10 Best Wrestling Talkers Of 2019 (So Far)
5. Cody
Cody built the foundations of the most emotionally rich match in decades over the course of a uniquely-framed, expertly-delivered four minute promo.
It was as traditional in aim as his glorious, throwback bloodbath matches. The first thing he did was put over his opponent, his brother, as a living legend - a vision of star-power - restoring his aura in the span of seconds. The content was florid, the execution clinical. It all seemed a little too refined, too perfect, but that was the masterstroke: Cody presented himself as the perfect son in contrast to his troubled waster of an older sibling, leaning on his new Game schtick to encourage the audience to get behind Dustin's gritty, raw authenticity.
Not just epic but literally biblical, the cheese element was magnificent old school pro wrestling theatre. Cody, visibly distressed at the notion of putting his old hero out to pasture, delivered it all with a lump in his throat, setting the scene exquisitely for Double Or Nothing's not-a-dry-eye-in-the-house masterpiece.
"I love my brother," he closed, repeating his opening line, the effect of which was stunning in expanding the emotional range of the story and its unbearable, time-tested conflict.