2022 WRESTLERS LEAVING COMPANIES THREAD (Releases, FAs, etc...)

[HumanChessgame]

Schrodigner's Kayfabe - where someone may or may not have been working the fans depending on what kind of reaction their behavior gets

[Beech27]

Cody may be a tedious geek with an inflated and mercurial sense regarding his own creative powers, but he is — according to everything we’ve seen reported — one of those good and kind people. 

Were I to guess — and that’s what this is, so maybe I just shouldn’t — I’d say he suffers not from an excess of carny cravenness as much as genuine flighty earnestness. I suspect he meant all the anti-WWE rhetoric when he portrayed it, but ended up feeling jilted and under appreciated by AEW and its fans. 

Edited March 22, 2022 by Beech27

[The Natural]

31 minutes ago, Gordlow said:

In my experience, a lot of wrestlers are genuinely nice people.

Not always. I have personally seen Dynamite Kid curse out some children who asked him where Matilda was. I heard some very nasty rumours about how one wrestler who became nationally known behaved when he was working in the Vancouver territory. I have heard pro wrestling old-timers tell stories that they thought were very amusing but which seemed to me horrific.

On the other hand, I have had many more very positive experiences hanging out with pro wrestlers than negative ones. I can state with absolute confidence that not all current pro wrestlers are carny assholes who are only out for money. 

Abdullah the Butcher and Akira Hokuto both have reputations for being unfriendly to fans. Maybe there some truth to that... but both of them were extremely kind and friendly to me when I had the good fortune of meeting them. Well above and beyond ordinary politeness. So, my tendency is to think that people may not be kind enough in their assessment of some pro wrestler's actual personalities, rather than to assume the opposite. 

I have zero problem believing that the nice guy persona that Bryan Danielson portrays is a reflection of the thoughtful, positive, legitimately good dude that he is out of the spotlight. I've been in the same room as him a few times, spoken with him at length, seen how he treats other people... It's a small sample size, but I have never seen him do anything that would make me suspect he's not a genuinely warm and decent human being.

I think Danielson, Kingston, and Mox (to name three) have all given us glimpses of their true selves, recently.

I'm good friends with  a handful of wrestlers, on the Vancouver and Osaka scenes, and some of them at their worst are better than many people at their very best. 

Here is a very partial list of wrestlers who have been extraordinarily kind or friendly to me when they didn't stand to gain a single dime from it:

 

John Tenta, Bad News Allen, Gene Okerlund, Atsushi Onita, Bob Sapp, Asian Cooger. Ebessans 1 and 3, Tigers Mask, Chono, Irie, Akiyama, Apple Miyuki,  Dump Matsumoyo, Joe Doering, Tajiri, Mr. Hito, Kotoge, Harada, Tadasuke, Zeus, Bodyguard, Superstar Billy Graham...

 

So many positive experiences and happy memories over so many years.

 

It's cool that there's a diversity of opinion w/r/t how much importance we wanna place on wrestlers being sincere. 

It's fair to paint pro wrestling as a business with carny roots based on dishonesty and taking the marks for all they are worth.

However, my point of view is that many of us might be very pleasantly surprised by what many our current favourite wrestlers are like in real life. My experience is that the once-notoriously-carny business has an awful lot of very nice people working in it these days.

 

Cheers for sharing. Glad Bryan Danielson is great as a person as he appears to be. I love the guy. We don't get opportunity to meet wrestlers as much over here plus the travelling/standing in line with the CP.

Edited March 22, 2022 by The Natural

[Technico Support]

7 hours ago, Gordlow said:

In my experience, a lot of wrestlers are genuinely nice people.

Not always. I have personally seen Dynamite Kid curse out some children who asked him where Matilda was. I heard some very nasty rumours about how one wrestler who became nationally known behaved when he was working in the Vancouver territory. I have heard pro wrestling old-timers tell stories that they thought were very amusing but which seemed to me horrific.

On the other hand, I have had many more very positive experiences hanging out with pro wrestlers than negative ones. I can state with absolute confidence that not all current pro wrestlers are carny assholes who are only out for money. 

Abdullah the Butcher and Akira Hokuto both have reputations for being unfriendly to fans. Maybe there some truth to that... but both of them were extremely kind and friendly to me when I had the good fortune of meeting them. Well above and beyond ordinary politeness. So, my tendency is to think that people may not be kind enough in their assessment of some pro wrestler's actual personalities, rather than to assume the opposite. 

I have zero problem believing that the nice guy persona that Bryan Danielson portrays is a reflection of the thoughtful, positive, legitimately good dude that he is out of the spotlight. I've been in the same room as him a few times, spoken with him at length, seen how he treats other people... It's a small sample size, but I have never seen him do anything that would make me suspect he's not a genuinely warm and decent human being.

I think Danielson, Kingston, and Mox (to name three) have all given us glimpses of their true selves, recently.

I'm good friends with  a handful of wrestlers, on the Vancouver and Osaka scenes, and some of them at their worst are better than many people at their very best. 

Here is a very partial list of wrestlers who have been extraordinarily kind or friendly to me when they didn't stand to gain a single dime from it:

 

John Tenta, Bad News Allen, Gene Okerlund, Atsushi Onita, Bob Sapp, Asian Cooger. Ebessans 1 and 3, Tigers Mask, Chono, Irie, Akiyama, Apple Miyuki,  Dump Matsumoyo, Joe Doering, Tajiri, Mr. Hito, Kotoge, Harada, Tadasuke, Zeus, Bodyguard, Superstar Billy Graham...

 

So many positive experiences and happy memories over so many years.

 

It's cool that there's a diversity of opinion w/r/t how much importance we wanna place on wrestlers being sincere. 

It's fair to paint pro wrestling as a business with carny roots based on dishonesty and taking the marks for all they are worth.

However, my point of view is that many of us might be very pleasantly surprised by what many our current favourite wrestlers are like in real life. My experience is that the once-notoriously-carny business has an awful lot of very nice people working in it these days.

 

Yeah, I'm going to side with this.  Youth mistakes cynicism for wisdom.

[paintedbynumbers]

17 hours ago, Technico Support said:

LOL so we should expect all wrestlers to always be working us and just constantly lying, even in a non-wrestling context.  Got it.

I literally alluded to Cody representing this old time conman mindset and said I'm glad he's out of AEW.  I don't think it's "backwards" to hope for better of wrestlers, in 2022, to not be carny dirtbags. 

exactly!! I am so sick of "well it's wrestling they have always been carny"  bullshit!!  I know so many kind hearted people in wrestling that aren't just in it for themselves or for money. People that absolutely enjoy the work they do.  It's 2022, not 1982.    The locker rooms, the vibes, totally different.  Video games,twitter, and instagram, have replaced  booze, cards, and pills.  Wrestlers now are making great money with less travel as well. Cody has a newborn with the AEW deal he would probably have more time with her than he's going to with WWE. It's not even debatable. 

[paintedbynumbers]

10 hours ago, Stefanie the Human said:

Something to consider: The things we're sincere about can change over time, and the things we used to be sincere about we can no longer believe in, but we may not need to update the world when our feelings change.

while you are correct in saying this, this is also why you don't burn bridges. Especially on live TV!!  Cody had a choice. In fact it was his own idea to do it. Yes people can be forgiven but people acting as if he is a fucking saint is cringe,   

WWE gave him the goofy gimmic, he did well in getting it over. Hell Dustin was given a worse gimmic but how many people prefer Golddust to Dustin Rhodes?  

Watch Scott Halls Youshoot video.  He flat out says he would have been a GI Joe character if that's what Vince wanted.

Good workers can make any gimmic work.   He complained and tried to trash the company that gave him his first big break and now he is crawling back to them.  

But what happens when Cody is unhappy again? Where does he go? Back to AEW?  And more importantly what will you all say when he does?

[paintedbynumbers]

10 hours ago, supremebve said:

Is this a Domino reference, if so, I approve.

You have no idea how happy I am someone got this!!!

[paintedbynumbers]

9 hours ago, AxB said:

If he goes to WWE and his segments suck, he can at least claim that it was the writers. Whereas in AEW, with the power (we think) he had, it all falls on him and him alone.

he should come in and give a heart felt promo. Then out of nowhere lights go out and Polka dots show up on the Tron.  Flashbacks to Dashing Cody Rhodes come back on the Tron, Stardust flashbacks show up after that.  It consumes Cody.  It drives his anger and he becomes a vicious heel hell bent on proving everyone wrong.   This is what I want to see. Cody driven mad by the previous gimmics and doing everything he can to win the big one on his own as the American Nightmare.  

[John from Cincinnati]

2 hours ago, paintedbynumbers said:

But what happens when Cody is unhappy again? Where does he go? Back to AEW?  And more importantly what will you all say when he does?

Good for him?

[John from Cincinnati]

2 hours ago, Technico Support said:

Yeah, I'm going to side with this.  Youth mistakes cynicism for wisdom.

Says the person with the most cynical possible view of a certain someone. 

[Guest Stefanie Without Stefanie]

2 hours ago, paintedbynumbers said:

while you are correct in saying this, this is also why you don't burn bridges. Especially on live TV!!  Cody had a choice. In fact it was his own idea to do it. Yes people can be forgiven but people acting as if he is a fucking saint is cringe,   

WWE gave him the goofy gimmic, he did well in getting it over. Hell Dustin was given a worse gimmic but how many people prefer Golddust to Dustin Rhodes?  

Watch Scott Halls Youshoot video.  He flat out says he would have been a GI Joe character if that's what Vince wanted.

Good workers can make any gimmic work.   He complained and tried to trash the company that gave him his first big break and now he is crawling back to them.  

But what happens when Cody is unhappy again? Where does he go? Back to AEW?  And more importantly what will you all say when he does?

You would have really hated Ricky Steamboat in the late-1980s and early-1990s, when he would leave a company and complain about his treatment, then a couple of years later be working for the same exact company.

Look, I can't make someone's personal business decisions for them, nor am I really in a position to judge what their decisions should be. If Cody Rhodes feels going to WWE is the right choice for him, then so be it. It has no bearing on me personally.

There really is no such thing as "burning bridges" in wrestling either. Wrestling is not a normal business. Eric Bischoff tried to put Vince McMahon out of business for years, then eighteen months after his company crashed and burned, he was working for WWE. Wrestling is a business where if people think there's money to be made, they're going to try and make it.  That's just the reality of how wrestling has worked for decades and decades.

And really... that's how pretty much all entertainment fields work. I'm not sure if that's a cynical take or not, maybe someone will judge me for it, but history has shown that if people in an entertainment field think there is money to be made, they're going to try and make it.

If you think that's wrong, so be it. I can't make your ethical choices for you. But on the scale of things to have an ethical crisis about, Cody Rhodes saying he disliked his former employer and is now returning to go work for them is a pretty strange thing to have one about.

[Technico Support]

19 minutes ago, John from Cincinnati said:

Says the person with the most cynical possible view of a certain someone. 

The guy working a message board gimmick in 2022 is judging me.  Fuck, dude, at least I'm genuine.

I'm judging Cody by his actual documented words and actions.  That's a little different than saying "all these people are carnies and they're working all you marks."  

Edited March 22, 2022 by Technico Support

[Log]

Not to speak for @Technico Support, but I think the point is that Cody was sooooo outspoken about tearing down everything WWE stands for.  That was like his entire persona in early AEW.  That's a lot different than being like, "man, it sucks working here" and then coming back later when the grass isn't greener.

[John from Cincinnati]

7 minutes ago, Technico Support said:

The guy working a message board gimmick in 2022 is judging me.  Fuck, dude, at least I'm genuine.

Your assessment about people's sincerity continues to be piss poor. I hope one day I'm able to shovel obvious horseshit with your unearned confidence. It's a skill.

Quote

I'm judging Cody by his actual documented words and actions.

Oh?

18 hours ago, Technico Support said:

I just don't like guys just straight up lying every second they're in public.  This is no better than Hogan. 

Not sure how someone comes to this assessment based on their actual words and actions. Sounds like you're embellishing like usual. 

[Zakk_Sabbath]

That's exactly where I'm at Log. I don't hate or begrudge Cody for making his decision one way or the other - Hell, I agree with about 90% of Stefanie The Human's post - but Ricky Steamboat never made a goofy blog about having a WWF exorcism, or teased a big boot/legdrop finisher, or smashed the Gobbeldygooker's egg on WCW TV.

Formatting is wonky on mobile so I have to tag you guys at the bottom @Stefanie the Human @Log

[Guest Stefanie Without Stefanie]

9 minutes ago, Log said:

Not to speak for @Technico Support, but I think the point is that Cody was sooooo outspoken about tearing down everything WWE stands for.  That was like his entire persona in early AEW.  That's a lot different than being like, "man, it sucks working here" and then coming back later when the grass isn't greener.

Sure, that's fair, but therein lies the point I've been making; that people are free to change their minds and have no obligation to tell the world they've done so.

You're welcome to state he's a hypocrite, but at the same time, he's just as welcome to make what he feels is the right choice for himself in terms of his personal business.

[Guest Stefanie Without Stefanie]

4 minutes ago, Zakk_Sabbath said:

That's exactly where I'm at Log. I don't hate or begrudge Cody for making his decision one way or the other - Hell, I agree with about 90% of Stefanie The Human's post - but Ricky Steamboat never made a goofy blog about having a WWF exorcism, or teased a big boot/legdrop finisher, or smashed the Gobbeldygooker's egg on WCW TV.

Formatting is wonky on mobile so I have to tag you guys at the bottom @Stefanie the Human @Log

Nah, Steamboat just did what all wrestlers did back then... he complained to Meltzer/Keller/John Arezzi.

[Log]

1 minute ago, Stefanie the Human said:

Sure, that's fair, but therein lies the point I've been making; that people are free to change their minds and have no obligation to tell the world they've done so.

You're welcome to state he's a hypocrite, but at the same time, he's just as welcome to make what he feels is the right choice for himself in terms of his personal business.

100% agree with all of that.  Just saying that one could see why some others might have a problem with it.

I'm just reminded of a guy I worked with.  He was one of those, "This place is so shitty!  I can't wait to leave and tell everyone to fuck off!" guys.  He was not nearly as good at his job as he thought he was.  He leaves, tells anyone who will listen how horrible his time at our job was, goes to work for a competitor in town.  I run into him about six months later: "Hey, are you guys hiring?"

[paintedbynumbers]

29 minutes ago, Stefanie the Human said:

You would have really hated Ricky Steamboat in the late-1980s and early-1990s, when he would leave a company and complain about his treatment, then a couple of years later be working for the same exact company.

Look, I can't make someone's personal business decisions for them, nor am I really in a position to judge what their decisions should be. If Cody Rhodes feels going to WWE is the right choice for him, then so be it. It has no bearing on me personally.

There really is no such thing as "burning bridges" in wrestling either. Wrestling is not a normal business. Eric Bischoff tried to put Vince McMahon out of business for years, then eighteen months after his company crashed and burned, he was working for WWE. Wrestling is a business where if people think there's money to be made, they're going to try and make it.  That's just the reality of how wrestling has worked for decades and decades.

And really... that's how pretty much all entertainment fields work. I'm not sure if that's a cynical take or not, maybe someone will judge me for it, but history has shown that if people in an entertainment field think there is money to be made, they're going to try and make it.

If you think that's wrong, so be it. I can't make your ethical choices for you. But on the scale of things to have an ethical crisis about, Cody Rhodes saying he disliked his former employer and is now returning to go work for them is a pretty strange thing to have one about.

Ricky never went on WCW TV and bashed WWF or vice versa though. Huge difference.  Never compare Ricky Fucking Steamboat to Cody Rhodes. 

[Log]

I feel like this Cody stuff is, on the one hand, annoying to me.  On the other hand, it's the most fascinating thing that has happened in wrestling in a really long time.

So, Cody leaving AEW for reasons related to his creative visions failing has generated the kind of reaction and buzz that he hoped to get with those storylines, etc.  Ironic?  Really, is it ironic?  I always get the usage of that word wrong.

[paintedbynumbers]

"wrestling has more than one sell out family

 

Adrenaline in my soul, suck a fat one Cody Rhodes

No one said you'd have to work for free

crowd is here about to blow

take your ball and then go home

whoa

my father said when I was younger

go get the cheddar man

no creativity

no creativity

It cost my freedom!

Couldn't change the game and despite the pain

I lost my kingdom

I sold my dreams 

I bought my name

You'll follow me until the end

I'l start a new kingdom

Lights go down, I'm ready now

time to scam another town

gonna give another lie to believe in me

Hear the crowd on their toes

I'm the sellout Cody Rhodes

out the curtain take my ball go home

 

[Guest Stefanie Without Stefanie]

28 minutes ago, paintedbynumbers said:

Ricky never went on WCW TV and bashed WWF or vice versa though. Huge difference.  Never compare Ricky Fucking Steamboat to Cody Rhodes. 

Nah, he just went to radio and print media (or at least, print media that would allow for acknowledging the violation of kayfabe) and did it. WCW and WWF at the time didn't acknowledge each other, remember?

Would have been interesting what he would have done if they did, though.

But I do find it interesting your reaction. Is it okay when a wrestler trashes their former workplace when it's a wrestler you like, such as Ricky Steamboat, as opposed to a wrestler you don't like, seemingly such as Cody Rhodes? Hmm?

[NoFistsJustFlips]

3 hours ago, paintedbynumbers said:

 He complained and tried to trash the company that gave him his first big break and now he is crawling back to them.

Your corporate boot licking sympathizer is showing. Might wanna tuck that back in because it's gross.

Cody is just a dude. A dude that makes choices. Some of those choices he regrets. That's not some giant carny con meant to personally fuck you over. He was very offended by the way his WWE run went because he believed he could be more. So when he left he made a lot of noise about it. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. This is a business about self promotion. The louder you can be, more often than not, the better.

Now he feels like AEW undervalued him and he is offended. That doesn't make him a hypocrite to go back to WWE to try and stick it to AEW now. It makes him human. We don't live our whole lives in one fixed time where thoughts and feelings can't change. It's all a spectrum. And him being pissed in 2016 at WWE does not preclude him from from being pissed at AEW in 2022. Time heals all wounds, so the WWE beef just doesn't seem that relevant to him I'm guessing. That isn't him being a hypocrite, that's him being a mature adult making a tough choice to provide for his family.

Just like Cody, you too are just a dude. And neither Cody nor Ricky Steamboat nor anyone else owes you a god damn thing. And you being so headstrong about this is giving me flashbacks to your pro Kendrick rants and your anti Britt rants. Which brings up a good point. You were banging those drums louder than anyone. Should you be allowed to have different view now? Or should we quote every post you make and scream about you're a hypocrite for changing your mind? You wasted way more of my time with that garbage than Cody Rhodes ever did. But just like with Cody, I extend you the benefit of the doubt that your opinion has changed over time. Maybe you should re-frame how you view this in your mind.

[HarryArchieGus]

Late to the party here, what does everybody Really think of Cody Rhodes!?  

I loved the throne thrash.  I loved Cody v Dustin and pretty much everything he contributed all the way thru to around the start of the 'pandy'.  The experiments following the better stuff were hit and miss, but even the exaggerated lower points were fascinating.  I dig Cody.  I like that he played the anti-WWE card.  Ppl absolutely wanted to hate him even when he was doing great shit (like the road to the Jericho title bout).  His eventual debut is the first WWE related item I can remember being interested in since the relaunch of WWECW.  I might even catch a hi or lowlight on Youtube till the novelty wears off.  I also can't help but think how neat his AEW return might be in a year or two or three from now?  

Edited March 22, 2022 by HarryArchieGus

[paintedbynumbers]

3 minutes ago, Stefanie the Human said:

Nah, he just went to radio and print media (or at least, print media that would allow for acknowledging the violation of kayfabe) and did it. WCW and WWF at the time didn't acknowledge each other, remember?

Would have been interesting what he would have done if they did, though.

But I do find it interesting your reaction. Is it okay when a wrestler trashes their former workplace when it's a wrestler you like, such as Ricky Steamboat, as opposed to a wrestler you don't like, seemingly such as Cody Rhodes? Hmm?

I am not a huge Steamboat fan. But to compare the two is stupid.  I despise Hulk Hogan. He didn't go to back to WWE until WCW folded.  Trying to think of someone recently who has openly trashed the competition only to go to work for them without being fired or forced to.   

Also Ricky Steamboat was not an EVP of the company that he left because he didn't get what he wanted.   Steamboat may have went to print media but who really saw it out of the millions of fans at the time. How many really subscribed to Meltzer pre internet?  

Not that we have many anymore but I'm really curious to see how the casual fan reacts to this.  "Cody Rhodes!! Doesn't he hate the WWE"