The Mercury News’ Food section editor has seen a rough cut of “Iron Chef America: Battle of the Masters” and deems it “more in keeping with the heart and spirit of the original cult-favorite Japanese version.” She found the William Shatner version “painful to watch” but this one is more on the mark. The lineups: Flay v. Sakai, Morimoto v. Batali, Morimoto v. Puck, then a mix-em-up tag team finale: Morimoto and Flay v. Sakai and Batali. Hosting is Chairman Kaga’s nephew, and of course there’s the real reason for us to watch: Alton Brown as commentator. The fun starts April 23. (Alas, the Merc has started up registration for content access, but here’s the plain link to the review.)