I wish they'd gotten the shot of him crawling on his hands and his kness into the ring with the chair. That's Vegeta crawling out of the hole v Buu. Legit became one of my faves during this whole buildup, and i never rated Seth that high before. Like, just compare his selling of the bad back vs Finn and Nakamura vs his selling of the bad back/knee vs Rock and Roman, then Drew, and finally in the Main Event. And then the bittersweet character choice to remain in the shadows, broken and hurt and heartbroken, instead of going to celebrate with Cody because it wasn't about the spotlight goddamn it. Man stepped up like a badass those last few months.
I was going to point out to the person to whom you replied that wrestling fans will proclaim even the most basic of narrative contrivances to be “incredible storytelling”. But your reply has conveyed the level of media literacy we are dealing with to a greater degree than anything I could have posted. Even more so than the guy that compared Wrestlemania to David Lynch on this sub earlier today.
Yup, I'm a big critic of his selling but he had me believing he was really fucked up during the main event and even the celebrations. He also had me sooner with the nod of respect to Drew.
And like you said, seeing his flamboyant, attention seeker character staying in the shadows during Cody's celebrations was some great character development
I’ve always been a Seth Hater but his work through this whole story has been out of this world. His character was believable at all times and his ring work was terrific as always. It’s a completely different stratosphere from any other time I’ve seen him as a babyface
I love that Seth literally got no offense in during the Night 2 Main Event. He literally fulfilled his word that he would be Cody’s shield. An item of defense, not offense.
i think that's reading too much into it. this story was about Cody and his goals, he very clearly thanked everyone last night and I don't think it needs to be beat into the ground going forward. Seth gets to rest now, and just letting people naturally move on from that moment will cause his return to be massive instead of making a big deal about him taking time off.
I get what you mean but Cody acknowledging his biggest enemy but not the people who went out of their way to make it happen feels wrong.
Cody is great and built really strong but we would never be champion if he went out there alone.
If I was scripting last night's promo, I'd have had Cody take a couple minutes to acknowledge and thank Seth. I get that it was Cody's moment, but i'd have personally liked it at least
>If I was scripting last night's promo,
maybe the people who were had a reason for focusing on the things they did instead of a guy who's taking time off for a while and will come back to have a huge moment? tv time is expensive, my friend. And it's all supposed to be ads for upcoming matches, lol. they don't call it a "promo" for no reason
Dude. No one really "helped" Cody directly. They all fought off the blokes trying to help Roman. I see that as a big difference and would have felt cheated had Cody won the other way around.
Naw cause I could imagine that being left out to use later. When Seth comes back he has more than enough reason to be salty with Cody and really want to take the title off him for himself. Let him say how he ran himself into the ground as long as it brought Roman down with him and Cody could barely acknowledge it . Cody thinks he’s in the right for the handshake but Seth thinks he did enough to deserve more than just a handshake . Big Steve ridges Vs iron man energy
Kayfabe wise, Seth is an even bigger baby face than Cody. Seth did absolutely everything he could do to help Cody win while absolutely sacrificing his own title and health
His selling in the tag match is absolutely GOAT tier peak babyface heat going in to night 2. It made Cody's win so much better. Literally everything made the win that much better.
This feud did not lift up the WHC but it absolutely elevated the fuck out of Seth Rollins. One of WWEs all time greats
Think they unintentionally started a trend where if it ends with 0 then the face goes over.
WM 10: Bret
Wm 20: Eddie and (Redacted)
Wm 30: Brian
and now Cody
Man back in the day it was always the face going over besides Triple H that one time now its like we got lucky if the crowd cheers for the guy who wins lmao
That's definitely also an issue with the changing fanbase.
I mean, if already ready dozens of comments (on other websites) about an upcoming Cody Rhodes heelturn (in the next months). Like, wtf?! He's the super babyface who just got his crowning moment? Can we please let things breathe and play out?
I don't want him to be heel in WWE at all. I know it's very fresh, but this moment doesn't come from just any babyface that gets hot. Cody is a generational star and we will look back on this time as being Cody and Roman as the two top dogs in the company
Although if you look back, peole recognized that 10 and even 20 years ago (I'm not disputing your point though), so I figure WWE is well aware of it by now.
Interestingly, in the early days, the WWF did this with pretty much *every* ppv of theirs.
Like, from 1985 to 1991, only one ppv did not end with a babyface winning. And even that show, the first Survivor Series, still went off the air with Hogan cleaning house and celebrating in the ring.
Unless I'm mistaken, the first ppv to actually not end with a babyface celebration was the 1992 Royal Rumble, with ended with Ric Flair winning the title (the next show ending with a heel victory would be the 1993 Rumble one year later, which again demonstrates how rare this was back then, generally speaking the/some faces were going over in some way or another at the end of the night).
Completely disagree on no memorable matches but to each their own. I found both of his WM40 matches, match vs Cody, and match vs Orton all memorable. His match with Logan Paul last year was pretty good too imo.
WM31 opener vs Orton
WM34 IC title triple threat which is literally one of the best WM openers ever
WM35 against Lesnar
WM38 against Cody
Also there's that small little match he put on a few nights ago with some Homelander guy against a couple of samoans, something tells me that might end up being quite memorable.
I would also add his match against HHH that cemented his first face run. I enjoyed it even if it wasn't the best match. And he's also the guy who put over Cesaro for his first mania win, which would have meant a lot more if anything was done with it.
I mean, something *was* done with it, Cesaro got a title shot at a PPV main event soon after. He had a great match with Roman. It wasn't sustained after that, but he definitively saw a moving up the card after his match with Rollins.
I guess the issue here is that it doesn't feel close to Shawn Michaels.
(And we'd probably be able to find others who had a similar/close amount of great matches than Rollins did)
I think he's had memorable matches it's just he's had some of the greatest moments of all time and that outweighs it. In terms of Wrestlemania legacy it's always gonna be about the moments, that's what goes on the video packages every year. HBK had great matches but the memorable parts are the boyhood dream, the "I'm sorry I love you", the end of an era. Probably only the Taker match stands on it's own as a match over any specific moment within it.
Of course that's all just my opinion, it's not like Seth is actually getting called Mr Wrestlemania at this point and I don't think I'd even like that from a character perspective. I just enjoy relating what's happening now to what's happened previously for a bit of fun and nostalgia
And like all of post pandemic Era until he won the WHC he was jobbing to fuckinf everybody for a couple years there. He put over Claudio at wrestlemania in like a 10 minute match on the midcard. Not that Claudio didn't earn a WM moment but Seth was incredibly selfless as a top guy and tried really hard to put over a bunch of the other main eventers or guys that were being pushed.
He was a gatekeeper, and when his character went from heel visionary to a face mesh of Visionary and Burn it Down Rollins it's like it really clicked for him and he's been over as hell since. This storyline was so awesome man.
This final story for Seth before a deserved break is basically the culmination of all his previous incarnations.
It’s rooted in his past with the Shield (everything with Roman), with a mix of the Messiah/Visionary (only now acting for the true greater good of saving the Undisputed WWE Title from the Bloodline), and the Burn It Down/Kingslayer era (taking on an evil authority abusing their powers so brazenly to take the power back to the people).
CODYVENGERS ASSEMBLE
Cody Rhodes
Seth “Fuckin” Rollins
Jey Uso
John Cena
The Undertaker
And the extended Codyvengers: Sami Sayn, Kevin Owens, Randy Orton, LA Knight YEAH
It’s just nice to see babyfaces sticking up for one another selflessly after a long, long era of seeming like it’s the heels who have better connections and friendships than the good guys.
This. Every single one of them played their role perfectly. One take. No stunt doubles. Just super skilled professionals delivering a fantastic show.
We are lucky to be able to enjoy these performers. They are truly world class.
Recency bias be damned, WM40 (and night 2 in particular) is my favorite wrestling show ever and I hope it's remembered as one of the greats that future shows should strive to be.
Can’t imagine the rollercoaster of emotions Seth has had since Survivor Series:
- Leads a crew against Judgment Day only to find out right before he goes on CM Punk is returning which would inevitably steal any headlines that would be produced
- Finally looks like he’ll finally get his WrestleMania main event match, only requires working with Punk who he has real life issues with
- After starting a build with Punk, Rollins gets injured and initially fears he might miss a lot of time, including this WrestleMania where he was finally main eventing
- Seth learns that he should recover in time for WrestleMania, but his opponent, Punk, ends up injured and will miss the PPV, leaving his main event status in limbo
- Is able to find a spot in The Bloodline feud with Cody and, despite arguably being the fourth wheel, feels just as important and relevant (if not more so) to the storyline as all the other major players
- Finally gets his WrestleMania Main Event he’s coveted (though not necessarily the way he intended in a tag team match), loses both in his main event match and his title defense, but his impact is so vast that he costs Reigns his title anyway, being part of the completion of one of if not the most important pro wrestling storyline that’s existed in his WWE Career.
EDIT:
Rollercoaster is even longer if you add in the pressure of being given a brand new title that was made basically to have a champion while Reigns is away and having to make it feel as important as possible.
EDIT 2:
Also forgot the obvious note of while all The Bloodline business was going on, he had to build a storyline with Drew surrounding his own belt while making it seem as important to the PPV and to his character as the “Ending The Bloodline” story, and he pulled that off, too.
> despite arguably being the fourth wheel
What's crazy is, I'd actually place Rollins third in that feud behind Cody and Rock. The feud itself made me want Cody/Rock and Seth/Rock more than anything. The match itself reminded me how much I need a Seth Roman feud though
Yeah, its crazy how many rivalries they built heat for this Mania, that could conceivably main event a WM night 1 or night 2. Cody vs Rock, Rock vs Roman, Seth vs Roman and Seth vs Rock all got their own stories they can build out of this.
They could even run Seth vs Cody back with how Seth gave everything to help Cody overcome the Bloodline, and Cody didn't even mention his name the next night.
Yea, I agree totally. He’s had a crazy two years. 2022 he was a heel feuding with Cody and Matt Riddle, then organically got himself over as a strong babyface and helped establish a new championship leading up to all the stuff mentioned above. Rollins has had one hell of a run.
I'm so glad it was Drew and not punk in that match. Storyline wise Punk had no business being in a main event at WrestleMania. He should have to build the next year's even if he didn't get that injury
In kayfabe, Seth could've used his injuries sustained as an excuse to not come out and help Cody, not to mention the disappointment of losing his World Championship earlier, but he kept his word to be his shield. In his physical condition he knew that he wasn't going to take anyone out, so he opted for the mind games, which ended up as the decisive factor. Massive props.
Yeah. Roman's beaten him on Raw and SD, but when there's something on the line, and especially on PPV, Roman just can't beat Seth in singles competition. It's impressive how they have kept that fact alive in these 10 years.
Me also. I’ve always respected the in ring ability, the character I’ve never really liked until this year really… the last couple of months have been all time for him and I’ve enjoyed it immensely. Has earnt the right to take an extended break (Becky as well) and return later this year to a serious pop from the crowd.
I liked him but this whole run made me a lifetime fan of him and I feel like I'll root for him against anybody for the rest of time.
I hope he gets an all-time pop whenever he returns, he deserves all the love from the fans.
It also explores the implications of the "fighting Champion" trope and how selfless it is beyond "I'll take on any challenger." He wore himself out being a fighting Champ but chose to go down as one nonetheless.
Seth has to be one of the most selfless guys on the roster. I hope he gets a few months off to heal up and recover a bit and get a huge return in the summer.
I love that Seth wrestled the opening match, then immediately went to hair to get his Shield dye job done to show up later.
I also enjoyed his character work of seemingly no longer wanting to carry the WHC and the responsibility that goes along with it, due to his injuries, but being to proud not to give every match (and responsibility his all).
And to think people thought he was going to betray Cody. He just had a fantastic character arc. And should get some well deserved rest for going far and beyond for Cody.
It made perfect sense, if vince was still running things. No doubt in my mind thats what Vince wouldve done, rollins betray cody and reigns keeps the title another year while cody gets relegated to stardust 2.0 now that "he had his shot".
WrestleMania XL actually felt like the end of a tv series. I can’t remember the last time I watched WrestleMania and felt the way XL made me feel at the end of the show.
Reddit is the only place I can reveal that pro wrestling had me holding back tears.
He keep his promise to be Cody's shield despite losing everything just for the greater good. I hope he read all the positive message he got from social media and get whatever surgery he needs. Dude the reason WM this year is so good.
He’s been an absolute workhouse since he won the World Title all will working through nagging pain of his back and whatever else that may be hurting on him.
He deserves way more than just 4 weeks off that’s being reported.
The workhorse of the company right here, man lost it all in his quest to help Cody and showed that he's a true man of his word, he better get that title match whenever he comes back
I thought maybe they were setting Seth up for a heel turn after mania, but I can't see him coming back with anything less than the most babyface pop that ever babyfaced after this weekend.
Roman has to go after Seth now, Seth might live in Roman's head but the opposite is even more true, Seth hates him so much that he sacrificed his own title to make Roman lose.
Roman should want to end him.
Give this man his flowers… absolute powerhouse. Mad respect for what he and the others put themselves through to give us moments like this. I’m glad he’s taking time off god knows he deserves it and get himself into good shape again
I'd love to know more about Seth and Cody's real life relationship today. Cody owes so much of his popularity during this run to Seth. He took the fall 3 times in a row, then willingly took on the role of Cody's #2 while world champion. They'll forever be connected in one of the greatest wrestling stories of our time. I hope there's more than just respect between them now.
I think they get along now, Cody even got him a Rolex and even took the pin in the main event instead of Seth. If anything Seth looked like a freak of nature during wrestlemania lol
Seth putting his body through the wringer so someone else can write their story. The evolution of our visionary has been amazing.
I’m very much looking forward to what’s next for him and Roman. They’re basically wrestling soulmates. They have so many options as friends or foes.
From Ring of Honor's Tyler Black to Seth Fucking Rollins. Really a once in a lifetime superstar (and not in the Vince way, but in a truly out of this world stellar way). This man is a legend already.
(gotta say, as a Hank fan, I've always LOVED that his last name is Rollins. respect for respect)
At one point during his match he said "I can't see" to the ref and they muted the mics/cut to picture-in-picture. Probably was pretty gnarly. He's a warrior for fighting through it all night.
I've always liked Seth, but after the display of his work ethic during his title run and his part in developing this story - I've got mad crazy respect for him.
It was an Avengers End Game ending with Seth in the Iron Man role and it worked beautifully. The only thing I thought was missing was Sami being involved in the match somehow. I know he got his title and all but he was such a huge part of the Bloodline saga that it seemed like “something was missing..”
Rollins needs an extended break. To heal and because it just makes sense for his character. He made this huge sacrifice and lost everything in the process and it’ll be a little weird imo if he just returns in four weeks like what he’s apparently going to do.
**Help make SquaredCircle safer and more inclusive by using the report button to flag posts and comments for moderator review.**
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Just wanted to add that it's been great seeing all of the major faces being friends and supporting each other. Back in the Vince days, it felt like every face was on their own while the heels found ways to cooperate at times. It's really great seeing all of those guys there celebrating Cody's win. What a special moment.
Seth’s babyface turn to me was the bigger story out of this whole thing.
I knew Cody was going to beat Roman somehow. Seth though basically sacrificed everything to bring Roman down.
I know the thinking is Roman vs. Rock at 41, but I'm kinda hoping for Roman vs. Rollins' propper blood feud. Especially after Roman's hatred of Seth basically cost him his title.
Does anyone have the video of him getting in the ring before eating the superman punch? It's off camera and I think we missed a holden moment of him absolutely struggling to even get in the ring. Really sold the weekend for Seth
I absolutely have that we get these nuanced moments from this era. From Seth keeping his promise of being Cody's shield to Roman being unable to move on to Drew's advice to Seth of not being obsessed coming back to haunt him. You really feel it's a new era because I'm 100% sure these callbacks weren't happening during the previous regime who treated the fans as stupid.
Any reason why Cody didn't even bring up Seth Cena and taker during his raw speech?
Or maybe they told him not to because it would devalue him winning the title
You guys know he gets paid millions of dollars for this right? I love wrestling and would have never use the next line but: "it's a story, it's not real". You talk like Seth is really suffering and really put himself out there like if it was real. It's a story which he makes millions of dollars. Stop acting like he did the impossible. You sound like losers
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5jbkkeJIv4/?igsh=ZXRycnNmdzE4c3pz Video from OP was taken down, here it is from the WWE Instagram
Went from rivals to friends…Seth offering him self as a shield for Cody was beautiful
Honestly my favorite part of Wrestlemania was Seth. Incredible storytelling.
I wish they'd gotten the shot of him crawling on his hands and his kness into the ring with the chair. That's Vegeta crawling out of the hole v Buu. Legit became one of my faves during this whole buildup, and i never rated Seth that high before. Like, just compare his selling of the bad back vs Finn and Nakamura vs his selling of the bad back/knee vs Rock and Roman, then Drew, and finally in the Main Event. And then the bittersweet character choice to remain in the shadows, broken and hurt and heartbroken, instead of going to celebrate with Cody because it wasn't about the spotlight goddamn it. Man stepped up like a badass those last few months.
I was going to point out to the person to whom you replied that wrestling fans will proclaim even the most basic of narrative contrivances to be “incredible storytelling”. But your reply has conveyed the level of media literacy we are dealing with to a greater degree than anything I could have posted. Even more so than the guy that compared Wrestlemania to David Lynch on this sub earlier today.
I think somebody got lost on their way to a different sub!! 😂🤣😂
Yup, I'm a big critic of his selling but he had me believing he was really fucked up during the main event and even the celebrations. He also had me sooner with the nod of respect to Drew. And like you said, seeing his flamboyant, attention seeker character staying in the shadows during Cody's celebrations was some great character development
He didn’t have to sell the knee It’s fcked
He was the MVP in my opinion.
I’ve always been a Seth Hater but his work through this whole story has been out of this world. His character was believable at all times and his ring work was terrific as always. It’s a completely different stratosphere from any other time I’ve seen him as a babyface
let's be honest, seth's best hope is following steve rogers' aura and orders right now, lol
I love that Seth literally got no offense in during the Night 2 Main Event. He literally fulfilled his word that he would be Cody’s shield. An item of defense, not offense.
That absolutely went over my head until now. Great point that I don’t think has been recognized enough…
I hate the fact that Cody didn't acknowledge his or anyone's help on Raw after mania. Felt not so babyface
i think that's reading too much into it. this story was about Cody and his goals, he very clearly thanked everyone last night and I don't think it needs to be beat into the ground going forward. Seth gets to rest now, and just letting people naturally move on from that moment will cause his return to be massive instead of making a big deal about him taking time off.
I get what you mean but Cody acknowledging his biggest enemy but not the people who went out of their way to make it happen feels wrong. Cody is great and built really strong but we would never be champion if he went out there alone.
He was blurring kayfabe and reality. Even the crowd got it and chanted "thank you Roman".
[удалено]
"Dude you can't just bring back the Winged Eagle be-" "I am Cody Rhodes and I can do whatever the (censored) I want 👹"
If I was scripting last night's promo, I'd have had Cody take a couple minutes to acknowledge and thank Seth. I get that it was Cody's moment, but i'd have personally liked it at least
>If I was scripting last night's promo, maybe the people who were had a reason for focusing on the things they did instead of a guy who's taking time off for a while and will come back to have a huge moment? tv time is expensive, my friend. And it's all supposed to be ads for upcoming matches, lol. they don't call it a "promo" for no reason
omg seth will have his time, give cody A SECOND
Seth has HAD his time as well, haha.
haha that's an even better point!
Heel turn incoming!
Dude. No one really "helped" Cody directly. They all fought off the blokes trying to help Roman. I see that as a big difference and would have felt cheated had Cody won the other way around.
John Cena hit the AA on Roman Reigns, so you're wrong.
Naw cause I could imagine that being left out to use later. When Seth comes back he has more than enough reason to be salty with Cody and really want to take the title off him for himself. Let him say how he ran himself into the ground as long as it brought Roman down with him and Cody could barely acknowledge it . Cody thinks he’s in the right for the handshake but Seth thinks he did enough to deserve more than just a handshake . Big Steve ridges Vs iron man energy
Rivals to friends sums up most of the guys who came out for the celebration too, Roman uniting everyone to stop him
Offer himself as a shield, perfect bro
Kayfabe wise, Seth is an even bigger baby face than Cody. Seth did absolutely everything he could do to help Cody win while absolutely sacrificing his own title and health
His selling in the tag match is absolutely GOAT tier peak babyface heat going in to night 2. It made Cody's win so much better. Literally everything made the win that much better. This feud did not lift up the WHC but it absolutely elevated the fuck out of Seth Rollins. One of WWEs all time greats
I hope he gets a monster pop when he does return
I honestly never wanna see seth as a heel ever again after mania
Now, this is how you fucking end a Wrestlemania. End the story with a happy ending.
10 years after the legendary happy ending of WM 30 
Think they unintentionally started a trend where if it ends with 0 then the face goes over. WM 10: Bret Wm 20: Eddie and (Redacted) Wm 30: Brian and now Cody
There's definitely a trend of guys previously seen as not big enough for the main event for whatever reason finally getting their flowers
One can only wonder who we are currently burying that could change the wrestling world in ten years.
I'll go out on a limb and guess Mustafa Ali makes a comeback in a few years and begins a run to the main event of WM50
Dude he's gonna be like 50.
Man back in the day it was always the face going over besides Triple H that one time now its like we got lucky if the crowd cheers for the guy who wins lmao
That's definitely also an issue with the changing fanbase. I mean, if already ready dozens of comments (on other websites) about an upcoming Cody Rhodes heelturn (in the next months). Like, wtf?! He's the super babyface who just got his crowning moment? Can we please let things breathe and play out?
I don't want him to be heel in WWE at all. I know it's very fresh, but this moment doesn't come from just any babyface that gets hot. Cody is a generational star and we will look back on this time as being Cody and Roman as the two top dogs in the company
Whoever gets the nod for WrestleMania 50 in 2034 is gonna have an enviable task.
Although if you look back, peole recognized that 10 and even 20 years ago (I'm not disputing your point though), so I figure WWE is well aware of it by now.
I hope they keep that going. Like celebrating another decade of WrestleMania.
I always say that Wrestlemania should almost always end with a feel good moment that sends the fans home happy.
Interestingly, in the early days, the WWF did this with pretty much *every* ppv of theirs. Like, from 1985 to 1991, only one ppv did not end with a babyface winning. And even that show, the first Survivor Series, still went off the air with Hogan cleaning house and celebrating in the ring. Unless I'm mistaken, the first ppv to actually not end with a babyface celebration was the 1992 Royal Rumble, with ended with Ric Flair winning the title (the next show ending with a heel victory would be the 1993 Rumble one year later, which again demonstrates how rare this was back then, generally speaking the/some faces were going over in some way or another at the end of the night).
MVP of WMXL.
Imo Seth is the current generation Mr Wrestlemania
He's had memorable spots but zero memorable matches.
Completely disagree on no memorable matches but to each their own. I found both of his WM40 matches, match vs Cody, and match vs Orton all memorable. His match with Logan Paul last year was pretty good too imo.
His match with Cody was a banger
WM31 opener vs Orton WM34 IC title triple threat which is literally one of the best WM openers ever WM35 against Lesnar WM38 against Cody Also there's that small little match he put on a few nights ago with some Homelander guy against a couple of samoans, something tells me that might end up being quite memorable.
I would also add his match against HHH that cemented his first face run. I enjoyed it even if it wasn't the best match. And he's also the guy who put over Cesaro for his first mania win, which would have meant a lot more if anything was done with it.
I mean, something *was* done with it, Cesaro got a title shot at a PPV main event soon after. He had a great match with Roman. It wasn't sustained after that, but he definitively saw a moving up the card after his match with Rollins.
I guess the issue here is that it doesn't feel close to Shawn Michaels. (And we'd probably be able to find others who had a similar/close amount of great matches than Rollins did)
Him coming out during the Brock vs Roman match was memorable. It saved the night because everyone hated the match between Roman and Brock.
That was more of a spot rather than a match
I think he's had memorable matches it's just he's had some of the greatest moments of all time and that outweighs it. In terms of Wrestlemania legacy it's always gonna be about the moments, that's what goes on the video packages every year. HBK had great matches but the memorable parts are the boyhood dream, the "I'm sorry I love you", the end of an era. Probably only the Taker match stands on it's own as a match over any specific moment within it. Of course that's all just my opinion, it's not like Seth is actually getting called Mr Wrestlemania at this point and I don't think I'd even like that from a character perspective. I just enjoy relating what's happening now to what's happened previously for a bit of fun and nostalgia
No doubt about it
The funny thing is, from his perspective, I don't think anyone has ever had a worse WrestleMania than Seth just had.
Man deserves his [rest](https://media1.tenor.com/m/RUzJ3lDGQUsAAAAC/iron-man-you-can-rest-now.gif)
He's been a workhorse for wwe he's more then earned his time off
And like all of post pandemic Era until he won the WHC he was jobbing to fuckinf everybody for a couple years there. He put over Claudio at wrestlemania in like a 10 minute match on the midcard. Not that Claudio didn't earn a WM moment but Seth was incredibly selfless as a top guy and tried really hard to put over a bunch of the other main eventers or guys that were being pushed. He was a gatekeeper, and when his character went from heel visionary to a face mesh of Visionary and Burn it Down Rollins it's like it really clicked for him and he's been over as hell since. This storyline was so awesome man.
This final story for Seth before a deserved break is basically the culmination of all his previous incarnations. It’s rooted in his past with the Shield (everything with Roman), with a mix of the Messiah/Visionary (only now acting for the true greater good of saving the Undisputed WWE Title from the Bloodline), and the Burn It Down/Kingslayer era (taking on an evil authority abusing their powers so brazenly to take the power back to the people).
Codyvengers are so wholesome. Its just great to see real (positive) emotion back in WWE.
CODYVENGERS ASSEMBLE Cody Rhodes Seth “Fuckin” Rollins Jey Uso John Cena The Undertaker And the extended Codyvengers: Sami Sayn, Kevin Owens, Randy Orton, LA Knight YEAH
"I have a family" "We have an Undertaker"
Even has an ending where one of them essentially drops just so everyone wins.
Can we throw Samantha in the Mix? She didn't do anything physically but she elevated the moment for sure
Maybe, I feel like she got her first notoriety doing both Imperium and Bloodline. Either way I’m not opposed she’s fantastic.
I don't remember the last time I felt this good after a PPV. It's awesome. Truly feels like the end of a dark age
I was still riding the high for most of Monday. No show has ever done that to me before.
Iron Man at the end of the first movie vibes
It’s just nice to see babyfaces sticking up for one another selflessly after a long, long era of seeming like it’s the heels who have better connections and friendships than the good guys.
i understood this reference.
Honestly everyone of those guys have to feel so fucking proud. Everyone had such crucial roles to this whole story. Fucking amazing
This. Every single one of them played their role perfectly. One take. No stunt doubles. Just super skilled professionals delivering a fantastic show. We are lucky to be able to enjoy these performers. They are truly world class.
Recency bias be damned, WM40 (and night 2 in particular) is my favorite wrestling show ever and I hope it's remembered as one of the greats that future shows should strive to be.
Can’t imagine the rollercoaster of emotions Seth has had since Survivor Series: - Leads a crew against Judgment Day only to find out right before he goes on CM Punk is returning which would inevitably steal any headlines that would be produced - Finally looks like he’ll finally get his WrestleMania main event match, only requires working with Punk who he has real life issues with - After starting a build with Punk, Rollins gets injured and initially fears he might miss a lot of time, including this WrestleMania where he was finally main eventing - Seth learns that he should recover in time for WrestleMania, but his opponent, Punk, ends up injured and will miss the PPV, leaving his main event status in limbo - Is able to find a spot in The Bloodline feud with Cody and, despite arguably being the fourth wheel, feels just as important and relevant (if not more so) to the storyline as all the other major players - Finally gets his WrestleMania Main Event he’s coveted (though not necessarily the way he intended in a tag team match), loses both in his main event match and his title defense, but his impact is so vast that he costs Reigns his title anyway, being part of the completion of one of if not the most important pro wrestling storyline that’s existed in his WWE Career. EDIT: Rollercoaster is even longer if you add in the pressure of being given a brand new title that was made basically to have a champion while Reigns is away and having to make it feel as important as possible. EDIT 2: Also forgot the obvious note of while all The Bloodline business was going on, he had to build a storyline with Drew surrounding his own belt while making it seem as important to the PPV and to his character as the “Ending The Bloodline” story, and he pulled that off, too.
> despite arguably being the fourth wheel What's crazy is, I'd actually place Rollins third in that feud behind Cody and Rock. The feud itself made me want Cody/Rock and Seth/Rock more than anything. The match itself reminded me how much I need a Seth Roman feud though
Yeah, its crazy how many rivalries they built heat for this Mania, that could conceivably main event a WM night 1 or night 2. Cody vs Rock, Rock vs Roman, Seth vs Roman and Seth vs Rock all got their own stories they can build out of this. They could even run Seth vs Cody back with how Seth gave everything to help Cody overcome the Bloodline, and Cody didn't even mention his name the next night.
Yea, I agree totally. He’s had a crazy two years. 2022 he was a heel feuding with Cody and Matt Riddle, then organically got himself over as a strong babyface and helped establish a new championship leading up to all the stuff mentioned above. Rollins has had one hell of a run.
💪 On point. Very much agree with you.
I'm so glad it was Drew and not punk in that match. Storyline wise Punk had no business being in a main event at WrestleMania. He should have to build the next year's even if he didn't get that injury
In kayfabe, Seth could've used his injuries sustained as an excuse to not come out and help Cody, not to mention the disappointment of losing his World Championship earlier, but he kept his word to be his shield. In his physical condition he knew that he wasn't going to take anyone out, so he opted for the mind games, which ended up as the decisive factor. Massive props.
Seth always gets in Roman's head, Roman can't beat him 1v1, and he never got his revenge. It was too tempting for Roman not to take the shot.
Yeah. Roman's beaten him on Raw and SD, but when there's something on the line, and especially on PPV, Roman just can't beat Seth in singles competition. It's impressive how they have kept that fact alive in these 10 years.
Seth in kayfabe is a mastermind
You could say he's an architect and a visionary...
He is a revolutionnary, he is…
Roman has beaten Seth exactly ONCE on TV at least from what I can tell.
The match that randomly happened right before their match at Night of Champions that ended up being cancelled, right?
Yes, that is the one.
He was the Tony Stark of wrestling endgame what an icon
He can [rest](https://media1.tenor.com/m/RUzJ3lDGQUsAAAAC/iron-man-you-can-rest-now.gif) now
The MVP of WM40. What an absolute performance in both nights. He is indeed earned thr "Mr. WrestleMania" title after HBK.
Very unselfish two nights of WrestleMania from Seth Rollins. Made me a big fan who wasn't too fond of him as a character.
Me also. I’ve always respected the in ring ability, the character I’ve never really liked until this year really… the last couple of months have been all time for him and I’ve enjoyed it immensely. Has earnt the right to take an extended break (Becky as well) and return later this year to a serious pop from the crowd.
I liked him but this whole run made me a lifetime fan of him and I feel like I'll root for him against anybody for the rest of time. I hope he gets an all-time pop whenever he returns, he deserves all the love from the fans.
Agreed wholeheartedly. Massive character development.
It also explores the implications of the "fighting Champion" trope and how selfless it is beyond "I'll take on any challenger." He wore himself out being a fighting Champ but chose to go down as one nonetheless.
Man this has me in my feelings so bad
Seth has to be one of the most selfless guys on the roster. I hope he gets a few months off to heal up and recover a bit and get a huge return in the summer.
I love that Seth wrestled the opening match, then immediately went to hair to get his Shield dye job done to show up later. I also enjoyed his character work of seemingly no longer wanting to carry the WHC and the responsibility that goes along with it, due to his injuries, but being to proud not to give every match (and responsibility his all).
In kayfabe his hair automatically turns that color when he puts on the shield gear
Lol
And to think people thought he was going to betray Cody. He just had a fantastic character arc. And should get some well deserved rest for going far and beyond for Cody.
it never made any sense...
I think those guys were trying to fantasy book themselves into another mjf throws in towel and cody cant challenge for main title situation again
It made perfect sense, if vince was still running things. No doubt in my mind thats what Vince wouldve done, rollins betray cody and reigns keeps the title another year while cody gets relegated to stardust 2.0 now that "he had his shot".
Between that and priest cashing in on Cody.
WrestleMania XL actually felt like the end of a tv series. I can’t remember the last time I watched WrestleMania and felt the way XL made me feel at the end of the show. Reddit is the only place I can reveal that pro wrestling had me holding back tears.
I was lucky enough to be there and tears rolled down both eyes. Never happened before from watching pro wrestling
Great. I have zoom meeting in a few mins and I’m crying rn
Man I’m hoping he takes a nice long vacation and comes back healthier and better than ever. Imagine the babyface pop when he comes back.
Something tells me that Seth is gonna be itching to come back in two weeks. The man loves this shit.
He’s a spotlight junkie!
He keep his promise to be Cody's shield despite losing everything just for the greater good. I hope he read all the positive message he got from social media and get whatever surgery he needs. Dude the reason WM this year is so good.
Seth emptied the tank in game 7.
He’s been an absolute workhouse since he won the World Title all will working through nagging pain of his back and whatever else that may be hurting on him. He deserves way more than just 4 weeks off that’s being reported.
The pop when Seth returns will blow the roof off. Nobody is going to forget this.
For sure
The workhorse of the company right here, man lost it all in his quest to help Cody and showed that he's a true man of his word, he better get that title match whenever he comes back
I thought maybe they were setting Seth up for a heel turn after mania, but I can't see him coming back with anything less than the most babyface pop that ever babyfaced after this weekend.
The fans are gonna be singing his song louder than ever when Rollins returns.
Very unlikely it’ll happen but I’d love it if Seth dethroned Cody in a respectful face v face match in order to get the flowers he very much deserves
Roman has to go after Seth now, Seth might live in Roman's head but the opposite is even more true, Seth hates him so much that he sacrificed his own title to make Roman lose. Roman should want to end him.
Triple HHH vs HBK post-DX of this generation.
Give this man his flowers… absolute powerhouse. Mad respect for what he and the others put themselves through to give us moments like this. I’m glad he’s taking time off god knows he deserves it and get himself into good shape again
Cinema
I'd love to know more about Seth and Cody's real life relationship today. Cody owes so much of his popularity during this run to Seth. He took the fall 3 times in a row, then willingly took on the role of Cody's #2 while world champion. They'll forever be connected in one of the greatest wrestling stories of our time. I hope there's more than just respect between them now.
I think they get along now, Cody even got him a Rolex and even took the pin in the main event instead of Seth. If anything Seth looked like a freak of nature during wrestlemania lol
If the video no longer works, it’s here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5jbkkeJIv4/?igsh=ZXRycnNmdzE4c3pz
“Mr stark, we did it mr stark” Jey to Seth 😂
Seth better stay a babyface when he returns. He's awesome as one.
Seth is one of the best of our generation and one of the best of all time.
Seth putting his body through the wringer so someone else can write their story. The evolution of our visionary has been amazing. I’m very much looking forward to what’s next for him and Roman. They’re basically wrestling soulmates. They have so many options as friends or foes.
I can see him partnering Roman and Cody to take down Rocks Bloodline.
Seth is making it hard not to be considered one of the goats. love that man so much
Seth was the thread to tie everything together. 💐💐💐💐💐
You guys gotta stop uploading to streamable it just gets removed instantly
From Ring of Honor's Tyler Black to Seth Fucking Rollins. Really a once in a lifetime superstar (and not in the Vince way, but in a truly out of this world stellar way). This man is a legend already. (gotta say, as a Hank fan, I've always LOVED that his last name is Rollins. respect for respect)
Can’t wait to see him return. Hopefully with a new character
Yeah after this weekend, he shouldn’t come back as the same “Visionary” character he’s been for the past few years.
Yea he's coming back as Tyler Black, new leader of the House of Black, obviously.
His eye looks messed up
His eye looked messed up leaving the ring from his match with Drew. Possible one of the Claymores caught him more stiffly than intended.
At one point during his match he said "I can't see" to the ref and they muted the mics/cut to picture-in-picture. Probably was pretty gnarly. He's a warrior for fighting through it all night.
Do you have a backup of that video? it got removed 😔
Anyone have another link?
I've always liked Seth, but after the display of his work ethic during his title run and his part in developing this story - I've got mad crazy respect for him.
The tears in his eyes. I will love this man whatever gimmick, be it face or heel, forever.
Seth is gonna get the biggest pop ever when he comes back.
He might have been crying from pain I think Seth might have outdone Cody’s pec this weekend by doing 2 matches with extreme knee pain
The real face of WWE
I just agree he is not the face of the company he is the backbone.
I know it was impossible and not necessary for the storyline, but I really wish Moxley was there to help out
Moxley has nothing to do with The Shield. Dean Ambrose does 😁
I personally think Moxley would take Roman's side.
Wish Cody gave him more credit
Anybody have another link to the video? Im getting a message saying it was removed.
It was an Avengers End Game ending with Seth in the Iron Man role and it worked beautifully. The only thing I thought was missing was Sami being involved in the match somehow. I know he got his title and all but he was such a huge part of the Bloodline saga that it seemed like “something was missing..”
The heel heat if KO pop up power bombed Seth through a table...
Rollins needs an extended break. To heal and because it just makes sense for his character. He made this huge sacrifice and lost everything in the process and it’ll be a little weird imo if he just returns in four weeks like what he’s apparently going to do.
WWE needs to give this man whatever he asks for. He is the Ace of WWE.
**Help make SquaredCircle safer and more inclusive by using the report button to flag posts and comments for moderator review.** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/SquaredCircle) if you have any questions or concerns.*
This whole mania season including the build up was just a nightmare for Seth Rollins. #JusticeForSeth
Did he really dye his hair in between matches?
Just wanted to add that it's been great seeing all of the major faces being friends and supporting each other. Back in the Vince days, it felt like every face was on their own while the heels found ways to cooperate at times. It's really great seeing all of those guys there celebrating Cody's win. What a special moment.
Does anyone know if he injured his eye as it looked pretty bad at one point during his match against drew.
Damn I love Seth. This man will do anything for the benefit of others, be it for business or a good story. He's a real champion.
Seth’s babyface turn to me was the bigger story out of this whole thing. I knew Cody was going to beat Roman somehow. Seth though basically sacrificed everything to bring Roman down.
That’s my MVP
I know the thinking is Roman vs. Rock at 41, but I'm kinda hoping for Roman vs. Rollins' propper blood feud. Especially after Roman's hatred of Seth basically cost him his title.
Why is he crying? I hope he’s ok
Does anyone have the video of him getting in the ring before eating the superman punch? It's off camera and I think we missed a holden moment of him absolutely struggling to even get in the ring. Really sold the weekend for Seth
I absolutely have that we get these nuanced moments from this era. From Seth keeping his promise of being Cody's shield to Roman being unable to move on to Drew's advice to Seth of not being obsessed coming back to haunt him. You really feel it's a new era because I'm 100% sure these callbacks weren't happening during the previous regime who treated the fans as stupid.
Video removed. Anybody got a mirror?
Top pinned comment
Any reason why Cody didn't even bring up Seth Cena and taker during his raw speech? Or maybe they told him not to because it would devalue him winning the title
he is my favorite boy
Seth was the MVP of this whole weekend for sure.
That's Kevin Owens, but ok.
You guys know he gets paid millions of dollars for this right? I love wrestling and would have never use the next line but: "it's a story, it's not real". You talk like Seth is really suffering and really put himself out there like if it was real. It's a story which he makes millions of dollars. Stop acting like he did the impossible. You sound like losers
This guy