Impact Wrestling Coverage: The AJ Problem

TNA has a problem. It doesn’t know what to do with its most enigmatic star. Since its inception, Styles has been their most entertaining performer. He’s headlined more pay per views than anyone would have thought, especially during his Air Styles days in WCW. He’s won every title numerous times and has feuded with nearly every star in the company.

So what does TNA do with him now? What’s left?

It may be a stretch, but Styles looks to have entered the same station that Sting and Hulk Hogan crossed when fans were sick of their plain-faced antics. But creative was different then, they thought a bit more. Both Sting’s descent to his “Crow” character and the formation of the nWo were polished and well-thought out ideas.

Calling TNA well-polished and thought out is like accusing Mel Gibson of being sane.

From the looks of it, the company is going to push Styles as a heel, possibly even a member of the Aces and Eights. Don’t let Taz’s half-hearted attempt to get Styles to join the group fool you. This has typical TNA swerve written all over it. This idea can flourish, but TNA will have to overcome several early hurdles. It only works if Styles actually works. Kenny King is young and will have another shot at the X-Division championship. Styles needs that belt more than anyone in the world right now. Yes, Styles needs a prop. With a lack of skills on the mic and only his in-ring abilities to separate him from everyone else, Styles has never been a good “chaser.”

Styles is at his best as a fighting champion. If Bully Ray and Styles defend their titles regularly and dominate, the whole landscape of TNA changes. Instead of being a cheap Sons of Anarchy rip-off, they become credible. Throw in a dash of hammer play and heel tactics and the gang could be more than just another angle in the hall of failed TNA factions.

This also works for King, who is also in need of a real angle. Styles can give that to him. It’s a new matchup for fans and one they’ll take more serious than another Samoa Joe or Christopher Daniels feud. If Styles can join the heel faction, get a few more than solid matches under his belt and work his way into a memorable promo, he’ll save face.

If not, like many of the stars of TNA, he’ll just be a face on the roster to sell merchandise. TNA prides itself on wrestling, but no one has been doing much of it over the past few months. The Phenomenal One can change that, all by himself.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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