Author David Shoemaker says Cody Rhodes should relaunch the Four Horsemen.
Shoemaker appeared on Cheap Heat with Peter Rosenberg to promote his book, Why Hulk Hogan Matters. The conversation turned to how rare it is for a babyface to stay on top for years at a time, with Shoemaker pointing out that long babyface runs are uncommon in wrestling history and that the same stories are easier to tell with a heel on top. He cited Ric Flair’s run of cranking out new challengers and Jerry Lawler in Memphis, who was switched between babyface and heel to keep things fresh.
Rosenberg took the point to Rhodes, saying it is a conversation the show has been having regularly. “I don’t understand what they’re hoping to get out of Cody anymore,” Rosenberg said, noting that Rhodes has given WWE almost four years on top as a good guy. He asked how many times in history a good guy has run on top that long and continued to get cheered, and rejected John Cena as a comparison. “He was getting booed way more than Cody has gotten booed his entire run here,” Rosenberg said.
Asked whether the time to turn Rhodes is now or has already passed, Shoemaker said the turn keeps getting teased and dropped.
“In every major Cody feud, there’s a moment where it seems like he’s about to flip, either turn heel or absolutely lose it,” Shoemaker said, describing announcers selling a chair shot like a nuclear bomb before the story resets a week later. “But then they just forget about it a week later, and then they rerun the same bit.”
Shoemaker said WWE may be trying to convey that Rhodes can be a heel and a babyface at the same time, but that it is not coming across, and he would like to see Rhodes have more of a heel run or at least invite the boos.
Shoemaker then made his pitch, saying he knew it would be unpopular.
“Isn’t Cody exactly the dude who should relaunch the Four Horsemen?” he said. “Cody with just some other dudes in suits, like exactly what you want to see from him as a heel.”
Shoemaker said the turn does not require Rhodes to turn on the audience. In his version, Rhodes is a man who dresses well, is proud of himself and has friends who agree with him, which makes him a villain by default. “You don’t have to be like I hate fans now,” Shoemaker said. “You’re functionally a villain.”
Shoemaker also addressed the argument that faces and heels no longer exist in modern wrestling, saying wrestling has told stories that way for a long time. Rosenberg said anyone who believes the distinction is gone should go to a non-televised live event. “It is faces and heels. Okay, every single match,” he said.
Rosenberg made clear where he stands on Rhodes. When Shoemaker said he would settle for Rhodes inviting the boos more, Rosenberg called that the hedging version. “I’m here for full on,” Rosenberg said.
Rhodes has been connected to the Horsemen before. Arn Anderson, an original Horseman, worked as Rhodes’ on-screen enforcer in AEW, and the idea of Rhodes leading a modern version of the group has come up previously. Rhodes’ father, Dusty Rhodes, was the Horsemen’s main rival during the group’s 1980s run in Jim Crockett Promotions.
Calls for a Rhodes turn have come from several people. Mark Henry said earlier this month that Rhodes has already been a heel for six months, and has previously predicted the eventual promo where Rhodes tells fans they are a bunch of puppets. Rhodes himself has addressed the subject more than once, telling The Pivot Podcast that a heel’s job is to get canceled, to not be cool and to not sell merchandise, and telling Rosenberg Wrestling that a turn was unlikely at that stage of his career.
Rhodes returns to action against Randy Orton at Sunday Night’s Main Event on September 6 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis announced the match after Orton attacked Rhodes at the end of the August 14 episode of SmackDown in Boston. It is the first match announced for the show, and Atlanta is Rhodes’ hometown.
Shoemaker’s book, Why Hulk Hogan Matters, was published July 28 by Harper and is available now in hardcover, ebook and audiobook. Shoemaker has been writing about wrestling since 2009, hosts The Masked Man Show With Kaz, and is the author of The Squared Circle: Life, Death, and Professional Wrestling. An excerpt covering Hulk Hogan’s nWo heel turn is available at The Ringer.
