The Straight Edge Society: A Cult of Personalities

So many incredible and horrible factions throughout history in the wrestling business. Sometimes it's hard to figure out where to start and even differentiate from one another. Arguments tossed in all directions of certain stables being too similar or ripping each other off (the NWO vs. DX or Four Horsemen vs. Evolution arguments will last from here to eternity!). Certain stables immediately head-locked a spot in the history books, usually for being the first of its kind (Fabulous Freebirds anyone?) but nowadays to claim a stake to originality is rare. We aren’t here today to talk about the Retributions or Best Friends of the world; no my friends, today, we are discussing the Straight Edge Society.

Coming out of his acclaimed feud with Jeff Hardy over the World Heavyweight Championship in 2009, CM Punk had gone full heel and fallen back on his Straight Edge lifestyle to make himself superior to not only his opponents but the audience as well. Following the feud with Hardy, which resulted in him departing the company for over a decade, CM Punk was slotted into a feud with The Undertaker. Unfortunately, the feud would not be long with the world, with Taker promptly squashing Punk at Hell In A Cell to win the Championship and seemingly send Punk spiralling down the card from the main event scene. Ever the opportunist, Punk would transform himself into an almost Charles Manson-like cult leader, fully embracing the evil straight edge symbol he could be.

“I’m straight edge, and that means I’m better than you.”

The group began by being formed in earnest, with Punk “rescuing” the former Festus. He had been portrayed as a man with a mental handicap that would go berserk when the bell rang for a match until reverting to an almost catatonic state when the bell would ring again. Punk revealed that he had been hooked on prescription drugs by many of the enablers around him, which led to the state he was in. Now dubbed Luke Gallows, he would be the first to embrace Punk’s message, and the first step of the Straight Edge Society was set.

Over the ensuing weeks, during his promo time, Punk would accept converts into the Straight Edge lifestyle, with them having to accept their heads being shaved as a sign of their commitment to the cause. Of course, these were all plants in the crowd, but before long we would gain another official convert to the group in the form of Serena. Positioned as someone who needed saving, Serena would volunteer and beg for acceptance into the group, which she received upon having her head shaved.

The group would continue the preaching and Punk’s descent into maniacal cult leader would hit a perfect crescendo at the 2010 Royal Rumble. Entering at Number Three, Punk would quickly eliminate Evan Bourne and Dolph Ziggler, the first two men to enter the fray, before taking to the mic to save all of the fans and men entering the ring. This is one of the absolute highlights of any Royal Rumble and one of the best pre-pipebomb Punk moments in WWE. Unfortunately for Punk, his sermon would only be given so much time before he would be eliminated by Triple H, but not before collecting five eliminations to his name.

With the Road To WrestleMania officially in full gear, CM Punk seemed to be a little aimless heading into Elimination Chamber, despite competing in the World Heavyweight Championship Chamber match. Unfortunately for Punk, he would be eliminated by Rey Mysterio, which would set up their feud heading into WrestleMania, and things would get very personal very quickly. 

With Punk already reeling from losing his opportunity in the Elimination Chamber, Mysterio would also go on to cost him his qualifying match for that year’s Money In The Bank match, a match he had won the two previous years. This would incense Punk and the Straight Edge Society, leading to one of the more creepy and memorable segments of the era, with Punk singing Happy Birthday to the 9-year-old Alieyah to get Mysterio to accept his WrestleMania match offer.

This would all lead to one of the more stellar matches on a WrestleMania card bereft of them outside of the main event, with the stipulation that if Mysterio were to lose he would be forced to convert and join the Straight Edge Society. Thankfully for the legendary luchador, he would come out on top at the Showcase of the Immortals, but CM Punk and the Straight Edge Society were not entirely done with him yet.

Over the next few months, Punk and Mysterio would go back and forth, with Extreme Rules seeing a match that if Punk lost, he would have to shave his head, a match he would win. Finally, everything would culminate at the Over The Limit PPV, combining all of the previous stipulations and seeing Punk lose and have his head shaved, which led to the infamous angle where he would wear his own Straight Edge luchador mask to cover his baldness.

Unfortunately for Punk and his cohorts, as was so often apt to happen during his WWE career, the stable would soon be being used as nothing more than fodder for the bigger stars. Following a few brief altercations with Kane, who at the time was investigating who had attacked and left his brother The Undertaker in a “vegetative state” (spoiler alert: it turned out to be Kane!), CM Punk and his group would enter into a feud with The Big Show after the giant had unmasked Punk in front of the world in the build-up to the inaugural Money In The Bank PPV.

 It was also during this time that Punk was being aided by a masked man representing the Straight Edge Society, usually helping to distract and attack Big Show in the lead-up to SummerSlam. Big Show would soon do his second unmasking of the feud, revealing the other masked assailant as Joey Mercury, who officially joined on as a member of the Straight Edge Society, bringing the group to full strength. At SummerSlam, all three male group members would take on Big Show in a handicap match, which saw Big Show go over in alarmingly easy fashion, seemingly putting a stake in the group's heart. For fans of the stable, the only solace they could take was that CM Punk himself was not involved in the finish.

This would lead to the final unravelling of the group, as Punk began turning on his followers, and the story would soon find itself further hampered by behind-the-scenes releases and injuries. Mercury was the first to depart, needing surgery for a torn pectoral muscle, while Serena would soon be released by the company, allegedly due to substance issues. Finally, following one last on-screen dispute, Gallows himself was released. From here, Punk would wallow in the mid-card before joining up with the New Nexus as he led into his feud with Randy Orton for the following year’s WrestleMania (again one of the only highlights on a show that needed them) and of course, would drop the infamous pipe bomb promo soon after.

It's strange as a fan to look back on the Straight Edge Society, as many fans (myself included) seemingly look back on their run with rose-tinted glasses. Truthfully, despite the fine work by everyone involved and CM Punk’s transformation into a pro wrestling mix of Charles Manson and David Koresh, the group never reached any heights they should have. It worked as a great launching pad for everyone involved, as they all went on to have rather illustrious careers outside of WWE, but one has to wonder what could have been had the group supported the booking behind the scenes.

What were your thoughts on the Straight Edge Society? Do you feel they were correctly used or could have been something much bigger than they ended up being? Sound off on our social media and share your thoughts!