John Cena, one of the most polarizing superstars of the modern times. Cena is without a doubt one of the biggest names to set foot inside the wrestling ring. Cena has been the face of the company for more than a decade now. And it’s an indisputable fact that while some cheer for him “LET’S GO CENA!”, there’s also a major fraction of the spectators that express their dislike by shouting “CENA SUCKS!”. Whether you like him or hate him, but you just can’t deny the impact this guy has on the audience. The words of Michael Cole and King sums it all up.
“No superstar elicits an emotional response from the WWE Universe quite like John Cena.”
Like I said that a major portion of the viewing audience especially the adults strongly express their dislike towards John Cena. They say Cena Sucks and here are the reasons why-
1. Because he’s the superstar WWE needs, but not the one that FANS deserve right now. WWE is known for its stereotype baby-faces. If you have seen the 80’s WWF then you’ll know John Cena is just the modern version of the Hulkster.
2. He hogs the spotlight. It’s no surprise that Cena made a career by burying his co-workers, killing off their momentum in the crucial main events. There are a lot of backstage stories running around about Cena’s ego, his not-so-professional attitude. Rumors say that the real reason behind his divorce was that he was cheating on his wife.
3. His PG character is the ultimate reason why a lot of fans dislike him. People who have grown up watching Attitude Era, the likes of Austin, Rock, Mankind, can’t stand something corny like John Cena dressed up in rainbow colors holding the WWE title.
4. Earlier when Cena started his career with his rapper gimmick, we witnessed some strong solid mic work. His promos were entertaining, but lately he’s become a pre-recorded tape. His promos consist of the same key phrases, hustle-loyalty-respect thing, and a high intensity cry over the mic.
5. His matches are getting more and more predictable, and boring week by week. With a few exceptions of course. John Cena doesn’t always deliver a quality match unless it’s an important ppv match or he’s got a technician like Owens, Cesaro with him in the ring. And moreover half the time it’s his opponent who’s carrying the match.
6. Event the superman is vulnerable to the kryptonite. But Supercena has no weaknesses, there’s isn’t anything that can stop him from kicking out at 2. Whether it’s 10 against one odds, getting fired stipulation or hell even the entire roaster against you! There’s nothing that can stop John Cena! We know it’s scripted, but dammit at least make it entertaining!
7. Since 2008 WWE has become TV-PG, a more family oriented program. WWE phased away with blood, foul language, and sexual content. As a reason why John Cena’s gimmick is what it is now. But still in this era we witnessed stars like CM Punk, who despite being in a PG era entertained the audience like no one else. Stars like Kane, Jericho, Triple-H are a perfect example of how one can reinvent his gimmick with the respective era.
8. WWE never misses an opportunity to cash in. Even when the fans expressed their hatred, dislike towards Cena at different occasions like ECW: One Night Stand 2005, Money In The Bank 2012. WWE saw this as an opportunity, not the one to turn Cena heel. But the one to use the heat for the merchandise sales. They made anti-Cena tshirts, merchandises, rather than changing this gimmick. After all they do what’s best for the business.
9. What’s worse than John Cena? HIS FANS! Most of the Cena fans, the CENATION is the children demographic spanning the 4-15 years old. They think of Cena as an invincible Superman. Well who can blame the kids! Vince sees Cena as a cash machine! The way Cena is booked is one more reason why a lot of adults hate him.
10. John Cena is known for his typical corny humor. A lot of people has criticized him for not taking his opponents seriously, for not selling his opponents’ promos. Whenever Cena is dominated, owned on the mic, his only comeback is either a cheap corny joke or his loud baby-face lines that he’ll emerge victorious.
11. The never-ending good-guy thing! Whenever Cena is booed outta building, he instead of coming back with something better, he continues his typical routine. The announcers deny the fact that the poster boy is being booed right now. Back in the 2002 when the face Rock was booed, he would go on to reinvent his character which made the crowd fell in love with him again.
12. Why does Cena still think of himself as an underdog. Every now and then in his promo he would acknowledge that he’s an underdog. I think back in 2011 CM Punk said it in the best way possible.
13. You don’t need multiple title reigns to prove that you’re one of the greatest. There are several examples of superstars like Undertaker, The Rock, Mick Foley, Kane who didn’t have that many world title reigns. But Cena thinks otherwise. Cena is all set to equal Flair’s record of 16 title reigns.
14. Many wrestling fans accuse John Cena of having a limited move set which is true. Since the baby-face, poster guy always have a signature move set which is a part of his marketing. John Cena’s limited move-set is known as the five moves of doom. Whenever you watch a John Cena match you’ll notice how he’ll get beaten up pretty badly and then comes back with flying shoulder block, sit-out hip toss, side release spin-out slam, five knuckle shufle, AA or STFU.
15. John Cena has been accused countless times of burying the young talent. Whenever any superstar who’s on a roll squares off against the Cenation leader in a match, he ends up losing his momentum and popularity. Take for example Rusev who suffered some serious losses at the hands of Cena which really damaged his character. Bray Wyatt is another such example.
16. Despite all the criticism, all the reasons why John Cena sucks that I have mentioned above. I will acknowledge this without a shadow of doubt that Cena is undoubtedly one of biggest superstars that this sports entertainment industry has ever seen. His contribution and impact is remarkable. But like The Rock said in his promo in 2012, one doesn’t simply like John Cena.
