8 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Dynamite (Oct 7)

3. Wednesday Night Live

Dynamite closed on a Saturday Night Live-style skit to conclude Chris Jericho's anniversary celebrations, as almost every heel in the company joined Jericho, MJF, and Inner Circle to cheesy music, with the end credits listing 'Le Champion's' name under every single role.

This was preceded by another tremendously passive-aggressive Jericho/MJF bit. 'The Salt of the Earth' stoked Jericho's ire by interrupting him, then apologised, knowing exactly what his true motivations were. Wardlow had a man hidden beneath a pink cover in tow. MJF borrowed Jericho's own inflexions before the reveal, then pulled the pink away, revealing Clownico le Clown brandishing another gift.

A huge picture of a celebratory MJF was found beneath the wrapping paper. Seconds later, Jericho smashed it over Clownico's head and delivered a Judas Effect that looked like death, promoting another tense staredown with MJF. Cue: "ahhhh, you got me!", big hugs, and the end of the night.

MJF has promised to deliver a career-changing announcement next week, presumably as part of his larger story with Jericho. This deal has been very well-played thus far. There's enough insincerity in every comment for viewers to know that something bubbles beneath the surface, but it's not so overt that the next move is obvious.