"They tried to spin Cena's real life divorce in 2012 as The Rock's fault for some reason." 2024 Final Boss The Rock definitely would have taken credit for it and said he gave Cena's wife the People's Strudel.
Cena's feud with AJ Styles in 2016/17 was a real highlight for me; perfectly introduced AJ to the larger WWE audience (me included) and that SummerSlam match was a banger. Even if he did have some questionable booking behind him, I will always appreciate what Cena has done! An additional favourite Cena moment would be the FireFly Funhouse match; I know it's more a Bray Wyatt moment, but seeing his character being dissected in that way was a fascinating watch
There is way too much sentimentality and nostalgia in wrestling fan community, especially in the US. It's why many wrestlers have 20 years of "retirement" matches before they actually retire. The fans feed that unhealthy pattern. It damages the industry and individuals. I mean, Will Ospreay can barely draw a crowd, but marks will pay to watch a geriatric and drunk Rik Flair flopping with his son in law.
John Cena singing Basic Thuganomics is one of my favorite parts of his career. Not many wrestlers sing their own entrance themes but he's one of the best to do it.
I think another thing that has helped Cena is his fanbase grew up. So the same kids that were watching him are now the adults in the audience so there's no more booing Cena but just cheers. I think the Cena hate was solely from adult wrestling fans not liking the WWE turning PG and felt he represented that because he was the face of the company.
This is something I was thinking about ever since the 20th anniversary of John Cena’s debut . Luke Owen of wrestle talk pointed this out when he reviewed the episode of raw celebrated John’s 20th anniversary, how the older fans who booed Cena out of the building either stopped watching or even began to respect Cena, with the fans who grew up watching John cheering him.
What makes that Triple H/Cena match hilarious is that it literally happened a year later following Triple H's period where he was the most hated man on Raw
No disrespect, but Let me correct you, Dwayne Johnson is NOT the reason John Cena was able to make it in hollywood. There have been wrestlers way before Dwayne such as Roddy Piper and Hulk Hogan, etc. You're obviously in love with dwayne. I hope you know he is a pedo. The number one spot should have went to John Cena's Charity run. Hands down. Your videos are good but would be a lot better if you are less biased. It's very obvious. No offense.
For me, Cena's best moment was putting Kevin Owens over strong. I didn't watch ROH or NXT so I wasn't familiar with Kevin Steen's work but Cena helped to get over that he was a big deal. From looking shook during his debut to laying down for him their first match, it absolutely solidified KO's status as a main eventer. Not surprisingly, KO would become a world champion just one year after debuting.
and KO became a trusted guy for handling big marquee matches as well. so much so that Steve Austin vs Kevin Owen in a decently competitive match was something we were able to witness
I'd love to see Brian do a video on who Cena did and did not rightfully or wrongfully put over. He screwed a lot of people and probably killed some careers. But also from time to time, seemed to do the "right thing".
@@Kamau1865 Same but as for who's careers his screwed, we need an actual follow up as well. many he put down like the Nexus, did not succeed anywhere else either.
Big Match John doing ten minute matches with wrestlers everyone already knows is a good wrestler (where Cena wins lol) wasn't as good a program as you all like to remember
Seriously, it brings me great joy to see what many fans felt for the longest time was the Rainbow Boogeyman of Professional Wrestling finally get the flowers he was long overdue. Also, "Basic Thuganomics" is one of my favorite wrestling themes ever.
John Cena epitomizes the Golden Rule of wrestling. The worst thing in the world is NOT for the crowd to hate you, because at least they are being entertained and maybe even in some cases, they're buying tickets just so they can express their hate for you The worst thing in the world for any pro wrestler is to come out all piss and vinegar...only for the crowd to barely react at all and not give a shit. Whether you like Cena or not, you cannot deny that aside from his weird ass early months...he ALWAYS got a crowd reaction
Honestly a little surprised to not see two matches/moments included here, though one was at least referenced: One Night Stand 2006 & Royal Rumble 2017. ONS '06 was Cena entering what was easily the most vitriolic crowd he ever competed in front of (old-school ECW fans), taking it all head first, and by the end of the match I believe he even got just a little bit of the crowd's respect, amazingly enough. Meanwhile, RR '17 had the amazing finale to Cena's trilogy with AJ Styles, a simply amazing match with someone who instantly became one of his greatest rivals (in ring, at least) & ending with Cena tying Ric Flair's (officially recognized by WWE, at least) record for most world title reigns. I don't disagree with Zane's picks in any way, but I feel these two definitely deserve credit, as well.
Cena completely put over AJ more than anyone put anybody over, after the second match he immediately became main eventer and then champ. Styles' first reign as champ was brilliant, and everybody forgets the triple threat including Dean Ambrose at No Mercy too.
Having been a fan that came in weeks before Summerslam 2013, it's so weird to me hearing that Cena was disliked earlier in his career. Then I looked at his work in the PG era and I can completely understand. Though I think people don't tend to give him props for his work during his main event run in the Ruthless Aggression run. He looked like a stud who could survive a ton of punishment and work well, but I suppose fans didn't buy into it. Probably makes sense why I still feel dislike towards Roman Reigns despite him doing objectively high-quality work for the past couple of years just because I didn't buy into him post-Shield split.
As someone who has been watching since 96, I can say that he wasn't always hated back then. There is a lot of revisionism in wrestling. He was cheered at some PPV events, and I remember certain RAW & SmackDown episodes where he got cheered by the audience. It really just depends on what city or state he was in. For example, if he went to New York, he would get booed. But if he went to Mississippi, he would get cheered.
@@lancethefilmguy9392 yea John got cheered where there were a lot of kids, now those kids have grown up and demonstrably don't know why Cena was disliked (see op) To understand you just have to have lived through the stagnation, same as Triple H reign of terror and Roman's stranglehold over three years. The worst part about Cena was he was inescapable for ten years while WWE had virtually no real competition and they took no risks.
Cena was super popular until Wrestlemania 23 and beating Shawn Michaels. But you have to understand that Shawn was THE GUY to fans during the Monday Night Wars. DX, even as bad guys, were massively popular in ‘97 and ‘98. And then Shawn was gone for 4 years. When he came back in 2002, it felt miraculous and he was better than he ever was before. And he had stellar feuds and Wrestlemania matches the next 4 years. The fans from before HBK’s haitus wanted to see him win another WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 23. We wanted it desperately. And then Cena beat him and every fan from the New Generation and Attitude Era turned against Cena. And then it happened over and over with the wrestlers we loved from before the Ruthless Aggression Era like Edge, Jericho, RVD (through no fault of Cena’s). And then Eddie died and Benoit happened and Jericho left and Christian left and Kurt Angle left and Booker T left. All these guys we older fans adored were leaving WWE and there was Cena still at the top and it caused a lot of resentment in older fans because Cena was incredibly corny at the time. And we had come up on top guys like Stone Cold, The Rock, Mick Foley, DX, the NWO, Sting, and John Cena was just so lame during the late 2000s compared to how cool the top guys were during the Monday Night War. So older fans hated Cena, but younger fans that didn’t experience how cool wrestling was in the late 90s/early 2000s didn’t know any better and adored Cena.
Without that promo, there is no Tribal Chief. “YOU…with all your gifts and all your abilities….YOU…have the GALL….to blame ME….thats alright big dog, took you 5 years to cut a halfway decent promo but now I’m about to shrink you back down to size”
It's crazy to think that at this point the majority of fans aren't old enough to remember when the Attitude Adjustment started as a parody of the F5 and was originally called the FU
This video made me appreciate JBL even more than I already did, he was such an amazing heel, a great character, and always a fantastic powerhouse. So great.
For me the moment he was able to turn his reception with the fans was when he did the United States Open Challenge and used it to showcase superstars that deserved it like Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Neville, Cesaro, Dean Ambrose, Cody Rhodes, Zack Ryder, Wade Barrett, Rusev, Xavier Woods, Dolph Ziggler, Big E & Rusev. Granted it didn't end in the best light (especially looking back now) but i think it really helped Cena, especially for the longterm.
Cena and Styles' series of matches from Spring 2016 - Elimination Chamber 2017 should absolutely be included. AJ brought in Gallows & Anderson, Cena put over a big outsider cleanly at Summerslam, setting up Styles to win the WWE Title in his rookie year there, then the two delivered another classic at the Royal Rumble with Cena picking up his 16th and final World Title win before dropping it a month later in the Chamber giving Wyatt his moment. Probably Cena's last great run.
I think the dopest thing about cena is how the fans have evolved with him over time if you’re like me then you were a child when you first saw him and you loved him then as cooler wrestlers started to come out you started to grow a little tired of old John just to now appreciate him more than ever now that he’s stepped back
My favorite John Cena moments were his Royal Rumble elimination with Batista, the Firefly Funhouse match, his match with Umaga, and his first US Championship win with the Big Show.
Wrestling With Wregret- As far as what Brian Zane said around 1:54-2:03, Bruce Prichard would say otherwise & call "Bull-crap!..." on that story. He said in episode 52 of his 'Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard' podcast that he was the one who heard John Cena rapping on a bus, not Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley.
Vengeance 03 and his feud with Undertaker deserves a mention, I believe, as does his Survivor Series showing against "Team Sasquatch" in 03. Also, his I Quit match with JBL...That was a very bloody affair! Still love it!
This is a pretty great list of great Cena moments. Brings back a lot of great memories watching wrestling. Love him or hate him, John Cena is definitely one of the greatest to step foot in the ring.
I audibly popped when you said you're covering Total Bellas. I usually wait until Wednesday even though I have the Patreon but I might have to watch that one early lol.
Good call bringing up the make a wish section for Cena. I think his dedication to that organization says more about him than any best of list 🙃. Also, great best of list!
I really liked Cena coming in to help Miz and R Truth beat Judgement on the RAW after Wrestlemania 40. Also his promo battle with Randy Orton where he brings Daniel Bryan in was also pretty cool, like John acknowledging how popular Bryan and using him as an example of what a hard worker is in the company, plus him putting over pretty much everybody else in the ring with them at the time.
The greatest match John Cena ever had in WWE history was at SummerSlam 2014 against Brock Lesnar. Cena had the performance of his career there. Such a masterpiece.
Cena leaving WWE for Hollywood is vastly different from Rock leaving WWE, in my book. Rock left after about 6-7 years in WWE and basically disappeared with the exception of the odd cameo here and there until his program with Cena. Compare this to Cena, who gave a solid decade to WWE and still comes back from time to time to put over talent. It's very humble of Cena to try to take back what he said about the Rock back in the day, but I still stand by it.
I mean, that’s not what Rock wanted. He wanted to stay and continue doing short programs when he wasn’t acting, but WWE “forgot” to renew his contract. And then being told by his management at the time to distance himself from his wrestling past didn’t help things either.
I'm honestly a little surprised his feud with Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson wasn't at least an honorable mention. I thought that was some great work, and they were the perfect guys to represent a "sports entertainment vs. pro-wrestling" style feud. And the match they had at Summerslam 2013 was fantastic. It gets overshadowed by the post-match angle, but man was that a solid match
“Cena tore his pec, he’s gonna be out for a long time!” When Royal Rumble 2008 rolled around “OMG! Cena’s back! How the heck did he do it?! Is he Superman or is he the F’N Terminator?!”
I wasn't a Cena hater like most of the IWC when I was a kid but he wasn't my favorite either. I was just more into guys like Undertaker, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, or even Jeff Hardy. But I have gained more of an appreciation for him over the years
Brian, I really appreciate your work, always entertaining and insightful. Unfortunately, the RUclips wrestling audience is so disparate and fractured because there are so many (too many) creators producing wrestling content that is repetitive and stale (it's why I haven't yet started producing videos). I know you are a big success on RUclips anyway, so without meaning to sound condescending, if subscribers and views were based on quality and originality, you would have the truly massive audience your work deserves.
Great list and content as always, surprised to not see any mention of the Cena VS Orton rivalry. Definitely got a bit stale toward the end but as someone who grew up in the Ruthless Aggression - PG Era, it's hard for me to not think of Orton when I look back on Cena's career. I also wanted to shoutout the Falls Count Anywhere with The Great Khali, pretty tough to make that guy look good, let alone in that setting. Underrated match IMO.
I don't count the firefly fun house match. Bc it wasn't a match, it was two guys cutting a promo on each other. Then Bray hitting Cena with his finisher, and counting the 3 by himself.
Well At Least John Cena Knew What It Felt like to be Tom Brady the now retired NFL Quarterback who was the most despised player In The NFL and that's what John Cena was to WWE best comparison ever
Don't forget Jeff Gordon in NASCAR. He was the John Cena of the 90s. Wasn't til the twilight end of his career where he got respect from the audience. Heck, he even had his own ONS moment in the Pepsi car.
Definitely his match against Daniel Bryan at SummerSlam 2013. Another example of Cena putting someone over who absolutely deserved it and was supported by the fans while also doing it with an injury. Can’t forget to mention that the match is an absolute barn burner with Cena even doing a bit of chain wrestling at the start and being the perfect power wrestler to counteract Bryan’s technical prowess. Arguably the best match of his career, at the very least Top 3.
Bradshaw becoming John Bradshaw Layfield was such a massive, jarring change that it took me months to realize they were the same guy. And I wasn't a kid back then - I was in my mid 20s.
Man, "Letters in the Sky" by Civil Twilight is so good that they let them use it in a promo for Cena twice. The promos (Cena/Orton in '09 & Cena/Rock in '13) are one of my personal favorites because of that damn song.
There’s a strong argument to be made that Cena was the best at making picking up Big Show look like an impressive of strength I mean to hold someone that huge on your back like that is just WOW And honestly, the more I rewatch Kurt Angle Angle Slamming Show, the more I see how often Big Show jumped to sell the move So yeah, I think Cena made it look the most impressive
Census is one of those guys that everyone can agree was great at what he did whether you loved or hated him, he truly stood out on his own and developed his own identity, but matched it with in ring work. A true artist of the industry imo
I am definitely biased towards the us open challenge because that’s when I started watching wrestling. Every week my brother and I were able to turn on raw with the knowledge that at least one match was going to be great. Then came the rivalry with KO. I did not watch during the times of “cena wins lol” so I can’t grasp it fully but I will never be able to hate John cena because ironically, he introduced me to good wrestling
I was a big John Cena fan when I was just started watching wrestling whenever he’s on TV I was so excited and his feud with Edge, Umaga, Randy Orton, Cm Punk, Triple H, Batista, and AJ Styles were some of my favorite Cena feuds. John Cena is a legend in the wrestling industry and is a great guy I still love Cena to this day I’ll never forget those childhood memories watching John Cena on TV
The one honorable mention that deserves recognition is his rivalry with AJ Styles. If you told a wrestling fan in 2010, that the face of the WWE would clash with the face of TNA in the future. Many people would laugh it off. But their trilogy of matches are fantastic and deserve all the praise as they gets.
Yes Cena also went to Hollywood, but his big run was way way longer than Rocks and he routinely came back for short runs after going to make movies. Once rock left that was pretty much it
I can't believe RANDY ORTON was not mentioned in this list associated with John Cena. This was one of the greatest rivalries in WWE HISTORY. Respect the list, but absurd not to include the Viper on this list
Cena's US title Open challenge was One of the few times I vividly remember smarks being positive. I remember being on /wooo/ and almost everyone was interested in the challenge on a week to week bases. It did fizzle out a bit near the end, but it was one of the best elevations of a midcard title in recent memory.
Edge and John Cena needed each other. Edge needed the feud to finally move into the main event, and standing equal to John Cena was a great way to do it in 2006. Cena needed Edge because he was definitely losing steam due to lolcenawins fatigue. But the fact that Edge could step up on the mic is what made the feud so good for both of them.
The ending of the 2005 Rumble should’ve made a mention on number 6. I mean, it eventually made both him and Batista main eventers at the expense of Vince McMahon’s quads. But it would’ve been funny to see the first time ever co-winners of the Rumble 😂.
Before anyone says anything, I know that Bret and Luger co-won the Rumble in 1994. It was a joke at a call that, I believe it was Michael Cole made from the Rumble this year saying that it had never happened before.
I used to honestly be one of those fans that absolutely fucking loathed Cena during his "Super Cena" era on top, then when he did the whole US Open Challenge thing, I realised how fucking good he was, then he became one of the best examples of a wrestler turned actor. (I'd put him on the level of people like Piper and Batista).
John Cena's US title open challenge was amazing in 2015 that's easily his best run with the title great john Cena's Feud with edge in 2006 was amazing bray wyatt should've won at wrestlemania 30 great video brian.
Been watching WWW on and off for years and I don't watch wrestling anymore yet he still puts out vids that are so fucking good for some reason. B Z you the goat man
Cena vs. Rock at Mania 28 is the greatest spectacle match in Mania history, solid enough in ring wise, but in terms of atmosphere and hype, it is unmatched
![Blox Fruits Dragon Rework Update [Full Stream]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EqDAp8udhm0/mqdefault.jpg)
"They tried to spin Cena's real life divorce in 2012 as The Rock's fault for some reason."
2024 Final Boss The Rock definitely would have taken credit for it and said he gave Cena's wife the People's Strudel.
All while swearing like a mf too calling him a "pussy ass jabroni whose conception of fucking is as adiquete as Billy Gunn as King of the Ring"
Cena's greatest moment is the 650+ Make A Wish visits, no question about it
Did he visit any of Vince McMahon's victims or did he just re-state how much he loves Vince McMahon?
@@TheMaxxAwesome
*Helps 650 cancer kids*
This guy: BUT WHAT ABOUT ALL THE AWFUL SHIT HIS BOSS DID?!?!?!?!?!!!?!
Seems cruel when the kids can't see him
@@joshkellemen5931 That's Savage.
Cena's feud with AJ Styles in 2016/17 was a real highlight for me; perfectly introduced AJ to the larger WWE audience (me included) and that SummerSlam match was a banger. Even if he did have some questionable booking behind him, I will always appreciate what Cena has done!
An additional favourite Cena moment would be the FireFly Funhouse match; I know it's more a Bray Wyatt moment, but seeing his character being dissected in that way was a fascinating watch
I almost forgot about that. Cena certainly played his part, but I think prime AJ elevated that fued to the level it reached.
"Questionable booking" as if he didn't exert his own control frequently
John Cena is the epitome of “you’re gonna miss me when I’m gone.”
There is way too much sentimentality and nostalgia in wrestling fan community, especially in the US. It's why many wrestlers have 20 years of "retirement" matches before they actually retire. The fans feed that unhealthy pattern. It damages the industry and individuals. I mean, Will Ospreay can barely draw a crowd, but marks will pay to watch a geriatric and drunk Rik Flair flopping with his son in law.
Cups.
i won't miss him at all.
"You don't know what you truly have until it's gone."
Nope
John Cena singing Basic Thuganomics is one of my favorite parts of his career. Not many wrestlers sing their own entrance themes but he's one of the best to do it.
Uhhhh…
OH
OH
SHAWN!
@@gatchywatchyentertainmentb2090 I think I'm cute! I know I'm sexy!
I also thought Big Show sang his own song
Honky Tonk Man
Also my time is now...also had his album chart on billboard 200 and they wanna compare Roman to him whose done nothing outside wwe😂
I think another thing that has helped Cena is his fanbase grew up. So the same kids that were watching him are now the adults in the audience so there's no more booing Cena but just cheers. I think the Cena hate was solely from adult wrestling fans not liking the WWE turning PG and felt he represented that because he was the face of the company.
As an Attitude Era kid and a Ruthless Aggression Era teen, it was annoying seeing the Smarks trying to get themselves over back then.
@@lancethefilmguy9392 reason I started to dislike black and gold mxt
@@christophernear6990 me too, black and gold era smarks are the most annoying
This is something I was thinking about ever since the 20th anniversary of John Cena’s debut
. Luke Owen of wrestle talk pointed this out when he reviewed the episode of raw celebrated John’s 20th anniversary, how the older fans who booed Cena out of the building either stopped watching or even began to respect Cena, with the fans who grew up watching John cheering him.
What makes that Triple H/Cena match hilarious is that it literally happened a year later following Triple H's period where he was the most hated man on Raw
Shows how hypocritical the Smarks can be 😂
@@lancethefilmguy9392 Yup
Also they ended up putting on a good match after a year of bad triple h matches
It was basically a passing of the golden shovel from Triple H as the dominant champion to John Cena
No disrespect, but Let me correct you, Dwayne Johnson is NOT the reason John Cena was able to make it in hollywood. There have been wrestlers way before Dwayne such as Roddy Piper and Hulk Hogan, etc.
You're obviously in love with dwayne. I hope you know he is a pedo. The number one spot should have went to John Cena's Charity run. Hands down.
Your videos are good but would be a lot better if you are less biased. It's very obvious. No offense.
"The Rock made it possible for guys like Cena to transition to acting in the first place."
This is Santa With Muscles erasure and I won't have it.
Hey now…Roddy Piper deserves a mention in that category also.
Don't forget Abraxas guardian of the universe.
@@dropout818 I sure would like to
@@zlinedavidHulk Hogan too
Terry Funk and Jesse Ventura have entered the chat.
For me, Cena's best moment was putting Kevin Owens over strong. I didn't watch ROH or NXT so I wasn't familiar with Kevin Steen's work but Cena helped to get over that he was a big deal. From looking shook during his debut to laying down for him their first match, it absolutely solidified KO's status as a main eventer. Not surprisingly, KO would become a world champion just one year after debuting.
and KO became a trusted guy for handling big marquee matches as well. so much so that Steve Austin vs Kevin Owen in a decently competitive match was something we were able to witness
I'd love to see Brian do a video on who Cena did and did not rightfully or wrongfully put over. He screwed a lot of people and probably killed some careers. But also from time to time, seemed to do the "right thing".
@@Kamau1865 Same
but as for who's careers his screwed, we need an actual follow up as well. many he put down like the Nexus, did not succeed anywhere else either.
Big Match John doing ten minute matches with wrestlers everyone already knows is a good wrestler (where Cena wins lol) wasn't as good a program as you all like to remember
@@moodycxnt It takes 2 to tango.
Cena has proved plenty of times that he could have great in-ring matches as well.
Seriously, it brings me great joy to see what many fans felt for the longest time was the Rainbow Boogeyman of Professional Wrestling finally get the flowers he was long overdue.
Also, "Basic Thuganomics" is one of my favorite wrestling themes ever.
John Cena epitomizes the Golden Rule of wrestling. The worst thing in the world is NOT for the crowd to hate you, because at least they are being entertained and maybe even in some cases, they're buying tickets just so they can express their hate for you
The worst thing in the world for any pro wrestler is to come out all piss and vinegar...only for the crowd to barely react at all and not give a shit. Whether you like Cena or not, you cannot deny that aside from his weird ass early months...he ALWAYS got a crowd reaction
Same here. Finally the Smarks are coming around
In hindsight, Cena had tons of bangers in his run
His booking could be frustrating but the man has had his classics
One of the reasons I STARTED booing Cena was Basic Thuganomics going away
Honestly a little surprised to not see two matches/moments included here, though one was at least referenced: One Night Stand 2006 & Royal Rumble 2017. ONS '06 was Cena entering what was easily the most vitriolic crowd he ever competed in front of (old-school ECW fans), taking it all head first, and by the end of the match I believe he even got just a little bit of the crowd's respect, amazingly enough. Meanwhile, RR '17 had the amazing finale to Cena's trilogy with AJ Styles, a simply amazing match with someone who instantly became one of his greatest rivals (in ring, at least) & ending with Cena tying Ric Flair's (officially recognized by WWE, at least) record for most world title reigns.
I don't disagree with Zane's picks in any way, but I feel these two definitely deserve credit, as well.
Cena vs Styles III is my all-time favorite match
Cena/AJ trilogy is among my favorites.
some of the best in ring work from CENA, and AJ is well....Phenomenal.
Cena completely put over AJ more than anyone put anybody over, after the second match he immediately became main eventer and then champ. Styles' first reign as champ was brilliant, and everybody forgets the triple threat including Dean Ambrose at No Mercy too.
Having been a fan that came in weeks before Summerslam 2013, it's so weird to me hearing that Cena was disliked earlier in his career. Then I looked at his work in the PG era and I can completely understand. Though I think people don't tend to give him props for his work during his main event run in the Ruthless Aggression run. He looked like a stud who could survive a ton of punishment and work well, but I suppose fans didn't buy into it. Probably makes sense why I still feel dislike towards Roman Reigns despite him doing objectively high-quality work for the past couple of years just because I didn't buy into him post-Shield split.
As someone who has been watching since 96, I can say that he wasn't always hated back then. There is a lot of revisionism in wrestling. He was cheered at some PPV events, and I remember certain RAW & SmackDown episodes where he got cheered by the audience. It really just depends on what city or state he was in.
For example, if he went to New York, he would get booed. But if he went to Mississippi, he would get cheered.
@@lancethefilmguy9392 yea John got cheered where there were a lot of kids, now those kids have grown up and demonstrably don't know why Cena was disliked (see op)
To understand you just have to have lived through the stagnation, same as Triple H reign of terror and Roman's stranglehold over three years. The worst part about Cena was he was inescapable for ten years while WWE had virtually no real competition and they took no risks.
Cena was super popular until Wrestlemania 23 and beating Shawn Michaels. But you have to understand that Shawn was THE GUY to fans during the Monday Night Wars. DX, even as bad guys, were massively popular in ‘97 and ‘98. And then Shawn was gone for 4 years. When he came back in 2002, it felt miraculous and he was better than he ever was before. And he had stellar feuds and Wrestlemania matches the next 4 years. The fans from before HBK’s haitus wanted to see him win another WWE Championship at Wrestlemania 23. We wanted it desperately. And then Cena beat him and every fan from the New Generation and Attitude Era turned against Cena.
And then it happened over and over with the wrestlers we loved from before the Ruthless Aggression Era like Edge, Jericho, RVD (through no fault of Cena’s). And then Eddie died and Benoit happened and Jericho left and Christian left and Kurt Angle left and Booker T left. All these guys we older fans adored were leaving WWE and there was Cena still at the top and it caused a lot of resentment in older fans because Cena was incredibly corny at the time. And we had come up on top guys like Stone Cold, The Rock, Mick Foley, DX, the NWO, Sting, and John Cena was just so lame during the late 2000s compared to how cool the top guys were during the Monday Night War. So older fans hated Cena, but younger fans that didn’t experience how cool wrestling was in the late 90s/early 2000s didn’t know any better and adored Cena.
@@moodycxnt exactly
@gnikulodeon1999 Reigns has o charisma
Cena's promo on Roman Reigns on RAW in 2017 to me is an all-time moment "I'm still here because you can't do your job"
Without that promo, there is no Tribal Chief.
“YOU…with all your gifts and all your abilities….YOU…have the GALL….to blame ME….thats alright big dog, took you 5 years to cut a halfway decent promo but now I’m about to shrink you back down to size”
Now I'm thinking of a Terry Funktober. A whole month of Brian's funniest impersonation.
"I've changed the rules of the month, it's now Funkoween. Weeeeee"
It's just Basic Funk-o-nomics 😅
It's crazy to think that at this point the majority of fans aren't old enough to remember when the Attitude Adjustment started as a parody of the F5 and was originally called the FU
I remember. Although I was in High School during the Cena days
This video made me appreciate JBL even more than I already did, he was such an amazing heel, a great character, and always a fantastic powerhouse. So great.
Too bad he was a shit human being
He was to Cena what McMahon was to Austin
Such a good heel he abused young men in the showers
Shocking JBL isn't fully cancelled, we already know enough, can only imagine what we don't know
I'm shocked that the rematch at Judgement Day '05 wasn't on the list.
For me the moment he was able to turn his reception with the fans was when he did the United States Open Challenge and used it to showcase superstars that deserved it like Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Neville, Cesaro, Dean Ambrose, Cody Rhodes, Zack Ryder, Wade Barrett, Rusev, Xavier Woods, Dolph Ziggler, Big E & Rusev. Granted it didn't end in the best light (especially looking back now) but i think it really helped Cena, especially for the longterm.
1:16 They are always the best kind of nuts.
Double JJ is jealous 😅
💯
Cena and Styles' series of matches from Spring 2016 - Elimination Chamber 2017 should absolutely be included. AJ brought in Gallows & Anderson, Cena put over a big outsider cleanly at Summerslam, setting up Styles to win the WWE Title in his rookie year there, then the two delivered another classic at the Royal Rumble with Cena picking up his 16th and final World Title win before dropping it a month later in the Chamber giving Wyatt his moment.
Probably Cena's last great run.
I think the dopest thing about cena is how the fans have evolved with him over time if you’re like me then you were a child when you first saw him and you loved him then as cooler wrestlers started to come out you started to grow a little tired of old John just to now appreciate him more than ever now that he’s stepped back
My favorite John Cena moments were his Royal Rumble elimination with Batista, the Firefly Funhouse match, his match with Umaga, and his first US Championship win with the Big Show.
Love him or hate him, it's hard to imagine WWE without him
Not at all
Not at all is right... Maybe if your a young kid that grew up in that era of John Cena..
I've been imagining this for years.
Agreed
Cant even see him
Thuganomics is a legitimately great song. 2 faced rappers walk away with 4 shiners is such a good line
Wrestling With Wregret- As far as what Brian Zane said around 1:54-2:03, Bruce Prichard would say otherwise & call "Bull-crap!..." on that story.
He said in episode 52 of his 'Something To Wrestle With Bruce Prichard' podcast that he was the one who heard John Cena rapping on a bus, not Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley.
Side note: I’d love to see a full review of Royal Rumble ‘07!
The spinning Fruity Pebbles background *chefs kiss*
How Orton Vs Cena didn’t make the list but Umaga did is criminal.
Vengeance 03 and his feud with Undertaker deserves a mention, I believe, as does his Survivor Series showing against "Team Sasquatch" in 03.
Also, his I Quit match with JBL...That was a very bloody affair! Still love it!
This is a pretty great list of great Cena moments. Brings back a lot of great memories watching wrestling. Love him or hate him, John Cena is definitely one of the greatest to step foot in the ring.
I audibly popped when you said you're covering Total Bellas.
I usually wait until Wednesday even though I have the Patreon but I might have to watch that one early lol.
John Cena vs Umaga made me a believer of Cena temporarily during that time
I always point to that match whenever someone says he couldn't wrestle.
Good call bringing up the make a wish section for Cena. I think his dedication to that organization says more about him than any best of list 🙃. Also, great best of list!
I really liked Cena coming in to help Miz and R Truth beat Judgement on the RAW after Wrestlemania 40. Also his promo battle with Randy Orton where he brings Daniel Bryan in was also pretty cool, like John acknowledging how popular Bryan and using him as an example of what a hard worker is in the company, plus him putting over pretty much everybody else in the ring with them at the time.
His early days as US champ were pretty great honestly. Feuds with Booker T and Carlito.
Yeah the one with Rene Dupree was good too
BTW, A-Train’s reactions to John Cena’s raps during that Halloween party is priceless!!! 😁
The greatest match John Cena ever had in WWE history was at SummerSlam 2014 against Brock Lesnar. Cena had the performance of his career there. Such a masterpiece.
That surprise Royal Rumble return deserved more than just an Honorable Mention.
Never forget the rap battle between John Cena and some guy who later became a male cheerleader
Fun fact about that RVD pull over happened in my home town, well on the highway of it anyway. In between Hanging Rock and Ironton
His rivalry with AJ Styles I believe should get an honorable mention.
Cena leaving WWE for Hollywood is vastly different from Rock leaving WWE, in my book.
Rock left after about 6-7 years in WWE and basically disappeared with the exception of the odd cameo here and there until his program with Cena.
Compare this to Cena, who gave a solid decade to WWE and still comes back from time to time to put over talent. It's very humble of Cena to try to take back what he said about the Rock back in the day, but I still stand by it.
I mean, that’s not what Rock wanted. He wanted to stay and continue doing short programs when he wasn’t acting, but WWE “forgot” to renew his contract. And then being told by his management at the time to distance himself from his wrestling past didn’t help things either.
@@adannanewby3674Once he dropped The Rock moniker and became Dwayne Johnson, he made it look like he abandoned wrestling
@@lancethefilmguy9392 Yeah, that was the advice of his management team. He talks about it in an interview (I think it may have been GQ?)
I'm honestly a little surprised his feud with Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson wasn't at least an honorable mention. I thought that was some great work, and they were the perfect guys to represent a "sports entertainment vs. pro-wrestling" style feud. And the match they had at Summerslam 2013 was fantastic. It gets overshadowed by the post-match angle, but man was that a solid match
8:38(ish) - i hope the cameraperson who snapped that shot got a nice bonus that paycheck...
“Cena tore his pec, he’s gonna be out for a long time!”
When Royal Rumble 2008 rolled around
“OMG! Cena’s back! How the heck did he do it?! Is he Superman or is he the F’N Terminator?!”
And that crowd went nuts for him 😂😅
I wasn't a Cena hater like most of the IWC when I was a kid but he wasn't my favorite either. I was just more into guys like Undertaker, Triple H, Shawn Michaels, or even Jeff Hardy. But I have gained more of an appreciation for him over the years
The Funhouse match is amazing, Cena portrayed himself in a way that no other superstar that big has ever done. Total meta deconstruction of his role.
Kevin Owens Raw debut was something else and made me a fan of him for life
His Last Man Standing match vs Umaga has to be on here! That match is legendary!
That 2015 John Cena Us title open challenge was great it helped elevate wrestlers gave us great matches etc
The A&E Rivals episode on him and Batista was great
An Underrated Rivalry
Brian, I really appreciate your work, always entertaining and insightful. Unfortunately, the RUclips wrestling audience is so disparate and fractured because there are so many (too many) creators producing wrestling content that is repetitive and stale (it's why I haven't yet started producing videos). I know you are a big success on RUclips anyway, so without meaning to sound condescending, if subscribers and views were based on quality and originality, you would have the truly massive audience your work deserves.
Great video as always much love Mr Zane.
Great list and content as always, surprised to not see any mention of the Cena VS Orton rivalry. Definitely got a bit stale toward the end but as someone who grew up in the Ruthless Aggression - PG Era, it's hard for me to not think of Orton when I look back on Cena's career.
I also wanted to shoutout the Falls Count Anywhere with The Great Khali, pretty tough to make that guy look good, let alone in that setting. Underrated match IMO.
The only good match in Great Khalis career
I remember when John Cena and Chris Benoit Humiliated Paul Heyman on Smackdown
That was a funny moment
CHRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS *Benoit tightens the crossface on Heyman*
Here's the soap 🧼
I don't count the firefly fun house match. Bc it wasn't a match, it was two guys cutting a promo on each other. Then Bray hitting Cena with his finisher, and counting the 3 by himself.
Well At Least John Cena Knew What It Felt like to be Tom Brady the now retired NFL Quarterback who was the most despised player In The NFL and that's what John Cena was to WWE best comparison ever
Don't forget Jeff Gordon in NASCAR. He was the John Cena of the 90s. Wasn't til the twilight end of his career where he got respect from the audience. Heck, he even had his own ONS moment in the Pepsi car.
I will always put over the I Quit match with JBL as one of Cenas best. There’s a reason it’s one of my all time favorites.
Arguably, the best I Quit match in WWE history
Definitely his match against Daniel Bryan at SummerSlam 2013. Another example of Cena putting someone over who absolutely deserved it and was supported by the fans while also doing it with an injury. Can’t forget to mention that the match is an absolute barn burner with Cena even doing a bit of chain wrestling at the start and being the perfect power wrestler to counteract Bryan’s technical prowess. Arguably the best match of his career, at the very least Top 3.
Bradshaw becoming John Bradshaw Layfield was such a massive, jarring change that it took me months to realize they were the same guy. And I wasn't a kid back then - I was in my mid 20s.
cena deserved more love than we gave him tbh.
Amen
Honourable mention: John Cena vs Brock Lesnar at Summerslam, it was like watching Doomsday kill Superman and nobody could do anything about it.
Man, "Letters in the Sky" by Civil Twilight is so good that they let them use it in a promo for Cena twice. The promos (Cena/Orton in '09 & Cena/Rock in '13) are one of my personal favorites because of that damn song.
There’s a strong argument to be made that Cena was the best at making picking up Big Show look like an impressive of strength
I mean to hold someone that huge on your back like that is just WOW
And honestly, the more I rewatch Kurt Angle Angle Slamming Show, the more I see how often Big Show jumped to sell the move
So yeah, I think Cena made it look the most impressive
The US Championship Open Challenge was a highlight of 2015 Raw
And now Miz and R Truth are tag team champs 😂
Kind of surprised his rivalry with Randy Orton in 2009 wasn’t in here
Census is one of those guys that everyone can agree was great at what he did whether you loved or hated him, he truly stood out on his own and developed his own identity, but matched it with in ring work. A true artist of the industry imo
Wrestling with Wregret is the best weekly Wednesday wrestling show!
I am definitely biased towards the us open challenge because that’s when I started watching wrestling. Every week my brother and I were able to turn on raw with the knowledge that at least one match was going to be great. Then came the rivalry with KO. I did not watch during the times of “cena wins lol” so I can’t grasp it fully but I will never be able to hate John cena because ironically, he introduced me to good wrestling
His feud with AJ was my favorite. I was at a Rumble party, most of the people there were Cena haters, but after the match they couldn't even be mad
I have always said that Cena haters are the Conspiracy Theorists of Wrestling Fans. They will make up wild stories to justify their own opinions
Cool video as always Brian 💯
I was a big John Cena fan when I was just started watching wrestling whenever he’s on TV I was so excited and his feud with Edge, Umaga, Randy Orton, Cm Punk, Triple H, Batista, and AJ Styles were some of my favorite Cena feuds. John Cena is a legend in the wrestling industry and is a great guy I still love Cena to this day I’ll never forget those childhood memories watching John Cena on TV
The one honorable mention that deserves recognition is his rivalry with AJ Styles. If you told a wrestling fan in 2010, that the face of the WWE would clash with the face of TNA in the future. Many people would laugh it off. But their trilogy of matches are fantastic and deserve all the praise as they gets.
Yes Cena also went to Hollywood, but his big run was way way longer than Rocks and he routinely came back for short runs after going to make movies. Once rock left that was pretty much it
Love John Cena. His debut in the Ruthless Aggression era will always be timeless.
Do you really wanna,
Do you really wanna taste it!?
Nice profile pic
@@colinwooten3767 Thanks
I can't believe RANDY ORTON was not mentioned in this list associated with John Cena. This was one of the greatest rivalries in WWE HISTORY. Respect the list, but absurd not to include the Viper on this list
Great countdown :) but his long lasting feuds over the years against Randy Orton deserve some sort of recognition too. Their 2009 saga especially.
Honey roasted is also my favorite nut. Especially if it's a cashew
Cena's US title Open challenge was One of the few times I vividly remember smarks being positive. I remember being on /wooo/ and almost everyone was interested in the challenge on a week to week bases. It did fizzle out a bit near the end, but it was one of the best elevations of a midcard title in recent memory.
Edge and John Cena needed each other. Edge needed the feud to finally move into the main event, and standing equal to John Cena was a great way to do it in 2006. Cena needed Edge because he was definitely losing steam due to lolcenawins fatigue. But the fact that Edge could step up on the mic is what made the feud so good for both of them.
Lol Cena Wins didn't become a thing until the early 2010s
@@lancethefilmguy9392 Yeah, that's definitely wrong. I specifically remember seeing it at the end of 2005 when he beat Kurt Angle 3 PPVs in a row.
@@Vice4Life The meme itself didn't exist until the 2010s
The ending of the 2005 Rumble should’ve made a mention on number 6. I mean, it eventually made both him and Batista main eventers at the expense of Vince McMahon’s quads. But it would’ve been funny to see the first time ever co-winners of the Rumble 😂.
Before anyone says anything, I know that Bret and Luger co-won the Rumble in 1994. It was a joke at a call that, I believe it was Michael Cole made from the Rumble this year saying that it had never happened before.
@@CGaboLRoyal Rumble 2005 is the best imo
John vs Eddie in the parking lot brawl is always a fun match to go back to
I used to honestly be one of those fans that absolutely fucking loathed Cena during his "Super Cena" era on top, then when he did the whole US Open Challenge thing, I realised how fucking good he was, then he became one of the best examples of a wrestler turned actor. (I'd put him on the level of people like Piper and Batista).
speedy and a bit weedy best line ever
I appreciate the pebbles that are fruity in the thumbnail.
John Cena's US title open challenge was amazing in 2015 that's easily his best run with the title great john Cena's Feud with edge in 2006 was amazing bray wyatt should've won at wrestlemania 30 great video brian.
Been watching WWW on and off for years and I don't watch wrestling anymore yet he still puts out vids that are so fucking good for some reason. B Z you the goat man
Thanks for the list Brian ❤
You mean to tell me
Vince McMahon listened to the fans
I thought you internet nerds said Vince NEVER listened to the fans
CMay next year Brian ?😂 pretty please ? This will be a fun month
Putting over AJ was amazing. And that was a year after the us open challenge.
I love when Brian does theme months. I have so many in mind. MOvember needs to happen.
Edge pumping up John Cena before Brock Lesnar Extreme Rules 2012 was great
That is a great one
17:16 I dying😂
One of his best moments is playing Peacemaker
I also liked his Piper’s Pit appearances. It showed his more serious/devoted side
Wait he had good matches? He was vastly underrated
Glad to see that his Last Man Standing match with You-Main-Gah got on here.
Cena vs. Rock at Mania 28 is the greatest spectacle match in Mania history, solid enough in ring wise, but in terms of atmosphere and hype, it is unmatched