Previously on 205 Live, the cruiserweight championship tournament continued, with Kalisto defeating Lince Dorado and Roderick Strong advancing in a brutal match with long time rival Hideo Itami.
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And now, the Best and Worst of WWE 205 Live for February 13, 2018.
Best: The British Invasion
The Drake Maverick era continues with another great match. I think I’ve mentioned it before, but terrible pop-punk is my guiltiest pleasure, so Mark Andrews is right up my alley. I was kind of surprised at the outcome to this one. Tozawa is a former champ, and is one of the most charismatic members of the roster, while Mark Andrews is making just his second appearance on 205 Live. It does make the championship seem more prestigious to have all these wrestlers from outside the division wanting to win it all. I just hope that it means these guys are going to stick around a bit after this tournament is all said and done.
This was probably the weakest match of the tournament, which is a testament to how great these matches have been. If this match happens six weeks ago at the height of the Zo Train, we’d be losing out minds saying, “this is what 205 Live should be” but now my first thought is, “it was good, but it was no Roderick Strong/Hideo Itami.” I LOVE the new 205 Live.
And a quick note about commentary. I’m going to compliment them later in this post, but I have to say – Vic, it’s the “Stundog Millionaire.” He said it wrong so many times, even after Nigel correctly named the move, that it almost seemed intentional.
Worst?: Sartorially Challenged
So far everything 205 Live 2.0 has done has been great, so I know I should give them the benefit of the doubt, but well-dressed gentlemanly bruiser Jack Gallagher has been the most consistently great character in all of WWE, non Drew Gulak division. The only negative on Jack Gallagher’s part since his heel turn is they decided that he can’t win a match anymore to save his life. I would say it was a sure lock that Mustafa Ali was going to advance next week, but this tournament keeps throwing us curve balls, so who knows. We might have the return of Fruit Stripe trunks umbrella-ing his way all the way to Wrestlemania.
Best: In Order To Ensure The Security And Continuing Stability, 205 Live Will Be Reorganized Into The FIRST GULAKTIC EMPIRE
Sith is the second best Star Wars movie behind Empire. @ me.
(Edit note: the author originally claimed “Clones” was the second best Star Wars movie behind Empire, but he meant to say Revenge of the Sith, and it would be absurd to just leave evidence of someone liking Attack of the Clones that much on the Internet)
Friendship and wrestling just don’t work, I guess. After last weeks pep talk from Drake Maverick, both Drew Gulak and Tony Nese both changed their games a little bit and went back to what brought them to the CWC in the first place. Tony showed off more of the athleticism that made him one of the more exciting participants in the tournament, and Drew became a goddamn psychopath.
This was my favorite match of the tournament so far. Better than Roddy and Hideo beating the hell out of each other. I think it helps that Drew and Tony are two of the better defined wrestlers of 205 Live, with clear character motivations and a defined relationship between one another. Who would of thought that the secret to a good wrestling show was having talented wrestlers and giving them stories that make sense? Someone should tell the powers that be at Smackdown Live to stick around after their show and see how it’s done.
Like I mentioned above, the commentary team really helped sell Drew Gulak’s descent into madness. Vic and Nigel are my favorite non-NXT announce team in the company. I think there is something to be gained by having the simple two man play by play and color team that has worked for decades. Adding the third member to the booth just kind of muddles everyone’s role.
I hope we still get the some of the goofier elements that made “A Better 205 Live” Gulak such a favorite, but I like him harnessing his inner CZW. He had the same vibe when he kicked Tony Nese out of the Zo Train the first time. I can see Drew making it all the way to the championship match at Mania. I mean, SOMEONE has to take the Lumbar Check.
Next week: The first round of the Cruiserweight Championship tournament comes to an end, when favorite Mustafa Ali faces “Gentleman” Jack Gallagher and Buddy Murphy makes his 205 Live debut when he faces Ariya “Dinero” Daivari.
