205 Live – December 5, 2017: Drewtopia!
205 Live
Date: December 5, 2017
Location: Valley View Casino Center, San Diego, California
Commentators: Vic Joseph, Nigel McGuinness
We’re in a weird place with this show as the big #1 contenders match is coming up on Raw, making this show all the less important. On top of that, Enzo Amore is out of the country this week and has put Drew Gulak in charge. I’m sure nothing bad will come of this whatsoever. Let’s get to it.
We open with a recap of Gulak becoming the second entrant in the #1 contender match by winning a four way last night on Raw.
Opening sequence.
Here’s Gulak to open things up by asking how we are all doing. His mentor has appointed him as the leader of the Zo Train but this Monday, Drew is going to become the new #1 contender and face Enzo to become the new Cruiserweight Champion. It’s PowerPoint time but Cedric Alexander comes out to cut him off for their match. Hang on a second though, as Drew is using his new authority to delegate matches. Therefore, Cedric will be facing someone else tonight. Someone who has been S-O-F-T as of late.
Cedric Alexander vs. Noam Dar
Gulak sits in on commentary. Dar cranks on a headlock to start but Cedric nips up and scores with a good looking dropkick. He stops to glare at Gulak though, allowing Dar to kick out at two. Dar gets sent outside where Gulak points out an incoming dive, allowing Gulak to kick Cedric down to take over.
Back in and Dar works on the arm until he realizes that isn’t getting him anywhere. Instead he kicks Cedric in the face, only to be kicked away. The springboard clothesline gets two but another kick cuts Cedric down. Dar goes up but Gulak freaks out, saying they talked about this. He comes back down and walks into the Neuralizer, followed by the Lumbar Check for the pin at 5:44.
Rating: D+. Nothing special here, aside from Gulak getting to show off some more of his entertaining personality. Dar is still one of the least interesting performers on the roster and Enzo looking down on him isn’t doing him much good. I have no idea why Swann is in the title picture instead of Cedric but I’d bet on WWE not paying much attention.
205 Live is running some house shows next month.
Swann, Mustafa Ali and Akira Tozawa are fired up for the tour. Ali switches over to Gulak, who made him miss Enzo. The interviewer comes up to ask Swann about Gulak being in charge of the Zo Train. Swann doesn’t mind though as he’s going to go out and stay classy San Diego.
Brian Kendrick vs. Gran Metalik
Kendrick has Jack Gallagher with him. Earlier today, the two of them talked about being glad Kalisto is gone tonight. Metalik grabs an early springboard wristdrag to start and Kendrick needs a breather. Back up and Metalik runs the ropes into a middle rope dropkick, followed by a dive onto Gallagher. A springboard missile dropkick takes Kendrick down again but Metalik heads into the crowd.
With a running start, Metalik drives over the barricade for a hurricanrana to keep Kendrick in trouble. Gallagher grabs Metalik’s leg though and Brian gets in a few shots to take over. Back in and we hit the choke on the ropes but it’s too early for Sliced Bread. Instead it’s a knee to the face and the Captain’s Hook to give Kendrick the win at 5:48.
Rating: C+. This was a tale of two halves with Metalik dominating the early part but getting completely destroyed in the end. I’m still a fan of Metalik but it’s pretty clear that he’s only going to be there to put others over. It was more entertaining than I was expecting, even if Kendrick vs. Kalisto is little more than a way to get Kalisto back on track.
We look back at Nia Jax having a thing for Enzo.
Gulak yells at the Zo Train, again comparing the team to the Justice League. The thing is Ariya Daivari is Wonder Woman: a fierce warrior with a great sense of fashion.
Hideo Itami is still coming. We get some tweets from some members of the roster, who are excited to have him around.
Tony Nese vs. Rich Swann
Gulak is in Nese’s corner so Swann brings Cedric with him. Nese wastes no time in kicking Swann down into the corner and then sweeping the leg to put him on the floor. That’s fine with Swann who pops up for a middle rope flip dive to take Nese down as well. Back in and Nese takes over again, this time slapping on a bodyscissors.
The situp kicks to the ribs keep Swann in trouble but Nese misses a Lionsault. He’s fine enough for a sitout pumphandle powerslam though and Swann is right back in trouble. Said trouble only lasts a few seconds though as Swann is right back up with a spinning kick to the head, followed by the Phoenix splash for the pin at 7:59.
Rating: C-. Another rather dull match to end a rather dull show. Swann winning was obvious and it’s not a good sign when Gulak being upset at not wanting to upset Enzo was the most entertaining part. You could have had any member of the team out there and it wouldn’t have changed a thing, which isn’t the best sign in the world.
Post match Gulak calls in the Zo Train but the villains take forever just standing there, allowing Tozawa and Ali to come in for the save to end the show.
Overall Rating: D. This is a tricky one to grade as it was built around Drew Gulak, who was rather entertaining. The problem is the show itself didn’t work, mainly because none of this matters. We’re building towards Swann vs. Gulak for the title shot but with that match already set up and Enzo not here, none of this really matters. It made the show feel like a waste of time, which is what happens when you focus so much of your storytelling on one idea. The wrestling was really lackluster though and it made for a dull night, which isn’t a good sign when things need to be picking up.
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