Can't say I disagree with you there. I think you even saw that with the Next Iron Chef competition. Mike Symon's a talented chef, but Besh (sp? the runner up) seemed to cook at a much higher level, like Batali or Morimoto. Symon admits he's more of a "classy comfort food" guy; I think he's got a great personality, but I wasn't sure he deserved the win as much as Besh.
EDIT: On topic, this is sort of why I liked Lisa better than Adam or Aaron. Adam just didn't seem to have a focus and cooked badly for most of the show's run. Aaron did the same old same old home cooking/grilling stuff. Food Network's already got Rachael Ray, the Neelys, Cooking for Real, etc....pretty much covering the bases Aaron covers.