By Chris Shore

WWE Smackdown Hits

Mark Henry: It didn't matter if he was talking to Daniel Bryan or Big Show, or if he was wrestling. Everything Mark Henry did on this show was top notch. From his cadence to his facial expressions to his gesture, he is the top guy in all of WWE, regardless of what the machine tells you. Right now, he is the best reason to order Survivor Series, not the Rock and John Cena.

Daniel Bryan: I was always concerned about how the former indy king Bryan Danielson would do in the vastly different WWE. And for over a year, my fears were well placed. A good chunk of that falls on creative for not giving him anything good to work with, but he has always been a question mark when it comes to verbal skills. His exchange with Henry showed me something I had never seen from him before. For the first time since his debut, I believe Daniel Bryan is a legitimate threat.

Randy Orton vs. Wade Barrett: So much was right here it's hard to narrow it down. The fact that Barrett is a team captain shows they are serious about pushing him again. The match itself was very, very good. And then you throw in that Barrett actually got the win, and the whole thing reeks of a hit. Sure, I would have preferred a clean win, but I would also prefer to be married to Jessica Alba. Sometimes, what you want just isn't possible. And to borrow a phrase from an old song, "If you can't get the win you want, then you gotta love the win you get."

Overall Show: An excellent two hours of television. It didn't do a lot to sell Survivor Series directly, but by giving us a hot main event and an even better Mark Henry/Big Show build, they hyped Survivor Series the best way they could, through quality storytelling and matches.

WWE Smackdown Misses

Hunico, Epico, and Primo: I really thought we had hit the bottom of the barrel last week with Hunico and Epico. Turns out I was way off. The one thing that makes this ever so slightly better than Mexican America is that so far, they are not using their Latin heritage as the reason to be heels. But that's an awful thin line. My biggest issue is the stereotypical look of a Mexican street gang they have given these guys. It might not be so bad, but two of them are Puerto Rican. Go call a Puerto Rican a Mexican and see how that goes for you if you don't understand my point. This is bad booking for some very good workers.

Sheamus vs. Christian: Yes, it was a very good match. But we have seen this match a thousand times, and it always ends the same. Christian has been so damaged by his world title chase that we expect him to lose each and every time he comes out. Sure, he makes the other guy look like a million bucks, and there is something to be said for that. But not one time do I ever believe he is going to win. And that takes a huge amount of heat of over each and every match as well. It's a tough call, but for me, this was a miss.

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