SMARKISM returns tonight for a special edition; hot topic of the month: The Rock vs. John Cena. What else?
ONE year ago, The Rock returned to WWE for the first time in years. The wrestling world lit up for one night, as one of the greatest stars of his generation got on the mic and told the world exactly what was on his mind. He was the talk of the industry once again - and rightly so. The seeds of The Rock vs. John Cena were sown. Fast forward one year though, and things have began to sour. Whilst The Rock still has a lot of support in his feud against John Cena, there are growing murmurs of discontent amongst the IWC. So, when did the tide begin to turn?
If you ask me, I wouldn't be able to tell you. One guess though, lies within The Rock's return speech last year - when he spoke of the desire to never leave the fans again. The Rock announced that he has returned, and that he is here to stay. I can imagine it now, fans allowing their heads to fill with glorious images of The Rock strutting his stuff at an upcoming TLC PPV. Images of him main eventing Raw house shows all across the country; the glory days are back. The Rock is here to stay, that's what he said, right?... right? Not so much. It's an unfortunate misconception. I'm not claiming to be clairvoyant - but it was abundantly obvious that The Rock was never going to be in WWE week in - week out. Rock said he was back, and a year later, he's still here. In that sense, he stuck to his word. However, the amount of time he's spent in WWE in this past year has upset fans. They feel he's let them down. Whether they've misunderstood the aforementioned promise to never leave again - or whether they're advocates of unrealistic expectation, some fans aren't satisfied.
With Wrestlemania drawing closer, every man and his dog has an opinion.
Which brings me onto my next point; inconvenient truths. Here's the first truth that fans should learn to accept: the world doesn't begin and end with pro-wrestling. Gasp. Blasphemy. How can he say that? Well folks, it's true. I appreciate that may be hard to stomach. Afterall, I've been a wrestling fan for 13 years. So many people have attacked The Rock for "turning his back on the industry", but what they fail to appreciate is that pro-wrestling can be a terrible career. Long hours on the road, damage to your physical and mental health, addiction to painkillers, backstage politics, premature deaths; the list goes on. Saying all that, professional wrestling can also be a great experience - seeing the world and performing in front of thousands - that's a pretty unique opportunity. Does all that outweigh the negatives, though? Compare this with acting; probably more money, less of a toll on your body, the chance to try something new and gain worldwide and widespread appreciation. Acting obviously will come with its negatives (long hours, etc), but it's much more of a viable career option. People are so fast to lynch The Rock for choosing this career over being a wrestler, but I fail to see how he can be blamed for making a smart decision which improves his life.
The next inconvenient truth; 95% (if not more) of wrestlers on the WWE roster would quit wrestling if they were talented enough to become an actor. The current John Cena vs. Rock feud if rife with pseudo-evangelism. The Rock's new found critics are quick to point to Cena as a reference to someone who loves the industry. They fail to appreciate what Rock contributed for years to wrestling before leaving to pursue a new dream; but they also fail to mention what would happen if John Cena was talented enough to make a movie outside of the WWE movie studios. Would a company such as Disney, for example, want their star appearing on WWE TV frequently? Would they be happy seeing their supposed lead actor for their latest movie, jetting across America to make Raw shows when he's supposed to be filming or promoting a movie? In Layman's terms, professionalism dictates that if you're pursuing a career, you invest 100% in it. That's exactly what The Rock has done, and it's exactly what John Cena would do if he was acting for a studio that wasn't owned by WWE. The moral high horse has been exhausted for years now, and I'd appreciate a little realism when people attack The Rock's acting career.
John Cena's cannon fodder in this feud has been all the conjecture that I have spoke of. Obviously, it's all storyline, so Cena will never mention the points I've made. However, that doesn't stop people from taking Cena's word as gospel. They're taking cheap trash talking nonsense and using it as a stick to beat The Rock with. The best thing is, it's all John Cena has been able to say for the past year. The Rock's critics have been quick to attack any of his substandard promos, but I don't see them critiquing the material of Cena. John Cena, the same wrestler who loves the industry and will never leave(!). I appreciate that all of this is a well worked angle from both Cena and Rock, together they've created a feud which is provoking opinions from wrestling fans round the world. What I don't understand, is the need to lament The Rock and his legacy, merely because you favour Cena in the Wrestlemania match.
ONE year ago, The Rock returned to WWE for the first time in years. The wrestling world lit up for one night, as one of the greatest stars of his generation got on the mic and told the world exactly what was on his mind. He was the talk of the industry once again - and rightly so. The seeds of The Rock vs. John Cena were sown. Fast forward one year though, and things have began to sour. Whilst The Rock still has a lot of support in his feud against John Cena, there are growing murmurs of discontent amongst the IWC. So, when did the tide begin to turn?
If you ask me, I wouldn't be able to tell you. One guess though, lies within The Rock's return speech last year - when he spoke of the desire to never leave the fans again. The Rock announced that he has returned, and that he is here to stay. I can imagine it now, fans allowing their heads to fill with glorious images of The Rock strutting his stuff at an upcoming TLC PPV. Images of him main eventing Raw house shows all across the country; the glory days are back. The Rock is here to stay, that's what he said, right?... right? Not so much. It's an unfortunate misconception. I'm not claiming to be clairvoyant - but it was abundantly obvious that The Rock was never going to be in WWE week in - week out. Rock said he was back, and a year later, he's still here. In that sense, he stuck to his word. However, the amount of time he's spent in WWE in this past year has upset fans. They feel he's let them down. Whether they've misunderstood the aforementioned promise to never leave again - or whether they're advocates of unrealistic expectation, some fans aren't satisfied.
With Wrestlemania drawing closer, every man and his dog has an opinion.
Which brings me onto my next point; inconvenient truths. Here's the first truth that fans should learn to accept: the world doesn't begin and end with pro-wrestling. Gasp. Blasphemy. How can he say that? Well folks, it's true. I appreciate that may be hard to stomach. Afterall, I've been a wrestling fan for 13 years. So many people have attacked The Rock for "turning his back on the industry", but what they fail to appreciate is that pro-wrestling can be a terrible career. Long hours on the road, damage to your physical and mental health, addiction to painkillers, backstage politics, premature deaths; the list goes on. Saying all that, professional wrestling can also be a great experience - seeing the world and performing in front of thousands - that's a pretty unique opportunity. Does all that outweigh the negatives, though? Compare this with acting; probably more money, less of a toll on your body, the chance to try something new and gain worldwide and widespread appreciation. Acting obviously will come with its negatives (long hours, etc), but it's much more of a viable career option. People are so fast to lynch The Rock for choosing this career over being a wrestler, but I fail to see how he can be blamed for making a smart decision which improves his life.
The next inconvenient truth; 95% (if not more) of wrestlers on the WWE roster would quit wrestling if they were talented enough to become an actor. The current John Cena vs. Rock feud if rife with pseudo-evangelism. The Rock's new found critics are quick to point to Cena as a reference to someone who loves the industry. They fail to appreciate what Rock contributed for years to wrestling before leaving to pursue a new dream; but they also fail to mention what would happen if John Cena was talented enough to make a movie outside of the WWE movie studios. Would a company such as Disney, for example, want their star appearing on WWE TV frequently? Would they be happy seeing their supposed lead actor for their latest movie, jetting across America to make Raw shows when he's supposed to be filming or promoting a movie? In Layman's terms, professionalism dictates that if you're pursuing a career, you invest 100% in it. That's exactly what The Rock has done, and it's exactly what John Cena would do if he was acting for a studio that wasn't owned by WWE. The moral high horse has been exhausted for years now, and I'd appreciate a little realism when people attack The Rock's acting career.
John Cena's cannon fodder in this feud has been all the conjecture that I have spoke of. Obviously, it's all storyline, so Cena will never mention the points I've made. However, that doesn't stop people from taking Cena's word as gospel. They're taking cheap trash talking nonsense and using it as a stick to beat The Rock with. The best thing is, it's all John Cena has been able to say for the past year. The Rock's critics have been quick to attack any of his substandard promos, but I don't see them critiquing the material of Cena. John Cena, the same wrestler who loves the industry and will never leave(!). I appreciate that all of this is a well worked angle from both Cena and Rock, together they've created a feud which is provoking opinions from wrestling fans round the world. What I don't understand, is the need to lament The Rock and his legacy, merely because you favour Cena in the Wrestlemania match.
