Cody Rhodes

"Cody is a good guy, i've gotten bored of him lately but his past work i guess makes up for it, we'll see if he gets any better or worse"

[5.0] "Listen, I will give Cody his dues. Started wrestling 2 decades ago, was treated harshly by management and left, went out there and worked through blood and sweat and tears. He gave everything to this industry. Even when he came back, won the rumbles and title by main eventing mania with Roman back to back and having the greatest match in mania history. But he is so overpushed. In 3 years he won 4 world titles, 2 royal rumble, 4 wrestlemania main event, 1 king of the ring, tag and US title, lead multiple wargames. At what point will fans start admitting that he is overpushed?"

[6.0] "We've seen a *lot* of Cody particularly in the last 10 years enough to say as an overall package he's fine. Charismatic and competent most of the time but not remotely as good as his father or brother. He undeniably has some brilliant speaking ability and star power, and that's been evident ever since he first broke out on the indies and became a legitimate draw on the scene regardless of how grating his character could get or how bang average his ring work was. His AEW run had highs and lows and he's since found his spot as basically WWE's new John Cena. I just feel most of the time he's someone who needs a lot of smoke and mirrors (HA! ) to have a really great match."

[8.0] "Really great babyface for WWE right now. Really wish he would be heel right now but whatever. I also think his AEW run was quite alright i enjoyed his stuff with darby allin and MJF."

"Cody Rhodes has a cool presentation that makes him feel like a genuine main-event star. His look and presence give the character a strong, traditional appeal."

[8.0] "Great top babyface look. Solid in the ring. Lacks promo skill, you can only spam "haters say this" and real life breaking kayfabe material before it gets stale."

[8.0] "Good character, but stale at this point. Needs to turn heel, and if he doesn't I'm worried he's going to be completely disregarded by the fans of WWE. They keep trying to push the possibility of a turn, but never pull the trigger."

[10.0] "Cody is the best wrestler of the 21st century. From the drama surrounding his move from AEW to WWE and his transformation from Stardust to the "American Nightmare, " to his reverence for Dusty Rhodes and his quest for redemption--there are few wrestlers who evoke such deep emotion."

[5.0] "Boring wrestler and a fake ass person, they need a break from him being champ. Dude has always been the worst part of whatever he's involved in. Riding the coattails off Omega and The Young Bucks is the only reason he is in the position he's in now."

[6.0] "Homelander is a decent mid-carder, but feels he's entitled to be a life time main eventer because of his last name. One of the biggest nepo babies in the history of the sport."

"One of the most fluent wrestlers of the current era. Cody reinvented himself on the indie scene, created the AEW we have today, and, in my opinion, Cody revived the WWE when he finished his story against Roman at WM40. Cody's sequences in-ring are genuinely exciting most of the time, especially into a Disaster Kick, or Super/Cody Cutter. The Bionic Elbow best represents his gimmick of the American Nightmare, who finally became undeniable and is no longer in his father's shadow, but his uses it as a tribute to Dusty."

[7.0] "Above average, the perfect mid-carder in my opinion. I did enjoy the 'finish the story' saga with the bloodline, although did not expect it to turn into a long running Cody is near on unbeatable story. At this point would love others getting the shot. Better in a larger back end role than the face of the company in my opinion, would do great at creating story lines etc."

[6.0] "Incredibly grateful for his contribution to AEW, but one of many 2nd generation-wrestlers I can't help but think they wouldn't be anywhere near the main event-scene if it wasn't for their family's legacy. Cody Rhodes at times strikes me as an "old school" tribute wrestler, rather than someone who wants to explore his own unique role in the wrestling world. Unlike legacy wrestlers like Randy Orton or Rey Mysterio, Rhodes seems to be too attached to his father's legacy in my opinion, and that's something that makes him seem less interesting, and somewhat generic. Other than a near-perfect look for a top face of a wrestling company, I just can't rate him highly in any other category."

[9.0] "8/10 from me, Accomplishments - 9.5, Charisma/Character Work- 9, Cultural Significance - 9.5, In-Ring Skills - 9, Longevity - 10 and Move-Set - 8.5 = 9/10."

[10.0] "he s my favorite wrestler and the reason of why i falled in love with the most beautiful sport in the world"

[7.0] "Cody wasn't doing much in his first run in WWE. There were a few decent moments like being in Legacy and the brief tag team with Goldust. When he left in 2016 he started finding what worked for him. His run as ROH champion in 2017 is the foundation for what we see today except for the heel part. From 2018-2023 he was one of the hottest acts in wrestling. He never put on a true classic of a match but he never really had a bad one either. 2024 was a mixed bag and 2025-present is stale. He currently sucks. His matches and promos haven't been good and his reported refusal to turn heel is making fans in WWE resent him like in AEW."

[4.0] "Cody Rhodes has been super average in the ring for over seven months now. He is overrated at his AEW and WWE runs. He has a connection to the fans which is great but that's about it. I believe his mic skills are poor too"

[8.0] "I have never been the biggest Cody Rhodes fan. I thought he was good enough during his first WWE run, but I wasn't excited about him touring the indies with his WWE style. His AEW run was very hit or miss, with more misses than hits for my taste. It felt like the Codyverse was a completely separate part of the company, which produced some of the worst feuds and segments in AEW history. His second WWE run, from what I have seen of it, seems to have elevated Cody to the next level. His big main events are perfect for the house style, as are his promos, and he is obviously very over. Still not my cup of tea, but I can see the appeal."

[3.0] "He's a cringey, wild wrestler. I'm already sick of him as world champion. I'm actually ashamed that I used to hate on Reigns and his matches. Reigns is literally a boss straight out of Dark Souls--he's got the charisma of the WWE universe's most epic antagonist, he's got an aura, he's a savior. But Cody is just some kind of slob; every gimmick of his was crap and cringe (Cody with a mustache, Cody in a mask, Stardust, The Conqueror with a broken arm, The Crybaby). A champion who evokes no emotions but gets shoved into every hole. Yeah, he can put on an okay match. But he has a lot of experience as a wrestler. As a character, he's a zero, though he's nowhere near as bad as Ospreay or Ricochet. If he becomes Homelander, it won't change anything, since it'll just be a parody of the iconic image, not a well-developed gimmick. He hasn't shown anything interesting during his reign as champion."

[3.0] "I genuinely feel like Cody Rhodes has become one of the most overrated and overpushed figures in wrestling today. It's not even just the spotlight he gets - it's how relentlessly he's presented as the guy, no matter how the fans react. Everything about his character feels forced, like it's being shoved down our throats week after week whether we're invested or not. At this point, it's not even about disliking him - it's just boredom. I've never felt this uninterested in a wrestler who's given this much attention. It feels like I'm being told I should care, rather than actually being given a reason to."

[6.0] "He is a decent wrestler. He is decent on the microphone but nothing spectacular. There must be something I am not seeing as he has a lot of fan support. Good for him."

[7.0] "Cody Rhodes is the John Cena of Today's WWE. He is the biggest face of the company, and it's not hard to see why. He's a great wrestler, his entrance is memorable, and he's all around a person that almost everyone can love. However, he isn't perfect. His character of "finishing the story" feels rinsed and repeated over and over again. His promos aren't great, but they aren't horrible. The biggest problem is that he's been prominently featured with the WWE Championship since 2024. I feel like it's time for something new for Cody Rhodes."

[6.0] "Cody is good at many things, but he's also a disaster in several others, and there's definitely a problem in WWE. Let me explain: Cody built a great character, but he's absolutely afraid to evolve or change it in any way. The problem is that this character was designed to win the world title for the first time. Today, that character no longer has anything meaningful to tell. That character was absolutely top-tier, but once he won the title and after a couple of defenses, there was nothing left to build on. In fact, fans quickly grew tired of it. Are there solutions? Yes, and they're quite obvious. The first and simplest would be a heel turn he would be devastating as a heel. But he doesn't want to do it, probably because he's afraid of ending up where he was 10 years ago. Another solution could be a strong babyface stable, but again, he doesn't seem interested. I believe Cody should step down from the pedestal he's put himself on and adopt a more humble attitude toward himself and the fans. It's April 2026 if things continue like this, he'll end up being booed and disliked until he's forced into a heel turn. So right now, we're talking about a Cody who has the potential to be an 8, but at the moment he's a 4 so I'm forced to average it out."

[2.0] "Cody Runnels. A "QB1" that's performance can be likened to that of Deshone Kizer on the 2016 0-17 Cleveland Browns. Cody is, at least as a champion, both a laughably awful storyteller and a bland, directionless character that nobody with a brain can take seriously. Codys strength (compared to all other awful attributes that he has) is his in ring wrestling. Yet, the infamously bad politician shows up weekly in the same suit and tie, often with glasses that look horrible, to go and cut the same rah rah promo week after week. Multiple things can be true at once. Is the creative bad? Yes, Definitely. Is Cody exempt from blame? No. The machine put every single ounce of energy behind Rhodes. This included turning JOHN CENA heel, sidelining THE ROCK for a program between him and Roman Reigns, and many other examples where Cody could not fail, yet, he did."

[10.0] "I initially gave Cody Rhodes a 9 on August 2022, but I am editing to give this man a 10 instead. He is GOATY Rhodes after all! He's been the face of the company for 4 years now (& officially been CROWNED as the FOTC for 2 years atm), and he's undoubtedly been their best FOTC since John Cena. I honestly prefer Cody even more as the FOTC compared to Cena. You can almost always count on Cody to give you good ppv matches, and consistently great promo delivery. I've been high on Cody since summer 2012 at least, and it's been one helluva heartwarming journey to see him climb his way to the top whether it's a top babyface in AEW or as the face of the company in WWE. I hope Cody doesn't turn heel anytime soon. I want Cody Rhodes to finally turn heel when there's PLENTY of strong babyface alternatives to help carry the company (which I don't think there is atm since the other alternatives consist of babyface veterans like Seth Rollins or underdog babyfaces like Sami Zayn.... who they might be stupid enough to turn him heel soon). Anyway, Cody is awesome and he deserves my full 10 here."

"Cody Rhodes has had a crazy journey as a pro wrestler in my eyes. He is a nepo baby to one of the greatest pioneers of wrestling, has a brother who has had great matches and gimmicks, and is yet probably the most boring one out of the three. He's the vanilla ice cream of WWE that fills the spot as the top babyface. I find heel Cody much more interesting."

"Cody is fine wrestler but i dont think he deserves a push he is getting. its just not believable to the first timers or new generation that a smaller guy is doing that much to a much bigger guy both equally fit/train both professional wrestlers. As UFC is getting famous more people would just not buy this. Just saying."

[9.0] "People can complain about Cody all they want, but any competent promoter would take him as the face of their company. He's a fantastic promo, has good charisma and is a good in ring worker. You can send him out for media to promote events and know that your company is in good hands. He's been a good face since returning to WWE, but he is in need of a shake-up character wise. There's a great heel run in there somewhere. He's not a generational talent in the ring, but I enjoy his matches most of the time."

[8.0] "Cody Rhodes desperately needs a change, imo. He's been incredibly stale since SummerSlam and is booked like Super Cena which I'm not really a fan of at all. He can put on great matches and can cut GREAT promos, but he just needs something new at the moment."

[4.0] "Boring, stale reigns, a babyface the company keeps shoving down our throats whether we want it or not. It feels like no matter how loud the crowd reactions get good or bad he's permanently locked into the title picture with no real organic struggle or unpredictability. There's no sense of danger, no feeling that he might actually fall down the card or have to claw his way back up. It's just the same formula over and over again: dramatic promo, big entrance, forced "epic" presentation, rinse and repeat."

[6.0] "I'm done acting like Cody Rhodes is all that. Sure, he's a great performer, he can have great matches, and he's had some standout moments, so it's not like he's bad. But once the feel-good moment is done with, this guy just does not have much personality. In terms of star power, even Roman Reigns at his peak was way above him. I'm not a hater of his because I really do acknowledge his strengths, I like the guy, and I think he's a pretty good wrestler overall, but he is just not the guy HHH is pushing him to be. Not even remotely. As a champion, I think he's actually solid when he holds it for a specific amount of time, but after a few months it becomes dreadful and uninteresting. A pretty solid wrestler, but just not a mega star."

[4.0] "Being completely honest, as someone who has watched Cody in ROH, AEW and his second run in WWE, I have never "got it" with him. His greatest asset seems to be his look which in and of itself is nothing spectacular, and a certain aura in which he carries himself. It's undeniable that Cody has that "turns heads at the airport" factor that Vince always craved. And sure, looking like a star is definitely important to a presentation-first product like WWE, but there is more to being a star than just a look and a presence. In ring, Cody is just bland. He works a certain kind of slow paced, North American main event style that leads to a lot of his matches feeling same-y and uninteresting. I have never felt he was a particularly great seller, nor is he a jump out of the gym athlete. His moveset is unique, with nods to Dusty and his brother Dustin, but that often leads to Cody feeling more like a copy of them, with a healthy dose of Flair and Randy Orton mixed in, than his own man. Typical Cody matches feel like he is running a step or two behind his opponent, with his best matches usually occurring with exciting opponents that can elevate him, rather than him making anyone else look good. In fact, especially in AEW, he usually made his opponents look worse. Then we arrive at the real fatal flaw of Cody, that being his character. The American Nightmare is about as confused of a persona that wrestling has ever seen. It's not a coincidence that in both major promotions that Cody has portrayed this babyface version of himself, fans came away feeling like he was a wolf in sheep's clothing. But no, as much as fans might fantasy book a deep, psychological character for Cody that is far more interesting than what we've ever been given on screen, Cody really does intend to be a good guy and he thinks his Rah Rah, "Go USA, beat the foreign heel" schtick is endearing in the mid 2020's political landscape. It never has been. And as much as we may want him to embrace the Homelander, Cody's self-righteous obsession with being a hero to the kiddies (as well has his merch sales) will probably prevent that from happening. So we will have to keep enduring the same match, the same promo and the same basic feud from Cody as WWE pushes him as their next big thing. But until he gives his character and his in ring work a fresh twist, he will continue to feel like the modern era's answer to Lex Luger, someone that should be a megastar, but has too many pieces of the puzzle missing, and is too overpushed as an American hero, to really connect."

[6.0] "Cody Rhodes is good, don't get me wrong, but there's something about him I can stand as of late. He's just a bland babyface now. He's still good in the ring & he's pretty decent on the mic."

[5.0] "Cody Rhodes is a great in-ring worker and has decent mic skills. Everything he's done from WrestleMania 38 to WrestleMania 40 was great. I believe that he was the right man to dethrone Roman Reigns. However, he hasn't really done much after that. I think the problem was that no one seemed like a credible threat to his title run. His first feuds with AJ Styles and Logan Paul were great in-ring wise, but storytelling wise, it was trash. When he feuded with Solo, his title run started to pick up again, only for it to slightly decrease when he begged Kevin Owens to face him at Bash in Berlin. Then he teams up with Roman against the fake Bloodline and the Rock returns, which was great. Then Kevin Owens turns heel, and I feel like Cody should've lost the title to him. I mean, you could have him win it back at the Royal Rumble, and it would've benefited both men as Kevin Owens is long overdue for a title reign and Cody works better when he's chasing the title. When Cena turned heel, I thought they were gonna have a banging feud, but Cena wasn't there to build up the match so it was a mediocre feud with an even worse WrestleMania match. The Rock not committing added to this, but I get why he didn't want to commit. He wanted to face Roman, Triple H went with Cody. Then he wants Cody to turn heel and have Cena turn face, Triple H does the opposite. Cody's second feud with Cena was even more mediocre because of Cena's random ass face turn, but their match at SummerSlam was definitely the best match of 2025. His second title run was atrocious. He beat Drew McIntyre multiple times, wins by DQ against the undercard jobber Bronson Reed, and didn't have any great feuds. I'm glad that Drew took the title off of him. Cody needs to stay away from the world title scene for a while because it's clear that he just doesn't work as the face of the company. The only way I'd allow it is if Cody moved on from that stupid Captain America babyface gimmick and become a tweener or a heel. Now that I think about it, Cody should've been the one to turn heel and Cena stays the face. Because no one would boo Cena on his final year, and Cody's gimmick has been stale. It would've benefited both men if Triple H had done what the Rock wanted. Overall, Cody gets a 5/10 from me because he has the potential to be good, but that potential hasn't been fulfilled."

[9.0] "Since returning in 2022 he has improved a lot with him putting on quite a few banger matches and winning 2 world titles and winning a couple of royal rumble matches, whilst in his previous run he was not that good and used quite poorly but it is good to see him being presented how he is now"

[4.0] "The most boring face of a company I've ever witnessed. There are zero intriguing storylines surrounding him, and everything feels completely overpushed and manufactured rather than organic. There have been zero clean losses since he came back, which completely kills any sense of unpredictability or tension."

[8.0] "The "Quarterback" of WWE, Cody Rhodes has certainly proven that over the last few years in his career. He has proven time and time again how he manages the game of wrestling. Being the champion, he has had some great matches with the likes of AJ Styles, KO, and even his battles for the Crown Jewel Championship against Gunther and Seth Rollins, Rhodes continues to make his family proud along with his brother."

[9.0] "Another great wrestler I didn't appreciate at the time, it's admirable how Cody Rhodes' career has evolved over the years, from his time in Legacy, his dashing, undashing phase, And the way he reinvented himself after the end of his first run in WWE, which has led him to be the face of the company to this day, one of my favorites for sure."

[6.0] "I feel like I would like Cody way more if his matches were about 10-15 minutes shorter. So many times he'll have a great 12-15 minute match that I'll really enjoy, but then he'll go 35 mins on PPV and I just lose interest. Doesn't help that I've never been able to get much into his character in WWE or AEW."

[10.0] "Cody Rhodes is the best wreslter overall on this current roster.he is my favorite because he is a people champion and loves his fans not only that but he is such a great wrestler in ring"

[7.0] "Cody Rhodes is presented as a bigger deal than he is by the WWE creative and the commentators. He's clearly not fit to be the main superstar of the company, under his reign the company has lost over half of its audience that it accumulated during the peak of Triple Coke's administration (2024 Road to WM and its direct aftermath). Repetitive and stagnant booking, combined with his half-assed repetitive promos ("whadduyouwannatalkabout") won't bring butts on the seats. SmackDown is dying with him as the champ. Now let's come to the in-ring perspective, he's a very good wrestler, can put up great matches and has already had a classic rivalry with Reigns. Overall, he's a solid upper-mid carder pushed to the extreme top, where he doesn't belong. So he's a misfit, but a favourite of triple coke, who prefers him to suitable top guys like McIntyre."

[9.0] "Watching Cody slowly progress and get better throughout has been a really fun journey and his current face run in WWE has been really solid."

[9.0] "Seems like Cody is pretty underrated on here. I legitimately believe he has become one of the premier talents of this generation and is one of the best in ring workers and promo cutters. A very valuable player in the game and no doubt a huge reason for the boom in modern wrestling popularity."

[8.0] "I always admired Cody for his work. I didn't care about his characters in WWE, whether it was Cody Rhodes or Stardust, but what he did in ROH, NJPW, and the independent scene with The Elite, I loved. He's a good wrestler and, above all, a handsome QB and a headliner. He's one of the few things that makes me watch WWE."

[9.0] "Cody is an undeniable talent and a consummate professional - and also probably the most "relatable" champ out there, with his life and specifics (the nerdy stuff, the marriage and family, etc) largely laid out on the table. He denied and defied a backslide on the WWE card to become a name that transcends that company - and one that elevated and legitimized its main current (at time of writing) competition. *He turned The Rock heel.* And honestly, I don't think I remember any one of his matches as Champ - apart from maybe the loss to Cena - to have been a bad match. Right now, Cody's capital may be in question. The company has pushed his "QB1" status and moniker too far, and it has only really hurt him. I believe he needs less commercial stuff and more matches and personal feuds. I think that Cody is at his best when his character feels believably threatened, and when that fake smile is cracking - and it's because of how rarely the Fed believably books feuds like that that I rate him a 9 and not a 10."

"Cody is honestly someone who should be the face of WWE right now. That Undisputed Championship looks amazing on him. In-ring, he's solid, also his promos and match storytelling show the polish of years in the business. The problem is WWE hasn't really given him the storylines a champion deserves. Since taking the title from Roman, he's mostly been handed transitional opponents, with no fresh angles or proper feuds, which takes away that 2024 "American Nightmare" fire. Makes the belt feel a bit hollow. Cody's exactly the kind of wrestler future fans will look back on the same way we admire past icons. But if things keep going like this, I don't know how fired up he can really be. Of course being a QB1 of the company might keep him motivated financially, but emotionally, who knows?"

"Cody has firmly positioned himself as a phenomenal Ace in the modern wrestling landscape and is clearly WWE's top guy and should be for years to come, his work throughout his career has been fine but the last 3 have been on another level."

[7.0] "I have still yet to be fully convinced on him, he seems very stale as a face. It also seems that a majority of his feuds he is out done by his opponents (AJ Styles, Roman, Gunther, Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins). WWE Does a very very good job at hiding his flaws. I also am not sold on him in the ring, he is good but doesn't do anything amazing. Now to the good, he connects very well with the audience and is a very convincing underdog, might be why he is always seems to be out done. He is good on the mic and uses anything he can get his hands on to make the feud work. And the "Finish the story" was very good and the match that went along with was amazing. Overall I don't dislike Cody, in fact I really like him and I think he fits perfectly with the WWE, however he isn't exceptional, he is a average in ring worker and is a very 1 dimensional face."

[10.0] "In what was a year filled with questionable booking and a initially promising fued, that very much could've destroyed Cody, I think the reactions he still manages to get every time his music hits, and the fact that he not only managed to hold his own on the mic with Cena, but also carry Cena in what was one of the best matches of the year in my opinion Cody just keeps proving every single person who ever doubted him wrong. Cody had my personal favorite return ever (not necessarily due to having the biggest pop or even best match) but just him man. I at the time was following wrestling still on a regular basis but I wasn't watching PLE's in full for the most parts, and the build for Wrestlemania was very anti climatic, but when I heard Seth might be having a match with the one and only Cody Rhodes (very much a talented midcarder back when I use to watch every episode and PPV) intrigued me. If it was anyone else that came out that night I would have thought well that was cool and move on. But the aura this man just exudes, mixed with the picture perfect commentary just telling everyone how high Cody's inring IQ was, Corey Graves with one of the most iconic calls ever "from Undesirable to Undeniable" and by the time Cody did the Stardust emote with yet another iconic Corey Graves call "that wasn't showboating, that was shedding skin, that was shrudding off the past, that was a fresh start for the American Nightmare Cody Rhodes" I was sold hook, line and sinker. So it was significant especially for me cause it was very much the reason I still watch wrestling and didn't stop. Regardless he then went on to have an absolute banger fued with Seth, winning the blowoff match is what was the best ever show of respect for the business. Cody wrestling with his chest looking like that, was not only a massive nod towards Seth and how well Cody regards him to trust him in that match, but was also a 20minute superhuman showcase of pure heart, strength, and it was Cody telling us he appreciates us and he knows he wouldn't be there without us, and ultimately that match went down as 20minutes of exceptional wrestling, which ended with Cody going 3-0 against Seth and Cody really elevated himself that night, Seth aswell. And since then Cody really hasn't missed a step? I was initially scared fans would start turning due to his very much emotional drama like promos initially but for the most part he doesn't do it anymore and if he does he cuts down the theatrical feel. But anyway lets recap his accomplishments since why dont we? - Cody returns from injury (the one from the iconic Seth fued) at number 30 in the Rumble. Has a very good mini match with Gunther and ultimately eliminated him to win. From there we had the start of the Roman fued which at the start was so so so good. Every promo they had, every moment they had , every interaction they had was so good. Obviously that led to the main event of Wrestlemania 39 and .. well yeah , I think everyone knows what happened by now. If we were to ignore hindsight and just go with what everyone felt at the time it happened that was very much a match edging on being regarded as a 5star banger, their chemistry was phenomenal but what was immediately overshadowed by what at the time was one of the most questionable calls ever, Cody with all his hype, the crowd support, the story .. ended up losing. The next night we had Brock turning on Cody for some reason, which led to what I actually think was a very good fued. Cody went 2-1 againt Brock which is insane cause Brock doesn't really lose matches except if its against Roman and all their matches was short but good, not amazing but solid imo. From there Cody had a few underwhelming fueds but impressively managed to stay very over and giving overall very good performances, even with his Tag Team Title win with Jey. Then glossing over the returns and everything we arrived at the next Royal Rumble. This time we had a massive storyline built in - Punk returned. Would Cody go 2 for 2 - first time in 20+ years or will Punk prevail and cement his return in what was and always will be one of the craziest roads from walking out on the company, a 7 year hatred of the company, somehow despite all that leading to one of the best returns ever. It was a very underwhelming match, but finally we ended up with the final 2 - Cody and Punk. And man did this make the prior years "good minimatch with Gunther" look like amateur work. Insane storytelling, both getting very close to the win ended with Punk uttering the words ", "I didn't wait 10 years to lose to Dusty's kid." Which was the perfect cinematic way for Cody to reverse Punk , hit his Crossrhodes and eminate Punk. And man Cody did it . First time since Stone Cold over 20years prior Cody went back to back. And man who doesn't get goosebumps seeing that part at the end where Cody pointed to Roman cementing the decision that Roman is the guy, Cody wants to run back the prior years loss. Then ofc we had the attempted swerve with The Rock returning and trying to take Codys spot in the main event, not going to go play by play with that but very notably the main thing that came from that period was the crowd actually turned on The Rock (no im not joking) and started booing him and crowds were filled with constant "We want Cody chants" which is insane. This led to Cody having 2 main events at the same Mania, night 1 being a good enough tag match that ended with Rock pinning Cody. But the next night. Cody and Romam gave us what I will always consider (I seriously dont think it will ever be topped) the greatest Wrestlemania main event, and match, and moment ever. With a WCW reminiscent overbooked 30+ min alltime banger. And the ending man. Oh my. Cody hits the 3 Crossrhoades, he goes for the pin, and as the ref counts three Michael Cole perfectly sums this whole journey up with the words "Cody completes his story" .. you could see the crowd's excitement mixed with the shock, Cody ju"

[7.0] "Overall, Cody Rhodes is a good wrestler whose best strength is telling a great story in his matches. He's good enough in-ring to put on workrate matches if needed but I wouldn't consider him a top in-ring performer. He's perfectly fine where he's at."