10 Best WWE Storylines Of The Past 5 Years

1. Cross Rhodes

Daniel Bryan This is the YES era
WWE.com

Cody Rhodes has done incredible things for Ring Of Honor and New Japan since leaving WWE in 2016, but it wasn't as though he hadn't proved his worth to the organisation beyond knockabout heel work as the roster's most 'Dashing' performer.

Rhodes exhibited some unseen babyface fire fighting for his job against The Authority in 2013 after daring to stick up for Triple H's punching bag Daniel Bryan on a September edition of Raw. Losing a rigged game, Rhodes fell to Orton and fell on the hard times his father famously pontificated on decades prior. Goldust's desperate attempt to win his brother's job back went the same way, as did the face of scorned Father Dusty after being knocked out in forced fashion by a tearful Big Show. All three were then decimated by The Shield ahead of their last chance against the 'Hounds Of Justice' pairing of Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns at Battleground 2013.

The breathless pay-per-view brawl earned them their jobs back, but a Tag Team Title victory for the babyfaces eight days later was the peak of the angle. Victims of The Shield's numerical advantage without Dusty policing the arena floor, Show emerged from his own obscurity to atone for his original sin, leathering all three with knockout punches to gift them remarkable glory.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett