AEW has several intertwining stories going on each week, often with a slow burn build to many of these angles, with some even going under the radar at times, but quietly simmering from week to week. Something which has been unraveling gradually is the descent into darkness for Julia Hart, who could well be set to join the House of Black. If she is to do so, then comparisons will undoubtedly be drawn to Alexa Bliss being corrupted by “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt. However, Hart’s story could be much better than Bliss’.
The House Of Black Is A Stable With Potential
Malakai Black has a lot of potential, and his dark side is something completely unique to anything else seen in AEW. Dark, spooky, or magical gimmicks have forever been a part of wrestling, but often, they can fail miserably. There is a big reason why many of these gimmicks are always compared to The Undertaker, and that is due to him being one of the very few darker gimmicks that have succeeded in wrestling.
RELATED: Top 10 Worst Faction Leaders In TNA History
It has been slow for Black thus far in AEW, but he has been steadily building steam, with the “House of Black” looking to become a stable led by him. So far, he has recruited Brody King to his ranks but seems to be set on bringing in more names soon. AEW is a place in which factions are commonplace, so it makes sense for wrestlers to seek out alliances, and in the case of Black, to seek out followers. Julia Hart looks to be a prime contender to join up with Black, and that could be something that kickstarts her career to bigger heights.
Julia Hart Has Been Undergoing A Subtle Descent Into Darkness
Black has targeted his opponents and enemies by spraying a poisonous mist into their eyes, forcing people to wear eye patches, notably in the cases of Pac and Hart. Pac has made it clear that he will not succumb to following Black, but Hart hasn’t been so stubborn. Since receiving the mist, something about Hart has been off-kilter. She hasn’t been as bouncy and smiley, with her being a part of the ultra-babyface Varsity Blondes team, alongside Brian Pillman Jr and Griff Garrison. Hart has seemed zapped out of reality at times and hasn’t been too concerned when her friends have been in trouble.
RELATED: 13 Backstage Stories About Alexa Bliss We Can't Believe
Hart seems set for a turn to the dark side at some point soon, with a heel turn looming. She has been a good babyface so far but has lacked a lot of depth. A turn could be just the thing to set her on a path to greater things and to expand her character and range as a performer. With this being her likely direction, parallels have been drawn to Alexa Bliss, who was also turned by a darker and magical character in Bray Wyatt.
In the case of Bliss, her turn was far too on the nose. There was zero subtlety when it came to Bliss, and her character would change with a click of the finger, swapping between her spooky character in the Firefly Funhouse, and then switch back to her “Goddess” gimmick. It was an instant change for her too, with not much week-to-week development, which is just how WWE does things on their modern-day programming, with not much long-term planning.
AEW Can Learn From The Mistakes WWE Have Made With Alexa Bliss
With Hart, AEW has been very subtle in her character changes, allowing the fans to notice it, rather than spelling it out for everyone to see. AEW often does this with their storytelling, and the weekly shows and stories benefit a lot from it, and it is no different with this program either. AEW must be careful because copying Bliss’ character will draw criticism. However, if they learn from WWE’s mistakes, Hart can be a big success.
RELATED: 10 WWE Pictures Of Alexa Bliss Like You've Never Seen Her
WWE went too far with Bliss, leaning into comparisons with Harley Quinn, and the typical tropes when it comes to spooky playground characters, with far too much magic involved, which turned a lot of fans away. Much of the audience has been clamoring for a return to the old Bliss, but it doesn’t seem as though WWE wants to give up on Bliss being unhinged just yet. Being aligned with several other people in the House of Black will likely allow AEW to not overexpose Hart, and it will allow the focus to switch at times, depending on the story. With Bliss’ character, it took a lot away from the women’s division, focussing too much on things like hypnosis, but with Hart, she could offer a boost to the women’s division with something completely new, if AEW doesn’t overdo her character.
