WWE 205 Live Review - February 21, 2017

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

The Brian Kendrick def. Akira Tozawa by Count-out

Far too often does it feel like Cruiserweights are limited in terms of what they can do in the ring, but it seemed Tozawa and Kendrick were able to let loose a bit and contest a pretty entertaining opener. As I've noted before, Tozawa is quickly winning over the audience with his charisma and exciting in-ring arsenal. In addition to the action being enjoyable, the psychology was solid as well and Kendrick tying up Tozawa's leg under the ring isn't something we see too often from heels. Thus, it was in line with what his character would do and kept the program alive.

Noam Dar def. Mustafa Ali

These two seem to be in a bit of a holding pattern at the moment, but at the very least, both of them are excellent athletes and this was a fun match. The biggest issue with having these guys trade victories back and forth is that they don't build any real momentum. And officials wonder why the crowds don't care about them for the most part. On a side note, the commentators acknowledged Alicia Fox's absence from ringside and Corey Graves said she was out sick.

Jack Gallagher def. Tony Nese

I realize Gallagher is challenging for the WWE Cruiserweight Championship at Fastlane next month, but I actually would have gone with Tozawa vs. Kendrick as the main event for this show. This was a well-wrestled match, but it's been pretty well-established by this point that Nese is a glorified enhancement talent for the Cruiserweights. I think that was made apparent when the crowd largely sat on their hands for this match. It was a nice momentum booster for Gallagher, but as a match, I wasn't blown away.

Overall Show

Of the three "marquee" matches WWE promoted for this edition of 205 Live, I was only anticipating Kendrick vs. Tozawa, and as good of a match as that was, I assume we'll witness even better bouts between them down the line as the feud continues. Dar vs. Ali was a treat yet didn't serve a purpose, and the main event was longer than it needed to be in my opinion. Honestly, the most newsworthy aspect of this episode was the announcement that Austin Aries will be returning to the ring soon, which I am extremely excited for.