The years long saga of the Golden Lovers has been a favorite of fans of Japanese wrestling, romance, yaoi manga, and all of the above. Whether you follow it for great in-ring work, a nuanced take on the old on-again/off-again tag partners trope, or an epic love story, the program Kenny Omega and Kota Ibushi have built for themselves since 2009 is damn impressive.
But, after an eventful 2018 which saw the Golden Lovers reunite in New Japan and on Being The Elite before deciding to focus on their singles career, everything seems to be on hold. Omega taking on a major role in the ring and behind the scenes for All Elite Wrestling while long-time freelancer Ibushi finally committed to New Japan probably means whatever comes next in their storyline won’t happen until sometime in the 2020s.
But that doesn’t mean the story is over. Kenny & Kota have shown what is either real-life pain or the seeds of future plot developments (or both?) while apart before. And if this answer Omega gave at Starrcast II this past weekend when asked about Ibushi not being in All Elite with him is any indication, they’ll continue to do so during this phase of their careers & relationship:
“I knew - I knew that it was - I knew that I couldn’t ask Ibushi to sign. I couldn’t do it because I knew it was his time, and he deserved it. [Pauses] And uh [continues with voice cracking] Anyway, I knew that if I asked for him to come here, that he would. And if I begged for him to come, that he would. But, I knew that his dream before anything that we ever did was to win the IWGP Heavyweight Belt.”
This man is IN LOVE. Do NOT tell me differently. #STARRCAST @OmegaManAWrest1 pic.twitter.com/fKCUZgvO1e
— H. D. Thang (@ThatWas3Too) May 27, 2019
Can love prevail in the world of pro wrestling? The Golden Lovers seem determined to answer that question... eventually.
H/T: Wrestling Inc