Talk is Jericho with Chris Jericho
Guest: Cody Rhodes
Release Date: September 20, 2017
Recap by: Armando G. Ureña, PWPpodcast.com Reporter
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Top Newsworthy Items
– Cody believes he could work out using the “Rhodes” name with WWE if he wanted to
-Cody thinks pro wrestling is entering a different kind of “boom” period
-Cody wanted to punch a WWE writer at one point
-Cody had a Bullet Club Goldust suit made, just in case
Show Highlights/Rundown
Podcast Introduction
Jericho plugs his sponsors, his book, and Fozzy. Cody Rhodes is a returning guest, having been on the night before he left WWE. Jericho summarizes what to expect, including the ‘American Nightmare’ Gimmick, Cody joining Bullet Club, being Ring of Honor (ROH) Champion and facing Okada at the G1 Special in Long Beach.
Cody Interview Part 1
They start by talking about Cody no longer using his family name “Rhodes” because WWE owns the intellectual property of the name “Rhodes.” Cody believes it could be worked out if he asked but he does not really want to ask right now. Also, the name issues aren’t with the smaller shows but with New Japan and ROH who are likely to get in trouble. He is fine now with just being called Cody.
Cody talks about introducing the Ring of Honor, an actual ring that the ROH Champion wears instead of a belt. He started getting people to kiss it, using his sister as an icebreaker. His sister was sitting in the front row and was the first to kiss the ring; other fans would follow.
Jericho asks why Cody left WWE in the first place. Cody feels it was just time. He started working there at the age of 19, so he was there for 11 years and felt it was time to go. He worked with a ton of legends, met his wife, and wanted to take the risks of the indy scene. Jericho talked about having to take risks. The two times Jericho did were when he left WCW in 1999 and in 2005 when he first left WWE. Cody thinks we are entering another wrestling boom, a boom about accessibility of wrestling rather than ratings. It is easy to follow New Japan Pro Wrestling, or someone who is working in independent promotions.
They talk about the usefulness of working the independents. Someone like Marty Scurll becomes “The Villain” long before any match he has in WWE or NXT. Fans in NXT are already wearing his shirts. When he debuts in WWE he will already be over. Jericho applies similar logic to Cody, saying that after traveling the independent scene and growing his star power, he will have more room to do what he wants in WWE.
The two-start talking about the analytics side of wrestling. Checking ticket sales for the show, what the ticket sales were before, shirt sales etc.
Cody Interview Part 2
Jericho asks about Cody’s first independent show in EVOLVE. Jericho has not left a large company to work the independent scene, so he asked how he planned his departure. Cody says he talked to WWE first, but he posted a letter telling his story and his reasons for leaving so that it was understood that he was not fired, and he asked to leave. He talked about his three matches with Kurt Angle. He praises Angle’s chain wrestling as the best in wrestling.
Cody talks about wrestling in the G1 Special against Okada. The match presented challenges for Cody, including the language barrier. Okada is Cody’s first opponent that spoke very little English. Cody himself has not picked up much Spanish or Japanese, even for the purpose of calling matches since he has not actually spent a lot of time in Japan or Mexico.
Cody says Japan is his favorite place to go to. The culture is very polite and respectful, but they are a very tough crowd. If you are not good enough you will not get any reaction from the Japanese crowd. The Japanese have a high respect for the physical side of professional wrestling. They also talk about the sponsor dinners in New Japan, which tend to be fans who pay for the dinner.
Cody talks about an idea he had with being Cody Rhodes and Stardust at the same time. The idea was when the brand split happened he would be Stardust on one show and Cody Rhodes on the other. While he was Stardust, Cody was waiting for his opportunity to come back as Cody Rhodes because he knew fans would have a positive reaction to it. But, it never came and Cody got tired of reaching for the brass ring and turning “chicken s**t into chicken salad.” He went on saying “it would be nice to just start off with the chicken salad.” Cody said he felt he was still being treated like he was 19, which Jericho agreed. Brandi, Cody’s wife, was the only person who said leaving was a good idea. At one point, Cody wanted to punch a writer.
Jericho asks about the Stardust gimmick, which he had forgotten about during the podcast. Cody talks about originally being excited for the Stardust gimmick because of the influence the comic heroes and villains were supposed to have on it, but ultimately it was Goldust-light.
Jericho asks what Cody misses about WWE. Cody says WrestleMania, although he says Wrestle Kingdom is a lot like WrestleMania. The type of wrestling Cody is interested in involves athletic feats like going a full 60-minutes in a wrestling match. Those things are going to be found in New Japan and the independent scene. Cody is still friends with some guys in WWE including Zack Ryder, the New Day, and Kevin Owens.
They talk about his wife Brandi Rhodes. She left WWE a few weeks after Cody, putting in her two weeks properly because she wanted to do right to Michael Cole who had treated her well. Brandi has been covering her own wrestling bookings, which Cody believes is the right thing to do, since everything she does will be looked at with a microscope because of who her husband is. She also owns the “Brandi Rhodes” name, which she and Cody have been able to use to their advantage when they are in the ring together.
Cody talks about doing every independent show during 2017. He feels 2018 will likely see his bookings get narrowed down. Cody would like to be in New Japan and ROH at the same time, participating in both Bullet Clubs in ROH and New Japan.
Jericho asks Cody what Dusty would have said if he was still alive when Cody left. Dusty told Cody to leave WWE after his match with Big Show at WrestleMania 28, saying that Cody would not see any more progression. Cody hopes that Dusty would have been excited by what his departure became, with his success in the independent scene and New Japan. Jericho asks about Cody’s favorite match since leaving WWE. Cody is stuck between his match with Christopher Daniels where he won the ROH Championship and his match with Okada at the G1 Special.
Memorable Quotes:
“I still feel like you are looking at me like I am 19,” Cody talking about his issue with Triple H and Vince McMahon
“That’s why Brandi is getting all my money,” Cody referencing his wife and the support she showed him when he left WWE.
Score and Review: (8.5/10):
The current ROH World Champion, Cody does his first TIJ podcast since leaving the WWE. Cody shares the experiences he had on the independent scene, his perspective on leaving WWE, and how he feels he’s grown while on the independent scene. A great podcast, Cody goes into detail when sharing stories, and comes off as a likeable and down to earth person. I would recommend this to any wrestling fan, and those who follow independent wrestling should definitely listen to this.
Timestamps
00:00: Sponsor Ads
00:41: Podcast Introduction & Sponsor Ads
4:54: Sheamus and Cesaro Interview Part 1
26:50: Sponsor Ads
29:20: Cody Interview Part 2
1:14:30: Podcast Conclusion and Sponsor Ads
For more, check out our archive of Talk is Jericho.
Cody and Chris talked about a wrestler who broke his leg in the ring. Who were they talking about?