Is Rey Mysterio getting the “Cena Treatment”?

[Dave]

As we all know, John Cena has been the poster boy of the WWE for a long time now. He has adopted a gimmick that makes people think that he is pretentious and stale. However, he has been glorified in this role and success has come in abundance as he has captured the WWE Championship on numerous occasion. The fans continue to be divided by their opinions of John Cena. Some fans will cheer him because of the message he is spreading and some fans will boo him because he comes off as cheesy and is the face of a product that people do not actually want to see for the most part (see Attitude Era).

Now, Rey Mysterio, on the other hand, has been pretty over with fans for a long time too. I don’t recall him being a heel any of his tenure in the WWE but perhaps I am mistaken. The point remains though, he is over. The kids love him and I love to them racing to the barricade to meet with him, if only for a second. The adults, whilst not really being into his gimmick, might cheer for him too. However, I see similarities between the gimmicks of the two superstars and I am surprised that it has taken people this long to see it.

Rey Mysterio has been preaching that he is the underdog and as long as he is wrestling, he will never give up. That sounds familiar doesn’t it? You see, both of these guys are basically running the same gimmick. Sure, they lose from time to time but they always try to battle back from those slip ups and will preach a message of not giving up in the face of a challenge. Since, Rey Mysterio won the World Heavyweight Championship, I have seen all of the bugs come out of the woodwork as opinions begin to polarise on him. Some fans think that he is a deserving Champion, whilst other think that his gimmick is just too cheesy.

Now, if this is the case, is it safe to say that Rey Mysterio is getting the John Cena treatment? By that I mean, if the two superstars are running practically the same gimmick, will we see Rey Mysterio become the same polarising figure as John Cena. Will he receive boos from the fans because of his gimmick and if he does start to be booed, is it justified?

 

[Ferbian]

The problem with comparing John Cena and Rey Mysterio is that the majority of the IWC, or any fan in general, sees Rey Mysterio at someone who can "actually wrestle" and doesn't go under the whole "He only knows 5 moves".

But there's some parts where Rey Mysterio and John Cena is already being compared, in terms of being incredibly over with the children. They're alike. But Rey Mysterio is also regarded as getting stale.

Yes Rey puts on great matches on a regular basic. But Rey is boring on the microphone for the most of times. He's regarded as the Ultimate Underdog, yet wins the majority of his matches, just like John.

I guess you could say Rey Mysterio is getting the Smackdown version of the John Cena treatment in the term of coming out superior in the majority of his matches. But I do however don't see him getting the boos that John does, because Rey is exciting to watch, for the most of fans. Rey is never gonna get the "You can't wrestle" chants that echo's the matches John Cena is in.

If Rey was ever gonna get those boos, he would be getting them already. He's been in this position for a long period of time, being booed would've started long ago.

But let's say the fans start booing him next week, I do not see it being justified. But that's because I do not see it being justified with John Cena. Rey and John both put on pretty good matches (Yes John does put on good matches, don't deny it!). And they perform, night in and night out.

Actually the one place where Rey Mysterio has a negative on John Cena is that John doesn't complain backstage, he does what it takes. Rey complains about not getting a vacation because he injured Undertaker, he complained about putting over Dolph Ziggler. But have we heard of John complaining about anything that was revolving around himself? no.

John has complained about the release of Bryan Danielson and the lack of push for Evan Bourne, but never about him putting someone over. Never about jobbing. Never about a vacation. Simply, never about himself.

 

[Dressler]

No I don't think he is getting the same treatment, like what was said, Rey has been in the same position for over 5-8 years now on Smackdown! in the WWE, we know he won't be Heel and the fact is is that to most Cena haters he can "wrestle". The main hate on Cena is the "5 Moves of Doom" which Rey Rey doesn't have, so he won't get the same amount of boos from the fans.

As for the whole Rey is the Smackdown! version of John Cena, I could agree with that, he is the most over character with the Kids on Smackdown! hes the one with all the merchandise sales (Masks primarily) and the WWE know this so they put a Belt around his waist. (Yes I know that is not the only reason why he got the Belt just saying it is one)

Do I see Rey getting the Cena treatment from fans? No, fans wont hate on Rey simply because he performs to many spots in matches that make the fans cheer for him, his wrestling isn't "boring" the way Cena Haters say Cena is, so I don't think Rey will get the type of boos Cena gets.

 

[The Future Rises]

i hated them both ever since rey won the WHC at WM22 and ever since john cena adopted the cheezy marine gimmick. its hard for me to believe that gay..er rey mysterio can beat opponents half his size and wins every rivarly hes in(exept for the eddie feud and undertaker) and he refuses to put over people(see dolph ziggler at night of champions/summerslam, and cm punk when he beat him at over the limit to freakin shave his head, i mean, what would happen if he lost? kids start crying? is that worth shaving a guy's head). cena in the other hand. hes just plain lame. he cant wrestle good enough to be in the main event picture. and like i said, his gimmick just makes it worse.

 

[Syborgg]

If by the "Cena treatment" you mean is he getting pushed to the main event because the crowd(especially the youngsters) loves him, then yes. I agree with most of the other posters that Rey wont get the "You can't wrestle" chants or he wont really be considered boring, even though alot of his hi-spots are the same everytime. But because his offence is fast paced and always moving, the people are still entertained by it.

As for Cena, I'm a 33 yr old guy and I can honestly say I have alot more respect for Cena than most of the IWC. I'm not a fan-boy, but I use the word respect, because like was said before he never complains, he puts guys over for the good of the company, and contrary to popular opinion he CAN put on good matches. First off, it's not about the moves(even though he has more than 5), it's about telling a story through selling your opponent's moves and creating highs and lows throughout the match. Cena does that as good as any active wrestler in the industry.

 

[JJYanks121]

I think there's a valid point to be made here. Cena catches the wrath of a lot of fans due to an over the top good guy character, repetitive moveset (because what face doesn't have that?), and overall cheesines at times. However, I have believed for a long time that Rey is actually more guilty and more deserving of fan flack than Cena could ever be.

The difference between the two men is that Cena is the true face of the WWE and has a responsiblity to be on top and represent the company well. Rey Mysterio is NOT the face of the company. In fact, he's the underdog of the company who carries popularity due to his status as such and due to his mask. For this reason, he seems to get more sympathy, sympathy he has proven time and time again he does not deserve.

I will state right now that I am not a Mysterio fan. I do enjoy his ring work from time to time, but I have a hard time suspending disbelief to believe that he ALWAYS rises above any challenger. That's not a major concern in the grand spectrum, but to book a tiny guy on top the way he is booked is quite unrealistic. I have always said that Rey needs to be booked as a true underdog, a man who has to steal wins with rollups and counters. Rey Mysterio hitting his ridiculous finisher to beat people double is size is simply something I cannot buy and something I can't get behind. Conversely, it is not difficult to suspend disbelief with Cena, so as much as people get annoyed with Cena making his face comeback, this is a man who can lift and slam even the largest of superstars, so it is not inconceivable for him to cleanly beat anybody.

Cena CAN beat anyone but he doesn't. Mysterio shouldn't be able to beat anyone but he does, and all too often. A few months ago, Mysterio was embattled in a feud with CM Punk and the Straight Edge Society. This was a wonderful opportunity for Punk to beat a huge crowd favorite to get major heat, but the diminutive Mysterio came out on top, despite being outnumbered by the group. The booking made no sense to me, as this could have really gotten CM Punk to another level as clear top heel. What stands out to me is that this isn't the first time this has happened with Mysterio either. Last year, Dolph Ziggler was in a feud with Rey for the IC title. Ziggler had 4-5 opportunities to capture the title, but was unsuccessful each time. Rey ended up getting suspended and dropped the belt to.........John Morrison? This was a push Ziggler could have used and he still hasn't recovered from that feud. Those are just 2 examples of Rey coming out on top when he really didn't need to. The difference is, I don't know that you can make an argument with John Cena of that nature. Given that Cena is the cream of the crop and should not lose often, he still does from time to time, and he was instrumental in getting Sheamus over from the start. Since the long reign of '06, I have not seen too many booking decisions regarding Cena that were head scratchers. I can't say the same for Mysterio.

The last thing that really separates the two performers are their personalities. Cena is a fun-loving guy who will get serious when need be, and is always ready to fight for what he believes in. Rey Mysterio has this incessant need to make EVERYTHING about him being the underdog. At some point though, you are not the underdog when you win all the damn time. I was at the Fatal 4 Way PPV a few weeks back, and the promo he cut there made me sick. It's one thing to be called an underdog and to have announcers put you over as never quitting and having a big heart, but it is quite another to SAY IT IN A PROMO! That was one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard, and I can't help but hate a guy for it. I am a short guy myself, but I'd never put myself over in that way. If other people want to believe that I have a big heart based on my actions, let them. You won't ever hear me talking about my big heart though. That is just tacky and being full of yourself.

What amazes me is that, even with all this information at hand, Cena still gets more of the hate. Mysterio does NOT get the "Cena treatment" from fans in terms of turning on the stale face. If anything, he deserves it a lot more than Cena does, but in some odd way, fans have sympathy for Mysterio due to his size. I also think that his ability to fly around a little bit removes the stigma of "you can't wrestle" from him. Still though, Mysterio is every bit worse than Cena in terms of how he is booked and his attitude towards WWE. Thus, it should make some peopel think twice before getting on John Cena and turning around and cheering Rey Mysterio. At least that's my opinion.

 

[16mikeytot]

Yeah I gotta agree with Ferb here. The thing is Rey Mysterio doesn't get booed, doesn't get you can't wrestle chants, and when you look at Rey Mysterio the guy only has two world titles unlike Super Cena's nine world titles. Rey Mysterio is getting pushed now because who else are you really gonna push on smackdown they don't have a stacked roster like raw. Also you look at the matches the two guys put on It's rare that Super Cena puts on a great match while Mysterio always delivers. I find Cena's never give up gimmick more ridiculous than Rey's ultimate underdog because Rey is actually an underdog I met the guy at an autograph signing and Im 5'11 and I felt like I towered over him and for Cena you know how much damage you do to him he's gonna come back and hit you with the five moves of doom.

 

[The Shockmaster]

John has complained about the release of Bryan Danielson and the lack of push for Evan Bourne, but never about him putting someone over. Never about jobbing. Never about a vacation. Simply, never about himself.

Never about jobbing????
I dont think i ever seen John Cena "job" in my life. You cant count him losing his championship because he always comes back and beats them in the rematch or a few months later. Point is John Cena does not Job...he is a greedy prick that always has to win and will probably say that it is because he is the face of the company. A guy like John Cena, where you can call every move hes going to do should not be in the race to break title wins such as the likes of Ric Flair and HHH.

With that covered rey mysterio is definety the John Cena of Smackdown. Same lame never give up gimmick, popular with kids, and rarely losing a match or fued. This last month i think wwe hit an all time low giving this guy the sympathy vote resulting in the title win. Both Rey and Cena are stale and need to stop winning titles and backup out of the main event. Maybe its time for Rey to give it up (i love him but when its time..its time) and for Cena to change his stale and boring gimmick.

 

[Ferbian]

Never about jobbing????
I dont think i ever seen John Cena "job" in my life. You cant count him losing his championship because he always comes back and beats them in the rematch or a few months later. Point is John Cena does not Job...he is a greedy prick that always has to win and will probably say that it is because he is the face of the company. A guy like John Cena, where you can call every move hes going to do should not be in the race to break title wins such as the likes of Ric Flair and HHH.

Jobbing is known as "doing the job". Getting pinned. Loosing the championship.

By that definition, John Cena has jobbed plenty of times, I have never heard anywhere that John Cena has complained about loosing a championship.

John Cena has also never complained about putting anybody over, and if you think that's being a greedy prick, I seriously suggest you rethink stuff through.

John Cena wins the majority of his fights just like Hulk Hogan because the majority of fans wants to see John Cena win, the kids want to see John Cena win. You might not want to see him win, but one fan voice doesn't change a thing.

John is not a guy to hold people down backstage, he's not the kind of person that complains, he has done things happily, and I don't see why not. If it's WWE's way of booking John to win or loose a match, John simply obliges like anyone else should.

But Rey Mysterio did not do that, no he complained about being told he should drop the championship to Dolph Ziggler, he complained about not getting the needed vacation he had requested because he injured The Undertaker.

 

[The Shockmaster]

He is not jobbing he is just simply setting up another long feud with the same guy that just beat him. how could he be putting over a guy if hes just going to beat him in another 2 months. He has been doing it consistently for at least a year or two...loses the title...wins it back...loses the title wins it back... Just recently the E must of realized this and put him into a feud with the nexus. Maybe this will finally be the time he lets more than two people win it before he is champ again. Most likely it will be sheamus losing to barrett and then barrett losing to cena and then the cycle will start again.

Im sure just because hes a picture perfect person on camera doesnt mean he doesnt bitch and complain about not having the title because if he didnt in a few months im sure even kids could see his gimmick is bland and irreverent. Its just that he is the face of the company and the E will never release anything bad about him and if other wrestlers did they would probably get in trouble.

But still back to the thread Mysterio is no doubt the John Cena of Smackdown. Vince over the years has definitely diagnosed Rey with the John Cena treatment and now Rey is currently overdosing on the meds.

 

[Ferbian]

He is not jobbing he is just simply setting up another long feud with the same guy that just beat him. how could he be putting over a guy if hes just going to beat him in another 2 months. He has been doing it consistently for at least a year or two...loses the title...wins it back...loses the title wins it back... Just recently the E must of realized this and put him into a feud with the nexus. Maybe this will finally be the time he lets more than two people win it before he is champ again. Most likely it will be sheamus losing to barrett and then barrett losing to cena and then the cycle will start again.

That's ridiculous.

John Cena doesn't hang around the title scene all the time, he did in the past year's period yes. But John is a draw, don't try to deny that. Wouldn't you be putting your money maker in the main event? Wouldn't you be putting the title on your money maker?

I seriously think those guys that scream "John Cena shouldn't be champion" should never, ever start a wrestling promotion, it wouldn't do well to say the least.

John loosing is putting someone over all depending on how John looses, or how he wins. If John makes someone look great while in a fight with them, it's putting someone over, loosing or not. John could win over Sheamus in a 30 minute hell raising battle like against Batista in the I Quit match, and Sheamus would look golden.

Im sure just because hes a picture perfect person on camera doesnt mean he doesnt bitch and complain about not having the title because if he didnt in a few months im sure even kids could see his gimmick is bland and irreverent. Its just that he is the face of the company and the E will never release anything bad about him and if other wrestlers did they would probably get in trouble.

On camera yes, but have you heard anywhere that John Cena ever bitched about loosing a championship? Are you absolutely sure John is not the perfect employee backstage as well?

The kids are probably too young to grasp the fact that others consider him bland, boring and irrelevant. John puts out the perfect role-model phrase "Never give up. Never back down". Things that even adults can live by. John takes care of himself, eats healthy etc. He is basically the epitome of the message Hulk Hogan was sending to kids back in the 80's.

And we hate him for that? god what has the world revolved into? John's wrestling move set is not CM Punk's move set, but it's still good, he puts on great matches no matter the gimmick, but the haters are blinded by the hate to realize that John is good for business, and a great in-ring wrestler as well.

We loved Hogan in the 80's, yet today we compare John to Hogan, and we absolutely hate the guy? wrestling fans are some odd people I tell you.

But still back to the thread Mysterio is no doubt the John Cena of Smackdown. Vince over the years has definitely diagnosed Rey with the John Cena treatment and now Rey is currently overdosing on the meds.

It's been reported that John has never used steroids, while his body might say otherwise by looks, there's no proving that he has ever used, or ever will. His body is achievable through hard work. So to say that Rey is doing the same thing in terms of steroids and enhancement drugs is bullshit.

 

[The Shockmaster]

That's ridiculous

On camera yes, but have you heard anywhere that John Cena ever bitched about loosing a championship? Are you absolutely sure John is not the perfect employee backstage as well?

It's been reported that John has never used steroids, while his body might say otherwise by looks, there's no proving that he has ever used, or ever will. His body is achievable through hard work. So to say that Rey is doing the same thing in terms of steroids and enhancement drugs is bullshit.

If You had an award winning sauce would you give away your secret ingredient. Im not saying he bitches all the time but if he did do you think that the WWE would let that type of information leak out to the public. He is the posterboy of the company...he knows he isnt going anywhere...so from time to time im sure he bitches and complains about certain things.

A couple a weeks ago he cried to the fans after the show about them booing him and saying he cant wrestle. You think the E really wanted him to go out there and do that...probably not(it looks bad when they cant take criticism: the fans have a right to want they want to cheer and boo) but he was probably complaining to them so they let him.

Im just saying there is probably alot of smoke and mirrors when it comes to cena and the bottomline is that the E covers for him because of the spot hes in and how he promotes the company.

And for the Rey comment i was inferring that he was overdosing on the meds of the john cena treatmeant...in other words hes using the john cena treatment to the full potential

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

There are some huge differences between Rey Mysterio and John Cena. I'll give you that whole "always seems to pull out the win" thing, because it's just plain ridiculous. Rey Mysterio has been around for a lot longer than Cena, and he's been running the exact same gimmick his entire career. He's kept about the same fan base and reaction, and hasn't improved on the mic, and many would agree that he's lost ability in the ring. Mysterio is at the end of his career with WWE, and I don't see him changing anything before he retires. However, he may start getting some boo's from the fans, due to his decreasing ability to entertain them. Sure, he's a kid-friendly superstar. I mean, come on, he wears a mask and is portrayed as their super hero... But the majority of fans really don't care about Mysterio and aren't getting behind his title run at all. I see what you're saying about him and Cena being similar, but I would honestly take Cena over Mysterio most days of the week...

 

[Ferbian]

If You had an award winning sauce would you give away your secret ingredient. Im not saying he bitches all the time but if he did do you think that the WWE would let that type of information leak out to the public. He is the posterboy of the company...he knows he isnt going anywhere...so from time to time im sure he bitches and complains about certain things.

Award winning sauce? what are you on about?

They've had numerous times where bitching backstage etc. has been leaked, how would you imagine that we know of Rey Mysterio's bitching? Randy Orton complaining about Mr. Anderson? Triple H holding talent down?

There's always gonna be leaks, the sites get their hand on it one way or another, and John has never been reported.

Just because your job is secure, and because your the top dog. Are you really gonna say that it gives them the right to sit back and complain and cry their eyeballs out? I seriously. seriously doubt that John Cena has any reason to be complaining, and especially over dropping a championship.

John is liked backstage, and supposedly he's also liking the people he works with. Randy Orton is one of John's best friends, and John has lost the championship to Randy a few times now.

A couple a weeks ago he cried to the fans after the show about them booing him and saying he cant wrestle. You think the E really wanted him to go out there and do that...probably not(it looks bad when they cant take criticism: the fans have a right to want they want to cheer and boo) but he was probably complaining to them so they let him.

Who's saying John wasn't allowed to be doing that? again. We'd get a report if that really wasn't allowed for him to do.

There's a few people here and there that have unscripted moments. Are you sure John wasn't given an unscripted moment? Besides it's off the camera (some dumb kid taping it although) and John was probably in his full position to tell the fans off about that. That's not complaining about backstage politics, which is what Rey Mysterio did, but John never did.

Im just saying there is probably alot of smoke and mirrors when it comes to cena and the bottomline is that the E covers for him because of the spot hes in and how he promotes the company.

But they don't cover for Rey Mysterio, their Smackdown poster boy? They don't cover for Triple H? the son in law?

I don't think that John gets any cover for being the top dog, we've heard of him getting a bit of backstage heat for wanting Bryan Danielson back (it wasn't complaining mind you!). So if he gets backstage heat for that from the management, do you really think they'd cover up for John if he complained about loosing a championship?

And for the Rey comment i was inferring that he was overdosing on the meds of the john cena treatmeant...in other words hes using the john cena treatment to the full potential

Very well. I misunderstood you on that one, considering they have both been target to the steroid and enhancement drug claims.

 

[Michael316]

Both of these men can wrestle, there is no question about that.

So maybe John Cena cannot wrestle as well as some men on the roster and I'll admit there is an argument for the side who say he shouldn't be doing as well as he is, I honestly much preferred him as a mid-carder because if I'm honest I couldn't of asked to a better opening to Wrestlemania 20, where it all begun again. The WWE in a way did all begin again then because that marked the rise of John Cena.

One thing I cannot stand is people saying he cannot wrestle, Cena held the UPW heavyweight championship, the OVW Heavyweight Championship before making it to the WWE ring, if he couldn't wrestle, would he have honestly held those titles before WWE?

Cena has spoken out against the WWE before, he himself as regarded the spinner belt as "outdated" and "gaudy," he spoke out against the release of Bryan Danielson. Despite being the poster boy for not only Raw but the WWE itself he has the guts to speak out against them, he never tries to push things in his own favour. Yes he is behind the recent Evan Bourne push and I myself am not a Bourne fan but atleast he doesn't complain about dropping titles and getting beaten on by NXT, he just does the job that he's given by the WWE. Do you think John Cena would honestly mind if he didn't hold a title for a few months?

I think that if anybody says "I wouldn't push a guy like Cena, he's a joke blah blah blah, he's a disgrace." They should put themselves into the shoes of the WWE and think, this guy can wrestle, the majority of the crowd love him, hell absolutely everyone loved him when he was a mid-carder, he can make us money, why would they not push him? They answered to the millions of fans who were behind Cena as a mid-carder and there prayers were answered when they got the next Hulk Hogan.

I know this thread is mainly about Mysterio but I had to get that all out there.

Mysterio can wrestle but he is boring me now, he's not changed since he entered WWE and I doubt he ever will, it's the same old, somebody disrespects him, he wins. Plus the WWE are just forever pairing him with another powerhouse, in my opinion Rey should spend a couple of years in the tag division with Evan Bourne.

 

[The Insano Shiekh]

In my opinion, there isn't really a way you can define the "Cena Treatment".

One reason is because I feel that John Cena got extremely lucky with his Marine gimmick, and it appealed to the younger audience, so the WWE decided to make him the Friendly Neighborhood Superhero of the business. I can agree with some earlier posters about Rey always having the Underdog gimmick, but not about the merchandise. The point of EVERY WWE superstar is to sell merchandise, plain and simple. Cena has talent, and the "5 Moves of Death" saying applies to most superstars regardless. Rey is always going to get many chants for his talent of wrestling because he's just the average high-flier who can pull off major moves that will almost always differ in every match, while John Cena is the average heavyweight that can do occasional high-flying, but usually sticks to suplexes and powerslams.

Gimmick wise, they are both your Average Joe Good Guys, but of course, Rey is always going to receive the lesser end of the deal because he's on the lesser brand of the 'E, and in meaningful ways, he's just there to get kids to come watch Smackdown, because he's one of the only major faces on Smackdown as of now. On the other hand, John Cena is THE face of the WWE, and probably about one fourth of the ticket sales are just to see him, whether we all like it or not. Rey Mysterio isn't getting the "Cena Treatment", he's getting the "Robin Treatment", a sidekick who eventually can land his own TV Show, which no one pays much attention to, basically.

 

[RiVaLGaMeR]

I dont think so. I like Rey but hes never had the mic skills that have kept me interested. It was just his wrestling and intro that made me a fan. I was unaware he was stealing someone elses gimmick? Ive turned my sights to younger talent though. I find them more entertaining these days because they are something new. Sure the million dollar man gimmick is old but it looks good on his son, thats one thing almost everyone can agree on. I dont like Cena for the borrowed gimmick, i miss the rock, but he turned on us a long time ago. So ive washed my hands of him.