The Secret Truth Behind The AEW Codyverse
Maybe the Codyverse was just some strange dream, after all...
In the summer and autumn of 2021, virtually everybody in and who supported All Elite Wrestling was enjoying a wonderful time.
The "feeling" of old is probably best exemplified by the Death match between Chris Jericho and Nick Gage from the July 28 Dynamite. In AEW, red-hot even before the arrivals of CM Punk and Bryan Danielson, TV legends could wrestle people you'd never expect to see on TV in matches that you didn't think would be allowed on TV. The subplots alone were outrageously good.
AEW was magic - literally, impossibly good. Wrestling was back - spiritually, and in the arenas following the pandemic. Everybody rejoiced.
Except Cody Rhodes.
Cody had isolated himself from the World title picture all the way back at Full Gear 2019, by losing a "last chance" match to Chris Jericho, and, across 2020, had reinvented himself as an act in the puro Ace vein.
He wasn't a babyface nor a heel, he was a champion, and despite rediscovering how powerful and successful the US top guy role was - he was ungodly over in a feud with of all people Shawn Spears - decided to play situational heel in matches designed to get various opponents, Eddie Kingston most notably, over in defeat.
Into 2021, confused fans struggled to grasp his character and were all too keen to jeer him. Even though stars in wrestling need to win in order to preserve their star power - Jericho loses constantly and hasn't called himself the DemoGod in quite some time - Cody drew a minor backlash for winning matches he really ought to have won. A victory over Penta El Zero Miedo on March 11 was particularly controversial. He then tried to "solve racism" in a stupidly over-ambitious programme against Anthony Ogogo, after which he tumbled into what was designated the 'Codyverse'.
How to unpack something as bizarre and slippery as the Codyverse?
Right.
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