WWE 205 Live Review - September 11, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Buddy Murphy def. Gran Metalik

Although Murphy has been linked with Tony Nese lately and Metalik obviously has the Lucha House Party, I liked how there was no one at ringside for this and they were allowed to go just go out there and do their thing. It was the perfect match to open the show with because it was a lot of fun, they worked tremendously well together, and both men once again proved why they're among the most elite athletes in the entire company. Murphy picking up the victory was the right call and his post-match promo putting the WWE Cruiserweight Champion on notice for WWE Super Show-Down next month was a nice touch.

Mustafa Ali def. Michael Thompson

Ali has been on the shelf (in storyline) for several weeks after he was deemed unable to compete following his match against Hideo Itami a while ago. Well, he's back now and appears to be better than ever. Of course, this was designed to be a quick showcase for him and thus it was successful in that respect. Hideo Itami's brief verbal jabs at Ali beforehand were a good way of keeping that program alive and setting up another matchup between them for down the road.

Drew Gulak and Gentleman Jack Gallagher def. WWE Cruiserweight Champion Cedric Alexander and Akira Tozawa

Tozawa has had his own issues with Gulak and his gang in recent weeks, so he was a logical partner for Alexander here. It was an enjoyable main event on the whole, and although it was a bit formulaic at times, all four competitors had solid showings. Most importantly, the heels went over as they should have, which sets up Gulak for another shot at the strap next week. I doubt he'll win with Super Show-Down right around the corner, but it should be another terrific match from him and Alexander, regardless.

Overall Show

As I've said time and time again in the past, 205 Live continues to be one of the best and most consistent WWE shows from week to week. A better crowd would do wonders for this show, and since they largely aren't a part of the WWE pay-per-views anymore, they might as well move to Full Sail University full-time if possible. As for this episode, it was an entertaining hour of wrestling with an above-average opener, Ali returning to the ring and furthering his feud with Itami, and Gulak regaining momentum ahead of his Cruiserweight Championship match next week.