Wrestling fans as individuals each have a unique taste in terms of what kinds of matches, moves, promos, storylines, and characters that they enjoy. This writer is personally a mark for characters that are fresh and for little details that are clever. In my personal opinion, there are no two acts in professional wrestling today that are as fresh or clever as Cody and “Hangman” Adam Page, both of whom currently wrestle for All Elite Wrestling. Let me preface this by stating that I am not the biggest fan of either man, and that, while I have always acknowledged both of their talent, I had previously felt that both were overrated and over-hyped by their fan bases. In fact, while I loved Cody’s matches with Dustin at Double or Nothing and The Young Bucks at Fight for the Fallen, as well as enjoyed his feud with Shawn Spears, I felt that Cody was just AEW’s equivalent of Jeff Jarrett in TNA, and that he would be pushed because he was writing the show. As for the Hangman, I had nothing against him, and I was glad that AEW gave him the All Out Main Event in an attempt to build a new star prior to the beginning of their TV deal. However, I felt that his in ring style was boring and that he as an individual lacked personality or anything that really dragged me in. Even riding on a horse and leading the crowd in his “cowboy sh**” chant didn’t quite do it for me. However, in August of 2020, I can confidently say that Cody and Hangman are two of the wrestlers that I look forward to seeing every week, and I truly believe that they are the two most enjoyable wrestlers to watch as of the time of this writing. So, when did this switch happen, and why? Let’s get into it!
Let's first begin with "Hangman" Adam Page, who entered the year 2020 as one half of the AEW World Tag Team Champions, alongside Kenny Omega. He spent his 2019 feuding with the likes of Pac and Chris Jericho, but he really hit his stride as a personality and a character at the end of 2019 and in the beginning of 2020. For Page, I would say that he became one of the most interesting and exciting characters in all of professional wrestling beginning on the January 1st, 2020 episode of AEW Dynamite. On this episode, Page appeared on Commentary and was intoxicated, which prompted the AEW production crew to write "has been drinking" above his nameplate. This simple, silly gesture would begin the meteoric rise of Adam Page as a bad ass, yet goofy, tough, yet lovable alcoholic personality.
From here, Page's nameplates begin to say clever, creative, and witty things repeatedly, with some of my favorite saying "Not Going To Pay Private Party That 12 Dollars", "Drank a Bottle Of Whisky At Home Alone Last Wednesday", "Anxious Millennial Cowboy", "Gonna See How This White Wrist Tape Works Out" and "Didn't Like The White Wrist Tape". These goofy nameplates were actually highlights of most episodes of Dynamite in 2020 for me thus far. While I was tuning into to Page matches and segments every week in order to see these clever little details, I became invested in him as a character. Rather than cutting promos, he just let his attitude and his talent speak for itself. He truly has become AEW's cowboy; he doesn't say too much, he's always down to offer somebody a drink, and, if someone crosses him or stands against him in a match, he isn't afraid to kick ass. Due to his clever and well developed character, he has become one of the most enjoyable wrestlers to watch in this year, and he ranks as the tie for my #1 spot in terms of the most exciting wrestlers to watch right now. And, as a worker, he has had some of the most memorable and amazing spots of the year, including multiple spots in AEW's Stadium Stampede match at Double or Nothing, notably where he chased Sammy Guevara with his horse and when he and Kenny Omega beat down Jake Hager inside of the Stadium's bar. Also, while I initially hated Page and Omega becoming tag team champions, their work as a team taking on The Natural Nightmares, The Dark Order, Best Friends, and, especially, The Young Bucks has been some of the best tag team work I have seen in my lifetime. and, my God, do I love their finish!(Watch to the end of the video below to see some lovely Buckshot/V-Trigger Combos)
As I mentioned earlier, I was in the group of people that thought that Cody was trying to hard to be his father and that he was being booked like Jeff Jarrett in TNA. During his rivalry with Chris Jericho, though, I realized just how smart, passionate, and charismatic he was in his promos, when he cut one of the promos of the year and called Jericho a "stupid di**". It was here where my viewpoint on Cody began to change, but it wasn't until later that he made the transformation in my mind to become the most exciting guy in wrestling. The change occurred officially on the April 29th episode of Dynamite, and it has continued through the summer, with his TNT Championship open challenges. What is significant about April 29th, is that it is the day I fell in love with Cody Rhodes as an in-ring character. The reason for that is simple: Cody is a babyface who wrestles like a heel. This is significant because he never acts stupid. He never makes careless babyface mistakes. He doesn't get distracted by what's going on outside of the ring. He treats every match like a legitimate athletic competition that he desperately wants to win---and I love it. I say that Cody wrestles like a heel, but all that means is that his character wants to win so badly that he will truly do anything that it takes to get the job done. That is why watching a Cody match feels so authentic and fresh. Say what you will about AEW's style being unrealistic with all of the Canadian Destroyers, Superkicks, and No-Selling of Finishing Moves, but Cody's matches feel like they are real, whether you think they look it or not. On April 29th, Cody wrestled Darby Allin in the semifinals of the TNT Championship tournament. During this match, his wife Brandi got taken out inadvertently at ringside. Before checking on her, Cody acted like a true competitor and took a cheap shot at his opponent first to ensure that he remained on the offensive. Later in the match, he shifted Allin's weight after his finishing move, the Coffin Drop, to somehow cover him for the 1,2,3, ensuring himself the victory. Since becoming the champion, and working against competitors like Jungle Boy, Sonny Kiss, Eddie Kingston, and Warhorse, we have seen Cody try to take shortcuts, remove turnbuckle pads, attempt roll up covers, and be screamed at by his on screen coach Arn Anderson. In all of these scenarios, Cody is desperate to win, despite being a babyface, and his manager at ringside tries to bring an authentic sports feel to the presentation by trying to help Cody win by giving him advice and yelling at him. All in all, I adore Cody's in-ring persona because it makes the wrestling action feel legitimate, and it makes it feel like it matters. Therefore, because his attitude and style allow his matches to feel authentic and realistic, like sports competitions, I look forward to watching Cody compete every single week. As a result of this, he and Hangman Page are the two most enjoyable wrestlers to watch as of August 2020.
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