“Boring Champion”: Cody Rhodes Loses IWC Confidence Days After Beating Roman Reigns at WrestleMania XL

Fan power has pushed babyfaces to the moon. It happened at WrestleMania 30, with Daniel Bryan ascending to the pinnacle. The worry in such circumstances is the eventual, to put it in the words of ‘The American Dragon’, “fickle” nature of fans coming to the fore. The WWE Universe witnessed Cody Rhodes finish his story and become the WWE Undisputed Champion. Now, barely two weeks after the euphoria, the man who went from undesirable to undeniable may have become undesirable again. The concern is majorly due to him following in the footsteps of the likes of Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns.

Rhodes has not fought a match since pinning Reigns. ‘The Beast Incarnate’ and ‘The Tribal Chief’ did not compete and cut promos/had their managers cut promos. A manager is not there by Cody Rhodes’s side as he has cut three promos.

On the Raw After WrestleMania, Rhodes was part of an extended segment where he gathered praise for Roman Reigns and confessed that there is not much to ‘like’ about his arch-nemesis. He also confronted The Rock, who handed him something that shook him. One week later, on fans’ demand, Seth Rollins also received a public gratitude message from his former foe on Raw 04/15. ‘The American Nightmare’ praised ‘The Architect’ who came through and became his ‘Shield’ at ‘The Grandest Stage of Them All’.

When the WWE shared this clip on social media, the IWC, who may have been upset at their champion’s inactivity, blasted ‘The American Nightmare’. The problem wasn’t in the message that Cody Rhodes had for his new friend, but many viewers despised everything else about that promo.

IWC shows disapproval of Cody Rhodes as the Universal Champion

Comments under this post showcased fans’ discontent with Cody Rhodes’s title reign and his promos, even though they have been appreciated as one of his best traits. Just about 10 days in, fans want the WWE to take the title away from ‘The American Nightmare’.

Fans, who have gotten accustomed to long title reigns, are used to how the champions held their belts. While Gunther and Seth Rollins wore their belts around their waist, Paul Heyman used to hold Reigns’s belt. Hence, this one fan may not be familiar with Rhodes wearing his belt on one shoulder and wrote, “I’m so over Cody, why is he holding the title so awkwardly? Why are his promos so dry? Ugh, I’m so done, crown a new champ already.”

Rhodes’s promos being repetitive worked earlier as he had to finish his story, i.e. he had a single-minded goal. As he has not progressed to any new storyline, perhaps due to the upcoming WWE draft, fans may be tired of hearing the same thing on a weekly basis. “This dude comes out every week cuts the same exact promos, wastes time by talking about nothing, and can’t even hold the title properly.”

Roman Reigns’s 1,316-day reign saw fans clamor for a new champion. Now that they got it, the IWC has members that want ‘The Tribal Chief’ back. This comment may have been from someone who may be a fan of the leader of ‘The Bloodline’. “Bring back Roman.”

A fan online wanted Cody Rhodes to get the Rhea Ripley treatment and vacate his belt. ‘The Eradicator’ is not a champion who fans got tired of, but she vacated a title after getting injured by Liv Morgan. “Can Cody get injured and take a few months off.. I need a break from him.”

The repetitive nature of the Undisputed Champion’s promos after ‘finishing his story’ led one fan to describe that watching the product made him perhaps struggle to stay awake. “This guy went from ‘finishing the story’ to reading us a bedtime story every week.”

One fan simply wrote, “Most boring champion ever.” Why fans feel this way seems to be a mystery. While one reason could be that The Tribal Chief’s fans feel jealous of the situation, some fans could be genuinely bored because they wish to see Cody Rhodes in action as the WWE Universal Champion.

What do you think of the situation? Do you believe these opinions can change over time?