4 Ups & 4 Downs From Last Night's WWE SmackDown (July 25)
2. Welcome Back, Maaaaaan
Chris Jericho’s return to WWE television was a nice surprise last night. Y2J recently wrestled Hideo Itami on a Japanese house show, but there was no word that he’d be heading back to SmackDown so soon, and nobody called last night’s appearance ahead of time. WWE did a great job of keeping it under wraps, it went over extremely well, and Jericho delivered throughout the night.
He started by interrupting AJ Styles and Kevin Owens at the top of the show, staking his claim for a United States Title match. When AJ tried to jump the line, Jericho put him on The List, and Shane McMahon showed up before it could get too heated. The Triple Threat was booked, both men were given their opportunity at the same time, and KO was raging.
While it would be nice to see SmackDown open with something other than a revolving door talking segment every once in a while, there was nothing wrong with this one. Jericho remains one of WWE’s most electric personalities. The product has really missed having him around, and presuming he’s now back on a full-time basis, he’ll be a huge benefit to the blue brand.