BRM Reviews the 10/31/2018 205 Live (GREAT!)

[Big Red Machine]

BRIAN KENDRICK vs. JACK GALLAGHER- 6.5/10
Drew Gulak did guest commentary for this match. There was WAY too much cutting away from the action so we could watch Gulak talk. This was a babyface vs. heel match. The finish saw Gulak try to interfere but Akira Tozawa came out of the crowd to stop him. Kendrick then hit Sliced Bread #2 for the win. This should make a fine tag match for some point in the next few weeks.

DRAKE MAVERICK & CEDRIC ALEXANDER BACKSTAGE- fine
Maverick told Cedric that he doesn’t want to give Cedric his contractually obligated rematch now because Cedric has been on a big losing streak. Cedric took it very well, vowing to return to championship form and then to regain the Cruiserweight Title. Personally, I don’t see how Maverick can deny Cedric a rematch he is due in a contract if Cedric were to press the issue.

GRAN METALIK CHALLENGES TJP TO A MATCH- This was apparently something he did on social media. They subtitled it because he doesn’t speak English… and that’s perfectly fine. Emotion translates well across language barriers, so between the translation they gave me and the emotion I heard in Gran Metalik’s voice, nothing was lost.
We were told that TJP declined the challenge because he said he already proved he was better than Gran Metalik when he beat him in the Cruiserweight Classic.

A JOBBER vs. GRAN METALIK (w/Lucha House Party)- no rating, great segment!
Metalik squashed the jobber, then got attacked from behind by TJP, who quickly snatched his mask and escaped before Kalisto or Dorado could catch him.

KAYLA BRAXTON INTERVIEWS BUDDY MURPHY- very good
This actually started with Nese and Murphy walking together, and Murphy giving Nese encouragement for his #1 contendership match against Mustafa Ali in the main event. Murphy explained to us that because they were going to be in the UK next week, he wanted to face the best NXT UK has to offer, so Drake Maverick set him up against Mark Andrews. Kayla then asked him what would happen if he wound up having to defend his title against his good pal and training partner Tony Nese, to which Murphy replied by telling her to mind her own business. Build for next week’s match, plus a tease for a potential big title defense in the future, all in the same segment.

MIKE & MARIA ARE INTERVIEWED BY DASHA- GREAT!
Dasha tries to ask them about their issue with Lucha House Party last week. Maria basically tells Dasha to f*ck off. She then asks Mike what it is like to be “the best Cruiserweight on 205 Live.” They were quickly interrupted by TJP running through the set. They were angry at this, so TJP tried to smooth things over. Maria claimed that she knew why TJP was really here: to ask Mike Kanellis for protection from Lucha House Party. She suggested they go elsewhere and talk business.

#1 CONTENDERSHIP MATCH: Mustafa Ali vs. Tony Nese- 8.25/10
Ali’s elbow and ribs are all taped up after last week’s hellacious Falls Count Anywhere Match against Hideo Itami. Nese immediately went after the ribs and started to work them over. They followed suit from there, buffeting this “Nese work’s over Ali’s already-injured ribs” story by mixing one about Nese’s power advantage in as well. Ali eventually managed to catch Nese with a roll-up for the pin.

POST-MATCH SEGMENT- good
Nese tried to attack Ali after the match but Cedric Alexander came out to make the save, setting him up for a match with Nese that should begin his road to redemption against the very man his post-title loss fall started against. Cedric helped Ali up, and there was a moment where the crowd was certain was about to turn heel and attack Ali, but it never came. Murphy then came out onto the stage to rub the fact that he is the WWE Cruiserweight Champion in both Ali and Cedric’s faces.

Another GREAT episode of 205 Live!