The MJF-apocalypse: Why I think the characters portrayed by Maxwell Jacob Friedman (MJF) and Owen Hart are incredibly similar.
Characters Discussed: MJF, Owen Hart, Adam Cole, CM Punk, Bret Hart, Triple H, Shawn Michaels.
I'm going to say it here because I feel like rambling about my favorite wrestling characters, and Twitter doesn't have the text limit. But the reason I like MJF so much is that he plays a highly similar character in comparison to Owen Hart's heel run. Which in all honesty, is the best thing ever done in wrestling related storytelling.
And I know both the character of MJF and the actual guy that is MJF is the epitome of being compared to Triple H and Shawn Michaels and literally no one else (publicly, at least). But it's all about the analysis and comparison that comes with enjoying English and History classes in school.
And... just hear me out.
The way he plays such an eloquent villain, someone who is probably extremely kind ooc but plays this absolute tragic Shakespearean-level villain, is honestly just beautiful. They are both the best when it comes to the concept of physical acting in the ring (That being facial expression and tone of voice, not actual body movement.) The way Owen Hart could look at his brother, (referencing Wrestlemania 10) enthralled me with his heel character. You could see the artificial vitriol behind his eyes as he glared and screamed at his brother. The ending scene of Bret in the ring with the world heavyweight championship belt, surrounded by his friends and coworkers, constantly stands out because it's jarring. You see this moment of celebration that almost seems repetitive, considering that 39 other Wrestlemania's end in an extremely similar way. But what stands out is Owen. He's not a part of the celebration. He enters the set a few minutes in and looks at Bret outside of the ring, the celebration pauses, and they just look at each other before the show ends. And they all had various fantastic runs as characters and as wrestlers for the next few years, but I'm rambling yet again.
MJF looks at his foe with pure unadulterated hate. He goes for the throat constantly, whether he's having a discussion or cheating in the ring. He goes for weakness and insecurity by using his own. His goal is for his foe to imagine that sad boy in the Burberry getting home from a rough day at school or work and turning on some wrestling to see his idol. He places that fragile foe upon a pedestal only to kick it over. He wants them to hold the championship belt in the ring surrounded by their friends and confetti, only for them to look down and remember him and remember what they did to him.
They aren't afraid to cry, either. It might be big old crocodile tears, but it shows earnest weakness. Their tears are a show of giving in, they couldn't keep up the facade of their hate, and it crumbled around them. Their voices would crack and falter as they screamed at their foes and jabbed at them through their words. But what their individual stories showed was that they're weak little men who want protection from their foes. Whether they hire people or join cliques, their characters are Napoleon's desperate for connection, whether with their groupmates or, most importantly, the person they had wronged.
Audiences get bored extremely quickly. They want meat. They want a story that ties things together and tears them apart. Filler is alright (especially considering what might happen on the seventeenth), but I feel a change in character is coming up for MJF just as it did for Owen in 1997. I get that MJF is the heel through and through, but with CM Punk back, our friend the tragic heel MJF might fall into the sweet gaslight-y trap that is a friendship with the anti-hero of the century, CM Punk.
Anyways, MJF works off of the presumptive guilt buried deep inside his foes. He blames them for his own actions,
"I used to be nice, but it was your actions which made me this way."
We're all responsible for our own actions. He's well aware of that, the way, as of today (06/07/23), his little verbal scuffle with Adam Cole pointed that out clearly. Cole points out his hypocrisy with filler, and it's honestly working. MJF (as the character) is bored; he's fought everyone who's gone after him of their own volition. Adam Cole didn't abruptly interrupt MJF. It's more like he accepted a challenge. And he faces off with Max without issue, pointing out the constant competitive nature of MJF and looking past the origin story that tends to come with MJF. Cole told him, that if he’s bored then it’s his own fault. MJF’s behavior got him to where he is now, a character which no other character on the roster can even tolerate being around. That’s why this is filler, this match was supposed to be something but due to the burgeoning existence of Collision (and the fact CM Punk got his job back) kind of shot the horse before the race started. But in all honesty, as I said previously, it’s a good usage of filler because it will inevitably will build up to a major event. Which will, without a doubt, involve CM Punk and will probably lead to them duking it out in England.
MJF ooc might be a mystery to most, but we all know deep inside he's nice. Considering how some well-known interviewees have revealed his secret nature, I firmly believe It's the nicest people who are the most capable of using all of the built-up hate inside their hearts. That fact is only proven by the various candids on Owen Hart, but yet again, I'm rambling. Their similarities can be summed with the look in their eyes, that little glint of anger. The ways they frown and scream, the way they weren't afraid to cry. The ways they expressed their anger and sadness made for such intense storytelling, which constantly left me on edge, wanting more. It might be their endearing personalities and sad little eyes. Still, the real similarities between their characters are what makes me watch Dynamite every Wednesday for the small chance he shows up and picks up the mic.