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Kofi Kingston Sucks

23K views 208 replies 102 participants last post by  BaraaTZK92 
#1 ·
Let's just get this out there because me saying it in another thread was apparently oh so controversial. I rarely ever make threads but this is apparently something that people are passionate about if my rep from that other thread is any indication. I would LOVE to hear logical reasons as to why Kofi is anything other than terrible.

For anyone that missed it, this was the post:
What Vince should do is make a fucking example out of someone & fire their ass. I don't mean on-air humiliation, I mean "you mother-fuckers are half-assing it & coasting & we're not going to stand for it." There's a lot of people to choose from, like Kofi is a great example.
Kofi Kingston is a terrible professional wrestler. I don't know him personally, he might be a great guy, but as far as being a wrestler/entertainer, he is terrible. He is a good athlete, he can jump high, but he's a terrible WRESTLER. He specifically lacks all the things that you would want from a good wrestler, like having good offense, or believable defense. His facial expressions are bad, his comebacks are worse, his selling is lackluster to say the least. He might have the worst timing in the entire company & he can't talk. What exactly does he bring to the table? He gets a reaction? A lot of people get reactions, that doesn't translate into ticket sales, PPV buys or TV ratings for them all.

When I think of the WWE as a whole & why it is in a slump, I think of the roster & how everyone is just phoning it in, half-assing it & just coasting along just to get a paycheck. To me, Kofi Kingston is the poster boy of that mentality. Just because he does the basic paint-by-the-numbers Kofi match, complete with a high cross body & maybe a springboard chop, that doesn't mean he's doing anything! He is not memorable whatsoever, unless he is in a gimmick match featuring a ladder. What is even the highlight of his career, taking a superkick from Shawn Michaels? Blowing the finish of a match with Randy Orton leading to Orton breaking character due to being pissed on live TV?

If Kofi Kingston was fat, or in the main event, do you have any idea how fast the IWC would turn on him? A helluva lot faster than they turned on A.J. Lee, I can tell you that. This is just more bullshit "well he's in the midcard so he's underused!" just like people that try to sell us on Teddy Hart or Alex Riley, because they want to seem different & original.

During the Legends of Wrestling Roundtable, when Jim Ross was talking about wrestlers that just do what they're told, don't bother to ever speak up or ruffle feathers & just want to get their paycheck so they can pay their bills, I was thinking specifically of Kofi Kingston. When Carlito did the same thing, he was made an example of, on live TV, by Ric Flair cutting a promo on him & eventually released from WWE...but Kofi gets a free ride. Why? What does Kofi provide that you can't get from someone else on the roster, better? Kofi is not hungry, he doesn't seem to care at all. He's not trying to improve himself or climb up the ladder, he's sitting around waiting & hoping that it is given to him. During his off time, he's playing fucking video games instead of trying to improve. He is a great example of everything that is wrong with not just this generation of professional wrestlers but the fans too when they buy into the bland bullshit.

So, what are you thoughts on Kofi Kingston? Positive or negative & why?
 
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#7 · (Edited)
There are worse guys on the roster than Kingston, however I understand where you are coming from. I don't know whether he is a good storyteller or not because he is constantly bouncing around the midcard where storylines are at a premium, in fact I can't really recall a single feud he's been involved in since I started watching again in 2010. So he hasn't ever done anything that has stood out as being 'bad', and puts on passable and reasonably entertaining matches every time which means that he rarely comes in for criticism. I agree though that his apparent lack of determination is frustrating and he seems to be a complete geek outside the ring. I don't know if he'll ever achieve anything in his career, or will have the balls to step up when the time comes. He's just kind of 'there' which is a shame considering he is a reasonable worker and has great potential to get over as a babyface.
 
#14 ·
There are worse guys on the roster than Kingston, however I understand where you are coming from.
Yes, there are guys worse than him. There are guys better than him too. That's not really the point though. This all spawned, initially, because I used Kofi as my example for someone that Vince McMahon could make an example out of. The reason I used Kofi is because he is the poster child of everything I hate about current WWE. It might be because moral has been decimated due to the WWE machine chewing up & spitting out anyone that they're not ready to use (like Zack Ryder getting himself over as an example) but Jim Ross made a great point:



Kofi is a WWE guy, trained by OVW & he doesn't know anything other than WWE style. He's not wrestled in other areas to expand his repertoire, he's never worked in a promotion in Mexico or Japan. He didn't work territories or WCW or ECW because they don't exist anymore. He learned how to work one way & he's content with that. That's what the future is. A bunch of WWE trained guys working WWE seven minute, paint-by-the-numbers matches. Nothing new, exciting or innovative. It's why the show is boring. It's why it all feels recycled & rehashed.

"I would rather find another profession if I'm not going to be successful." - Jim Ross
 
#8 ·
well besides the fact that he is athletic, he uses his athleticism well in the ring, and I don't see him as "phoning it in"

He might not be the best technician or anything, but he brings something different to the ring and he had a fantastic match with Ziggler on Raw last week. He can work, but he'll never be Chris Benoit or bret Hart or anything. He is just a servicable guy, that can do a few high spots and has a decent finisher (spinning heel kick, i think?)

I think that WWE dpesn't really give him enough time to have great matches, and being stuck in a tag team with R-Truth cut his ring time in less than half, because Truth spends the whole match running around being crazy. I dont think he is the best or anything, but terrible.. not so much
 
#11 ·
Kofi Kingston sucks? lol Say what you want about him but when you compare him to someone like Zack ryder he sure doesn't suck
 
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#12 ·
I don't think Kofi "sucks" but I do agree that he often seems to be phoning in his matches. Watch him compete against top in-ring guys and he looks like he belongs. He grapples well, has good matwork, etc. The rest of the time he pretty much just jumps a lot. He also tends to be sloppier in his execution when he's in say a random tag match than when he's trying to keep up with Ziggler or Jericho.
 
#13 ·
Kofi is cool, i expect him to do some athletics stuff every week and he does just that, he has fast paced matches pulls out some cool moves and im always in a good mood watching him..after seeing his stuff in that cribs type of show i like him even more..

i dont take wrestling so damn seriously since ive been watching since the 90's so thinking outside a realistic point of view while being a typical crying IWC member like the threadstarter is something im not accustomed to..but hey to each its own.
 
#15 ·
I have no idea what you mean. I think he would fill the smiling babyface role Sheamus is awkwardly being shoved in. I think he would already be higher on the card, if it weren't for the WWE (and the audience) and their problematic attitudes on race.
 
#21 ·
Kofi plays a great babyface and is a great wrestler. Every wrestler is formulaic and does certain moves to elicit a positive/negative response from a crowd and Kofi is no different. Kofi has made one hell of a successful career as a mid carder and has paid his dues and is long overdue for a main event push. For whatever reason he hasn't been pushed in debatable but I know if he was given the chance he'd be a mainstay for years to come.
 
#25 ·
No one is asking Vince to punish him on-air. If you're talking about my use of Kofi being a potential example, I specifically said off-air.

WWE is a giant corporation now but all the wrestlers are still independent contractors. They don't need stock options, they need to get their fire back. They need a Paul Heyman-esque pep talk & a kick in the ass. Instead there's just apathy everywhere.
 
#26 ·
We need some new babyfaces to take over and freshen up the main event. Guys on the board love to suck off the flavor of the month heel that pops and clamors for their main event push. It's tiresome and in the end the son of a bitch will be fed to Cena in the end anyway.
 
#28 ·
Kofi Kingston:
- Charismatic
- Over
- Good in ring talent

Wow! What do you know, what mid card wrestler is supposed to be.

Why the hell would Kofi risk getting fired and not being able to support himself for no reason?

Do you know what the real world is? WWE is a JOB. Not a WWE simulator.

And guess what going above and beyond gets you. The Ryder treatment. Or AW treatment. Take your pick.
 
#30 ·
Well, I already addressed the "Ryder treatment." Calling Kofi a "Good in ring talent" is an opinion, not a fact, as I think the exact opposite. Why would someone aspire to just be average? That's the reason I posted the Jim Ross video. Is there anything you said in this post that I haven't already talked about? I even gave Kofi credit & acknowledged that he's over & carryable.

Eventually someone will show up that is hungry & goes above & beyond. Hell, Punk is where he is at now because he did so. It's no coincidence. But if the future is going to be more of the same, people only doing the bare minimum to keep their jobs, than they're in serious trouble.
 
#31 ·
I dont see how you can logically think Kofi is bad in the ring.

This is a different time then the AE.

You wait your turn and wait to get a push. That's how it works now.

You act like Punk hasnt been a favorite backstage before now. Punk has gotten a ton of pushes.

Daniel Bryan goes above and beyond. He's doing ok. Nothing special at all though. I'd venture to say he works extremely hard for where he's at to lose his title in 18 seconds at WM.
 
#32 ·
I pointed out in the OP all the reasons why I dislike Kofi, the majority of which were from an in-ring perspective. I know it's not the Attitude Era, I never brought up the Attitude Era. I hated the Attitude Era. But that's not "how it works now" or how it has ever worked. The "powers that be" might have certain individuals, like Zack Ryder, that are doomed forever no matter what but that doesn't mean that everyone is. I have been watching WWF since 1987. This is the worst I have ever seen it & that includes the early 90's era of steroid trials & Mantaur. The reason is because outside of maybe four or five people, the entire roster is apathetic, including Kofi.
 
#34 · (Edited)
Do you know what the real world is? WWE is a JOB. Not a WWE simulator.

And guess what going above and beyond gets you. The Ryder treatment. Or AW treatment. Take your pick.
Different jobs and different employers demand different levels of investment from their employees. The WWE demands people perform and aspire to be their absolute best when performing. If they see someone content with being an average performer with replaceable qualities, they'll likely try to weed them out (that is, unless they REALLY value them).

I'm don't entirely agree with the OP as I view Kingston as an important component to what a midcard really needs: a guy that has accrued a measure of success and is a sought after mainstay in company niche/specialty areas such as ladder matches and other gimmick types that require high levels of acrobatic eye-candy that gets people on their feet mouthing "wow-wee!"

Here's a post that I feel reflects what most audiences value the guy and his position as:

Kofi is cool, i expect him to do some athletics stuff every week and he does just that, he has fast paced matches pulls out some cool moves and im always in a good mood watching him..after seeing his stuff in that cribs type of show i like him even more..

i dont take wrestling so damn seriously since ive been watching since the 90's so thinking outside a realistic point of view while being a typical crying IWC member like the threadstarter is something im not accustomed to..but hey to each its own.
The bold text is the most applicable to my point (the second paragraph made me laugh but I digress). Most expect the same stuff from Kingston day in and day out and are perfectly content with seeing him out there doing his trademark shit. Take into account the fact that he is a safe bet with most opponents and sound in other areas means he's a fine addition to the roster that is an attraction to certain areas such as the aforementioned match types I listed.

That doesn’t mean he’s not irreplaceable however. Not in the slightest. Shelton Benjamin was by far the superior and more proven worker and could pull of the same stuff Kingston could with little issue. There are little grey shades of subjectivism most shared such as Kingston articulating his personality better, being more likeable overall, etc. However, the one thing I think that really undid Benjamin was the supposed attitude he carried around at times. Wasn’t that the reported cause of the ridiculous losing streak he endured that practically killed off any momentum he would ever get from the audience again?

This era of apathy the OP mentions is an interesting one, because it’s a pretty hostile environment where one has to tread a fine line. Kingston is someone who appears to be relied upon as no more than a pretty safe commodity to go out there with little complaints and do his bit for the company, but is ultimately frustrating in not fulfilling his potential they think he has. It isn't an easy task for a performer to decipher these mixed messages but whether this missed potential' is through being a little soft, slothful or lacklustre in key areas is uncertain. It’s something that he should make more of an effort towards being a mainstay in the company and help leave a genuine impression.

That’s the word I’d use to best describe Kofi Kingston: safe. In some ways it works out for him like it didn't Benjamin. However, it isn’t a bonafide guarantee that his position is going to stay sound. If he really wants to stick around and leave a lasting legacy he has to play the company game and make a case as to why he should stick around for the company’s benefit.
 
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