AEW can’t afford to not stick landing on MJF-Devil storyline at Worlds End

Three months of strong storyline, clues and plenty of misdirection surrounding The Devil and his men come down to this for AEW.

How well the payoff goes over at the Worlds End pay-per-view from Nassau Coliseum on Saturday (8 p.m., Bleacher Report) could have a major effect on the company’s momentum heading into 2024.

For three months, someone who stole MJF’s Devil mask at All In has been tormenting the AEW World champion and anyone who seemingly gets close to him or his title from The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn, Jay White, “Hangman” Adam Page and even MJF himself.

We learned on Dynamite this week that Samoa Joe’s vow to protect MJF before their world title rematch on Long Island was done in consort with whoever is under the Devil mask.

The big bad’s masked helpers even cheated to take the Ring of Honor world tag team championships off MJF on Wednesday?

So who is The Devil?

With a number of the prime suspects already removed, all clues point to MJF’s best bro since the summer, Adam Cole — even if he was said to be injured jumping off the stage at Dynamite: Grand Slam in September.

The Devil mask was in Cole’s locker at All In, he twice encouraged MJF to go along with Samoa Joe and at one point looked like he clicked something to turn the lights out before The Devil appeared on the jumbo tron.

Also, Cole’s friend Roderick Strong has been pointing to MJF as The Devil for months now.

Bringing in a free agent, bringing back Jack Perry or having it be anyone else on the AEW roster just wouldn’t have the same emotional impact and devastation as MJF being betrayed by the man from whom he finally opened up and was vulnerable after years and years of a hard heel exterior.

That likely would be crushing to MJF.

The question is, will AEW go the full mile and have Joe take his AEW world championship too — especially if Cole is truly injured — and leave MJF in pieces without his best friend and championship?

If Cole is healthy or The Devil is someone else, maybe MJF retains, and it could lead up to a championship match at Revolution in March.

AEW needs to stick the landing either way.

AEW Worlds End Predictions

Willow Nightingale over Kris Stantlander (Zero Hour)

The two buddies and Long Island natives square off in a match that I expect to go from friendly to contentious. Stokely Hathaway has been trying to recruit Statlander, and a loss to Nightingale is the only way to make that potential partnership somewhat appealing and add a little self-doubt in her abilities.

Hook (c) over Wheeler Yuta, FTW rules, to retain the FTW championship (Zero Hour)

If this was any place other than Hook’s hometown of Long Island and being competed under FTW rules, I’d give Yuta more of a chance here. While not impossible he loses, Hook gets a hard-fought win and moves on to bigger and better things in 2024 during a pre-show that also included a battle royal for a TNT championship shot.

Bryan Danielson, Claudio Castagnoli, Daniel Garcia and Mark Briscoe over Rush, Jay White, Jay Lethal, Brody King

We get four of the Continental Classic’s babyfaces versus four of the tournament’s heels in an All-Star eight-man tag. Bank on the good guys with a little Danielson-Garcia story and maybe fan-favorite Briscoe getting to pinfall.

Andrade El Idolo over Miro

The angrier Miro gets at Andrade being his wife’s client the better this feud will be and that only happens if he loses. CJ Perry, if healthy enough after getting a severe infection in her finger in Mexico, shows up later in the match and distracts Miro enough for Andrade to steal a win.

Sammy Guevara, Chris Jericho, Sting and Darby Allin over Ricky Starks, Big Bill, Will Hobbs and Konosuka Takeshita

Kenny Omega having diverticulitis nixed his and Chris Jericho’s tag team title shot. Not sure why AEW opted for a match the babyfaces likely have to win to keep Sting undefeated going into his final match instead of just having Jericho and Guevara face Big Bill and Ricky Starks for the belts. Maybe Sting and Allin get a tag title shot down the road because of this.

Swerve Strickland over Keith Lee

The best thing Stickland has going for him after his Continental Classic semifinal loss is he wasn’t pinned. So having him get beat four days later would be an unnecessary blow to his momentum. This is likely the first of two matches between the former tag partners that took AEW nearly a year to get to,

Julia Hart (c.) over Abadon to retain the TBS championship

Hart is one of AEW’s big breakout stars and is just 32-plus days into her championship reign. While this match could be a lot of fun considering both’s darker and somewhat strange personas, there is little reason to have Hart lose here considering Abadon’s momentum only started building a few weeks ago.

“Timeless” Toni Storm (c) over Riho to retain the AEW Women’s World championship

AEW really does love Riho, who puts on good matches and gets a solid babyface response, but she feels little threat to Storm’s title. There is a larger story at work here with fan Mariah May, whom Storm refuses to truly acknowledge. May will help her idol retain and face Riho in her first AEW match on Dynamite

Adam Copeland over Christian Cage (c), No DQ, to win the TNT championship

It’s the hardest match on the card to call because we haven’t been given a reason for Cage to lose when others can intervene on his behalf in a no-DQ match, and you’d think they would go for a trilogy. There is only way to get there is for Copeland to win — maybe with help from a conflicted Killswitch — and his good friend wants a rematch. Few titles will change hands on Saturday, so here is the big one that will. It will be Copeland’s first single title since 2011.

Eddie Kingston over Jon Moxley, Continental Classic finale

An entire tournament just for Eddie Kingston to retain his titles and add a third to become a “triple-crown” champ representing AEW, ROH and New Japan? Yep. Nothing else makes sense here. Kingston finally beat Bryan Danielson for the first time to get to the final and he will beat his close friend Moxley for the first time in three tries to a big New York pop.

MJF (c.) over vs. Samoa Joe to retain the AEW World championship

Samoa Joe ended up being in cahoots with The Devil all along, but it won’t get him what he wants. AEW didn’t tell this prolonged story just for even an injured MJF to lose on Long Island before The Devil is revealed and have to wait months and months to face him. A weakened MJF barely beats Joe — maybe with help from “Hangman” Adam Page and the Acclaimed during or after the match — and calls out The Devil afterward to set up AEW in 2024. If the Devil’s men beat up MJF enough it could allow him a short injury hiatus before Revolution in March or another big show.