WWE minus Cena better or worse

[adamrobertk]

Now you have had time to see what raw is like minus cena, is it better or worse???

[Eisen-verse]

Better in one way bad in another... I personally never really liked Cena then again I didn't really care for Stone Cold for the longest time either. However, I've always respected Cena for his drive & determination. He could carry a promo & seemed to do pretty well with all of that. With that being said: * The WWE is better without him being the focal point of the company... I mean he's not a bad "top guy" to have on your roster, however, for as long as he was the "top guy" made it kind of mind numbing after awhile. I still wouldn't mind him being around the title for as long as he did, but it would have been nice to see him drop it during that time frame at least once. * Bad for the WWE, however, as well as he is a great performer and would be a great fixture for RAW.... Just not "the top guy" for awhile. So with him out & possibly not even back for Wrestlemania... I can't see how it's an overall "good thing" for the WWE. Product wise though... Hardy's getting a push, Jericho is getting a push (Which is a "duh" comment since we all knew he would coming back) & Mr. Kennedy is getting a good rub from his work with michaels. All in all, They are doing alright in his absence.

[Woodsmeister]

In my opinion Cena has shown he can be carried to a good match (Michaels, Angle, Edge). He has shown he can put on good matches with decent, but not yet world class opposition (Umaga, Orton, Lashley) and he even got a decent match with Khali again only my opinion so yeh they do miss him in some ways especially the money side as he is awesome at selling merchandise (with kids). so to answer your question: in my opinion no they arent missing him from a wrestling point of view as they have loads of talent who can be carried or have better matches. but in a merchandise/entertainment sort of way i think they do as he is always guarenteed to get a reaction good or bad (which is a good thing as it gets the crowd involved). and from what i read the crowd was a bit flat at times on RAW this past monday (i havent watched it for myself yet so i cant fully commit to the last part) :)

[sheepy]

Its probably benefited Raw as its made them shake the whole thing up which is what Raw had been in need of for a while. At the moment there are 3 really good feuds that are getting a lot of tv time (Hardy / Triple H, Kennedy / Michaels and Orton / Jericho). These are all really good feuds and are making for intersting viewing. If Cena were on the show you could argue that these feuds wouldn't be getting the same level of attention. The break from having the Cena show is definately a good thing. Having said that though, Raw does miss Cena. He's probably the most over wrestler in the world atm and some times it is obvious that Raw misses his ability to work a crowd. Bacially I call it a damning reflection on how the WWE has handled him recently. His feuds have been uninteresting and he's been rammed down our throats. Its interesting as its opened things up a bit. Ok Trips is almost certainly gonna go over Hardy and get a title shot but there is still the chance that Hardy might win the match so Trips can win the Rumble and go into Wrestlemania as the challenger. Its added a bit of unpredictability to the show which is a good thing in my opinion.

[djthefunkchris]

I aggree, it's a good and bad thing. I had my fill of Cena as the "Underdog" for a good while before he got hurt. I think that's where alot of people got sick of him. How do you be the champ for (ever) "X" amount of months, and still be the guy trying to overcome all odds. At some point I feel they should have had him as THE GUY, and everyone that come to him be the one's that "Were against all odds". So yeah, I got bored of him as well. I think that's more of a booking problem then a Cena problem though. I felt he carried as many match's, if not more, then him being carried in match's. However, the good thing is. Everyone else get's a spot in the light. My opinion on that though, is they should have before. I still think the Hornswaggle story is funny as heck.

[Moe Hunter]

I was way past being bored of Cena. I didn't like him back when he was telling people to "choke on Deez Nutz" and rhming suck with **** as the height of cleverness/hilarity on Smackdown. I didn't like him when he became Superman, never losing but somehow we were supposed to think that every time he got in the ring, he was the poor underdog, which was utter BS. Cena was constantly being outwrestled. Not just by HBK or Angle, but guys like Shelton Benjamin, and the Spirit Squad. It was embarassing to see the Champ look like such a fool against lower midcarders. I didn't see his match against Lashley so I can't comment on that, but outside of that his only 'equal' opponent in my eyes has been Umaga, and I would have been just fine with that being a midcard feud. So, am I pleased that Mr. Kennedy, Jeff Hardy and Chris Jericho are in the spotlight? You bet I am! Three very good workers getting the screentime they deserve, two of them in very helpful feuds with top-class talent (well, depends how Triple H wants to play this one), and the other is a top-class worker making sure the Main Event scene stays worthy of the status. So yes, absolutely. I'm watching Raw more consistently than before, and enjoying it even more. It will be nice to see a WM Main Event that doesn't end in a great worker tapping out to a poorly applied Submission hold from a Brawler. Of course, it would also be nice if Triple H could keep himself away from the ME as well, but what are the odds of that?

[Self]

I kinda missed most of the Cena era when I was going through the wrestling detox that was college. I left just after the rap gimmick started getting over (I was a fan, when he was heel those raps were good content wise) and returned just to see him beat Bobby Lashley. There was something about his promo's I liked, the tone and inflection of his voice appealed to me. Then again, I can see how it would get old. As for the new main guys on RAW... I don't have and means to watch the show at the moment, but I do have opinions... Jeff. I love Jeff. I love the Hardys. When I saw them job to Kaientai, I remember telling my brother "I like these guys". I feel such bizarre pride watching them, because I liked them from the start. That being said, I can't see Jeff with the gold. He's just... He's just not very good. Very scrappy. He's super-over though, and if he never gets a world title, his career is by no means a failure. Popular midcarders are a very important part of the show. Kennedy. I didn't think much of Kennedy for the longest time. Other than is intro, he just seemed boring to me. THEN I saw him at the RAW event in Cardiff a month or two back. He cut a great promo insulting the Welsh, and when he was about to lock up with Val, he backed away... and backed away... and kept backing away... and laughing... He was toying with his opponent in a way I've never seen before. He was putting that little nuance into a show that until that point, I was pretty bored with. I'm still not sold on him as a major player though. He has potential, but at the moment, the seemingly popular idea of an Orton/Kennedy WM Main Event fills me with boredom.

[djthefunkchris]

Here's how I see WWE's roster right now. [B]Main Eventer's:[/B] John Cena, Triple H, Batista, Undertaker, Edge [B]Upper Mid's: [/B]Randy Orton, Bobby Lashley, Chris Jericho, Shawn Michaels (sometimes ME), Umaga, Kane, Matt Hardy, Rey Mysterio, Ric Flair, CM Punk [B]Midcards:[/B] Jeff Hardy, Mr Kennedy, MVP, Chavo Guerrero, Mark Henry, Khali, Shelton Benjamin [B]Lower Mids:[/B] Lance Cade, Trevor Murdock, Carlito, Snitsky, John Morrison, The Miz, Deuce and Domino, Big Daddy V, Boogieman, Elijah Burke, Tommy Dreamer [B]Opener:[/B] Brian Kendrick, Charlie Haas, Hardcore Holly, Paul London, Santino Marella, Major Brothers, Festus and Jesse, Gregory Helms, Jamie Noble, Jimmy Wang Yang, Shannon Moore, Kevin Thorne, Matt Striker, Mike Knox [B]Enhanced Talent:[/B] Cody Rhodes, DH Smith, Jim Duggan, Robbie and Rory McAllister, Super Crazy, Val Venis, Chuck Palumbo, Dave Taylor, Drew McIntyre, Funaki, Hornswaggle, Kenny D.. Balls Mahoney, Nunzio, Stevie Richards

[Eisen-verse]

[QUOTE]Here's how I see WWE's roster right now. Main Eventer's: John Cena, Triple H, Batista, Undertaker, Edge Upper Mid's: Randy Orton, Bobby Lashley, Chris Jericho, Shawn Michaels (sometimes ME), Umaga, Kane, Matt Hardy, Rey Mysterio, Ric Flair, CM Punk Midcards: Jeff Hardy, Mr Kennedy, MVP, Chavo Guerrero, Mark Henry, Khali, Shelton Benjamin Lower Mids: Lance Cade, Trevor Murdock, Carlito, Snitsky, John Morrison, The Miz, Deuce and Domino, Big Daddy V, Boogieman, Elijah Burke, Tommy Dreamer Opener: Brian Kendrick, Charlie Haas, Hardcore Holly, Paul London, Santino Marella, Major Brothers, Festus and Jesse, Gregory Helms, Jamie Noble, Jimmy Wang Yang, Shannon Moore, Kevin Thorne, Matt Striker, Mike Knox Enhanced Talent: Cody Rhodes, DH Smith, Jim Duggan, Robbie and Rory McAllister, Super Crazy, Val Venis, Chuck Palumbo, Dave Taylor, Drew McIntyre, Funaki, Hornswaggle, Kenny D.. Balls Mahoney, Nunzio, Stevie Richards[/QUOTE] I agree with you on everything but CM Punk. I'm a huge Punk fan. He's one of the only guys I actually like watching in the ring. However, with how the WWE has been booking him I only see him as a Midcarder not an Upper Midcarder. It's absolutely nothing against Punk, It's just how the WWE is pushing him right now. He's the "man" on the third brand show which everyone knows is more of a testing ground than anything else. So, I think that puts him at a Midcard status.

[djthefunkchris]

[QUOTE=Eisen-verse;333248]I agree with you on everything but CM Punk. I'm a huge Punk fan. He's one of the only guys I actually like watching in the ring. However, with how the WWE has been booking him I only see him as a Midcarder not an Upper Midcarder. It's absolutely nothing against Punk, It's just how the WWE is pushing him right now. He's the "man" on the third brand show which everyone knows is more of a testing ground than anything else. So, I think that puts him at a Midcard status.[/QUOTE] I can aggree with that. I see him as the "company" type guy, the guy willing to let the other talent get the rub from him, and then go on to the rest of the shows. I think his time is coming though.. Kind of a testing ground right now.. "Let's see what he can do to help the rest of the roster(s), then move him on up to Smackdown or Raw". He's not that young, so I would expect a push (for one of the better title's) within' the next two year's... something to say "Thankyou" to him (if he even cares about that).

[Eisen-verse]

[QUOTE]I can aggree with that. I see him as the "company" type guy, the guy willing to let the other talent get the rub from him, and then go on to the rest of the shows. I think his time is coming though.. Kind of a testing ground right now.. "Let's see what he can do to help the rest of the roster(s), then move him on up to Smackdown or Raw". He's not that young, so I would expect a push (for one of the better title's) within' the next two year's... something to say "Thankyou" to him (if he even cares about that).[/QUOTE] We can only hope. haha. I think Vince wants him as an undercard as long as possible so that way he can crazily say that "he made CM Punk" versus bringing in a talent from somewhere else and instantly pushing them to the moon. I would love to see him as big guy on RAW or Smackdown. Sadly, Smackdown will probably be his best bet to really compete... if he goes to RAW he'll get squashed by most of the "big players". I wouldn't mind seeing an HBK/CM Punk match though.