Philly just might do it if it does end up being Rock/Roman w/ no trace of Cody.

Ironically, your attempt at irony ended up making the correct point. Neither does having a "beef" with Vin Diesel, nor turning down a role in a film called "Shazam" in favour of starring in another film, show that The Rock has a fragile ego. It's common for any successful celebrity, including those with high self-esteem (the opposite of a fragile ego) to turn down roles/jobs they don't want and to have feuds with other people. In fact, if you're talking about major celebrities with high self esteem, The Rock is probably someone who'd rank high on many people's lists.

Also, The Rock didn't just get booed in 1996, he was booed through 97, 98, and into 99, and again after his 2003 heel run. In fact, he began using the moniker "The People's Champion" in 1998 to make the crowds boo him harder.

Every wrestling fandom seems to have people like you--at least the ones I've come across. They can be filed as:
Fans who read and regurgitate what they think is inside information about wrestlers they claim to despise yet can't stop discussing.

No, that's not the story with Shazaam. 

The Rock did not turn down a role. He accepted a role as Black Adam, who in the comic books is the arch nemesis of Shazaam. One would think, particularly in the era the MCU and super hero crossovers, there would inevitably be a link between Black Adam and Shazaam. Yet, there was not. 

As the rumor mill goes there was supposed to be a post credit scene, but the Rock vetoed it. Which led to kind of an awkward situation. What isn't in dispute is that the Rock exercised a ton of control over the character, moreso than the actor usually does. And, it didn't really work out. Which the Rock just blamed on factors beyond his control despite his pretty heavy involvement. And this also seems to be the case in the Fast and the Furious where he publicly called out his coworkers CM Punk style, and several of them called him out as well.

As for the Rock being booed, there is a difference between being booed as a heel, and being booed as a face. There is also a difference in being booed when you're relatively new and can't do much about it, and when you're established as a hero. We'll see how he reacts to it this time around. But he did seem genuinely upset at John Cena... who to be honest kind of torched him on the mic in their feuds.

And... his decisions definitely seem to be ones that promote him as the biggest star. You could argue that it is because he is in fact the biggest star and the biggest draw, so doing that is what is "best for business". But... I dunno. It seems he could have done things differently to get his spots without shoving others down. Did he really have to take the title off Punk to get the Rock/Cena 2? Does his match with Roman have to be be at Mania? If he's such a star could it not be done at any other event? 

I obviously can't speak to what's in the Rock's head, and self-esteem and ego are easily mixed up to the outside observer. But... what is clear is that the Rock is fiercely protective of his image and his brand. I'm fairly certain he doesn't want a stadium full of people chanting Rocky sucks at him. Maybe there's a way to get Rock vs Reigns in the main event without that happening, but I dunno how. 


On a separate but related note, I think we have to give a shout out to Mr. Dave Batista. He was put in a similar situation, only in his case he wasn't on the board of directors, and handled it as a professional. He immediately shifted into heel mode and tapped out to Bryan at Mania. Despite getting kind of screwed out of a title shot that was promised to him when he returned, he stuck around, and helped put over the Shield. And he was at that point in one of the biggest movie franchises in history, he didn't have to do any of that.

So, we'll see how Dwayne handles it. Don't be a Black Adam, be a Drax. 

The whole thing might be a work since there's some people saying that "We Want Cody" signs were being given out.

@JWeinCom
I'm not arguing that The Rock doesn't have a big ego, or attitude. He clearly does.
What I'm saying is that it's ludicrous to say he has a fragile ego, when it's clear the opposite is true.

Anyway, I watched RAW this week, and I quite enjoyed it. I think they put the show together a lot better than they did back in the Summer. Since I've been watching it, I've noticed the segments seem clear and entertaining. Also there's a lot of diversity in what's going on, and that kind of variety is necessary for a 3 hour show.

My favourite match of the night for the actual in-ring work was the tag team match with DIY winning (I've been a fan of these guys for a long time now).

Drew Mcintyre has been impressing me a lot, lately. I think his angle of beating the crap out of injured people is funny as fuck. He acts the character well, reminds me of what I liked so much about bully era Undertaker. I remember Drew from earlier times and I used to brush him off. Seems I was wrong to do that. As a note, I don't condone bullying, but I have a soft spot for both dark comedy and wrestling heels.

My favourite story in a match was R-Truth and The Judgement Day. Acting like an ally, and totally screwing them up in their match against The Miz... usually this is done the other way around where a babyface starts screwing up, and it turns out that it was intentional all along... With Truth, it's hard to say :D
Again, I've been a fan of Truth since the Attitude era when he went by K-Kwik and rapped "Get Rowdy" on the way to the ring (sometimes with Road Dogg)

Always love to see Asuka, Rhea, Becky, Shayna, and others - although, I'm disappointed Shayna didn't make it to the elimination chamber. She's like a mix of Lucy Van Pelt, Peppermint Paddy, and like 18 canisters of steroids (they probably don't serve that kind of juice in canisters).

Also, I think creepy-Shinsuke is funny as hell. Although, this segment didn't do much to progress the story with Rhodes and Roman. They're holding us on the hook until Thursday.

Overall, great show. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

The main thing I'm interested in is what's happening with CM Punk across the next six months. It seems they're keeping him in the picture. And the guy is great on commentary, there are some rumblings about that. Also, the Vince McMahon news is (IMO) the biggest story currently happening in the world of pro-wrestling, this is some crazy shit. I've read the text messages, and some people look at those and say "What's wrong with being a pervert?" Sure, for regular people, but there's a whole different dynamic involved when someone has power over another - it's akin a step parent starting a sexual relationship with their child; yes, a sexual relationship isn't a problem, but when you add in the power dynamic, it becomes really gross. Prostitution is, IMO, not an ethically bad thing - but it can be - a person who really has nothing who is coerced into prostitution by people looking to take advantage of their situation is (IMO) ethically despicable. There's a lot of layers here. I think this Vince situation breaches a whole lot of ethical boundaries, and I hope he learns his lesson and I hope those surviving (because not everyone did) who suffered from that situation get their lives sorted at his expense--they certainly deserve a substantial piece of his riches.

Haha, the crowd was worked extremely hard :D
That whole ending was awesome. Some of the best work WWE has done in years. The promos were excellent, that slap, fuck! Triple H and the Rock squaring off. I can't wait for Netflix so we can see more stuff like that on a regular basis, and get away from the PG content. The Rock may be older now, but the guy has as much presence as ever.

A number of interesting things happened very quickly.

* Cody Rhodes vs Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 40.
* Dynasty vs Dynasty - Rhodes vs the Bloodline.
* They basically took what (I'd guess) would have been the CM Punk vs Seth story and adapted it onto this storyline, because this reeks of a CM Punk storyline using phrases like "going into business for himself" - stuff that would apply to CM Punk, specifically.
* Cody and Seth aligned, probably those two vs Rock and Roman at some point.
* Rock heel turn, aligned with Roman and the Bloodline.
* Rock is the new authority, it looks like they're positioning him as above Triple H in the story.

My prediction: next is going to be a setback where Rock uses his authority to take Cody out of the main event. Then Cody will face a challenge (probably The Rock) to get back in - he'll probably win, but he might not, and it will end in a Triple Threat.

EDIT:

As a note, and I could have sworn I mentioned this earlier, but it was in a facebook community - but anyway, what I meant to write earlier is that this whole storyline reeked of a work.
Not just a feeling, there are reasons: First, they've done variants of this storyline multiple times before, and its the best way to work the audience. Second, there is the No Escape/Elimination Chamber plot hole that would have actually prevented The Rock from challenging Roman Reigns in any kind of logical way. Third, the marketing has been Cody finishing his story, and that marketing didn't stop after Royal Rumble.

Yooo!

That press conference event was awesome - super hyped lol

Maybe. It's certainly possible, but it doesn't really make sense for Cody not to have just chose Roman in kayfabe terms. 

The quote about "Doesn't matter who sits at the head of the table because neither of you have been cooking for the last two years" Popped me hard. 

I thought this at the beginning of the press conference and even moreso now:

They should do a fatal four way with both titles on the line. Whoever wins gets it all as a both main title holder. Would be an absolutely legendary fatal four way!