WWE big shots
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
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| Among events at the WWE Super Show, Kurt Angle will be pitted against John Cena for the U.S. Championship in their match Tuesday at the Blaisdell Arena.
Photos © 2005 World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. |
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| JBL will be in a two-on-one handicap match. One fan describes him as a Texan who moved up to New York and thinks he's the greatest. |
A Night Of Champions: Raw and SmackDown! Super Show Presented by WWE 7:30 p.m. Tuesday Blaisdell Arena $25, $45, $75, $100 (877) 750-4400 Note: "Raw" airs at 7 p.m. Mondays on Spike TV. "SmackDown!" airs at 10 p.m. Saturdays on UPN (KIKU). |
True-blue fans, however, would probably lay the smack down on such talk.
"It's an excellent card ... probably the best card of the two times they've been here recently," said Amy Matsumoto, 30, of Waipi'o. "They're all superstars. The huge ones."
Indeed, matches at the Blaisdell will feature Raw World Champion Triple H, Intercontinental Champion Shelton Benjamin and Women's Champion Trish Stratus. Representing SmackDown! are WWE Champion JBL and U.S. Champion John Cena.
Additionally, the event will be the first locally to feature superstars from the WWE's two largest television franchises — "Raw" on Spike TV, "SmackDown!" on UPN — tussling on the same card.
Matsumoto — who watches both programs "as much as possible" — is well aware that none of the blood, chair whuppin' or buried-alive matches is real. She also doesn't obsess over acquiring the tons of WWE merchandise or collectibles available on eBay — her home is free of any tchotchkes that have made WWE founder Vince McMahon a multimillionaire.
Matsumoto simply likes to watch.
"It's just like a soap opera ... except with a lot of sweat and violence," said Matsumoto, who's been a fan since she was 8. "It's always been about the outrageous characters and the outlandish acts that they do.
"I admire their athleticism and dedication ... and respect what they do. It's a living."
Said Matsumoto's husband and couch partner, Sean, 36: "The little soap opera-ish plots they put in are fun. We try and guess the plots before they happen."
Tuesday's Super Show will be the Matsumotos' first live WWE event. They'll be in section GG — the best seats they could get.
"It's like going to Mecca for me," said Amy Matsumoto. "It's like my hajj to Mecca, if you will."
We asked her to share the plotlines leading into the match-ups Tuesday for the benefit of former WWE fans and anyone still skittish about forking over up to $100 for tickets.
The match: Triple H vs. Batista vs. Randy Orton.
Type of match: Triple Threat.
The lowdown: "They're the three big monsters of Raw right now," said Matsumoto. "Triple H and Batista are in an (alliance) called Evolution. Randy Orton is an ex-member of Evolution — they kind of kicked him out when he won the world title. Ever since then, Randy has been trying to convince Batista that they (Evolution) just consider him a peon, and not a driving force in Evolution. So Batista has been kind of having doubts."
The match: Big Show vs. JBL and Orlando Jordan.
Type of match: Two-on-one Handicap.
The lowdown: "Oh, yeah! I'm really excited that Big Show is coming to town because he's hilarious. He was on 'Saturday Night Live' once and was really funny," she said. "JBL is this Texas businessman who moved up to New York and thinks he's the greatest thing out there. Big Show is kind of this big bully who's, like, 'I'm not gonna put up with your stuff, basically.' "
The match: John Cena vs. Kurt Angle.
Type of match: U.S. Championship.
The lowdown: "I'm not too sure about this one," Matsumoto said. "I just know they've never really liked each other at all."
The match: HBK: The Heartbreak Kid vs. Ric Flair.
Type of match: Legend vs. Legend.
The lowdown: "These are two legends who've never really liked each other either," she said. "HBK is a good guy who doesn't care if he makes people mad. He's just doing what he's doing because he loves it. I actually really haven't seen Ric Flair wrestle in a few months, so it's going to be interesting to see him back in action. (Flair) is so old already that I'm really not sure how he's going to hold up against HBK."
The match: Lita vs. Trish Stratus.
Type of match: Women's Title.
The lowdown: "Trish is like the popular blonde in high school who likes bossing people around. Lita is kind of like a punk-rock girl. There was this drama that Lita and Kane got married because he wanted to impregnate her with his child — his devil child. When Lita's pregnancy started to show, Trish Stratus would call her fat and make all these nasty comments. Lita didn't like that very much, of course. No woman does. So there's a major grudge there."
The match: The Undertaker and Kane vs. Heidenreich and Gene Snitsky.
Type of match: Cross-promotional Tag
The lowdown: "Yeah! These are four huge guys ... almost 7 feet tall each," said Matsumoto. "This is probably going to be one of my favorite matches — seeing these four guys who are so huge but so agile. These are guys who aren't afraid of getting on the top rope, jumping down and doing all kinds of crazy stuff. And we're talking 300-pound guys!"
The match: Shelton Benjamin vs. Edge.
Type of match: Intercontinental Championship.
The lowdown: "This should be good," insisted Matsumoto. "Edge thinks that everything should be handed to him ... He'll do whatever he can to win ... Shelton Benjamin is just this really tough kid who comes from hard times. He's a national college champion wrestler and an excellent technical wrestler with a lot of heart. There's something to be said for that. And I hope he wins."
The match: Raw vs. SmackDown!
Type of match: "Over The Top" Battle Royal between franchises.
The lowdown: "These matches rule!" said Matsumoto. "First of all, it's fun to see (up to 20) wrestlers who don't usually wrestle each other go up against each other. Secondly, it's friends wrestling friends. I've seen Battle Royals where the wrestlers are actually laughing outside the ring. They're just having a good time. And it's hilarious!"
Reach Derek Paiva at 525-8005 or dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.
