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Chris Jericho is probably one of the most creative people in professional wrestling. His ability to adapt with the times is undeniable. In a lot of ways, his NJPW run has helped revitalize his career and influenced his AEW run as well.
During an interview with Sports Illustrated said that he was into Bruiser Brody at the time of his match with Kenny Omega in NJPW and he really liked the lunacy of the character. He says that the deceased wrestler still holds a legendary status in Japan and that heavily influenced the Painmaker character. He explained:
"I originally went into that Omega match thinking I’d be the same guy from WWE. But I was really into Bruiser Brody at the time–I think it was the 30 anniversary of his death–and watching him just beat the sh– out of people. In Japan, people are still intimidated by that and they kind of like it. I really liked the lunacy of the character I played building up to and during the Kenny match, so when I went back for Naito, I didn’t want to wear sparkly tights and light-up jackets. It didn’t feel right. I felt crazier, and I decided that some paint needed to be worn.”
He also said that it was working with Okada where he came up with the name of the character as he was referred to as Rainmaker. He said:
"I was working with Okada, who is ‘The Rainmaker,’ so I said I was ‘The Painmaker.’ It just happened. Now it’s a whole other side of Jericho that could extend my career for another ten years if I wanted it to. I’m a huge fanatic and disciple of the band KISS and the way they market themselves, and I’m surprised it took me this long to wear some paint. I want to use it in certain cases. That’s why I used the paint against Darby Allin on Dynamite. I want to do this character like how the Great Muta did it.”
Jericho's thought process is fascinating on all levels. It's going to be interesting how his match with Hiroshi Tanahashi at Wrestle Kingdom 14 is going to turn out.
