Csonka: AJ Styles Saved Me & Took Me To The Mecca With Him

– Welcome back to column time with Larry. Today’s column is all about a time in my life when I questioned my wrestling fandom, and the man who saved me and took me on an incredible journey with him. I hope that you enjoy, and feel free to share your thoughts. It’s wrestling, we love it and will disagree. The only rules are “have a take, be respectful of other’s opinions and don’t be a dick.”

Questioning my Fandom: I have covered “TNA/Impact Wrestling” since day one. The promotion holds a special place in my heart, because when they came along I was in a bad place as fan. I lost WCW, I lost ECW, WWE was doing nothing for me and I just didn’t have the money to acquire other wrestling (at the rate I wanted to) and tape trading was fading. Making the decision to invest in TNA allowed me to fall in love with a whole generation of performers I am still watching today, it was a gateway for me to get into companies like ROH & PWG; the choice to look into this new company gave me something that I needed, and through out the years I have constantly looked for and got into new things every few years to keep my fandom fresh; Japan, Lucha, CHIKARA, EVOLVE have all been part of my fandom because I made the choice to expand my wrestling pallet. I was with TNA for the great matches and for the bad. I was with them for the fun angles and for the midget jacking off in a trashcan; I stayed through the promising times and the several near financial disasters. AJ Styles was a HUGE part of why I stayed; Styles’ name was heavily making the rounds prior to TNA, but it was a match with Christopher Daniels at the NWA Anniversary show that scored him the huge buzz, the eye of Jeff Jarrett and his TNA deal…

Finding a New Style: The WCW Cruiserweights were something I always enjoyed, much of my tape trading revolved around the lightweights; Liger, Tiger Mask, Dynamite Kid, Sasuke, TAKA, Tajiri, Rey Mysterio, Juvi and Hayabusa were just some of the guys I paid attention to. A lot of these guys grabbed my attention and stole my imagination. But I needed someone new, and AJ Styles ended up being the guy. Styles was a guy that always hit the ring, always put in a great effort and always seemingly had something new to show fans. Styles was young, raw, exciting and I jumped on the wagon and never left. Whether it was tagging with Jerry Lyn, working against Lynn or just working extremely fun X-Division matches, Styles was the highlight of my week. Styles and the X-Division made me love wrestling, made me feel rewarded as a fan, and I was on board for the journey. Despite how the title may sound, there is no religious significance here, this is basically a big thank you to a wrestler that saved my fandom and took me on a hell of a journey with him…

The Evolution of AJ Styles: The evolution of AJ Styles has been one of the most enjoyable things I have had a chance to watch throughout my years as a fan and writer. Styles was so raw as a performer in his early years, getting by on pure athletic ability, some limited amateur wrestling skills, what he learned on the indies and just doing things that pleased the crowds. At his rawest form, before he grew as a performer, Styles was a flippy boy. He did cool things, he made the crowds happy, but he was reckless and didn’t know the when and where of when to use his skills. But like any good wrestler, Styles would evolve. He went from a high spot oriented flippy boy to a high quality high flier. His matches improved, he started putting things in the right place instead or just doing them because he could, and he showed that he had more to offer. From there, Styles evolved further, becoming a well-rounded professional wrestler that could work with anyone on the roster. But Styles was far from done, his evolution continued, and he slowly became a great overall wrestler. He should have been the face of TNA, he should have been a bigger star for them, but while he never became the star he should have been for them, he did become great, and made TNA must see TV for me.

Reinventing Himself in NJPW: But his time in TNA finally came to an end, Mr. TNA was about to leave and took the heart and soul of the company with him. The company was having financial issues and Styles didn’t ant to take a pay cut, he felt he was worth more, and due to TNA’s diminishing financial issues he would leave. Styles left, but I stayed with him; he was my guy and I was curious to see the story of his career play out. He worked ROH & the Indies, betting on himself and then, the next chapter of his career took him to NJPW, where he immediately became a top guy, joining Bullet Club and winning the IWGP Title. Absolutely great matches with Okada, Tanahashi, Ibushi, Suzuki and more followed. Styles continued to grow as a performer and for a time, there was no doubt that he was the best performer in the business. His NJPW run was short, lasting just under two years, but Styles again grew as a performer, and for lack of a better word, got the “TNA stink” off of him, and the industry saw him in a new light. After an amazing WrestleKingdom match with Nakamura, he was booted from Bullet Club to make way for the rise of Kenny Omega. But the story of Styles was far from done…

To The WWE & A Trip To The Mecca: With Styles finishing up with NJPW, the rumor mill ran hot with speculation as to where he would land. He looked to possibly return to TNA (along with fellow Bullet Club members Gallows & Anderson), but WWE reportedly gave him an offer he couldn’t refuse. Styles would then make his grand debut at the Royal Rumble, and was a star on day one. He had some great matches with Roman Reigns, worked two WrestleManias, and had a great feud with John Cena. Styles also became the face of Smackdown, becoming one of the more reliable and consistent TV wrestlers for the company. The Rumble debut was awesome, seeing Styles have great matches on the WWE stage, largely unchanged as a performer, was great, and his feud with Cena was great. His WWE run has been way better than expected, but WWE wasn’t done because on July 7th, he was given a big honor. Now I see a lot of people complaining and blowing off his US Title win as nothing important. Even if it was for a DVD moment, AJ Styles winning the US Title at Madison Square Garden is not only a major career achievement, but also a big show of confidence and respect by WWE. WWE has a long love affair with “The Garden,” the Mecca as many call it. Shawn Michaels and many others have said, “If you can make to the Garden, deliver in the ring and get over, that you can do it anywhere.” It’s a big moment and a great career achievement for Styles; even though I wasn’t there for it, I feel like I’ve been along for the ride and part of all of his big moments.

AJ Styles didn’t look like a guy that would succeed in WWE, not because of his lack of skill or the fact that he wouldn’t try. He’s not a WWE creation, he’s not a big guy, and he has that southern twang that the guys in charge don’t like….

“Be so good they can’t ignore you.”

That seems to be the mission statement for AJ Styles’ career. He worked his ass off, he constantly got better, and if he wasn’t the best, he was one of the best everywhere he went. AJ Styles was the reason I paid for shows, I went to shows, and in many ways saved my fandom. So to AJ Styles, I thank you, thank you for making me stay a wrestling fan, for making me want to expand my wrestling pallet. Thank you for taking me on an awesome ride over the past 16-years, and thanks for making me feel like I was in the Mecca for that special moment. In my opinion, you deserve it.

– End scene.

– Thanks for reading.

“Byyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyye Felicia!”