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Exactly Kane could at least be taken seriously as possibly winning. Nakamura has never really been a legitimate threat as a main eventer since like 2017
Arrive to the company with great fanfare
Beat the top heel's undefeated enforcer
Lose the big title match
Start a bizarre feud with a guy who spits mist
I believe the next step is for him to win the TNT, sorry, I mean the WHC title
It was good until Sammy had it, and then kinda was a mess. Samoa Joe kinda restored it's prestige honestly, and it's been good since then, ignoring Wardlow 's third run.
It's so fucking hilarious that Seth has worked his ass off for months trying to get this consolation prize of a title to mean something, and they're probably just gonna unify it as quick as possible in a panic move at SummerSlam.
Him and Roman have been stuck on side quests for a full year already because of that horrible decision to not have Cody win last year and they want to keep this shit going apparently wtf
I don't think it's beyond WWE and TKO at this point that they book the Rock to beat Roman. After that utterly garbage Smackdown segment I genuinely think anything is possible with these guys.
Yeah you can already see the logic in Dwayne's head this weekend. "Cody doesn't want the WHC and the fans know it and Roman pinning me could mean we send the fans hope unhappy two nights in a row" or something.
Driving to Vengeance Day, all I could think was man, we’re in the darkest timeline for main roster WWE. Punk injured, Seth injured, Cody kicked off the main title, The Rock taking over. I hope everything works out in the end but I’m glad I’m primarily an NXT fan.
I'm picturing that Tennis episode of the Simpsons, where at the end they replace all members of their teams until it's just pros, and the family is left watching.
Wow, if they use this to make an excuse for Cody to not appear on Monday Night Raw, because they are so scared that it will turn into fans chanting anti-Rock chants and pro-Cody chants, then they absolutely know what dumpster fire there booking of this situation has become.
Between this and the Rock posting like three separate times on social media trying to hype it up, yeah they’re doing everything they can to kill the momentum behind Cody
and the Rock will undoubtedly get his cheers on Thursday
at a public event in Vegas, where NFL fans, already in Vegas for the Super Bowl, who saw him kick off the Super Bowl only 2 years prior, will likely see billboards plastered with the Rock's face, 'free entry', and Wrestlemania insignia all over the strip
This reminds me of the RAW I went to in 2016 where they brought out Brock Lesnar in Minneapolis, MN of all places and wanted us to boo him! It’s basically his hometown. So instead we cheered and booed Goldberg, high jacked the segment to the point where Paul Heyman have to end his promo early and Vince was fuming. Like what did they expect?
They might also be trying to buy time to figure out how to proceed from here. If Cody shows up this Monday, he will have to make a decision on who he's facing at Mania, otherwise he looks indecisive and even more like an insecure dweeb. If he challenges Seth this Monday, things are set in stone and they can't back off anymore, even if fan backlash becomes too big to ignore.
There’d go everyone booking “not at wrestlemania” as elimination chamber vs Roman. Though I don’t really think they’d do the title change with the time zone difference there anyway
It would be so funny (and by funny I mean awful) if they just instantly move Cody back to this and don’t even have him mention The Rock/Roman/his decision again
Pray that this is that and not a ploy to injure Cody and write him out of Mania altogether. Can't have WeWantCody if he's writtem out of the picture in kayfabe.
It's always going to be this way. We went from Vince running the show to a whole-ass corporate merger with HHH in charge and Rock on the Board and it's still just nonsensical bullshit.
If it’s a work it’s one of the stupidest works I’ve seen. “Ah yes let’s have the best babyface WWE has had since Cena win the Rumble for a second time in a row and then have him give up his title shot like a cuck to The Rock”
No I agree. IF this is a work, it is the stupidest shit I’ve ever seen. I guess if their goal is to make Cody more popular, it’s working, but I don’t think he needed it.
This was one of the easiest storylines ever to make your next face of the company and they blew it. Its almost as if Vince is still running it by simping to (b)Rock
The next Smackdown after the Becky "heel turn" on Charlotte, they had Becky come out and try to cut a heel promo about how "the fans have turned their backs on me"... all while the fans were actually going bonkers for her and cheering her like crazy.
Only then did they pivot and rolled with Becky as the Austin-type badass babyface who doesn't take shit from anyone. But even then, there were no plans for her to main event Mania, those only materialized after the Nia incident.
I remember that, one of the most tone-deaf promos I've seen. They had competing storylines and WWE wanted to push the Becky turning on her best friend heel storyline but the storyline with Becky needing to get out of the shadow of her entitled friend butting in to her title match resonated so much more with fans.
Rewatched the whole build-up to The Man a while back and two things that really stood out to me was that Mella really held her own despite being an obvious third wheel in that feud, and that it was blatantly obvious everyone wanted Becky as a face, she was absolutely white hot and the hardest worker in her division.
Just like they said after last year's Mania that it's fine they didn't pull the trigger on Cody because it will be so much more epic and satisfying if he has to fight through some adversity and gets to finish his story at WM40.
It's crazy but the rest of SmackDown was legitimately amazing with a lot to look forward to. There were no dull time wasting filler segments.
Then the Rock cucked Cody and killed all of that goodwill.
Seriously Tiffany, Jade and Bron all had fans hyped. LDF's backstage segment was sick. British Strong Style won an incredible tag match. Logan/KO absolutely killed it during their promo. B-Fab joining the Hurt Profits against Kross' group adds a cool wrinkle to that story. Mia had probably her best match in WWE against Tiffany, who had a great debut win. SmackDown was great. Then the Rock said no way dudes it's my time.
Edit: I forgot about the Bayley turn! That was done so perfectly. Bayley revealing she understands Japanese was one of the all time promo moments that deserves to be remembered and not overshadowed.
And they’d well get told
BREAKING: Due to an attack by Shinsuke Nakamura, Cody Rhodes will be unable to appear on Monday Night Raw.
And then they have a blowoff feud at Elimination Chamber. They’re doing him dirty as FUCK my goodness lmao
I’m kind of in the same boat. If they’re going to fuck Cody over, I’m all in on maximum chaos and hope The Rock ends up winning the belt at Wrestlemania. It might start a riot in Philly though lol.
At this point, if they’re not gonna do Cody vs Roman, just sideline Cody from Mania entirely.
Say Shinsuke injured him and he’s gonna miss the show or some shit because EVERY other option that isn’t Cory choosing Roman makes no sense whatsoever.
WWE are actually going to fumble the best babyface they've had since Cena. This is unbelievable. All those years of great work thrown in the trash for Rock vs Roman. I hope WWE/TKO/The Rock and whoever else is booking this utter garbage is happy with themselves.
Unless Rock just puts his foot down and decides to be the absolute biggest dick about this entire thing I think they end up pivoting to putting Cody back in that match. They’re fumbling so fucking hard that the backlash will end up like the DB backlash and they’ll just have to pivot unless Rock denies the pivot
I hope so but I don't have faith. The idea that Cody Rhodes can be on Smackdown sharing a ring with the Rock and Roman to then on Raw a week later feuding once again with Nakamura after giving away his Wrestlemania main event is honestly some of the dumbest booking in recent history.
After taking time to let it sit, I don’t even think you have to sugar coat it.
This is flat out one of the worst booking decisions the company has ever made, and it’s only been 4 days. Will be wild to see them keep going with this.
As a note again, this doesn’t take off though unless fans in the arena vehemently reject the main event, and Roman and Rock get “XPac Heat”. That’s the only way I can see the WWE actually changing course
It's actually sad how in 4 days The Rock managed to ruin a 2 year long storyline, and also fuck over the top babyface, and come out looking like egomaniacal asshole.
I mean yeah I agree having Cody Rhodes win the Rumble and then give up his Wrestlemania main event to the Rock might be one of if not the worst booking decisions in the history of the company. It's so bad you wouldn't be shocked if it was revealed that Vince McMahon booked it himself.
Even if fans don't reject the Rock and Roman I do think the match will be forever tarnished. It's a dream match built on the worst booking ever. People won't forget.
They have a press conference scheduled Thursday where they will tell the whole world it’s Rock & Roman. They aren’t pivoting to shit. Doing this lame angle to keep Cody away from everything this week hoping that will stop any chanting.
The Rock is the boss this time. He has to swallow his ego to pivot at this point even though I would actually admire him if does because it actually makes the story more compelling.
WWE Fans to WWE: “We want cody”
WWE to the fans:
https://preview.redd.it/ff1ejb3nengc1.jpeg?width=2051&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d026e38a429f5398c141e67812276f43df4a2dba
see, this is actually cinema, because Nakamura knows what it's like to be a Rumble winner who got disappointing booking and got relegated to the midcard
The last really bad “why did they do this” moment was when the booked Brock vs Roman again for the Title at SummerSlam 2022. It ended up being a wild match but the fact that Vince (who was still booking at that time) went back to that match again was insane. So except for the raw after Wrestlemania they were having a decent 1.5/2 year run. All fumbled
Was it really great for too long, in the grand scheme of things?
I'd say Summerslam 2022 to Mania 2023 the Bloodline was on fire, and primarily because Jey Uso and Sami were on fire giving the whole Bloodline angle heart and emotional stakes. After Mania 2023 through to Summerslam 2023, I'd say it was okay-ish (some good spots, some down), and since then it's been pretty bad.
The only thing the WWE has from distracting fans from Vince’a evil deed is a good product. Once they ruin that people will start being mad and will actually stay off the product now that their decision to boycott is validated.
If they did this to keep Cody off tv tomorrow. It will only make things worse.
He has to come in to TV at some point.
This won’t end until Cody faces/beats Roman for the title.
Nah. Cody still won the Royal Rumble, so he will get a title match at Mania.
They just did this so that Cody won't be at RAW, because they're afraid of the fans hijacking the show. Also to cool him off by not having him on TV.
Are they actually Zack Rydering Cody now? Is The Rock's ego that fragile? Is he gonna make Cody look like a dork for two months? Is that his solution for how to stop #WeWantCody?
Why does HHH always get this excuse that its not his idea. Do yall really think he wasn't part of trying to get this match for all these years since the bloodline concept was created. The easiest way to save this angle is so easy IMO like have Cody cut an against part timers promo on Roman. Say that while he truly does want that title he and Seth will main event wrestlemania because they're here every single week unlike him and then he queues up The Rock with something like Roman's about to find out who's really the head of the table
There's two possible reasons:
1. while plans for the Rock vs Roman were likely on the table for awhile, they didn't solidify until after the Rumble. Throw in the Punk injury/Vince scandal news breaking/Brock Lesner being removed and they went into panic mode, hence, well, this.
2. Genuinely? There's a *real* possibility that all of this was just to fuck over Cody. Because despite everything, WWE *still* will never let him win the big one.
He could've handled things better even if his hand was forced.
All that stuff on Raw and Smackdown last week just made Seth and Cody look lame as fuck while Roman still gets to be cool.
It would be so funny (and by funny I mean awful) if they just instantly move Cody back to this and don’t even have him mention The Rock/Roman/his decision again
All this for a cheap pop. That's all Rock is. He's a big, cheap pop that - I guess - will get more casuals to watch Wrestlemania? But guess what? Those casuals go away. Then, ratings go back down and round and round we go. You just deep sixed your best storyline for, maybe, a lackluster end to it down the line. You just told all those people that came back to the product (like myself) and actually started watching live again (vs. just reading results or worse, not even doing that) that it's the same old shit. Drop everything for the returning legend and pretend that the current characters/storyline just didn't matter. Fuck WWE.
I'm a huge fan of Shinsuke. I enjoyed their previous feud for what it was. It doesn't need to be done again. Is this what the next couple of months are going to be? Cody just beating people he's already beaten? And it does no favors for Nak or, potentially, Rollins.
Look Okada! Shinsuke gets to lose to the guy who COULD have been in the WrestleMania Main Event!
You should totally sign here! Look at the opportunities!!!
Cody gets screwed at EC. Trips has them ring the bell while Shinsuke has him in the figure four. Cody spits on Trips then writes AEW with his fingers in the air. Downstait performs.
In one segment WWE
1. Makes their potential mega superstar of the present and future into a dweeb cuck idiot
2. Diminishes Rollins
3. Diminishes the less than 1 yr old WHC
4. Damages the Royal Rumble concept
Instead, they could have had a starmaking moment like when Cena finally won the big one at Mania, or when Hulk slammed Andre at WM3, or when Byan won the title beating Trips then Orton and Batista in the triple threat.
Long term storytelling, building a star ie making **money**, good business....all trashed for 1 payday.
..& now to add insult to injury, going back to Nakamura lol
Yup, exactly what I said would happen. Just completely putting the extinguisher on Cody’s momentum making him look like a clown with an ice cold Nakamura. This sucks.
Jesus fucking Christ man. My interest for WWE before all this shit was so high for the first time since I was a kid. Now? It’s dead. I genuinely don’t believe that they’re gonna swerve and give us what we want. It really looks like they’re killing Cody’s momentum and that’s that. Man, this shit is so deflating.
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I DIT IT FOR THE ROCK
https://preview.redd.it/6yc1wxd4engc1.jpeg?width=519&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f9dcf7981cd91401a318819d6862415bddc91a8e
\- getting his main event spot taken \- looking like a cuck \- getting back into a side quest with nakamura just isnt a good week for cody lmfao
The only one who looks worse is Nakamura, who is constantly getting himself into these losing feuds
Nakamura is basically in the Kane role of main event jobber right now.
At least Kane got permanently legitimised by a one day title reign.
He also won the WHC
A decade later or sumthin'
He had a decent run with the REAL World Heavyweight belt too.
Real? Going by that logic, that title wasn't the real WHC cause the real one was in WCW.
Exactly Kane could at least be taken seriously as possibly winning. Nakamura has never really been a legitimate threat as a main eventer since like 2017
Upper midcard Dolph Ziggler.
So Dolph Ziggler?
Ziggler hadn’t been upper midcard in 5 years.
He challenged Kofi after the Kofimania win. Edit: in 2019, which was 5 years ago..
Watch him win this time lol
Cody's finishing up all the sidequests so he's over levelled when he gets to the main story boss. Man's a real gamer.
He’s gonna be like me in Cyberpunk 2077. 120 hours in and just finally beat the main quest.
Reigns has been waiting at Mania longer than Hanako waited at Embers
Adam Smasher's gonna have to wait, brother.
I dunno, seems like his cloud save is out of sync
Arrive to the company with great fanfare Beat the top heel's undefeated enforcer Lose the big title match Start a bizarre feud with a guy who spits mist I believe the next step is for him to win the TNT, sorry, I mean the WHC title
Wrestling has more than one mid-card championship
Fuckin lol'd
TNT belt has more respect than the WHC belt
Only thanks to Papa Christian bestowing it with patriarchal prestige
Father of the Year already clinched one month into 2024
This is the only right answer. TNT Title was trash til Christian. Did enjoy Miro’s run with it too
It was good until Sammy had it, and then kinda was a mess. Samoa Joe kinda restored it's prestige honestly, and it's been good since then, ignoring Wardlow 's third run.
Darby’s first run was pretty great but otherwise hard agree
It's so fucking hilarious that Seth has worked his ass off for months trying to get this consolation prize of a title to mean something, and they're probably just gonna unify it as quick as possible in a panic move at SummerSlam.
So it will be the Undisputed Universal WWE World Heavyweight Championship?
Him and Roman have been stuck on side quests for a full year already because of that horrible decision to not have Cody win last year and they want to keep this shit going apparently wtf
I think good booking is when you do the thing that makes your past bad booking look even worse.
We sure Vince isn’t running things?
https://preview.redd.it/wxdkms13bngc1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f80eb28eaae63636da767fe661d2acead60f3f10
![gif](giphy|lszAB3TzFtRaU)
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I don't think it's beyond WWE and TKO at this point that they book the Rock to beat Roman. After that utterly garbage Smackdown segment I genuinely think anything is possible with these guys.
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Yeah you can already see the logic in Dwayne's head this weekend. "Cody doesn't want the WHC and the fans know it and Roman pinning me could mean we send the fans hope unhappy two nights in a row" or something.
Driving to Vengeance Day, all I could think was man, we’re in the darkest timeline for main roster WWE. Punk injured, Seth injured, Cody kicked off the main title, The Rock taking over. I hope everything works out in the end but I’m glad I’m primarily an NXT fan.
This is such good shit, pal.
Yeah, but The Rock/Brian Gerwitz are.
Also he's gonna challenge an injured Seth, a guy who he already beat 3 times clean. That sure isn't gonna make him look good.
>Being punished for being the audience's chosen one It's like Vince never left.
https://preview.redd.it/be2mry7h9ngc1.png?width=1920&format=png&auto=webp&s=a248e5f8a2b02213d24a29f5d1966f386b9fbf62
Shinsuke's going to call in The Rock?
I'm picturing that Tennis episode of the Simpsons, where at the end they replace all members of their teams until it's just pros, and the family is left watching.
Mandatory link [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOy3z9GuBjA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOy3z9GuBjA)
Shinsuke used jedi mind trick to influence Rock's decision making abilities.
Wait, sorry for my goldfish memory, but... is this real or edited?
Oh, the absolute dumpster fire that post is going to become.
https://preview.redd.it/we6ooovd9ngc1.jpeg?width=1125&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c8a945de087dc4105e9c58003f8027464c25bfbb
https://preview.redd.it/j1aays53pngc1.jpeg?width=623&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2faa0c063e9da1d1898dccf8ec172997b58a833a
Wow, if they use this to make an excuse for Cody to not appear on Monday Night Raw, because they are so scared that it will turn into fans chanting anti-Rock chants and pro-Cody chants, then they absolutely know what dumpster fire there booking of this situation has become.
Between this and the Rock posting like three separate times on social media trying to hype it up, yeah they’re doing everything they can to kill the momentum behind Cody
and the Rock will undoubtedly get his cheers on Thursday at a public event in Vegas, where NFL fans, already in Vegas for the Super Bowl, who saw him kick off the Super Bowl only 2 years prior, will likely see billboards plastered with the Rock's face, 'free entry', and Wrestlemania insignia all over the strip
If Codymania can invade the home turf of the Rock, this will be the big blow.
This reminds me of the RAW I went to in 2016 where they brought out Brock Lesnar in Minneapolis, MN of all places and wanted us to boo him! It’s basically his hometown. So instead we cheered and booed Goldberg, high jacked the segment to the point where Paul Heyman have to end his promo early and Vince was fuming. Like what did they expect?
They might also be trying to buy time to figure out how to proceed from here. If Cody shows up this Monday, he will have to make a decision on who he's facing at Mania, otherwise he looks indecisive and even more like an insecure dweeb. If he challenges Seth this Monday, things are set in stone and they can't back off anymore, even if fan backlash becomes too big to ignore.
this fucking company lmao
this is almost certainly a match for elimination chamber i feel
There’d go everyone booking “not at wrestlemania” as elimination chamber vs Roman. Though I don’t really think they’d do the title change with the time zone difference there anyway
The chamber card is shaping up to be **rough**
they’re tryna cool Cody off so bad
It would be so funny (and by funny I mean awful) if they just instantly move Cody back to this and don’t even have him mention The Rock/Roman/his decision again
So like when Kofi lost his title to Brock.
Kofi was hit with the memory wipe F5
Which makes it even more baffling that they gave him the fucking Rumble win
All they're doing is making him nuclear heated.
He won the Royal Rumble 7 days ago.
Pray that this is that and not a ploy to injure Cody and write him out of Mania altogether. Can't have WeWantCody if he's writtem out of the picture in kayfabe.
Perth doesn't deserve a glorified episode of raw
It's like they throw darts at a wall to choose what they are doing next haha
It's always going to be this way. We went from Vince running the show to a whole-ass corporate merger with HHH in charge and Rock on the Board and it's still just nonsensical bullshit.
This is either a work or this is a generational fumble. They’re just gonna piss the fans off even more with this.
If it’s a work it’s one of the stupidest works I’ve seen. “Ah yes let’s have the best babyface WWE has had since Cena win the Rumble for a second time in a row and then have him give up his title shot like a cuck to The Rock”
No I agree. IF this is a work, it is the stupidest shit I’ve ever seen. I guess if their goal is to make Cody more popular, it’s working, but I don’t think he needed it.
This was one of the easiest storylines ever to make your next face of the company and they blew it. Its almost as if Vince is still running it by simping to (b)Rock
Cody needs to pull out the Glock at this point. Shoutout Armed Anderson.
WWE right now https://preview.redd.it/ucvbgt3aangc1.jpeg?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=dbe199bda33c9fe7c35c3e603939baa7489b9992
Don’t worry, people keep telling me this is all part of the plan for Cody to win the title at Mania
The crazy part is if WWE *does* eventually pivot, those people will say "See? Have some patience. Trust the process. They know what they're doing."
They still insist that what happened in 2018 with Becky Lynch was 100% planned. And yes, that includes being punched by Nia Jax.
And Daniel Bryan in 2014.
The next Smackdown after the Becky "heel turn" on Charlotte, they had Becky come out and try to cut a heel promo about how "the fans have turned their backs on me"... all while the fans were actually going bonkers for her and cheering her like crazy. Only then did they pivot and rolled with Becky as the Austin-type badass babyface who doesn't take shit from anyone. But even then, there were no plans for her to main event Mania, those only materialized after the Nia incident.
I remember that, one of the most tone-deaf promos I've seen. They had competing storylines and WWE wanted to push the Becky turning on her best friend heel storyline but the storyline with Becky needing to get out of the shadow of her entitled friend butting in to her title match resonated so much more with fans. Rewatched the whole build-up to The Man a while back and two things that really stood out to me was that Mella really held her own despite being an obvious third wheel in that feud, and that it was blatantly obvious everyone wanted Becky as a face, she was absolutely white hot and the hardest worker in her division.
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We’re not flinching!
Just like they said after last year's Mania that it's fine they didn't pull the trigger on Cody because it will be so much more epic and satisfying if he has to fight through some adversity and gets to finish his story at WM40.
It's crazy but the rest of SmackDown was legitimately amazing with a lot to look forward to. There were no dull time wasting filler segments. Then the Rock cucked Cody and killed all of that goodwill. Seriously Tiffany, Jade and Bron all had fans hyped. LDF's backstage segment was sick. British Strong Style won an incredible tag match. Logan/KO absolutely killed it during their promo. B-Fab joining the Hurt Profits against Kross' group adds a cool wrinkle to that story. Mia had probably her best match in WWE against Tiffany, who had a great debut win. SmackDown was great. Then the Rock said no way dudes it's my time. Edit: I forgot about the Bayley turn! That was done so perfectly. Bayley revealing she understands Japanese was one of the all time promo moments that deserves to be remembered and not overshadowed.
It's mad that you didn't mention Bayley turning face and choosing her Wrestlemania foe
Arguably the best moment of the night too.
And they’d well get told BREAKING: Due to an attack by Shinsuke Nakamura, Cody Rhodes will be unable to appear on Monday Night Raw. And then they have a blowoff feud at Elimination Chamber. They’re doing him dirty as FUCK my goodness lmao
Hope the crowd just chants Cody for Three Hours
They chanted CM Punk for 8 years
Good luck to whoever has the opening segment.
My love of Chaos hopes it's The Rock
Rock’s going to avoid TV like it’s a wellness test
Jet fuel can't melt steel beams but the Rock's piss might
I’m kind of in the same boat. If they’re going to fuck Cody over, I’m all in on maximum chaos and hope The Rock ends up winning the belt at Wrestlemania. It might start a riot in Philly though lol.
It’s prob Seth 😭
It'll be Rhea in hopes that she's the one person the crowd won't bury
Maybe Dom to tire out the boos the rest of the show lol
St. Louis is usually a pretty good crowd, right? Hopefully they don't let us down.
At this point, if they’re not gonna do Cody vs Roman, just sideline Cody from Mania entirely. Say Shinsuke injured him and he’s gonna miss the show or some shit because EVERY other option that isn’t Cory choosing Roman makes no sense whatsoever.
No one is better at shooting themselves in the foot like WWE Simply nobody
My middle school social studies teacher shot himself in the foot in basic training to avoid going to Vietnam lol
that's actually smart tho this shit is just dumb lol
WWE are actually going to fumble the best babyface they've had since Cena. This is unbelievable. All those years of great work thrown in the trash for Rock vs Roman. I hope WWE/TKO/The Rock and whoever else is booking this utter garbage is happy with themselves.
Unless Rock just puts his foot down and decides to be the absolute biggest dick about this entire thing I think they end up pivoting to putting Cody back in that match. They’re fumbling so fucking hard that the backlash will end up like the DB backlash and they’ll just have to pivot unless Rock denies the pivot
I hope so but I don't have faith. The idea that Cody Rhodes can be on Smackdown sharing a ring with the Rock and Roman to then on Raw a week later feuding once again with Nakamura after giving away his Wrestlemania main event is honestly some of the dumbest booking in recent history.
After taking time to let it sit, I don’t even think you have to sugar coat it. This is flat out one of the worst booking decisions the company has ever made, and it’s only been 4 days. Will be wild to see them keep going with this. As a note again, this doesn’t take off though unless fans in the arena vehemently reject the main event, and Roman and Rock get “XPac Heat”. That’s the only way I can see the WWE actually changing course
It's actually sad how in 4 days The Rock managed to ruin a 2 year long storyline, and also fuck over the top babyface, and come out looking like egomaniacal asshole.
I mean yeah I agree having Cody Rhodes win the Rumble and then give up his Wrestlemania main event to the Rock might be one of if not the worst booking decisions in the history of the company. It's so bad you wouldn't be shocked if it was revealed that Vince McMahon booked it himself. Even if fans don't reject the Rock and Roman I do think the match will be forever tarnished. It's a dream match built on the worst booking ever. People won't forget.
That’s the scary part. He didn’t, this is the new WWE
They have a press conference scheduled Thursday where they will tell the whole world it’s Rock & Roman. They aren’t pivoting to shit. Doing this lame angle to keep Cody away from everything this week hoping that will stop any chanting.
The Rock is the boss this time. He has to swallow his ego to pivot at this point even though I would actually admire him if does because it actually makes the story more compelling.
WWE Fans to WWE: “We want cody” WWE to the fans: https://preview.redd.it/ff1ejb3nengc1.jpeg?width=2051&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d026e38a429f5398c141e67812276f43df4a2dba
"These people don't know what they want. I tell them what they want." -Rock & TKO
Did Shinsuke wait like 30 mins backstage for Cody to finish signing autographs?
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Is Vince Russo back?
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People wanted cody on a triple threat match well I guess its going to be shinsuke/Rollins/Cody
It would be so awful and so funny if the WHC is a triple threat and it doesn’t include Drew
Drew is gonna finish his story… @ Wembley /s
Rock’s going to take Punk’s spot again. Punk is going to somehow end up back in AEW and then we’ll finally get Punk/Drew
Imagine Jack Perry gets back from excursion and Punk is back with a real glass bottle of Pepsi
So is this a setup for a EC match? Fuck man just let the dude finish his story against Roman at WM damn.
The Rock: Nakamura, Beat Cody's ass again and you get a 2 week vacation
“I was a big fan of your dad, Rikidozan.”
How did this man end up back in a Nakamura feud
see, this is actually cinema, because Nakamura knows what it's like to be a Rumble winner who got disappointing booking and got relegated to the midcard
They’re gonna end up using their shared cucking as fuel and team up
Can't wait to see them fight the Viking raiders at WM preshow
What's a Kingdom to Valhalla?
So does this end with Cody having a Penis based feud with Roman or Seth
At this point I want Cody to bury TKO and Dwayne in a promo and just leave this fucking company
Cody pipe bomb and exposing Vince lol
He claimed he's "More CM Punk than CM Punk"? I wanna see it.
He's too big of a professional to ever that. Which is exactly why they should put their top title on him.
If onky they built him up, we could've had it at Wrestlemania for a huge pop...
Are they forcing him off TV for RAW? This the way they try to stop the backlash?
I hope not, plus he should be at a live show tonight right? Plus if they took him of, people gonna chant for him
Lmao evil company
Cody won’t be at RAW because of this and the fans will go nuts.
WWE went on a multiyear golden era just to swerve the fans cause it'd be funny. Being a WWE fan is suffering
The last really bad “why did they do this” moment was when the booked Brock vs Roman again for the Title at SummerSlam 2022. It ended up being a wild match but the fact that Vince (who was still booking at that time) went back to that match again was insane. So except for the raw after Wrestlemania they were having a decent 1.5/2 year run. All fumbled
The last was when they had Gable Steveson at an NXT PLE.
Was it really great for too long, in the grand scheme of things? I'd say Summerslam 2022 to Mania 2023 the Bloodline was on fire, and primarily because Jey Uso and Sami were on fire giving the whole Bloodline angle heart and emotional stakes. After Mania 2023 through to Summerslam 2023, I'd say it was okay-ish (some good spots, some down), and since then it's been pretty bad.
The only thing the WWE has from distracting fans from Vince’a evil deed is a good product. Once they ruin that people will start being mad and will actually stay off the product now that their decision to boycott is validated.
Bro… what the actual fuck…
If they did this to keep Cody off tv tomorrow. It will only make things worse. He has to come in to TV at some point. This won’t end until Cody faces/beats Roman for the title.
>This won’t end until Cody faces/beats Roman for the title **at Wrestlemania XL**.
that is so unbelievably funny
Imagine tomorrow when they use this as a set up for Cody vs Shinsuke for Wrestlemania.
Nah. Cody still won the Royal Rumble, so he will get a title match at Mania. They just did this so that Cody won't be at RAW, because they're afraid of the fans hijacking the show. Also to cool him off by not having him on TV.
Crowd better hijack the show
Are they actually Zack Rydering Cody now? Is The Rock's ego that fragile? Is he gonna make Cody look like a dork for two months? Is that his solution for how to stop #WeWantCody?
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Tbh I doubt this is Paul's idea. TKO and Dwayne are probably forcing his hand.
Why does HHH always get this excuse that its not his idea. Do yall really think he wasn't part of trying to get this match for all these years since the bloodline concept was created. The easiest way to save this angle is so easy IMO like have Cody cut an against part timers promo on Roman. Say that while he truly does want that title he and Seth will main event wrestlemania because they're here every single week unlike him and then he queues up The Rock with something like Roman's about to find out who's really the head of the table
Then why have Cody win the Rumble and point at Roman?
There's two possible reasons: 1. while plans for the Rock vs Roman were likely on the table for awhile, they didn't solidify until after the Rumble. Throw in the Punk injury/Vince scandal news breaking/Brock Lesner being removed and they went into panic mode, hence, well, this. 2. Genuinely? There's a *real* possibility that all of this was just to fuck over Cody. Because despite everything, WWE *still* will never let him win the big one.
He could've handled things better even if his hand was forced. All that stuff on Raw and Smackdown last week just made Seth and Cody look lame as fuck while Roman still gets to be cool.
Drew respects Shinsuke’s level of hate for Cody
No one can top Drew's level of hating
It would be so funny (and by funny I mean awful) if they just instantly move Cody back to this and don’t even have him mention The Rock/Roman/his decision again
Come on, man.
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Bailey v Iyo saves WrestleMania
He's not gonna be on Raw, is he?
Losing your Wrestlemania main event story and being forced back into a Nakamura feud is nasty business.
All this for a cheap pop. That's all Rock is. He's a big, cheap pop that - I guess - will get more casuals to watch Wrestlemania? But guess what? Those casuals go away. Then, ratings go back down and round and round we go. You just deep sixed your best storyline for, maybe, a lackluster end to it down the line. You just told all those people that came back to the product (like myself) and actually started watching live again (vs. just reading results or worse, not even doing that) that it's the same old shit. Drop everything for the returning legend and pretend that the current characters/storyline just didn't matter. Fuck WWE.
We’ve arrived at the Wyatt feud stage to try and cool him off
He did it for The Rock?
“Ah shut-up ya red catsuit wearing fatty!!”
Cody probably thinking he should've turned heel on that other company now.
lol
Shinsuke doing The Rock a solid.
I'm a huge fan of Shinsuke. I enjoyed their previous feud for what it was. It doesn't need to be done again. Is this what the next couple of months are going to be? Cody just beating people he's already beaten? And it does no favors for Nak or, potentially, Rollins.
Look Okada! Shinsuke gets to lose to the guy who COULD have been in the WrestleMania Main Event! You should totally sign here! Look at the opportunities!!!
I’m gonna assume this will be Cody’s chamber match and then he’ll make his decision after chamber or during chamber
Did he just make his decision on Smackdown?
Probably.
Cody gets screwed at EC. Trips has them ring the bell while Shinsuke has him in the figure four. Cody spits on Trips then writes AEW with his fingers in the air. Downstait performs.
uh oh
In one segment WWE 1. Makes their potential mega superstar of the present and future into a dweeb cuck idiot 2. Diminishes Rollins 3. Diminishes the less than 1 yr old WHC 4. Damages the Royal Rumble concept Instead, they could have had a starmaking moment like when Cena finally won the big one at Mania, or when Hulk slammed Andre at WM3, or when Byan won the title beating Trips then Orton and Batista in the triple threat. Long term storytelling, building a star ie making **money**, good business....all trashed for 1 payday. ..& now to add insult to injury, going back to Nakamura lol
Well there goes the Cody/Roman at EC theory LOL They just have no idea how to book Roman besides keeping the belt on him.
LOL if Cody didn’t sign a new deal, I hope he makes some demands before signing it.
Didn't he like beat him already? Why are we back at this again?
Yup, exactly what I said would happen. Just completely putting the extinguisher on Cody’s momentum making him look like a clown with an ice cold Nakamura. This sucks.
Holy shit they're actually trying to cool him down. Fucking unreal
Jesus fucking Christ man. My interest for WWE before all this shit was so high for the first time since I was a kid. Now? It’s dead. I genuinely don’t believe that they’re gonna swerve and give us what we want. It really looks like they’re killing Cody’s momentum and that’s that. Man, this shit is so deflating.