Fans Have it Wrong: Cody Rhodes is Being Booked Perfectly in WWE

It might not feel like it at the moment, especially based on the emotional live reaction from the fans, but the handling of Cody Rhodes' WWE journey has been perfect.

Many fans wanted that journey to culminate with Rhodes dethroning Roman Reigns and winning the unified titles at WrestleMania 39, but that always felt a bit too easy.

And fans should know this all too well—it's never easy for the beloved favorites. It was never going to be so simple against Reigns, one of the greatest heel champions ever at this point, as his GOAT-making title reign neared the 1,000-day mark.

It's easy to get lost in the weeds sparring back and forth as to whether Rhodes' loss was the decision of a Triple H-led creative or whether Vince McMahon entered back into the fray after the sale to Endeavor and put down the hammer. It's a silly, possibly moot debate. The match result garnered so much emotion that some fans were convinced Triple H of all people wouldn't book a heel champion to win, suggesting they must have missed the prime of his in-ring career and how he booked NXT's top Superstars.

The decision to have Rhodes lose and really earn his way into that top spot has Triple H's fingerprints all over it. And this mini-golden era of WWE under his creative supervision has earned him some trust, even with something as currently controversial as the handling of Rhodes.

Rest assured, Rhodes is going to earn it.

Rhodes isn't "buried" or now a "midcarder." He looks like a bit of a dork for not having a better plan to deal with obvious interference from those around Reigns at Mania, not really calling out Reigns for it after and then saying thanks to a Brock Lesnar tag-team offer that had bad intentions obvious to everyone except him.

But that can be part of the point of this Rhodes build. This isn't the easy road. Returning as an All Elite Wrestling founder who traveled through a bunch of different promotions, entering the Royal Rumble 30th for an easy win and proclaiming he was going to win the title his father never won was too easy. And, frankly, his sudden insertion into the Bloodline saga better suited for Sami Zayn, as well as family members like Jey Uso and Solo Sikoa, was always strange.

Now, Rhodes has gone from winning the rumble and main-eventing Mania to a high-profile feud with Lesnar. It doesn't get much bigger than that in pro wrestling, not just WWE. And with careful storytelling, it can stretch smartly to SummerSlam, if not the next Mania.

If the argument is WWE missed their moment with Rhodes, it's simply untrue. It skirted instant gratification, but fans want to see him win more than ever now. WWE missed a moment that is forever gone with Drew McIntyre in the UK and Sami Zayn in Montreal (sorry to pick at those scabs), but a proper story still means a surefire moment for Rhodes.

It's not as if WWE didn't balance the scales, either. Most would agree Night 1 looked like one of the best nights of Mania ever with endless fan service, stunning matches and desired outcomes. That wasn't going to carry through to Night 2 completely, and zooming out and looking at both nights now, the cards seem very methodical.

Two things most everyone can agree on: The manner of the finishes around Reigns' matches is tiring, even though that's part of the point now. And WWE should probably find a way to get a top title back on Raw if the plan is to have Reigns as champion for another year.

But beyond that? Rhodes moves to Lesnar and Reigns can deal with family members, highlighted by the still-imploding Bloodline stable—and now the door remains open for The Rock to get involved.

Even at face value, Rhodes vs. Lesnar is an unabashedly awesome feud for fans to witness. So is the continuation of the Bloodline story that so far has felt like it deserves all-timer status. By comparison, Rhodes simply becoming champ and going into cookie-cutter babyface promos and feuds and the Bloodline story ending just isn't all that appealing.

Over the long-term, the result of the main event could end up feeling like a stepping stone to something much bigger, even if it seemed like the end of the world when that pinfall happened.

WWE's dramatic shift to long-term storytelling in prominent places was always going to require an adjustment period. This is one of those, with plenty of story left to be told, which makes for an incredibly exciting 2023 and road to the next Mania.

Rhodes will get his, but he is far from buried, and now he'll really earn it—carving out a story of many years that will have GOAT potential in its own right.