It is hard to hate Cena when....

BigBombB

Pre-Show Stalwart
...you look at his character from the right perspective. We're adults, the lesson Cena's character teaches is one we've already learned or one we're too jaded to care about, but from the eyes of a child it may be one of the most important lessons there is. Imagine you're a kid from a broken home, your parents never amounted to anything and the only luxury in your home is a television that you have no control over, but the one thing that you can always count on is your deadbeat dad watching Monday Night Raw every night. When you look at your surroundings, your life, how unfair it all seems, then you just want a place to escape and for three hours each week you get a place where there is a little hope.

That example is designed to be a bit extreme but it is to emphasize the point. For a kid like that, John Cena may be the only bit of motivation they get in their life. Cena gets beaten down night after night but fights back and wins, even when Cena loses it doesn't get him down, he just works harder to achieve his goal. And I have no doubt that this beating from Brock Lesnar will show that even when you try your hardest but you are completely overwhelmed, it is still important to hang on, to keep in the fight, and to never give up.

For a lot of kids it is easy to give up, it is easy to look at the trailer you live in, the bully that won't stop in school, and the endless pressure to make something of yourself when you don't have a single example of how as a reason to give up. Kids love John Cena not because of his bland catchphrases or the repetition of his moves, kids love John Cena because he is someone worth aspiring to be. He is a ray of hope that, even in the worst of situations, even when anger and frustration is overwhelming, you can still find a way out.

It isn't perfect, it can be immature, and it can be lame, but in the end none of that matters. John Cena isn't for the adults, he isn't repeating certain values because WE need to hear them over and over, he is repeating them for that kid that may only ever hear it when John Cena is speaking directly into the camera to them. And while you may hate him as a face, while you may have loved his heel run because he was 'so much cooler' then, you have to respect what he does because what he does is so much more important than we ever give him credit for.

Thanks for reading.
 
I only respect people i know in my life.. I don't respect John Cena because i don't know the guy, It's the same with everyone in WWE... I haven't seen a Cena segment in 6 years. He's non-existent in my life, why should i respect him?
 
And that is why Cena is still the top draw. The kids and their mom's who buy the tickets and merchandise, have kept him up there.

Don't get me wrong, I can't stand Cena the wrestler. He's boring and it's been the same thing almost since he started. I have no opinion on Cena the person really, don't like or hate him. Why, because I don't know him personally. It's hard to hate someone you don't know.

His work with Make a Wish and other charities I respect, because it's something he does from the heart. You can't fault a guy for doing that.
 
Most fans adult fans understand that John Cena is the Toy aisle of their WalWE-Mart SuperCenter. The resentment and anger and boredom should be directed at WWE, not Cena. It is the company that meticulously cleans and organizes their Toy aisle while rarely stocking any new or interesting toys. It is the company that would rather advertise the same old toys, rather than developing new ones. It is the company that stopped stocking and cleaning their once vibrant Sporting Goods, Electronics, Lingerie and Comedy aisles.

The WWE has concluded that the toy aisle is king in their one size fits all store. Big money, highly stylized wrestling will forevermore court the Toy wrestlers, the neutered and dumbed down Toy presentation. Adult male fans used to have big tent wrestling in the form of ECW, WCW, and post-Hart to pre-Cena WWE. Adult males miss being courted. They don't want to sift through 3 hours of ads, commercials, women's and children's programming looking for the nuggets of Attitude.

Adult male fans don't want to watch WWE and TNA, they WANT to want to watch WWE and TNA. They miss the old days, not just the glorious parts, but the fact that it was for us, and we didn't have to compete with other demographics. TNA sucks, sure, but the reason dudes trash it so passionately has nothing to do with how crappy it is. The anger stems from it being a wrestling fed with a sex pun name on a "Guy's network" that should have filled an empty market (wrestling for guys). Instead, TNA copied WWE's one size fits all, Chase Every Demographic strategy. The cheesy-for-kids, soap-opera-y-for-women stuff is TNA's worst sin and the jump off for every "it's just a crappier version of crappy WWE" comment.
 
I only respect people i know in my life.. I don't respect John Cena because i don't know the guy, It's the same with everyone in WWE... I haven't seen a Cena segment in 6 years. He's non-existent in my life, why should i respect him?

Do you watch wwe? If so then that is why you MUST respect him. Anyone that is willing to risk their physical well-being all for the sake of entertaining some fans will always have my respect, and should have yours
 
How does Cena not appeal to adults?

Cena appeals to the children in the sense that he never gives up no matter what happens. Of course, this is a classic cliche, but it's something children have to hear and learn. That's why Cena is such a vital component of WWE's roster and longevity. We all get that. But doesn't Cena appeal to adults in the same way?

John Cena is "basic" for a reason. His name, his moveset, his microphone work, it's all basic because people can appeal to it. I mean, who goes to work and flips off their boss every day? Who goes to work and tells their boss how to run their own company? It seems to me that adults prefer to side with wrestlers who they strive to be like, rather than those who are just like them.
 
Cena's a narcissistic politician presenting himself as some kind of beautiful spirit; I questioned here a while back if he was a socialised psychopath. At the 2K15 roster reveal, Sting and even Hogan were being real with the fans, but Cena just descended into glib corporate slime whenever he was on the mic.

It's extremely difficult to unsee what you've seen.
 
Cena's a narcissistic politician presenting himself as some kind of beautiful spirit; I questioned here a while back if he was a socialised psychopath. At the 2K15 roster reveal, Sting and even Hogan were being real with the fans, but Cena just descended into glib corporate slime whenever he was on the mic.

It's extremely difficult to unsee what you've seen.

That's because Cena out of all the wrestler's I've ever watched, eats, sleeps and even bleeds WWE. He's a walking promo for the company, and I don't think I've ever see him do anything that doesn't somehow promote the company in some way.

He said in an interview a few years ago, he had wanted to become a wrestler his whole life, and when he finally made it, he wasn't going to let it go. Even when he finishes in the ring, he'll be around the WWE doing whatever they ask him too.
 
Cena's a narcissistic politician presenting himself as some kind of beautiful spirit; I questioned here a while back if he was a socialised psychopath. At the 2K15 roster reveal, Sting and even Hogan were being real with the fans, but Cena just descended into glib corporate slime whenever he was on the mic.

It's extremely difficult to unsee what you've seen.

You have literally zero evidence to back up anything you've said. Evan Bourne had glowing things to say about Cena. Even CM Punk has nothing bad to say about Cena. Yet here you are with these wild accusations. Could it be you are just seeing what you want to see?
 
I think those that hate John Cena need to realize that they are the only ones getting angry about something stupid. John Cena has been the man in the WWE for a while for a good reason! it's not as if he has not earned his place in the WWE. I have argued for a long time now with Cena critics and haters about why they should respect him but they don't change. John Cena is the role model for the WWE and will continue to be because the WWE need one.
 
I think those that hate John Cena need to realize that they are the only ones getting angry about something stupid. John Cena has been the man in the WWE for a while for a good reason! it's not as if he has not earned his place in the WWE. I have argued for a long time now with Cena critics and haters about why they should respect him but they don't change. John Cena is the role model for the WWE and will continue to be because the WWE need one.

John Cena has been the man in the WWE for a good reason? What reason other than there was nobody else that stepped up in a time where the WWE lost 80% of their main eventers. If Wyatt, Ambrose, & Rollins were in the WWE 10 years ago it would be a different story. I always wonder if Cena fans can spot the pattern of ratings, matches, PPVs & Raw have all gone down hill in the past 10 years. Coincidence? I don't think that it is... & do I blame the company for Cena failing to impress us. No, thats like giving credit to the WWE for Austin being a bad ass. You cannot teach Austins character, anyone can be John Cenas character. Anyone. It's as simple as this, if you're a John Cena fan, you're easily amused & there is no winning with you. Don't try to turn it around & say we won't listen. We watch the show & that's good enough.

And by the way, it's not about right or wrong, stupid or not. It's about passionate fans who truly believe Cena has ruined a great thing. Wrestling used to be fun but now we're all divided. Cena can't even get cheered in his hometown. That should be enough proof that he should have never been a top guy. He is a top salesman in an entertainment company. The reason why he has to talk about his passion is because its few & far between that he proves it in the ring.
 
When discussing Cena, I find two types of people highly annoying.

A) The ones who say Cena sucks and disregard his talent on the mic and in the ring

B) The ones who shamelessly defend the man behind the character as if the former group isn't aware that his fictional character sends a positive message and that he's done commendable things for children in need.

I see loads of talent in Cena. It's the reason why I want to see him switch up his character's moral compass and become a heel. I don't often say "Cena sucks!" because it's misconstrued by his fanbase into meaning that I hate the character AND the actor. What it really would mean in my case (if I ever say it), is that I'm disinterested in the Cena character.

Just because you're content with him portraying the same character for a nearly a decade, doesn't mean you should feel the need to defend him from the people who think otherwise.
 
And by the way, it's not about right or wrong, stupid or not. It's about passionate fans who truly believe Cena has ruined a great thing.

Well I wouldn't go that far, the WWE are their own worst enemies at times.

I do agree though that if they hadn't lost as many main eventers as they have, the wrestling landscape wouldn't be the same as it is now. But there is one thing I'm certain of, Cena would still be top dog.

His charity work and good deeds speaks for itself and that's why half the crowd are under the age of 12 cheering him on. When they get a little older they get jaded and go onto other wrestlers, there is always another under 12 year old to take their place.

I'm not a fan of Cena in the ring, but do appreciate what he does outside the ring for others. And I think everyone is entitled to their opinion of him. When someone puts themselves out there like he does, not everyone is going to like him and Cena fans should realize that and stop bitching about it.
 
John Cena has been the man in the WWE for a good reason? What reason other than there was nobody else that stepped up in a time where the WWE lost 80% of their main eventers. If Wyatt, Ambrose, & Rollins were in the WWE 10 years ago it would be a different story. I always wonder if Cena fans can spot the pattern of ratings, matches, PPVs & Raw have all gone down hill in the past 10 years. Coincidence? I don't think that it is... & do I blame the company for Cena failing to impress us. No, thats like giving credit to the WWE for Austin being a bad ass. You cannot teach Austins character, anyone can be John Cenas character. Anyone. It's as simple as this, if you're a John Cena fan, you're easily amused & there is no winning with you. Don't try to turn it around & say we won't listen. We watch the show & that's good enough.

And by the way, it's not about right or wrong, stupid or not. It's about passionate fans who truly believe Cena has ruined a great thing. Wrestling used to be fun but now we're all divided. Cena can't even get cheered in his hometown. That should be enough proof that he should have never been a top guy. He is a top salesman in an entertainment company. The reason why he has to talk about his passion is because its few & far between that he proves it in the ring.

Yeah... no.

I'm sick and tired of people blaming the ratings drop on Cena. Wrestling in general, in you haven't noticed, is getting less and less popular. It has nothing to do with Cena, just general interest. Don't try and hold one guy responsible.

And what exactly is a "passionate" fan? From what I'm reading, it's apparently a non-Cena fan. Again, you're blaming Cena for something he didn't do just to justify your half-ass argument. You don't sound passionate, you sound bitter.
 
...John Cena may be the only bit of motivation they get in their life. Cena gets beaten down night after night but fights back and wins, even when Cena loses it doesn't get him down, he just works harder to achieve his goal.

Of course, that statement provides a good reason for Cena to never turn heel, which is something I've been long hollering that he should do. My hope is that kids are getting positive reinforcement from sources other than pro wrestling and John Cena......if they aren't, I doubt the example of Cena is going to alleviate their problems.

Still, I think John Cena is for adults, too. I certainly regard myself as one.....and as long as a TV viewer is willing to suspend disbelief long enough to get into pro wrestling, I believe they can go with it sufficiently to buy Cena's schtick. After all, he's not the mayor of your town; he's an entertainer.....and I happen to think he does it better than anyone else.

Whether you choose to like him or hate him, he gets a reaction, that's for sure. I'm been enjoying his WWE exploits all these years because he enforces them with hard, hard work and an personal ethic that never quits (which happens to be his TV persona, backed up by what I see as his real-life mien).

His Make-a-Wish stuff? If he's doing it just to build his public image, he's doing a hell of a lot of good in the community while he "fakes" it, no?

Sure, he portrays a cartoon character for the kids, but manages to be one for the adults, too. (Super Cena !!) That's hard enough to do with a ring persona; doing it while portraying only yourself is doubly hard.

Yeah, it's hard to hate him, although many folks do their best to do that, anyway.
 
Personally, I think we sometimes take our like or dislike of wrestlers too far. When it's all said & done, to one degree or another, we're all still marks and even though we KNOW that what we're watching isn't 100% real, we sometimes find ourselves getting caught up in it all the same.

When Daniel Bryan was being "screwed" over by The Authority, there were times I'd find myself getting caught up in the storyline to such a degree that I'd almost forget that it's not "real." Even though I never really forgot it was all staged, I'd still find myself caught up emotionally in the storyline. I'd resent The Authority insisting that Bryan wasn't an "A Player" just because he wasn't some physical Adonis, that he didn't deserve to be at the top because he didn't have a certain "look", that he a "B+" even though fans rallied behind him, he had the in-ring ability and the passion. In real life, hard work and dedication deserve to be recognized, although it often isn't to the degree it should be. At one time or another and in one situation or another, I think just about everyone has been told or at least made to feel that they're not "good enough" for whatever reason. I know I have and, even when watching movies or TV shows, I find that little spark of anger flaring up when some arrogant jackass belittles someone, especially in a very condescending way.

In the case of John Cena, as with a lot of other pro wrestlers, knowing some aspects of who they are in real life can influence how we feel about them. On episodes of Total Divas, we've seen that Cena lives a pretty lavish lifestyle. He has a huge house in Florida, closets big enough to need their own zip code, a huge car collection, a specific room in the house for smoking fine cigars, etc. On the surface, you could assume that Cena's shallow and materialistic because of his possessions. At the same time, however, it's not as if he hasn't worked his ass off to earn what he's got and just because a person's wealthy and lives lavishly doesn't mean he/she is a bad person. Plus, Cena does a ton of charity work, it's not something he's forced into doing.

I agree that, as we've grown older, a lot of us have become jaded and cynical. A lot of kids are growing up with that sort of mind set and, as a result, we're always looking for some sort of secret agenda. Take Cena and his charity work as an example in which some posters question its authenticity, believing that WWE has some sort of hidden agenda with all the various partnerships with charitable and educational organizations is all just a front.
 
I don't hate Cena as a person, absolutely not. If anything, I hate the booking team for cramming him down our throats for over a decade, and forcing us to try to believe he's the greatest WWE champion ever.
 
If you are arguing Cena is lucky that everybody left you're wrong, if anything the WWE is lucky. Cena has stood there and taken every boo like a champ, he works for every boo or cheer he gets. His job in modern WWE is to get a reaction and he gets it. If anybody else stepped up and got that kind of reaction for, say a year, they'd be getting the push. (CM Punk, Daniel Bryan).

Cena has basically been standing in a company for 11 years where no one else wants to stand up to his level. The fans are just as much to blame for that as WWE but it's also the fault of the wrestlers. If they could ignite a crowd they'd get over. This isn't about Cena being some insanely powerful guy inside the company, it's the moment his music kicks on and 98% of the audience makes noise.

If anything we owe Cena, he brings new viewers in who after seeing him for a few years look for something new. They, like us, move towards better wrestlers. Why do you think Bryan and Punk got over as much as they did? Punk literally challenged Cena as a man and the fans of the company who were resenting Cena turned on him hard. Those fans are people who showed up just to watch Cena years ago but now they're older and wanna see something new.

For the guy who said Cena is to blame for the ratings you're obviously being irrational. You wanna know how I know? Because Cena isn't in TNA. See we forget TNA has been trying to cater to us for years now. Cena isn't on their show. And notice that they absolutely suck in ratings some weeks. Wrestling isn't as popular in 2014 as it was in 1999. No one wrestler is to blame for that. That's society changing and I promise no one wrestler can change that. We could see the best in ring wrestler, best promo cutter, best make a wish guy, best booking and the best gimmick and it wouldn't change. The WWE could listen to all of us individually and things wouldn't change. I mean look around this forum for a second, there's about 50 guys who are consistently active, they comment on just about every post. Is that because of Cena? No, it's because we still like wrestling.

Kids now a days don't have the attention span to watch a 3 hour show just to see 10 minutes of their favorite wrestler and if anything Cena is the cure to that. He keeps bringing in new fans. The fact is, not one thing will fix the WWE. Cena could turn heel and we'd all be excited but the ratings might bump for a week, maybe 2 and then they'd fall again.


Cena's job is like the OP said. And as JackHammer said Daniel Bryan's job was different, he was supposed to appeal to everybody on a different level. Who else has achieved their job as well as those two have? If the WWE was a carnival, we have your freaks, your bearded ladies, elephants walking tight ropes and you have your circus master. Their has to be something to come for. The IWC comes because we love the carnival, but the kids come to see their circus master get mauled by a tiger and get up to beat him and save the day.
 
I think if Daniel Bryan does recover and returns to being the number one face then a heel turn is possible for Cena. Bryan fills the underdog role better, he can sell a ton of t-shirts, and he is the only person that could comfortably replace the role that Cena has. Otherwise Cena isn't going to change, they will add various dynamics but, at the end of the day, he will be the motivator.

Hogan was big in the day when being pro-America and raising healthy children was what America cared about. They associated Hogan with the entire country because he was the kind of physical specimen that could intimidate our enemies. Steve Austin played to the crowd of people that were sick of being trapped in their offices and treated like garbage with no say in the matter. That era was full of people looking to escape from the woes of their drab existences and Austin was that perfect character that was doing exactly what everyone wanted. Cena is at the top of an age where mental disorders are running rampant and bullying has started to take on a new form with it's move online. Inspirational messages and strength in the face of adversity is what is important today.

The problem with wrestling today isn't even the wrestling, it is that there are so many options available, not only in wrestling but in general. Someone that may have been a huge wrestling fan may have a favorite youtube channel that they watch religiously that takes up a big chunk of their free time. Blaming Cena for the way the business has declined isn't fair, WWE has made plenty of money and will continue to, the WWE Network will evolve as they begin to understand the market better, and taking a big financial hit now in order to be ahead of the game is better than being forced out of business in five years because the company is too far behind to stay above water.
 
You have literally zero evidence to back up anything you've said. Evan Bourne had glowing things to say about Cena. Even CM Punk has nothing bad to say about Cena. Yet here you are with these wild accusations. Could it be you are just seeing what you want to see?

"Evidence" for my entirely subjective opinion on how Cena conducts himself?

Did you even read what you just wrote?
 
But Cena's character is a fairy tale. Yes you need to keep fighting even when things are at their worst but you can't expect that you will get rewarded for doing that. That's life and it isn't always fair. That is the issue with Cena - he is never really down and out or that underdog, he always comes out on top even when it makes no sense. It is easy to keep fighting when you are near the top, very different when you are at the bottom. Cena 10 years ago might have been a good idea for kids, Cena today never loses enough to have to start over and fight back from nothing.
 
It's real simple, people don't "respect" Cena or hate Cena because he's on TV every week. The WWE has put Cena out there week after week after week and PPV after PPV as the main story no matter if he was the champion or not. He's carried the WWE flag for over 10 years strong and at the rate he has done it, his reign at the top is better than both Austin and, dare I say, Hogan. In today's Era consistency is boring to alot of fans. No one wants any Superstar to dominate the top of the mountain like Hogan and Flair used to. Cena's is one fo the best in the business on the mic in my opinion. he promotes the business, he's a leader in the lockroom and he is one of the hardest workers ever.
 
I only respect people i know in my life.. I don't respect John Cena because i don't know the guy, It's the same with everyone in WWE... I haven't seen a Cena segment in 6 years. He's non-existent in my life, why should i respect him?

So, you don't show respect to the police then, if they pull you over, unless you know the officer personally, since you don't respect anyone you haven't met.

Why do I get the feeling you have a bit of a "take it or leave it" attitude where it comes to showing respect to those you do know?
 
And that is why Cena is still the top draw. The kids and their mom's who buy the tickets and merchandise, have kept him up there.

Don't get me wrong, I can't stand Cena the wrestler. He's boring and it's been the same thing almost since he started. I have no opinion on Cena the person really, don't like or hate him. Why, because I don't know him personally. It's hard to hate someone you don't know.

His work with Make a Wish and other charities I respect, because it's something he does from the heart. You can't fault a guy for doing that.

Actually, you hit on a very big reason for it.

Let me tell you a story. Many years ago, I went to see the movie version of the "A-Team". Now, I saw one theatre that had a long line of children. It was for a movie reboot of "The Karate Kid" starring Jaden Smith. Later, I saw that every film around that time was getting smashed by this new "Karate Kid" movie.

The reason is this. A child wants to go, but they lack two things- money, and the ability to drive anywhere. So a parent is needed for these things. Suddenly, you have automatically doubled your ticket sales-one child and one parent. If there are two children, triple. Two parents, two children- four tickets, and so on.

This is why Pixar films do so well. Children and their parents go, which ups the amount of ticket sales, for not as much of the work.

Children buy into things easier, and scrutinize less. So, it is easier to cater for them, and advertisers love them, because they will buy the latest shoes or whatever, because all the other kids have them.

Adults are more discerning, harder to pull the wool over. This is why everyone from Hitler to youth groups and cults try to entice the young, because they are more gullible.

Take buying a pair of shoes. An adult will buy what is practical, wear them for many years, and will buy according to price, how they look, and will complain if they don't fit right. A child will want shoes that all his friends have, what his favourite sports star tells him to wear in the ads, and will want one type of shoe one week, and then, when they stop being cool, he hits up his parents to buy the next brand because that is what all the kids wear now.

Vince is just following trends. WWE sells more with John Cena merchandise than they do a Daniel Bryan T-shirt, because children want to buy the wrist bands, the T-Shirt AND the cap (that is three items). Do you think Cena wears that stuff for show? He wears it partly so that kids will buy to look like him. If Punk or Bryan wore caps, multi-coloured wristbands and T-shirts to the ring, they would sell more merch too.

Also, advertisers LOVE children and their parents. They don't care about the "Attitude-Era" wrestling fan, who has got older and scrutinises everything. You might scrutinize their product, and see that it is crap. But kids don't care about quality, only about what all the other kids have.

I was at a house show one time, and the WWE were saying that, in the foyer, they are selling sheets of paper with John Cena and C.M. Punk's autographs on it, for $80 a pop. Later, the guy in front of me handed his three children each a piece of paper with the autographs. THEY EACH GET A PIECE OF PAPER WITH AUTOGRAPHS ON IT! That was three for $80 each, which meant that he spent $240 on buying sheets of paper. With suckers like that around, no wonder WWE cater to children and their parents. So, in the end, it is just based on economics.
 
Cena simply isn't a good promo cutter. Everything that comes out of his mouth always comes of as snarky and disingenuous. Not one time has Cena ever made me even come close to believing a word coming out of his mouth.

He's far from the only one, HHH is exactly the same.

The accusation that Cena wrestles the same match every week is valid, but there is something more than that to piss the fans off.

I think the hatred to towards Cena is he's a symbol. The "scape goat" fans lay on given they don't like the direction WWE has been going over the last 7-8 years.

I don't like or respect Cena and make a point of skipping past any Cena segments (as I do with any segment involving HHH and a microphone) and I don't even watch Raw every week anymore (maybe once a month) and have never ordered a PG Era PPV but I place the blame where it belongs: Vince McMahon.
 

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