10 Amazing Stories Behind One-Off WWE Attires

9. AJ Styles Shows His Guns

CM Punk La Parka
WWE

When former Bullet Club leader AJ Styles emerged for an Osaka house show in 2017 in a very distinctive black-and-white gas mask, featuring daggers and all sorts of cool junk, speculation soon began to fly.

Was the Phenomenal One about to load up on ammunition and unleash another round as artillery leader of a WWE version of his famous band of gunslingers, perhaps alongside fellow alumni Finn Bálor and his OC Good Brothers? The moment Styles made reference to 'CLUB love' on his Instagram, rumour-churning keyboards began tapping at a callous-causing rate. We already knew the country-lovin' Georgian wasn't into the trance-scene, so surely this was a sign.

As it turned out, it was a gentle tease more than a meaningful clue. The mask was inspired by the Bullet Club, but sadly didn't signify the beginning of a dramatic WWE invasion from the foreign menaces. Instead, it was simply an homage to the similar veil he'd concealed his face with before the Wrestle Kingdom 10 epic opposite Shinsuke Nakamura back in 2016. The Bullet Club was just firing blanks on this occasion.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.