Shore's WWE Smackdown Hitlist: The Elimination Chamber for Smackdown is set, Edge makes his triumphant return, The Divas get another angle, and R-Truth squashes Mike Knox

WWE Smackdown Hits

Overall Show: I have to start with the show as it was one of the best Smackdowns in a run of very good Smackdowns. The EC qualifying matches ranged from good to very good—with one noted exception—and even the Divas match was OK for what it had to do. The promo segments with Edge were off the charts. I’m getting breathless and you get the point. Well worth the find on Hulu if you missed the show.

John Morrison vs. Kane vs. Drew McIntyre: The match of the night. Morrison and McIntyre have had a good run, and Kane has done really good work with guys of their ilk, so it made sense to put them all together. I really like that Morrison got the rub here. He was all but buried in his feud with McIntyre, and I hope he goes on to look good in the EC so he can take the next step in his evolution. A special hit goes to the running knee Morrison hit on McIntyre to end the match. Well done by both men.

Rey Mysterio vs. Dolph Ziggler: Even though we saw this match four times when they were feuding over the Intercontinental Championship, it was worth sitting through again. I’m ready for Rey to move out of the main event scene, but I can wait until after the EC I guess. Ziggler upsets me so much. He has all the skills necessary, he just can’t get any significant heat. He needs a defining moment as a heel to establish himself I guess.

Edge’s Promos: Edge opened and closed the show. Normally this would be over exposure, but they mixed in Jericho, Punk, and Taker so well it came out good. He is the second most intriguing story in all of wrestling right now—behind Vince and Bret—and the more Edge we get, the better.

CM Punk vs. Batista: This was by far the strangest moment of the night for me personally. At first, I liked what happened. Then I thought it was stupid for Batista to leave. Now, I’m back to where I was. That may have been the best I have ever seen Batista. He was as smug as any human could be, and I cannot wait to see why he just walked away from his coveted title shot.

Beth Phoenix and Mickie James vs. Michelle McCool and Layla: Even though the match was lackluster at best, it served its purpose as a storyline advancer well, and I’m still excited that the women have another storyline to roll right into instead of disappearing back down the card.

Chris Jericho vs. Matt Hardy: Yes, I pooped all over this in my report, and it still wasn’t the best match. But it was OK, and I have no reason to kill it out right. I just don’t like Matt Hardy. He’s slow and plodding, but without the power that normally slow and plodding guys have. Jericho carried him the best he could, but Matt Hardy is just boring in the ring.

WWE Smackdown Misses

R-Truth vs. Mike Knox: This was the worst thing of the night, and it would have been the worst thing on any night. Mike Knox is 10 times the wrestler R-Truth is, and even if he wasn’t, R-Truth should not be squashing a guy the size of Knox. It’s was stupid, lazy booking and it didn’t have to be. They could have shaved some time from Jericho/Hardy and given these two a chance to tell a story. Shame on creative for putting this match in this show.