Still think this wasn't the original plan. On Smackdown Cody pretty clearly said he was not going to face Roman at Wrestlemania. He didn't actually say the Rock would, but he was pretty clear that he wasn't going to. 

I think it would be weird to retire the title they just created less than a year ago. Rollins would literally be the only holder. And, I think with Raw going to Netflix and Smackdown staying on Cable, they're going to want a title on both shows.  But they do keep trashing Seth's title, so they kind of have to do something with him in this. Interesting to see where they'll go. 

Well, one could resolve thay issue in two ways:

1) Whoever pins either champ gets their belt, and that person is then disqualified from the remainder of the match, which then turns into a triple threat. WWE would just need to make it so two guys pin two other guys that aren't each other, then it ends with those two champions each holding a belt starring each other down.

2) Do my original plan, and when one of them has both belts, here comes Damien Priest to cash in the money in the bank and he pins and chooses which one title he gets to keep. Fatal 4 way followed by a money in the bank fight would be so epic!

Yeah. they did something like #1 once with... I think it was Angle, Benoit, and Jericho one time. Triple threat for the European Title and Intercontinental with the first fall for one title, and the second fall for the other. They could do that, but I think it would be better to let Cody have his moment. Could sort of work.

Don't really like the second idea. Especially with the way they ended last year's Mania, and how long Roman has the belt, I think they just need to give us one nice pure babyface victory moment. 

I think No Escape/Elimination Chamber will see whoever will face Seth.

I think Rock is basically slotted in where CM Punk would have been in the story. Replace Rock’s corporate role with the high profile CM Punk contract. Replace the Bloodline connection with the Paul Heyman connection. And note CM Punk was already starting down the slow heel turn arc until he got injured. Punk getting injured was a massive setback, but The Rock, luckily, was a great (probably better) fit into that same slot since Rock is a trained actor on top of his already existing promo skills, on top of having one of the greatest presences ofin pro-wrestling history.

The whole segment was diamonds. How they set the whole thing up, with how Roman followed the Rock, and Rock’s slap to Cody, the rising anger, and the nervous looks on Triple H and the other execs faces, that created crazy tension on levels very rarely seen in sports, I’m thinking Tyson Lewis stare down level.

Thank fucking God Vince McMahon is out of the picture for this alone. With RAW going to Netflix, we’re probably going to see a much more adult oriented show with coarser language, higher tension, and higher depictions of violence. Triple H said something along the lines of being near the Dawn of a new Attitude era. Right now, we’re in early 1997. The Netflix deal will bring us into 1998. Perhaps this could be a lot better than the Attitude era, we’ll have to see. There are a load of promising stars in WWE right now. What will Steiner turn into within two years? Will MJF be our new Jericho? (At least mic-wise, being the somewhat whiny yet high attitude smart-mouth type that fans love) Etc… I’m just rambling here.

The main thing about the Attitude era is that thought that anything can happen on top having a ton of things to look forward to. Constant tension in the storylines. And the WWE is so much better produced now than it was in 1997/98. The segments are (right now) as consistent as 2000. If it isn’t apparent, I’m really excited about pro-wrestling right now :D

Eh? I'm not sure how Punk would have fit into the spot. Having lost to Cody at the Rumble he really had no legitimate claim to the match, and it wouldn't have made sense for Cody to give him the title shot. Feel like Punk would have faced Rollins at mania. 

But yeah, the segment was great. I didn't think this whole thing was going to work because I didn't think heel Rock was an option. And, again, it doesn't make sense considering how they started this, but it is a great decision. Otherwise they would have had to come up with some kind of compromise to try and make both matches happen, and I don't think it would have worked at all. Rock being in the mix now actually makes this so much better. Cody just winning the Royal Rumble and challenging Roman in a rematch... Well it would have been like vanilla ice cream. Vanilla ice cream is delicious and satisfying, and you're never unhappy with it. Now, threw some whip cream and hot fudge on top. Credit where credit is due, whether this was the plan all along, or whether he read the room and turned heel like he did with Hogan, the Rock does indeed seem to be saving Wrestlemania. 

Whether it's due to Vince McMahon stepping down or not, I've been enjoying the product much more than I have probably since Wrestlemania 30 with the yes movement. They've been doing a good job with giving characters actual motivations, connecting storylines instead of each being in its own little world, and building up to things... That being said, they've really been delaying gratification and blueballing the fans. And that's not necessarily a bad thing. Part of wrestling is disappointing the fans, dangling what they want in front of them, and yanking it away. If you do it right, it makes it all the better when they finally get what they want. If you do it wrong though, they just give up. 

The way I’d see it is they’d want to raise the bullshit meter, and they could do it the same way by making it look like the bookers pushed Cody toward Rollins and Punk toward Roman by starting up with the story about Punk being a bigger star (already triggered) and establishing a link with Heyman “He was my wiseman first” in the way the Rock did with Bloodline. It looks to me, at least, that they were already laying the seeds. And yes, it would sound like bullshit, and that’s what works up the fans. I’m not trying to say CM Punk is better than the Rock in this role, just that it could have been the original plan - I can’t see CM Punk or Cody’s Wrestlemania 40 being (as you said) vanilla ice cream. But Punk got injured. Maybe we’ll know his plans later or maybe we’ll never know.

Actually, the other figure that could have factored in was Brock Lesnar who (IMO) would have also been a great fit. I’m not so sure The Rock was ever meant to be inserted in there. He was just (as the immortal Hulk Hogan would say) the right gay guy at the right time. (OK, I know that was lame 😞)

On a side (and related note, since I’m in the mood for a tangent, and triggered by the earlier talk about the Angle/Benoit/Jericho triple threat, which IMO was an awesome match for its time): Wrestlemania 2000, they took it too far in the eyes of many in actually having a fatal 4 way elimination where The Rock lost… Many, to this day, think it was a bad idea, but the numbers don’t lie. Because Backlash 2000 ended up feeling like a truly important PPV and the legitimate direct sequel to Wrestlemania, and it kicked off the biggest Spring/Summer season (basically everything from Backlash to Summerslam) in WWE history. I feel like I had a very different experience than most, because I thought the whole thing with The Rock winning at Backlash instead made for a bigger moment in the end.

To bring it in, most people want the simplest most straight forward path—but it’s the disruption of that which makes a story truly compelling. Because the most compelling stories involve setbacks, twists, and obstacles. The basic formula for a “work” is showing the audience what they want and telling them they can’t have it. That’s what really gets them fired up. So, when I say the Rhodes story isn’t new: Kofi, Bryan, Punk, Benoit, and others were made into big stars basically using the same trick “the big guys in the back don’t believe they’re ready.” + some clear bullshit contrivance into the plot. And despite the obvious story progression, the audience seems to always fall for this work. It’s a good one, IMO.

I think it's reasonable for the audience to believe it because this is something the WWE has done quite a lot in the past. There are some examples like Bryan/Kofi/Becky where they ultimately gave the audience what they wanted. But there are a lot of counterexamples. Roman Reigns main evented like three times in a row while as the face nobody wanted. Wyatt lost the title to Goldberg to set up a match that didn't need to be a championship match. Same situation with Rock and Punk. John Cena beating Wyatt when he really didn't need to and shouldn't have. HHH's reign of terror. There's plenty of time that they do just sacrifice someone who is up and coming for an older star. So it's not unreasonable for fans to think that might happen.

As for Wrestlemania 2000, I actually liked that cause I was a HHH fan. But, I'm not sure you can attribute WWE's subsequent success to that booking decision. Right around this time was when Vince Russo and Bischoff returned to WCW and ushered in some truly awful booking. 

They are gonna have to do something with the World Heavyweight Championship (and champion) cause not only did the press event made the champion look weak but the championship forgettable lol


I'm guessing Elimination Chamber PLE will be focused on that title.

I feel like Seth has to factor into the storyline somehow. I would say a tag match at some point before the match with Cody, but it seems a bit weird to let Cody and Roman have a match, even a tag, before mania. Generally you'd keep them apart as much as possible till then. 

They really should - that press conference, even if he didnt do as much, I think Seth should continue showing up in segments talking about Roman and Rock alongside Cody.

At the very least do that if not a tag team match.