FATP: Is John Cena WWE’s only true Superstar?
Happy Tuesday and welcome to the latest edition of FATP here on Wrestling Rambles. After careful consideration, I’ve decided to make the FATP columns that I write here exclusive to the site. It’s a little more work, but I don’t mind. The feedback is great, just like it was on last week’s TNA column. I don’t write about them often, but when I do, I try to make it as positive as I can because I genuinely enjoy watching TNA and I’m looking forward to watching Bound for Glory tomorrow night!
Anyway, let’s get cracking with this week’s topic, which sees me returning to the well to talk about John Cena and the WWE. For anyone that’s read my blogs before, it’d be fair to say that I’m not a fan of John Cena’s on-screen character. I’ve gone into it before, so I won’t bother again.
On that basis, this is a very hard thing for me to admit. Right now, at this point in time, WWE only have one true superstar: John Cena. I swear that it almost killed me to write that last sentence, but it’s the truth. A superstar is widely defined as someone who: “is an acclaimed star, who has great popular appeal in sports or movies; one that is extremely popular or prominent or that is a major attraction”. Going by that definition, John Cena ticks all those boxes.
Even the strongest Cena haters (myself included) have to admit that the man shifts merchandise, he sells tickets, he gets people watching and he ALWAYS draws a reaction from the crowd. He’s able to connect with the audience, regardless of the reaction he gets and right now, he’s the WWE’s franchise player. I could sit here and bitch about the fact that he’s had the longest sustained push of anyone in the WWE over the last 7 years, but I’ve already done that and made my point. What I’m trying to establish is whether or not he’s the only “Superstar” on the WWE roster.
The evidence leads me to believe that he is the only superstar that the WWE have. My own vision of a superstar is someone that’s larger than life, someone who’s got mass appeal, someone who stands out as the figurehead of a company. Cena fits the bill. He’s relatively clean-cut. He’s the WWE’s poster boy and no matter how you cut it, he’s got one thing that very few men have: the unconditional backing of Vince McMahon.
Nobody else gets pushed more than John Cena. At times, he’s pushed as if he’s figuratively above the WWE. Whether it’s right or wrong, that’s what a superstar is. Randy Orton isn’t a superstar, he doesn’t have mass appeal. His finishing move does, that’s it. The man seems to be devoid of any personality whatsoever. He reminds me of The Terminator when he’s cutting promos. There’s a whole list of wrestlers, past and present, that WWE have tried to push and they just don’t have that (and I hate using this phrase) “X-factor”. Batista, HHH, Kane, Booker T, Khali etc are all great stars, but they’re not superstars. I’ll be the first to admit that, at times over the last 12 months, I’ve wished that John Cena would get injured. Is that a bit harsh? It probably is, but there’s a method behind the madness. Cena might be portrayed on-screen as the unstoppable, unbreakable man, but he isn’t.
I think I’m right in saying that the injury he’s got just now is the first time he’s had any real break from in ring competition since his return from a neck injury four years ago. That’s just ridiculous. Any sportsman who’s performing at the highest level possible needs a break from competition. It’s just common sense, but WWE doesn’t work like that. It’s run until you can’t run anymore. Maybe that’s why so many wrestlers violate the Wellness Policy for painkillers. They’re literally breaking their bodies in the hope that they’ll get a chance to become “the next John Cena” or “the next big thing”. The harsh reality is that over the years, very few men have had the opportunity.
Having said that, WWE are in a position right now where there’s a crop of 5/6 guys on the main roster, as well as 4/5 from developmental, who could be their next batch of superstars. Who am I talking about?
Well, for a start, there’s the current WWE Champion CM Punk. I can almost hear you now. “How can the longest reigning champion in 5 years not already be a superstar?” The answer’s simple. Because he isn’t booked like a superstar. In 2 weeks time at Hell in a Cell, Punk defends the WWE title in the main-event. Something that, until that actual PPV, has happened TWICE since he won the title. That’s not booking your champion to be a superstar. It’s booking him as second-fiddle to the cash cow. Wrestlers come and go, but the WWE title is the one constant. It should be the focus, regardless of who’s holding it. I’d be saying the same if Punk were in Cena’s position.
Others on the roster, like Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Sheamus, Wade Barrett, The Miz and Cody Rhodes all have the POTENTIAL to be superstars. They can be larger than life, have mass appeal, but they have to be given time and care, which will show them that WWE management believes in them. Then there’s the guys down in developmental like Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Kassius Ohno, Bo Dallas and Richie Steamboat. Something I mentioned a few weeks ago was that sometimes, WWE want everyone to look, walk and talk the same. You can’t create superstars like that. You have to give them some kind of creative freedom, so that they can express themselves on a massive stage. If they crash and burn on their own, fair enough, but at least they’ve had the chance to be who they are, instead of who WWE want us to see them as.
Sooner or later, WWE won’t be able to count on John Cena. Over the next few years, he’s going to be on a downward spiral because quite honestly, I don’t think his body can take another four years of constant action. He’s still a young man, 35, but he’s already had almost 10 years of unbelievable pressure on his shoulders. What will WWE do when they can’t put everything on his shoulders? The older superstars like HBK, Steve Austin, Mick Foley and Edge are retired. Rock, HHH and Undertaker are all 40+ and effectively retired from full-time competition. Cena is the only one left standing. The fact that he’s still going after pretty much 7 straight years is a testament to him and his work ethic, but everyone’s got a breaking point. There’s going to come a time when WWE need to start building for life after Cena, because there’s nobody else anywhere near his level right now. Otherwise, when he’s not able to go at this pace anymore, they’re going to be fucked and they’ll only have themselves to blame.
So, usually we get some pretty good back-and-forth going on these articles and I’m hoping this one isn’t gonna be any different. What do you think? Is John Cena the only true superstar in WWE? Who can WWE build up to the same level? Should it be one guy, or should it be spread around 4/5 guys, like it was in the Attitude Era to stop “the guy” getting burned out? Leave your comments below or tweet me @george_sltd.
That about wraps things up for today. I made it through an entire column without shitting on John Cena’s wrestling character, which must be some kinda record for me. Don’t expect it to happen too often though! Haha.. There’s no Wrestling Throwback this week because to be honest, I haven’t been on Twitter to plug it in almost a week. I’ll be back on in the next 48 hours, so if you’ve tweeted me, I’ll reply then. As always, thanks for sticking with me through this and I’ll see ya back here next week for more wrestling related rambles!
Peace out,
George
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I think in today’s pop culture attitude towards wrestling, Cena may be WWE’s only “superstar”. Wrestling is looked down upon right now and Cena looks to be the only guy who can break through.
Totally. It pains me to say it, but he’s their only wrestling “Superstar” with any cross-over appeal. Miz is getting there, but other than that, you hardly ever see the others on big time TV shows
Yeah, Miz got his spot due to him being willing to go out.
Good read again today. I think WWE needs to spread it out between several guys. It is easier on their bodies and their home life. I would like to see Sheamus, Randy Orton, and Cody Rhodes built to Cena status. They are all still young and have long to go. The thought of Cena slowing down is sad but is becoming more apparent and realistic with his most recent injury.
Sheamus is around Cena’s age. Orton has the attitude issues. Cody has a great combo of skills and is rather young, so he’d be a good bet.
Thanks sam. Sheamus is the same age as Cena, but if they can get a good 4/5 years out of him, it’ll be worth it. Agree about Cena slowing down. Am surprised he hasn’t had a nervous breakdown yet with all the pressure he’s under.
He’s had them. Vince just has more in the lab.
I admire your will power. You deserve a cookie with an X on it
Thanks! Double choc-chip please!
Chewy or crunchy?
Can’t I have one of each?
A balanced diet?
Gotta look after myself Capt!
Sadly, you are right. John Cena is the only superstar in the WWE. If Cena got a career ending injury tomorrow (fingers crossed), WWE management would go into meltdown.
Nah, we’d get…Hornswoggle: The Master of Green!!!
I hate Hornswoggle. His character went stale years ago.
It’s all an act. He’s really Linda.
Nothing to do with Hornswoggle’s character, I just hate the fact he’s been so involved over the years.
It was terrible that he was the anonymous GM.
They could always say he was trolling.
I know. Sometimes I hate it when I’m right! lol.. Yeah, part of me wants him to get a more damaging injury to see how WWE would cope long-term
It’s not worth it. The guy has earned his spot and I’d hate to see somebody who LOVES doing what they do get to the point where they couldn’t do it.
Great work mate and we all appreciate you writing this exclusively for WR.
I disagree a lot, George. That’s not a bad thing. You and everyone else knows we all respect each others opinions and discuss it in a respectable manner.
From what I read I get the understanding that you’re pretty much saying WWE won’t be able to survive without John Cena as he’s their only ”true” superstar. That’s not true IMO. I think it’s fair to say that Cena is not just WWE’s but pro wrestling’s biggest MEGA star. Meaning he’s above all the ”superstars” he works with. After all, it is his feuds with the likes of JBL, Batista, HHH, Punk etc.. that made and ensure he still is that huge star and it was because of them he became that ”mega” star. Like imagine Cena feuding with lesser stars such as Great Khali, Jinder Muhal, Sin Cara etc.. it just wouldn’t be interesting as there is nothing special about them. They’re not superstars, they’re just boring jobbers IMO.
The fact is, when Cena eventually sets off into the sun set, WWE will be fine without him. They’ll do what every other business does, or major sports team when they lose a big player. They replace them or re-structure the team (company). When Ronaldo left United, a HUGE void had to be filled. So what did Fergie do? He build the team around Rooney. Just using that as an example we can relate to.
Sadly, when Cena leaves WWE, he is more than likely going to lead to depression unless he sticks around and not work matches etc.. I think he will be around a lot more than the likes of Hogan, Rock, Austin were when they left WWE. Whether it’s commentating, GM role, creative position, whatever. He’s going to be involved for many years to come IMO.
Cena’s gonna get his own talk show.
We are never going to get rid of Cena, are we? lol
No mate, never! lol
*evil laugh*
Who else is on Cena’s level though Ray? Nobody’s even close to him. It’s like Vince isn’t comfortable giving someone else the same platform, though they seem to be trying with Sheamus/Punk but I reckon that’s more to do with HHH, especially in Sheamus’ case.
Will they be fine though Ray? Really? And this is coming from me, probably one of the biggest Cena critics? Rooney and Ronaldo were both superstars that played in the same Man United team. When they were both there, the team wasn’t built around one or the other, because Fergie knew that he had to make sure the workload was shared. He’s the greatest man-manager that any sport has ever seen.
I’m just saying that sooner or later, someone else has to be given the opportunity to become a true superstar. If they do it now when Cena’s still in his prime, it’d take the pressure off him, esp in terms of ratings/buyrates.
Cena won’t be commentating when he retires. He’ll be a GM if anything. With the greatest of respect to him, I don’t know if he’d be able to have a creative role.
He’ll cure cancer with his tears.
I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the next claim they make about him!
Cena’s next t-shirt should say “John Cena better than God”.
Superman wears underwear with John Cena’s picture on it.
“Even the strongest Cena haters (myself included) have to admit that the man shifts merchandise, he sells tickets, he gets people watching and he ALWAYS draws a reaction from the crowd.”
When I go to a WWE show, I want to see three people: CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, and John Cena. I’m not a fan of Cena, but the reactions he draws from the crowd are so great and amazing. I remember going to a WWE House Show in early 2010 in Chicago (two days before Shawn Michaels screwed Taker out of the World Heavyweight Championship at Elimination Chamber) and the reaction Cena got during his entrance was one of the loudest reactions I have ever heard. I was amazed at how loud the arena got.
I can believe that Tony. I’ve never been to a live WWE show, so I can’t tell from personal experience, but one thing nobody can deny is the connection he has with the crowd, good or bad. The worst thing in pro-wrestling is the crowd being completely indifferent to who’s walking out. That’s something we can’t say about Cena.
Whether people like it or not, Cena is the biggest star in WWE since the attitude era ended. Cena is not one of my all-time favorites, but he consistently gets the loudest reactions of the night, good or bad, whether it is a city full of marks or full of smarks. He is obviously doing something right. He deserves to be mentioned in the same sentence as guys like Hogan and Austin.
Yeah, that’s fair comment. I don’t think he should be in the same overall league as Hogan/Austin, but in terms of crowd reaction, he’s up there
Excellent article there bud. I agree with you on Cena being the only full time star in WWE. For me, a wrestling star is a guy who shifts ratings and PPV buy rates. Cena is the only current full time guy who does that. Brock, Rock, HHH, even Taker all do the same but none of them are there every week.
What’s weird is that while having a big franchise player like this has always been WWE’s way of doing things, they usually have a solid base of undercard wrestlers to carry things that the star can’t be involved in. Over the last few years they’ve neglected that.
Thankfully though I can see some green shoots of recovery. Punk is getting there. So is Sheamus. Orton is pretty cold at the moment but he’s always reliable. Ryback, Miz, Barrett, Daniel Bryan – there’s a shit lot of potential there for guys to be made into stars.
Notice how whenever HHH comes back, his feud is always the cool one and everyone else is kind of nerdy and comedic? If they made EVERYONE have at least semi cool feuds, instead of either making fun of them or not taking their characters seriously, I reckon they’d find it a bit easier to build some new stars.
WWE is in a rebuilding phase at the moment for me. I think (and hope) in five years time they’ve got the new franchise in place (whoever he is) but also they’ve focused on the rest of the company and not left it all up to one guy again.
Cena isn’t going to be around forever and while the company won’t fold when he does leave, they have to some plans in place to get the next guy ready to step up.
Good work man, keep it up, enjoy reading your work.
Yeah, I’d say WWE is loaded with talent and the type of people who could easily step up, if needed be.
Yeah, they do have guys that are capable, but I don’t think they’re credible enough as main-eventers yet. The one guy that is experienced enough at that level (Orton) isn’t going to be anywhere near the top of any card for at least a year, probably more.
Oh, it depends on the feud. Show, Rey, Ziggler, Sheamus, Orton, Barrett, DB, Kane, Miz, Cena, Punk could easily step in if it was needed to just about any feud Some, easier than others, but it wouldn’t be too hard.
Of that list, Ziggler, Barrett and Miz couldn’t be taken seriously, because they’ve not reached “that level” yet. The likes of Big Show, Kane and Rey are just short-term fixes and not the answer long term
Ziggler, Barrett, and Miz could easily be bought as guys who could at least push a current champion to the limit, building them up for the future.
Yeah man, totally agree, that’s why there’s such a huge gap between Cena and everyone else that’s a full-timer.
The funny thing is that WWE don’t realise the damage they’re doing to their top guys like Cena and Punk. Look at a picture of Punk pre-pipebomb and now. He looks absolutely fucked. He’s gone balls to the wall for almost 18 straight months at the top of the card without missing ANY shows: house/TV/PPV/tours. The point of having interchangable main-eventers is to take pressure off those guys when they need a rest.
I fear that “the next guy” will be in the same position as Cena. All the time and effort will go into a monster push, without making sure there are others there to take the weight.
Honestly, WWE needs to have rolling weeks off every few months.
completely agree
And I’m sure it would lower drug use.