constantly attacks animals much larger than it. This, again, perfectly encompasses Logan and Punk. Logan is constantly getting beaten up because he is not the biggest or strongest super hero. Whether it is Sabertooth, Dog, Cyber, etc., Wolverine is constantly reminding us that he “got beat up pretty good,” by a number of people. Although he might take a great amount of damage, Wolverine’s determination does not waiver. He is not hesitant to battle someone regardless of their past history or their potential. This is a guy whose debut was battling the Incredible Hulk. We see the same kind of determination, and opponent, for Punk. Punk is, by no stretch of the imagination, the biggest or strongest professional wrestler. He constantly battles opponents such as John Cena, Mark Henry, Ryback, or his current opponent Brock Lesnar, who dwarf him in size and strength. Punk pointed out his best quality recently: he is relentless. He does not stop until he gets what he strives for. His brawl with Brock Lesnar reminded me so much of a Wolverine fight. The damage he took, his ability to get back up and come at Lesnar: all of this is very Logan-esque. Although Punk, I’m sure, would appreciate the ability to regenerate his own injuries; he does not have the ability, but still has the toughness to continue on. Again, qualities reminiscent of Wolverine.

The next characteristic goes beyond Punk’s wrestling character and delves into his own personal life. Although the lines between Punk’s character and his real persona are very grey and blurry, I find it important to distinguish his childhood from his character because his childhood is not present or able to evolve in front of our eyes on Monday Night Raw. Regardless, both Punk and Wolverine had a difficult life growing up. Now, Punk did not kill his first love like Wolverine did Rose. Punk never confronted the man who raped and murdered his girlfriend like Wolverine did against Sabretooth for his atrocities towards Silver Fox. When dealing with reality and a fictional world, it is natural that one may not be able to match up with another; however, that being said, Punk and Wolverine both grew up outside of their birth family. Punk’s story is run over briefly on his DVD. He tells us that his father was an alcoholic, and that his parent’s did not support him at all, leaving him to find refuge elsewhere. Recently, he filed a restraining order against his mother who was threatening to reveal past information about Punk to the public if he did not present her with a large sum of money.

I’d like to break off for a second, because that in itself is reminiscent to me of Wolverine. Wolverine has a murky past that even he is unsure of because as he was an operative of Weapon X, he had issues with his memory, as many memories were implanted in his brain. Of course, I’m not saying I want to see Punk’s personal business aired to embarrass him; however, the idea of secret information that we do not know of reminds of Nick Fury’s files on Wolverine, or Professor Xavier searching his mind for information. It’s exciting to me because CM Punk is both a character and a person. We have an idea of his past; however, those ideas may just be as implanted as Wolverine’s. We may never grasp the truth.

Anyway, Wolverine, too, was separated from his birth family. After his initial discovery of his mutant powers, he was taken away. This is what began his life as a loner, and Punk’s own experience may certainly be responsible for his. True: CM Punk never traveled with a pack of wolves; however, Punk clearly became a true leader of the pack during his separation from his family.

There are many smaller characteristics that drive these men together, as well. Wolverine revealed himself during his time in the Great World War as an atheist; Punk is also an atheist. Wolverine represents a character that is constantly searching for a balance between rage and love in order to become the most effective, and I feel Punk has the same sort of internal struggle. We see that when he confesses how goal oriented he is. It’s that chip on his shoulder. His love and hatred for the business, and frankly his love, compared with Wolverine’s love and hatred of humanity, drive him to constantly improve and constantly be on the top of his game. I see that in both men. What else I see in both is that they’re both anti-heroes. Neither men follow man’s law, their boss’s law, the ten commandments, etc. They follow their own moral compass. They have their own values that can gel or clash with the protagonists. We see it when Wolverine struggles with Cyclops. We see it when Punk clashes with Cena. They are for similar reasons why they clash with their opponents who are considered villains. They go against their own code and need to be dealt with. The reason Punk is fighting Brock Lesnar are the same reason he wanted to fight Cena: he felt wronged. He felt wronged by Lesnar because of his personal attack, coupled with Lesnar’s alliance with Paul Heyman – who is reminiscent of Romulus and his ability to connect Wolverine and Sabretooth. He felt wronged by WWE for constantly giving all their opportunity to John Cena instead of giving him the right opportunity to be the man. In each instance, whether his opponent is good or bad, Punk is driven by his own personal values and nothing else. Not the fans, not management, only him.

Punk can be compared to many comic book characters; however, his intrinsic connection with Logan shows the relatable nature between this fictitious characters and their readers. Punk pays homage to the Marvel superhero, not just with his facial hair, but with his ability to transmit Wolverine through his own character. He can provide a connection between his own fans and Wolverine, and show these people who may feel isolated that they’re not alone in their thoughts. Although one may not have the pleasure to be part of the X Men, the connection can exist through someone like CM Punk, who has walked in the same shoes as Logan.