Wrestling fans are always an opinionated bunch, but even by our obnoxious standards, the screaming around John Cena’s retirement tour has been something else. Over the last several months, you haven’t been able to go anywhere on social media where wrestling fans congregate without seeing a thousand over the top opinions about The Greatest Of All Time’s last run and what should have been done differently.
I get it. As someone who loves John Cena and watches every single minute of main roster programming every single week, I’ve been up in my feelings about some of the booking decisions too, but with only a handful of dates left, I think it’s time to pause and have an honest conversation about Cena’s retirement tour.
If anyone tells you it has all been fantastic, don’t believe them. If anyone tells you it’s all been bad, don’t believe them. The Greatest Of All Time’s last run has not been the greatest of all time. It has been beset by some really bad booking decisions, and some problems outside Cena’s control. It has also, however, featured some really good matches, some great promos and plenty of reminders of why Cena is one of the best to ever do it. So, let’s put aside all the hyperbole and have a genuine conversation about how it’s all going.
Let’s start with the good. Cena’s work on the microphone has largely been fantastic. His promo battle with Cody Rhodes ahead of WrestleMania was fantastic. Despite being a heel, Cena (briefly) got the entire crowd behind him, and it looked like they were going to fully turn on Rhodes, until he proved why he’s been the face of WWE the past few years and pulled them back in. Cena’s take on CM Punk’s Pipe Bomb was also a really memorable highlight, as was his reference to R-Truth after he’d been let go. And let’s not forget him ripping on that kid in Europe, which produced an all-time reaction shot that’ll likely appear in montages for years to come.
The work inside the ring has also produced some fantastic moments. Cena’s match with Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam is a candidate to make a career best list from either. Clearly, the two of them weren’t happy with how WrestleMania went, and they went out there desperate to prove they could put on an all-time classic. They did. Cena’s match this past weekend with AJ Styles will also be remembered as one of the most enjoyable of his entire career. It was a fan service overload, but it was also a reminder of how much both men love the business and care about all the performers who helped get them there.
And then, of course, there’s his aura. All the biggest stars in the history of wrestling have had a presence about them. They’ve felt like stars, like they have some extra invisible ingredient even other main eventers don’t have. Cena has it, and even in his late 40s, it hasn’t gone away. From the faces he makes, to the lines he improvizes, to his timing in the ring, to his entrance, to his iconic moves, he’s an all-time star and one of the best to ever do it, and every time he’s gotten in the ring, it has been a reminder of that.
But there’s also been some bad. He turned on Cody Rhodes and joined forces with The Rock and Travis Scott in a moment that was being compared to Hulk Hogan’s iconic heel turn at the time. Unfortunately, The Rock stopped making WWE appearances shortly thereafter, and it left WWE with a storyline that didn’t make any logical sense. They tried to continue it only using Travis Scott, and it didn’t work at all, to the point where it overshadowed and ruined Rhodes and Cena’s match at WrestleMania.
The appearance schedule has also sometimes been a little bit frustrating. Cena went into the year committed to doing 36 dates, which is way more than he’s done in recent years. We should all be stoked we got him for that many, but realistically, it hasn’t felt like quite enough. There have been times in which he was able to do weekly appearances and really build a program ahead of a match, but there have also been times in which the story has felt a little light because he hasn’t been around. He’s a huge Hollywood star. We should all be happy he spent so much time in WWE this year, but it’s also fair for fans to complain a little about it.
The work inside the ring has also been inconsistent. Cena has been open about his body breaking down and how hard it is to physically wrestle in his late 40s. It was never fair to expect him to put on all-time bangers at his age, but whether you’re 25 or 55, if you’re out there wrestling in front of a live audience, fans are going to have opinions about your abilities. There have been times in which Cena was fantastic (vs Cody at SummerSlam, vs Styles at Crown Jewel), and there have been some times in which it didn’t work quite as well (vs Cody at ‘Mania, vs Brock at WrestlePalooza).
Cena still has a handful of dates left. He’s going to appear at Survivor Series, and he’s going to have his last match at Saturday Night’s Main Event in December. He’s also going to show up a few times to promote those matches. As such, it’s not fair to make any official proclamation on how this retirement tour went, but most of the way through, I think we should all be honest about what we’ve seen.
If someone tells you it’s been bad, they’re flat out wrong. If someone tells you it’s been perfect, they’re flat out wrong. It has been a series of highs and lows and a combination of good booking decisions and bad booking decisions. It has been a reminder of why John Cena is one of the best to ever do it, and even with all its imperfections, I’m so thankful we got it.