The talented second-generation star, son of Dusty and brother of Dustin, has seen his career in WWE become bogged down by countless "start-and-stop" pushes over the years. Cody entered WWE in the middle of his father's feud with Randy Orton. From there, he entered a tag team with Hardcore Holly and became tag champion shortly after that. The duo, a mentor-protege type, held the title for months on end, thanks largely to a lack of legitimate competition. Then young Ted DiBiase arrived on the scene and Rhodes' career would forever change. Cody turned on Holly and joined DiBiase as new champions. The team would drop the titles to Kofi Kingston and CM Punk in the fall of 2008 but would form a bond with Randy Orton, himself a third-generation star. Together, they formed a faction known as Legacy. The group would dominate WWE Raw for an entire year. Rhodes, with DiBiase, found himself competing against the likes of Triple H, Shawn Michaels and John Cena on a nightly basis, exposing him to millions of viewers in main events across the country. When it came time to split the group up, many expected Rhodes to be the odd man out. So much was planned for DiBiase and Orton was already an established Superstar. Instead, Rhodes far overshadowed DiBiase. He began a narcissist gimmick in the fall of 2010 that did not quite stick as well as it was intended but Cody continued to show great skill between the ropes. It was a match against Rey Mysterio in January of 2011 that changed his fortunes. The character suffered a broken nose and other facial injuries after catching Mysterio's knee brace to the face during a 619 attempt and descended into madness. He wore a mask, cut slow and methodical promos that played up his ugliness. It was the first time Rhodes had really gotten over on his own but for some reason, the gimmick was dropped later in 2011 and the performer reverted back to being "just Cody Rhodes." He won the Intercontinental title, held it for a while and then found himself back doing nothing of note. A feud with Big Show here, a rivalry with Christian there but otherwise, Rhodes was left to wallow away. He formed a team with Damien Sandow that had moderate success but it never really went anywhere. By July, he was split from Sandow and on his own again. Then came the angle with The Authority that made both he and brother Goldust as hot as ever. As a team, they were wildly popular thanks to a feud with The Shield, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, and remained that way through the end of 2013. They won the tag titles and single-handedly elevated the tag team division during their reign with the straps. Suddenly, they lost the titles to the New Age Outlaws. They push halted and they were nearly left off the WrestleMania 30 card, their only savior being the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal. The team is on its way to disbanding thanks to a breakup storyline in which Cody is becoming more and more jealous of his brother's winning ways every week but only time will tell if the story will benefit the younger Rhodes.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
