9 years ago from today.... John Cena debuted.

[Dagger Dias]

June 27th 2002 was an important day in the WWE. What was it that happened exactly 9 years ago?

[YOUTUBE]Figwyag4emE[/YOUTUBE]​

That's right. Some guy named John Cena made his debut. Whoever would have thought during this promo that he would go on to become a 10 time world champion and the face of the WWE? He's been World Heavyweight Champion, WWE Champion, US Champion, Tag Team Champion, Royal Rumble winner, main evented several Wrestlemania's, starred in movies, released his own CD, been a rapper, a marine, a top face, and even a heel at one point. The man has more or less done it all when you look back on the 9 years he has spent in WWE. When I realized that today was the 9 year anniversary of his debut, I instantly became inspired to make this thread.


1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".


Please make life easier for the mods by not spamming. Well? Discuss!

 

[Good Golly It's Ollie]

Nice thread Dagger, you remain a thought-provoking poster of good integrity. And it's nice to have an important thing to focus on that isn't revolving around Punk in some way, even as great as he is. Back in 06 I was 16 and your typical Cena hater, so I hope I've grown up some in that time.

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?
Well, honestly, it's gone excellently, and about as well as someone wanting to be a pro wrestler could hope. Top guy in WWE. Nice job Cena. You are officially the best, in Vince's mind and many of the fans' minds.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?
I really liked his feud with HBK, you know, the one where they were tag champs leading into it? Largely because it's not just Cena but it's one of the few times after 02 that Shawn properly went back into main event title picture, so it extends beyond my personal like for Cena and into my personal like for Shawn.

I also liked Cena vs. Edge because that's the standout one with Cena at the begining of his mega face-dom and Edge at his mega heel-dom. Both really grew as performers through their work with each other, I feel.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?
It sounds really cliche and unoriginal now to say "HEEL TURN PLZ", but I wouldn't mind seeing how WWE would handle a Cena heel turn from this point on, but I really think he's landed on the best version of his character in the last year or so, just a thoroughly likeable guy who's doing a job he loves. It's not even really a gimmick, it's just him. But it's awesome, and perfect for the top face.

What I'd really like to do is a "Cena loses self-confidence" storyline once he hits veteran, 38-year-old kind of age. He starts losing cleanly more and loses confidence in himself which leads to him becoming weaker, but he overcomes it by finding strength within himself and his fans to regain that title and get back on top. I think Rhodes would be a good heel to work with him here, or Punk of course, because all three of these guys are really good at psychological, character-exploration type stories.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

Not so much Cena's booking, actually. I would have made the heels act like bigger dicks, really. Work harder at getting them heat. Some heels like Edge were too easy to see as cool to be booed strongly enough.

EDIT (Forgot to include summary): Cena's career, while not a perfectly smooth ride for the guy who would become top face, has gone really well, and loads of people in the business would still sacrifice limbs to be where he is. Cena is a hard worker and while I may not always have liked how much he was pushed, I've come to understand the reasoning for it and I'll now be backing Cena against the Rock at WM 28, because his character is not cool like the Attitude Era characters. His character is inspiring. A golden hero following an age of shady grey ones.

EDIT NUMERO DOS (Additional thought): Learning to value Cena has also inspired me in another way: Not to hate on Orton, because I know I'll feel better for it in 3 years when the Orton haters have got over their problems with him.

 

[RendarSelin]

It's hard to believe that the man who walked down to challenge Kurt Angle 9 years ago is now the leader of the Cenation and arguably the biggest Superstar in the last decade. Cena's done it all in his career: WWE Champion, United States Champion, Tag Team Champion, Royal Rumble winner. He has mastered the I Quit match to the point where if his success in the match continues, it will become synonymous with Cena, much like the Ladder Match for HBK or Hell in a Cell for Triple H. He has become the face of the WWE, granted hundreds of wishes for sick kids across the nation, donated his time to the brave men and women of the US Armed Forces, released an album, starred in movies and guest starred in TV shows, commercials. Love him or hate him, Cena gets a reaction out of every WWE fan, whether it's to sing his praises or chant "Cena Sucks!"

Some of his most exciting moments have occurred throughout the years. My personal favorite feuds for John Cena are as follows:

1.) JBL: This feud really put Cena over the top and got him where he is. Their brutal "I Quit" match at Judgment Day 2005 definitely symbolized Cena was a tough SOB. Even in later years, Cena remained a thorn in JBL's side, including the destruction of the Longhorn Limo.

2.) Edge: Simply put, Cena helped catapult Edge to the top after Edge cashed in his Money in the Bank contract against Cena at New Years Revolution 2006. Cena had held the belt since WrestleMania at this point, and Edge snuck in, becoming the Ultimate Opportunist to gain his first WWE Championship. Although handing it back soon after at the Royal Rumble, Edge and Cena continued to feud throughout the years. Whether it was a TLC match, Cage match, or your standard match, these two put on plenty of great matches for fans to remember.

3.) The Rock: This feud has been building up for a while, with John Cena publicly calling out The Rock for abandoning the WWE fans for Hollywood. Although still ongoing, the two have a match scheduled for WrestleMania 28 that has fans old and new anticipating the clash of two greats.

I'm sure I'm missing out on plenty of great Cena feuds, but those are the main 3 that stick out in my mind.

Hopefully from here, Cena remains healthy and, eventually, retires in style. I'm not a huge fan of his wrestling persona, but it's hard to hate a man that does what he does: donates much of his free time to his fans. I get the sense he legitimately cares about his fanbase, whether we boo or cheer. And that is something that deserves respect.

If I could change one thing about Cena's career, I wouldn't keep him champion nearly as often. Cena is definitely at his best when chasing the title. I'm not going to argue that Cena's keeping people down. Cena has helped elevate plenty of wrestlers in his time and has worked great with plenty. R-Truth's character is evolving, Edge got a great amount of credibility working with Cena, one can argue The Miz's success is in part due to John Cena. So there isn't much I would change at all. Maybe just a return to a bit more badass quality...

Nevertheless, Cena has had a great career, and although WWE may be in a slump, the leader of the Cenation is truly among the greats.

 

[The A]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

Well he has a lot going for him obviously and he's even got that hater heat which is better than not being talked about at all.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

Of course his thuganomics gimmick because it defined his character from then on. He's still that same dude. It's actually very similar to rock's career; He started as a generic hero they wanted to push. It went nowhere so they changed them heel and the rest is history.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

I wouldn't like this until I saw it but I could see him hosting a tv show of some sort. He's got that personality ya know? Other than that He'll be a top name in the wwe for the rest of his career.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

I don't think there is anything wrong with the way he was booked over the years I dont even think that's why people think he sucks. I think a lot of hardcore wrestling fans notice when someones skills are off but there's a lot of them that don't care as much either, but you know the more popular something becomes the more hated especially when they force it. If I Had to change something I guess I would have kept him on the tough side more like his thuganomics gimmick and then make him a tweener if he had gotten over so he didn't always have to win clean and lose dirty.

 

[Da Prophet]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

Simple answer, amazing. John Cena has had a wonderful and amazing career because he has earned it. Hard work, learning inside the ring, learning to cut a promo. These things have all gotten Cena to the point he is today. He went from a nameless boring guy we saw in the debut, to one of the hottest things in wrestling and main eventing WrestleMania just three short years later. He is the biggest face in wrestling today and is leading the WWE. A great champion to have. Cena has done a great job with his career so far. Putting in some great matches, vs Batista at both SummerSlam and WrestleMania and his I Quit with JBL and many more.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

Favourite angle with John Cena would be the series he had with Edge in 2006. It was two young guys fighting over the biggest championship in wrestling. They gave us really good matches and an exciting TLC match. The drama was there with the slapping of Cena's own father. These two had the feud of the year and it had me loving it. Giving both these guys a chance to shine and they did. And the 2008 Rumble return, why, because it shocked the world. Nobody had any clue it was Cena and that made it so exciting. He came in a cleaned house. A great moment just because of the surprise.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

Not really anything I would want to see. We always here the heel turn thing but I like where Cena is at. He is the top face of the WWE and that is where he should stay. He is leading them into the next generation and is doing a fine job. His matches continue to be good, so I have nothing much to say here. Just keep on chuggin.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

To be honest nothing really comes to mind. Cena's character is someone you want to see win. He is the good guy, the super hero in the story. His booking has shown that. I don't see a point where I would go "that needs to be changed". It has been done very well over the years. Maybe his Mania feuds and how he defeats the same guy at least 3 times after the event on PPV. It makes the guy look really weak compared to Cena. It takes the super hero thing a little to far. But it really doesn't bother me that much.

 

[TheConnecticutBlueblood]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

Well obviously it’s gone great! He’s won over 8 World Championships become the face of the company, arguably one of the most like superstars by casual wrestlingbfans, hated by the IWC, in a few movies and he’s famous! His career has gone great and he’s still very young, I can see him being a 20-25 time world champion before he retires.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

I really liked the Nexus feud in 2010, I thought the whole story of Cena trying to save the WWE from this new group was a good storyline. I also found the original Randy Orton feuds like in 2007, they were good. But probably the feud with JBL in 2005 was my favorite as that cemented him being a credible world champion and ensured his success, it also was an interesting feud.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

The only thing I’d like to see now is him turn heel. He’s already done it all so he could be like Batista and The Rock and quit but I think he loves the business too much. I think he needs to turn heel, that may lose popularity with the kid fans but make him IWC’s favorite wrestler.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

The only thing I would do is maybe have him in more feuds that don’t involve the title. Sort of like when he feuded with The Miz in 2009 or when ECW invaded and most recently the one with the Nexus. He has got to a point in his career that he doesn’t need a title, he just needs a guy to feud with and it automatically is a good feud. Also maybe do a HHH/Sheamus feud with Cena and a young guy like Ziggler or Drew McIntyre? He doesn’t have to be maineventing all the time.

 

[Sheamus' Suntan]

First of all Dagger, brilliant thread.

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?
Really...how can you say a bad word about Cena's career? 10 world titles in 9 years? He's on record to beat HHH's 14 WWE titles and Flairs 16 "recorded" titles at this rate. He's just doing amazingly.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?
It's already been stated, but HBK vs. John Cena. The feud was just brilliantly played out and worked excellently.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?
In all truth I'd like to see Cena become a transitional champ more. I know this sounds bad for the company, but I mean month or two month long reigns, like what Edge did. The reasoning for this is Cena is a face and is a better chaser/challenger than he is champion.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".
Same as above really. Stop long title reigns with him and stop epically long feuds with him. A lot of his BEST feuds have been short...the long ones REALLY lost steam part way through. His 7 month feud with Edge grew old after 3. Orton and himself...just got boring. Wade Barrett/Nexus lost steam 3 months in. Cena's feuds should be roughly 3 months long, followed by a shorter feud to fill in for a month before going into another 3 month long angle. The reason why this works is because it stops the feuds getting boring while other 'greener' heels can be put over by Cena.


Something I've always loved about Cena btw. He DOES put others over. Now I know, he's got this rep as Super Cena but honestly...he's put over SO many new starters and he only really ever wins the LAST battle. Let's look at it.

Wade Barrett and Nexus had him throughout the feud until the last moment of it.
Orton had control much more than Cena did.
Edge won the title twice off Cena in that time.

It's only the final struggle Cena ALWAYS wins and is that not the role of the good guy...that they always "prevail over evil" in the end?

 

[JGlass]

Indeed Dagger, you make a great point. Who would have thought the man in those tight tight trunks with the goofy flat top haircut would eventually not only be a 10 time, not only would he be a movie star, not only would he be the face of the company, not only would he be feuding with legends like Triple H, Shawn Michaels, and the Rock, but he'd also be one of the best wrestlers the WWE has ever had step into its rings? Well, I'm sure Vince McMahon did and probably a great deal of people with eyes for talent, as John Cena oozes it. He's an athletic freak of nature, he's got mic skills that rival those of The Rock and Steve Austin, and can work a match or an angle like nobody's business. Love him or hate him, there's a reason Cena is where he is at today, he's the very best.

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

World titles, some of the best feuds the WWE has seen, movie roles, advertising deals, and he's set to have the feud of the century with The Rock... I'd say things are going okay.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

So many to name. My favorite John Cena angles are his feuds with Edge, Nexus, and Miz. His 2006 feud with Edge was great because it kicked off with such a shocker, Edge cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase on John Cena after a brutal Elimination Chamber match and winning the WWE Championship. From there we saw a series of great matches and great promos, my favorite part being John Cena's TLC match with Edge. It also didn't hurt that Edge did some of his best work during that feud.

Nexus also holds a special place in my heart because it was the closest we've ever gotten to a Cena heel turn, and it my be the closest we ever get. I've long been an opponent of "Cena heel turn" threads, and for much of this feud I had the "will he or won't he" butterflies.

Finally, his feud with Miz sparked some of the greatest mic work the WWE has seen in years out of not two, but three superstars. Cena took Miz, who had looked like a fluke champion, and turned him into a main event competitor. I remember people saying Miz was doomed to go back to the midcard after his WWE Title run had expired and he dropped the belt to Cena, but now I can't see how you see anything less than the main event for this guy.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

I think I'd like to see him break Triple H's record for WWE World Titles, not sure if I'd want him to break Flair's though. I'd also like to see this feud with CM Punk stretch out much longer than Money in the Bank (though that might be against Punk's interests) because it has the potential to be one of the best feuds the PG Era has seen. Really, Cena has done just about all of it, and all I want is for him to continue to do the great job he has been doing.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

I would let Cena off of the leash more. Last night CM Punk cut one of the all time great promos, one that has lit the world of wrestling on fire. CM Punk used that type of creative freedom for the powers of evil, I wonder what John Cena could do if he used it for the powers of good. It's no secret that John Cena keeps it fairly clean when cutting his promos, but if he was given the chance to do something edgy like that he might not have as much trouble in some of the smarkier cities.

 

[Jaelae]

I remember him debuting with Angle and moving up the ranks as a midcarder. My favorite moment was when they were doing the first WWE Draft (or at least the first one that he was a big player in) and he was drafted from Smackdown to Raw and the Raw crowd went nuts. After that he ended up having to drop the rap gimmick and I pretty much lost interest like most others.

Unfortunately, I can't think of his best match/feud because nothing is really memorable to me. His feuds are similar to Rey Mysterio's feuds - I don't remember any of them. Mysterio is a great character / wrestler but neither deliver the whole:

Remember that Taker vs Mankind feud? or other similar ones

 

[DelRioFan]

Very well put. Nobody is asking people to like Cena, but you should at least respect everything he has done with and for the WWE. He has given us some amazing and memorable matches with the likes of Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Edge, Orton, JBL, and many more. He is so dedicated to the business and its fans. He signs thousands of autographs for hours every week, and whether fans love him or hate him, he respects them back.

 

[Maddog Lionheart]

June 27th 2002 was an important day in the WWE. What was it that happened exactly 9 years ago?

[YOUTUBE]Figwyag4emE[/YOUTUBE]​

That's right. Some guy named John Cena made his debut. Whoever would have thought during this promo that he would go on to become a 10 time world champion and the face of the WWE? He's been World Heavyweight Champion, WWE Champion, US Champion, Tag Team Champion, Royal Rumble winner, main evented several Wrestlemania's, starred in movies, released his own CD, been a rapper, a marine, a top face, and even a heel at one point. The man has more or less done it all when you look back on the 9 years he has spent in WWE. When I realized that today was the 9 year anniversary of his debut, I instantly became inspired to make this thread.


1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".


Please make life easier for the mods by not spamming. Well? Discuss!

Cena's career and where it has gone is a total rhetorical question. It has since sky-rocketed and has maybe gone past the likes of Hulk Hogan.

I say that probably one of my favorite fueds was with Carlito. I know this sounds funny, but when he came back, he destroyed Carlito and gave everyone a time to notice who the hell he was.

I would love to see a quick relapse of his heel phase. he honestly doesn't have to, but it would be really cool.

I think that if I changed anything, it would be the booking of the Wrestlemania match versus The Rock. The timing of it was too early. It means that he has to hold on to the title untill Wrestlemania and some fans may not like that.

 

[NotoriousMEAT]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?
What can I say that everyone else doesn't know? Stellar career, and I really only think we're half way done.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?
My all time favorite Cena feud is Edge. They did so much and were able to get the absolute best out of each other. It spanned over 3 years and unlike most people who face each other a million times, I never got tired of seeing it.

I also loved his original feud with Triple H leading up to WrestleMania 22 in 2006. I was at the peak of my anti-Cena rebellion and us hopefuls seemed to finally have the man that would put Cena away. It was intense. I was in school at the time and not a day would go by where shit talk was exchanged and bets were made. I rocked my King of Kings shirt almost every day leading up to that PPV. It was a really fun time and all the emotion paid off in that match.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?
I'd like to see Cena move away from the title picture for a little bit. He did it for a while last year during the Nexus feud, and I enjoyed it. Instead of one big thing going on RAW, you had two because you still had the title picture, and then whatever Cena was doing. I'd love to see him in a WrestleMania match that isn't for the title. Again, just trying to spread the shine. This year is perfect because the match he's in will be the headline anyway, so let a couple other guys fight for the title and just add to the magnitude of the show. Anyways, I'm almost rambling..

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".
There was a time I was a major hater, but it's blown over. I respect Cena. He's a damn good guy and a damn good worker. My only complaint ever is the fact that it's always HIM. I get that with him being THE FACE of the company, but really that's my only complaint. WWE has done a phenomenal job with Cena. He'll go down was one of the companies biggest success. Yeah I wanna see heel Cena as much as the next guy, and I think the match with the Rock is the perfect way to do that, but really there's nothing you can point and say they fucked up when it comes to him. Only things I can think of are small things like..
I think Umaga should have beat him for the title, even it were for a day. And honestly that's it. Oh, and Triple H totally shoulda beat that bastard at WM 22

 

[abraxasdeux]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

1) He was great as a heel, not so much as a face, thought he was going to turn face again when he busted out that rap about the Rock in retaliation.

2) My favorite feud between him and JBL, it was just epic, even though you could already see slight traces of Face Cena starting form. I kept up with it every single week and it never ever disappointed me.

3) Like I said in 1, I'd really like to see him return to being a heel, it's much better at it.

4) Obvious answer, less wins. Make the man an underdog, not a space marine on God Mode.

 

[king_kanyon]

Worse Day Ever He Beat Kurt Angle Stupid Decision Because He Wasn't Ready His Skills Weren't fully developed and with the hardcore WWE Schedule he just has not gotten better what hes added the 5 knucle joke the diving sholder block a leg drog of the top rope and leg lock choke hold but he can't do a simple suplex he doesn't fly out the ring he has no ring pressence and he need gimmicks and other people to make his matches exiting. It's Sad because that day i said wow this guys Athletic, Strong, Good on the Mic and hays the it factor, I just didn't think at this point he would still be Raw in terms of his wrestling skills usually guys get better look at dolph ziggler he went from spirit squad to being one of the best up in coming in and out of the ring performers hes a Dick Put He Is Good. But back then I looved this day right now i don't care for it.

 

[WWWYKI777]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

1.Of course hes having a great career , thats unquestionable...

2.I guess Vs. Jericho a few years back for the WHC is one of the more memorable things to me , when he snapped and brutally beat him down w/ steel steps and such

3.I'd like to see him be given a massive fucking vacation. Literally just gone for like a year or more followed by a return that has nothing to do with championships for at least another year beyond that. OR AT LEAST turn him into the worlds biggest craziest most vicious heel so that despite it being him that he will be different. Give him some more fucking movies to film or something , an excuse to keep him busy w/o being oversaturated to all hell and back on RAW every week.

Not only would it give all the WWE fans a break from the guy but YOU KNOW John Cena must want a fucking break himself too , give him a freaking break FFS he really does NEED some time off. They work him to death like a freaking slave

4.I would like #3 says , either really long fucking vacation , or mega heel turn. Better yet both in that order

(Sigh)

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?

What else is there to say other than it has been an incredible success. You could tell he had talent from that very first match, although he obviously benefitted from working with someone as good as Kurt Angle. As tired as I am of seeing him always main-eventing, he deserves his success and has worked his ass off for it and to become the face of the company.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?

I really enjoyed his feud with Edge, the first title win over Big Show (US title) at WM was very enjoyable, and I really enjoyed seeing him start his rapper gimmick. It grew old quickly, but seeing a white guy rapping was funny for a while. I also loved his performance at ECW ONS2 where fans kept throwing his t-shirt back and also the way he played his role during his feud with Nexus.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

I would like to see a heel run. People boo him as a face, imagine what he would get as a heel! It would be the biggest heel turn since Hogan in 1996 or Austin siding with McMahon. The turn would open up alot of new match possiblilities and freshen up the Cena character, but I doubt it will happen. He sells too much merchandise and as wrestling is a business I doubt we will see him turn for a long time yet.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

I would give him more adult things to say. Too often Cena has come across as a comedy character with cheesy lines. I know we are in the PG era but there is better things he could say to not look a fool. Also, I would have made his character less "Superman" and more realistic, as the Super-Cena act got pretty old pretty quick.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?



There have been instances in his career that I have enjoyed and there have been others that I haven't enjoyed but I cannot deny that he will be remembered years from now as an all time great. I started out as a fan of his and slowly he went boring to tolerable and slightly more tolerable to me. There is little doubt though that he is a hard worker who tries to make his opponent look as good as he humanly can. His commitment to the business is also undeniable. I also quite enjoy his matches even though I might have problems with his promos. Especially in the ones he tries to be funny. Behind the cameras he has set an example that every upcoming poster boy of the WWE will try to emulate just like Hogan and Austin have set that standard inside the ring.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?



My favorite moments of his came back when he was a rapper. He was hilarious at that time and I believed that WWE had found the perfect poster boy for themselves after Austin and Rock. It was just a matter of time according to me at that time. His best raps were against Brock Lesnar and Kenzo Suzuki. The latter is, especially a favorite of mine.

As for his All American babyface character, his best moments have come whenever he has cut a serious, intense promo. That is the place in which he shines. All of his interactions against The Rock were also great. I expected Cena to be totally mauled by the crowd whenever he came face to face with The Rock, one of the most popular guys ever who had returned after 7 long years. But to my surprise Cena, at certain points managed to get a decent positive reaction for himself as well. That shows me that the crowd is ready to get behind Cena even at this point if you happen to put him up against a strongly booked guy.

His best feud according to me was possibly against Edge mostly because of the matches the two guys combined to produce. His feud with HBK was great but ended too soon according to me. He helped Miz become a star in the WWE and that was certainly an interesting clash of personalities. I might be jumping the gun but if done well his feud with Punk could also end up being one of the most defining feuds of this era.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?

I'd like to see a strong heel character being developed as Cena's arch-nemesis. I might not like his current character as compared to his rapper gimmick but at the same time I cannot deny that it is a well developed gimmick that has a good history of working. One of the biggest reasons why I find Cena's matches boring sometimes is that I do not ever believe that he is going to lose. There needs to be a definite challenge to Cena. This could be done by booking a few heels strongly and not just against Cena or even neccesarily against him only. Punk could fill that role very well but he does not seem to have all that good relations with the company so my choice for the role would be Miz.

4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why?

I would have booked the heels that faced Cena very strongly before they actually faced Cena. Edge, when he came face to face with Cena was hardly a main eventer and Orton in 2007 was hardly the heel and the character that he became in 2009. Cena does lose some pivotal matches in his feud to make the feud interesting but a more simpler way to book him would have been to first establish a character and then throw him in Cena's face. That, in my opinion, would have generated more interest.

Also I would not give him funny promos to cut. He isn't particularily good in that department. He cannot be funny without being non-PG and he is very good at serious promos. There isn't any real need for him to be funny.

 

[Blue Chipper]

1. What are your thoughts on how Cena's career has gone so far?
It has gone fantastically. From his matches to his mic work, he's always been entertaining. He's been apart of a myriad of entertaining matches, feuds, angles, etc. and whilst doing so has been a great leader and figurehead for the WWE.

2. What are some of your favorite angles, feuds, and moments of his and why?
My favorite feuds/matches of Cena are:
Cena/ HHH WM
Cena/JBL I quit
Cena/ Bobby Lashley GAB
Cena/ RVD ONS
Cena/ HBK Raw and WM
Cena/ Batista Summerslam
Cena/ Umaga GAB

That's only the ones off of the top of my head. These feuds were entertaining and were followed by a good match.

3. Where would you like to see his career go from here? Anything specific you'd like to see?
I'd like to see Cena become a bigger star than he already is. I know that's tough, but I would like him to possibly surpass the mega stars we already know or help solidify his current position.


4. If you could change one thing about how he was booked over the years, what would it be and why? I want specifics on this one, to give the haters a chance to actually say something beyond "he sucks".

I can't think of anything. Again, I think he's had a terrific career so far.