Goldust's WWE Return Should Be Catalyst for Stardust Gimmick to End

It has become somewhat traditional for WWE fans to chant "Cody, Cody, Cody" at Stardust during his matches these days.

But when those chants were raining down on him during Sunday's Survivor Series pre-show, the events that had preceded that meant they were as symbolic as they've even been.

Sure, it was part theatrical to draw the usual response from Stardust, but WWE has presented itself with a glorious opportunity to ditch Stardust and bring back the Cody Rhodes of old.

Moving away from Stardust could never be straightforward. Cody simply just couldn't appear on a random taping of Raw with his old music and his old gimmick. There had to be a development in the storylines for it to happen.

The return of Goldust on Sunday night is the development Cody has been waiting for. His real-life brother coming back to WWE TV opens things up for a storyline and a feud between the two, and it's what Cody Rhodes needs.

The irony of Stardust constantly mentioning the "Cosmic Wasteland" is that at the moment, his gimmick is lost in space itself. He's got little in the way of serious foes and rivalries with any promise, and hanging round with The Ascension hasn't exactly moved the gimmick forward.

Sure, there's options like Neville or even Ryback down the low end of the card for Stardust to feud with. But when the character was introduced, it was to work with Goldust and make them a bizarre team as someone who could match Goldust in the stakes of bizarreness. 

But without his brother by his side, Stardust has wandered around WWE with little direction, and it's made for a confusing situation.

Here's how the switch back to performing as Cody Rhodes should go. Out comes Goldust this week, probably on Monday's taping of Raw, saying that he's come back to try to save his brother. He is the bizarre one, and Stardust can never compete with him in that regard.

That sets up a feud that makes a nice addition to the midcard over the next few months, all the way through to the Royal Rumble. 

Stardust tells Goldust he wants to do what his brother could never do: go on and become WWE World Heavyweight champion whilst establishing a reputation as the most bizarre star on the roster. The rivalry gets more and more intense, with Stardust attacking his brother backstage before beating him in a Tables match at TLC.

Goldust doesn't relent, though, and he keeps trying to tell his brother that he isn't Stardust; he's Cody Rhodes. They fight again in the opening match of the Royal Rumble pay-per-view early next year, and this time it's Goldust who scores the win.

After the bell rings, Stardust looks at his brother and admits he's not the bizarre one, before they both pull double duty by entering the Rumble match itself after an embrace in the middle of the ring.

Goldust enters the match early on and looks in impressive form, before Cody Rhodes' theme music hits. Out comes the old Cody, laying waste to guys like Neville, Titus O'Neil and other lower midcard stars. Cody is getting a huge ovation from the crowd for the return of his old gimmick, before he secures his return to the gimmick as a heel by eliminating Goldust seconds after shaking hands in the middle of the ring.

From there, anything can happen. Cody Rhodes had so much potential a few years ago, but for whatever reason, WWE felt it needed to make a change and move him into the Stardust gimmick.

That has now run its course, and with Goldust back on the scene, it has to be the catalyst for change. Time for old-school Cody, the one that seemed capable of doing anything in WWE just a few short years ago.