The "John Cena Walk Out"... could it happen?

[Guest John Hancock]

Not too sure about that. He'd have been slaughtered at virtually any period when wrestling was hot.

[Omega 354]

I agree with John to some extent, I think he'd have been better received in the 80's but it's the lack of real passion in the promos, it's disingenuous in any era. Plus pat of the issue is that the WWE has forced him into far too much stuff. Even Hogan or Austin or Rock never felt over-used during their prime "overness". That also may not be something you can blame Cena for because partly that's down to roster depth.

 

Really there's lots of reasons why Cena is in the random place he is with different parts of the wrestling fan spectrum but it's not a situation that he's damaged beyond being able to go on to new things.

[Guest Jimmy Redman]

But see, and I always seem to say this when this subject comes up, but I mean if he was around in the Attitude Era, he wouldn't be cutesy and disingenuous. Look at the promos he cuts when they let him off the leash every once in a blue moon. He'd be THAT guy.

 

Or else, he'd be cutesy and disingenuous and be the top heel.

 

People say "Cena wouldn't work in the Attitude Era" all the time, but it is a huge oversimplification, because if he was around 15 years earlier, he'd naturally have a completely different character and promo style, to fit with the time. The Cena character as we know it wouldn't work maybe, but he'd be a different character depending on what era he was in. Cena the worker would be just fine in any era.

[Guest Jamster26]

When I think of workers, I think of Orton, Daniel Bryan, Punk, Christian. I don't think of Cena at all.

[Guest Jimmy Redman]

Worker as a term isn't a qualitative marker, it is just a descriptive term, that I used to separate John himself from the character he portrays. Every wrestler is a worker, the terms are synonymous. You work matches, you are a worker. Jinder Mahal is a worker. A sh*tty worker, perhaps, but a worker nonetheless.

 

You may think Cena is a sh*tty worker, but he's still a worker.

[Omega 354]

But see, and I always seem to say this when this subject comes up, but I mean if he was around in the Attitude Era, he wouldn't be cutesy and disingenuous. Look at the promos he cuts when they let him off the leash every once in a blue moon. He'd be THAT guy.

 

Or else, he'd be cutesy and disingenuous and be the top heel.

 

People say "Cena wouldn't work in the Attitude Era" all the time, but it is a huge oversimplification, because if he was around 15 years earlier, he'd naturally have a completely different character and promo style, to fit with the time. The Cena character as we know it wouldn't work maybe, but he'd be a different character depending on what era he was in. Cena the worker would be just fine in any era.

 

But I think that's a given Jimmy, we're talking about the thing we can quantitatively observe in Cena's current guise applied to another era. You're not wrong to say that probably he'd not have the same gimmick in the 'tude era but that's not to say he'd have even been given a decent gimmick in that era. Maybe he'd have been given a Rock type gimmick but equally he could have been a Sparky Plugg or probably Crush in The Nation.

 

Cena as a worker isn't enough to justify a top gimmick and IF he promo'd like he does now (not the content but the delivery) again he'd be struggling to justify himself past the mid-card.

[Guest Jimmy Redman]

But I think that's a given Jimmy, we're talking about the thing we can quantitatively observe in Cena's current guise applied to another era. You're not wrong to say that probably he'd not have the same gimmick in the 'tude era but that's not to say he'd have even been given a decent gimmick in that era. Maybe he'd have been given a Rock type gimmick but equally he could have been a Sparky Plugg or probably Crush in The Nation.

 

Cena as a worker isn't enough to justify a top gimmick and IF he promo'd like he does now (not the content but the delivery) again he'd be struggling to justify himself past the mid-card.

 

I think we're moving into two separate conversations here. Maxx's original post was that Cena's character would work in any era permitting some tweaking. Which I think is true for the reasons I stated above: in the 80s he'd possibly be even cutesier, while in the Attitude Era he'd be edgy and let loose instead (or a heel), both of which we have seen out of current Cena so we know he's capable of it. Sparky Plugg doesn't come into that because that would be a completely different character and thus not really the point.

 

If we're talking Cena himself as a worker, again, he'd be fine. Austin was the Ringmaster, Rock was Rocky Maivia, and so on. A bad gimmick doesn't kill a career if the talent is there. Not to mention Cena made it to the top with a white rapper gimmick. He can promo with the best of them when he's 'on', or when he is permitted to be 'on'. I don't see how his promos would have prevented him from making main event level hypothetically, when his promos are what got him to the top in reality.

[Omega 354]

I think you've missed the actual point of what I've said and just repeated yourself so no worries let's just leave it there.

[Guest The Beltster]

But see, and I always seem to say this when this subject comes up, but I mean if he was around in the Attitude Era, he wouldn't be cutesy and disingenuous. Look at the promos he cuts when they let him off the leash every once in a blue moon. He'd be THAT guy.

 

Or else, he'd be cutesy and disingenuous and be the top heel.

 

People say "Cena wouldn't work in the Attitude Era" all the time, but it is a huge oversimplification, because if he was around 15 years earlier, he'd naturally have a completely different character and promo style, to fit with the time. The Cena character as we know it wouldn't work maybe, but he'd be a different character depending on what era he was in. Cena the worker would be just fine in any era.

But we are talking specifically about THIS Cena. This Cena wouldnt work in the Attitude Era. This Cena is the Cena people have a problem with. Nobody has a problem with Cena from 2002 or 03 or whenever it was he was the heel rapper. That guy could have easily fit in the Attitude Era as at least an upper mid card guy (theres no f*cking chance he'd be above Austin, Rock or several others).

 

So I dont think its an oversimplification to say this Cena couldnt work in the Attitude Era, because he couldnt. He'd be much better suited for the Hulkamania era as a mid card goody goody guy, his current gimmick then would get 95% cheers every night.