5 Mistakes WWE must not make with The Rock and Cody Rhodes' storyline

The Rock claimed to have mended fences with Cody Rhodes after Wrestlemania 40. Yet, things in WWE have been all over the place whenever The Final Boss shows up.

The American Nightmare endured months of scathing verbal attacks, including The Rock targeting his mother. Physical assaults were also the norm during the build to WrestleMania 40, with Rocky bloodying Rhodes a few times.

After a random appearance at the end of Bad Blood in October, The Rock didn't show up until RAW on Netflix. He completely changed his stance on the premiere, praising Rhodes for his efforts.

The next encounter was just as strange as he sought to claim The American Nightmare's soul. WWE must not make the next five mistakes between Cody Rhodes and The Rock in the storyline.

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#5. The Rock goes away and doesn't show up

Some fans love him no matter what he does, but since The Rock isn't a full-time performer, he comes and goes as he pleases. That's intensified by his membership in the TKO Board of Directors.

On-screen, The Rock is The Final Boss. Since he appears during the buildup to WrestleMania, he needs to be a consistent presence. This doesn't mean he shows up every week, but he must commit to at least three or four big appearances a month.

If not, it will turn fans and stars off who were blindsided by his surprise return last week. He may not care, but those fans and stars (who were fans first) helped make WWE what it is today.

Roman Reigns already does a disappearing act. The WWE Universe doesn't need that from the two biggest names in the Bloodline.

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#4. Bringing the Bloodline back into the fold

Cody's journey to "finish his story" initially involved Roman Reigns and his Bloodline. The group interfered in all of Reigns' title defenses, including Rhodes' first crack at WrestleMania 39.

The Rock joined the fray last year. However, The American Nightmare was able to topple the Bloodline regime thanks to help from Seth Rollins, John Cena, The Undertaker, and, to a lesser degree, Jey Uso.

Reigns' departure following The Show of Shows brought forth another Bloodline, which ran roughshod until Roman decided to return and end it.

Since this current angle involves Rhodes and The Final Boss, WWE must exclude the ancillary Bloodline members.

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#3. More confusing/last-minute appearances

WWE is on the Road to WrestleMania, and every episode of RAW and SmackDown must be carefully planned. Having someone who alters the entire plan because he can show up whenever he wants will only upend more episodes.

The Rock's last-minute decision to crash SmackDown forced WWE to cut short two planned matches. One (Liv Morgan vs. Naomi) didn't even happen. Cody Rhodes was taken out of the main event on last week's show.

WWE must allot sufficient time to each current Champion's program for WrestleMania 41. Giving Shinsuke Nakamura, Bron Breakker, or tag team breadcrumbs each week will further diminish specific titles.

If The Rock doesn't give writers and officials enough time to plan a cohesive and plausible show, fans will catch on, and stars may get frustrated.

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#2. Cody Rhodes turns heel

This point is debatable, depending on fans' feelings surrounding Cody Rhodes. Some still love his John Cena act of overcoming every obstacle and (supposedly) always doing the right thing.

Others may have grown tired of the act, as they did when Hulk Hogan and John Cena buried numerous stars during the height of their careers. However, a heel turn could be beneficial for several reasons.

It would be unexpected, turn WWE on its head, make things more interesting, and force other heroes to step up. A heel turn can still happen, but doing so to align with The Rock wouldn't make sense so close to WrestleMania.

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#1. The Rock beats Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE title

The Rock did mention that their confrontation didn't have to result in a match. He wanted Cody to be his Corporate Champion. The Final Boss also wanted Rhodes' soul.

This probably meant he wanted The American Nightmare to turn to the dark side to represent his vision of what the WWE should be. If Cody rejects the offer, that may force The People's Champion to get physical.

It isn't necessary since Rhodes will find out his WrestleMania opponent at the Elimination Chamber. However, that doesn't change, as the Rock is an alpha male former athlete who still thinks he's in excellent ring shape.

If he wants a title shot, he may book himself to win. This would be an extremely polarizing decision that WWE must avoid at all costs.