The Other Two Hours – NXT/205 Live Recaps – 1/24-25/17

205 Live, again in Toledo, featured three match ups and lots of recaps for the Swann-Neville tilt coming Sunday at Royal Rumble.

TJ Perkins vs Tony Nese

Tony Nese is exactly what he claims to be, a premier athlete.  I’m eager to see Austin Aries put a thumb in his eye, but that’ll have to wait.

This match was actually really good.  These two guys are wildly talented and Tony took every opportunity to put his amazing power on display against a competitor who can help sell things incredibly well in TJP.

TJP gets a roll up on Nese for the victory, but he takes one hell of a beating for it.

The Brian Kendrick vs Tripp Bradshaw

Tripp Bradshaw was a local talent from the Toledo area, and the crowd was definitely behind him.  I think they’re a little out of sorts as their intentions of having Kendrick enter into a feud with Tajiri was cut surprisingly short following a single appearance by the Japanese Buzzsaw.

Tripp Bradshaw was no slouch though, and I do hope we see him again, but the Captain’s Hook drew an incredibly quick tap out and Kendrick keeps on rolling (if that’s what you want to call it.

Cedric Alexander vs Neville

If you didn’t see the Cruiserweight Classic, this match will tell you everything you missed in our initial introduction to Cedric Alexander.  It’s also a display of exactly why they needed Neville to change alignment and carry the dark side of the 205 Live Roster.

This match got almost 20 minutes of TV time.  Noam Dar made an effort to interfere but Cedric laid him out, only to find himself trapped in the Rings of Saturn for the submission defeat after slipping off the top rope trying for the springboard clothesline.  Neville continued to beat on Cedric after the match, drawing Rich Swann from the back.  The two brawled, but there wasn’t necessarily a clear winner.  Should make for a damn good match on Sunday.  I like this new version of Neville.

On tap for next week:

Tozawa is coming.  I’m incredibly excited.

A prerecorded NXT episode from Full Sail kicks off with the women’s division.

Ember Moon vs Liv Morgan

Liv Morgan essentially took the mantle of Jersey Shore Princess from Carmella following her call up, quite literally.  She wears pretty much the same thing, same blonde hair, pretty much the same promos.  It’s crazy how ready she was to step right into the role.

Ember Moon on the other hand is crazy damn good.  The Eclipse, a diving Stunner from the top rope, is so freaking cool.  I cannot wait for the match I anticipate for TakeOver Orlando as she finally gets to take on Asuka.  Ember Moon is the only person on this roster that even comes across as having a chance to beat Asuka, not just for the title but just in general.

Liv puts up a pretty good fight, but she gets an Eclipse for her trouble and Ember Moon’s rise to the top keeps moving in the right direction.

Promos and Video Packages for Everyone

Roderick Strong and Andrade “Cien” Almas have an exchange backstage, then a brief video package to set that match up.

That package leads directly into a long video package with Paul Ellering reading from some ancient aramaic book about pain with tons of footage of AoP and DIY to get us ready for that one.

No Way Jose vs Kona Reeves

You know your shoulders started moving just looking at that .gif.

I’m really surprised that Jose hasn’t moved further up the card than he has, or moved at all really.  He’s exciting, has a good look, and he’s good in the ring.  Needs a new finisher, as I really think Big Show is the only one who can pull off the big punch as a signature maneuver, and Jose is too exciting to use a punch as a closing move.

Kona Reeves, however, I’m pretty sure was wrestling on 205 Live a week ago under a different name, and he wears the fish hook from Moana around his neck to seem more Samoan or something.  Also, congratulations to Disney and the Moana team on their Oscar nomination.  It was a pretty great animated feature.

Short match with not a whole lot of excitement.  Jose wins with a pop up sucker punch.

During his post match interview, The Drifter decides to interrupt with some of his trademark shitty guitar playing and horrible singing.  For those of you keeping score, Elias Samson has just as many moves in his move set as he knows guitar chords, which means to say he has two.

Samson storms the ring, but Jose clocks him with another punch.  These two will undoubtedly have a match in the next week or two of regular NXT Television programming.

Chris Atkins (Who?) vs Eric Young

We all know how this will go.  Atkins will get a few shots in, but ultimately Eric Young will lay waste to this guy.  I’m ok with it though.  It paints a picture of just what Dillinger is up against Saturday night in San Antonio.  The distractions from around the ring are plentiful with Sanity in tow.  No worries.  It’s Dillinger’s time.

Fatal 4 Way Face Off

I’m confused, won’t lie.  This was built as the main event for this episode, but the implication was that all four were just going to be in the ring at the same time, it wasn’t actually a match.  It also wasn’t being billed as a contract signing like usual.  Are they just going to hang out?  Trade barbs?  Billie Kay and Peyton Royce will twirl each other’s hair?

Either way, Regal is in the ring, so it’ll be fine, and regardless of what happens in these next few minutes, these three can all rest assured, Asuka’s Gonna Kill You.

The three challengers make their usual slow entrances, but Asuka doesn’t even wait for her music to hit and she’s charging towards the ring.  Eventually Cross and Asuka throw the Aussies to the outside, foreshadowing what you could probably expect is coming on Saturday.  Billie Kay and Peyton Royce are just window dressing in this match, it just creates the impression that there are three people who could potentially take the title, which isn’t going to happen for another few months.

It was a good segment, as they don’t tend to let the women assault the security guys, but Asuka laid one out with a big kick, then Nikki Cross came off the top rope with a crossbody on about six members of the security staff and the champion.

Peyton Royce and Billie Kay just stood at the top of the ramp dumbfounded as the show closed.

Up for next week:

Probably not much.  I would imagine they film The Drifter against No Way Jose in a dark match prior to the broadcast for TO:SA, then just replays of the rest of the card.