So they've officially released Mr. Kennedy....Kennedy.
In some ways, you can't really blame them. Kennedy has a black cloud of problems surrounding him and it seems like it doomed him from the start. Let's look at the timeline:
- Kennedy's debut was August 25, 2005.
- Kennedy has his first ppv match and in the process, injures Hardcore Holly's ribs.
- November 11, Kennedy is Eddie Guerrero's last opponent before being found dead on November 13.
- December, Kennedy goes on tour and is injured with a latissimus dorsi tear.
- June 9, Kennedy finally makes his return.
- July 23, 2006. Kennedy has a title match against Batista and suffers an injury
- At WrestleMania, Kennedy wins the Money in the Bank. Soon afterwards, he declares he will cash it in a year from then.
- May 7, 2007. Kennedy suffers an injury and is forced to relinquish his Money in the Bank briefcase, which would have been used several days later to cash in against the Undertaker. Taker was injured and needed to drop the title, and Kennedy was set to be the new champ until his injury. Edge replaces him, wins the title, and soon enough becomes injured himself.
- June 11. Kennedy is drafted to Raw and does nothing but flounder around.
- September 10. Kennedy is suspended for a violation of the Wellness Policy, after testing positive for steroids - almost immediately after he had claimed that he does not use steroids to various media outlets. He is out for 30 days.
- October 1. John Cena suffers an injury in his match with Kennedy.
- June 23, 2008. Kennedy is drafted to Smackdown.
- August 4. Kennedy suffers a dislocated shoulder.
- May 25, 2009. Kennedy returns from injury. During his first match back, he suffers an injury to his wrist. He also comes very close to injuring Randy Orton.
- May 29. Kennedy is released.
So really, can you blame the WWE for firing him? Sure, he had some potential. He was great on the mic, had a catchy gimmick, and was popular with the fans. But he was not the most skilled technician in the ring and clearly was too much of a hazard. How can you expect a company to put their trust in a man who spent most of his career inactive?
I was a fan of the Mr. Kennedy character, and I desperately wanted him to succeed...but it clearly was not meant to be. Whether its just Anderson himself being too unlucky for it, or if its a matter of him not knowing exactly what to do to prevent himself (and others) from being hurt, something was not meshing well. Hopefully, he goes back to the drawing board and improves enough that we see him in the WWE once again.
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