After John Cena's confusing Backlash announcement, WWE should tone down the constant hype

Cinema.

(WWE via Getty Images)

So why march everyone up and down the hill with another much feted announcement? Presumably, it's largely down to ratings. When one of your smaller PLEs is going out on a sunny Saturday evening — and up against both the UFC and the NBA playoffs to boot — you presumably want to do everything you can to make sure those casual fans actually tune in.

Among the wrestling regulars, though, these tactics have become a bit of a running joke. We've become wise to the tactic of being promised a "game-changer" ahead of a minor PLE, only for the whole thing to go up in smoke on the night itself. "How many 'new eras' have we had now?" asked one post on social media, poking fun at the stock phrase used by Triple H when he is in P. T. Barnum mode.

In fact, Cena's appearance wasn't the only damp squib of a surprise: There was also Danhausen's mystery partner. Once WWE had told us that the "very nice, very evil" sensation would be getting a surprise accomplice to take on the team of Miz and Kit Wilson, speculation ran rife online — in just the way that WWE would have hoped.

Would it be Joe Hendry? Jelly Roll? Perhaps even Danhausen's real-life friend and backstage hype-man CM Punk might don the face-paint and make an appearance. Some fans were even rooting for Oba Femi — very much the man of the moment right now — even if his appearance would have made no sense storyline-wise.

Instead, the big reveal was "Minihausen," a shorter Danhausen clone played by the Mexican wrestler El Torito. That setup then culminated in a troop of other mini-estrellas making their returns to help Danhausen get the win. Their whole skit at WrestleMania became the first comedy segment in history to get a rematch on the very next PLE.

There was no Kairi Sane either, though in fairness the speculation on that one didn't come directly from WWE. But if you'd hoped that "The Pirate Princess" might make her final appearance alongside Iyo Sky and Asuka before sailing off into the sunset, you were left disappointed. Her release from the company looks very much final for now.

Again, it feels churlish to complain about the lack of surprises on what was — by anyone's measure — a solid night of pro-wrestling. Had any of last night's matches taken place at WrestleMania 42 (and the Iyo Sky vs. Asuka match really should have done) they would have been among the better offerings. Hell, Reigns vs. Fatu would have stolen the show on Night 1.

But that doesn't detract from the irritating problem of WWE constantly hyping up the unexpected, only to underdeliver on the night. Like the time we were told there would be "epic" returns at this year's Royal Rumble — only to end up getting Mr. Iguana and Nikki Bella, rather than Chris Jericho or Bianca Belair. Or the time we were told that last year's Survivor Series would be "history-making" (it wasn't). And don't get me started on Wrestlepalooza …

It's that kind of stuff that sticks in the craw, and ends up casting a long shadow, even when the matches are decent. It's also unfair on the talent themselves — they end up having to perform against over-hyped expectations. We end up anticipating something like the end of last year's Elimination Chamber — a genuine WTF moment by anyone's standards — and then get disappointed when it doesn't happen.

Look, we get that ratings matter and wrestling runs on hyperbole. But could WWE just consider laying off with the crazy overpromising next time? Let the likes of Jacob Fatu and Bron Breakker do the talking, rather than the excessive marketing hype. Not every show has to be sold as "historic" — particularly since so few of them actually are.