Cena needs a heel turn

[d_henderson1810]

People say that Cena shouldn't turn heel, because there would be no top faces for him to fight. Also, it is stated that a heel turn would freshen his character. Well, I will address those points by referencing one of the biggest heel turns in WWE history- that of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.

When Austin went heel at WMX7, it left the face side pretty depleted. The Rock went off and made movies. They instead threw Undertaker at him for the 10,000th time. Yet fans tuned in every week to see what a heel Austin would get up to next.

Also, an Austin heel turn freshened up his character. Let's face it, Austin had grown stale. Same catchphrases, same opponents, same shtick every month. Then they turned him heel, and Austin suddenly got interesting again. Instead of a fighting face, he became a cowardly heel. He drank tea instead of beer. He became the anthesis of everything he once was, and it was brilliant. Austin showed a less serious, humourous side (especially his stuff with Kurt Angle). He also got fresh opponents and storylines. I bet that the sale of "Austin 3:16" T-shirts didn't drop dramatically because of his heel turn. It brought new life to the character, and made him more than just the one-dimensional "Redneck" he had become.

Also, what about "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan in WCW. "nWo" merchandise was massively in vogue, even though nWo were heels. Also, the fans loved them, because it brought a new dimension to Hogan, Nash and Hall's characters.

A heel turn for Cena would do the following:-

(a) Make his character multi-dimensional. A heel always has more "to work with", and doesn't have to worry if he is getting booed because he sucks or because he is a "heel". Heels can cut better promos, because they can come up with creative insults.It would "freshen" him up, and the company.

(b) It would create new feuds. Instead of seeing Cena fight Big Show, Edge or Jericho for the hundredth time, he could be thrown into feuds with C.M. Punk and Jeff Hardy, neither of which he has ever fought, thus creating "new" interesting matches. It would also get Punk and Hardy over even more, being in a main-event program. He could even have another feud with the Undertaker, and extend it to include HIAC, or casket, both of which Cena would do great in.

(c) It could create "New" merchandise. Once a kid has bought a "Hustle, Loyalty, Respect" T-shirt, he won't buy another, because they already have that T-Shirt. But new merchandise, with Cena's "Heel" persona , would sell to kids who don't already have that "particular" merchandise.

(d) He could gain a lot more fans. I doubt the Rock , when he was a heel towards the end of his career (around WM19), would have lost a lot of fans.He probably not only kept his fans, but gained new ones who "liked" his new style.Cena could keep the kids, while gaining those who razz on him, because the IWC cheer those the WWE tell them to boo.

When I was a child, "Star Wars " toys were all the rage. One of the most popular action figures was Darth Vader, despite being a "heel". Even though Vader was a "baddie", kids still wanted to have the figure, wear the costume, and buy his "lightsaber". So, "baddies" do sell and are popular.

Who do you remember most from last summer's blockbuster "The Dark Knight"? Was it Batman? Alfred? No, it was the Joker (played by Heath Ledger). Playing a baddie didn't hurt him.(His death had nothing to do with his "badness" onscreen). He won an Oscar, and is featured on most "Dark Knight" merchandise. So heels can be popular and sell, if they are considered "cool". Cena can be too. A heel turn, even for a year, won't hurt him in the long run.

 

[JBowling]

I think Cena turning heel would be a great idea. It would be a great opportunity to create some fresh new "face" guys on Raw. Cena beating up the same old heels each and every week is getting stale. The best thing the guy has going, in my opinion, is his promos, adn thats only when hes doing the comedy routine. other than that, stale. I enjoyed his first reign as wwe champion, but now hes getting ridiculous. I know, i know, edge keeps getting it too. BUT Edge is on the B-show, which doesnt matter to anyone anyway.

As far as Cena being the "face of the company" goes, thats only to 14 year old kids who dont have half a brain. The fans who've been watching since the attitude era would point out many other superstars who are the "face of the company"

 

[The Todd]

I think Cena turning heel would be a great idea. It would be a great opportunity to create some fresh new "face" guys on Raw.

No, he would feud with HHH and Batista, which everyone is tired of. Outside of that there is only MVP. There is no need for it whatsoever.

Edge is on the B-show, which doesnt matter to anyone anyway.

How pathetic is that statement? Try watching Smackdown mate, it is better than Raw at the moment. If Cena is stale, Edge is. You can't have it one way without the other. Both their characters are fine.

As far as Cena being the "face of the company" goes, thats only to 14 year old kids who dont have half a brain.

No, these 14 year old kids without half a brain are clearely smarter than you. Cena is the biggest draw, sells the most tickets, sells the most merchandise and is put in the highest profile matches all year around.

The fans who've been watching since the attitude era would point out many other superstars who are the "face of the company"

Name one. And why only fans since the attitude era? What about before then?

Hogan was the face of the company because he was the biggest draw.

Bret hart was the face of the company because he was the biggest draw.

HBK was the face of the company because he was the biggest draw.

Then in the attitude era Austin was the face of the company as he was the biggest draw.

Now Cena is the biggest draw.

Face of the company doesn't mean he is your favourite.

 

[Davey McBoy]

Cena does not need a heel turn. What Cena needs is for everyone to cheer him as loud as they possibly can whether they like him or not. I believe Cena has long paid his dues and the boos he recieves are remnants of a problem the audience had with Cena years ago that is no longer an issue. The IWC 'smarts' (see dumbasses) need to unbunch their panties and get off Cena's back.

Get behind him, he is going to carry the company as the top babyface for the next five years at least no matter what so he may as well do it with the support of everyone. It will get him over all the better, it will help the company do better and it will make the show more enjoyable for us to watch. In five years time maybe we'll see about a heel turn if it is logical and if there is a spot for Cena as a top heel. Until then, no more tears.

 

[Davey McBoy]

As far as Cena being the "face of the company" goes, thats only to 14 year old kids who dont have half a brain. The fans who've been watching since the attitude era would point out many other superstars who are the "face of the company"

Why would they want to appeal to the attitude ara fans? There are barely any of them left, they don't buy merch, they rarely buy PPVs and most are on forums all day bashing Vince's top babyface.

You can say those 14 year old kids have half a brain all you want, the fact is they are one of Vince's key demographics along with their families in general. They pop for all the faces, they boo the heels, they generally come to shows in large numbers and they spend a lot of cash on merhandise and they love John Cena.

There will always be a minority of older or 'smarter' fans like yourself who dislike Cena. That is unfortunate and it must be frustrating to have to sit through a top guy who you don't like, but like I said you are a MINORITY and a much smaller one than forums like these would suggest. For Vince to suddenly start pandering to 5% of his audience and turn Cena heel, completely snubbing all those kids and their families who keep the company in business would be short sighted and stupid and it is not going to happen.

 

[Razor]

Why can't Cena be the Doctor of Thuganomics and stay face? I mean, if you guys really want a new character (in my opinion, if Cena needs a new character, then so does Edge and Jeff Hardy and the Undertaker. They've been going just as long if not longer with a static character) then this could do just fine.

And no, no Cryme Time. Unless Cena goes to Smackdown, which they don't need at the moment. Raw is already running low on Main Event faces. Cena just needs to go around, preaching his street cred, and arguing a discipline of Thuganomics. He can rap just as he did on Smackdown a few years ago, only insulting heels instead of faces. He can wear his gangster apparel, only this time attack heels instead of faces. Not that hard. Only thing is Cena has to somehow explain a switch from being his military persona to being a moral gangster. Meh.

I don't think Cena needs a heel turn, just some new matches with some new people. But if you all are disciples of Thuganomics, he can still pull it off as a face.