The Club are back and better than ever. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Well, this is far from the first incarnation of this particular club and we can say with absolute confidence that it won’t be the last in WWE either.
Prince Devitt’s Bullet Club made huge waves in New Japan and are credited with starting the latest NJPW international surge. After he left the company, regenerating into Finn Balor like Doctor Who, AJ Styles would step into the gulf. Under his lead, the Bullet Club would move from strength to strength before he was also given an ignominious departure to make room for his cleaner, Kenny Omega.
Styles debuted at that year’s Royal Rumble. He would be followed shortly afterwards by Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson. Finally, Finn Balor arrived on the WWE main roster in July. By that time, Styles, Gallows and Anderson had already been teaming together against John Cena.
Just as then, Gallows and Anderson have been used to turn Styles heel. After a brief flirtation under the leadership of Finn Balor, The Club is back together under Styles; ready to dominate the competition.
So what exactly is the competition?
Don’t get me wrong; this current no ad breaks during matches climate has resulted in a lot of sudden six man tag team matches but there actually aren’t a lot of teams and trios for The Club to feud with. This gets even worse if we don’t consider the wild card rule.
It’s started with Ricochet and while that’s certainly a two out of three falls match waiting to happen, I can’t see a lot of three on three matches happening. Maybe then The Club will be more like The Bullet Club; bullies attacking through strength of numbers.
Or maybe AJ Styles will be a gamer style final boss?
In these slides I’ve laid out 5 ideal competitors to get the most out of The Club and to get the most from The Club. Strap in tight – we need to get through these all before Gallows and Anderson finish their contracts!
5. Ricochet (and Aleister Black)
Right now, The Club are lined up against Ricochet. While he took a major beating on Raw, he still came away with his United States championship. It seems likely that this feud will continue, particularly between Styles and Ricochet.
Seemingly the most obvious next step would be for Ricochet to call on the support of Ryder and Hawkins next week on Raw. He was shown to be a friend of these two on Raw and at Stomping Grounds, when they were part of the small celebration in the back after Ricochet defeated Samoa Joe.
That said, if there’s one man who could potentially even the odds and back Ricochet in a three on two situation, it’s his former tag team partner Aleister Black.
Ricochet vs Styles delivered and should continue to deliver. Black vs Styles should be much the same. More importantly, both men have styles that really suit Gallows and Anderson. Extremely physical, extremely technical and extremely clinical. That could be a tag team feud for the ages. The omen in the sky deserve a lot of love too.
I’d say it’s likely that Styles wins the United States championship in this feud and holds it for a prolonged reign before The Club come after the tag titles as well. It would be a great feud with great wrestling, but all sides might just be a little too much in need of wins for it to be the big one.
4. The New Day
The New Day are at the head of a very rare club: a team that actually has three members and thus could sensibly line up against The Club as a trio.
It also makes perfect sense character wise. Gallows and Anderson have been accused of being too relaxed, too hedonistic by Styles. The New Day are the embodiment of those traits. They are three men who refuse to take anything seriously. They throw pancakes, they do unicorn stampedes and, more importantly, one of their member is right now the best of the best. He is the WWE champion; the highest accolade in wrestling.
So there’s motive for a feud. With the wild card rule there is also opportunity. Kofi may be engaged in a war of attrition with Samoa Joe right now but war with Styles is a different thing altogether. That is of course notwithstanding the feuds of the past that Gallows and Anderson have had with The New Day. Always high impact, always aggressive and always enthralling. I would love more of the same.
With Xavier Woods on the microphone potentially calling out Gallows and Anderson for the same things that Styles has been saying, it wouldn’t take much to ignite this feud. A short backstage encounter, or even a “during a filming session of Xavier Woods’ YouTube channel Up Up Down Down, the following altercation occurred.”
Yes, that’s a plug and it’s also storyline development. Hire me WWE!
No, but seriously that’s a storytelling device they don’t use enough of.
This is the last potential three on three feud on my list, which shows how empty a field that The Club have stepped into. That said, it’s almost a natural position for the two teams to step into. Give me these six men and two ladders and I’ll give you a happy boy.
3. The Shield (Kind of)
Before you say anything, dear reader, yes, I know. The Shield is no more. Ever since WrestleMania, when we lost someone important forever, it’s been over. Yes, that’s right, I’m talking about that horrible moment when Kurt Angle was retired by Baron Corbin.
Who could stand with Rollins and Reigns now that Angle is no longer there to stand behind them, grinning wildly like the proudest dad in history. Don’t say Triple H. Just don’t say it.
Both Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns have history with AJ Styles. Rollins defeated Styles in a magnificent match at Money in the Bank and I’m sure their paths will cross again now that Styles is on the other side. (Whisper it, but what a WrestleMania main event that could be)
Meanwhile, Reigns has distant but intense history with all three members of The Club. Right before the brand split, not long after the formerly Japanese superstars debuted, Roman Reigns and AJ Styles would embark on a WWE title feud for the ages. It’s not just that it still holds up now, it’s probably some of the best work either man has done in the WWE.
Reasons for the feud? I’d go with unfinished business again. Despite Rollins’ defeat of Styles being a very clean finish, a heel Styles is unlikely to just accept it and neither are Gallows and Anderson likely to let him. Reigns, freed from the grip of the evil higher power Shane McMahon, would then be his backup and his support.
Certainly there are options for a third man on the side of the remaining hounds of justice. Yes, I know, you’re all crying out for Triple H to be part of it but maybe The Miz? Or maybe even the next man on my list.
2. Finn Balor
I don’t think I’ve ever needed to explain anything less but here I am giving it the old college try.
I don’t know if a lot of people know this, but Finn Balor actually has previous with The Club.
I know, right? First I’ve heard of it too but I’m a wrestling journalist. It’s my job to surprise you with these random facts you’ve never heard before.
Finn Balor was previously know as Prince Devitt. He was once a member of a small independent wrestling federation called New Japan Pro Wrestling. You’ve never heard of it, I know, but I promise you it’s a thing. There’s a rather famous wrestler over there who’s holding one of their title belts at the moment. You’ve never heard of him either, I know.
Probably the biggest surprise of all is that Prince Devitt was the leader of The Bullet Club. El gasp! The same Bullet Club that featured Gallows and Anderson? The same. Finn Balor has even led an incarnation of The Club featuring Gallows and Anderson in a feud with Seth Rollins.
Balor vs Styles is a war waiting to happen. Their one encounter, when Styles was a last minute replacement for Sister Abigail at TLC 2017 (also featuring Kurt Angle in The Shield) when The Demon King Finn Balor defeated AJ Styles. Something tells me that AJ Styles might not have let that one go.
Balor could be part of a feud with backup. He is, after all, for everyone. Balor could also have a straight feud with Styles for control of The Club. For me though, the money’s in The Demon King. As always. WWE rarely seem to value Balor without the paint, so give me a Demon King gauntlet match.
Or two out of three falls. I’m not fussed, just give me a The Club Civil War and I’ll be happy.
But there is one thing that might be even better.
1. The Undisputed Era
I mean, come on. You know you want it.
It sounds an odd thing to say, but nothing says Bullet Club like Undisputed Era. Yes, even The Club, who were all in Bullet Club, don’t match up to how “Bullet Club” the Undisputed Era feel. They even outnumber Styles, Gallows and Anderson.
Let’s throw some potential matches up here. Roderick Strong vs Karl Anderson. Adam Cole vs Luke Gallows. Kyle O’ Reilly vs AJ Styles. O’Reilly and Fish vs Gallows and Anderson. I could go on, but I won’t. But I could. There are no bad combinations possible in this particular feud.
You also then have potential extra tensions. Adam Cole has history in The Bullet Club, just not any Bullet Club connected to these men in particular. There is also tension among the Era at the moment. What if Cole didn’t leave them but they left him? You could end up with The Club on one side, the Undisputed Era on the other and then Adam Cole somewhere in the middle, playing the Austin style spoiler role.
Sorry, I had to go out and buy a new laptop because I salivated so much my old one melted like the Wicked Witch of the West. Oh what a world.
Let The Club take over. Let them take the titles. Let them dominate the competition. Then let The Undisputed Era walk in with a mission to take it all away from them.
Just let it be.
So who do you think would provide great competition for The Club? Sound off in the comments below, or throw your opinions at me with enough force to make me cry on Twitter. You know you want to.