10 Reasons Why John Cena’s WWE Legacy Is Disastrous
His time is Then. Now. Forever.
John Cena has recently expressed a desire to actually Give Up on sports entertainment.
The following article is an indictment of his legacy, but nobody can begrudge his decision. The man was fiercely dedicated to upgrading the WWE machine throughout his epic tenure. He powered through major surgery recoveries, he created a flicker of a light in the harrowing, dark lives of terminally ill children through his deeply admirable association with Make A Wish, and ultimately, it was easy to see why these children looked up to him.
He was a superhero, of a sort. Over-powered and cartoonish, yes, but also strong in both physique and mentality. He took over Hulk Hogan's role, but wrestled in epic, modern matches that required far more in the way of pure, physical grind. Cena commands profound respect from his colleagues. No less an authority than Mick Foley, not one to sycophantically worm his way into WWE's affections, has deemed Cena the greatest ever. Kurt Angle has said this, too.
His critics longed for this day. They felt that Cena's presence dwarfed that of the generations he dominated, creating, in the process, infertile conditions for genuine star creation.
WWE can be taken from John Cena, but John Cena can't be taken from WWE...
10. Diss Culture
Classic wrestling promotion is a lost art.
There is (or was) a balancing act to putting one's opponent over while, in parallel, putting oneself over. Ric Flair, in 1989, put Ricky Steamboat over as the best professional wrestler on the planet...but he wasn't the man. To be the man, you had to beat the man. In effect, Flair promised a match both great and virtually impossible to predict - all in the span of a minute.
We are far removed from this timeless promotional tactic now. WWE talents simply point out one another's flaws with little of the charisma Cena boasted to create even an unbalanced intrigue. Such deep cuts only bleed much of the modern roster out. This wasn't Bobby Heenan fake bluster, so hysterical that you were at once entertained by and disbelieving of it. The points made are much too salient.
Why broadcast what is ultimately a creative failure? For a cheap pop? What else does it accomplish? This all-encompassing diss culture wasn't popularised by John Cena - he cribbed from The Rock's playbook - but he d*mn sure defined it. Toxically. Truth has little place in the fantastical world of pro wrestling. Inconvenient truths, even more so.
But, because this is a Cena trademark, and Cena is the template for success, it is now law.