Say Hello to The (New) Good Guy
Cody Rhodes is Symbolic of the Metamodern "Baby Face"
So one of (my many, phew) jobs currently is being a contributor on the WrestlingInc collection of aftershows. And while most of the gig entails discussing the ins and outs of matches, every once in a while, you get asked questions about wrestling as an art form as a whole. Earlier this week the issue of WWE Champion Cody Rhodes (pictured above) and whether or not he was teasing a heel turn had come up. (“Heels” are essentially villains in wrestling, with “Faces” or “Baby Faces” being their heroic counterparts). I dismissed the notion because I felt not only was Cody a great face for the company now, but was also an iconic face for this current era of wrestling. We had to move on in the interest of time, but I wanted to dive into that a bit more here. But first, some backstory.
Hulk Hogan, for better or worse, has been the face of professional wrestling in the United States for about 45 years. He is an icon in the traditional sense, and even though we all have our personal feelings about him, you really cannot tell the story of wrestling without him. Thankfully I got into wrestling in the early 90s, so The Hulkster will always be the “dude from ‘Thunder in Paradise’” to me. What? You don’t remember ‘Thunder in Paradise’?
Hogan was a symbol of what it meant to be a face during the height of the Rock N Wrestling era of the 1980s. He was telling every kid in America to “Say Their Prayers and Take Your Vitamins.” For a while, parents used Hulk Hogan to get kids to eat their vegetables. As in, telling them if they wanted to get as strong as a guy who ripped his shirt in the ring, they would have to ramp up their broccoli consumption.
Be a “real American.”
Anyway, the very nature of being “good” was being a good person. And being a good person was doing good THINGS. If you said your prayers or drank your Ovaltine or what have you, you were on the path of being good. You could prove your ‘goodness’ by physically completing your chores. And for a while, that worked for us. Looking back on it, it seemed like such simpler times.
In the late 90s, WWE went into what we call the “Attitude Era,” but our whole country is in a bit of an attitude as well. The Jerry Springer Show was one of the most popular shows on television, shows like ‘Friends’ and ‘Will & Grace’ used words like “Bitchin’!” in primetime, and hip-hop was firmly in its “gangsta is mainstream” phase. People wanted to live out loud. There was a need to say what you believed in and where you came from, no matter the situation. We had obligations, but people were going to find a way to do it, “their way.”
Stone Cold Steve Austin was technically an anti-hero but eventually became one of the well-known faces of that time period. It always seemed that Austin would rather be drinking a beer or fishing or what have you, but always got “pulled” into wrestling because somebody pissed him off. The (Corporate) Rock was someone who felt like he would rather be hanging with socialites and will…right after laying the Smacketh Down. In other words, the heroes we loved acted out their most Id-like impulses.
A freakin’ Zamboni! Yeah I thought about doing that, but only one man dared.
In the 2000s, we got into (depending on who you ask) The Ruthless Aggression and/or The Reality Eras of wrestling. To Attitude Era lovers it was seen as a down period, but objectively I can say the actual in-ring content (e.g. the wrestling) was vastly improved bell to bell. Characters had to follow suit, as matches were longer and a lot of the storytelling was show through moves and holds, rather than over-the-top actions.
John Cena, one of the biggest performers of this time (if not of all time) had a character best known for saying two things: Hustle, Loyalty, Respect, and:
The Good Guys started to look within. Wrestling became the fight against self. John Cena struggled with self-doubt (before beating everyone and becoming a multiple-time champion). Randy Orton struggled with his explosive anger and the voices in his head. Batista, usually presented as well-dressed and level-headed, struggled with being seen as more as “a brute in a suit.” Rey Mysterio, officially listed as 5 feet, 6 inches was literally called “The Biggest Little Man” in WWE. Okay, that last example is more physical, but his self-image frequently leaked into his promos as well.
Sure the days of Zambonis and milk trucks were gone, but it was satisfying for fans to pick a hero they liked, and watch them achieve greatness despite their perceived flaws. And that brings me to Cody Rhodes.
I’ll be honest, I’ve been late to the Cody Rhodes party. Sure, I liked Stardust well enough, but I never got the appeal. I didn’t get the appeal in New Japan. I didn’t get the appeal in AEW. Didn’t get the appeal when he returned to WWE in 2022. But over the two years, I’ve become a huge Cody Rhodes fan. The reason? I’ll get to that in a bit.
In modern times, it appears people more and more are leaning into what they consider their identities. The ‘fact of being’ or sort to speak. For example, I am left-handed. I am also from Brooklyn, a huge fan of the New York Mets, and I’m a black man. These are the things that I consider to be some of the “distinctive qualities and traits that me unique” as per the linked definition.
An extension of the Ruthless Aggression era, developed characters on the WWE roster are not only struggling with self, but rather the parts that make up that self. In other words, it’s not John Cena struggling with doubt. It’s Cody struggling with doubt BECAUSE he’s the son of Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes, OR because he’s half-Cuban, OR because he carries the colors and design of the American Flag on his back.
In fact, it’s that flag-carrying but having ties to another land aspect of Cody Rhodes that made me a fan of the guy. As a first-generation American, it’s an image and feeling I know all too well. When Cody had said in an interview that he’s sometimes “shy” to admit that because of the backlash of what people perceive a Cuban to look like, I had to nod in agreement. I’m connecting with a (fictional) character due to my identity. And that’s wild. And better yet, I didn’t have to take my vitamins to do it.
I’m not sure where the evolution of wrestling heroes is going to shift but as it stands right now, Cody may be the blueprint for some time. That is until Carmelo Hayes has everyone thinking they are HIM.