Why fans don't want WWE to succeed

[Psykohurricane55]

The one thing that we can all agree on is that WWE is in desperate need of new stars. The problem is that why it'S o.k for them to go get some big stars from the indies like Nakamura, aj styles, samoa joe and Finn Balor just as exemple, they are not the long term solution to their problem. Yes they can be main event players for a while but their bump card is already pretty full and they have at best 5 or 6 good years in front of them before they either retires or become part timers themselves.

That's why i think Vince is trying so hard to push Roman Reigns as a top guy, because he already know that the guy is money, just based on the merchandise report that just came out earlier this month and best of all, he doesn'T have the extra baggage that all theses indy guys have. So the guy can be the face of the company for a very long time but for some reason, because Vince want this and want to plan long term so that the WWE can succeed without Cena and other part timers, they hate this plan, Yet want a part timer his booked the exact same way that Roman is booked, they cheered, so why is the IWC so against anything Vince wants to do to make sure that his company makes money?

 

[Punk_Aries_Daniels_Bryan]

First and foremost, the IWC doesn't make up the largest group of fans that watch WWE; that would be the casual fans, which is why the show is more entertainment-oriented rather than the style of match-booking we see in ROH (least that's what I believe from what I read off a Jim Ross blog).

"Fans" in general want WWE to succeed; whether or not the star that is being pushed is the one they choose to fall behind is entirely subjective and their own right to decide. Age is honestly just a number in the WWE, it has more to do with a wrestler's physical condition rather than how old he is. So by that context, whether or not Shinsuke Nakamura, Finn Balor, Samoa Joe or AJ Styles will become part-timers or retire is entirely dependent on what condition they are in. You have clearly stated yourself that these guys are big-time wrestlers, and hence will not only be the faces of WWE for the better part of the next decade but will also play a critical hand in establishing the younger talent in WWE.

Sure, Roman Reigns is money. He has the looks, he is related to The Rock (which does help, regardless of whatever a RR supporter has to say otherwise) and over time, his potential will create him into the next John Cena whether people like it or not.

Key word: OVER TIME. Do NOT compare said "part-timers" to Roman Reigns, because although I don't like part-timers main-eventing, these guys have paid their dues already in the WWE and, at the moment, are bigger stars than Reigns. IF Roman Reigns even reaches 70% of what Goldberg's popularity was in his WCW prime, then I will be genuinely surprised and impressed by Reigns. As for other part-timers who main-evented, such as THE ROCK and BATISTA and BROCK FKN LESNAR, it is because their name means something: money.

Of the matter regarding RR being money: his merchandise sale wouldn't be half of what it is if RR didn't have Vince catapulting him into every main-event, not to mention Roman Reigns kept Shield music and attire post-Shield breakup.

My genuine reason for not liking Reigns isn't to do with his current ability but more to do with wrestlers currently on the roster whom which I believe had or have better skills than Reigns and deserve the push before Reigns. As of right now, Reigns isn't all that on the mic NOR is he all that in the ring. Yes, he is improving, but he sin't on the same level of talent as others such as Cesaro, Owens, or even Luke Harper. Furthermore, he is a clear heel persona trapped doing a babyface character ... and he sucks as a babyface. IF ROMAN GOES OVER UNDERTAKER AND REMAINS A BABYFACE, he won't be going over the crowd for a very long time.

I am sorry for rambling; let me get back on this matter. WWE has its roster set with MANY potentials, and yeah, many come from the indies and other promotions. Many of these guys have dedicated a decade or more on these other promotions, and can't provide many more years in WWE. With that being said, think of how long guys like Kurt Angle, The Rock, SCSA, and even Brock Lesnar spent as full-time stars in WWE. Some wrestlers just need the right time and character to become SUPERSTARS.

I am not knocking Vince for doing what he is with Roman. If you've noticed, there are always a set of 3 wrestlers that are pushed simultaneously from every generation that become the cream of the crop. For example, John Cena's class included himself with Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar (and later Batista, who would become within that top 3 after Lesnar leaves). Right now it is Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns. The other two wrestlers are both massively more talented than Roman Reigns. But Rollins is clearly going to be in the main event if he continues to stay healthy, as with Dean Ambrose who will bounce from mid-card to main event from time to time. WWE will be fine, trust me. But not everyone likes Roman Reigns pushed down their throat.

 

[Navi]

The one thing that we can all agree on is that WWE is in desperate need of new stars. The problem is that why it'S o.k for them to go get some big stars from the indies like Nakamura, aj styles, samoa joe and Finn Balor just as exemple, they are not the long term solution to their problem. Yes they can be main event players for a while but their bump card is already pretty full and they have at best 5 or 6 good years in front of them before they either retires or become part timers themselves.

That's why i think Vince is trying so hard to push Roman Reigns as a top guy, because he already know that the guy is money, just based on the merchandise report that just came out earlier this month and best of all, he doesn'T have the extra baggage that all theses indy guys have. So the guy can be the face of the company for a very long time but for some reason, because Vince want this and want to plan long term so that the WWE can succeed without Cena and other part timers, they hate this plan, Yet want a part timer his booked the exact same way that Roman is booked, they cheered, so why is the IWC so against anything Vince wants to do to make sure that his company makes money?

The WWE has new stars. They have Balor, Nakamura, Owens, Zayn, Rollins, Reigns, Ambrose, Wyatt, Styles and a host of others. Unfortunately they have focused on only one. Sure the others have held titles, but not for long and in the case of Owens, he was a placeholder until Goldberg or Reigns took it off him.

I don't like part timers coming in either, but like the above poster said they are bigger stars than anyone on the roster today, with the exception of Cena and maybe Orton. That's why they are brought in to sell out venues like the Royal Rumble and Mania.

The WWE has decided to push one guy, that being Roman Reigns. If you think about it the last three Royal Rumbles have had him figured prominently. He has also headlined the last two Wrestlemania's. None of those where to the delight of the fans in attendance. But they will soldier on and one of two things will happen, either fans will come around, or they will just piss more and more fans off. It remains to be seen which direction it will go.

You keep mentioning his merchandise sales. Have you been to a show recently? I go to almost all the house shows here and was at this year's Survivor Series and I can tell you that aside from John Cena, Roman Reigns had the most merchandise for sale. Some wrestlers didn't have any. Besides when the camera's pan the audience I don't see a lot of Reigns stuff being worn, so who knows who is buying it. Even at the house shows, AJ Styles shirts sell well, and I see more of them on bodies than I do Reigns.

And what baggage do these so called indy guys have? Still trying to figure that one out. If it means that they are already good in the ring, good on the mic then hey who wouldn't want that kind of baggage. I think Jack Hammer said it best when he said there shouldn't be ONE face of the company. There should be many, and pushing one guy over top of everyone else and making them look like crap is what is hurting the WWE.

The WWE will succeed without John Cena, but not with another John Cena it his place. No one can replace Cena, not even Roman Reigns, so that plan will backfire as well. There should be a number of wrestlers on the same level that can take a championship belt and have it mean something. Not give the guy the title because he is the flavour of the month, or in this case the last three years.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I think that's a bit of an overstatement and oversimplification. As has been mentioned, the "IWC" isn't some collective consciousness who share the same thoughts and opinions. Also, as has been mentioned, internet fans don't make up most of those who watch WWE. As a result, even though I sometimes do rag on WWE at times out of some personal frustration like just about all of us, you ultimately have to cater to your audience. The thing about Ring of Honor is that it's target audience is the so called "IWC" and that's a huge reason why ROH is essentially on the same level it's been at for almost all of its existence. The ROH style of wrestling is essentially working at an almost nonstop pace with little selling, sometimes no selling at all, a good amount of highly choreographed spots during most matches and a sacrifice in storytelling at times. I'm not saying that to rip on ROH, it's just that when it comes to the bottom line, AKA revenue, WWE probably brings in more revenue for a 3 to 5 day tour of Australia or the UK than ROH brings in for an entire year so there obviously has to be something to be said for WWE's formula.

I think there are some fans who see WWE as inferior and it pisses them off that WWE is so much bigger than their personal favorite federations. These are usually internet fans who think of themselves as "real wrestling fans" even though half of them don't have a clue what it means to be a "real wrestling fan", but that's what they're into so more power to 'em. There are also the ever present armchair bookers who feel that they could do a better job running WWE, especially its creative aspect, than anyone as they've anointed themselves as having some sort of special insight that nobody else has; these are often the fans who rip on anything that doesn't fit in with their own fantasy booking scenarios. There are fans who claim to not watch WWE or have no interest in it yet know in detail every little thing that goes on, which can't be covered entirely simply by reading dirt sheets, and some fans want WWE to succeed only on the terms that they themselves feel are the best which, again, is probably something most of us are guilty of from time to time even if we don't realize it.

Here's the thing: people can bash WWE all they like, we can criticize the creative teams, we can criticize Vince for decisions he's made, we can demonize WWE for business practices that every other wrestling company that exists, existed or ever will exist for doing. There are times in which all the criticism is relevant and justifiable, but a good deal of the time I think we're bitching about it because we can and we want to start some sort of conversation or debate about it. Regardless of it all, we still watch it, we still keep up with the goings on behind the scenes and we still care about it or we wouldn't bother ourselves talking about it no matter what claims some may make. Last year, the company took in fairly close to $750 million in revenue, making it the third or fourth straight year in which it's seen record revenue so they're obviously doing something right no matter which way you slice it.

I personally don't agree with putting so much focus on Roman Reigns at the expense of so much of the rest of the roster. WWE did that with John Cena and it bit them in the collective ass more than once when it didn't really have to. WWE may want Reigns to be the next top guy, I mean THE top guy, and they can do that while still learning from the mistakes made of putting almost everything in the shoulders of a single member of the roster. Reigns can still be THE top guy and still lose matches sometimes in which he puts over his opponent in ways that make them look strong. Reigns can still be THE top guy without being booked so strongly that he comes off untouchable and that only makes the guys who're elevated by working with Reigns stronger in the long run, thereby leading to a roster with a good number of guys who have the credibility to step up and be in the main event spot whenever needed or wanted.

 

[Loveless]

The fans and the WWE have a very different definition of what success is.

For the WWE it's making money and everything they do is in persuit of that goal. They're pretty successful in that regard.

For the fans, success is putting on a good show. In that regard, the WWE has extremely mixed results and it's often because a good show is not the priority.

There's no better example of this than Lesnar Vs Goldberg.
Will it make money? Yes
Will it be entertaining? Unlikely

Another example? Taker Vs Cena/Reigns
Which would you have preferred? Well, it doesn't matter because Reigns is future money, so any other consideration goes out the window.

What frustrates me in all this is that the WWE could make more money simply by giving the audience what they want, but they refuse out of pure control-freakery.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

I don't get why people think there's a conspiracy against the WWE? There is no plot to ruin WWE's plans and no the IWC isn't hating on ever Vince does.

It's a lot simpler than most people think fans just don't like Roman Reigns, or at least, as the top guy being shoved down our throats. It's not like it hasn't happened before look at The Rock in his first few months the situation was similar except, at the time, the WWE responded sooner and decided to turn him heel.

It's not the fans fault that the WWE has been slow to respond to the fan reactions. If we still had the Monday Night wars WWE would have turned Reigns heel back in 2015.

Besides Roman Reigns and the fan response is the least of their worries. When you're main event at WM has two part timers then WWE has bigger problems.

 

[JoeMallard]

So, just because some fans don't like Roman, they want the company to fail? Is this a joke?

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

So, just because some fans don't like Roman, they want the company to fail? Is this a joke?

Yeah we all grew up as wrestling fans and the last time we want is a company to fail. If WWE goes down everything around them, which includes the history of WCW, AWA, ECW, NWA, goes up in smoke,

 

[Deoxyribonucleic A.C.I.D.]

The fact that Roman doesn't have the "weight" therefore he will be a safe bet for Vince to make doesn't really make sense. Batista also had no weight, but he suffered two big injuries that cost him two Wrestlemanias. Austin had a broken neck.

Also if Vince does not consider each and every one of his wrestlers, wrestlers with the potential to become megastars, then he shouldn't have signed them at all. That's WWE's problem. They focus on one, an place limitations on all the others, without ever testing them.

Every untested wrestler as a main eventer should be a potential candidate to become the next John Cena. That's WWE's problem. Not just one guy, who nobody likes.

 

[LBGetBack]

Reigns is "the guy" in Vince's eyes largely because he does what he is told and doesn't rock the boat.

WWE is little more than an ego-feeding vanity project for the McMahons at this point. That's why they insert themselves into the biggest angles at the biggest shows. They stay off of shows that are traditionally more lowly rated and pop up on the higher rated shows so they can get the "credit" for the ratings bump. They don't want anyone else to truly get over. They keep everybody down to a certain level, that way if/when they leave the company it won't make any difference. There's no chance of competition arising. They don't need anybody to be like The Rock or Austin. They don't need to take any chances. There's no competition.

 

[nWo2]

The ONLY reason fans gripe about WWE is because Vince, Stephanie and HHH all play Authority figures on screen and it's heel nature blends reality with fiction so well that fans believe the storyline. These storylines work best in wrestling when its based on fact and since the advent of smarks us fans know who at least are percieved to be "dicks" in real life! We all know that in WWE it's predetermined however it's the WWE's stubborn and often dated mantras (Bodybuilder fetish) for the Wrestling Business along with their insistence to shun everything that made them, ie the term "wrestling", in favor of a more conservative family friendly product has caused the company to sacrifice their edge and alienate their biggest demographic during the Attitude Era!

These changes in WWE bear no relation to ratings however it caters to their political affiliations and shareholders. They watered down the product! Despite ratings continually decreasing there was no change in product which proves their arrogance. Now that Linda McMahon is head of SBA (really ever since Trump kinda looked like a legit candidate) we've seen a spike in risque content in WWE! I am happy because I watch all promotions and for almost a decade WWE struggled to excite!

The second part is that these heel Authority figures understand the perception of themselves based on these issues WWE fans have with the product and instead of catering to the fans like ROH did bringing the Hardy Boys in or McDonalds did bringing back the McRib... the WWE will give you a McRib Salad or offer McRib Sauce! They'll give you what THEY want or THEIR version of what you want! See CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, etc... They wont PUSH who we want, but they'll use who WE want to push who THEY want! Again See CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, etc...

The 3rd part is that we've all come to know how WWE treats our favorite superstars and SOMETIMES it's so appalling that we can't believe it OR we side with said Superstars despite not liking their characters on screen when they were with WWE. This is part of what made Monday Night Wars intriguing and sparks the phenomenon of Shoot Videos.

 

[Wildcat66]

Reigns is "the guy" in Vince's eyes largely because he does what he is told and doesn't rock the boat.

WWE is little more than an ego-feeding vanity project for the McMahons at this point. That's why they insert themselves into the biggest angles at the biggest shows. They stay off of shows that are traditionally more lowly rated and pop up on the higher rated shows so they can get the "credit" for the ratings bump. They don't want anyone else to truly get over. They keep everybody down to a certain level, that way if/when they leave the company it won't make any difference. There's no chance of competition arising. They don't need anybody to be like The Rock or Austin. They don't need to take any chances. There's no competition.

By that logic '98-'03 and '06-09 were grim times for WWE, that's when the McMahons were most prominent in television.

And also by that logic, Steve Austin and The Rock were 'buried' by Vince, Shane or Stephanie constantly during the Attitude Era.

As for competition, it is unlikely for anyone to ever be the next WCW to Vince's WWE. They'd have to go straight into the heart of WWE and stomp it repeatedly. They'd also have to be really rich, have access to a lot of talent, be slightly different than the WWE in terms of writing stories, win over sponsors and get television slots. They also have to deal with yes-men, backstage politics and insufferable backstage presences.

People also need to catch onto it, and I don't mean like how they did for LU or TNA, people have to catch on it on a prime-time status. Which means yes, you'll have to hire legendary wrestlers who are probably out of their prime at this point but still have name relevance.

 

[ShinChan]

I don't think that any fan thinks like this.

Infact, why would a fan want its favorite show to fail? That's ridiculous to think.

If there are some people in real life who really think so, then they don't deserve to be called fans. Because fans wanting their favorite show to fail is total hypocrisy on their part.

And also, if Roman Reigns is booed, it doesn't mean that fans want WWE to fail. It's that they don't like him or his booking or whatever.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

Here's what the IWC doesn't understand and why they complain so much: WWE is a multi-billion dollar business. In order for that business to continue making lots and lots of money OVER A LONG PERIOD OF TIME, WWE has to cater to "everyone" or else they'd just have a small following. Just because a guy is great in the ring and wrestles in front of 200 people in a gym, that doesn't mean he "deserves" to be in WWE or that he will generate money. It's the ENTERTAINMENT business. To make as much money as possible, they need to have stars and storylines that appeal to as many people as possible.

 

[TheHitman316]

I really don't understand how this conversation went from "fans want to see WWE fail". To the let's hate Roman Reigns show. I get it no one likes the guy. But reading through the threads on this forum. All I ever hear is Roman, this Roman that. So much attention is being placed on him. And that's what Vince & co want. I personally have nothing against the guy. I've been watching since diapers, and I'm in my 30s now.
A lot of fans just don't realize anymore that WWE is not a wrestling company anymore. They are an entertainment company now. That dabble in wrestling. They use wrestling as it's selling point. They have a network with their own content. Programs about legends, behind the scenes, movies. And a whole bunch of other stuff.
And to the poster who said they feel like Reigns takes away from other talent. Like who? The guy hasn't held the universal title yet. He lost the US championship to a part timer. Because like it or not , Jericho will most likely be gone after Wrestlemania. Basically giving Owens back a title after loosing the universal title.

 

[Un-Bo-Lievable Jeff]

Part of the issue is the IWC being a lot more vocal on the negative aspects rather than the positive.

Reigns winning the Royal Rumble was huge heat and met with a lot of anger. Fair enough but it was all over the internet.

John Cena brings the US title back to relevance again with his open challenges. Yes he got credit for it from the IWC but nowhere was it shouted from the rooftops like the Reigns RR win.

That's why it looks like the IWC want WWE to fail, when it's nowhere close to that. Someone will put more effort into ranting about something that they disagree with, than praise something. It's just the way we are now with social media etc.

 

[multiverseman.com]

It's simple, so let me break it down: fans don't buy Roman Reigns as a babyface. That's it. The harder you try and make it happen, the worse it gets. Creating the narrative that they just hate whoever Vince likes just feeds his ego and doesn't fix the problem. Just give the people what they want.

By the way, the next time I hear a fan justify RR by saying "WWE is a corporate company that caters to the needs of a broader audience and not a niche group of...." I'm going to scream. Stop trying to Sean Hannity spin this. There's no such thing as an IWC. Everybody uses the internet in some form or fashion. Wrestling ratings are dropping. Reigns sells merch because he's the guy they push hardest. Push someone everyone can get behind and not someone your core audience hates, then make excuses.

 

[Radical]

It's simple, so let me break it down: fans don't buy Roman Reigns as a babyface. That's it. The harder you try and make it happen, the worse it gets. Creating the narrative that they just hate whoever Vince likes just feeds his ego and doesn't fix the problem. Just give the people what they want.

By the way, the next time I hear a fan justify RR by saying "WWE is a corporate company that caters to the needs of a broader audience and not a niche group of...." I'm going to scream. Stop trying to Sean Hannity spin this. There's no such thing as an IWC. Everybody uses the internet in some form or fashion. Wrestling ratings are dropping. Reigns sells merch because he's the guy they push hardest. Push someone everyone can get behind and not someone your core audience hates, then make excuses.

I think this is a good summary of the situation.

It is pretty obvious Vince is pushing Roman Reigns hard, but what seems strange is that Vince seems to be pushing Reigns to be a beloved top babyface. That is the part that I think fans are confused by and don't agree with. And fans are TELLING WWE this by booing Reigns. So what doesn't make sense is why Vince isn't hearing that and adjusting to allow fans to focus that booing more appropriately. If Reigns was presented as a heel then all those boos would make more sense and fans could hate Reigns and want to see some other hot shot babyface step up and defeat Reigns. That's the classic heel vs face storyline that people like to see.

But instead, Vince is not making Reigns out to be a heel but just allowing him to be booed and somewhat cheered. I'd like to make more sense of it as a fan but it just seems odd. I mean, people booed Daniel Bryan in his heel persona but quickly started cheering him and Vince finally realized he had to make Bryan a babyface because people liked him so much. That's what's supposed to happen.


Obviously WWE does many logical and entertaining things with their characters but somethings they do just doesn't make sense to a large portion of the fans and if that causes them to not subscribe to the Network, or not buy merchandise or go to shows then it should send a message to WWE that it is not working.

But if the numbers don't drop off that much then probably Vince doesn't see a need to change. That's probably why he hasn't changed his push of Reigns so far.

 

[Psykohurricane55]

The funny thing is that everything that The IWC use to hates about Roman reigns, seem to be taken out of the character. While he's still technically a babyface, he's becoming more of a heelish babyface now and it'S seem to be working because lately, i feel like he'S gaining the respect of some of the fans that use to hate him because he's getting more tweener reaction then ever before.

The fact of the matter is that WWE as never really been a wrestling company since vince bought it from his dad in the mid 80's. It's always been an entertainment company with over the top characters that had wrestling matches and that's what you will get when watching the WWE product. You want actually wrestling that not centered around characters, they have that for you has well on the network with NXT and all the HHH Project's like the CWC and the women's tournament that their going to have this summer. That's for the Hardcore's. Those program are their to catered to them more. RAw and smackdown are bigger shows that need to please as most demographic as you can possibly please and the only way to do that is to see which superstars connect the most with the audience. The way to do that is be looking who'S drawing money for the company and continue to push some merchandise to make more money. Reigns is reportedly the number 1 merchandise seller on the current roster as far as full time performers is concern and before i get the excuse that, it'S because he got more merchandise then anyone else and that his merch are all over the souvenir stand at the live events, i'm going to tell you that so is alot of the top talent on the roster. Aj as a lot of merch and they bring his stuff at most event, so does the new day, kevin owens and a lot of the IWC favorite guys but for some reason, reigns always sell more then those guys so i tell them that Reigns is somewhat over and they need to keep pushing him and not really change anything because he'S currently drawing money for them.

In the end, WWE knows that no matter what, they won'T lose the IWC community because they have to watch the product if they want to complain on the internet about how they hate the product and complain about how their favorite guy isn'T getting push while somebody like Reigns is getting this huge push that they don'T think he deserve (Yeah Right!) so why really listen to them, instead let's try to please some of the other demographic that just want to be entertain and don'T complain all the time about the company. I Think it'S smart business in my opinion, why please fans that complain all the time when you can get the money from those that don'T complain?

 

[Vanilla Midget]

Everyone wants WWE to succeed. From the hardcore fans who only watch Japanese wrestling to the sweat hogs that pay for cable and don't care about going online to discuss it.

If WWE hit a new renaissance where it was excellent TV and became mainstream again, who wouldn't benefit?

Hating Roman doesn't equal hating the company. Vince has long subscribed to the ideology that you build the promotion around one guy. There's some history to support this.

They went from Bruno to Hogan, they had their biggest most culturally significant period. Fans felt like they chose Hogan. They tried with Bret in the mid 90s before building around Austin. Fans felt like they chose Austin.

They tried with Brock, but he left. Then they landed on Cena. For a time, fans felt like they chose Cena. They cheered a white raping heel with a Vanilla Ice look. Then he stopped being the underdog.

The Rock and Wreslting Era and the Monday War eras were WWE's most financial. Despite being drastically different styles of era, people bought the top guys hand over fist. Despite that they became the Yankees, Hogan and Austin were cheered like underdogs.

People never caught on that Hogan and Austin were the chosen guys, because they never stopped doing what made people love them while they were on top (their respective heel turns aside). Cena stopped being a white rapper.

He dropped his rap promos and adopted more of a army gimmick, with the salutes and the camo shorts and make a wish foundation appearances. That and the character never seemed to lose for too long a time. The internet gave people a place to gather and vet these frustrations.

Fast forward to Roman Reigns, and he hasn't dropped the Shield gimmick. Nonetheless he's getting the opposite reaction.

Roman never was the live crowd's chosen guy. He was as part of the Shield, but it became painfully obvious that this was their dude they wanted on top. Fans want to feel like they choose characters.

Hogan, Austin, and Cena all started as heels. Fans were begging to cheer Cena and Austin prior to the trigger being pulled. When Hogan got stale, he became Hollywood Hogan. Austin wasn't stale and they tried his ill conceived heel turn in anticipation of that. With Cena and Roman, they just stayed the babyface course.

No one wants WWE to fail, but they want character development. Roman and Cena have seen none of that. The most character development Cena has had in years is a string of good US title defences, his opponents kicking out of a botched stunner, and now an onscreen relationship.

Roman has faced little adversity. His feuds with the McMahons and Triple H have felt forced. It's not real adversity. Fans want to feel like a guy that wouldn't have gotten over without them get over. See Daniel Bryan, see Austin, see Cena himself.

On some level, I think people who hate Roman want to like him. They want him to undergo that "Hollywood" Roman transformation, if you will. It's a slippery slope though. Heels are cheered and faces are booed.

Someone with Apollo Crews' skill would be the biggest face on the roster in the 90s. Instead he gets a lukewarm reaction. Miz gets cheered against Cena, which is crazy considering how loathsome his character is.

Criticizing the system of one guy top of the promotion doesn't equate to wanting the promotion to fail. If Reigns spends a year or two as a heel, fans will be chomping at the bit for a face turn. People want WWE to tell logical stories, push characters in the right way that sees them develop, and push who gets a reaction.

 

[THTRobtaylor]

The issue isn't about not wanting WWE to succeed... it's that the IWC represent a section of fans who are unhappy with its reality... It stopped being a wrestling company in 1997. It became a Soap Opera SET in a wrestling company the moment Mr. McMahon became the villain.

For a while, it was geared towards more mature fans, but still a soap at its heart. When it transitioned back to being that, but geared at kids - entire swathes of fans, were alienated... who now had the internet could voice their opinions...and for a time WWE DID listen... feed the troll once and it comes back. That's been their biggest problem.

Do Days of Our Lives fans dictate which storylines or characters they want to see? No...most grasp the concept that they're not Hollywood writers nor do fans of Agents of SHIELD or any other major TV serial... they can fanfic... or write articles/reviews etc... but showrunners don't listen to fans in the same way WWE seems to or rather has done and now is doing the Eddie Murphy "La..la..la.la I am not listening..." thing.

Because WWE has that live component, the fans ARE part of the show so have more power ultimately. They can give "F*** You" chants that WWE have to ahem...Delete from their broadcasts etc.

That's not wanting WWE to succeed... but the reality is a lot of wrestling fans are either arrogant, dumb or deluded enough to believe they actually know better than the people who have kept the show going for 35 years.

Sure I HATE Roman as much as the next guy, not cos he's Vince's pick and I don't like it... I just don't see what he sees... but that's not to say he can't impress me as a heel down the line... I'm not MEANT to like him then. I remember seeing Cena debut with Angle and saying to my kid bro "he'll be the next Hogan..." but that doesn't make me cleverer than McMahon... just means the obvious is there. Reigns will make money either cos he's loved, or as the evil opposite of The Rock... someone so hated that fans will pay to see him eventually get his ass kicked... and Vince will make them wait.

Ironically those who are being painted as "wanting the WWE to fail" are inadvertently helping it succeed... WWE has to be mindful and they do give little moments, like the Hardyz at Mania... a lot of "smart fans" probably tolerated a lot on that show cos they got that moment...