The best stories in pro wrestling are the ones that blur kayfabe and reality. In today's age, there's often a defined line between the behind-the-scenes of a promotion and the matches and storylines shown on TV. When those two combine, though, you most likely will get a masterful piece of storytelling that will be told for decades to come. The WWE has once again done exactly that with their WrestleMania build-up, somehow, with Cody Rhodes, The Rock, and Roman Reigns headed for a titanic battle.
By now, you probably know the build-up to the press conference. Cody Rhodes, the winner of the 2024 Royal Rumble, confusingly gave away his chance at a Roman Reigns rematch to The Rock. It was an infuriating time for fans, especially with reports that Rocky politicked his way into the Mania main event scene. It was the worst way to build up what was supposed to be a legendary WWE dream match between Rock and Reigns.
WrestleMania 40 Kick-Off Show was on FIRE
Well, after the WrestleMania Kick-Off show, we have either been bamboozled completely by Triple H, or that the WWE creative team decided to listen to the fans. The segment between Rock, Rhodes, Reigns, and Seth Rollins was perfect in every possible way.
The Rock, instead of trying to be the babyface like he's always been, pivoted to a more menacing heel, a cross between Reigns' egomaniacal persona and Corporate Rock. Reigns, as always, was the almighty Tribal Chief, but we saw hints of him deferring to Rocky. And of course, Rhodes and Rollins were there as the babyfaces, the voices of the vocal WWE community rallying against another awful booking scenario. It was the perfect set-up to the story between these four men.
Things started to escalate when Cody Rhodes crashed The Rock and Roman Reigns' verbal tirade against Seth Rollins. The American Nightmare went absolutely ballistic on the Samoan duo. He first declared (much to the horror of both Rocky and Reigns) that he will be challenging Roman Reigns for the Universal Title at WrestleMania. A war of words then broke out, with Reigns trying to push Rhodes away from the main event, while Rhodes insulted the two by challenging their status as the “Head of the Table” with this awesome diss.
After Reigns dissed Cody's father Dusty Rhodes, the American Nightmare shot back at him and The Rock. Cody claimed that if both Reigns and Rock's grandfathers were alive, they'd be ashamed of the duo. That's when Rock stepped in. Claiming that no one disrespects his and Reigns' families, Rock proceeded to slap Rhodes. The two had to be pulled back (with Rollins intervening to defend Rhodes, bad leg and all) before the WWE kick-off show closed.
WWE may have fixed the problems they created
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This was, by far, one of the best segments that WWE has ever produced in its history. From the four main characters playing their role perfectly, to Big E and CM Punk perfectly fitting in with Michael Cole and Pat McAfee on the desk (Punk even getting jabs in against Rock), to the backstage segment between the Bloodline and Triple H, this was perfect.
It also did its intended job quite well. A lot of WWE fans reacted negatively to Cody Rhodes seemingly being robbed of his much-deserved rematch against Roman Reigns. We all knew that Rhodes was the babyface of the company, but the whole booking debacle showed that the American Nightmare might just exceed John Cena and Hulk Hogan in terms of being the true face of the company. Nearly everyone rallied behind Rhodes, wanting him to finish the story that he started when he returned to WWE, the story that he was being robbed by The Rock.
Early reports after that doomed SmackDown segment indicated that The Rock, now a board member of the TKO group, pushed heavily for him to be part of the WrestleMania 40 scene. As we've talked about before, Rock-Roman is a dream match, but fans absolutely hated how they brushed aside Rhodes for seemingly no reason (in kayfabe, at least).
Let's be clear: this story still doesn't make a ton of sense. Why did Cody even give up his spot against Roman in the first place? At the very least, though, this “ret-con” of the story puts WWE back on the good graces of their fans. The segment gives Triple H and co. room to move forward and still involve Rock in the story without putting their top babyface by the wayside. This could set up an eventual face turn by Rock or Roman (when one of them eventually betrays the other), while Cody and the WWE fans get the much-needed conclusion to his two-year long story.
It also gives Rollins' character more life. One of the unfortunate consequences of the SmackDown segment is the burial of Rollins and the World Heavyweight Title. Reigns repeatedly referred to the WHC as a Tier 2 prize, one not worth fighting for with Seth holding it. While the WHC might still be buried, Rollins at least looked strong in this segment, sticking up for his old rival. It adds more to Seth's story: he's basically the mouthpiece for the modern wrestling fan, the fan that doesn't want part-timers sullying the prestige of the titles by wrestling a handful of times a year.
Already, fans are brewing their dream booking scenarios for the Rock-Rhodes-Reigns story. It took a bit of a bumpy road, but the WWE has finally found their way back on the right path. Let's trust that they'll continue on that path.
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