Laura

Adam Cole Bay Bay, Hangman Adam Page, Rainmaker Kazuchika Okada. I- I just beat Adam Cole Bay Bay, Cowboy Shit Hangman Adam Page, the Rainmaker Kazuchika Okada in the same night. At the same time. So there’s not much more else for me to say is there? Other than when you talk about the greats, in this business. My name better be first.

wayward sons you say?

PART 27: THE SEA BETWEEN US

In July 2017 a queer fan tweeted out a message thanking the Golden Lovers for showing them “what love looked like.” Kenny replied and promised that there were more stories to come [LINK]

What he and Kota delivered in the following year was not just a love story, but a story about love. About the power of love and the way that loving another person can transform your relationship with your own heart and inspire you to be a better, truer version of yourself

[ID: two gifs of Kenny saying: “I feel like the greatest love stories haven’t necessarily been, you know: Guy gets girl. Or girl gets girl. Or guy gets guy, girl gets girl. What have you. It is the feeling and realization of one being true to his or her own heart.” End ID. From Omega Man: A Wrestling Love Story documentary - LINK]

It would have been so easy for them to have fallen back into the Typical Wrestling Story of cyclical friendship, betrayal, and conflict. Instead they chose to tell a story of reconciliation, forgiveness, and growth.

[ID: Kenny and Kota in a postmatch. Kenny is saying: “We share stories about love, about kindness and most importantly about change.” End ID. Sept 7, 2018 - LINK]

it’s a story that anyone can connect with, but it’s also explicitly a story for us. For so long queer characters in mainstream wrestling were only ever presented as the butts of jokes or objects of disgust and violence. In this story we get to see ourselves as loved, flawed, and human. Through this story we get to hear the message: “You belong here. In the crowd, in the ring, in these stories.”

[ID: Kenny being interviewed by CTV News Saskatoon. He has a horribly blue fake city background behind him. He’s saying: “To tap into the LGBTQ community [and] let them know that yes there are stories for you. You are more than welcome [and] we love you.” End ID. LINK - found by outstanding GL archivist danadragonfly]

This is the last part of our timeline. Thank you for reading <3