10 Best Non-Attitude Era WWE RAW Moments
1. The Festival Of Friendship
Chris Jericho introduced the immortal Festival of Friendship with a smile more glowing than his old light-up jacket. It was a smile that provoked undiluted joy—and later, genuine sadness—in its wide-eyed innocence.
Pyro erupted. A gaggle of showgirls introduced Jericho to the ring, as he unveiled his preposterous celebration of his friendship with Kevin Owens. Masterminded by the MC himself, the segment was huge on hilarious visual gags; a tasteless array of magnanimous gifts, from intertwined sculptures to rock star monuments of ego, were lavished upon Owens—who received everything, in another powerhouse of a performance, with an overt bemusement and quiet disdain. An undercurrent of unease undermined the celebration. Everything was calibrated to perfection; Jericho and Owens made sure to make our hearts soar before they made them sore.
With expert pacing and writing, Jericho lowered the brush of the broad strokes in a quiet moment of meta reflection. He told Owens, in a candid spiel performed with a very real emotional heft, of how much he appreciated their time working together.
And then, following a totally inspired Gillberg cameo, the Festival of Friendship—and the friendship itself—was brought to a crushing end. With stinging pathos, Owens’ simmering fury erupted.
Just, just as the tone felt too over-the-top for a personal rivalry, it was revealed to be the very point; Owens, sick of the comedy and the symbiotic nature of their bond, destroyed Jericho.
A multi-tonal masterpiece, and a sobering lesson: Jericho had to fight for this.