# Black squashed Cody and looked like a star doing it



## Prosper (Mar 25, 2015)

I was expecting more from the match but with it being a squash I was okay with it. Much like the Brodie situation last year. Cody did the right thing. I definitely think they should run it back for an actual match at All Out though, these 2 can put on a banger in a non-squash situation. And Cody needs to do the job again. 

Black looked great though. Loved the entrance and the mask. Cool ring attire and music. Can't wait for what's in store for him in AEW.


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## LifeInCattleClass (Dec 21, 2010)

Yup - as said in weekly thread / i’m sold

Black looked legit - good work by all involved


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## Mr316 (Dec 3, 2020)

He did look like a star. Incredible stuff to close the show.


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## Geeee (Aug 9, 2010)

I hope Malakai carries around Cody's boot as a trophy


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## Chan Hung (Dec 28, 2011)

I agree with you OP. This was the best booked match, made sense and made Black look great. Whereas the rest of the show tonight made the remaining top talent look like a complete joke having such a hard time beating no names.


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## Derek30 (Jan 3, 2012)

Black doesn’t have to say much if that’s how he carries himself. Just a brooding, sadistic bastard.


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## Freelancer (Aug 24, 2010)

AEW booked him better in 10 min than garbage WWE did in years. No surprise here.


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## Prized Fighter (Aug 31, 2016)

He is a star and I have been saying this from the start. Black understands every part of what makes a good match and how to sell the moment. His facial selling, the impact of his moves, the entrance, his storytelling and his finisher are all top quality. I did get a bit nervous that Cody was about to steal his moment, but it ended correctly.


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## DaSlacker (Feb 9, 2020)

Freelancer said:


> AEW booked him better in 10 min than garbage WWE did in years. No surprise here.


He was booked brilliantly in NXT. Then they brought him to Raw as an afterthought and soon the marks were all "he's trash and boring". Digressing but between McMahon and the loyalists, the WWE will never have another true male megastar again because they don't nurture talent and play to its strengths. They'll still be talking about the class of 2002 in 10 years time. 

That's how you book a guy like Black.


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## Jnewt (Jan 12, 2018)

Geeee said:


> I hope Malakai carries around Cody's boot as a trophy


Or wear it.


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## scshaastin (Feb 24, 2016)

I’m waiting for Ric Flair to come out next week and tell Cody

Woooooooooooo! You can never retire!


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## Prized Fighter (Aug 31, 2016)

Seriously, look at how good this presentation looks. This dude seriously gets it.


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## One Shed (Jan 7, 2014)

Yup. I have long been a fan of Black. Very much looking forward to what he can do here.


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## PhenomenalOne11 (Oct 2, 2016)

Still not a fan of Black by any means and think he lacks that It Factor to be a star, but that was good.


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## White Glove Test (Jun 19, 2007)

I normally wouldn't feel this way, but props to Cody for the 2nd time doing a squash job for a misused ex wwe employee's first match in AEW. That was a cool match.


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## IAmKaim (Jul 7, 2021)

Love how Cody just had to cut a random emotional promo afterwards though lmao. Such a narcissist.


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## DammitChrist (Apr 3, 2016)

IAmKaim said:


> Love how Cody just had to cut a random emotional promo afterwards though lmao. Such a narcissist.


That "random," emotional promo by Cody Rhodes made Malakai Black look like a bigger heel for cutting him off afterwards with an attack.


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## IAmKaim (Jul 7, 2021)

DammitChrist said:


> That "random," emotional promo by Cody Rhodes made Malakai Black look like a bigger heel for cutting him off afterwards with an attack.


I think it would have been better personally if they just ended the show with Black winning and then having the Cody promo and Black's attack a week later. It just felt out of place imo.


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## PhenomenalOne11 (Oct 2, 2016)

DammitChrist said:


> That "random," emotional promo by Cody Rhodes made Malakai Black look like a bigger heel for cutting him off afterwards with an attack.


Sometimes less is more though, they'd already established Black as a big heel.


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## BrrrGoesWooo! (Mar 29, 2021)

IAmKaim said:


> Love how Cody just had to cut a random emotional promo afterwards though lmao. Such a narcissist.


Not random. Cody knows how to get people over with a massive debut, especially if he's gonna be a narcissist about it all in the end, lol !


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## Stellar (May 30, 2016)

Lets just be happy that Malakai Black is looking great so far in AEW.


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## Wolf Mark (Jun 5, 2020)

When Cody talked about his "retirement" and removing his boot, instead of Black coming in and hitting him, I was hoping we would hear the familar 2001 Space Odyssey music and then see the Nature Boy coming in and deliver an epic promo convincing Cody to not retire.

Because.... NEVER RETIRE! YOU DIE IN THE RING! WOOOOO!!!


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## thorn123 (Oct 10, 2019)

yeh Cody never puts people over and always has to be the best ... except he has put over Darby, Lee, MJF and Black. And each has been the better for it.


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## Hephaesteus (Aug 20, 2018)

DaveRA said:


> yeh Cody never puts people over and always has to be the best ... except he has put over Darby, Lee, MJF and Black. And each has been the better for it.


Has been the victim of two of the biggest squashes in aew history yet is just like HHH


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## Corporate Rock (Apr 9, 2014)

Definitely happy with the result, Cody crying on the mic is a bit old now though.


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## Nickademus_Eternal (Feb 24, 2014)

Hephaesteus said:


> Has been the victim of two of the biggest squashes in aew history yet is just like HHH


I never got this stupid shit. Hes been squashed countless times since being in aew but he's "TrIpLe H!". Whoever says or think that frankly don't know what they're talking about. And I applaud Cody for taking the loss. It would have more sense for Malachi to win.


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## 5 Star Giulia ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (Apr 21, 2014)

Prosper said:


> I was expecting more from the match but with it being a squash I was okay with it. Much like the Brodie situation last year. Cody did the right thing. I definitely think they should run it back for an actual match at All Out though, these 2 can put on a banger in a non-squash situation. And Cody needs to do the job again.
> 
> Black looked great though. Loved the entrance and the mask. Cool ring attire and music. Can't wait for what's in store for him in AEW.


*Yeah, it makes it even more annoying that they have these 20-minute matches between stars and jobbers when they clearly know that a squash is much more effective in getting people over.*


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## DZ Crew (Sep 26, 2016)

Black looked great here. Figures Cody has to come in and hot the spotlight as usual in yet another attempt to be Dusty. The guy needs to accept the fact that he's a mid card act. But i have high hopes for Black. Shame wwe didn't see his potential.


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## CM Buck (Sep 2, 2012)

As long as we don't get Cody going over black in the end I'm good. I loved the execution of this though. I hated the generic face promo though. Cody has cut too many of them that they have lost their luster


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## Patrick Mercier (Nov 29, 2019)

If I'm AEW, I'm having Cody skipping All Out to sell the end of tonight's show. Hell, if possible, I'd book Black vs Dustin at All Out in the process. If they can find a way to stretch the rematch a bit until Full Gear in November, I think we could have an amazing feud.


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## IpostHIGH (Feb 5, 2017)

Holy shit.

That entrance music. The lights.

The walk. The entrance.

That's how you produce a star.


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## ATamzarian (Sep 3, 2018)

Seriously guys? 
Cody is taking time off to film Season 2 of that Game Show, he lost to Black, will return in a few months attacking Black, cutting a promo on each other over the following 2 weeks and end the "feud" with an unrelated Gimmick Match that Cody's Daddeh has previously done with Cody going over clean.

Don't get worked by a standard Cody feud.


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## RogueSlayer (Mar 31, 2021)

Black was great in NXT and he's been great so far in AEW. Vince hates NXT he's sees it as the loser brand so anybody who comes up from NXT to WWE main roster will get treated like shit.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

Judging by WF's opinion, Cody Rhodes has by now made more stars than the pillars of creation. That fucker isn't even a star himself, except perhaps in his own mind.

A celebrity? Certainly. A star? Eh.



ATamzarian said:


> Seriously guys?
> Cody is taking time off to film Season 2 of that Game Show, he lost to Black, will return in a few months attacking Black, cutting a promo on each other over the following 2 weeks and end the "feud" with an unrelated Gimmick Match that Cody's Daddeh has previously done with Cody going over clean.
> 
> Don't get worked by a standard Cody feud.


This. The guy is a sociopath and phoney and constantly going into business for himself, and people are gullible enough to gobble up and ruminate his BS.


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

But I thought Cody was HHH Jr? 

Cody is brilliant.


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

IAmKaim said:


> Love how Cody just had to cut a random emotional promo afterwards though lmao. Such a narcissist.


He was setting up an angle you fool


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## Zapato (Jun 7, 2015)

As others have said, as good as he was putting over Black in the match and I know Black got the crutch shot at the end; there was no need for the promo. Well except to shine up Cody and that’s where the Haitch during the reign of terror days comparison comes. I instantly thought of Flair as well, especially with Gallows earlier in the night having the robe. I get the promo was setting up what is to come, but did that have to come tonight. Why not end with the words on everyone’s lips being Black destroying him? It felt WWE esque in that they crammed weeks of programming into one segment, and the danger of that is it gets lost when ‘Cult of Personality’ hits and Cody wants a slice of that.

I admit, I just do not like Cody so I do get a bitter taste as soon as he gets to cut another droning sympathetic promo. Maybe it was just my ears but before he dragged himself to his feet expecting the crowd to cheer every breath, I swear I heard a ‘Na Na Na, Hey Hey Hey…’ chant that sort of got going and it brought a smile to my face as I thought the crowd were finally getting it, but it died down and he got in the AEW props to get the cheers.

A more adept comparison for me in comparison to Haitch, who Cody thinks he is, is actually Jeff Jarrett. Forcing it over and over but never comes across natural. He shares the Haitch traits in that whoever is put over he comes out on top or moves on making those he put over irrelevant but other than Jeff being given multiple title reigns no one cared about, Cody like Jeff keeps being put in up there and involved with anyone and everyone when Joe Public barely knows who he is.

But let’s concentrate on the important thing before Cody goes over him. They made Black look a star, back to the level he was in the NXT days (I would say the indies but I never watched any of Tommy End). Hopefully Black can grow from that rather than just getting lost in the shuffle with the new guys coming in soon, and after Cody cashes in the receipt before hyping his new shows.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

Hephaesteus said:


> Has been the victim of two of the biggest squashes in aew history yet is just like HHH


He managed to pass his loss to Brodie Lee off as a slip up and got his win back to become the first and only 2-time TNT champion. How can you be so blind?


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## thorn123 (Oct 10, 2019)

Cody does what’s best for AEW


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

The_Great_One21 said:


> He was setting up an angle you fool


He was setting up yet another angle where he is the super sympathetic babyface (which he is only in his own mind) that got wronged. He's done this time and time again, yet you people refuse to see it. Motherfucker is a master manipulator, I'll give him that.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

DaveRA said:


> Cody does what’s best for AEW


Because he thinks he's best for AEW.


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

You Cody haters are fucking weirdos.


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## LifeInCattleClass (Dec 21, 2010)

The_Great_One21 said:


> You Cody haters are fucking weirdos.


….. i didn’t want to be the one to say it


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## RogueSlayer (Mar 31, 2021)

Cody isn't Triple H he's more like a Poor man's slapnuts lol


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

LifeInCattleClass said:


> ….. i didn’t want to be the one to say it


It’s bizarre. They literally get angry at everything.

_Cody hits one move_

“OH FUCKS SAKE YOU SEE THAT HHH JR PUTTING HIMSELF OVER HITTING A MOVE”

It’s so tiresome. The guy’s basically a permanent midcarder so right there it proves he isn’t just pushing himself to the top. God forbid he tries to make midcard feuds mean something.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

The_Great_One21 said:


> You Cody haters are fucking weirdos.


This is the second insult that you had to resort to in this thread. Asshole.


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> This is the second insult that you had to resort to in this thread. Asshole.


Munch me bitch


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## ATamzarian (Sep 3, 2018)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> This. The guy is a sociopath and phoney and constantly going into business for himself, and people are gullible enough to gobble up and ruminate his BS.


Let's not go nuts now, he's just a Wrestler looking out for what's best for him and his Family. No different than anyone else who books themselves, I wouldn't call them Sociopaths.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

ATamzarian said:


> Let's not go nuts now, he's just a Wrestler looking out for what's best for him and his Family. No different than* anyone else who books themselves, I wouldn't call them Sociopaths*.


Neither would I. Cody however...


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## thorn123 (Oct 10, 2019)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> Because he thinks he's best for AEW.


so do a million plus viewers each week


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## Piers (Sep 1, 2015)

Did Cody really put someone over ?


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## rbl85 (Nov 21, 2017)

Chan Hung said:


> I agree with you OP. This was the best booked match, made sense and made Black look great. Whereas the rest of the show tonight made the remaining top talent look like a complete joke having such a hard time beating no names.


How can no names become names if they get squashed everytime they face a big name ?


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## Typical Cena Fan (May 18, 2016)

His new ring attire is class much better then then the put everybody in black trunks WWE. I’m actually going watch this match on YouTube


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## Geert Wilders (Jan 18, 2021)

Cody loves the surprise squash and then come back as the underdog and win the rematch. That's his forte. Remember Brodie Lee.


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## CM Buck (Sep 2, 2012)

Geert Wilders said:


> Cody loves the surprise squash and then come back as the underdog and win the rematch. That's his forte. Remember Brodie Lee.


To be fair brodie was dying so they needed it off him quick.

Edit:sick. Sorry dying was too blunt

Also @The_Great_One21 stop being a jerk


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

Firefromthegods said:


> To be fair brodie was dying so they needed it off him quick.
> 
> Edit:sick. Sorry dying was too blunt
> 
> Also @The_Great_One21 stop being a jerk


Someone calls me an asshole and i’m the jerk? Ok 👍


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## CM Buck (Sep 2, 2012)

The_Great_One21 said:


> Someone calls me an asshole and i’m the jerk? Ok 👍


Because you were calling Cody haters fucking weirdos. Kopos also got in trouble for Insulting you

If you don't want to be attacked do not bait in the first place


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

Firefromthegods said:


> Because you were calling Cody haters fucking weirdos. Kopos also got in trouble for Insulting you


I think you are a weirdo if you irrationally just hate on someone over and over no matter what they do rather than judge them based on their merit.

It’s odd behaviour to take a stance and then never change no matter what.


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## CM Buck (Sep 2, 2012)

The_Great_One21 said:


> I think you are a weirdo if you irrationally just hate on someone over and over no matter what they do rather than judge them based on their merit.
> 
> It’s odd behaviour to take a stance and then never change no matter what.


No it's human nature. I hated Vegemite as a kid and it's still the most vile thing to come out of this country. Cody also earns the hate by being dramatic


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## PhenomenalOne11 (Oct 2, 2016)

Firefromthegods said:


> No it's human nature. I hated Vegemite as a kid and it's still the most vile thing to come out of this country. Cody also earns the hate by being dramatic


Revoke your Australian card now, I can't even look you in the face anymore. Vegemite is fucking delicious. Eat that shit by the spoon.


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## SAMCRO (Jul 10, 2006)

He definitely looked like a star, and i said it when i first heard he got released from WWE, that Vince is a fucking idiot and he just handed AEW their next top star. 

But he really needs to lose those small shorts and wear trunks, the shorts just looked odd like he forgot his trunks at the airport or something, besides we already got Miro wearing the shorts and kickpads.


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## PhenomenalOne11 (Oct 2, 2016)

SAMCRO said:


> He definitely looked like a star, but he really needs to lose those small shorts and wear trunks, the shorts just looked odd like he forgot his trunks at the airport or something.


Yeah that's my one complaint, the shorts take away from the character they're trying to present him as.


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## SAMCRO (Jul 10, 2006)

PhenomenalOne11 said:


> Yeah that's my one complaint, the shorts take away from the character they're trying to present him as.


Yeah doesn't fit at all, he's supposed to be this dark almost satanic character and he's wrestling in a pair of small black shorts from walmart. The rest of his gear the kickpads and kneepads looked really cool with the black scaly texture, all he needs is a pair of trunks with the same texture and he'd look perfect.


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## LifeInCattleClass (Dec 21, 2010)

PhenomenalOne11 said:


> Yeah that's my one complaint, the shorts take away from the character they're trying to present him as.


demonic kickboxer can't wear shorts? (and a thousand more images like it on the interwebs - in face, finding a kickboxer without shorts is hard)


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## Erik. (Mar 17, 2014)

To think, a company left him at home for 7 months (SEVEN) because they didn't know what to do with him...

Clueless. 

Black is great, gets the true aspect of pro wrestling.


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## Randy Lahey (Apr 14, 2014)

Black isso good in his role, that he's a heel getting cheered. He's basically a tweener at this point, and really a face. Who could they book him against where he's going to get booed? Cody's a perfect opponent for him because he's the face that the crowd hates. They need to pick another face that the crowd hates, for Black to go after. For me, I'd have Black destroy Jungle Boy. I just feel like JB, given he has no personality, is begging to get demolished and the crowd would eat it up.

I'd love it if Black would destroy Christian Cage too.


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## MarkOfAllMarks (Apr 7, 2018)

People calling Cody a sociopath don't even know what a sociopath means. That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. I'm not even a fan of the guy but some people take the hate too far.


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## rich110991 (Aug 27, 2020)

Cody! Cody! Cody!

😂

Black was 🔥


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## PhenomenalOne11 (Oct 2, 2016)

Randy Lahey said:


> Black isso good in his role, that he's a heel getting cheered. He's basically a tweener at this point, and really a face. Who could they book him against where he's going to get booed? Cody's a perfect opponent for him because he's the face that the crowd hates. They need to pick another face that the crowd hates, for Black to go after. For me, I'd have Black destroy Jungle Boy. I just feel like JB, given he has no personality, is begging to get demolished and the crowd would eat it up.
> 
> I'd love it if Black would destroy Christian Cage too.


Is a heel getting cheered a good thing? If he was doing well in his role (I think he is) wouldn't he be heavily booed?


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## LifeInCattleClass (Dec 21, 2010)

PhenomenalOne11 said:


> Is a heel getting cheered a good thing? If he was doing well in his role (I think he is) wouldn't he be heavily booed?


he's not a heel - he's the hero

he said so


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## thisissting (Aug 14, 2018)

Brilliantly sold by cody. Slight bit of colour on bridge of nose. Dr checking. One foot count hardly ever wins but did here. Loved that.

But...why the fuck send schiavone in at the end. Who interviews someone who has just been knocked out lol. Cody just as to be centre of attention at all times. Just get out of the ring no one wants to hear your shit promos. Crowd popped like at a funeral lol. Was that part of the live show on tnt? That sort of go home stuff should be kept off air. What a fucking drama queen boots off go away to fuck cody as if you were going to retire at that point. Fuck off.


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## mazzah20 (Oct 10, 2019)

thisissting said:


> Brilliantly sold by cody. Slight bit of colour on bridge of nose. Dr checking. One foot count hardly ever wins but did here. Loved that.
> 
> But...why the fuck send schiavone in at the end. Who interviews someone who has just been knocked out lol. Cody just as to be centre of attention at all times. Just get out of the ring no one wants to hear your shit promos. Crowd popped like at a funeral lol. Was that part of the live show on tnt? That sort of go home stuff should be kept off air. What a fucking drama queen boots off go away to fuck cody as if you were going to retire at that point. Fuck off.


Perfect until the monologue. 

I wish the interview consisted of a concussed Cody talking about his mortgage in broken Spanish.

So this retirement angle is leading to the debut of Ric Flair to help motivate Cody and get back to his A game, right?


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## thisissting (Aug 14, 2018)

mazzah20 said:


> Perfect until the monologue.
> 
> I wish the interview consisted of a concussed Cody talking about his mortgage in broken Spanish.
> 
> So this retirement angle is leading to the debut of Ric Flair to help motivate Cody and get back to his A game, right?


Yeah I was thinking whys tony in the ring with a mic then my heart sunk. Not sure even ric flair can save codys shite these days. He just couldnt end a show being carted out after a square beating had to pull some shit retirement promo. Away to fuck. Who the fuck is the crowd supposed to cheer for here. The cringey ego maniac face. Or the dark demonic heel who did everyone a favour including the crowd and stopped this awful promo. Its the latter. And it makes no sense lol. No one feels sorry for cody and the heel gets no heat is actually now getting his name chanted. Jeez.


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## Erik. (Mar 17, 2014)

Love how his eye 'injury' is spreading too. Almost like it taking over his body. He's going to get more and more evil over time. 

He gets it.


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## Hephaesteus (Aug 20, 2018)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> He managed to pass his loss to Brodie Lee off as a slip up and got his win back to become the first and only 2-time TNT champion. How can you be so blind?


He got his win back cuz brodie lee couldnt hold the belt due to circumstances. He then proceeded to lose it to darby and got the fuck out of the title picture but sure lets not let facts get in the way of your blind hatred


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## Lurker V2.0 (Feb 2, 2021)

White Glove Test said:


> I normally wouldn't feel this way, but props to Cody for the 2nd time doing a squash job for a misused ex wwe employee's first match in AEW. That was a cool match.


Cody had me until he tried to take the heat after the match. At the point I remembered why I just don’t like him like I used to. I’m not hating. I used to be a big fan but he has lost me in the last year or so.


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## Top bins (Jul 8, 2019)

Kudos to Cody. Cody has put everyone over. He has only been in one title match and hasn't been in the picture since. Plus he has had lame middle card feuds with QT, Anthony Ogogo and the Brodie Lee feud was cut short. You wouldn't think he was an EVP with the feuds he has had. 

Black looked great tonight.


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## zkorejo (Jul 2, 2010)

Good match. Great outcome. This was necessary. Cody trying to retire makes sense too. Black has always been a star but WWE didn't just want to use him right. 

The new entrance and entrance gear was awesome. The in ring gear was... Not so good. Loved his WWE attire.


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## Jedah (Jul 16, 2017)

That was everything it should have been. Well done. Been a fan of Black for years and this is the reason why. This character looks better than even his NXT character. If you're saying he's not a main event level talent at this point, you're hopeless.

Now if I'm AEW, I'd have Black squash Dustin at All Out.

I could have done without that crutch shot at the end though. Would have preferred Cody just to go and talk about how he had to start over. A rematch seems inevitable now. Black needs to win it if that's the case. If he doesn't, tonight was for nothing.


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## orited (Oct 30, 2007)

really enjoyed black from the minute he debuted in nxt just proves there really is an issue about booking on the wwe main roster shows compared to nxt and aew it is a shame cos black with his original nxt entrance and theme was badass as fuck hopefully this aew version can become that too


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## KingofKings1524 (Aug 27, 2007)

I’m just honestly shocked Cody laid down like that.


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## Prosper (Mar 25, 2015)

Cody vs Black II needs at least 20 minutes.


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## Bland (Feb 16, 2016)

Wasn't a fan of retirement angle after but if it leads to Cody taking a break as well as hinting at new stars coming in like Punk and Bryan to become the "workhorse faces" of Dynamite going into 2022 then it would be perfect. Cody just needs to stsy away long enough, off screen, to make a return actually mean something. Don't do a WWE and return in a couple of weeks and do Black vs Cody 2 at All Out. 

I find it intriguing Black took Cody's boot as I remember reading an older Black interview in that he previously pitched a gimmick in that he took trophies from his opponents so it looks like he may be doing it here. Would love to see boots getting tied together and then Black drags them behind him to the ring, or simple just put on a spike he carries to the ring.


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## Gwi1890 (Nov 7, 2019)

JR didn’t get it. Lol


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## SAMCRO (Jul 10, 2006)

LifeInCattleClass said:


> demonic kickboxer can't wear shorts? (and a thousand more images like it on the interwebs - in face, finding a kickboxer without shorts is hard)
> 
> View attachment 105739


No they can't, when i picture a demonic character who just so happens to do kicks, i picture an elaborate bad ass over the top attire with chains, black leather, skulls, satanic symbols, ya know like his entrance attire with the skull, and his kickpads and knees with the black shiny scales. It just looks odd and doesn't match with the rest of his look, he's got these cool high quality looking kickpads and kneepads that match with black shiny scales on them, but then he's got these generic cloth shorts on. I mean if he lost the kickpads and kneepads and put some basic black tape around his feet and went full on with a kickboxer look the shorts would not look so out of place.

His entire career he's wrestled in trunks, trunks with cool demonic symbols on them, so to see him with some basic cloth shorts on seemed weird. I mean if he's trying to go for more of a kickboxer attire i don't really get why, his character is more of a pro wrestler gimmick than a kickboxer gimmick.


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## Dickhead1990 (Aug 31, 2016)

Agreed, they really hit the nail on the head with Black's debut match here. I love the shoegaze black metal entrance and the satanic face mask too. The squash was brilliant too.

Those that rant on about Cody being the next Jarrett or HHH must have been shitting their pants seeing this.


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## DammitChrist (Apr 3, 2016)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> He managed to pass his loss to Brodie Lee off as a slip up and got his win back to become the first and only 2-time TNT champion. How can you be so blind?


Brodie Lee wasn't even supposed to win that damn TNT title to begin with last year. Cody Rhodes was ALWAYS going to drop that championship to Darby Allin in the end. 

Cody could've easily kept that TNT championship when he had to go away for a month last year; but instead, he decided to give Brodie a short title run with a HUGE rub by allowing himself to get squashed.

For the record, Brodie beating a top guy in 3 minutes looks WAY more impressive than Cody surviving the monster heel with a victory after 20 minutes


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## yeahbaby! (Jan 27, 2014)

Great debut, the guy's a star. They should book him like the Undertaker. A special attraction.


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## Nacho Esqueleto (Aug 5, 2021)

Firefromthegods said:


> I hated Vegemite as a kid and it's still the most vile thing to come out of this country.


I completely agree! Marmite is sooo much better. 🤣🤣


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## Wolf Mark (Jun 5, 2020)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> Judging by WF's opinion, Cody Rhodes has by now made more stars than the pillars of creation. That fucker isn't even a star himself, except perhaps in his own mind.
> 
> A celebrity? Certainly. A star? Eh.
> 
> ...


I don't think people think he has retired. lol


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## bdon (Nov 12, 2019)

I posted this elsewhere:

Cody vs Black was an ok match. The post match stuff, I want to be clear, was fucking incredible. I was worked. I legit thought Cody was about to just hang them up in front of Daily’s Place and focus on living out a new dream of trying to be the best booker in the world. I was enjoying it. I ENJOYED it and even felt some pain for the man, proud of what he and the Bucks and Kenny have achieved. It was very well done.

BUT!!!!!

This wouldn’t be a Cody rHHHodes if it didn’t have one or two goddamn moments that do too goddamn much and ruin an otherwise great idea:

1) When he got kicked from the top rope to the table on the floor. That’s it. That’s the match, Cody. End it there with that shocking bump, make that fall meaningful. Sell it as if your shoulder is broke. Sell it as if you’re gonna have to be carted out. 10 count and be done. Simple as that. That was a GREAT spot that you ruined by having to make it back into the ring only to get knocked out for the 3 count.

Either eat the 10 count or don’t do the spot at all. I get that they had to have Cody in the ring did that post match promo, but you have to choose: the table spot or the promo.

That would have been a wonderful spot to save as a finish to something else in the future. Now that spot and 10 count finish is forever ruined, because “well Cody got back up from it”. I’m not even angry about it, because the promo was great. Just trying to show y’all ways where Cody’s try hard attitude really hurts him.

2) Since you’re going to sell this retirement so well, then you absolutely can not have Black come back into the ring to wallop Cody. It completely alerts the fanbase that Cody isn’t gone, and more importantly, that Cody will be getting his goddamn retribution now.

Leave the fans hanging on what Cody meant by leaving one boot in the ring moments after being so cleanly squashed.



I loved the promo work and was totally worked. When he began talking legacies, I genuinely thought he was gonna retire. Then he mentioned everyone laughing at 3 years ago, saying how much he loved the EVPs even if there was some dissension, and I was convinced that he was willing to pull back the curtain to say how much those guys mean to him for giving him a second life in this business on a national stage.

But those above 2 moments take what could have a 10/10 Cody quarter hour and make it a 7. Just stop doing too much, man!





IAmKaim said:


> I think it would have been better personally if they just ended the show with Black winning and then having the Cody promo and Black's attack a week later. It just felt out of place imo.


The segment ends with Cody’s retirement promo, which steals the heat from Black and focuses the sympathy towards the babyface, Cody. Wrestling fans on here don’t seem to get simple storytelling and understand this dichotomy towards our antagonists and protagonists. This was a perfect time to end Act II of this story, our hero laying on his back, unsure if he is going to get up and choose to fight, leaving our audience on the bad taste of a victorious villain. YOU WILL COME BACK NEXT WEEK OR NEXT MOVIE WANTING TO KNOW OUR HERO’S RESPONSE.

Act III begins with the hero’s retribution. Cody just gave away the answer, sending the story BACK onto him immediately. 

Think hard, without blinders, and you’ll understand the point.



DaveRA said:


> yeh Cody never puts people over and always has to be the best ... except he has put over Darby, Lee, MJF and Black. And each has been the better for it.


Read my above, man. He done the job, but he stole the heat. The heat is where does the story and the audiences emotion lie at the end. The story coming out of that squash isn’t Black’s dominance. The story ended about Cody rHHHodes and his possible retirement.


Kopros_The_Great said:


> He was setting up yet another angle where he is the super sympathetic babyface (which he is only in his own mind) that got wronged. He's done this time and time again, yet you people refuse to see it. Motherfucker is a master manipulator, I'll give him that.


Gets. It.

For a bunch of “smart marks”, y’all really don’t get wrestling.



Lurker V2.0 said:


> Cody had me until he tried to take the heat after the match. At the point I remembered why I just don’t like him like I used to. I’m not hating. I used to be a big fan but he has lost me in the last year or so.


I’d have been fine if he just retired. I’d have been fine if he simply took the 10 count. Both together is so fucking unnecessary.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

DammitChrist said:


> Brodie Lee wasn't even supposed to win that damn TNT title to begin with last year. Cody Rhodes was ALWAYS going to drop that championship to Darby Allin in the end.
> 
> Cody could've easily kept that TNT championship when he had to go away for a month last year; but instead, he decided to give Brodie a short title run with a HUGE rub by allowing himself to get squashed.
> 
> For the record, Brodie beating a top guy in 3 minutes looks WAY more impressive than Cody surviving the monster heel with a victory after 20 minutes


It was absolutely not necessary to have Cody win back the belt. Instead, have Darby take on the DO all by himself, daredevil that he is. But Cody just had to be the one to take the spotlight again. Fuck him.


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## bdon (Nov 12, 2019)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> It was absolutely not necessary to have Cody win back the belt. Instead, have Darby take on the DO all by himself, daredevil that he is. But Cody just had to be the one to take the spotlight again. Fuck him.


Take the spotlight in winning back the belt, then he had to cut into Darby’s celebration by staying in the ring and kneeling before Darby, which puts the emotion/heat/sympathy on Cody. We seen a very stark contrast of this just a few weeks ago when Mox waited until after the cameras stopped rolling to give Archer the IWGP US title.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

bdon said:


> Take the spotlight in winning back the belt, then he had to cut into Darby’s celebration by staying in the ring and *kneeling before* *Darby*, which puts the emotion/heat/sympathy on Cody. We seen a very stark contrast of this just a few weeks ago when Mox waited until after the cameras stopped rolling to give Archer the IWGP US title.


"Oh My GoD LoOk At HoW hUmBlE cOdY iS!" - Marks in 2021

Pathetic.


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## DammitChrist (Apr 3, 2016)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> It was absolutely not necessary to have Cody win back the belt. Instead, have Darby take on the DO all by himself, daredevil that he is. But Cody just had to be the one to take the spotlight again. Fuck him.





Kopros_The_Great said:


> "Oh My GoD LoOk At HoW hUmBlE cOdY iS!" - Marks in 2021
> 
> Pathetic. THAT would be a pathetic decision


First of all, grow up.

Second of all, Darby Allin has FAR more history with Cody RHodes than he does with the Dark Order. 

You don't throw away Darby's opportunity to get elevated by a top star just because of your irrational hatred for Cody.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

DammitChrist said:


> *First of all, grow up.*
> 
> Second of all, Darby Allin has FAR more history with Cody RHodes than he does with the Dark Order.
> 
> You don't throw away Darby's opportunity to get elevated by a top star just because of your irrational hatred for Cody.


No you.

Second of all: Brody Lee was all the "top star" we needed. The only one who needed "top star" Cody was Cody.


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## bdon (Nov 12, 2019)

Kopros_The_Great said:


> "Oh My GoD LoOk At HoW hUmBlE cOdY iS!" - Marks in 2021
> 
> Pathetic.


I really thought AEW fans were supposed to be SMART marks? They really do not get how those lasting visuals impact the audiences emotions.

Losing to Darby = Great humility
Letting Darby have a champions celebration on your Loss = Even greater
Kneeling before Darby = great visual…FOR CODY.

Cody‘s concept of storytelling would be like say early 2000s NBA fans finally getting Shaq vs Kobe in the NBA Finals, and Kobe wins. Yet Shaq stays on the court and does the post-game interview while Kobe stands in the background.

These are all storytelling devices, and Cody, either purposely or subconsciously, simply can NOT do any angle that doesn’t end with the heat on Cody.

For those that don’t understand the concept of heat, I’ll use magic as an example: your uncle does a silly disappearing quarter trick. He pretended to put the quarter in one hand and badly exaggerates the hand he WANTS you to pick, but your mind is solely on that other hand. The hand where the quarter is being presented does not have the heat in this instance, even though that’s where the “TA DA!!” moment is about to happen for your younger, dumber brother who is about to have his mind blown.

Darby, Brodie, MJF, and whoever else who has beat Cody in his AEW tenure is the “TA DA!!” moment with the empty hand. Yeah, it has its moment, but for anyone intelligent enough to see through the bullshit, the heat is all on Cody:

- Cody gets the triumphant return and immediately takes back the title from Brodie, wiping away Brodie’s championship win in less than 5-6 weeks.

- Darby gets the big win, but Cody kneels before him to show all the fans how humble he is, ie get sympathy for the champion losing with class

- MJF literally fucking beat Cody, and yet it was Cody on tv three nights later getting the rub of the legendary Jake the Snake Roberts coming to confront Cody, never did get a real explanation why; meanwhile MJF had a couple minutes’ long video vignette. In this instance, our babyface wasn’t much of a loser in the eyes of any audience member as a goddamn legend in Jake Roberts just came to AEW to take Cody’s portion of the pie. If MJF just won, then shouldn’t someone be wanting to come to AEW to beat HIM more than they did Cody? I thought Cody put MJF over? So, Roberts and Archer WANTED the guy who lost?

Just a few examples here. Instances where the heat is always on Cody. Whether he wins or loses, he makes a point to maintain his spot on the card and relevancy. That’s the stuff that fans HATED about Hulk Hogan. Cody is doing the exact same shit.

“Smart” marks, eh? Pretty sure we were smarter in ‘98.


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## DammitChrist (Apr 3, 2016)

bdon said:


> I really thought AEW fans were supposed to be SMART marks? They really do not get how those lasting visuals impact the audiences emotions.
> 
> Losing to Darby = Great humility
> Letting Darby have a champions celebration on your Loss = Even greater
> ...


Jesus Christ, it’s not THAT deep, dude. 

You should be smart enough to realize that.


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## IAmKaim (Jul 7, 2021)

Watch Cody win the rematch like he did with Brodie.


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

DammitChrist said:


> Jesus Christ,* it’s not THAT deep, dude.*
> 
> You should be smart enough to realize that.


And this is where you're wrong.


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## CowboyKurtAngle (Jul 18, 2014)

Seen this advert on Facebook. Looked familiar.


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## The_Great_One21 (Feb 22, 2012)

IAmKaim said:


> Watch Cody win the rematch like he did with Brodie.


And? 

Is Cody just never allowed to win for you lot ffs


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## Kopros_The_Great (Jun 26, 2014)

The_Great_One21 said:


> And?
> 
> Is Cody just never allowed to win for you lot ffs


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## zkorejo (Jul 2, 2010)

CowboyKurtAngle said:


> Seen this advert on Facebook. Looked familiar.


That's what I instantly thought of when he came out with that headgear. Leshen is the name of the monster I'm pretty sure. One of the best monsters to hunt in the game for me.

OT: I think this feud should end right here. Cody doesn't need a win back. Not for now. Revisit it later down the road. No need to trade wins, continue with the retirement angle, go do filming tv shows and aew reality show, go take time off and be a dad. Come back with a strong story and a heel turn by the time Omega is done telling his story and takes a backseat after losing the world title. 

Then Cody can do his thing. Turn heel, have a great feud with Punk, take pinnacle from MJF, hire Ric as a manager and be the top heel until he wins the world title.


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## IAmKaim (Jul 7, 2021)

The_Great_One21 said:


> And?
> 
> Is Cody just never allowed to win for you lot ffs


Kills the point of putting someone over if you just win in the rematch. That's 50/50 booking. Wrestling 101, bro.


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## Excellently Executed (May 18, 2020)

That was a great in-ring debut for Malakai Black.

Hoping AEW can continue this momentum … they don’t always have the best track record of doing that.

Not really interested in him having a longer feud with Cody or more Nightmare Family members … especially when all the other members are a huge step down … and we’ve already seen this with the QT Marshall / Cody feud.


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## Excellently Executed (May 18, 2020)

Randy Lahey said:


> Black isso good in his role, that he's a heel getting cheered. He's basically a tweener at this point, and really a face. Who could they book him against where he's going to get booed? Cody's a perfect opponent for him because he's the face that the crowd hates. They need to pick another face that the crowd hates, for Black to go after. For me, I'd have Black destroy Jungle Boy. I just feel like JB, given he has no personality, is begging to get demolished and the crowd would eat it up.
> 
> I'd love it if Black would destroy Christian Cage too.


Would definitely not have him destroy Jungle Boy right now, he just got a major push.

But Christian Cage would make a lot of sense … and he would fit the “old horses” analogy that Black made about Cody.


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## Excellently Executed (May 18, 2020)

PhenomenalOne11 said:


> Yeah that's my one complaint, the shorts take away from the character they're trying to present him as.


Malakai Black’s character is interesting … when you think of dark, demented, maybe demonic personas, you don’t necessarily think of kickboxing.

I look at Malakai Black’s eyes/face/attire and his persona … and it reminds me of Abadon, but their in-ring styles are much different.

But … I could almost see a dark twisted love story pairing the two of them together.


__
http://instagr.am/p/CSQh7wLAl1N/


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## shandcraig (Mar 23, 2008)

The_Great_One21 said:


> And?
> 
> Is Cody just never allowed to win for you lot ffs



when cody loses a match its forced, when cody wins a match its forced. Everything about him is forced. He is the only person that is booked the way he is because its forced.


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