Shore's WWE Smackdown Hitlist: Daniel Bryan and AJ continue to steal the show, new talent brings excitement for the future, Teddy Long isn't big enough to carry his story, and the six man main event leaves flat

By Chris Shore

WWE Smackdown Hits

Daniel Bryan: Once again Daniel Bryan is the best thing on Smackdown. He struck the perfect tone here and his interaction with AJ made me happy because it wasn't so misogynistic as it has been in the past. He just came across as a jerk ex-boyfriend, not a guy who abuses women. This continues to be the best story in all of WWE right now. Cena and Lesnar has more star power, Punk and Jericho has more fire, but this is the best story.

AJ: AJ has been the silent hero of this story and I loved the advancement here with her losing it and attacking Natalya. Her character needed to evolve, and this was perfect. The best part is you know she's going to get involved in the title match at Extreme Rules, but the possibilities of what she will do are endless. As someone who tells stories, that's the best setup you could have.

Brodus Clay and Hornswoggle: Generally anything involving Hornswoggle goes straight to the miss list. But much like Clay won me over on this gimmick because he put his soul into it, Swoggle was having so much fun here it was hard not to like it. The match with Hunico left a lot to be desired, and they pushed it a little too far with the dancing at the end, but as a whole this was definitely a hit.

New Talent: From Darren Young and Titus O'Neil, to Ryback, Damien Sandow, and Antonio Cesaro, Smackdown has introduced so very competent and interesting characters. Not all of them are on fire right now, but those are five names that good be synonymous with the word Superstar in short order.

WWE Smackdown Misses

Teddy Long: Look, the story here is not bad in and of itself. Demeaning a babyface so he can recover from it is an old wrestling story. The problem here is that the babyface is not interesting enough to make this work. This story depends on a great babyface, and Teddy long is the exact opposite of a great babyface.

Alberto Del Rio vs. Big Show: This match wasn't very interesting, and really served no purpose. Del Rio gains nothing from the tainted win, and Cody Rhodes gained nothing from the run in because he has been diminished so much over the past few weeks. When you add in the knockout blow on Cody at the end of the show, you realize how little this meant to anybody. A complete waste of time in this entire segment.

Daniel Bryan, Mark Henry, and Cody Rhodes vs. Sheamus, Randy Orton, and Big Show: I appreciate the need to send the crowd home happy, especially when you are in a venue you are in so rarely like London. That said, there's a reason why you have dark match main events. This felt like a house show main event, which it has been the rest of the tour. That works great for those in attendance, but it does nothing for us watching at home. Not to mention they didn't advance a single storyline here.