WWE 205 Live Review // 20th March 2018

With just three weeks until WrestleMania, this week's 205 Live was another big week for the Cruiserweight brand as WWE continues to revamp the brand and reinvent its identity. This week saw Drew Gulak and Mustafa Ali go head-to-head to decide who faces Cedric Alexander for the vacant Cruiserweight Championship at WrestleMania, Hideo Itami battle Lince Dorado and TJP face the returning Kenneth Johnson...but was it any good? Here's our review.

Cruiserweight Championship Tournament Semi-Final //

Drew Gulak vs. Mustafa Ali

Before the match - Drew Gulak gave a good account of himself during a sitdown interview, explaining his return to a serious edge and promising to prove himself right with a straight-forward approach to his semi-final match - Mustafa Ali spoke about being a police officer in Chicago and seeing the Cruiserweight title as a way to fix things and change people's minds about someone called Mustafa Ali.

As competitors and characters, there may be very few pairings as perfect as Drew Gulak and Mustafa Ali and whilst they've had a number of matches together over the last year, including a very good two out of three falls match in last summer, I don't think it was ever more evident than it was here. Gulak is a direct, hard-hitting win at any costs bully, whilst Ali is a high-flyer, who fights with his heart on his sleeve and is looking to change opinions, with both men excelling in their roles and producing some of the best action in the tournament up to this point. Whilst I would've liked to have seen this one get a little more time and develop on a number of the ideas thrown up, the bout between the pair here did a grand job of mixing broad strokes with little touches and storyline elements to create a fascinatingly, rich piece of professional wrestling. The idea that Ali was having to almost match the brutality and relentlessness of Gulak in order to compete, drawing on what Ali had been saying in promos leading up to the match, was a clever one, highlighted by Ali laying into Gulak's ribs with kicks that mirrored Drew's actions earlier in the match, whilst the commentary called back to the promos and suggested that Ali would have to be careful not to get too into the viciousness. The final third of the bout focused on some big spots on the outside, as the two made creative work of WWE's ringside area, including a back body drop off the announce table and a powerslam into the timekeeper's area for a good countout near fall. However, for me the finish came off as a little sudden and struggled to compete with what had came before, as Ali managed to reverse a powerslam into a tornado DDT, before the 054 got the win for the Illinoisan. I think it could've done with a few more minutes and a maybe an extra near fall or two once the action got back in the ring to push this to the next level and get it on a par with last week's Cedric Alexander vs. Roderick Strong match. 

After the match - Mustafa Ali cut a promo about going to WrestleMania and how he was proof that all that matters is what's in your heart. 

Lince Dorado (with Kalisto & Gran Metalik) vs. Hideo Itami (with Akira Tozawa)

There were elements of a good match as Lince Dorado and Hideo Itami clashed this week, but the finish ended up coming off as a real disappointment, because of the huge amount of promise that the pair had shown together, as Gran Metalik simply pushed Itami into the apron to cause a disqualification and give Itami the win. I understand the need to keep the feud going, but it's still hard not to feel let down when the match is feeling like it's heading in an interesting direction and moreso because the DQ was caused by a babyface so there's not even an argument to be made that the heel is taking something away from the audience to build heat. However, the action that was on display ranged from okay to very good, with the respective styles of Itami and Dorado meshing nicely as Itami's no-nonsense offence being juxtaposed well by Dorado's corkscrew planchas and mad rana situations. The moment where the match felt like it began to build towards what could have been a thrilling conclusion was Dorado matching Itami with slaps to the face and beginning to fire up, with the Puerto Rican impressing as he held his own with one of the division's hardest hitters. There's potential for this feud to grow into something, especially with the upcoming introduction of a Cruiserweight Tag Team title, but I'd like to see a little more thought go into how it's going to develop week on week within the current 205 Live structure. 

After the match - Gran Metalik and Hideo Itami had to be held back by their respective friends as tensions continue to rise between Lucha House Party and...erm...Puroresu Dwelling Shindig? - Drake Maverick rewarded Akira Tozawa and Kalisto for helping calm things down by placing them in a Fatal Four-way with TJP and Buddy Murphy next week

TJP vs. Kenneth Johnson 

Before the match - TJP claimed he should be first in line for a shot against whoever won the Cruiserweight Championship tournament 

TJP ran through the returning Kenneth Johnson (back for the first time since losing to Akira Tozawa in the first round of the Cruiserweight Classic), winning with a TJP Clutch, after the conclusion of a poor match where it looked like Johnson had never been in a ring before.

After the match - TJP held onto the TJP Clutch for some time after the bell.

Also on the show 

- Cedric Alexander spoke about last week being the greatest moment of his career, but claiming it wouldn't mean anything unless he won the Cruiserweight Championship. 

ATPW Scale Rating // 

5 out of 10

Written by James Marston // 

@IAmNotAlanDale

WWE 205 Live Review // 13th February 2018

The first round of the Cruiserweight Championship tournament continued on 205 Live this week, with former 'Zo Train members Drew Gulak and Tony Nese colliding in the main event. But how did it all go down in Bakersfield, CA? Lets take a look! 

Cruiserweight Championship Tournament First Round Match // Drew Gulak def. Tony Nese // Submission

Drew Gulak found himself in the Quarter Finals of the Cruiserweight Championship tournament after a brutally dominant victory over former 'Zo Train partner, Tony Nese. A real different match to your typical WWE outing, full of unique offence, hard strikes and some lovely technical wrestling. The match was paced really well, with Nese initially trying to match Gulak's technique and striking game, often coming out on the losing end, before later on the match picked up the pace as Nese hit a beautiful Fosbury flop dive and went on to miss a 450 splash attempt. As much as Gulak looked dominant, Nese was particularly impressive here, there was also a lot of action that felt super fresh, Nese put on a gorgeous submission that seemed to wrap himself all over Gulak, whilst he also later hit an Alley Oop into the top turnbuckle and escaped an armbar attempt with a running powerbomb into the bottom buckle. Both men also sold the hard-hitting bout, with Nese out on his feet for much of the last third, whilst Gulak did some lovely detail work, moving his fingers to suggest a nerve issue towards the end of the clash. 

The finish was superbly done, making Gulak look like a real force to be reckoned with in the tournament going forward. Drew's facial expression after getting a slap from Nese on the outside told the whole story of what was about to happen next and then delivering on it. Gulak viciously threw his former friend into the lower half of the announce table twice, with Nese appearing to be completely out of it. The referee being unable to stop Gulak from assaulting Tony upped the drama and made Drew look like a bastard as he hit a massive lariat, two powerbombs and then locked on the Gu-Lock to seal the deal. As much as I enjoyed Gulak's powerpoint gimmick, it was great to see him return to this vicious and commanding in-ring style that made him a stand-out in places like CHIKARA and CZW. Gulak hadn't won one-on-one since October, but it appears he's set for a much brighter future under Triple H's watch.

Cruiserweight Championship Tournament First Round Match // Mark Andrews def. Akira Tozawa // Pinfall 

Mark Andrews made his return to 205 Live, picking up his first singles match win in WWE since the United Kingdom Championship Tournament, with an upset win over Akira Tozawa. For me, this was the first match of this tournament that failed to live up to expectations. That isn't to say this wasn't an enjoyable match, because there was some very good action in the second half, but the first portion of the match didn't do a great job of setting out the stall and letting what would have been an unfamiliar audience know what Andrews is all about. A technical start followed up by a number of submission attempts from Andrews was alright, but it wasn't what I wanted to see between these two pacy highflyers and put Andrews in a weird position of looking like the stronger competitor, when perhaps he has always worked better as the underdog fighting from underneath. Considering the type of match that Gulak and Nese had in the main event, I would've preferred to see this match take on a much different tone to how it started, with a little bit of sloppiness on Mandrews part also not helping get the crowd onside. The conclusion was much improved however, with a series of lovely reversals, with the highlight coming as Andrews went for a frankensteiner, which was blocked by Tozawa who looked to counter with a powerbomb, only for Mark to hit a wicked rana from the middle rope. I'm happy to see Mark Andrews head to the Quarter Finals and hopefully we'll get to see him at his best next time round. 

Also This Week 

- A special look at Buddy Murphy, who'll be making his debut next week against Ariya Daivari.

- Drake Maverick told Gentleman Jack Gallagher that he was no longer allowed to wrestle in suits, telling Gallagher to "sort himself out" before next week's match with Mustafa Ali.

ATPW Scale Rating // 7.17 out of 10

Written by James Marston // @IAmNotAlanDale

WWE 205 Live Review // 6th February 2018

The new era of 205 Live continued this week in Kansas City, Missouri as the tournament to crown a new Cruiserweight Champion continued. The show was main-evented by a clash between Hideo Itami and the debuting Roderick Strong, but how did it all go down? Lets take a look. 

Cruiserweight Championship Tournament First Round Match // Roderick Strong def. Hideo Itami // Pinfall 

In somewhat of a surprise, Roderick Strong handed Hideo Itami his first 205 Live defeat to advance to the Quarter Finals, winning with End of Heartache, in a wonderfully physical match. Down the spine of the match was a series of delightful strike battles, as the pair threw forearms, elbows, chops and kicks at each other with the back and forth nature of the contest always seeming to lead back to the two wailing on each other with hard blows. Each time round the pair seemed were selling the effects of the match more and throwing the strikes with more desperation and purpose. Of course, this back and forth sequence would play a big part in the closing sequence as the two went back to what they knew after both coming close with big moves, but the strongest use of this motif came on the outside of the ring. As the action spilled to the apron, Strong's attempt to pull Itami off the apron into a backbreaker was escaped by the former NOAH star, before the pair threw forearms, chops and kicks at each other and Strong, unlike Bono, finally found what he was looking for as he ducked a roundhouse kick, caught Hideo's leg and lifted him into a brutal looking backbreaker onto the apron. A gorgeous sequence. 

It was clear from watching the bout that these two were pretty familiar with each other, they knew how much they could lay in their strikes and produced some slick reversal sequences, with Strong able to transition into a number of moves with ease, which makes him stand out on the current roster. Obviously, the two have history in NOAH and ROH, as well as an NXT bout last April, but they also had a run on NXT house shows in September/October that would have certainly helped to create the comfortableness with each other that was important to creating such an enjoyable match in this style. This was a PPV quality encounter, that managed to draw the audience in, getting a good reaction from the live crowd by it's conclusion. With a little more time, there's no doubt that Itami and Strong could've produced something next level and in fact, I think these two would be able to create something special in pretty much any time limit. It's a shame that we had to lose one of them in the tournament, but it was great to see the tournament already throwing up surprises in it's second week, even if that means we might not see Itami for a while.

Crusierweight Championship Tournament First Round Match // Kalisto def. Lince Dorado // Pinfall

205 Live was on fire this week, with another good match to kick off the show as Kalisto booked his placed in the Quarter Finals with a victory over Lucha House Party mate, Lince Dorado with a second Salida del Sol. With the show finally beginning to show the variety of Cruiserweight wrestling, we got a completely different match from the main event, as Dorado and Kalisto put on a mad lucha thing match, full of flips, tricks, dives and big highspots. Despite having not won in singles competition since December 2016 (Main Event - vs. Tony Nese), Dorado was made to look like a threat to the former Cruiserweight Champion, through a well done story that he was over-performing because he was desperate to get the Cruiserweight title and prove himself, bringing out a more aggressive side that drove the match past a flippy showcase to something else. The match was jam-packed with big moments, like Dorado's top rope frankensteiner, Kalisto hitting a wheelbarrow situation off the middle rope, Dorado seemingly having the match won with the Golden Rewind and Shooting Star Press only for Listo to roll under the bottom rope before the cover could be made and a sublime near fall for the favourite off Salida del Sol when Dorado got a hand on the bottom rope. It was a shame that the rewind reverse rana from Kalisto that was part of the finish ended up looking real nasty with Dorado somehow landing head first on Kalisto's back, but the slip-up didn't hurt the match all that match and it appeared like Dorado wasn't seriously hurt, so it wasn't the end of the world.

Also this week

- There was a recap of last week's show, including Daniel Bryan introducing Drake Maverick as the new 205 Live General Manager, Maverick announcing a tournament to crown a new Cruiserweight Champion and TJP and Cedric Alexander winning First Round match-ups in that tournament against Tyler Bate and Gran Metalik respectively. 

- In his office, Drake Maverick ripped into Drew Gulak and Tony Nese for becoming comedy acts and wasting their potential, booking them in a First Round tournament match next week. 

- TJP cut a promo about the fans not believing him anymore and not giving a shit, it was good. 

- A package looking at Mark Andrews, ahead of his match with Akira Tozawa next week, using the same UK Tournament package from January last year.

- Akira Tozawa threatened to fire a man, when he suggested Mark Andrews could beat him next week.

- Cedric Alexander and Mustafa Ali had a friendly chat about the tournament backstage, they're good pals.

ATPW Scale Rating // 7.67/10

Written by James Marston (@IAmNotAlanDale) 

RAW 1279 Review // Roman Reigns vs. Elias // Intercontinental Championship

The past month on RAW...

RAW 1275 Review // The Miz vs. Matt Hardy // Intercontinental Championship
RAW 1276 Review // Seth Rollins & Dean Ambrose vs. Cesaro & Sheamus // RAW Tag Team Championship
RAW 1277 Review // The Shield vs. The Miz, Cesaro & Sheamus
Survivor Series 2017 Review // Raw vs. SmackDown 
RAW 1278 Review // The Miz vs. Roman Reigns // Intercontinental Championship

With Survivor Series firmly in the rear view mirror and with nine weeks until the Royal Rumble, it seems we're in for an interesting two months on RAW. The 27th November episode came to us from Knoxville, Tennesee and was main-evented by Roman Reigns' first Intercontinental title defence against Elias, with Reigns being moved into a new feud with Samoa Joe post-match. There was also a curious angle that saw Kane in action against Jason Jordan and then Finn Balor, before Braun Strowman turned up for some revenge, whilst Seth Rollins clashed with RAW Tag Team Champion Cesaro, with both men's partners absent from ringside. But was RAW 1279 any good? Lets take a look!

Elias stepped up to Roman Reigns

then...

Intercontinental Championship // Roman Reigns def. Elias [Elias Samson] // Pinfall

With The Miz written off TV to do a film, Roman Reigns was shifted into a feud with Samoa Joe, but not before he'd spent a big portion of the episode opposite Elias. The opening segment of the show set the tone for the interaction, with Reigns cutting a run of the mill promo, before being interrupted by The Miztourage, who introduced Elias. Not a whole lot else actually happened. Considering Reigns had issued an open challenge on social media, having it answered by Elias was a let down. The Drifter has done some good character work in the mid-card, but it's hard to pick out a match of his that has come anywhere near exciting me. Had the challenge not been issued a week in advance it wouldn't have been as bad, but allowing the fans (and other roster members) to get interested in who could step out to face Reigns and to then provide Elias as the answer seemed like a misstep. The highlight of the segment was The Miztourage joining up with Elias as the trio has potential to entertain, whilst also opening up a programme when The Miz is ready to return.

Before the main event (coming at the top of the third hour) could get underway, Elias was allowed to shine as he did an extended concert alongside Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel. This was the best part of the one-night story with Elias controlling the crowd with ease. The Drifter has a good sense of when to bring the crowd up and when to settle them down, threatening to stop at multiple points, only to continue with his sweet tunes, much to Knoxville's displeasure. Dallas and Axel playing the harmonica was a bizarre twist, but meant the concert could continue way past what we usually see from a solo Elias, resulting in a decent sized "We Want Roman" chant. This segment provided even more evidence that an Elias, Axel and Dallas trio could work extremely well as a mid-card act and under other circumstances do well from an Intercontinental Championship run.

Unfortunately the match couldn't follow the concert, not helped by some strange booking. With the crowd chanting "We Want Roman" by the end of the prior segment, it would've made sense to have Reigns come straight out of the gates with a big face shine, yet instead we got five of the dullest minutes of wrestling in recent memory. Wear down holds, general beat down stuff and a few slow and clunky moments littered the opening exchanges and struggled to grab the audience or hold my attention. The best moments came from the interference from Axel and Dallas as the pair bought something mildly interesting to match, popped the crowd and then Axel got speared out of his boots on the floor after a nice bit of build. There was also a handful of decent near falls for Elias with the Miztourage being used well to increase the threat to Reigns' title run, as the Drifer came close with a diving elbow drop and a wicked spinning sitout powerbomb. Eventually, Reigns picked up the win in fairly convincing fashion with a spear. Post-match, Reigns was assaulted on the ramp by Samoa Joe in an intense angle. The two have clash three times already on RAW this year, but a full blown feud could prove fruitful as the show bides time between now and the Road to WrestleMania.

Kane def. Jason Jordan // Countout 

then...

Finn Balor [Prince Devitt] def. Kane // Disqualification

Well, this was a strange close to the show. Kane vs. Jason Jordan was supposed to be our final match, but it didn't last long with Jordan getting thrown over the top rope and selling his knee, getting counted out. There wasn't much to the match at all and it seemed like just another way of furthering the story that Jordan is trying to look tough, whilst simultaneously pussying out at any sign of things not going his way. After Kane murdered Jordan, Finn Balor came roaring out to let us know that Vince McMahon really doesn't see anything in him. Balor actually got some decent offence in on Kane, but after a shotgun dropkick sent the Big Red Machine into the barricade, the former WWE Champion came back with a chair to cause the DQ. Kane smacked Balor about a bit with the chair, in a grim metaphor for Balor's current trajectory, before Braun Strowman came out to make the save. It was a needlessly complicated piece of booking, that whilst aiding Jordan's story somewhat, did very little for Balor. It's clear that the company has cooled on him as a top level guy, but feeding him to Kane (who will inevitably be fed to Strowman) seemed unnecessary with such a deep roster.

The show would conclude with Strowman dishing out a beating to Kane, as a receipt for last week. Whilst The Monster Amongst Men lobbing people around and wielding a chair will always be fun to a certain level, there was also Kane escaping through the crowd whilst gasping for air. This was after Strowman drove the chair into the steel steps with Kane's throat at the other end and then repeated the act. Obviously, this was supposed to be a reply, after Kane did the same to Strowman last week, but became an uncomfortable watch, going on way past what was necessary. Perhaps in the middle of the show it would've been, at the very least, not quite as jarring, but having the newly babyface Strowman ram a steel chair repeatedly into another man's throat, even as a revenge attack was a strange way to end the show. Having the Devil's Favourite Demon stagger away through the crowd, gasping for breath has to be one of weakest ending's to an episode of RAW in the last few years. Surely, the running powerslam on the steps was a good enough ending? 

Seth Rollins def. Cesaro [Claudio Castagnoli] // Pinfall 

The best match on the show, pretty much saved the messy upper card as Seth Rollins and Cesaro put on a great television opener. After a handful of TV matches over the last two years, this still felt like a fresh pairing and with a little extra time they seemed to really get their teeth in this, with a series of creative highspots. The fameasser on the apron from Rollins, as well as Cesaro slamming Seth into the post, during the break, stand out in particular. However, the match's driving forces was the amazing selling on display from both men and how that was woven into the story, creating added drama at points. Simple things like Rollins selling a backbreaker by not being able to hit the Falcon Arrow, and then selling an eye-poke by blindly swinging in the corner made all the difference, whilst Cesaro also did some nice grit-your-teeth style work, getting over the physicality of the contest. The Swiss Superman got a couple of good near falls against the two time WWE Champion, including the Kingslayer spending sometime in the Sharpshooter, before a smooth sequence resulted in Rollins nailing the King's Landing and falling into the cover. Post-match, Rollins told Charly Caruso that The Shield was still a unit, comically talking about Dean Ambrose being on honeymoon, before announcing he and Ambrose would be cashing in their rematch clause for the RAW Tag Team Championship next week in Los Angeles.

Cruiserweight Championship #1 Contendership Tournament Semi-Final // Rich Swann def. Akira Tozawa and Noam Dar and Ariya Daivari // Pinfall 

After Kurt Angle admitted he'd let the Cruiserweight division got off the rails, claiming he didn't even know what The 'Zo Train was despite it dominating 205 Live for months, the RAW General Manager booked a tournament to crown a number one contender, with the first semi-final happening this week. Rich Swann, Akira Tozawa, Noam Dar and Ariya Daivari put on a four-way sprint, that featured lots of enjoyable action, even if the crowd was a little flat. There could have been more storytelling with Dar and Daivari both in the 'Zo Train, but as a showcase for the four's in-ring talent this was a good starting point for anyone looking to jump into 205 Live. The Swann vs. Tozawa section was some of the best straight-up wrestling on the show. The pair have lots of history in Dragon Gate and DGUSA, but this was the first time they'd been on opposite sides in WWE and it was brilliant to watch. Dar would also put in a great showing down the stretch as he desperately clawed to get the win anyway possible, connecting well with both Swann and Tozawa, getting a decent bit of heat, before eventually taking the pin after a Phoenix Splash as Swann advance to the final on 1281.

Bray Wyatt def. Matt Hardy // Pinfall 

For an eight minute portion of the show, Bray Wyatt going over Matt Hardy featured a lot of talking points. The match itself was a short and straightforward victory for Wyatt, as he weathered a Hardy storm, kicking out of a Side Effect, before winning with Sister Abigail. However, the stuff that book-ended the match was much more noteworthy. We began with a wild promo from Wyatt, as he spoke about Thanksgiving and then proceeded to shout "You're all dead" four or five times. I'm not quite sure what it was supposed to be, but it was the first Wyatt promo in a long while that has felt different and engaging. It's difficult to ignore being told that you and everyone else is in fact dead, by laughing 285lb man. Post-match, things were all about Matt Hardy as WWE finally prepared to pull the trigger on "Broken" Matt. It had been referenced that Hardy's attack on Elias last week had seen a change in the former United States Champion, which to be honest I hadn't clocked, but now made perfect sense. Hardy sat in the corner, screaming a few times, before doing the signature "Delete" gesture that we haven't seen for a little while. A "Broken" Matt feud with Wyatt has bags of potential if WWE can keep more to the Final Deletion style than they did with the House of Horrors, whilst the return of Jeff Hardy in 2018 opens doors to other potential stories

Paige, Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville [Daria Berenato] laid out Sasha Banks

After the surprising return and debut last week, Paige, Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville couldn't match things this time round with an oddly booked segment. Originally supposed to be a six man tag with Mickie James and Bayley tagging with Sasha Banks, when neither came out, Paige later brought up footage of the pair nursing injuries backstage. This lead to an overly wordy segment, including Mandy Rose seemingly not knowing how to walk, in which Paige explained the reasons behind attacking the roster last week. Basically, it was the same kind of thing we've heard time and time again from performers after time off, moaning that they were forgotten about while injured etc. Paige is strong on the mic, but giving time to Deville and Rose seemed like a poor choice, especially having them do it after walking to the ring to surround Banks. Deville struggled with dealing with the "What?" chants, whilst Rose positioning herself on the hard-cam side of the apron resulted in some awkward camera angles. The beatdown followed the same pattern as last week's, with Banks taking Bed of Roses from Rose, a jumping roundhouse kick from Deville and a Rampaige from Paige. Oh, the trio is also called Absolution now and after a lengthy explanation, I still have no idea why.

Samoa Joe def. Titus O'Neil // Submission

Quick squash that was mostly strikes, before Joe used a separation by the referee to lock in  the Coquina Clutch for the submission victory. After the match, Apollo Crews tried to stand up to Joe, but ended up caught in the Coquina Clutch as well.

Asuka [Kana] def. Dana Brooke // Submission

An in-vision promo from Dana Brooke called Asuka a "slow-starter" before The Empress of Tomorrow made Brooke tap out to a cross-armbreaker in under five seconds in a laugh-out loud moment. After the match it was teased that Asuka had some involvement with Absolution when the group hit the ring, but didn't attack.

Finally... 

Not a great RAW this week, with a number of poor booking decisions that left performers exposed, but also featured a couple of good to very good TV bouts. Roman Reigns vs. Elias was highlighted by the involvement of The Miztourage, but the match itself was poorly put together, whilst Kane's matches with Jason Jordan and Finn Balor seemed unnecessary and Braun Strowman's attack on the Big Red Machine's throat was a shitty way to conclude. This left Seth Rollins vs. Cesaro as the only top segment to deliver, with the pair having a cracking opening bout, that the rest of the show struggled to follow. Asuka destroying Dana Brooke in seconds, the Cruiserweight four-way and the potential for "Broken" Matt in WWE gave the undercard a boost, but the new Absolution faction lost some of the edge they had last week in an ill-advised promo, in lieu of the advertised trios match. 

There's still no idea what the show is going to do to keep things interesting before the Royal Rumble, but we've got Cesaro & Sheamus vs. Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose to look forward to next week, as well as the live episode on Christmas Day for 1283 and the 25th anniversary special as the go-home for the Rumble on 22nd January for 1287.

205 Live 52 Review // Akira Tozawa vs. Drew Gulak // Street Fight

A different kind of episode from 205 Live this week, with one storyline spanning the whole hour at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. Whilst the biggest match on the episode was Akira Tozawa facing Drew Gulak in a Street Fight, that bout was part of an episode-arcing narrative where Enzo Amore had members of The 'Zo Train compete in matches in order to prove themselves worthy of representing the brand, this included Noam Dar & Ariya Daivari tagging up against Rich Swann and Cedric Alexander and Tony Nese battling Mustafa Ali, alongside multiple backstage segments. But was it any good?

Street Fight // Akira Tozawa def. Drew Gulak // Pinfall (11:11) 

then...

Tony Nese def. Mustafa Ali // Pinfall (7:06)

then...

Rich Swann & Cedric Alexander def. Noam Dar & Ariya Daivari // Pinfall 

The show kicked-off with The 'Zo Train celebrating Thanksgiving, with Noam Dar desperate for some scran, Enzo Amore told his pals they'd all have matches to prove themselves tonight and in a bizarre turn of events the Gobbledy Gooker returned, only for it to be revealed it was Drew Gulak (or the Gobbledy Gulaker) all along, as Gulak continued to be the star of 205 Live....The fun continued with Gulak inside the ring as he cut a promo about wanting a Street Fight because Enzo Amore was from the streets and because Gulak is "Enzo adjacent", that meant Gulak was from the streets, by proxy...

For various story-based reasons, Akira Tozawa's victory over Drew Gulak went on first, when it really should've been the main event. The match was a run of the mill plunder brawl, with a couple of good highspots along the way. Gulak blocking a suicide dive and hitting a verticle suplex on the metal part of the entrance ramp, Tozawa destroying Gulak's "No chants" sign with a backdrop driver in the corner and Tozawa hitting a somersault senton off the announce table were amongst the highlights of fun clash. There times when the action dragged a little, not helped by a dour crowd, who were waiting for the next spot and desperately clamouring for tables. A little time chopped off would've helped, as it seemed the duo didn't have enough content to fill the time. The win came with a spot that sounded better on paper, as Tozawa hit a diving senton with Gulak draped on a table and inside a bin. It looked cool, but was a little clumsy in it's exclusion. This loss leave Gulak with just one singles win in his last eleven outings. A personal highlight was the crowd chanting "No chants" which was hilarious, either being a great moment of self-aware irony or clueless stupidity. You tell me, Houston.

After Rich Swann, Cedric Alexander and Mustafa Ali took the piss out of the Zo Train, Enzo Amore told Tony Nese that he had to do whatever it took to win next, in order to represent the Enzo Brand correctly...

Whilst it garnered the weakest crowd response, Tony Nese vs. Mustafa Ali was my favourite match on the card. I've kind of accepted that the crowd is tired after SmackDown and unfamiliar with the majority of the talent and therefore the only reaction most of these matches are going to receive are move pops and even then sometimes spectacular stuff doesn't even raise a smile with some of these audiences. Ali and Nese wrestled a wonderfully creative bout, with tonnes of stuff that made me sit up and take notice, especially when the action was on the outside of the ring. Ali's ridiculous diving somersault senton to the outside, followed up by a lovely spot on the barricade when Nese blocked a moonsault attempt by the announce table. The two also did a great series of athletic reversals that concluded with a Tornado DDT, as well as Ali pulling out a wicked forward roll X-Factor, that had me popping like a mad man at home and the crowd shrugging their shoulders. The most surprising thing about the match however was the result as Nese pinned Ali after ramming his opponent's head into the corner post and finishing him off with The Running Nese. Not just because Ali had been undefeated since early July, whilst Nese hadn't had a win since early August, but also because I just presumed that all of the 'Zo Train were going to end up staring at the lights.

Backstage, as Ariya Daivari and Noam Dar pumped each other up for their tag team match, it was revealed Drew Gulak had been placed in "time out" following his loss and had also put the Gobbledy Gooker costume back on...

I've found the thing that enjoy about 205 Live the most and especially within this episode, is how many of the performers appear to be free to do anything they like and this results in little moments of joy. And as someone who loves little moments, Noam Dar swinging around the tag rope at the beginning of this tag bout made me happier than someone whirling around the tag rope should make any 24 year old. Dar's character work throughout this one was fantastic, as he looked to catch up Drew Gulak as the star of the 'Zo Train, by high-fiving Amore whenever the Scot did anything well, as well as jumping into a hug with Cruiserweight champion at one point as well. Dar's shenanigans aside, this was a sound tag team match, sticking mostly to a basic structure, with Cedric Alexander as the face in peril, whilst Amore playing interference on the outside and his occasional frustration at his team gave the match a little more depth. After a couple of decent near falls, the finish included all five guys well with interference from Amore, Daivari taking an elbow from Alexander, who then took a baseball slide from Dar, before the Scottish Supernova turned round into a spin kick from Swann, before the deal was sealed with a Phoenix Splash.

Enzo Amore began a beatdown as soon as the match was over, with Tony Nese and Drew Gulak arriving to take out Akira Tozawa and Mustafa Ali when they turned up to help out. The show came to a close with Dar and Daivari hitting signature moves on Alexander and Swann, before Amore resurrected Bada Boom Shakalaka with help from the Zo' Train, with the quintet managing to garner a decent amount of heat...

A vignette aired for the debut of Hideo Itami [KENTA], with the message "Coming Soon ".

Finally...

Credit to whoever is in charge of 205 Live creative for trying something different and something that certainly wouldn't have worked on RAW and SmackDown and perhaps would've struggled on even NXT. The story meant the card was almost backwards, but each match had, at least, some purpose and offered something different from the ones that had gone before it, whilst the backstage segments were more hit than miss. Drew Gulak was once again on fine character form, whilst Noam Dar stepped up to the plate to challenge him with a great character show in the main event as well. I'm interested to see how Tony Nese being the only team member to win his match plays out, as well as how the beaten down babyfaces look to get revenge once again for the vicious beat down. There's no more PPV's for the brand until next year, so there's plenty of time to focus on getting the stories right and hopefully with even less focus from the main creative the brand will continue to produce a different kind of show to RAW and SmackDown. Now if only we could move when and where it was taped that'd be grand!

Review by James Marston

205 Live #44 Review - Enzo Amore addresses the Cruiserweight Division

On 26th September 2017, WWE aired the 44th episode of 205 Live, live on the WWE Network, from the Gina River Arena in Glendale, Arizona. The show featured Enzo Amore addressing the Cruiserweight division, as well as appearances from Neville, The Brian Kendrick, TJP, Akira Tozawa and Rich Swann. But was it any good? Lets take a look. 

The show began with a recap of what happened on RAW the night before, featuring Neville attacking Enzo Amore during his Certified G Championship celebration, whilst the rest of the Cruiserweight division watched on the ramp. This after RAW General Manager Kurt Angle agreed to put a no-contact clause in place where anyone attacking Amore would not receive another Cruiserweight championship shot. 

A defiant Enzo Amore addressed the Cruiserweight Division (8:35)

Enzo Amore's heel turn over the last month or so is finally beginning to pay off and the Cruiserweight champion opening 205 Live this week provided us with a strong promo, that built on the stellar work done the previous night on RAW. Amore coming out tapped up and on crutches, as he hobbled to the ring, sold the beating he'd received, helped by Amore taking his time and milking the injuries for all it was worth. Enzo took his time with his promo as well, playing with some of his mannerisms that initially made him a popular babyface and telling a story about his mother being at ringside on Monday night and how hearing the crowd chant "You deserve it" made her feel. For a man who had previously had a strong connection with the crowd and used it to fuel his initial success, hearing Amore turn on them was particularly powerful as he delivered the promo with a viciousness that has rarely been from Muscles Marinara. The most interesting storyline note, however, is the idea that because of Kurt Angle creating a non-contact clause, all of the Cruiserweight division was now unable to get a shot at the Cruiserweight title. This opens up interesting storytelling possibilities with Amore claiming that he will die with the championship. Perhaps we'll see someone like Hideo Itami, Johnny Gargano or Oney Lorcan get the call-up to challenge Amore at Tables, Ladders and Chairs next month? Either way, I'm actually actively interested in this purple brand story!

Akira Tozawa def. Tony Nese (8:00)

A good opener here with Drew Gulak on commentary helping things along also. Nese has a number of entertaining moves, that work with his gimmick when in control, like the crunch kicks with Tozawa in the tree of woe, whilst Tozawa has proven ability as a scrappy babyface. The Glendale crowd seemed the least up for Tozawa's "Ah" chants, which dented the matches energy a little, but that didn't stop Nese and Tozawa putting on some really good wrestling inside their two minute window. Whilst The Stamina Monster's comeback of running rana and Saito suplex was decent, the gear change as the two exchanged strikes was a brilliant piece of work with the two going back and forth with hard strikes, before launching into a series of reversals that concluded with Nese flipping out off a back suplex to get a two count with a roll-up. Tozawa racked up his third victory in a row with a spinning roundhouse kick, followed up with his Drop Zone diving senton. This wasn't worth going out of your way for, but a pleasant match with one thrilling sequence.

Post-match, Drew Gulak treated us to more of his powerpoint presentation, introducing his idea of Drewtopia and attempting to ban celebrating. This resulted in a spinning roundhouse kick from Tozawa. 

Enzo Amore and Ariya Daivari were part of a lengthy backstage conversation, that essentially boiled down to Daivari blaming Monday's attack on "mob mentality" and asking Amore to be in his corner against Neville later on. 

Before TJP's match with Lince Dorado could begin, Rich Swann legged it down the ramp to scrap with TJP, who then legged it through the crowd to escape. 

Backstage, Jack Gallagher and The Brian Kendrick cut a promo ahead of Gallagher's match with Cedric Alexander next week, bringing up ideas of cruelty and seasons and things. 

Neville cut a brilliantly performed promo about last night being the best night of his life..."Keep one eye open buddy, because you never know where this creature will be lurking" 

Neville def. Ariya Daivari (5:18)

A pretty basic match here to close the show, but one that did a decent job of introducing the potential that the King of the Cruiserweights has as a babyface. Neville took an absolute beating from Daivari with Byron Saxton and Vic Joseph putting over the idea that he had been thrown by the loss to Enzo and the fact that Amore was at ringside. The former champion got chucked into the barricades on multiple occasions, took an rope-hung reverse DDT, a knee strikes and a forearm and sold well, making a man who hasn't won in his last seven look like a world-beater at points. Neville's offence was limited to a couple of kicks and it seemed like Enzo Amore being at ringside would end up costing him, only for the Geordie to duck Daivari's hammerlock lariat, hit an armdrag and lock in the Rings of Saturn for the submission victory in a crisp flash finish. Whilst it would have been nice to see Neville crack out the Red Arrow for the victory, but the submission victory arguably put over his mindset better. This isn't going to be the happy-go-lucky babyface "Man that Gravity Forgot" that we saw in 2015/16, but a much more focused and violent Neville, an extension of the King of the Cruiserweights character that has blossomed as a villain, except now he's beating the shit into guys like Enzo Amore and Ariya Daivari.

After the match, Enzo Amore almost immediately clobbered Neville with a crutch to the back, before laying in some forearms whilst the referees attempted to remove him.

A solid episode of 205 Live this week, with Enzo Amore's change of character providing an entertaining opening monologue and closing the show with punch and impact. Akira Tozawa vs. Tony Nese was the better of the two matches, but Neville's victory over Ariya Daivari gets the former a chance to put together how his King of the Cruiserweights character is going to work as a fan favourite. This feels like the most exciting time for 205 Live since it's inception with lots of potential for storylines and in-ring clashes, but the show will always suffer for as long as it comes after SmackDown airs live.

Review by James Marston

205 Live #43 Review - Enzo Amore Kicks Neville in the Crown Jewels

On 19th September 2017, WWE aired the 43rd episode of 205 Live, live on the WWE Network from the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. The show featured a face to face confrontation between Cruiserweight Champion Neville and his opponent at No Mercy, Enzo Amore as well appearances from The Brian Kendrick, TJP, Akira Tozawa, Rich Swann & Drew Gulak. But was it any good? Let's take a look!

The show began with a recap, reminding us that...Neville is Cruiserweight Champion, Enzo Amore came to 205 Live a month ago, became #1 Contender two weeks in a Fatal Fiveway then got destroyed by Braun Strowman on RAW last night, allowing Neville to take advantage and hit a Red Arrow on his downed future challenger.

Cedric Alexander def. The Brian Kendrick (5:23)

A neat opener here with two of the brands top performers working a short contest with a couple of lovely sequences and a fun finishing sequence. I've got a lot of time for the work that Kendrick has been doing in the ring lately, as his crafty veteran character continues to develop and collect new mannerisms by the week. Stuff like using the ring apron to take control on the outside and being a sneaky cheat whilst hooking on a chin lock can make all the difference during a match that doesn't particularly mean anything, keeping things interesting during what can sometimes end up being a lull in the match. It was a shame that the crowd wasn't really up for the action, as has been the case since 205's inception, because Kendrick and Alexander worked hard, with lots of moments for the younger man to shine. The closing stretch coming off a series of forearm exchanges featured some rather lovely back and forth, with the two showing a slickness that has came from working together three times already this year. Alexander being able to block a Sliced Bread #2 attempt, before countering an O'Connor roll into a pinning combination of his own, provided plenty of opportunity for future encounters where hopefully the two will get a little bit more time to play with.

After the match, Jack Gallagher jumped Cedric Alexander from behind, with Kendrick joining in the beatdown that concludes with a big headbutt. Gallagher & Kendrick were later interviewed backstage by Dasha Fuentes, with Gallagher saying that "in life you can be nice or you can be a winner" and he didn't want to be a joke to the Cruiserweight division anymore.

Drew Gulak got a top the announce table addressing some of the issues he had in Fashion Jail after his altercation with the Fashion Police last week, before moving on to talk about his dislike of Akira Tozawa and his chanting, as he compared himself to Galileo. It was then time to continue his powerpoint presentation, with Rule #6 being no cell phones, which, of course, lead to the crowd getting there's out and lighting up the torches...good stuff, I wonder when we'll finish this presentation, as Tozawa interrupted to signal the match was ready to go. 

Akira Tozawa def. Noam Dar (4:00)

A rematch from RAW in February with the same result, this was a cute little bout, that kept things simple, but again failed to capture the crowd. The audience even seem reluctant to join in with Tozawa's "Ah!" chant, which is usually pretty over, but the performers worked well together in the ring, with Dar working the leg a little before a Tozawa comeback concluded with the victory winning diving senton.

Backstage, TJP spoke to Rich Swann about their match last week, asking for another bout due their "chemistry" with Swann appearing to refuse, wanting to leave the series in the past after winning the rubber match. 

TJP Finally Attacked Rich Swann (and also Lince Dorado)

With Swann's scheduled opponent Lince Dorado appearing injured backstage, Swann went to head to the back and walked right into a superkick from TJP and then was on the receiving end of a military press onto the barricade, as their story continues to develop. This story has been boiling for a while, with the "friendly competition" vibe, I'm hoping this more heated part of the tale is a little punchier and we get a good, gimmick match before the two move in different directions.

Enzo Amore Kicked Neville in the Crown Jewels

Bloody hell, I love Neville. Whether or not WWE is getting it right with his feud with Enzo Amore at the moment is neither here or there, because the Geordie jumper is doing some utterly marvellous work on the microphone, having transformed himself into one of the best talkers in WWE right now. This was another brilliantly quotable effort from the Cruiserweight Champion as he ripped into Amore for being "a stain on the fabric that is modern society" and later, after Enzo had spouted some stuff about hanging out with the Weeknd, Nevile reminded him that "Come Sunday, none of that matters, because you lads...you can't fight". His pronunciation of each word is pitch perfect, making the viewer pay attention, to the point where it's becoming difficult not to side with him. The problem here is that Enzo isn't a likeable guy anymore, he coasted for too long and hasn't by his personal life becoming public knowledge. This resulted in the crowd booing Amore after almost every line, leaning to an intentionally comedic moment when Enzo said "I'm showered in this love", choosing not to adapt his speech to the fact the crowd clearly wasn't behind him. Amore kicking Neville in the balls at the end of the segment (after Neville had claimed he couldn't win the title that way on Sunday) felt like a heel turn and got a little heat, but I'm not sure if we'll know where WWE is taking this until No Mercy. If it's it not, it's a shame, because as Neville put it, he's better than Enzo in any conceivable way and it's difficult not to side with the Kings of the Cruiserweights right now.

As usual with 205 Live, the in-ring action was okay to good, whilst the storyline and character development continued to be strong, with Jack Gallagher, Drew Gulak and Neville all performing to high standards when called upon. There could have been more action in the ring with only about ten minutes of wrestling on the show, which doesn't give talent like Cedric Alexander and Akira Tozawa much chance of getting over with a tired crowd that to be won over by the product. Not having the time on RAW and rarely getting to go full pelt and show what they can do differently to everyone else is still harming audience reactions and that in turn harms whatever is being put out on 205. There's things that can be done, but that's perhaps for another article.

Review by James Marston