Chris Jericho's Latest WWE Run Was Best of His Iconic Career

On Tuesday's SmackDown Live, Chris Jericho wrapped up his latest WWE run writhing on the floor, blood smeared across his mouth, with concerned referees encircling him.

It's only fitting that Jericho's farewell was so powerful. The 46-year-old Superstar had a habit of delivering the dramatic and memorable during his latest WWE stint.

He and Kevin Owens capped off a personal feud on Tuesday night. The former best friends battered and beat each other until KO emerged as United States champion. The Prizefighter then proceeded to lay out his old ally, crushing his neck with the help of a steel chair and the ring post. 

That assault is presumably Jericho's sendoff, the means to write him off TV as he goes back to fronting Fozzy and being a rock star again. 

If that's the case, Jericho will have produced his best work to date. In 2016 and 2017, Y2J's was at the center of two excellent feuds, the originator of many a catchphrase and consistently one of the most entertaining acts on WWE TV each week.

His time as a whispering sadist out for Shawn Michaels' blood in 2008 was great. His performances as one of half of Jeri-Show in 2009 and 2010, his battles with Chris Benoit in the early '00s and his run as one of WCW's most compelling cruiserweights in the late '90s will all be part of his eventual Hall of Fame package. But his latest run was his magnum opus.

Last November, ESPN.com's Tim Fiorvanti wrote that Jericho was "doing some of the best work of his entire career in 2016 on Raw."

And when Jericho fell to Owens on the latest SmackDown, Vaughn Johnson of Philly.com praised the curator of The List of Jericho:

Jericho's habit of constant reinvention continued when he emerged from his latest hiatus. After working a limited, mostly untelevised schedule in 2015, the former world champ began appearing on Raw and SmackDown regularly last January.

He began to toy with his character, playing up his arrogance, displaying a love of scarves, growing more disdainful of the fans.

Along the way, he partnered with AJ Styles before turning on him. That rivalry helped launch The Phenomenal One's WWE career and led the way for Styles' MVP-caliber year.

Not only did Jericho and Styles thrive in the ring, but the heel's character work was top-notch.

His explanation for turning on his partner last March was a piece of theater. As he burned a Y2AJ T-shirt, he talked of how disrespected he'd been, how much he wanted to end Styles' WWE career before it began in earnest.

Jericho had the audience by the throat again, and he didn't let go for much of the year.

When he began to pair with Owens, he added more humor to his act. He called his enemies and the audience "stupid idiots." He began punishing those he disliked by putting their names on The List of Jericho.

Both those elements don't sound like much of anything on paper, but Jericho made them sing.

The "stupid idiots" insult caught on in a major way. Fans chanted it and wrote it on the signs they brought to arenas. 

The List of Jericho, though, was even bigger. 

It became one of the hottest things on Raw. The crowd would erupt when Jericho raised his pen like a dagger and asked his rivals, "You know what happens?" 

The list became more popular than a number of the guys on the roster. 

His partnership with Owens was a constant source of delight. They toyed with and bullied the backstage interviewers. They shared inside jokes and great chemistry. 

Jeri-KO was the highlight of many a Raw.

And when that alliance crumbled, it did so in spectacular fashion. Jericho hosted the Festival of Friendship for Owens, only to have the bruiser betray him in response.

That segment was arguably 2016's finest. It was funny, moving and unique. Jericho led the way in a scene that bolstered Owens.

Following the back-stabbing, Owens and Jericho proceeded to excel against each other. That shouldn't have surprised anyone despite Jericho being well past his physical prime.

Y2J's list of highly rated matches from past year is impressive:

Event	Opponent	W.O.N. Star Rating (out of 5)
SmackDown, Feb. 9, 2016	AJ Styles	3.75
Fastlane 2016	AJ Styles	4
WrestleMania 32	AJ Styles	3.75
Payback 2016	Dean Ambrose	3.75
Raw, April 4, 2016	AJ Styles, Kevin Owens, Cesaro	4
Clash of Champions 2016	Sami Zayn	4

He topped those off with a strong outing against Owens at Payback and the best bout of their trilogy on Tuesday's SmackDown.

Jericho leaves after adding major momentum for Owens and giving Styles a running start. He exits having given us a festival, a shirt-burning and a painful farewell we won't soon forget. The latest incarnation of his character was one of the most fun.

In an interview with The Toronto Sun last November, Jericho told Jan Murphy (link contains NSFW language): "I think this past year in the WWE has really cemented my, not legacy, but cemented Jericho as one of the top guys in the business 26 years later."

That's true. Wherever one had him listed among the all-time greats, that position had to increase after this latest run.

Jericho outdid himself this time around, and he will look to do so again once he returns.