Criticizing Your Personal Favorites: AJ Styles

[#hamler]

I figured i'd give some TNA marks a few guys to criticize. Rules- No matter how perfect the said Wrestler is, criticize him. Now's your chance. Feel free to rip posts apart piece by piece.I want a dicussion here Please, explain your answer and don't Spam. In this thread, you have a chance to criticize my favorite current TNA Wrestler...

AJ Styles​

The most decorated man in TNA, The Phenomenal One, AJ Styles. AJ Styles, along with Abyss, James Storm and Jeff Jarrett, are the only wrestlers to have wrestled on TNA's first PPV that are still curently signed to TNA Wrestling. AJ Styles has had numerous title reigns during his time in TNA. Championship reigns that include, 6 reigns with the very prestigous X-Division Championship, NWA-TNA Tag team championship 5 times, NWA Title three times, and a former TNA World Champion. AJ Styles is the first TNA Triple Crown Champion, as well as TNA's first Grand Slam Champion.

AJ Styles was the first TNA wrestler to get PWI's number one spot in the yearly PWI 500 in 2010. Wrestling Observer New Letter awarded him the match of the year in 2005 at Unbreakable. AJ Styles should be TNA's poster boy. He's pound for pound, the best in ring competitor of our time. But AJ, like most wrestlers, isn't flawless. Which leads me toi the discussion questions;


What is one flaw you see in AJ Styles?

Would fixing this flaw make AJ Styles any better than he already is?


*(By the way, saying AJ's flaw is that he is in TNA IS NOT a flaw, don't use it.)*

If you see no flaw in AJ Styles, state why. And please don't fuck up my thread with spam. Explain. Feel free to rip posts apart piece by piece, I want a discussion here.

Discuss this shit

 

[Disturbed]

I think AJ is an excellent wrestler, in the ring and on the mic. He is one of the best in the world and he has only a few flaws. One flaw, I will throw out there is fixed now but I'll still state it. AJ, at one time was a comedy act. Back in like 06, somewhere in there maybe 07 but he was working a program with Kurt and he was just a complete dumbass. Before that when he was in Christian's Collision, he was nothing more than Christian's sidekick. Now the guy was a former NWA Heavyweight champion so he should have been treated better. That all relates to the present because when you look back in his career you seem him in some dumbass comedy roles.

Another flaw, he can't fix is his accent. He sounds like a redneck hillbilly or some shit. Trust me I know what they sound like because I am from Kentucky. He doesn't have bad mic skills, in fact they are very good but it is hard to listen to a promo from a guy who sounds like a hick.

Sorry if I gave some non important flaws but that is really the only bad I see in him. He is a great in ring competitor who has put on some amazing matches. His mic skills are above average and he has been involved in some good and some not so good promos but he is what he says he is and that's "Phenomenal."

 

[hatehabsforever]

The only real flaw with AJ Styles is his lack of mic skills and/or charisma. No one can question the guy's in-ring skills, his ability to bring it in the ring night in and night out. His dedication and loyalty to TNA through darker days (of which there's been plenty) is something he should be commended for, when you would have to think the lure of the money, the spotlight, and an actual audience as only WWE can offer, would have to be ever present.

However, I still find his mic skills to be terribly lacking. I know some of my TNA friends on here would feel otherwise, but he is still weak on the mic and still has about as much charisma as a Ted DiBiase, which is hardly a compliment.

Give this guy a personality transplant, and combine this with his obvious skills and look, and feature this package on the grandest stage of them all, as opposed to the obscurity of Orlando, and we could well be looking at one of the best of all time, as opposed to just another big fish in a little pond.

 

[mikevenom00]

Im a mass aj mark all tho i defs agree wit the distrurbed when he was wit christian it was a joke i mean the guy is obvisously the best in ring performer in tna n they had him booked as back up hahaha oh well... i think atm aj needs to shave the old chest up shred up his abs like they were in tna's early days..... bring back the 450 n his other airiel moves break off from immortal n become the phenomenal one again in the house that aj styles built.....

 

[Zeven_Zion]

I think AJ has Charisma. Chrarisma is a very unique thing, and AJ has his.

However, one thing I don't like about him is how, sometimes, he stutters during his promo, forgets lines or just doesn't know what to say.

Another thing I don't like is how he lost his physique. He used to be fit and everything, and he looks good now and all but nowhere near the shape he used to be in in 2005 for example.

 

[a0161613]

AJ does have charisma. To say he doesn't is ridiculous. When he leaves his feet he gets a massive reaction. He can make any crowd pop when he flies around the ring and that makes up for any deficit in his mic abilities.

I dont see his accent as anything more than superficial, certainly not a bad thing. I think he lacks a little confidence because he was never reallly given serious mic time in TNA's formative years, I think he was just thrown out to the ring and told to fly.

But AJ is probably TNA's most well rounded competitor and criticizing the remainder of TNA's roster will be easier

 

[Ferbian]

While a lot of people have already criticized his charisma, or his microphone abilities from time to time, then I'm gonna go in a different direction.

The flaw I see in AJ is the fact that he never really has been able to come off as truly the face of the company, even when people wanted him to. He's always been second or third to other talent. At least from what I've seen he's never really struck me as the guy that is and will always be TNA, and everything it presents. He's their first and primary home-grown talent, and he's over with the fans, but he has never truly been marketed as their top guy. There has always been someone else who's either on a bigger pedestal or who has more to offer. In the past we've had Kurt Angle, Mick Foley, Jeff Jarrett, hell even Christian. Now we have numerous talent that seems to exceed what A.J is worth, Anderson, Hardy and A.J seems to have taken the backseat to a lot of new talent that has been brought in.

I'm sure it's not necessarily a bad thing. Because there's an understanding behind why TNA would be backing a guy like Jeff, Anderson, RVD or any of the other guys. But I still think it's something that might go on to hurt A.J in the long run, he'll always be considered good, but he'll never be considered the top dog.

 

[a0161613]

THe thing is Ferbs, I can only think of one time off the top of my head when he has been given time to be the top guy and that was during his last World title run, from No Surrender, through BFG until about this time last year.

During that time he was the top guy. He headlined, he was on almost every show, and he was the focal point as champion. Angle was feuding with Wolfe, it was before Hogan and Bischoff and Flair turned up and changed the direction of the entire product. There is no coincidence that during this time period, TNA was at its creative peak. Impact was great and almost always better than it has been over the last year.

 

[Ferbian]

THe thing is Ferbs, I can only think of one time off the top of my head when he has been given time to be the top guy and that was during his last World title run, from No Surrender, through BFG until about this time last year.

During that time he was the top guy. He headlined, he was on almost every show, and he was the focal point as champion. Angle was feuding with Wolfe, it was before Hogan and Bischoff and Flair turned up and changed the direction of the entire product. There is no coincidence that during this time period, TNA was at its creative peak. Impact was great and almost always better than it has been over the last year.

Ah yes, that's true. However it's hardly something that's that impressive compared to the amount of years he has with the company, mixed with the fact that he's considered a sort of poster boy for the company. Yet he's never the one guy that gets the most attention, he's hardly ever the guy to be in the main event scene, and he strikes me an awful lot like Chris Jericho in terms of switching back and forth between the card.

A.J, to me at least, will always be the type of guy that is good to have on the card, good to have in the company, but in the end of the day if he retired the company really wouldn't suffer that hard. Sure A.J is popular as ever with TNA, but he's not their primary draw, he's not the focal point of TNA right now, and he's most likely not gonna be for a while either.

 

[a0161613]

Yeah I see your point and while the Jericho comparison is ideal, I'd disagree on him not being the main draw. I think he is right now and I think he will be when Angle has retired and when Hogan & Bischoff get bored and when then decide to stop paying Flair as he will almost certainly outlast them all.

He could be the face of TNA if the company pulled their finger out and started to book it. I think he hasnt been trusted enough in that spot.

 

[hatehabsforever]

AJ does have charisma. To say he doesn't is ridiculous. When he leaves his feet he gets a massive reaction. He can make any crowd pop when he flies around the ring and that makes up for any deficit in his mic abilities.

I dont see his accent as anything more than superficial, certainly not a bad thing. I think he lacks a little confidence because he was never reallly given serious mic time in TNA's formative years, I think he was just thrown out to the ring and told to fly.

But AJ is probably TNA's most well rounded competitor and criticizing the remainder of TNA's roster will be easier

Granted that charisma is an intangible and as such is difficult to assess if someone has it or not, it's the perception of the fan who is analyzing the particular athlete, but I have to disagree with you saying that AJ has charisma.

The massive reaction he gets when he leaves his feet, and the massive pop he gets as he flies around the ring, that may well be true (although "massive pop" is a bit of a stretch in my opinion), but that does not equate to charisma, that's simply superb in-ring skills, which again is not realistically up for debate.

I find with Styles that despite his skill level in the ring, I typically find myself largely apathetic concerning what is going on around him. Here's a guy who has been anointed professional wrestler of the year, and receives rave reviews from everyone, especially his ever-faithful TNA marks, yet he is living in the shadows of the Immortals, vying for mid-card titles against run of the mill talent like Douglas Williams. While he should be the face of TNA Wrestling, their John Cena, the focal point of the organization, he is instead biding his time with has-beens like Tommy Dreamer. And the reason for this, I think, is simply because he lacks the charisma, the confidence, the presence, to be the go-to guy. He will always have his loyal following, the guys who will chime in her and tell me I'm wrong in my assessment of him, but the simple fact of the matter is, he isn't, and may never be, the top dog in TNA. He'll wait in line behind guys like Anderson, when in fact they should be pursuing him, rather than the other way around.

 

[kazfan401]

Damn, this is a tough one, AJ has always been one of my personal favourites so criticizing him would be pretty difficult, but I just don't like his role in TNA right now. I pray to god that he turns face soon because I haven't been a big fan of his role in the company since he joined Flair, It was OK at first and some people might hate me for this but I think its just become stale now..Just my opinion so theres no point bitching about it lol

 

[Ferbian]

Yeah I see your point and while the Jericho comparison is ideal, I'd disagree on him not being the main draw. I think he is right now and I think he will be when Angle has retired and when Hogan & Bischoff get bored and when then decide to stop paying Flair as he will almost certainly outlast them all.

How is he the main draw right now? Considering the fact that Jeff Hardy is the world champion, and what exactly is A.J doing? Oh yes, he's wrestling Doug Williams. Sure two talented guys, and while the majority of the people knows that they can tear the house down, their match at Genesis isn't the most interesting one. I'm sure A.J is a draw, but he's just not as big a draw as some of the other names that are presented weekly in TNA, I just don't believe that.

He could be the face of TNA if the company pulled their finger out and started to book it. I think he hasnt been trusted enough in that spot.

Every fairly popular and over with the fans wrestler can be the face of a company. It's always about the booking yes. John Cena could very well NOT have been the face of WWE, had he not been booked like it. And it would then mean there were someone else to be booked like it. So it all depends on what talent you decide to push, of course. But right now, he's not the talent that should be pushed as the face of the company.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

And the reason for this, I think, is simply because he lacks the charisma, the confidence, the presence, to be the go-to guy.

I would have to disagree here. As far as him not being the go-to guy, give me a break. AJ's been stealing the show for quite a while now. The last bad match that AJ was involved in was EV2 vs Fourtune. If anyone's a go-to guy, it's Styles. He's the best wrestler in the world as far as in-ring work goes, he can tear it up with just about anyone and he always delivers.

Personally, I think he has a lot more presence than Hardy, Anderson or Morgan. He wouldn't have any presence in WWE, but he does in TNA. I see AJ - I see TNA. I see TNA - I think of AJ. He's just TNA's guy. Not officially, unfortunately.

Styles should just be THE guy. Their Cena, their Hogan, their Michaels, their Austin, Rock, you name it. This is the guy you want to show to potential viewers. This is the guy you want to go on TV Shows so when they run a quick clip of his matches people will surely go "Holy crap that guy's awesome" instead of "Wasn't that guy in WWE?".

AJ needs to work harder on who he is behind the mic. He's good now, but that's not enough. I think his heel turn helped him to establish some emotional range which he lacked before that, but interacting with Flair has its beneficial effects. AJ came a long way since his crappy Flair wanna-be promos from January last year. He just needs to interact with some of the veterans in TNA, focus on the mic, he's got the ring covered, go face and see where that takes him. TNA tends to shit on their heels big time and put over the faces more, which is just the way it should be, but not when one of your heels is Styles. I hope they turn him face soon, this heel run is getting old anyway. It ran its course. A full year, time for a change.

 

[Zeven_Zion]

How is he the main draw right now? Considering the fact that Jeff Hardy is the world champion, and what exactly is A.J doing? Oh yes, he's wrestling Doug Williams. Sure two talented guys, and while the majority of the people knows that they can tear the house down, their match at Genesis isn't the most interesting one. I'm sure A.J is a draw, but he's just not as big a draw as some of the other names that are presented weekly in TNA, I just don't believe that.

It's very hard to say that he is or isn't a draw. We'll never know. We can only speculate, but just because Hardy's the Champion doesn't mean he's automatically the biggest draw. Hardy sells dolls I'm sure, but I HIGHLY doubt he's the reason why people buy Pay-Per-Views. Not for me. I'm more interested in AJ vs Doug, The Guns and Beer Money, Morgan and Anderson. I don't think I've anticipated a Jeff Hardy match since he came to TNA, except for Bound for Glory. Hardy finally got himself a gimmick and I find him interesting, but the guy is total shit in the ring. He's the Champ right now because it fit the storyline, the shock factor was obvious and he's not the worst wrestler in the world, he can hang in there through the storyline.

Personally, I highly doubt that TNA's product has come to the place where this guy or that guy draws a lot. I don't think they have a guy that draws more than everyone, like Cena. None of them are established in TNA like Styles. And that's what it takes to draw, imo. You need to be established, not come from the biggest company in the world. That just creates a temporary interest which lasts about a week and then it's old news.

 

[Ferbian]

It's very hard to say that he is or isn't a draw. We'll never know. We can only speculate, but just because Hardy's the Champion doesn't mean he's automatically the biggest draw. Hardy sells dolls I'm sure, but I HIGHLY doubt he's the reason why people buy Pay-Per-Views. Not for me. I'm more interested in AJ vs Doug, The Guns and Beer Money, Morgan and Anderson. I don't think I've anticipated a Jeff Hardy match since he came to TNA, except for Bound for Glory. Hardy finally got himself a gimmick and I find him interesting, but the guy is total shit in the ring. He's the Champ right now because it fit the storyline, the shock factor was obvious and he's not the worst wrestler in the world, he can hang in there through the storyline.

Yes sure, you are more interested in it. But let's be realistic here and just admit we're all smarks viewing a product and we know what's gonna be better than the rest. And for the smarks the A.J vs Doug match will be absolutely gold, but for the few (I don't know how many, but I'm guessing the smark audience of TNA exceeds the marks) marks that are present, I'm doubting for the purpose of storyline that anybody would truly give a rats ass about Doug vs A.J going at it again, as opposed to for example Matt Morgan / Mr. Anderson squaring off to name a number 1 contender, which has a bigger impact on the way the focal point of the TNA product is being produced - The world title, and Immortal.

Besides, fine let's say that A.J is a bigger draw than Hardy. Is he the bigger name and the most consistently commercialized wrestler in the company? Absolutely not. The face of the company is advertised and shown off as the guy to attract the viewers. You said it yourself just above to Habs, A.J could be the face of the company and should be the face of the company.. But he isn't.

Personally, I highly doubt that TNA's product has come to the place where this guy or that guy draws a lot. I don't think they have a guy that draws more than everyone, like Cena. None of them are established in TNA like Styles. And that's what it takes to draw, imo. You need to be established, not come from the biggest company in the world. That just creates a temporary interest which lasts about a week and then it's old news.

Sure, you could be right. However it's already proven that someone entering the TNA scene had spiked the ratings - Hulk Hogan had the ratings going up, at least to the point where it was worth mentioning compared to previous ratings. Sure they're sorta back down to earth again from what I hear, but it wasn't A.J, it wasn't Doug Williams, it wasn't James Storm or whomever has been a longer name in TNA, it was the newer names, the bigger names, the ones that TNA advertises as their faces of the company.

 

[Syn]

AJ Styles is my favorite wrestler of all time.

Most of the problems with AJ is because of TNA itself. Most of the roster is underused or misused. AJ and the X Division used to be the spotlight. AJ was the first ever Triple Crown champion, and should be the top wrestler in the company. He should be having 15+ minute matches with guys like Williams, Joe, Angle, MCMG, Anderson(....maybe haha), hell in the old days he could pull 5 star matches from Abyss.

AJ has charisma, its a different kind of Charisma though. When hes in a match, you know hes going all out, by his mannerism, his facial expressions and the pure emotion he lets loose (before he hits a move like his spinning lariat). He is okay on the mic, but that doesnt always matter. You can get a manager to speak for you, or be a man of few words and let actions speak for you.

He is a great technical wrestler, with a repetoire of moves like no other in the business (well this side of the world anyways). During the start on TNA he would invent a new move almost every week. He is a gifted high flyer who pulls off moves like shooting stars and 450s with few equals (Matt Sydal/Evan Bourne and Paul London come to mind on SSP), and many many other arial moves. He can also sell moves like no other. He is usually the man selected to take the huge falls because he is the one trusted to not get hurt (The canadian destroyer, the dropkick he took that flipped him over in Ultimate X, countless times falling off the cage). In his entire wrestling career he has been injured enough to take time off like what, once? which was like a month.

However his ability to sell, has also brought criticism, because he would take a huge move/fall and a few minutes later be fine. He has been getting better on that, but yeah he sometimes forgets that his arm or leg for example should be "injured".

There really isnt much else you could ask from Styles when it comes to what he can offer, Mic work with some charisma in his words, Most of the problems with AJ is TNAs fault in general by seriously dropping the ball with him.

 

[LSN80]

Aj will never be a great heel. He struggles to be that guy who, as a heel, could be the face of the company. Even during his 7 month World title reign, he seemed more natural and comfortable as a face. This was evident in both his mic skills, and his in-ring work. He seemed forced as a heel, and it certainly didn't come naturally to him. He's come in to his own as the "active" leader of Fourtune, but he no longer has the responsibility of the top belt that goes with it. I buy far more into AJ as a face then I do a heel.

Another problem I have with AJ is his mic work. I think he's perfectly comfortable at being a good talker, he just doesn't always demonstrate it. His mic work to me is very hit or miss. The Impact after his "I Quit" match with Tommy Dreamer, Styles was at his best. He was smug, confident, and charismatic. But there are times when his mic work feels forced, and he stammers over his words. He's not a bad mic guy, by any means. He's jsut not consistent enough on the mic.

The final flaw I see in AJ is that he's not a great draw. He's a fantastic wrestler who seemingly brings out the best with each and every opponent he steps foot into the ring with. But when given the main spot, as the big attraction, he failed to draw more then any other superstar before him did. AJ would leave a void in the company if he left, but it wouldn't be near the magnitude of what would happen if a John Cena won, and it should. AJ's been there since day one, and should be their most marketable wrestler. But he's not irreplaceable, and there are things he could do that could make him such, he just hasn't as of yet. I hope he can someday, because he's certainly capable of it.

 

[FitFinlay4Life]

Okay, couple of faults with AJ...

He is only average on the mike and as Russo (famously) isn't a fan of wrestling - this means that he doesn't get consistent main event pushes.

Current heel persona - fans don't want to boo AJ (they'd prefer to cheer Beer Money and Ric too - FOURtune really needs a face turn) and as such for the casual fan checking out Impact, it's really hard to work out why face Doug is being booed and heel AJ is being cheered.

AJ's problems aren't terminal - get the belt back on him, TNA has plenty of guys now who can come across great on the mike for feuds and we all know that AJ can pull out classics with anyone, so any lack of promo skills can be overcome. A lengthy run taking on all comers, especially if he is still the figurehead of FOURtune feuding with an Immortal determined to get the belt back and you have what (should be) an easy lengthy storyline.

 

[A-KO]

1. He needs to stop shouting when he talks on the mic, every promo he cuts feels like its almost forced down the viewer's throat.

2. Get back to the shape he was in in early 2006. Give him his full range of moves we all know he is capable of.

3. Vince McMahon to sign him, he would do well (kinda like Daniel Bryan has done) I think.

4. Let hime be "The Phenomenal" AJ Styles again.

 

[MisterRob]

I disagree with those who are saying that AJ Styles doesn't have charisma. He does have a natural charisma about him, and that's exactly why he became the "Phenomenal" AJ Styles.. because he had a presence in the ring, a charisma that made people pay attention and want to watch him. It goes beyond just wrestling ability. Lots of people have wrestling ability and can do awesome, impressive things in the ring... Kazarian for example. But, no one gives a shit while they're watching Kazarian wrestle. He's bland and unappealing. AJ Styles is someone you WANT to watch, and that's because he has charisma.

But, that being said, Styles lacks in other areas. Some people think Styles has improved greatly and is actually really good now on the mic. I disagree entirely. He's competent on the mic, but he's still not a natural speaker. He still doesn't have that natural confidence and ability like guys like Anderson or Christian do. Guys like Anderson and Christian you can just tell it comes naturally. It's not forced, it doesn't feel like they're playing a character or trying to cut a promo.. but that's not the case with Styles. It's especially not the case with a heel Styles.

Another flaw with Styles is in him playing a heel. He's not a heel and everything he does while portraying one feels forced, in my opinion. Styles is a natural face. People want to get behind Styles, root for him, and see him defy the odds and overcome.. and that doesn't work as a heel. I feel one of the worse mistakes TNA's made is making Styles a heel. It's just like Jeff Hardy; they're natural faces and they just don't work as heels.

I feel like if he were used right, booked right, AJ Styles could very well be the face of the company and an asset like John Cena is to WWE. The problem though is that TNA doesn't want that. For whatever reason they have never really allowed Styles to have that role, and especially since Bischoff and Hogan took over, Styles has been delegated to a backseat passenger in the TNA car. He could be a far greater asset right now, and far more successful then Matt Morgan as a main event face opposing Immortal. TNA, for whatever reason, does not want AJ Styles at the level he could be and I really don't see that changing. If it were going to change it would've already.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I dont agree with criticising Styles for the spot he is in on the card, or the guys he is facing in the ring. That is a negative on TNA, not AJ himself.

As an in-ring perfomer, he has few equals. He is quite simply phenomenal. So athletic, exciting and unique. He is almost always guaranteed to show you a top drawer match.

The only flaws I can see in him is that he doesnt have the best mic skills in the world. With his accent, it is difficult to cut a convincing promo, and he doesnt always seem that comfortable on the mic, even less so as a heel.

All he needs to do is work on this a bit more and he will be the complete package.