A Recent Kingston Line That's Stuck With Me

[chazraps]

Two weeks back, near the very end of the Mox-Kingston backstage tif when they're going back and forth, Mox says to him something to the effect of "...about a bunch of Chikara bullshit that nobody cares about."

And Kingston interrupts him to passionately day "I CARE!"

Shit like that is why Kingston is such a special performer and resonates so much with the AEW audience. Even if you didn't know anything about the long-lasting Kingston-Claudio beef or haven't been able to follow it, Kingston's delivery was just so perfect to emote that feeling of being told something that means a lot to you doesn't matter. Kingston's confidence in his own validation doesn't come off as delusional or immature, but from a place of genuine love, pride and perhaps fear that it's going to be forgotten.

A brief moment that tells you all you need to know about a character's relatable motivation. That's why Kingston's one of the best promos today.

This line/moment strike anyone else?

[Red Mage Riot]

Kingston is the realest dude in the business, full stop. Even if everybody else comes off as fake, he never fails to look 100% legit at all times.

[Cyno]

Kingston is arguably the most authentic person in professional wrestling today. His gimmick isn't a tough shit talker with demons from Yonkers. He IS a tough shit talker with demons from Yonkers.

I think that's why he resonates with so many fans. He doesn't hide who he is or pretend to be someone he's not, for good or ill.

[Red Mage Riot]

Jul 9, 2023 0:46:45 GMT -5 Cyno said:

Kingston is arguably the most authentic person in professional wrestling today. His gimmick isn't a tough shit talker with demons from Yonkers. He IS a tough shit talker with demons from Yonkers.

I think that's why he resonates with so many fans. He doesn't hide who he is or pretend to be someone he's not, for good or ill.

And the crazy thing is, that's pretty much who he's always been, minus maybe the first couple years of his career. The Eddie Kingston now is the same guy we saw back in 2006 when I first fell in love with him in Chikara. It's amazing that he's basically the same guy he was however many years ago, yet manages to STAY compelling in new ways without ever feeling stale.

[JasonVoorhees1988]

He's kinda like Mick Foley.

He feels real. I hate the Mox feud, but I like Eddie.

[El Cokehead del Knife Fight]

Eddie cares a lot, maybe a little too much as it causes him to f*** up and drive people away from him. It's why he's so compelling, Kingston is exactly what you see is what you get and that's both as a character and a wrestler.

[Some Guy]

I don't remember who said it but I saw someone say on Twitter that while AEW was created by The Elite and everything, they're not the heart/soul of AEW, Eddie Kingston is. And I think it's lines like this that demonstrate that. He can make anyone instantly care about something because of his raw ability to portray emotion in a way I don't think anyone in wrestling can besides maybe Terry Funk. This is also why he should be the guy who takes the title off of MJF but that's neither here nor there.

(Also it doesn't hurt that he's the most consistent worker in the company, minus that baffling Jericho barbed wire match that was not his fault)

[Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-]]

Jul 9, 2023 0:42:44 GMT -5 chazraps said:

Two weeks back, near the very end of the Mox-Kingston backstage tif when they're going back and forth, Mox says to him something to the effect of "...about a bunch of Chikara bullshit that nobody cares about."

And Kingston interrupts him to passionately day "I CARE!"

Shit like that is why Kingston is such a special performer and resonates so much with the AEW audience. Even if you didn't know anything about the long-lasting Kingston-Claudio beef or haven't been able to follow it, Kingston's delivery was just so perfect to emote that feeling of being told something that means a lot to you doesn't matter. Kingston's confidence in his own validation doesn't come off as delusional or immature, but from a place of genuine love, pride and perhaps fear that it's going to be forgotten.

A brief moment that tells you all you need to know about a character's relatable motivation. That's why Kingston's one of the best promos today.

This line/moment strike anyone else?

As a CHIKARA fan, who watched all that bullshit nobody cared about? Yes, it did. You can see the live reaction in the thread when he did it... it felt validating, to be there, to watch Eddie grow, to watch him win the Grand Championship, and all the struggles before it, like with Claudio, a feud I can't believe actually ties back to CHIKARA history

I want AEW to do that more with that company, bring other wrestlers back, do with them what Quack couldn't... I will cry if I see Ultramantis Black on my television, I want everyone to know that lol

At the same time if we get so f***ing deep into the CHIKARA beef that I start hearing a Rammstein Whistle I'm gonna turn into a feral animal lol

[This Player Hating Mothman]

Jul 9, 2023 0:46:45 GMT -5 Cyno said:

Kingston is arguably the most authentic person in professional wrestling today. His gimmick isn't a tough shit talker with demons from Yonkers. He IS a tough shit talker with demons from Yonkers.

I think that's why he resonates with so many fans. He doesn't hide who he is or pretend to be someone he's not, for good or ill.

I think a lot of what sets him apart is that as far as a wrestleguy who presents himself and his flaws, he does so with complete honestly. He's not showing off an idealized Eddie Kingston. He's there, warts and all, channeling every failure into his performance. He's a guy who f***ed up and is trying to get himself right playing a guy who f***ed up and is trying to get himself right. He's not pooling up elements of himself to make a character and choosing what stays and goes. There's a sincerity in that.

[Mozenrath]

Eddie Kingston is a man who, on Being the Elite, cut a believable promo on a literal cookie, and another week, cut an utterly scathing one on a package of Sour Patch Kids.

He's pretty good at this promo thing, is what I am saying. And yeah, when he says things, he is wonderful at conveying that he believes in it, and in turn, it is easier to believe in it, too.

[Ronny Rayguns Is All Elite]

I popped so hard at that Chikara mention.

Quack would probably be happy Moxley censored himself there

[Mid-Carder]

Sometimes a big wrestling star is a guy who feels like a real-life superhero like Hogan, a cool supervillain like Roman Reigns, or a larger-than-life unattainable movie star guy like the Rock, and sometimes it's a guy who's just like us like Eddie Kingston. All these different things are what make wrestling so fun.

[ASYLUMHAUSEN]

Jul 9, 2023 0:43:42 GMT -5 Red Mage Riot said:

Kingston is the realest dude in the business, full stop. Even if everybody else comes off as fake, he never fails to look 100% legit at all times.

It’s reasons like this why the most New York motherf***er in AEW keeps getting massive pops in BOSTON.

Boston always boos New York. Always.

The day Tony pulls the trigger and straps him up will be amazing.

[XIII]

Eddie is a modern day Terry Funk for me. This dude just makes everything feel real and authentic. A lot of others just don’t have that capability.

[Cyno]

And then you see backstage footage of "Uncle Eddie" being a complete softie with the Huber kids when Amanda lets them visit. It's another side of him where in spite of all the shit he's been through, he's great with the kids.

[kidkamikaze10]

Eddie Kingston may not believe this, but if anyone in pro wrestling is the heir to Terry Funk’s throne, it’s Eddie.

Just like Gage and Dreamer.

[Mozenrath]

Jul 9, 2023 12:59:55 GMT -5 Cyno said:

And then you see backstage footage of "Uncle Eddie" being a complete softie with the Huber kids when Amanda lets them visit. It's another side of him where in spite of all the shit he's been through, he's great with the kids.

If anything, it's maybe in part because of all of what he's been through. He's made so many mistakes, he has lost so many opportunities, that he understands that none of this is a given, especially when he's interacting with kids whose dad did everything he was supposed to do, and a freak illness killed him, anyway, through no fault of his own.

[Kalmia]

Kingston reminds me of that horrible Kid Rock quote that WWE were obsessed with during the end of the Attitude Era.

If it's real, you'll feel it.

That's Eddie Kingston. Everything feels real with him. There are many smoother talkers in wrestling than Eddie but none of them make what they say feel more real. Eddie is often a mess and doesn't react to things rationally, but that's how people are.

[clifford]

Dude got booked awful basically from the Jericho match at Revolution, to the awful barbed wire rematch, to not really doing anything for months, to being moved to ROH and then injured, and when he returned to AEW tv he was instantly getting the biggest pops and reactions from the crowd like he never left.

Eddie is real, man. He just is. We love him. We love him for who he is. We love him cause he is who he is.

["Sweet & Sour" ImSoFudginGreat]

Jul 9, 2023 2:00:51 GMT -5 Some Guy said:

This is also why he should be the guy who takes the title off of MJF but that's neither here nor there.

As a man rapidly approaching his 40’s, I will shed a tear or 20 if/when Eddie wins the big one. Even if like Mick Foley he only has a short reign only for MJF or someone like Jericho screw him over it’d just make the fan response for Eddie even larger.