Cody Rhodes has rubbed many people the wrong way recently. But why is that? Could it be the way he always comes out on top in every feud he's in? Or is it his over the top, self-indulgent entrances? Maybe it's his neck tattoo? At AEW’s latest PPV, Double or Nothing, is when the reason really became clear to me: His "gimmick" was out of date and tone deaf.
Nowadays, being overly proud to be American can come across as insensitive. There's so much corruption and racial injustices happening every day in this country. This doesn't mean you can't be proud of where you come from, but like in all things in life, there has to be a balance. However, Cody takes this "Proud to be American" gimmick to the extreme. There are examples of “All American” gimmicks being done right in wrestling. Kurt Angle made a career of representing America in the olympics and winning a gold medal (with a broken freaking neck). American Alpha legit has “American” in their name but it never came across as overly patriotic. These two examples took the positives of the “All American” stereotypes, such as being hardworking, determined and brave and implemented that into their brands and personalities. Cody, on the other hand, takes everything people hate about Americans, takes it to the extreme and presents himself as the babyface. The problem with having a “good ole American” gimmick is you can alienate viewers. People of all nationalities and races could cheer for Kurt Angle and American Alpha. However, if you present yourself as a borderline nationalist, many will not want to cheer for you. Jack Swagger is a version of how an extremist American gimmick can make you dislikable- but at least he was a heel. We’re supposed to be cheering for Cody.
I really had no problem with Cody or his character until a couple of weeks ago. Sure, he had his faults that I mentioned in the beginning, but I let it be. It wasn’t until his feud with Anthony Ogogo that I started seeing the cracks in his work. This feud started after Anthony gut punched Cody and laid the Union Jack flag on him. Cody, being a proud American, was furious to have another country’s flag thrown on him and felt disrespected. The next week Cody cuts one of the weirdest, all over the place promos I've ever heard. To really understand why this promo did not work, I have to break it down.
Cody starts off by addressing Anthony Ogogo and how he has “run down and verbally berated the United States.” Cody brings up how Anthony has brought up the “anger, argument and division” in the country. This is absolutely not Cody’s place to tell how a half black immigrant should feel about the current state of this country. Plus, Anthony’s only made himself more likeable by addressing faults the U.S. has and the dark moments in our history on his twitter and in interviews. He is very unapologetic and upfront about it too, which is refreshing to see a wrestler be vocal and take a clear stand. But back to the promo, Cody then brings up how Anthony shouldn’t be complaining about anything when he gets a visa and money from the United States. Cody even says that Anthony didn’t come here to “live the England dream”. The whole promo gave off odd, anti-immigration vibes. It felt as if he was angry that Anthony dared come to the U.S. and complain about the racism that is still apparent today. It gave very much “if you don’t like it, then leave” vibes- which is something so many immigrants get told today. It was definitely a very uncomfortable part of the segment to sit through. Cody also brings up segregation. He talks about how prior to 1961 there was segregation in Georgia meaning that blacks and whites could not attend the same school, but now in 2021, he and his wife will have a mixed child. Then the camera cuts to a man wearing a “Black Lives Matter” shirt. Again, why is he saying this when his opponent is half black? To end his tangent, Cody says that at Double or Nothing, Anthony will not be wrestling the “American Nightmare” but instead, the “American Dream”. The promo was met with backlash online for obvious reasons. Many joked Cody was "solving racism". In general, the promo was tone deaf, unnecessary and performative.
The two settle their feud by having their match at Double or Nothing. I knew as soon as they showed their Memorial Day video package before the match that it was a wrap. No way was Cody losing now. It'd be a dishonor to America, of course. The match itself was okay, and Cody ended up winning. Is Anthony’s monument ruined? Not completely. He’s charismatic and has a superstar look; he’ll definitely bounce back in no time. Did it hinder his push a little? Yeah. After K.O. gut punching people for weeks, it was weird to see him lose to Cody. Anthony was ending matches in a single punch to the stomach, but when he hit Cody, it didn't affect him as much as I'd like for it to have. I just wish they used this opportunity to put the newcomer over. Anthony’s got a lot of potential and this would have been a great way to start a killer heel run. Is this to say Cody isn’t valuable to AEW? No, of course he is. He’s a good worker. But the problem is he seems to stunt a lot of potential stars' progress for the sake of him coming out looking like the American hero in his storylines. We need a break from this.
In the end, Cody Rhodes celebrated Memorial Day weekend by beating the British, half black, visually impaired immigrant. It doesn’t get more American than that.
Cody Rhodes' promo if you'd like to watch yourself.
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