Return of Heel Miz, Darby Allin's Next AEW Feud and More Quick Takes

Another eventful week for WWE and All Elite Wrestling is done, and there's still plenty more to be excited about from both companies as we approach the end of the year.

On the WWE front, Raw had a stronger show than usual last Monday night that included the returns of Edge, The Miz and Maryse.

Although falling shy of the bar set by CM Punk and MJF on AEW Dynamite the week prior, the heated verbal exchange between The A-Lister and The Rated-R Superstar kicked their feud off on a high note and served as a nice reminder of what Miz can do on the mic.

Unfortunately, SmackDown wasn't quite as well-rounded and was specifically criticized for the mess of a segment featuring Charlotte Flair and Toni Storm. The feud hasn't clicked at all yet, and their latest attempt to get viewers invested in the "bad blood" between them fell flat.

Darby Allin is still in pursuit of his next major feud in AEW, but there's no shortage of opponents to choose from on the roster. He's excelled alongside Sting this year but needs to find a stable sense of direction as a singles star sooner rather than later.

All of these hot topics will be covered in this installment of Quick Takes along with why Becky Lynch and Liv Morgan must main-event Raw, what the future should hold for Johnny Gargano and Kyle O'Reilly following NXT WarGames, and more.

The Miz was essentially a non-factor the last time he appeared on Raw alongside John Morrison in August, but he was back to a prominent position on the show when he interrupted Edge on the November 29 edition.

It isn't a stretch to say Miz and Morrison were never used to their full potential as a pairing. They briefly held the SmackDown Tag Team Championships in early 2020, but upon losing the titles, they were regularly treated as a joke and wasted as enhancement talent.

Morrison's recent release from WWE was unfortunate and unnecessary, but it has given Miz a fresh start as a singles heel and a serious one at that. He's been portrayed as a goofball for years, but what we saw on Monday night is exactly how he should have been presented all along.

Better yet, he's in his element whenever he's accompanied by his wife, Maryse, so getting her back by his side was the best call the company could have made. They're the perfect package and complement each other exceptionally well.

If all goes right, we could be looking at a potential Miz and Maryse vs. Edge and Beth Phoenix mixed tag team match at some point. This is a smart first feud back for both men.

On the 17th anniversary of Trish Stratus and Lita becoming the first women to headline an episode of Raw for the WWE Women's Championship, the company would be remiss to not have history repeat itself with Becky Lynch and Liv Morgan this Monday night.

The two have been at odds since Morgan became the No. 1 contender to the Raw Women's Championship on 8 November. Aside from her lackluster elimination at Survivor Series, she has been booked to look strong over the last month and has held her own at every turn both on the mic and in the ring.

The feud has been extremely enjoyable thus far with both women playing their roles remarkably well. Thus, it wouldn't feel unnatural or forced for them to be given the main event spot on the December 6 edition of Raw.

Morgan has been gradually building momentum all year, and this bout is the perfect opportunity for her to showcase her skills to the world. The outcome is irrelevant as long as she's able to have a solid showing.

Ideally, this first encounter between them will set the stage for a rematch at the Day 1 pay-per-view to stretch the storyline out a little longer.

Despite featuring two tremendous talents, the Charlotte Flair vs. Toni Storm storyline hasn't inspired a ton of confidence among WWE fans. Truth be told, it shouldn't be a tall task for a feud of this caliber to be booked properly.

However, WWE has done practically everything wrong with the two of them since the start.

Flair has been the SmackDown women's champion for the past two months but hasn't defended the title at all. She and Becky Lynch infamously swapped straps on SmackDown on 22 October; and other than losing to The Man at Survivor Series, the second-generation star has done nothing of note on the blue brand.

Storm has teased challenging for the title on more than one occasion, but the problem is that she hasn't earned it in storyline. Rather, she's been largely been sitting on the sidelines since July and has won just one singles match on television.

The idea of a Flair vs. Storm contest should be exciting, but the lack of effort put into the program as of late with the bizarre focus on pies and The Lightning Down Under being made to look inferior to The Queen at every turn has been baffling and frustrating.

It's difficult to look forward to their eventual one-on-one outing knowing the buildup has been so bad and that it won't be given the proper spotlight it deserves.

Between battling CM Punk in his return to the ring and his barn burner against MJF, Darby Allin's work inside the AEW squared circle this year has been second to none. Unfortunately, he hasn't won when it mattered most, at least in singles competition.

Although he's been extremely successful alongside Sting in the tag team ranks, he hasn't been able to get the job done on pay-per-view since Double or Nothing in May. He fell short to Punk at All Out and then to MJF at Full Gear, leaving fans to question what the immediate future holds for him.

Granted, he's spent the last few weeks waging war with Gunn Club, but that rivalry is bound to be brief and may have already ended last week on Dynamite. His next storyline with a major star on the AEW roster has to see him come out as the winner to ensure he maintains his credibility as a singles star.

No one obvious name jumps out, but there are a few faces he could realistically be paired with in a program. Two include Andrade El Idolo and Adam Cole considering he hasn't crossed paths with either of them up to this point and they're feud-free at the moment.

Regardless of who his next foe is, Allin needs to return to winning ways and get back on track toward the top of the card. His team with Sting has been a blast, but unless the idea is to have them work their way into tag title contention, he should be presented as a serious threat on his own and rack up some high-profile wins.

NXT 2.0 has been a mixed bag since its major rebranding in September, but there can be no question that Sunday's WarGames delivered excellent in-ring action in spades.

No titles changed hands and nothing too eventful happened outside of the wild risks in the two WarGames matches, but doubts remain over the futures of two huge brand names: Johnny Gargano and Kyle O'Reilly.

The latest on O'Reilly, per Mike Johnson of PWInsider, is that this week is expected to be his last with WWE, which would explain why a steel cage match was booked out of nowhere between him and Von Wagner for Tuesday's episode.

And Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful reported that Gargano's contract with the company is set to expire this week.

Both men will appear on Tuesday night, but there's no telling where they'll wind up beyond that. With NXT 2.0 focusing on the fresher faces and younger talent, it's unlikely either of them would be major focal points of the brand moving forward.

Of the two, O'Reilly arguably has a better chance of leaving and finding success alongside his former Undisputed Era buddies in AEW. Either way, both men would be wise to let their contracts run down and test the waters outside of their current employer.

At the very least, it would benefit them to explore which promotions would be a good fit for them. And if it made sense to return to WWE after exhausting all options and playing the field a bit, then so be it.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.