An AJ Styles and Finn Balor “Bullet Club”-lite storyline would be too little, too late
On this week’s episode of WWE Monday Night Raw, professional wrestling fans saw a moment that many deemed exciting when Finn Balor came out to save AJ Styles. Styles was being attacked by Damian Priest and Edge when Balor came out to make the save. Fans cheered. They did the “Too Sweet” hand single and everyone smiled about the moment. This could lead to something interesting for both men, but if an angle involving Balor and Styles is in the cards, it may be too little, too late.
Balor and Styles have career arcs that are similar in some ways, but different in many others. One strong similarity between the two is their link to The Bullet Club – the stable with links back to the NWO that has terrorized multiple organizations across wrestling. The Bullet Club has touched Ring of Honor, IMPACT Wrestling, and is seeping its way into All Elite Wrestling through both The Elite and the upcoming show AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door.
There were times when both Balor and Styles were considered the “leader” of The Bullet Club if the group really had a single leader back then. WWE’s direct actions of signing talent like Balor, Styles, The Good Brothers, and even Adam Cole had an impact on The Bullet Club, but interest in the group remains. So much interest that fans wanted to see the WWE play off that lineage within its own booking. But in typical WWE fashion, the promotion went in another direction – keeping the storyline off the table.
Imagine signing five of the key members of a group with industry-wide implications and deciding not to do anything with them. In many ways, one of the top angles currently going on in AEW could have happened in WWE years prior. Styles and Balor could have started off in a partnership of sorts, eventually battling over the leadership of WWE’s iteration of The Bullet Club, attempting to sway Cole, Karl Anderson, and Doc Gallows, while adding new members along the way. This would have been one of the most exciting storylines in recent years within the company. Instead, fans were treated to hand signals and coy references.
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AJ Styles and Finn Balor going on a run as a tag team would be an enjoyable arc for both men. Fans stay interested in everything they do and a potential rivalry between the two down the line is appealing as well. Unfortunately, this comes after years of mismanagement for both men, slightly depleting the excitement that fans should have for two performers of their caliber. Get ready for an overload of WWE-style mentions of “The Club” for the next few weeks, with ample levels of cringe. Another moment that will be too little, too late.