MJF

Chris Jericho finally scored a singles victory over MJF at AEW All Out on Sunday night in Chicago.

The 50-year-old vowed to never wrestle again in All Elite Wrestling if he could not beat MJF. But thanks to his win, his in-ring career can continue.

However, his win was not without controversy.

MJF hit Jericho with a bat and then the Judas Effect. He then got the pin and the win, leading to a victory celebration and the apparent end of the veteran's in-ring career.

However, The Demo God had his foot on the ropes. Referee Aubrey Edwards did not see that initially, but a second official corrected the situation.

The match then restarted. Jericho took advantage of the situation and got MJF to tap to the Walls of Jericho.

The two men have been at odds since March, when MJF broke away from The Inner Circle by turning on Jericho and forming a stable of his own called The Pinnacle.

Well before that, MJF attempted to forge a friendship with Jericho and earned his way into The Inner Circle by beating Le Champion at Full Gear in November.

Inner Circle members Sammy Guevara, Jake Hager, Santana and Ortiz all expressed concerns about his true intentions, but Jericho decided to put his trust in the 25-year-old and even teamed with him on several occasions.

After things came crashing down in March, The Inner Circle and The Pinnacle went head-to-head in a number of tag team and singles bouts, including the first-ever Blood and Guts match on the May 5 episode of Dynamite.

The Pinnacle won when Guevara surrendered to prevent MJF from throwing Jericho off the cage, but the young heel did it anyway, sending the veteran crashing through the stage.

The teams clashed in a rematch at Double or Nothing in a Stadium Stampede contest, but the stakes were much higher, as The Inner Circle agreed to break up forever if they were unable to win. They prevailed, however, when Guevara pinned Shawn Spears.

That led to Jericho wanting another singles match against MJF, but the heel refused unless The Demo God could get through the "Five Labors of Jericho," which was a series of five matches with special stipulations.

He beat Spears, Nick Gage, Juventud Guerrera and Wardlow en route to MJF, but Jericho fell to his tormentor on the Aug. 18 episode of Dynamite in a match in which he was not allowed to use his Judas Effect finisher.

MJF claimed he was 3-0 against Jericho despite The Inner Circle winning Stadium Stampede, and Le Champion made it clear to get revenge.

In order to convince MJF to accept a rematch, the veteran put his 30-plus-year in-ring career on the line for their bout at All Out.

Jericho came through in the clutch against one of the fastest-rising stars in the business, meaning he will continue to be one of the faces of AEW moving forward.

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When it comes to Daniel Bryan in All Elite Wrestling and his possible debut during Sunday's All Out pay-per-view, the options seem endless.

Granted, fans don't know for a fact that Bryan will be there. Heck, fans don't even know whether Bryan would go by the name Daniel Bryan or loop back to Bryan Danielson or something else.

But all signs point to it happening, especially if the company is at all worried about fans again being unable to attend live events soon because of the pandemic. Bumping up Bryan's debut to Sunday night instead of having it take place the looming major event in New York would make sense.

With CM Punk already in the door and Bryan seemingly next up as a dramatic shift in pro wrestling's landscape continues, let's outline some of the best booking options for the big moment. Keep in mind that it's hard for AEW to go wrong with any option. Look how well it handled Punk's debut, letting him open the show for one of the most iconic moments in wrestling history, as opposed to letting crowd chants derail the broadcast until he arrived.

The Kenny Omega Staredown

Part of why it's so interesting to book Bryan's AEW debut is because it's hard to get a read on what match will close the show.

But the Kenny Omega-Christian Cage bout for the AEW World Championship seems like a candidate to cap off the event. And having that result in a staredown between Omega and Bryan would go down as an all-time moment.

Omega is arguably the best in the world, with only Bryan and a few others right there alongside him. To say the two could put on a classic match would be quite the understatement. It's only natural for Bryan to show up and challenge the top dog, dream-match status notwithstanding. While Punk has made it clear he still wants to see whether he can go while helping along younger talents, Bryan is going to have a different vibe.

The career parallels between Omega and Bryan before reaching this hypothetical point make for an amazing foundational block for a feud too. Imagine those two having a staredown in the middle of the ring flanked by a sold-out crowd doing the Yes! chant (let's be honest: it transcends WWE).

But as great as that moment might seem on paper, it isn't the only option.

The MJF Interruption

Much of what AEW could do with Bryan on Sunday night hinges on what sort of character he's portraying.

If he's a heel, straight-up attacking someone works. If he's a tweener, a staredown might be more appropriate. If he's just the good guy we most commonly know from WWE, that's MJF territory.

Say Bryan goes the Punk route and just debuts normally, taking a victory lap down to the ring before starting to cut a promo. That's when a heel like MJF, preferably fresh off a victory over Chris Jericho, forcing the veteran to retire, comes out.

MJF is on a rocket ship to the moon as far as being one of the best heels we've seen in decades goes. He would draw nuclear heat for spoiling a good moment with his obnoxious chatter and pinky ring, never mind help to tell an amazing long-term story.

This would also help AEW avoid the "another WWE feud rehashed" criticism while introducing viewers who don't usually check out the promotion to MJF, one of the best things going in pro wrestling today.

With/Against CM Punk

First things first: Don't count out the possibility of Bryan arriving to save Punk from some scenario and then tagging with him against the likes of The Young Bucks. It writes itself.

More interesting, though, would be Bryan coming in hot and attacking Punk. The best wrestling stories weave in real life, and let's be honest, Punk stole the momentum and spotlight of Bryan's prospective arrival in AEW. A heelish Bryan could take issue with that and send a flying knee Punk's way after he picks up a win over Darby Allin during his in-ring AEW debut.

Fun, right? There are countless ways to do it, though it would seem such a moment would require it closing the show. And if it becomes clear that Punk-Allin is the main event, it would make the Bryan reveal that much more predictable. Then again, Punk's debut shows that predictable can still be historic.

Regardless, it's hard to go wrong with Punk-Bryan. Anyone who throws out a "we've seen this before in WWE" nitpick just isn't understanding or appreciating the historical connection and parallel between these two.

Poetic is the word that comes to mind if these two rekindle their connection by starting their AEW careers in earnest together. Whether it's an attack or just a staredown, this is the best option and one that would create a feud with history-making potential.

The seven-year wait is over: CM Punk will finally return to a wrestling ring Sunday at All Elite Wrestling's All Out pay-per-view.

Punk's one-on-one dream match against Darby Allin heads up a stacked card for the fledgling wrestling company, which is in the midst of its strongest mainstream run of attention over the last month.

The AEW debut of Punk, which had been teased but not confirmed for several weeks before he finally made his arrival earlier this month, led to a massive ratings swell for Dynamite and the new Friday show, Rampage.

All Out is AEW's attempt to capitalize on that attention by getting you to shell out $50 of your hard-earned money for what's shaping up to be the most important pay-per-view in company history. 

Here's a look at the card for Sunday's event. 

AEW All Out PPV Information

When: Sunday, Sept. 5, at 8 p.m. ET (Buy-In preshow begins at 7 p.m. ET) 

How to Watch: Bleacher Report (Available to purchase now on web, our mobile apps, and supported Roku devices. More connected platforms will be available this week.) 

Purchasing is not currently supported on Amazon Fire TV devices. In order to stream AEW on your Amazon Fire, please first purchase the event on bleacherreport.com. Once purchased, you can return to Fire TV to view the All Out event. For additional support, contact us at support.bleacherport.com.

AEW All Out 2021 Card

• AEW Championship: Kenny Omega (c) vs. Christian Cage
  Prediction: Omega
• AEW Women's Championship: Britt Baker D.M.D. vs. Kris Statlander
  Prediction: Baker
• AEW Tag Team Championship: The Young Bucks (c) vs. Lucha Bros (in a steel cage)
  Prediction: Lucha Bros
• AEW TNT Championship: Miro (c) vs. Eddie Kingston
  Prediction: Miro
• CM Punk vs. Darby Allin
  Prediction: Punk
• MJF vs. Chris Jericho (Jericho will put career on the line)
  Prediction: MJF
• Pac vs. Andrade El Idolo
  Prediction: Andrade
• Paul Wight vs. QT Marshall
  Prediction: Wight
• Jon Moxley vs. Satoshji Kojima
  Prediction: Moxley
• Women's Casino Battle Royale
  Prediction: Thunder Rosa

All Out 2021 Preview

How Will CM Punk Look in His In-Ring Return?

If AEW had any concerns about how CM Punk's potential ring rust, it picked a perfect sparring partner in Darby Allin. There may be no one in wrestling right now period who is better at selling and more willing to go all out—pun not intended—to put his body on the line to make his opponent look incredible.

I mean, Darby got thrown down some stairs to put over Ethan Page. Now, Ethan Page is a fine wrestler and does some pretty solid mic work—he's also nowhere near the stratosphere of Punk.

Allin is going to throw caution to the wind to put Punk over, and the match will deliver even if the 42-year-old Phil Brooks doesn't quite go like he could a decade ago. I expect this to be among the shorter matches on the card, full of high-octane offense and Punk going over clean.

It'll just be interesting to see how much the adrenaline of returning impacts the in-ring product.

Will MJF Actually Retire Jericho?

This has been the logical conclusion of the MJF-Jericho storyline since the beginning, even if it took a little longer than most of us expected to get to this point. 

While most career matches give away the ending—like, of course a wrestling company isn't going to retire one of its most noteworthy acts—this one feels different. It's worth noting that the build includes the caveat that Jericho's in-ring career is over only in AEW. He could theoretically continue working in New Japan Pro-Wrestling on a limited schedule while transitioning to the broadcast booth on Rampage.

From an AEW perspective, Jericho has done everything he's set out to do. He was the company's first champion as it was trying to make its mark, and now it's in a period of seemingly exponential growth.

The Inner Circle stable hasn't been seen all together on television in several weeks after being the most prominent part of programming for over a year, and the most "over" part of Jericho's act at this point is his theme song. People can sing along to Judas just fine when he comes out before the broadcasts for commentary. 

There is a legitimate chance that Jericho wants to give the rub of "retiring" him to MJF, who is his heir apparent in every sense that possibly exists. Going 3-1 against Jericho but losing in the most important one-on-one match isn't satisfying from a booking perspective; going 4-0 and retiring a legend would cement MJF as one of AEW's true superstars and its second-biggest heel behind Kenny Omega.

Historical wrestling logic says Jericho wins, but the best story resides with the young king taking the throne. We'll see if AEW/Jericho is ready to pull the trigger.

Will Any Belt Change Hands?

It doesn't seem particularly likely looking at the card. 

There's no way Christian Cage is going to unseat Omega as AEW champion. We can write that one down in Sharpie. They've been building Cage a ton for this match in order to make it seem plausible we'll see a title change, but the story here has always ended with Hangman Page being the one to take the belt from Omega.

Anything less would be insanely unsatisfying.

Baker-Statlander will be a great match, but Baker's still too soon in her championship reign to drop the title. She's by far the most over woman in that division and elevates everyone who gets in the ring with her; there are a lot more stories to tell for her with the belt around her waist.

Miro's vignettes might be the best thing currently going in AEW; his reign of terror with the TNT championship should go a long, long time until they're ready to put him in the AEW title picture. Kingston doesn't need a championship to stay over with the crowd, even if it would be nice to see him get a run at some point. 

The most likely title change is in the tag team division, which might give us the match of the night with Young Bucks vs. Lucha Bros. Putting the Lucha Bros. in a steel cage is a recipe for absolute insanity in the best possible way. There will be at least one spot in this match that makes you want to drop-kick your television in excitement.

The Bucks have come to life as smarmy heels, but they've held the gold since last November. Let's put the belts on Lucha Bros. and see how many five-star matches they can put together in one reign. 

It's hard to create believable and likable good guys in professional wrestling because some fans are so cynical.

However, one could argue it's even more difficult to produce a consistent villain who viewers don't eventually grow to love. This is an issue that has forced some savvy performers to push the envelope as much as possible to get a negative reaction.

After all, some people subscribe to the school of thought that there is no such thing as a bad response when crowd participation is key. By extension, many wrestlers have expressed their belief that they're not doing well if their live audience doesn't react at all. But even some of the most masterful storytellers can't justify some tactics to generate heat in this time when moments can live on forever on the internet.

Even more, fans are much smarter today. They understand when someone is just doing something in character to encourage them to jeer. As a result, enthusiasts won't accept attempts that appear contrived.

For example, no one bought it when Becky Lynch transformed into The Man and cut a cookie-cutter promo stating, "You people never believed in me." The former Raw women's champion was just too popular at that point.

The Case Against AEW's Max Caster

This raises the question: Where does the line stop when wrestlers are trying to push fans' buttons? It's a relevant query as Max Caster recently sparked outrage online after he delivered a handful of distasteful rap lyrics on the Aug. 3 episode of AEW Dark.

During his routine performance as he headed to the ring, the 32-year-old referenced Simone Biles' struggles with her mental health and a widely reported rape case surrounding the Duke lacrosse team from 2006, in which three players were charged with raping Crystal Mangum before being found not guilty. Mangum maintained she was sexually assaulted in a memoir published after the charges were dropped (h/t Boston.com).

Caster is no stranger to controversy, as his character and edgy freestyle bars have offended viewers in the past. Yes, one could argue that's the point of his shtick. However, mentioning the U.S. Olympic gold medalist and making light of sexual assault was a step too far, and the consequences were swift. As a result, AEW removed every trace of the segment from YouTube and Twitter, and other indie promotions have removed him from upcoming shows.

It's unclear how The Acclaimed will proceed as a tag team, which is a shame because it seemed like the duo had loads of potential. Nevertheless, one would have to imagine they won't be able to continue without some checks and balances. 

It opens up a constructive dialogue about whether it's possible to toe the line and still be an effective heel today.

Many proponents of Caster's most recent freestyle would argue we saw much worse during The Attitude Era. Additionally, many diehard hip-hop listeners can attest that his punchlines were tame in comparison to real rap lyrics. Moreover, battle rappers focus on outrageous jabs to elicit a response, so this all fits his established character.

Although those points are valid, it would be foolish to ignore just how much the world has changed. Rappers and stand-up comedians have all felt the ire of the viewing audience that isn't as entertained by some low-brow material or offensive humor.

To that end, everyone has to adapt to the times. What worked in the early 1990s just won't work today, and that's not a bad thing.

Wrestling Must Evolve with the Times

A vocal section of pop culture may maintain that everyone is getting too sensitive, but all things change for the better in time. We live in a world where people can be more outspoken about racism and stand up to sexism and misogyny. That's an advancement. So, performers should be willing to be more empathetic.

If being more cognizant of how your words affect someone else hinders your ability to entertain a larger crowd, then aren't you selling yourself short? Truly great comedians and artists will always rise to the top because talent can't be denied. Cheap heat and grasping for low-hanging fruit is lazy because, frankly, anyone can produce that kind of material. In that regard, innovative wrestlers will always find a creative way to reach a crowd because that's part of the job.

Roman Reigns is currently one of the best villains in the industry and doesn't have to resort to crass subject matter. He knows how to work within the confines of modern-day wrestling.

MJF can, arguably, cross the line on occasion, but he isn't merely revered because of his unflinching approach. On the contrary, he is also one of the most compelling and convincing talkers on the AEW roster.  

Sami Zayn is one of the most socially conscious and outspoken advocates for human rights in WWE, but he found a way to be an interesting heel. Jay White is another great example of a wrestler whose expertise is to get under the skin of fans without using dated references.

That doesn't mean all wrestlers should bow to the whims of the online community, but there is a way to maneuver in the current landscape. The Acclaimed are a funny act, and to minimize their ability to connect with fans as just edgy humor does them a disservice.

If Caster can't find a way to grow, that doesn't say anything about the state of wrestling; it says everything about him and some of the stubborn performers and historians lingering in the past.

Wrestling can progress beyond the problematic elements in its past, and the best entertainers will be able to do so as well.