Post by saintpat on Apr 8, 2013 19:55:21 GMT -5
Whether planned (unlikely) or happenstance (more likely), Cena and Punk have evolved into a new breed of Tweeners in my opinion.
It is very similar, to me, to what WWF purposely achieved with Brett Hart when he was a face outside the U.S. and a heel in the U.S. Only with Cena, he's a face to the marks and kids and casuals and a de facto heel to smarks and the IWC. With Punk it's the other way around, heel to the marks and kids and casuals and babyface to the IWC and smarks.
Yes, their characters on the surface are prototype face and heel, but both tear down the invisible wall and acknowledge the dichotomy -- Cena with the boos and Punk with the cheers, both opposite reactions to what their surface characters are supposed to generate.
And I say what's wrong with that? If Cena did a heel turn, the reaction would be exactly the same (if the other side of the coin) -- the kids and casuals would boo him and the IWC and smarks would cheer. Same split. And if Punk turned face, I think the initial reaction from the IWC would be to cheer it but just as quickly those who like him would start to complain as his character lost a lot of layers and he became a face (losing his edge and his smart-alec personality) and then they'd say he's stale and WWE handled it wrong and ... bingo, he's not popular with the insiders anymore.
So what would be the point of turning either, or both? And what feuds could they have that would be any different-- Cena vs. Sheamus, only with roles reversed, etc.?
I like them as the new-breed Tweeners that they are.
It is very similar, to me, to what WWF purposely achieved with Brett Hart when he was a face outside the U.S. and a heel in the U.S. Only with Cena, he's a face to the marks and kids and casuals and a de facto heel to smarks and the IWC. With Punk it's the other way around, heel to the marks and kids and casuals and babyface to the IWC and smarks.
Yes, their characters on the surface are prototype face and heel, but both tear down the invisible wall and acknowledge the dichotomy -- Cena with the boos and Punk with the cheers, both opposite reactions to what their surface characters are supposed to generate.
And I say what's wrong with that? If Cena did a heel turn, the reaction would be exactly the same (if the other side of the coin) -- the kids and casuals would boo him and the IWC and smarks would cheer. Same split. And if Punk turned face, I think the initial reaction from the IWC would be to cheer it but just as quickly those who like him would start to complain as his character lost a lot of layers and he became a face (losing his edge and his smart-alec personality) and then they'd say he's stale and WWE handled it wrong and ... bingo, he's not popular with the insiders anymore.
So what would be the point of turning either, or both? And what feuds could they have that would be any different-- Cena vs. Sheamus, only with roles reversed, etc.?
I like them as the new-breed Tweeners that they are.
