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John Cena: The Most Enigmatic Superstar In WWE History

By Michael Whitlow

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For 13 years, 15-time world champion John Cena has evolved from a kid with “ruthless aggression” to the most criticized (and beloved) superstar in WWE history.

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For five years of my childhood, specifically around the turn of the new millennium, my life didn’t include professional wrestling. I just couldn’t get into World Championship Wrestling anymore (and for good reason) like I did in previous years. The World Wrestling Federation was seen as forbidden territory as a WCW fan.

So altogether, I stopped watching pro wrestling on television.

Around the beginning of 2006, I was hearing rumblings on MySpace (yeah, that old website) on some guy named John Cena, and his on-camera persona of being a hip-hop star and a fighting champion.

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When I first looked into this guy, I said, “I like this guy. Throwback jerseys, a spinner title belt and some skills on the mic? He seems cool.”

During that period of my life, I was soon entering high school, but outside of playing baseball at my local little league, I didn’t have any real interests outside of watching other sports on TV and listening to rap music. So, without any hesitation, I started researching the last few years of wrestling. It’s safe to say that I missed a bit.

I can remember refreshing the WWE.com homepage every two minutes during the 2006 Royal Rumble. (This was the prehistoric days without WWE Network.) It was the first pay-per-view I was following since, well, I honestly don’t remember. When Hulk Hogan was pinning guys with his feet, I couldn’t take it anymore. But, at the end of the night, I was happy.

Cena defeated WWE Hall of Famer Edge in Raw’s main event of the Royal Rumble and won back the WWE Championship.

Nine years later, the thought of John Cena coming down to the ring to steal the spotlight from other up-and-coming stars makes me cringe. How could the guy that helped get me back into wrestling, be such a teacher’s pet and a corporate creation?

Since 2006, John Cena has transformed from the rough-and-tough kid from West Newbury, MA, to a Marine, to the WWE’s “go-to guy”. When you say something wrong about Cena, the “CeNation” reminds you that he’s done over 500 Make-A-Wishes for children all over the globe. Don’t get me wrong, Cena deserves recognition for his work with children. It’s a beautiful sight to see when Cena can make an ill child’s day the best one he or she’s ever had in their short lifetimes.

Personally, I have no gripe with Cena outside of the squared circle. The guy is honestly hilarious.

I missed the “Word Life” era of John Cena during my time away from wrestling. The highlights and matches that I have gotten to see were great. Rapping and wearing throwback jerseys came so natural to Cena. It fit his persona perfectly. Of course, we all have to grow up in life, and that includes in a fictional world with character development and scripted storylines.

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Along with everyone else who has competed in the pre-PG era of wrestling, John Cena has had to switch up his game. WWE programming has been more kid-friendly in years past, but coming from fans that grew up and watched the era where blood was common and performers could get away with saying and doing pretty much anything they wanted, Cena is the last guy they want to see on their televisions every Monday night.

The “IWC” has sucked me in during this recent run of wrestling. As a kid, I never really rooted for heels. I always saw wrestling as “good guy against bad guy”, and never really understood the ins-and-outs of the business.

Nowadays, my favorite performers are mostly heels. (Hi, Kevin Owens and New Day!)

Now that wrestling has opened up for me, I understand why Cena is so beloved and so despised. John Cena the person seems like a great guy. (Although, I do have some questions, Cena.) His work with the United States title and giving barely-used and NXT stars a shot at glory? That’s genius booking. Plus, kids love the strong guy who fights for what is right.

But still, at the same time, it’s hard to watch him. His performance in the ring has improved over time, but it still looks so stiff and it’s the same boring set of moves. The best performers evolve, and so does their ability to tells stories in the ring with their moves. Cena’s top-rope leg drop and springboard stunner make me want to throw my remote at the screen every week.

(On top of that, if Paige, Charlotte and Becky needed a new stable name, can we please a get a new name for the “Five-Knuckle Shuffle”? Please?)

John Cena has evolved during his 13-year run in WWE. At first, he had the look at some local jobber on a weekly basis, but he was able to perform in front of the right people. If you watch the “John Cena – My Life” DVD, WWE Hall of Famer Jim Ross explains watching Cena during his developmental time with Ohio Valley Wrestling.

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Ross explains that during a phone call with Vince McMahon, Ross claimed, “Vince, this is Jim Ross. I’ve found your main event for WrestleMania in five years.” Cena began his time with OVW in 2001. Five years would have been 2006; the year Cena made future WWE Hall of Famer Triple H tap out in the main event of WrestleMania 22, arguably Cena’s best match to date.

Since that match, he’s been a “regret nothing, fear less” fighter with something to prove, to the WWE’s “corporate-driven fruity pebble” that is wrapped around every kid’s little finger on Monday nights.

So, when someone asks you to describe John Cena, “enigmatic” would be a good choice to start.

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