A week or so ago (it’s hard to really pinpoint approximate times and dates for New Japan for me), Chris Jericho defeated Tetsuya Naito and became the IWGP Intercontinental Champion.
There was a time where I was often unimpressed with Chris Jericho, because he seemed to me as somewhat of a performer that operated on a formula. He’d vanish for six weeks to six months, reemerge to monster, welcome back pops, have one or two notable feuds where he’d ultimately lose in the end, and then vanish again, only to repeat the process again in another six weeks to six months. In the midst of each of these tenures, he’d win an Intercontinental championship, and then give the rub to some main players on the way out.
I always thought of him as an extremely talented worker, that understood ring psychology and had a very deep wealth of technical ability, but I also thought of him as a guy that had the ability to adjust the knob up or down depending on the magnitude or quality of the feud, and/or his general enthusiasm for it. Examples of when Jericho shined were his feuds with Shawn Michaels and AJ Styles come immediately to mind, but I thought his work with guys like John Cena and CM Punk were uncharacteristically weak.
Perhaps it was his books, or his podcast, that I indulged in, because I’m a wrestling fan, but my opinions of Jericho have gradually changed over the more recent years, and I’ve grown to really admire, appreciate and enjoy all of the things that he’s been doing not just now, but throughout his career, through a refreshed re-analysis of his past work.
Looking back, it’s pretty crazy to think of anyone voluntarily leaving WCW and their fat paychecks, back when they were thoroughly winning the Monday Night Wars, week after week, beating WWE RAW in the ratings. But completely unhappy with his career in WCW, Jericho endured a typical WCW farewell tour, meaning he was completely removed from television and if he was used, it was to job to Ralphus, a fat non-wrestler, and then jumped ship to the WWE, where he would basically start over and rise to heights that WCW was completely silly to never have capitalized on.
But then we come to the span of the last year, nearly 18 years after when Jericho jumped from WCW to WWE. An older Jericho, despite his ability to perform, frankly wasn’t getting the opportunities to shine in the WWE. I’m not sure whether he opted to not re-sign a contract with the WWE or if the WWE even offered one, but very quietly, Chris Jericho kind of vanished from WWE television after his last program with Kevin Owens.*
*Yes, I’m aware of his appearance in the “greatest” Royal Rumble, but one-offs happen all the time in the WWE
A few months go by, and the wrestling business is churning along; WWE operating like a vanilla choo-choo train chugging along, NXT tearing down the house every time they’re given an opportunity to shine, Ring of Honor consistently putting on solid performances, albeit with the constraints of a smaller company, and TNA now Impact Wrestling doing god-knows-what these days. But on the other side of the world, New Japan Pro Wrestling has been continuously gaining momentum, helmed primarily by Kenny Omega, Cody Rhodes, the Young Bucks and Bullet Club, the evil gaijin stable that is kind of like the nWo, if the nWo didn’t implode as a result of being led by guys like Hulk Hogan and Kevin Nash.
And then out of the blue, after a Kenny Omega match, music starts, lights go dark, and a video starts up on the arena’s jumbotron; suddenly, it’s none other than Chris Jericho, who goads and challenges Kenny Omega, and suddenly a dream match scenario comes to fruition. A WWE wrestler going up against New Japan’s internet darling?
Just like that, Chris Jericho is now wrestling in Japan, something that isn’t new to him, as he’d wrestled for WAR back in the early 90s, and up against NJPW’s biggest star. And although he’d ultimately lose to Omega, the match was far better than just about any match he’d had in the WWE over the last decade, because NJPW actually gives their matches time to breathe and showcase arsenals, and him and Omega had a five-star match.
And before anyone could just write Jericho off as a one-and-done program, he comes out and attacks another NJPW champion, in Tetsuya Naito, and it’s clear that Jericho is going to be around a little bit longer. After another solid performance, Chris Jericho redeems his loss to Omega with a win against Naito and suddenly, he’s holding IWGP gold for the first time.
For those keeping count, Chris Jericho has held championship gold in the WWE, WCW, ECW and has just claimed his first IWGP championship in Japan. Believe me, I’ve been researching this a lot lately, there are not more than a handful of guys who can say that they’ve found such successes in as many notable promotions as Jericho has.
I think what has the most of my admiration for Chris Jericho is the fact that it seems like he’s always ahead of the curve when it comes to doing the things he does, and despite the fact that he’s often blazing the trails, he’s always managing to find success without dealing with nearly as much failure. Furthermore, it always feels like he’s doing things on his own terms, which I think is the most respectable, because frankly after his career in WWE, he didn’t need to really wrestle anymore. But instead, he takes the risky jump to another hot territory in Japan, where naturally, he’s already enjoying success, capturing a major IWGP championship in just his second match.
It goes without saying that I think Chris Jericho is one of the all-time greatest performers in the history of the industry; his longevity, the creativity to constantly repackage and adjust his character for the changing of the times, and always succeed to get over, on top of his technical prowess and his lengthy resume of accolades and championship reigns. It’s kind of a no-brainer that Jericho is definitely one of the business’s greatest of all time, but the question I’ve been chatting with several of my also-wrestling loving buddies is, just how great is Chris Jericho in the grand spectrum of the industry?
Basically, does Chris Jericho belong on the Mt. Rushmore of Professional Wrestlers?
Now I state the phrase carefully, as Professional Wrestlers, as in performers, and not Professional Wrestling, as in the people that make it happen, like the performers, or the stars that made it. Because as much as I’m on this Chris Jericho-high, I can’t possibly put him on a Rushmore over guys like Vince McMahon, Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair, as guys who built the industry to what it is today, that doesn’t always involve the action inside of the ring.
I’ve been having several conversations about criteria to what warrants guys to be on the Mt. Rushmore of Wrestlers, and naturally everyone’s criteria is going to vary. But as far as I’m concerned, I put a lot of weight into longevity, success in multiple promotions, which displays adaptability and creativity, as well as general wrestling skill, entertainment and of course, a robust title history most certainly doesn’t hurt.
My criteria weeds out guys like The Rock, whom as much as I love the guy, only wrestled for the WWE, was a flash in the pan compared to the 20+ year careers of others, and probably would never have succeeded in other countries or promotions. Also guys like Bret Hart, and Shawn Michaels, because they’re both headcases who didn’t really succeed outside of North America, and they’re both kind of dicks, and don’t have the longevity or resumes to help phase such out.
To get to the point, if I were going to anoint a Mt. Rushmore of Professional Wrestlers, I think it goes with the following:
Ric Flair – Big in the United States, the Caribbean, Japan and even wrestled in front of Kim Jong-il in North Korea. Wrestled for nearly 50 full years and just about every single belt in WCW and WWE history. Was almost always solid in the ring but was always entertaining, in or out of it. Questionable as a human being, but length and body of work covers up for a lot of it. The only guy on my Rushmore that has TNA experience.
Terry Funk – Pretty close to older than the industry itself, and probably still laces up boots and gets in rings today, at 73-years old. Is an icon not just in American pro-wrestling, but also revered in Japan, where foreigners are mostly tolerated but not respected as much. Was basically a forefather of Extreme Championship Wrestling, held titles in ECW, WCW, WWF and numerous Japanese promotions. Generally regarded as an ambassador for the industry and most certainly a legend in the business.
Chris Jericho – of course he’s going on my Rushmore, if I’m basically dedicated an entire post to him. Wrestling since like 1992, has held gold in all aforementioned promotions, and is still going strong, which means his qualifications will only become more concrete as time passes. Easily the most creative and innovative among his peers, as he’ll always remain capable of getting over with crowds throughout the next two decades some way, some how.
The Undertaker – Mean Mark has the distinction of being the only guy on my Rushmore with as little body of work as he does, only having wrestled in North America his whole career, minus international tours for the WWE or some one-off appearances. But a guy whom despite some tweaks here and there, stayed the same character for nearly 30 full years, to where he didn’t have to travel the world to become known, the world all found him and knew him, and he’s pretty much recognized anywhere in the world as an iconic pro-wrestler. The Undertaker also transcended championships for a while, and it goes without saying that Wrestlemanias stopped being about championships as much as it became a revolving door of challengers all trying to break the vaunted 21-year undefeated streak, before Brock Lesnar snapped it just four years ago. That alone, is some pure promotional power, and that’s on top of the thorough list of titles he’s held throughout his career regardless.
Obviously, not everyone would agree with me, seeing as how I omitted names like Hulk Hogan and Stone Cold Steve Austin in favor of Chris Jericho, but that’s why I also listed my criteria; Hogan had 5 moves throughout his entire career, and I classify him more as an industry guy that helped the business by not what he did in the ring, but by the symbol he became. And Austin’s career was far too short in comparison to a Chris Jericho, granted primarily by injury, but I question his ability to have been as adaptable or as willing to make changes as Chris Jericho was.
But that’s my Mt. Rushmore of Professional Wrestlers, and if you’re not down with that, I’ve got three words for you: get over it. It’s professional wrestling.
