00:00Cody Rhodes faced his legacy buddies Randy Orton and Ted DiBiase Jr. at WrestleMania
00:0526.
00:06For the most part it was a 2 on 1 handicap match as Rhodes and DiBiase felt wronged by
00:11Orton and wanted to take him out of the equation first.
00:15Orton used them to advance his career and tensions were brewing between them for months.
00:20When a faction implodes, it's typically the younger, rising stars who come out on
00:24top as they are viewed as the future of the business.
00:27But things were different here, Cody and Ted were not booked strongly and it did not
00:31feel like they were ready for the next level.
00:33So despite being targeted for most of the WrestleMania match, Randy Orton managed to
00:38win ending his story with a legacy.
00:48Following this, they went their separate ways.
00:51Randy and Ted were kept on Raw while Cody moved to Smackdown.
00:54This was the best thing to happen to him at the right time.
00:58Cody was a young and hungry superstar with a ton of potential who had a lot to prove
01:02to WWE and he got the opportunity to shine on Smackdown.
01:06A series of vignettes aired on Smackdown and in these segments, Cody Rhodes was seen as
01:11a man obsessed with his appearance, focusing on his perfect looks and grooming habits.
01:16He would give the audience tips on personal hygiene, skin care and grooming.
01:20He also started referring to himself as Dashing.
01:24This was his new persona, a narcissistic, self-absorbed wrestler who believed he was
01:28superior to everyone else because of his good looks.
01:31Soon people would start to notice as these segments were unique and fun in nature.
01:36He participated in a tournament for the vacant WWE Intercontinental Championship, but lost
01:41to Christian in the semifinals.
01:43Even though he did not win a lot of matches, he was getting a ton of TV time.
01:48As Dashing Cody Rhodes, his in-ring style also evolved.
01:52He became more methodical and calculated, using underhanded tactics to gain advantages
01:56in his matches.
01:58His character would often taunt opponents by claiming they could never measure up to
02:01his standards of physical beauty.
02:04His matches included moments where he would stop to check his appearance in a mirror,
02:08even mid-match, which added a layer of humor and entertainment to his character.
02:13This arrogance made him an effective heel and fans relished seeing him get his comeuppance.
02:18In mid-2010, he participated in the SmackDown Money in the Bank ladder match at the first
02:23ever Money in the Bank pay-per-view event, but was unsuccessful as the match was won
02:27by Kane.
02:29Following this, he started a partnership with Drew McIntyre, another young and talented
02:33wrestler who was trying to make a name for himself as a heel.
02:36They attacked Christian and Matt Hardy before capturing the Tag Team Championship at Night
02:41of Champions in a Tag Team Turmoil match.
02:44This could have been a great stepping stone for both of them as their partnership worked.
02:49Cody's narcissistic personality complimented Drew's entitled demeanor, making them a
02:52formidable pair that had the potential to rise quickly through the ranks.
02:56Unfortunately, this did not last long as they dropped the titles a month later to The Nexus
03:02and they soon parted ways.
03:04Cody continued playing this character, however on January 21st, 2011 during a match against
03:09Rey Mysterio, Rhodes suffered a legitimate broken nose when Mysterio delivered a 619
03:14with an exposed knee brace.
03:16This injury prompted him to undergo facial reconstructive surgery.
03:20He was not on television for several weeks after that.
03:24This created intrigue among fans as they started questioning Cody's absence and the next
03:28time they saw him, he wore a clear protective mask over his face and declared that he was
03:32no longer dashing, now he was undashing, a swift character development.
03:38This led to some of the best character work that we had seen in WWE in a long time.
03:43His theme song changed to a more darker version, which worked for his character.
03:47Cody played the role of a narcissist who had become unhinged after his looks had been destroyed,
03:53although it was obvious that his face was pretty much the same and there had been no
03:56permanent damage.
03:58He immediately entered a feud with Rey Mysterio, the man responsible for breaking his nose,
04:03and defeated him at Wrestlemania 27.
04:05He later took his character to the next level by handing out paper bags to fans, encouraging
04:10them to cover their faces as according to him, they were ugly.
04:14After winning matches, he would place the bags over his opponent's heads.
04:18During Stone Cold Steve Austin's Broken Skull sessions, Cody said that this was some of
04:22the best moments ever for him and that he took inspiration from Patrick Bateman of the
04:27American Psycho movies for this gimmick.
04:29He clearly had fun during this time.
04:32He got paired with his former legacy partner Ted DiBiase Jr.
04:36During their time in legacy, DiBiase was seen as the breakout star, but now Cody had proven
04:41that he was the true standout, showcasing his growth as a performer.
04:45DiBiase was just there to protect him.
04:47He then participated in the Smackdown Money in the Bank ladder match and he was one of
04:51the favorites to win, but it was Daniel Bryan who walked away with the briefcase.
04:56Although he did not win, he was still hot on the roster and WWE decided to give him
05:00a shot at the Intercontinental Championship.
05:03A few weeks later, he won the Intercontinental Championship from Ezekiel Jackson.
05:08At that time, the Intercontinental Championship had lost much of its prestige and WWE was
05:13no longer putting emphasis on the title or giving it meaningful storylines.
05:18However, Cody's reign helped to restore its importance as he brought attention and
05:23credibility back to the championship through his compelling character work and strong performances
05:27in the ring.
05:29He also feuded with his former mentor Randy Orton and even beat him.
05:33It wasn't clean, but a win over Randy was a huge deal for a young Cody Rhodes.
05:38It showcased that WWE had faith in him.
05:40In the meantime, he also turned on DiBiase as the son of the Million Dollar Man failed
05:45to beat Randy Orton, prompting a feud with him.
05:48He beat Ted at Night of Champions and then he went on to unveil the new Intercontinental
05:53Championship.
05:55The classic one with the white straps, yes that title was introduced by none other than
06:00Cody Rhodes.
06:02Following this, he continued his rivalry with Orton, accusing the Viper of mistreating him
06:06during their time in legacy and also cost him the World Heavyweight Championship.
06:11At Vengeance, Orton defeated Rhodes in a non-title match and once again got the better of him
06:15in a street fight on Smackdown, breaking his protective mask in the process.
06:20This was the end of the gimmick and Rhodes returned without the mask, declaring that
06:24Orton had set him free.
06:26However, he still had those mannerisms, he was still a narcissist.
06:31Honestly, it lasted longer than anyone expected.
06:34No one could have imagined that when Cody first called himself Dashing, it would lead
06:38to him becoming one of the most hottest stars in WWE at the time.
06:42He defended the IC title against the likes of Booker T, but lost it to Big Show at WrestleMania
06:4828.
06:49He won it back but dropped it to Christian.
06:51With his character work and the Intercontinental title reign, Cody was now ready for the next
06:56level, the main event scene.
06:59He did some of his best work during that period, but more importantly, he established himself
07:03as a major star.
07:05He had already proved that he can work with some of the biggest names in WWE, but for
07:08some reason he remained on the mid-card.
07:11It was a huge missed opportunity on WWE's part for not pushing him to the main event
07:15scene.
07:16He was stuck in a tag team with Damien Sandow, which had its fun moments, but it didn't
07:21do any favors for him.
07:22This was all before having an awesome feud with The Authority and The Shield, which led
07:27to him teaming up with his brother Goldust.
07:30And then The Stardust happened, which completely ruined any credibility Cody had built.
07:36Of course, he would go on to have an incredible journey after that, establishing himself as
07:40one of the top stars on the independents and becoming one of the founding members of All
07:44Elite Wrestling, before finally making an epic return to WWE at WrestleMania 38.
07:50But after his undashing run, WWE had a chance to establish him as a true superstar that
07:56he is today.
07:58What do you think?
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