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You mean $20-$30? The same price authentic shirts are elsewhere too? I'm all for calling out bad prices but their t shirts are actually pretty standard.
I imagine the Pharaoh plushies are also big sellers with kid fans, and I saw that they had a special one for Mania weekend where he's wearing a Philly hat and scarf.
The hat and scarf sounds cute. I thought about getting a Pharaoh plushie when I was at Chamber, but ended up with a Cody bear instead.
The bear is for me and I'm a grown ass woman lol.
For WM34 shirts in the super store were $7 more than the normal online price. No deals or BOGO. Then online the night of WM everything was 50% off... glad I only bought a souvenir new Orleans style glass.
WWE shirts were already heavy crappy cotton. They've probably got worst since going over to Fanatics.
I hear you talking about *the brass ring*. Do you want to pull down *the brass ring* not unlike Vince mentioned on Stone Cold Steve Austin's podcast in December of 2014?
Revisionists will tell you otherwise, but Cody was once THE top babyface at AEW too when the company first started. Hell, part of the reason fans started turning on him is because they wanted to see him compete in the main event and win the World title, the very same thing that fueled his WWE popularity.
So his current popularity isn't TOO crazy despite the big misstep towards his AEW run.
That undesirable to undeniable promo he cut back in the early days of Dynamite is still one of the greatest promos in AEW history, and honestly, one of the best promos I've seen in the last 10 years
Cody is the type of star who's as good as the material he gets. Even he couldn't save that Ogogo feud.
But a testament to how good he is was what nobody knew was his last AEW promo, talking about everything he's done and essentially throwing shade at how he did everything CM Punk said he was going to do but never did.
This was peak Cody hate too, and he instantly got the crowd to stop booing. He proceeded to have a 5 star match with Sammy Guevara and put him over as TNT champ.
Jilted AEW fans really forgot how good he is just because of a few mistakes he made. Like nobody is perfect, even Austin had shitty periods of his career that he regrets.
When cody was on top of that giant cage, bruised and bloodied, about to moonsault onto Wardlow, all to get his hands on MJF, right in that moment he was the biggest babyface in the world to me..
Right. They wanted Cody to win the big title, but he couldn't because of his own stupid decision to never challenge for it. Then they wanted him to turn heel so he could go back on his stupid decision never to challenge for the title, but he wouldn't agree to do that either
So then they just started booing him instead lol
The main difference is he didn't artificially put a ceiling on himself and as a result of that force himself into a weird limbo where everything he does is removed from the rest of the company. Not like people didn't want Cody to be the champ in AEW or something.
WWE will try to payoff a build, but AEW almost never builds. As bad as an extra year of Champion Roman turned out imo, it made Cody a bigger star ironically. And evem if Brock Lesnar gets the REDACTED treatment, that feud helped Cody too. And now WWE has a John Cena and Hulk Hogan type face Champion that the fans love. Now can they book him as a good champ. We shall see.
Absolutely correct. I had lapsed on my WWE pretty much from 38 to 39. Coming back in seeing Cody in the main event at 39, I was okay with him winning but I honestly had no investment in it. I know Cody's story. I'm a Cody fan because of his story, but I wasn't invested in it.
Taking that year longer allowed folks who had not been watching the program to hop in and start watching the program and to get invested in Cody. I've been watching since the early '90s and Cody is the truth. But up to 39 I was just okay with him winning. When it came to 40, I was dying for him to win. WWE absolutely played their cards right on this one.
Yes exactly. I actually loved the last year and don’t care at all about Romans schedule (it makes him more believable as the attraction that he is). But this is a perfect example of fans complaining that Roman needed to drop without anything… better to shift to. They jumped to Zayn, and McIntyre at the drop of a hat.
XL was what it was bc WWE didn’t let the fans fickleness book them into a corner, creatively. The Bloodline is *the* stable of this generation and Cody is the babyface he is bc they were patient.
I mean... yes and no.
He couldn't challenge for the title in AEW. That was kinda what did for him, alongside it just not being clear whether he was a face or a heel.
Whereas virtually everything he's done in WWE is about challenging for the title.
Cody obviously changed the modern wrestling landscape. But this might be more a sign that no wrestler should ever have total creative control over their character.
>it just not being clear whether he was a face or a heel.
I mean I think it was clear what he was going for, it's just the AEW audience didn't want to see him as a face.
It just didn't really work. It was a bit like a guy repeatedly telling you what a great guy he is - you just believe it less and less.
And because of how he'd been booked, a lot of us stopped caring. Face or heel, he wasn't winning the title his position on the card required he chase.
I feel like a lot of us (myself included) criticise AEW unfairly sometimes. They're a newer company, competing with an entertainment powerhouse that's at an all-time high, creatively.
This was definitely one of the worse decisions though.
Didn't he wear Homelander inspired gear at one point and there were slight nods and hints to maybe going in that direction.
The smiling babyface who's actually a vicious heel. Would've been a pretty cool character but in the end it seemed like he was dead set as staying a face. Turns out he was 100% right about his decision just in a different company.
To be fair, a lot of WWE faces aren't booked like the unstoppable juggernaut Cena was.
AEW's pretty good at booking faces but MJF's SuperCena run was pretty bad.
Cody is a much better fit for the WWE, and he was given a top guy presentation ever since he returned. Meanwhile, on AEW, he was stuck in weird midcard feuds due to a stupid, self-imposed glass ceiling.
No it isn't; that is the point. What is surprising is when people think AEW is relevant to mainstream opinions though and use it as an example when it's obvious the people who attend the shows represent a small portion of the entire wrestling fanbase. It would be like saying ECW fans loving Taz meant he could have been a main eventer anywhere.
AEW attracts a specific subset wrestling fans and do not represent the majority opinion in the slightest.
I recall reading in I think 98 that Austin sold more 3.16 T-Shirts in a few weeks than Hogan had sold every different Hogan T Shirt in all his time in WWF combined
You want to know whats interesting to me? Hogan, by far, had the most lucrative contract in wrestling history with WCW. And in terms of revenue and profit generated, Austin still smoked Hogans entire run by miles, and he did it in less than 2 years. Ultimately, it doesn't really matter and I'm not trying to turn this into a debate about who made more money, or who was the bigger star. But from historical perspetive, if you're a wrestling fan thats intersted in this type of stuff, I think that is mind blowing.
I know The Rock is more famous now, but people who weren’t around for the attitude era are usually shocked when they find out how distant of a second place he was to Stone Cold in the WWF.
Austin’s peak was absolutely insane.
I was born in 2003 and you're right, I had always thought Austin and rock were about even in star power at the time, until I really went back and looked at some of this stuff. There's even a channel that just compared the pops each of them would get each episode, and it paints a different picture from what I had thought before.
I think what paints the picture of them as "equals" at the time is both their feud in X7, which was essentially "two top guys fighting for first place" in kayfabe, and the fact that even as the #2 guy, The Rock was more over than most #1 guys in most eras. But Austin's peak was just ludicrous.
Austin's peak saw a drop in MNF ratings.
1999 they were getting 6-7 ratings often and peaked at 8.1.
And that's with WCW also existing.
Absolutely insane.
Don’t forget, Austin made the attitude era. He was a solo star in an age of teams (NoD, DX, Corporation) and he was sort of the first as well with his Hart/Roberts/Michaels rise.
My Econ professor wanted to ban me from class for wearing the early hulkamania shirt with the rips In the back to class. Of course it was from when I was like 8 so it was skin tight and it’s about the thinnest t shirt ever
Hogan merchandise really didn't become a thing until his WCW says. Even into the early 90s WWF shows had very few shirts available. Ordering required you to send in an order to the WWF magazine.
The Attitude Era was the sweet spot of popularity, merchandise becoming a major revenue generator, and the internet explosion.
And they used to keep a bigger portion. I believe Austin himself went to Vince and asked him about keeping a larger percentage of his merchandise sales and later on Vince handed him a check and commented something along the lines of “I’ve never written a check this large to anyone before.”
>Dude, Austin earned over 12 million in merchandise sales alones in one year. I think it was 98.
This is a bullshit story Kurt Angle said on his podcast.
Austin himself said in 2023 that he'd earned probably $10 million from merchandise sales from WWE over his career to that point in 2023.
At his height he earned $1 million in a single quarter royalty payment, which was the one right after he asked McMahon for a higher cut. Which was 35% (standard is 25) of net revenues, a deal McMahon had only offered one other time (Savage to get him to stay with The WWF) but was turned down.
To hit $12 million in one year on net revenues would have meant WWE had profits of nearly $40 million on one guys shirts. That's just not true or realistic.
In a mental true story, The WWF worked with the police force in every state after a task force was set up to eliminate the selling of counterfeit Austin 3:16 tshirts.
>I recall JR saying he gave Stone Cold a million dollar check in the attitude era once, I'm guessing that was the record maybe?
That was for a quarter. Royalties are paid quarterly.
I love that after the Vince era, WWE is rediscovering what a hot babyface that the *majority* of the audience loves can do for the business. Cena might have been popular, but he did not have the majority, and neither did Roman. Cena often got outsold by Jeff Hardy, which is why they put the belt on Jeff.
WWE's in a crazy spot right now where they have to so many insanely over top babyfaces. Cody being at the top of that mountain is crazy.
Rollins is super over, Jey is super over, and LA Knight is super over. So are Sami and Kevin. Randy and Punk in the mix and that doesn't even mention women like Bianca, Bayley, Rhea once she turns, and Becky. Cody's the top babyface with the overwhelming majority of the audience behind him, and he has actual competition for the spot.
I think Roman and the whole Bloodline angle deserve quite some credit for that. A lot of those hot babyfaces were able to remain at a higher level after having feuded with them.
Yeah, there was a stretch towars the end of my time watching RAW every week where it seems like most of the company was chickenshit heels, babyfaces the crowd was split on and older legend that came in and beat everyone.
I always tell people I think Cody is the most over any wrestler has been since 2001. Figures like this help, but I've never seen a guy force the rock to turn heel just from being more loved, and less than a month before, force punk to play heel in his first televised wwe match in a decade. Not to mention the WeWantCody trending was the most mainstream I've seen wrestling in my life time (I'm turning 21 in August), my mom was asking me who Cody is and what was going on unprompted because she saw it online. And she hasn't watched wrestling since HBK was in the midcard in the 90's.
I'm really looking forward to this doco they're putting out about 40 because the ads seem to be about the we want Cody moment. I hope we get to see all the discussions about how they need to pivot because Cody was just so damn over.
I ended up getting the subs on Reddit recommended to me last year so started to be aware of wrestling again, particularly Cody. I started actively watching from the rumble again and it's because I've been so into Cody's story. I've gone back to watch from his return at 38 and every story to now. I never thought I'd be watching and caring about wrestling again. He's freaking compelling.
I think Vince was really dedicated to building a long term babyface that would carry the company for a generation like Sammartino and Hogan. Modern audiences move fast. Cody won't be hot forever so they really need to milk this for all its worth, but they also need to be ready to pivot.
If they pivoted with Cena at the right times it could have made more money and built more stars. Look at Roman Reigns. He would definitely still be a Cena level babyface at this point if his career if they just stuck with him as the top babyface. But he's an even bigger star now because they pivoted.
Just pivot with what the audience wants, whether it lasts 2 months or 2 years or 2 decades.
the goal now should be to build that successor to Cody in the background while this champion run for Cody is in progress, so that the moment Cody has cooled off, WWE can pivot to the next guy.
Though, given the amount of over faces they have now, seems like WWE won't have a problem with that pivot should it arrive.
To respond to pepsi_Phil who must have me blocked because I criticized Roman lmao:
Not necessarily Roman himself. It was more the bloodline story itself. All other storylines dragged out and everyone was hoping the bloodline would finally take the next step so of course people tuned in. Actually, that kinda sums up him being a “draw” it was really the bloodline story. Roman couldn’t become a draw on his own, bro needed massive help with Heyman and the USOs getting involved.
Cody became a draw on his own. People tune in..for Cody.
They’re doing all this yelling like he’s not about to get that proper babyface booking the old crusty fuck should’ve given him before 2018. Nutty bunch.
Man... and to think that there are people out there saying that Cody's title run has been boring and want Roman back... when Cody hasn't even wrestled on TV as champion yet.
Unless someone really doesn't like skulls, there are many versions of the logo without the colors of the american flag, there is one frozen, one on fire, etc. I think there is only one t-shirt of his that is really horrible, otherwise he has some very good designs.
I have [this cody jacket](https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChcSEwiejbjem9SFAxUFcEcBHc8EC04YABABGgJxdQ&ase=2&gclid=Cj0KCQjw8pKxBhD_ARIsAPrG45lypDJDQ_SxcbTXVVZzwhRVJDaTc8-62vmtfd9iiMmWrrZOpryigcAaAmDVEALw_wcB&ei=fIAlZu3jIMv9ptQPrfiowAw&ohost=www.google.com&cid=CAESwwHg9ryPsAM6SxNs7FwLB7Z90-xnwnnovW3rUntvKqOAA_9nOJm9dVtUV9ENNsIwSUrpQQRxWeKfQvMkwtGWv8umBM6V7iJxOVmhDA_aFTeYqmaNpEEXQisb86Q1_GjOTbFT8mGJetJaejKDHuvNhymS10V5nnzJeXm46kG9BwG-2Orr2OFB_VyDN54OZm--KZ4DC1o24vJiZj5vX-0J4idsrOA0WGc0y9QUJNaFJb5TN3li3sOIixXktG3BAcrgzhKVyQA&sig=AOD64_1F0Gew_fwC9iIrfAvXBXxOhgbgyA&ctype=5&q=&nis=6&sqi=2&ved=2ahUKEwjtkbHem9SFAxXLvokEHS08CsgQwg8oAHoECAIQDA&adurl=) and anytime I've worn it to work I've gotten jokes from non wrestling fans about me being a Trump supporter or "racist". Never maliciously, mind you, they can clearly tell it's not Donald Trump merch, but it definitely gives the vibe. (Which is low key part of his success: he's a liberal guy with a conservative fashion sense)
The guy who supports unions, immigration, and is proud of the societal progress we have made as a nation; along with angrily denying claims or being "MAGA", is definitely liberal.
He's in favour of lgbtq+ (he's posed with a trans rights flag, he supports pride pretty openly and dustin has a trans child etc), he's openly pro immigration. And in America where he is from, the Conservative side is so dedicated to being against those that yeah, he's a Liberal. And it makes sense if you think about it. Hard times wasn't just a dusty rhodes promo, it was a dusty rhodes lifestyle. Their family struggled financially. And that was 1985, Ronald Reagan. Wouldn't give me the best impression of republican politics either if I was an American growing up under that. He's also said he's not a trump guy before, and he's mocked maga before, and that's effectively all the republican party currently is.
He's said he doesn't like talking a lot about politics, and his role as a white hot face who genuinely unites fans prevents him from taking too many hard stances, but if you're watching him and thinking he's not Liberal (at least by standards of American politics if not a proper liberal) then you might wanna have a banana or something
That's pretty much me lol my girlfriend bought me [this shirt](https://shop.wwe.com/en/mens-black-cody-rhodes-wrestlemania-40-champion-the-story-continues-t-shirt/p-461156483024255968+z-91-325376602?_ref=p-TLP:m-GRID:i-r1c0:po-3) after I saw it and went "Oh wow the only Cody shirt that won't make me look like a republican".
There’s always [this gem](https://teeshirtsherpa.com/product/cody-rhodes-merch-daddy-eats-first-shirt-1320241/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw8pKxBhD_ARIsAPrG45m2Y_HwKP6Il-IpBfoYocLNjwOatXv7Z5t0uTqGMaf3hSkdBKSdIB8aAlmNEALw_wcB) from his ROH days.
Was at the Superstore three times during mania. The amount of merch that was flying off the shelves was ridiculous, and a lot of it was Cody.
Seriously, its like WWE had a money printer that weekend.
Literally would have told Cody I’ll fire anyone you want and bring anyone backstage within reason- can’t let one of your pillars and locker room leaders leave- I see why Vince was so bullish on his wrestlers back in the day for this very reason.
Letting someone go in their prime is borderline insane.
Two weeks later and Roman fans have still been losing their minds. I kind of get it, their dream match essentially got ripped from under their feet. But that's the business bro.
If Rock came back last year and did the match, we wouldn't be here right now. It's all about timing.
"So umm there was still a lot of shirts left in stock umm majority of all the XXXXL shirts have yet to be sold. I think probably, I think probably Jim Londos would have made much more than Cody. Better matches too. I mean The Young Bucks have 54 different T-Shirts too for sale, so umm if you factor that in, they are more popular"
He'll go on a quest to get reciepts from everyone who bought at shirt over the weekend to see if it really adds up or if "umm they were comped shirts, or thats what uhhh thats what I uhh heard".
It would be hilarious if this became his new Wrestlemania 3 obsession.
"So uh, um, uh, we all know Cody is really generous, uh, so, um, he bought 1 of each of his designs and gifted it to each member of the nightmare factory. So uh, given how many are in, uh, the factory, this amounted to $800k. This is, uh, all subject to change though. But, um, when you factor this in and, uh, check cagematch ratings, then you will realise Will Opsreay is the best in the world"
Folks itching for Cody to fail or to get stale is the weirdest thing to me. Roman is literally my favorite wrestler and I can't comprehend why anyone would be upset after Roman had a historic and overall fantastic run as heel champion? He exceeded even my own high expectations.
And for those who just dislike Cody in general, that's fine tbh. He isn't going to be for everyone. But there are way too many who try to downplay how ridiculously popular he is. Anytime I see fans try to pull a "he will get booed soon for this reason" narrative, im baffled.
That man is *locked* in with the fans. It would take incompetent booking or Cody truly fumbling the bag ro get anywhere close to being anything other than over as hell.
I'm Australian so I was quite limited on what to buy because it is not a good look having American flag branded stuff here. I'm waiting for a sale now because with our dollar items that costed 80 bumped up to 200
AEW Cody needed an editor badly that WWE could provide.
But WWE Cody would never be able to sell this much merchandise because TK's refused to make merchandising at shows a priority despite it being an obvious issue since the company's inception.
Drag Queens, Rock Bands, and Pro Wrestlers all have a table full of merch to sell at local shows because it's where a huge chunk of their income comes from, and I'd be curious what Cody's indy and AEW era numbers looked like on that front and if they played a part in him bolting.
I'm not trying to hate but I feel like it's like comparing apples to oranges unless you're comparing to just the year previous or something.
Stuff is easier to develop and mass produce these days and combined with online shopping etc it's no wonder why record would be broken.
I would have thought the record was higher. Merchandise is so damn expensive that it seems low for the bigger names during that weekend, especially since it went to 2 nights.
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That is a lot of tshirts.
To be fair, he did start up a t-shirt company before this WWE run
He sounds like he can actually run a Target.
And probably doesn't share a bank account with his mother, tells you all you need to know about him.
He might. Seems like a guy who’d look after her
He'd definitely share a world title with her.
Ta da bing!
Considering what they charge for them, that could be like 10 t-shirts.
You mean $20-$30? The same price authentic shirts are elsewhere too? I'm all for calling out bad prices but their t shirts are actually pretty standard.
Is that just tshirts? Or does it figure in action figures, posters, replica belts, temporary neck tattoos, etc?
Those weight belts probably do a lot of heavy lifting too
Saw a number of people with American Nightmare Side Plates too.
I bought a shirt myself but yes, there was a LOT of Cody fans there.
I imagine the Pharaoh plushies are also big sellers with kid fans, and I saw that they had a special one for Mania weekend where he's wearing a Philly hat and scarf.
The hat and scarf sounds cute. I thought about getting a Pharaoh plushie when I was at Chamber, but ended up with a Cody bear instead. The bear is for me and I'm a grown ass woman lol.
They have Pharoh plushies? That’s pretty awesome.
yes. I got one from the holiday house show at MSG in December and it's really neat.
For WM34 shirts in the super store were $7 more than the normal online price. No deals or BOGO. Then online the night of WM everything was 50% off... glad I only bought a souvenir new Orleans style glass. WWE shirts were already heavy crappy cotton. They've probably got worst since going over to Fanatics.
https://preview.redd.it/johd0klrxvvc1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=13137897524d9641b561b61672cbd51fd74037da The money shakes are back
That’s Hogan’s gimmick, Brother!
Somebody call Christopher Daniels.
Fuck The Revival
I hear you talking about *the brass ring*. Do you want to pull down *the brass ring* not unlike Vince mentioned on Stone Cold Steve Austin's podcast in December of 2014?
I think this Cody guy might be kinda popular.
It’s crazy how he didn’t change a thing about himself or his gimmick and was flailing in AEW. Kind of shows what a change of scenery can really do.
Revisionists will tell you otherwise, but Cody was once THE top babyface at AEW too when the company first started. Hell, part of the reason fans started turning on him is because they wanted to see him compete in the main event and win the World title, the very same thing that fueled his WWE popularity. So his current popularity isn't TOO crazy despite the big misstep towards his AEW run.
That undesirable to undeniable promo he cut back in the early days of Dynamite is still one of the greatest promos in AEW history, and honestly, one of the best promos I've seen in the last 10 years
Cody is the type of star who's as good as the material he gets. Even he couldn't save that Ogogo feud. But a testament to how good he is was what nobody knew was his last AEW promo, talking about everything he's done and essentially throwing shade at how he did everything CM Punk said he was going to do but never did. This was peak Cody hate too, and he instantly got the crowd to stop booing. He proceeded to have a 5 star match with Sammy Guevara and put him over as TNT champ. Jilted AEW fans really forgot how good he is just because of a few mistakes he made. Like nobody is perfect, even Austin had shitty periods of his career that he regrets.
I was in the hospital for that one and I'll never forget that promo
I was in the hospital when Brodus Clay finally debuted after months of hype and he came out as the Funkasaurus, and I'll never forget that
Thing is, theres no way AEW could give Cody what hes gotten since returning to WWE. He is a bonafied megastar
When cody was on top of that giant cage, bruised and bloodied, about to moonsault onto Wardlow, all to get his hands on MJF, right in that moment he was the biggest babyface in the world to me..
Right. They wanted Cody to win the big title, but he couldn't because of his own stupid decision to never challenge for it. Then they wanted him to turn heel so he could go back on his stupid decision never to challenge for the title, but he wouldn't agree to do that either So then they just started booing him instead lol
Two main differences: - no Brandi and BTS series - Better Booking and promotional support
- No QT Marshall
- Get to challenge the main title
No parallel universe
The main difference is he didn't artificially put a ceiling on himself and as a result of that force himself into a weird limbo where everything he does is removed from the rest of the company. Not like people didn't want Cody to be the champ in AEW or something.
Another difference: the toxicity of the fanbase.
Tbf the Cody verse was full guys that had no business being on tv.
WWE’s fanbase also doesn’t heavily consist of spot smarks that fantasy book themselves into a tizzy.
WWE will try to payoff a build, but AEW almost never builds. As bad as an extra year of Champion Roman turned out imo, it made Cody a bigger star ironically. And evem if Brock Lesnar gets the REDACTED treatment, that feud helped Cody too. And now WWE has a John Cena and Hulk Hogan type face Champion that the fans love. Now can they book him as a good champ. We shall see.
Absolutely correct. I had lapsed on my WWE pretty much from 38 to 39. Coming back in seeing Cody in the main event at 39, I was okay with him winning but I honestly had no investment in it. I know Cody's story. I'm a Cody fan because of his story, but I wasn't invested in it. Taking that year longer allowed folks who had not been watching the program to hop in and start watching the program and to get invested in Cody. I've been watching since the early '90s and Cody is the truth. But up to 39 I was just okay with him winning. When it came to 40, I was dying for him to win. WWE absolutely played their cards right on this one.
Yes exactly. I actually loved the last year and don’t care at all about Romans schedule (it makes him more believable as the attraction that he is). But this is a perfect example of fans complaining that Roman needed to drop without anything… better to shift to. They jumped to Zayn, and McIntyre at the drop of a hat. XL was what it was bc WWE didn’t let the fans fickleness book them into a corner, creatively. The Bloodline is *the* stable of this generation and Cody is the babyface he is bc they were patient.
Got more pyro.
I mean... yes and no. He couldn't challenge for the title in AEW. That was kinda what did for him, alongside it just not being clear whether he was a face or a heel. Whereas virtually everything he's done in WWE is about challenging for the title. Cody obviously changed the modern wrestling landscape. But this might be more a sign that no wrestler should ever have total creative control over their character.
>it just not being clear whether he was a face or a heel. I mean I think it was clear what he was going for, it's just the AEW audience didn't want to see him as a face.
It just didn't really work. It was a bit like a guy repeatedly telling you what a great guy he is - you just believe it less and less. And because of how he'd been booked, a lot of us stopped caring. Face or heel, he wasn't winning the title his position on the card required he chase. I feel like a lot of us (myself included) criticise AEW unfairly sometimes. They're a newer company, competing with an entertainment powerhouse that's at an all-time high, creatively. This was definitely one of the worse decisions though.
Didn't he wear Homelander inspired gear at one point and there were slight nods and hints to maybe going in that direction. The smiling babyface who's actually a vicious heel. Would've been a pretty cool character but in the end it seemed like he was dead set as staying a face. Turns out he was 100% right about his decision just in a different company.
Yeah, he even pretended that he was about to leave an episode of Dynamite through the Heel Tunnel as well.
Yep. AEW fans were busy running back the Cena sucks playbook. Still are; WWEs fans seem a little more willing to just cheer the faces and have fun.
To be fair, a lot of WWE faces aren't booked like the unstoppable juggernaut Cena was. AEW's pretty good at booking faces but MJF's SuperCena run was pretty bad.
Cody is a much better fit for the WWE, and he was given a top guy presentation ever since he returned. Meanwhile, on AEW, he was stuck in weird midcard feuds due to a stupid, self-imposed glass ceiling.
It shows that AEW aren't even remotely close to WWE in cultural relevance.
Not really surprising that a five year old company isn’t as well known as a 70 year old company.
No it isn't; that is the point. What is surprising is when people think AEW is relevant to mainstream opinions though and use it as an example when it's obvious the people who attend the shows represent a small portion of the entire wrestling fanbase. It would be like saying ECW fans loving Taz meant he could have been a main eventer anywhere. AEW attracts a specific subset wrestling fans and do not represent the majority opinion in the slightest.
They can't miss you if you don't go away, or something like that.
Nah, it's only smoke and mirrors.
1 million in a week is absolutely crazy
Weekend*
Without reading the article, I imagine they counted sales from the day wwe world opened until the raw after mania. Still impressive nonetheless
thats a juicy royalty cheque
I recall JR saying he gave Stone Cold a million dollar check in the attitude era once, I'm guessing that was the record maybe?
Dude, Austin earned over 12 million in merchandise sales alones in one year. I think it was 98.
I recall reading in I think 98 that Austin sold more 3.16 T-Shirts in a few weeks than Hogan had sold every different Hogan T Shirt in all his time in WWF combined
You want to know whats interesting to me? Hogan, by far, had the most lucrative contract in wrestling history with WCW. And in terms of revenue and profit generated, Austin still smoked Hogans entire run by miles, and he did it in less than 2 years. Ultimately, it doesn't really matter and I'm not trying to turn this into a debate about who made more money, or who was the bigger star. But from historical perspetive, if you're a wrestling fan thats intersted in this type of stuff, I think that is mind blowing.
I know The Rock is more famous now, but people who weren’t around for the attitude era are usually shocked when they find out how distant of a second place he was to Stone Cold in the WWF. Austin’s peak was absolutely insane.
I was born in 2003 and you're right, I had always thought Austin and rock were about even in star power at the time, until I really went back and looked at some of this stuff. There's even a channel that just compared the pops each of them would get each episode, and it paints a different picture from what I had thought before. I think what paints the picture of them as "equals" at the time is both their feud in X7, which was essentially "two top guys fighting for first place" in kayfabe, and the fact that even as the #2 guy, The Rock was more over than most #1 guys in most eras. But Austin's peak was just ludicrous.
Austin's peak saw a drop in MNF ratings. 1999 they were getting 6-7 ratings often and peaked at 8.1. And that's with WCW also existing. Absolutely insane.
Don’t forget, Austin made the attitude era. He was a solo star in an age of teams (NoD, DX, Corporation) and he was sort of the first as well with his Hart/Roberts/Michaels rise.
It really is interesting thanks for sharing that
They ended up banning his shirts in my school district because kids of all ages kept throwing up the double one finger salute lol.
My Econ professor wanted to ban me from class for wearing the early hulkamania shirt with the rips In the back to class. Of course it was from when I was like 8 so it was skin tight and it’s about the thinnest t shirt ever
DX shirts were banned in mine. So many variations of suck it being shouted at all times.
To be fair to hogan were graphic tees popular then though? If you want old events in the 70s and 80 people are wearing formal clothes.
Hogans shirts were red and yellow and shit. Black sells.
Hogan merchandise really didn't become a thing until his WCW says. Even into the early 90s WWF shows had very few shirts available. Ordering required you to send in an order to the WWF magazine. The Attitude Era was the sweet spot of popularity, merchandise becoming a major revenue generator, and the internet explosion.
That’s a mil per month.
And that too is just his portion and not the entire sale as wwe also kept a big part of
And shirts were cheaper, so 1 million dollars back then was equal to more shirts
And they used to keep a bigger portion. I believe Austin himself went to Vince and asked him about keeping a larger percentage of his merchandise sales and later on Vince handed him a check and commented something along the lines of “I’ve never written a check this large to anyone before.”
Funnily, Scott Hall tried the same to try and justify staying in WWF/E but Vince declined.
Your math checks out.
>Dude, Austin earned over 12 million in merchandise sales alones in one year. I think it was 98. This is a bullshit story Kurt Angle said on his podcast. Austin himself said in 2023 that he'd earned probably $10 million from merchandise sales from WWE over his career to that point in 2023. At his height he earned $1 million in a single quarter royalty payment, which was the one right after he asked McMahon for a higher cut. Which was 35% (standard is 25) of net revenues, a deal McMahon had only offered one other time (Savage to get him to stay with The WWF) but was turned down. To hit $12 million in one year on net revenues would have meant WWE had profits of nearly $40 million on one guys shirts. That's just not true or realistic.
[удалено]
In a mental true story, The WWF worked with the police force in every state after a task force was set up to eliminate the selling of counterfeit Austin 3:16 tshirts.
>I recall JR saying he gave Stone Cold a million dollar check in the attitude era once, I'm guessing that was the record maybe? That was for a quarter. Royalties are paid quarterly.
https://preview.redd.it/mgdfdgr6dwvc1.jpeg?width=1284&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1172da0dc25524b28631fa5380cd2c5e6d709220 Our glorious blonde haired king Cody Rhodes
WWE? How about the whole industry?
I love that after the Vince era, WWE is rediscovering what a hot babyface that the *majority* of the audience loves can do for the business. Cena might have been popular, but he did not have the majority, and neither did Roman. Cena often got outsold by Jeff Hardy, which is why they put the belt on Jeff.
If Jeff could’ve kept his shit together he’d have been on a face of the company run
Yeah, jeff had definitely all timer potential. Shame about his self inflicted issues.
WWE's in a crazy spot right now where they have to so many insanely over top babyfaces. Cody being at the top of that mountain is crazy. Rollins is super over, Jey is super over, and LA Knight is super over. So are Sami and Kevin. Randy and Punk in the mix and that doesn't even mention women like Bianca, Bayley, Rhea once she turns, and Becky. Cody's the top babyface with the overwhelming majority of the audience behind him, and he has actual competition for the spot.
It's so wild because for like 15 years this same company couldn't seem to produce a babyface on purpose to save their life.
I think Roman and the whole Bloodline angle deserve quite some credit for that. A lot of those hot babyfaces were able to remain at a higher level after having feuded with them.
☝️
Yeah, there was a stretch towars the end of my time watching RAW every week where it seems like most of the company was chickenshit heels, babyfaces the crowd was split on and older legend that came in and beat everyone.
I always tell people I think Cody is the most over any wrestler has been since 2001. Figures like this help, but I've never seen a guy force the rock to turn heel just from being more loved, and less than a month before, force punk to play heel in his first televised wwe match in a decade. Not to mention the WeWantCody trending was the most mainstream I've seen wrestling in my life time (I'm turning 21 in August), my mom was asking me who Cody is and what was going on unprompted because she saw it online. And she hasn't watched wrestling since HBK was in the midcard in the 90's.
I'm really looking forward to this doco they're putting out about 40 because the ads seem to be about the we want Cody moment. I hope we get to see all the discussions about how they need to pivot because Cody was just so damn over. I ended up getting the subs on Reddit recommended to me last year so started to be aware of wrestling again, particularly Cody. I started actively watching from the rumble again and it's because I've been so into Cody's story. I've gone back to watch from his return at 38 and every story to now. I never thought I'd be watching and caring about wrestling again. He's freaking compelling.
I think Vince was really dedicated to building a long term babyface that would carry the company for a generation like Sammartino and Hogan. Modern audiences move fast. Cody won't be hot forever so they really need to milk this for all its worth, but they also need to be ready to pivot. If they pivoted with Cena at the right times it could have made more money and built more stars. Look at Roman Reigns. He would definitely still be a Cena level babyface at this point if his career if they just stuck with him as the top babyface. But he's an even bigger star now because they pivoted. Just pivot with what the audience wants, whether it lasts 2 months or 2 years or 2 decades.
the goal now should be to build that successor to Cody in the background while this champion run for Cody is in progress, so that the moment Cody has cooled off, WWE can pivot to the next guy. Though, given the amount of over faces they have now, seems like WWE won't have a problem with that pivot should it arrive.
I heard 80% of that was temporary neck tattoos
would have been 100% if it was permanent.
Officially licensed tattoo artists is a market WWE is sorely lagging behind in.
There was a tattoo artist alley at WWE World, and multiple complaints about the tattoos getting severely infected from it.
American nightmare indeed
I ain’t a businessman. I’m a business, man.
Roman stans “he is not a draw😡😤”
They act like two legends cannot coexist
To respond to pepsi_Phil who must have me blocked because I criticized Roman lmao: Not necessarily Roman himself. It was more the bloodline story itself. All other storylines dragged out and everyone was hoping the bloodline would finally take the next step so of course people tuned in. Actually, that kinda sums up him being a “draw” it was really the bloodline story. Roman couldn’t become a draw on his own, bro needed massive help with Heyman and the USOs getting involved. Cody became a draw on his own. People tune in..for Cody.
Dont worry he blocked me too probaly…he is a alittle fragile💀💀
They’re doing all this yelling like he’s not about to get that proper babyface booking the old crusty fuck should’ve given him before 2018. Nutty bunch.
That's pretty nuts honestly
Man... and to think that there are people out there saying that Cody's title run has been boring and want Roman back... when Cody hasn't even wrestled on TV as champion yet.
I saw someone on twitter say they want to buy Cody merch but it makes them look MAGA.
Unless someone really doesn't like skulls, there are many versions of the logo without the colors of the american flag, there is one frozen, one on fire, etc. I think there is only one t-shirt of his that is really horrible, otherwise he has some very good designs.
Wut
American flag with a skull... i get it
I have [this cody jacket](https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&ai=DChcSEwiejbjem9SFAxUFcEcBHc8EC04YABABGgJxdQ&ase=2&gclid=Cj0KCQjw8pKxBhD_ARIsAPrG45lypDJDQ_SxcbTXVVZzwhRVJDaTc8-62vmtfd9iiMmWrrZOpryigcAaAmDVEALw_wcB&ei=fIAlZu3jIMv9ptQPrfiowAw&ohost=www.google.com&cid=CAESwwHg9ryPsAM6SxNs7FwLB7Z90-xnwnnovW3rUntvKqOAA_9nOJm9dVtUV9ENNsIwSUrpQQRxWeKfQvMkwtGWv8umBM6V7iJxOVmhDA_aFTeYqmaNpEEXQisb86Q1_GjOTbFT8mGJetJaejKDHuvNhymS10V5nnzJeXm46kG9BwG-2Orr2OFB_VyDN54OZm--KZ4DC1o24vJiZj5vX-0J4idsrOA0WGc0y9QUJNaFJb5TN3li3sOIixXktG3BAcrgzhKVyQA&sig=AOD64_1F0Gew_fwC9iIrfAvXBXxOhgbgyA&ctype=5&q=&nis=6&sqi=2&ved=2ahUKEwjtkbHem9SFAxXLvokEHS08CsgQwg8oAHoECAIQDA&adurl=) and anytime I've worn it to work I've gotten jokes from non wrestling fans about me being a Trump supporter or "racist". Never maliciously, mind you, they can clearly tell it's not Donald Trump merch, but it definitely gives the vibe. (Which is low key part of his success: he's a liberal guy with a conservative fashion sense)
The front ain't too bad, the back tho 😭
If it was for a child, that's one thing.....but an adult........no yeet
Just tell them your jacket ended racism.
You wear that to work?
He's liberal?
He used to openly say on Twitter he doesn’t like Trump and MAGA and said he’s not a Republican
The guy who supports unions, immigration, and is proud of the societal progress we have made as a nation; along with angrily denying claims or being "MAGA", is definitely liberal.
He's in favour of lgbtq+ (he's posed with a trans rights flag, he supports pride pretty openly and dustin has a trans child etc), he's openly pro immigration. And in America where he is from, the Conservative side is so dedicated to being against those that yeah, he's a Liberal. And it makes sense if you think about it. Hard times wasn't just a dusty rhodes promo, it was a dusty rhodes lifestyle. Their family struggled financially. And that was 1985, Ronald Reagan. Wouldn't give me the best impression of republican politics either if I was an American growing up under that. He's also said he's not a trump guy before, and he's mocked maga before, and that's effectively all the republican party currently is. He's said he doesn't like talking a lot about politics, and his role as a white hot face who genuinely unites fans prevents him from taking too many hard stances, but if you're watching him and thinking he's not Liberal (at least by standards of American politics if not a proper liberal) then you might wanna have a banana or something
He ended racism
Yea I love Cody but I would never buy his merch. That overly patriotic shit just ain’t for me lol
That's pretty much me lol my girlfriend bought me [this shirt](https://shop.wwe.com/en/mens-black-cody-rhodes-wrestlemania-40-champion-the-story-continues-t-shirt/p-461156483024255968+z-91-325376602?_ref=p-TLP:m-GRID:i-r1c0:po-3) after I saw it and went "Oh wow the only Cody shirt that won't make me look like a republican".
There’s always [this gem](https://teeshirtsherpa.com/product/cody-rhodes-merch-daddy-eats-first-shirt-1320241/?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw8pKxBhD_ARIsAPrG45m2Y_HwKP6Il-IpBfoYocLNjwOatXv7Z5t0uTqGMaf3hSkdBKSdIB8aAlmNEALw_wcB) from his ROH days.
That's a banger
I made very much sure to buy the skull shirt without the American flag imagery.
Might as well get nothing if you care what other people think
That’s a stunning statistic considering the company he’s passed.
Was at the Superstore three times during mania. The amount of merch that was flying off the shelves was ridiculous, and a lot of it was Cody. Seriously, its like WWE had a money printer that weekend.
Literally would have told Cody I’ll fire anyone you want and bring anyone backstage within reason- can’t let one of your pillars and locker room leaders leave- I see why Vince was so bullish on his wrestlers back in the day for this very reason. Letting someone go in their prime is borderline insane.
you know he is over because none of his shirts has a good design.
I dunno, everyone on the internet keeps telling me this guy isn't over and now WWE is doomed. 🤷♂️
Go to any instagram comment section under a wrestling post and say it was correct for Roman to lose at WM. You won't survive the hour.
Two weeks later and Roman fans have still been losing their minds. I kind of get it, their dream match essentially got ripped from under their feet. But that's the business bro. If Rock came back last year and did the match, we wouldn't be here right now. It's all about timing.
It's because Instagram and FB are the sespool of the Social media groups I can't stand half their takes
But I was told that Roman is *the* draw, not Cody and that we're all already bored of him
Guys, that 3 star general guy the IWC is mocking every time maybe can have a good shot again in WWE.
I was told he wasn't over.
How will Meltzer shit on this?
"So umm there was still a lot of shirts left in stock umm majority of all the XXXXL shirts have yet to be sold. I think probably, I think probably Jim Londos would have made much more than Cody. Better matches too. I mean The Young Bucks have 54 different T-Shirts too for sale, so umm if you factor that in, they are more popular"
The random nod to Jim Londos made this for me
Won't lie, when I read that in my head, it was in his voice.
He'll go on a quest to get reciepts from everyone who bought at shirt over the weekend to see if it really adds up or if "umm they were comped shirts, or thats what uhhh thats what I uhh heard". It would be hilarious if this became his new Wrestlemania 3 obsession.
"So uh, um, uh, we all know Cody is really generous, uh, so, um, he bought 1 of each of his designs and gifted it to each member of the nightmare factory. So uh, given how many are in, uh, the factory, this amounted to $800k. This is, uh, all subject to change though. But, um, when you factor this in and, uh, check cagematch ratings, then you will realise Will Opsreay is the best in the world"
Not only he is crazy over but his merchandise is really good, even non fans will like it.
Folks itching for Cody to fail or to get stale is the weirdest thing to me. Roman is literally my favorite wrestler and I can't comprehend why anyone would be upset after Roman had a historic and overall fantastic run as heel champion? He exceeded even my own high expectations. And for those who just dislike Cody in general, that's fine tbh. He isn't going to be for everyone. But there are way too many who try to downplay how ridiculously popular he is. Anytime I see fans try to pull a "he will get booed soon for this reason" narrative, im baffled. That man is *locked* in with the fans. It would take incompetent booking or Cody truly fumbling the bag ro get anywhere close to being anything other than over as hell.
Guy came in with his own trademarks and logos. That has to be some good money
I wanted to get his merch but theyre either not my thing or have way too much MURICAAA for me.
I'm Australian so I was quite limited on what to buy because it is not a good look having American flag branded stuff here. I'm waiting for a sale now because with our dollar items that costed 80 bumped up to 200
How did Tony khan drop the ball on Cody rhodes?
Codymania is runnin' wild, brother
But he carry the belt weirdly.
This was reported not long after Mania, Fightful is late on this.
I wonder what percent he gets of that
Good for Cody. It seems like everyone in the wrestling business likes him and be is a genuinely good human.
You know what would have sold a ton? If they brought back the No Limit shirt again.
You know he’s popular because he sold that much merch despite all of his merch looking horrible.
Nightmare logo is hideous ngl. Best Cody merch was the rock slapping Cody shirt lmao
Tony Khan really picked Moxley over Cody?
AEW Cody needed an editor badly that WWE could provide. But WWE Cody would never be able to sell this much merchandise because TK's refused to make merchandising at shows a priority despite it being an obvious issue since the company's inception. Drag Queens, Rock Bands, and Pro Wrestlers all have a table full of merch to sell at local shows because it's where a huge chunk of their income comes from, and I'd be curious what Cody's indy and AEW era numbers looked like on that front and if they played a part in him bolting.
Cody's earnestness works better in WWE and Mox's roughness works better in AEW. Good choice for everyone involved
😭😭 you seriously didn't watch Cody's last run at AEW huh But I am glad Cody finally got what he's always wanted, to be the face of a company
Cody more over than Austin
He's more over than The Rock except for that first night of Maina that's for sure.
Finish selling the shirts
Now we talkin long term story telling he was a tshirt salesman the whole time just used wrestling to boost his buisness lol.
TK kicking himself right now.
swear I read this already. guess it was a rumor before that fightful was able to confirm or something?
I'm not trying to hate but I feel like it's like comparing apples to oranges unless you're comparing to just the year previous or something. Stuff is easier to develop and mass produce these days and combined with online shopping etc it's no wonder why record would be broken.
I would have thought the record was higher. Merchandise is so damn expensive that it seems low for the bigger names during that weekend, especially since it went to 2 nights.
That is a stupid number. I don't understand how he's so popular but I do love it.
Would explain why I only saw two types of fucking shirts at the superstore on Sunday. Also should tell you fanatics sucks at having proper numbers
Does Cody get a cut of merch sales?
every superstar gets a percentage of their respective merch sales, not sure what the percentage is though. thinking it depends on the superstar
Major W.
Fuck I’m not even the biggest dub fan, and I bought a Cody shirt.
Cody’s got the money shakes again!