To put the cherry on top they need Cody and Rock to come out on on Raw and Cody say "I did it for The Rock, I did it for the people" only for Rock to interrupt and yell "Ahh shut your mouth you throne-breaking loser". Cody laughs and bows down to The Rock before slinking out of the ring.
Let's talk wrasslin'
- Thread starter The Grayfox
- Start date
It isn't surprising, but definitely disappointing imo. Seth vs. Cody 4 when Cody won the other three, one of them with a torn pec all but confirms Cody will win that match. And if he doesn't, he looks even worse than he does following Smackdown tonight. And none of it is his fault. The look on his face leaving the ring; either Cody is one hell of an actor or he is extremely disappointed. Maybe it's both, but he looked so dejected.
Meltzer claims that Punk getting hurt put this chain of events in motion. I'm not sure I believe that. There are plenty of people who could've been put in Punk's spot. Drew, Sami, Gunther, take your pick. That shouldn't have had a bearing on Cody/Roman. The truth is probably more likely that The Rock is now on the board, had been pushing for this and forced his way in there. Two part-timers main eventing WrestleMania. Where have I heard this joke before? The Rock fucked CM Punk out of his moment 10+ years ago and now he's fucking Cody out of his. I know it's mean, but I hope Philly boo's the everloving shit out of that match. It's definitely the right city for it.
Also, the video on YouTube is the most disliked WWE video on YouTube ever. It's currently sitting at 44K thumbs up and 143K thumbs down.
Meltzer claims that Punk getting hurt put this chain of events in motion. I'm not sure I believe that. There are plenty of people who could've been put in Punk's spot. Drew, Sami, Gunther, take your pick. That shouldn't have had a bearing on Cody/Roman. The truth is probably more likely that The Rock is now on the board, had been pushing for this and forced his way in there. Two part-timers main eventing WrestleMania. Where have I heard this joke before? The Rock fucked CM Punk out of his moment 10+ years ago and now he's fucking Cody out of his. I know it's mean, but I hope Philly boo's the everloving shit out of that match. It's definitely the right city for it.
Also, the video on YouTube is the most disliked WWE video on YouTube ever. It's currently sitting at 44K thumbs up and 143K thumbs down.
Honestly, they might as well give him the Rikishi treatment. Not much is going to hurt him any more now.
The thing is, in kayfabe there's no reason for Cody to be disappointed. He's willingly giving his spot up, so he should be happy. Him being sad doesn't make any sense unless they insert another storyline wrinkle in there to suggest it was coerced. I don't see that happening though. I just don't think Cody could bring himself to sell this as a good thing. He knows this totally fucks him over and there's no hiding from it. This was pretty much the most humiliating way to have him drop out of the WM main event, and it's hard to understand why they'd do it this way beyond actually wanting to make Cody look like a chump. Feels like we're back to Vince booking all over again.
Also if they are going to go this route then okay, but why tf let Roman absolutely bury the other belt? That makes things even worse. At the very least they need Rollins to come out on Raw and fire back, highlighting all of the Bloodline shenanigans and saying that Roman's entire reign is fake. Problem is you're then in a situation where both belts are buried, so, there's not really any solution to another problem they've created for no reason.
Also if they are going to go this route then okay, but why tf let Roman absolutely bury the other belt? That makes things even worse. At the very least they need Rollins to come out on Raw and fire back, highlighting all of the Bloodline shenanigans and saying that Roman's entire reign is fake. Problem is you're then in a situation where both belts are buried, so, there's not really any solution to another problem they've created for no reason.
That's the thing, I think I'm most pissed about how they went about it. Cody basically came out and was like "and now, I want to introduce you to my wife's boyfriend!" They made him look so terrible and I'm baffled as to why they did it this way. They could've just had Cody accept Seth's challenge and not even show up on Smackdown. Basically Roman and Rock both looked strong and Cody and an absent Seth look like fucking losers who are wrestling in the lesser match. It's just really, really bad booking. Cody is a company guy and it just feels like they're screwing him unnecessarily for a match that is A) not going to be good and B) serves very little purpose. WM is going to sell out regardless, it doesn't need The Rock. I don't know man, I was really excited to see what a WM fully booked by Triple H was going to look like and now I'm just deflated.
I have no interest in Roman vs. The Rock. I've seen a few people saying "well, Rock COULD win." But both scenarios suck. If Roman wins, which he more than likely will, it's going to be super predictable. If Rock wins, they throw away the last 3 and a half years of building Roman up. Rock winning accomplishes nothing. It's like when they booked Brock to beat Taker's streak. It served no purpose, it didn't help anyone; it shouldn't have happened. They need to use Roman's title run to make somebody. The Rock doesn't need it. So, to me, this whole situation is lose/lose. It shouldn't be for a title but if you make it a non-title match while Roman is champion, then that flips the predictability the other direction. It's just a giant predictable clusterfuck.
Then you can go with people breaking down every single detail about Cody's promo. He specifically said "...but it won't be at Wrestlemania." So then the talk starts that maybe he's going to beat Roman before Mania. That means in Australia at Elimination Chamber. People can't seriously believe that, right? Rock is going to go into Mania coming off a gigantic loss to Cody a month before, looking like a fucking loser and then step into the main event with The Rock? Come on... it's not happening.
A lot of people are pissed and I get it. I am as well. But I don't think that's enough to change anything. The best people can hope for is trying to hijack every WWE show like they did with Daniel Bryan and making it a triple threat, but I think that's extremely unlikely also.
I have no interest in Roman vs. The Rock. I've seen a few people saying "well, Rock COULD win." But both scenarios suck. If Roman wins, which he more than likely will, it's going to be super predictable. If Rock wins, they throw away the last 3 and a half years of building Roman up. Rock winning accomplishes nothing. It's like when they booked Brock to beat Taker's streak. It served no purpose, it didn't help anyone; it shouldn't have happened. They need to use Roman's title run to make somebody. The Rock doesn't need it. So, to me, this whole situation is lose/lose. It shouldn't be for a title but if you make it a non-title match while Roman is champion, then that flips the predictability the other direction. It's just a giant predictable clusterfuck.
Then you can go with people breaking down every single detail about Cody's promo. He specifically said "...but it won't be at Wrestlemania." So then the talk starts that maybe he's going to beat Roman before Mania. That means in Australia at Elimination Chamber. People can't seriously believe that, right? Rock is going to go into Mania coming off a gigantic loss to Cody a month before, looking like a fucking loser and then step into the main event with The Rock? Come on... it's not happening.
A lot of people are pissed and I get it. I am as well. But I don't think that's enough to change anything. The best people can hope for is trying to hijack every WWE show like they did with Daniel Bryan and making it a triple threat, but I think that's extremely unlikely also.
Yeah, there's no way Roman loses the belt before Mania. Not happening. The worst thing is that if it was ultimately going to be Rock vs Roman at WM, that doesn't even need a title on the line. Or if there was going to be a title on the line, Cody could have won last year and then lost it again at some point before WM. Not necessarily to Roman, but to someone else who then drops it to Roman. I don't know man, it was obvious that until recently the plan was to have Cody 'finish the story', but changing it this late in the game just leaves no time for genuine course correction. It just makes everyone look like shit.
At this point you might as well have Rock win the strap at WM, then come out on Raw and award the title to Cody, saying "I got you lil bro, I finished your story". Cody and Rock embrace and Cody holds up the title in celebration as his pyro goes off. Seriously, why not at this point - it's already fucked.
Can you imagine if Roman wins and they then build to Roman/Cody for another year? Fuck me. Cody to be the first man to win three rumbles in a row.
At this point you might as well have Rock win the strap at WM, then come out on Raw and award the title to Cody, saying "I got you lil bro, I finished your story". Cody and Rock embrace and Cody holds up the title in celebration as his pyro goes off. Seriously, why not at this point - it's already fucked.
Can you imagine if Roman wins and they then build to Roman/Cody for another year? Fuck me. Cody to be the first man to win three rumbles in a row.
I don’t think anyone can handle another year of this. New details are coming out. They’re expected it to officially announce The Rock vs Roman Reigns on Thursday at the press event in Vegas. Dirt sheet writers are basically painting The Rock as Hogan in his hey day: he’s politicking in a huge way to make this happen, going as far as pushing to actually win the title. They’re also doubling down on The Rock claiming that because Punk and Brock are out, he feels like he has to come in and “save WrestleMania.” So basically this is Hulk Hogan coming in and saying “doesn’t work for me, brother.” People did claim there was more to The Rock joining the board of directors than what was being reported.
This has major Bret Hart/Yokozuna/Hulk Hogan vibes from WrestleMania IX…
This has major Bret Hart/Yokozuna/Hulk Hogan vibes from WrestleMania IX…
None of the excuses for the sudden change - Punk's injury, the Vince scandal - make much sense to me. Rock gave his 'head of the table' promo before any of that happened. I think this was locked in as soon as Rocky joined up. Might even have been given to him as a sweetener to get him on board. Wouldn't be surprised if they kept Cody in the dark about it though, and are now using these excuses to make it look less like a corporate power play and more like a "card subject to change, pal".
It's just sad to see The Rock do something like this. He's from a wrestling family himself, he should know this isn't the way to do business. There's no respect here. Rock is a made man and he doesn't need the extra money that a WM main event will bring, nor does he need the exposure as he's already a global name. This is a pure power grab move and it really does show Dwayne's true colours. Punk warned us in the pipebomb years ago. A penny for his thoughts right now.
It's just sad to see The Rock do something like this. He's from a wrestling family himself, he should know this isn't the way to do business. There's no respect here. Rock is a made man and he doesn't need the extra money that a WM main event will bring, nor does he need the exposure as he's already a global name. This is a pure power grab move and it really does show Dwayne's true colours. Punk warned us in the pipebomb years ago. A penny for his thoughts right now.
Yeah, I don’t understand the excuses being thrown around. Punk and Brock not being at Mania isn’t really a huge issue. WrestleMania has moved into the territory where it exists on its own. It doesn’t matter who’s on the card, it’s going to sell out before that card is even announced in full. So the logic that he feels like he has to save the show is bullshit. This is an ego problem. Doing Cody/Roman with The Rock as special enforcer would’ve been fine — it would’ve gotten Rock on the card and they could’ve set up Roman/Rock down the line. This is a power play that is happening because The Rock and Nick Khan are practically best friends. The saddest part to me is that it didn’t need to happen. And if it DID need to happen, they didn’t have to make Cody look like SUCH A FUCKING LOSER while doing it. I think the majority of us who are upset that this is happening aren’t upset because it’s happening, it’s how they’re going about it. It’s just so illogical in so many ways.
Also, if Cody wins the other title at Mania, who the fuck is gonna beat Roman? If Cody wins the WHC, he isn’t losing it for quite some time, which means he won’t be free to “finish the story.” Unless they’re going to have Seth retain, but I seriously doubt it with his knee. They are backing themselves into a corner.
Most definitely the way it was done was horrendous. It was like a public humiliation. Why you would do that to a guy who is supposed to be one of the major faces of your company, pushed massively over the past year and literally just won the Royal Rumble is beyond me. Can you imagine Austin stepping aside after winning the Rumble for a returning Hogan? Or Rock winning the Rumble and stepping aside for some old legend? Taker? Cena? Lesnar? It would never, ever have happened.
In terms of who beats Roman after WM., assuming he retains.. either this Bloodline snoozefest goes on for another year and Cody finally 'finishes the story' at next year's WM or I think they'll have a unification match at SummerSlam where Cody becomes undisputed champion. Maybe as a make-good over what happened with WM. With Cody as champ you don't need two belts as he would be able to appear on both shows. The only reason the WHC exists is because Roman is so rarely around to defend his title.
With that said, would you be surprised if Rocky wins at WM? I wouldn't.
In terms of who beats Roman after WM., assuming he retains.. either this Bloodline snoozefest goes on for another year and Cody finally 'finishes the story' at next year's WM or I think they'll have a unification match at SummerSlam where Cody becomes undisputed champion. Maybe as a make-good over what happened with WM. With Cody as champ you don't need two belts as he would be able to appear on both shows. The only reason the WHC exists is because Roman is so rarely around to defend his title.
With that said, would you be surprised if Rocky wins at WM? I wouldn't.
With that said, I do wonder with the huge backlash this decision is getting whether WWE will pivot ASAP back to the original idea. They could do it as early as next week's Smackdown. Have a Rock/Roman confrontation at the end of the show, then have Cody come out, wreck the Bloodline, have Rock give Roman a rock bottom and have Cody announce that last week was a rouse and of course he's facing Roman and WM and taking the title off him - they could always announce Rock as the special guest ref or something to keep him on the card.
Idk man, I know it probably won't happen but they can walk this back quickly if they need to. I guess the only snag is the press conference in Vegas that they've already set up. Not sure how you'd deal with that. You can't hold a press conference announcing Rock/Roman then back out immediately afterwards... or really back out at all from that point. The only option would be to do an angle like the above on Raw, before the press conference, but it seems like they've already prepared for Rock/Roman so it may well be too late to back out.
Idk man, I know it probably won't happen but they can walk this back quickly if they need to. I guess the only snag is the press conference in Vegas that they've already set up. Not sure how you'd deal with that. You can't hold a press conference announcing Rock/Roman then back out immediately afterwards... or really back out at all from that point. The only option would be to do an angle like the above on Raw, before the press conference, but it seems like they've already prepared for Rock/Roman so it may well be too late to back out.
I don't know man, I just read this long report saying that as of now, The Rock has a lot of power and control in WWE and that if push comes to shove, The Rock would win in a power struggle between him and Triple H. I think this has to do with him being on the board. The Rock put out a pretty tone deaf statement today that basically made it seem that they will be moving forward with the decision, ending it with "Roman, I'll see you in Vegas on Thursday." I agree they COULD walk this back, but I don't know if they will. If fans start hijacking this, they might have no choice. Remember in 2015 (I think?) in Philadelphia when the crowd absolutely boo'd the shit out of Rock and Roman at the end of the Rumble? We're gonna need some of that action.
The article I read paints a pretty clear picture of what is going on. It's gaining traction from actual news outlets in the States:
"The Rock making the push for the main event was said to have been inevitable due to his $30 million stock options payout as a recently announced board member for TKO. The Rock’s payday is partially contingent on him hitting certain financial milestones. One of those milestones was expected to be Johnson making an in-ring return this year."
"It is said that TKO and WWE do still see the value in Rhodes and may have underestimated the negative reaction from the always passionate WWE fanbase. It’s worth noting that The Rock and Ari Emanuel have had a relationship for many years now and The Rock is said to be Endeavor’s biggest star. There was actually a pitch made around three weeks ago to have him be a talent as well as part of the TKO board. It is said that both sides wanted to make the most of the deal."
"One WWE source compared this move by The Rock to his attempts to take over the creative side of the DC Universe at Warner Bros. While The Rock was originally expected to portray the character of Black Adam opposite Shazam in the planned Shazam movie, those plans later changed with The Rock leading his own solo film as Black Adam. The Rock wanted the character to eventually face Superman and attempted to go over the heads of the executives to their superiors to get some of his ideas approved. It’s alleged that Johnson wanted to gain control of the entire DC film franchise, but that was jettisoned following Black Adam‘s poor box office performance. Warner Bros. later named James Gunn and Peter Safran as the new heads of DC Studios."
"The response among talents and staff in WWE have been universally negative, as Cody Rhodes is well-liked backstage and they believe he should get his moment now. The belief is that this will be good for short-term business but not long-term."
"One wrestler who has known The Rock for many years noted that the look on his face on WWE SmackDown suggests that “this decision wasn’t going to work out quite the way that he imagined it,” as it was “the same thing that he and Roman experienced in Philadelphia.”
"And finally, it was added that The Rock’s family had pulled ahead of the McMahon family this week as far as power in pro wrestling is concerned. One person said WWE Chief Creative Officer Paul Levesque (Triple H) would “lose” a “power struggle with Johnson at this point” if he were to wage one."
But my absolute favorite part...
"The current plan is for Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins to take place at WrestleMania 40. There are some people in WWE who are openly talking about Cody Rhodes winning the WWE World Heavyweight Title and then challenging the winner of the main event of WrestleMania 40 (Rock/Reigns) at SummerSlam in a title unification bout. It remains to be seen if that’s the plan or not."
Ohhh ok. So we're gonna unify the titles AGAIN including the BRAND NEW TITLE that was created specifically because one show didn't have a champion and the other has a champion that is never there. You can't make this shit up. How fucking ridiculous this stuff is.
Tonight's house show in Knoxville, they were playing the clip from Smackdown last night and the live crowd started booing the Rock. Logan Paul tweeted "We Want Cody." #WeWantCody is the number 1 trending wrestling term on Twitter. This is gonna turn ugly fast lol
The article I read paints a pretty clear picture of what is going on. It's gaining traction from actual news outlets in the States:
"The Rock making the push for the main event was said to have been inevitable due to his $30 million stock options payout as a recently announced board member for TKO. The Rock’s payday is partially contingent on him hitting certain financial milestones. One of those milestones was expected to be Johnson making an in-ring return this year."
"It is said that TKO and WWE do still see the value in Rhodes and may have underestimated the negative reaction from the always passionate WWE fanbase. It’s worth noting that The Rock and Ari Emanuel have had a relationship for many years now and The Rock is said to be Endeavor’s biggest star. There was actually a pitch made around three weeks ago to have him be a talent as well as part of the TKO board. It is said that both sides wanted to make the most of the deal."
"One WWE source compared this move by The Rock to his attempts to take over the creative side of the DC Universe at Warner Bros. While The Rock was originally expected to portray the character of Black Adam opposite Shazam in the planned Shazam movie, those plans later changed with The Rock leading his own solo film as Black Adam. The Rock wanted the character to eventually face Superman and attempted to go over the heads of the executives to their superiors to get some of his ideas approved. It’s alleged that Johnson wanted to gain control of the entire DC film franchise, but that was jettisoned following Black Adam‘s poor box office performance. Warner Bros. later named James Gunn and Peter Safran as the new heads of DC Studios."
"The response among talents and staff in WWE have been universally negative, as Cody Rhodes is well-liked backstage and they believe he should get his moment now. The belief is that this will be good for short-term business but not long-term."
"One wrestler who has known The Rock for many years noted that the look on his face on WWE SmackDown suggests that “this decision wasn’t going to work out quite the way that he imagined it,” as it was “the same thing that he and Roman experienced in Philadelphia.”
"And finally, it was added that The Rock’s family had pulled ahead of the McMahon family this week as far as power in pro wrestling is concerned. One person said WWE Chief Creative Officer Paul Levesque (Triple H) would “lose” a “power struggle with Johnson at this point” if he were to wage one."
But my absolute favorite part...
"The current plan is for Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins to take place at WrestleMania 40. There are some people in WWE who are openly talking about Cody Rhodes winning the WWE World Heavyweight Title and then challenging the winner of the main event of WrestleMania 40 (Rock/Reigns) at SummerSlam in a title unification bout. It remains to be seen if that’s the plan or not."
Ohhh ok. So we're gonna unify the titles AGAIN including the BRAND NEW TITLE that was created specifically because one show didn't have a champion and the other has a champion that is never there. You can't make this shit up. How fucking ridiculous this stuff is.
Tonight's house show in Knoxville, they were playing the clip from Smackdown last night and the live crowd started booing the Rock. Logan Paul tweeted "We Want Cody." #WeWantCody is the number 1 trending wrestling term on Twitter. This is gonna turn ugly fast lol
No doubt Rock has the power, but if there's one thing he cares about more than anything else it's brand perception, optics, or whatever else you want to term it as. If crowds genuinely do start booing him and there's a risk if that carrying into Mania (which typically has a smarky crowd, so you would assume it will) then that may be enough for him to do an about-face and at the very least add Cody in to make it a triple threat. I think the only way it gets changed is if there is some relentless booing and chants during Cody/Seth/Rock/Roman segments, which even WWE censors wouldn't be able to hide on live broadcast.
What I found funny is an article on SC where the quote was "the idea is for the Rock to attempt a full match"... fuck me. ATTEMPT a full match in the WM main event. Bro, if you aren't 100% sure you can pull offf a 'full match' you should be nowhere near that spot.
What I found funny is an article on SC where the quote was "the idea is for the Rock to attempt a full match"... fuck me. ATTEMPT a full match in the WM main event. Bro, if you aren't 100% sure you can pull offf a 'full match' you should be nowhere near that spot.
Yeah, I saw that too. That's not exactly a good start. If it were some random match in the middle of a card, fine. But it's going to be the main event of Night 2. Most people are under the impression that he won't pull it off. Judging by the way he looks, I would agree. He's obviously juicing and you can tell his cardio just isn't there.
What's really going to be a problem is if they have Cody confirm his match with Rollins on Monday. Then they're just stuck. If they don't confirm that match Monday and announce that Cody will be at the press event on Thursday, I would expect a potential triple threat. If they're smart, they won't commit to Cody/Rollins yet. But... I don't think they're that smart. I think they're going to double down and look like even bigger idiots.
I can't tell if Rock's Instagram posts are him trolling or if he's actually that deluded. I'm leaning towards the latter.
What's really going to be a problem is if they have Cody confirm his match with Rollins on Monday. Then they're just stuck. If they don't confirm that match Monday and announce that Cody will be at the press event on Thursday, I would expect a potential triple threat. If they're smart, they won't commit to Cody/Rollins yet. But... I don't think they're that smart. I think they're going to double down and look like even bigger idiots.
I can't tell if Rock's Instagram posts are him trolling or if he's actually that deluded. I'm leaning towards the latter.
He was barely up to it just over ten years ago, and he had far more time to prepare for his matches against Cena than he does this match against Roman. he's going to be blown up by the time he gets to the ring.
I think we'll definitely know by the end of Raw whether WWE/TKO have seen the reaction and it's shaken them enough to consider changing direction, or whether they're going full speed ahead regardless. As you say, if they announce Cody/Seth on Monday then it'll be hard to back out at that point. If they don't, then there's still a chance for them to backtrack and fix this mess. They still have time.
What they can't afford to do if have Rock get "injured" or have any other excuse for Cody being slotted back in. That still makes Cody look weak as fuck. The only way I can see a reversal working is if, as I mentioned in my last post, it was somehow revealed that the whole thing was a rouse designed to confuse Roman before WM. No matter how you do it, there would still be some logical implausibility... but it's wrestling. It's not like storylines have to make perfect sense. As long as they do correct course in some way, and not make it look like Cody actually agreed to give up his spot, then you can still salvage things and move forward. Everything that's come out since Friday admittedly suggests they are holding firm, but we'll see.
I don't follow any socials, including Rock's, but from what I've read this is how he deals with any situations where there are negative reactions. Accentuate the positives and downplay or straight up ignore the negatives. It's a common tactic I'd imagine, but it is pretty funny seeing every comment under any of his posts saying "We Want Cody".
I think we'll definitely know by the end of Raw whether WWE/TKO have seen the reaction and it's shaken them enough to consider changing direction, or whether they're going full speed ahead regardless. As you say, if they announce Cody/Seth on Monday then it'll be hard to back out at that point. If they don't, then there's still a chance for them to backtrack and fix this mess. They still have time.
What they can't afford to do if have Rock get "injured" or have any other excuse for Cody being slotted back in. That still makes Cody look weak as fuck. The only way I can see a reversal working is if, as I mentioned in my last post, it was somehow revealed that the whole thing was a rouse designed to confuse Roman before WM. No matter how you do it, there would still be some logical implausibility... but it's wrestling. It's not like storylines have to make perfect sense. As long as they do correct course in some way, and not make it look like Cody actually agreed to give up his spot, then you can still salvage things and move forward. Everything that's come out since Friday admittedly suggests they are holding firm, but we'll see.
I don't follow any socials, including Rock's, but from what I've read this is how he deals with any situations where there are negative reactions. Accentuate the positives and downplay or straight up ignore the negatives. It's a common tactic I'd imagine, but it is pretty funny seeing every comment under any of his posts saying "We Want Cody".
According to reports today, WWE is very aware of the backlash and “keeping an eye on it”, but are still planning on Roman/Rock. Some within WWE are hoping The Rock will see all of the negativity and make some changes… which is so ridiculous. I mean, is this really all his decision? They can’t do anything unless he says it’s ok? If that is the case, the crowds will absolutely turn on The Rock leading up to this. I think it’s going to happen regardless but if there’s a narrative that it is entirely up to him and he won’t backtrack, it’s not going to go well for him.
I’ve already seen some stuff about people in WWE saying that The Rock is ruining his goodwill with the one fan base that was still 100% behind him.
Forbes is now reporting on it. So it is getting noticed, it’s just going to be about whether or not WWE and The Rock push forward with it. More wrestlers are coming out in support of Cody.
Probably not a good sign that WWE is editing the video from Smackdown and cutting out the part where you see Cody walking away dejected. Monday is going to be very interesting on Raw. Seeing how the live crowd responds to all of this will probably be a good indicator of how things are going to go.
I’ve already seen some stuff about people in WWE saying that The Rock is ruining his goodwill with the one fan base that was still 100% behind him.
Forbes is now reporting on it. So it is getting noticed, it’s just going to be about whether or not WWE and The Rock push forward with it. More wrestlers are coming out in support of Cody.
Probably not a good sign that WWE is editing the video from Smackdown and cutting out the part where you see Cody walking away dejected. Monday is going to be very interesting on Raw. Seeing how the live crowd responds to all of this will probably be a good indicator of how things are going to go.
Jester Slave
Narcissist
It's nothing special that they edited it out. I'm watching the reddit outrage unfold, where people try to leech onto everything which seems to taint WWE and The Rock's reputation (as if the formed ever needed any), but it's completely normal that they edit down 10+ minutes of full segments to a couple of minutes. It's not Cody being edited out because of backlash, it's just their regular condensation of a segment.
That being said, Dwayne's been a real obnoxious person lately, but pretty much every top guy was since the beginning of time. Hogan politicking, Warrior being a fucking tool, HBK being a bitch, Kevin Nash jerking himself off (more so in the WCW), Austin walking out, HHH's reign, Cena and his ego, etc. Probably Bret is the only one who was not as bad as everyone else. He was also an egotistic tool, but more so on a mark level. He didn't want to push down random guys, he had somewhat proper reasons for bitching at HBK, and the only thing he cared about was to keep his reputation as the best in-ring wrestler - still a bitch for what he did pre-Montreal, but quite a saint compared to the others on the list.
So, on one hand Dwayne is fucking annoying, but on the other hand, nice papa Haitch was part of the group who actively tried to sabotage him and successfully fucked over many other talents, so if The Rock will manages to outpolitick him, we can't say that it couldn't've happened to a nicer guy. It sucks that Cody comes out as a chump from all of it.
The wrestlers siding with Cody makes me think there will be a swerve. I just can't imagine WWE (and The Rock) being okay with their talent going rogue on X and actively undermining this new main event, especially during such volatile times, where the company (and The Rock) needs all the good publicity for their first Wrestlemania after the takeover.
That being said, Dwayne's been a real obnoxious person lately, but pretty much every top guy was since the beginning of time. Hogan politicking, Warrior being a fucking tool, HBK being a bitch, Kevin Nash jerking himself off (more so in the WCW), Austin walking out, HHH's reign, Cena and his ego, etc. Probably Bret is the only one who was not as bad as everyone else. He was also an egotistic tool, but more so on a mark level. He didn't want to push down random guys, he had somewhat proper reasons for bitching at HBK, and the only thing he cared about was to keep his reputation as the best in-ring wrestler - still a bitch for what he did pre-Montreal, but quite a saint compared to the others on the list.
So, on one hand Dwayne is fucking annoying, but on the other hand, nice papa Haitch was part of the group who actively tried to sabotage him and successfully fucked over many other talents, so if The Rock will manages to outpolitick him, we can't say that it couldn't've happened to a nicer guy. It sucks that Cody comes out as a chump from all of it.
The wrestlers siding with Cody makes me think there will be a swerve. I just can't imagine WWE (and The Rock) being okay with their talent going rogue on X and actively undermining this new main event, especially during such volatile times, where the company (and The Rock) needs all the good publicity for their first Wrestlemania after the takeover.
Even though Bret was probably not as bad as everyone else, like you said, he was and is still insufferable in other ways. Watching his interview on Broken Skull Sessions, you can see it still exists. On some level, I think you need to be an egotistical prick to survive as a top guy in pro wrestling, at least in WWE because they've cultivated that culture over decades. I feel like Cena tried to change that on a surface level, but of course we've all heard the stories surrounding Cena and Dykstra, Alex Riley, Chris Masters and some others. Cody could maybe change that persception...
For me, this is really about HOW they got here versus them going there at all. To some, it looks like crying and bitching from the iwc, but realistically, I feel like it's warranted this time. They've been building the fucking guy as Superman for the last two years, and then they send Superman to the ring and make him look like such a god damn moron. When the Rock's music hit, they should've changed the intro to "If ya smelllll, who the Rock... is cuckin'" because that's exactly how this looks. The Rock has Cody Rhodes' nuts in his pocket.
Mainstream media is picking up on it. You've got Bleacher Report, TMZ, USA Today, Forbes... this isn't going away. As of right now, I'm leaning towards this being a work because TKO and Dwayne cannot be this fucking dense. The tone deaf tweets and social media posts, it's getting to be TOO much to believe.
For me, this is really about HOW they got here versus them going there at all. To some, it looks like crying and bitching from the iwc, but realistically, I feel like it's warranted this time. They've been building the fucking guy as Superman for the last two years, and then they send Superman to the ring and make him look like such a god damn moron. When the Rock's music hit, they should've changed the intro to "If ya smelllll, who the Rock... is cuckin'" because that's exactly how this looks. The Rock has Cody Rhodes' nuts in his pocket.
Mainstream media is picking up on it. You've got Bleacher Report, TMZ, USA Today, Forbes... this isn't going away. As of right now, I'm leaning towards this being a work because TKO and Dwayne cannot be this fucking dense. The tone deaf tweets and social media posts, it's getting to be TOO much to believe.
Jester Slave
Narcissist
Agreed on Bret, he's insufferable on many levels, but mainly because he's like all those losers you meet on a day to day basis in work for example, who just can't stop with the crying and complaining. Even if they are right, that's just no way to live life.
What didn't make sense first and foremost was Cody not winning last year. And for what? To break Hulk's record, so that... so why? Vince won't give a shit about Hogan getting nudged down a spot in an ultimately meaningless statistic. We can be rightfully mad and annoyed at Johnson, but the blame is being hotpotatoed in all fronts. He is being an asshole to HHH and friends, but make no mistake, those guys would be/would've been the same if they wielded such power; he is being blamed for screwing over Cody, but he's been already screwed over by the same guy (HHH) for whom we are supposed to be sympathetic now for not being able to help Cody to finish the story.
This is the quintessencial carny shit this business had been run on for many decades now. Not even Cody is above that, because him smashing up "the throne" in AEW was also such a needlessly clown act, that it's funny that we are even mad at HHH for screwing him over last year. Obviously Cody is not to blame here, my point is just that it's a big fucking clown show.
Anyway, I don't think the board or The Rock worry too much about the reactions. In fact, this is the second best scenario after TR being cheered by everyone. If it creates a mainstream shitstorm then The Rock will just flow with it, and becomes Vince's character from the attitude era, who can ultimately still be toppled by Cody. He loses face for what, a year? Can't see him being bothered to be in working conditions any longer than that. In return he gives himself and WWE enormous publicity, and in the end he will raise Cody's arm and hug him, leaving the ring as an honorable gentleman.
What didn't make sense first and foremost was Cody not winning last year. And for what? To break Hulk's record, so that... so why? Vince won't give a shit about Hogan getting nudged down a spot in an ultimately meaningless statistic. We can be rightfully mad and annoyed at Johnson, but the blame is being hotpotatoed in all fronts. He is being an asshole to HHH and friends, but make no mistake, those guys would be/would've been the same if they wielded such power; he is being blamed for screwing over Cody, but he's been already screwed over by the same guy (HHH) for whom we are supposed to be sympathetic now for not being able to help Cody to finish the story.
This is the quintessencial carny shit this business had been run on for many decades now. Not even Cody is above that, because him smashing up "the throne" in AEW was also such a needlessly clown act, that it's funny that we are even mad at HHH for screwing him over last year. Obviously Cody is not to blame here, my point is just that it's a big fucking clown show.
Anyway, I don't think the board or The Rock worry too much about the reactions. In fact, this is the second best scenario after TR being cheered by everyone. If it creates a mainstream shitstorm then The Rock will just flow with it, and becomes Vince's character from the attitude era, who can ultimately still be toppled by Cody. He loses face for what, a year? Can't see him being bothered to be in working conditions any longer than that. In return he gives himself and WWE enormous publicity, and in the end he will raise Cody's arm and hug him, leaving the ring as an honorable gentleman.
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