Chris Jericho Returns to WWE: Will It Be Good for the Company?

Just in case you missed it, Chris Jericho returned to the WWE on Monday.

Despite recent reports of WWE being completely surprised that everyone knew, it was speculated after the first promo that it would be Jericho, and the excitement and buzz began.

The predictions started and rumours began flying around, then, the Internet lit up as Jericho returned, but not all for good. While some believe that Jericho’s return was one of the best returns in the company’s storied history, others believe it fell flat and was a complete waste of airtime.

Whichever one you believe is irrelevant when it comes to the question that seems to have been overshadowed—will this be good for the WWE in the long run?

To determine whether this will be another successful run for Y2J, we must look at all aspects of his return, the WWE and his previous runs with the company.

The WWE has been doing brilliantly as of late in my opinion; everything has been going well. Intriguing programming and exciting feuds and matches have restored my faith in the product, and I am now actually excited about watching wrestling every week.

So, after looking at that sentence, it could be argued that Jericho is not needed at the moment. Older fans are happier now the broadcasts feature more violent, aggressive superstars.

Younger fans are happy, as they still have SuperCena to keep them amused. Therefore, a Jericho return at this point was pretty unnecessary.

On the other hand, we must look at what Jericho can offer the WWE.

His in-Ring Skills

Jericho’s in-ring skills are some of the finest the WWE has ever seen (the comments section is below...), and he can make anyone look good in the ring...well, maybe not the Great Khali...he’s good, but no one’s that good.

I digress.

Jericho has put so many people over in the past, and most have benefited from it. He could do the same again here to help the WWE continue building its younger talents. Then again, Booker T is doing the same thing at the moment; do we really need two legends doing exactly the same job?

Another reason his in-ring skills could benefit the company are completely selfish. I do not mean that in a derogatory sense, quite the opposite in fact.

Jericho could put on some fantastic matches in this new tenure with the company and possibly capture some titles along the way, and why shouldn’t he?

Just because he’s left the company twice and accomplished a lot in his time there it doesn’t mean he is over the hill. If anything, it has kept Jericho fresh where others have burnt themselves out.

His Ability to Cut a Promo

Jericho is one of the best people on a microphone in the WWE despite not proving it on Monday, He can be funny, serious and most of all, extremely entertaining. This is one point where I do not have a counter argument.

The newer talent could learn a lot just by watching Jericho (which is a good job, as he gave us the silent treatment), and they could improve their skills greatly by interacting with the first Undisputed Champion.

Promo skills are still rather scarce in the WWE at the moment, so Jericho could be a great asset in terms of being entertaining on the mic.

Experience

Jericho certainly isn’t short of experience. He has wrestled The Rock, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Triple H and many other great stars, and they have helped to make him the superstar he is today.

Jericho can use his experience to do all of the things I have listed above and maybe impart some more knowledge on the superstars of today, ultimately preparing them for the years ahead.

However, one would assume that most things learnt are learnt along the way, just as Jericho did, so how much knowledge he can pass on would certainly be debatable.

Mystery

The final point I have to make is the mystery that still surrounds Jericho and his epic/horrendous return.

People still don’t know why he didn’t talk, what it means, who the girl in the promos is, what will happen next?

Mystery keeps the viewers watching and keeps us writing articles. Mystery is one of the most important things in the wrestling business, especially with the dirt sheets and gossip websites that have become prominent over the last few years.

Everyone knows everything nowadays, so when Jericho leaves us scratching our heads, it excites and entices us.

The real mystery is, though, will his return be good for the WWE? I have to say yes at this point after judging the situation on all of the above.

I have to believe the next couple of weeks are vital in providing a definitive answer to this question.

Jericho has to keep throwing us, keep us interested and make sure he does not let WWE creative spoil what has become the biggest debate of 2012.