By Jon Mezzera, Torch Specialist

SMACKDOWN HITS

Opening Segment: The opening of Smackdown accomplished everything that it needed to. It gave CM Punk a chance to talk about his Title victory at Extreme Rules and to explain why he chose to cash in his Money in the Bank opportunity at that time. He gave a strong performance on the mic, making his case to the fans, even if they weren't buying it. Jeff Hardy got a chance to confront Punk and he delivered another in a line of better than usual (which if he keeps it up will become usual) mic performances. Edge of course got involved and was his usual great self. I loved when he accused Punk of trying to be him. You have a situation with a clear babyface, a clear heel and a tweener in Punk, and that can work for awhile. Plus, it set up the main event for the show, Edge vs. Hardy in a #1 contenders match.

Mic Time for R-Truth: It was good to again see R-Truth getting mic time to do more than just rap his way to the ring. His responses from the live crowds are pretty positive. I have never been a big fan of his going back to his first WWE run, but he has talent. He can do some exciting things in the ring. And, mid carders should get more mic time in general. It is hard to really connect with a wrestler if we don't know anything about him. Now, this mic time doesn't give Truth any character development, but at least it allows him to show more of his personality. It was a good promo, and his "whole truth" deal has a chance to get over with the fans.

Haas & Benjamin vs. Morrison & Truth: This was a good 9 minute tag match. It was a bit formulaic, but it was still fun to watch. Charlie Haas has shown much more aggression in the ring lately, as Jim Ross has pointed out numerous times. Shelton Benjamin, John Morrison and R-Truth all bring a ton of athleticism to the ring. I'm curious where WWE is going with Haas & Benjamin, as they have not officially reformed their old tag team, but are clearly teaming together again. It is an interesting dynamic. Morrison continues to shine in the ring in case you hadn't noticed.

Jericho vs. Punk: It is clear that Smackdown is the superior brand when they can put on a match of this caliber, and it isn't the main event. When was the last time Raw featured a match this good? Chris Jericho and CM Punk put on a very good 14 minute match. It was fun from start to finish and never dragged. Jericho continues to be the MVP of WWE with his mic work (another great pre-match promo that was missing from Superstars) and his in ring work (another good match, just like on Superstars). Punk looked good in the ring as well. Both guys worked hard and put on a match that featured high energy wrestling, submission holds, reversals, near falls, and a great ending. I loved how Jericho sold the kick to his head that led to the Go To Sleep. I also love that Punk got a clean win over Jericho in his first match as Champion. Assuming he retains his Title on Raw, his second reign will be off to a better start than his first.

Hardy vs. Edge: In general, if you told me that Smackdown would feature a match between Jeff Hardy and Edge that would go over 20 minutes, I would be very excited. I would expect a high flying, very well wrestled PPV quality match. However, if you told me that they would be selling the effects of a brutal ladder match, and really slowing the pace down, and not doing a typical match between the two, I would cringe a little. That being said, I enjoyed this match as an alternative to the types of matches that they usually have. We saw them have a different type of match on Smackdown when Jeff won and made their Extreme Rules match a ladder match. We saw a different type of match at the PPV. And now we saw this. It is a good reminder that there are different wrestling styles, and when done well, they can all be enjoyable. This was slower than we're used to seeing, but it wasn't boring. It had a lot of ring psychology. Both wrestlers gave great performances in selling their injuries and focusing their attacks on those injuries. The selling added realism (at least as much as there can be in a pro wrestling match) to it. CM Punk did a good job on guest commentary, adding to the match and also getting over his decision to cash in his Title opportunity. The ending was a bit predictable and a bit of a cop out, but the match itself was still good.

SMACKDOWN MISSES

Ziggler vs. Khali: This feud won't end will it? I honestly could be misremembering, although my memory is very good, but didn't The Great Khali easily beat Dolph Ziggler last week? If that is the case, why were they facing again? This was very boring and didn't really do much for Ziggler. And, all signs point to more of the same which is not a good thing.

McCool & Layla vs. Melina & Eve: Another Divas tag match that lasted less than 3 minutes. These teams had some talent, but what does it matter in such a short match? I know from past efforts that Michelle McCool and Melina have talent in the ring. I'm not sure about Eve Torres or Layla as they hardly are ever given a chance. A tag match shouldn't be this short. It doesn't accomplish much. Do we really want to see McCool vs. Melina after that? If given time, they have a chance to put on a good Title match, but I can't get excited about it as I assume it will be this short too.

Long & Tiffany: Was it just me, or did the scene in the back with GMs Teddy Long and Tiffany watching the end of the show seem added on? It was almost like WWE wanted it to be a disqualification for Hardy, leaving Edge the winner and the #1 contender, but then they changed their minds two days later, and had Long and Tiffany film that scene to announce the triple threat instead. It was just weird. It would have been better to have Long actually come out to the arena, and explain that while Edge might have gotten the win via DQ, that Hardy proved that he deserved the Title shot as well.

Jon Mezzera is PWTorch.com's WWE Hits & Misses Specialist, providing his point of view for Raw, Smackdown, ECW, and Superstars each week. Email him at jmezz-torch@sbcglobal.net.

For another view from the original Hitlist author, compare Jason Powell's views to mine by visiting prowrestling.NET's "Hitlist" section here.

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