AEW and NXT Wednesday Night Wars: 3 winners of night #6

Cody

In the space between his WWE departure in 2016 and All Out, Cody Rhodes took a fair bit of criticism, primarily for his in-ring limitations — hence the “***1/2 Cody” label — and the perception that he was coasting off of his run in Vince McMahon’s promotion and his famous last name (a last name he wasn’t allowed to use, but that’s beside the point).

Once he started playing to his strengths and ceased trying to keep up with his more athletically gifted contemporaries, however, that narrative started to shift.

Now, a compelling argument can be made that Cody is the best babyface in professional wrestling.

If you think that statement rings a little hyperbolic, then I implore you to watch his promo from this past Wednesday’s AEW: Dynamite.

Much like his father, who was also an outstanding babyface in his day, Cody was earnest and forthright when acknowledging the elephant in the room regarding his management status, and how him getting a title shot fed into the negative connotations surrounding his job title.

His candidness when discussing his affluent upbringing presented him as an honest man who wasn’t trying to hide anything from the fans. And it made his jabs at Full Gear opponent Chris Jericho’s hypocrisy — noting that Jericho’s dad was a former NHL player — all the more poignant.

Him responding to Jericho’s “entitled millennial” insult by calling him a “carny succubus” who surrounded himself with the very sort of people he decries in his promos.

In terms of mic work, this was arguably peak Cody and one of the best promos of 2019.

If you watch this and don’t want to see Cody beat Jericho for the title, then you might be a heartless monster.