It’s been a while since I’ve used this account, hasn’t it? Anyway, for my return to Cageside Seats, I’m going to steal Cain A. Knight’s gimmick and watch the first Saturday Night’s Main Event (SNME) special in 16 years – and the 37th ever, live tonight from the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Long Island, New York. Let’s not waste any more time and get straight into action!

Cody Rhodes Take better care of his six

The main event of tonight’s two-hour event is Cody Rhodes vs. Kevin Owens for the WWE Undisputed Championship. When KO found out that Cody would be teaming up with eternal rival Roman Reigns at Bad Blood to take on Solo Sikoa and Jacob Fatu, he was…crazy to say the least. After PLE went off the air – and the unlikely Cody/Roman tandem picked up the Duke – Owens went straight to The American Nightmare to confront him about it right in front of Rhodes’ personalized tour bus, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Since that moment (which could be a shoot or a work, depending on who you ask) we’ve seen a darker and crazier side to The Prizefighter, even by its standards. He has become a paranoid, delusional schizo who believes that Cody has betrayed him and his mission to destroy the bloodline by teaming up with his long-time rival and the man he dethroned for the story to finish, even if just for one night. From stopping a women’s tag match before it even began to seriously injuring his former friend Randy Orton with a pile driver, Owens quickly earned a reputation as a dangerous rule-breaker who turned SmackDown on its head, which of course he did has been put in the crosshairs by Nick Aldis, resulting in numerous suspensions and stay-at-home orders (or “censorship,” as Kevin would have you believe).

However, Cody has finally had enough and tonight it all comes to a head in a deeply personal, red-hot rematch from Bash In Berlin. Rhodes managed to retain the title in Germany despite a questionable-looking knee, but this time he will have to be ever vigilant if he wants to repeat that moment and continue to wear the gold around his waist. Owens, on the other hand, is bent on revenge and will do anything to finally become the top dog again, hurting Cody both physically and mentally in the process. And we haven’t even thought about Orton’s possible return yet! Will he stand by Cody’s side and cost his former tag partner the match? What a secret!

So the million dollar question is: Who will leave Long Island as champion and set the tone for the blue brand’s future? Tune in to NBC at 8ET/5PT (or stream live via the Peacock simulcast) to find out!

Elsewhere on the map…

• The very first WWE United States Women’s Champion will be determined tonight when Michin and Chelsea Green face off in the tournament final. In this author’s opinion, both women have an equal chance to make history, and it will be fun to watch the contrast between the tough Michin and the bubbly Chelsea.
• World heavyweight champion Gunther got his rematch against Damian Priest at Survivor Series and survived the challenge thanks to interference from Finn Balor. Balor originally wanted to fight The Ring General for the title, but Raw boss Adam Pearce decided, “Well, uh, Priest gets another shot at the title!” IT’S A TRIPLE THREAT NOW, GUYS!” With that stipulation, Gunther has now less chance of continuing his reign, so he needs to be at his best tonight.
• Elsewhere on the red stamp, Women’s World Champion Liv Morgan will defend her gold against Iyo Sky, who won a battle royale tournament with the No. 1 seed last month in (redacted). With both “The Judgment Day” and “Damage CTRL” on the horizon, this could get messy quickly.
• Drew McIntyre is back, and after giving Sami Zayn a hard time, Claymore gets a one-on-one match against him. If his blood feud with CM Punk was any indication, the Scottish psychopath certainly continues to live up to his nickname.
• Triple H is doing his best with retro vibes tonight – not only is Jesse “The Body” Ventura back on commentary for the first time in literally decades, the set is also expected to return to the rock & wrestling feel of yesteryear. This is certainly a nice change from the huge LED screens that are everywhere. Plus, Cody could bring The Winged Eagle out of mothballs tonight. Party like it’s 1985!

To sum it up…

WWE is really making the most of the return of SNME, with a WrestleMania-caliber card and a nostalgic production quality that will appeal to both old and new fans. It should be an entertaining evening all around, and since their new media rights deal with NBCUniversal calls for four of them per year (20 total, using my rudimentary math), we should definitely expect to see more legendary moments added to the great Saturday that is Pantheon of Night’s Main Event will be achieved in the coming years.

Are you excited to see the big return of SNME tonight? Let me know in the comments below, Cagesiders.