A New AJ Styles?

Either AJ Styles is rusty as hell or TNA is seriously considering a heel push for their former franchise face.

Rusty may be too tough a word. Perhaps not yet in a groove? Styles’ style, no pun intended, is tough on the body. 11 years of spots can’t be fun on the knees and back. Could this more strike and submission offense be the company’s way of preserving him for pay per views?

It’s not that his match with James Storm was terrible, it wasn’t. It was just different. It was like ordering a steak and getting a broiled chicken and mashed potatoes instead. You’ll eat and enjoy, but it’s not exactly what you wanted, or craved. Never in the driver’s seat, Styles sold a ton from Storm before locking in a nifty little submission to earn the win. Is this the dangerous version of Styles that Impact Wrestling General Manager Hulk Hogan wants?

If anything, it’s the kind of repertoire that makes him a perfect fit for the Aces and Eights.

The old Styles, the guy who could have Iron Man matches on Impact would have gone a long way in establishing the group’s in-ring credibility, but to have Styles change even his move set to become a part of the group is an interesting concept. Even it is essentially bait and switch advertising. When you think of a Styles match, the last thing you think of is a submission finish. Sure, strikes are part of his offense, but they weren’t featured as heavily as they were in his Impact return. In order for this “new” Styles to work, the company needs to keep the submission wins coming and against top talent. Drill this into fans’ heads. This is the new AJ Styles. take it or leave it.

They may not like it and may even draw some boos, but if the guy’s going to be a heel, he might as well get used to it.

Because, in all fairness, what else can they do with the guy creatively at this point?

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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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