Chris Shore and Marvin Hermanstyne hang out around the Dot Net Water Cooler and discuss the topics of the week. Today's topics include the go-home Raw for Wrestlemania, TNA Impact, who didn't make the Mania card that should have, and the WWE Hall of Fame.

Shore: Wrestlemania 26 is upon us, Marv, ol' buddy! We had the go home show just a few nights ago and I know you wanted to address some things that happened on the show. To quote R-Truth, "What's up?"

Marv: Don't ever quote Killings again. All kidding aside, Raw was a solid but borderline forgettable show if you ask me. The beginning was great because they focused a lot on the Taker/HBK feud but as the show went along, it got rather boring which probably resulted in the rating tanking this week. Your thoughts?

Shore: Yeah, it started out hot and slowed down. It had the bump with Taker coming back out for Shawn later, but it was dragging some at the end. I am disappointed that this is the best they could muster for the go home show. Especially as good as this Mania card is. What more do you think they could have done with the show?

Marv: First of all, if you were going to have Miz vs. Morrison, at least hype the match last week so we could tune in for it. The three on two handicap match did nothing for me and they focused more on that match, which was sad. They didn't want to have more MITB participants in a tag team match because it would be boring, and Kingston being the tenth man in MITB was predictable as hell. Personally, I don't think they could have added anything to the show because the beginning and end of Raw was probably the best segments.

Shore: You mentioned that Kofi Kingston making it to the show was predictable, but before the show started, we didn't know for sure if he would be the 10th guy. With the card now set, are there any superstars who you feel were shafted by being left off the big show?

Marv: To be perfectly honest, there is no one of importance that got shafted. Maybe Carlito and The Harts but that's about it. Everyone else may make some cameo appearances because they do have four hours to kill, but the card is so loaded they could throw people out there for filler segments. They may have an impromptu Divas match, so if you’re looking for a time to grab a beer or three, that's the perfect time.

Shore: I do think there are a few who should have made the card. I think there should be a Divas match, and not an impromptu match. No one will take them seriously until WWE does. And leaving them off the biggest PPV is not taking them seriously. I think the Harts are getting super shitted. You had a readymade angle to get them pushed with Bret Hart returning, so use it. I also think Cryme Tyme should have gotten some sort of rub, and Carlito for being a mentor on NXT. I understand you have to leave some people off, but those are my bubble guys. Don't you think they should have at least had a title match for the women?

Marv: My argument to this is that the Divas match last year bombed. There is no need to feature the Divas if you are not going to take them seriously. As far as a title match, I will still say no because you will basically have 70,000 people sitting on their hands. No one wants to see Michelle McCool pin somebody for the 50,000th time. Men only want to see Maryse because she is smoking hot, not drop a Diva with a weak ass DDT called the French Kiss. If there was a fatal four way with McCool, Natalya, Beth Phoenix and Mickie James then yes, I would be interested in a Diva match.

As far as guys getting left on the card, the Harts are like the Number 16 team in the NCAA tournament, no one cares about them and having Bret back does ZERO for them. If they want some attention, they have to get involved in the Vince and Bret match. Cryme Tyme does nothing for me because I will go on the record to say Shad Gaspard is garbage and should be future endeavored. JTG is clearly the backbone of that team and should be repackaged as a singles wrestler. Carlito will probably be on the show for some comedy or will work the dark match.

Shore: You don't pull punches do you? Anyway, this whole things kicks off with the Hall of Fame inductions Saturday night. This year's class is headlined by "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase Sr. Since you're like my Virgil, tell the people what made DiBiase such a star and why he deserves this nod.

Marv: I see you have jokes, Virgil...haha. To be brutally honest, DiBiase should have been inducted years ago and it shocked me that it took so long. While everyone was a Hulkamanic in the '80s, I was always high on the Million Dollar Man gimmick. Hands down, this has to be one of the top 10 wrestling gimmicks of all time because DiBiase was so damn good in his role. I respect WWE for making him the front runner of this HOF class, but he should have been inducted with Austin or even earlier. Thoughts?

Shore: As I've said many times, I was a NWA/JCP/WCW guy for those years, but I do remember hating DiBiase as a heel. I look back now and realize how good he was as a heel and how many faces owe their getting over to him. He should have at least gone in with Bret or Hogan, and certainly by the time Austin was in he should have been. But better late than never, and his kid gets to induct him. How cool is that?

This year's class are giants in the industry that don't have a ton of name recognition with the casual fan. Stu Hart is probably the best known, and Antonio Inoki is known by older fans. Wendy Richter and "Mad Dog" Vachon were huge in the day, but most fans today don't know them. Gorgeous Gorge is probably the first modern heel, and was the frame work for what became as the Nature Boy Ric Flair. Sadly, the celebrity inductee, Bob Ueker is probably better known than any of these guys (to the casual fan). Do you feel this class is missing star power, or is this event the only event WWE does specifically for those of us who have been around for a while?

Marv: Well, there were talks of getting the Ultimate Warrior to be a part of this class, but due to the rocky relationship he has with Vince, it’s not happening anytime soon. Additionally, WWE is running out of main event talent to induct in the HOF. Randy Savage should headline next year's class, but then again this is Vincent Kennedy McMahon's Hall of Fame, so if your relationship with him is shitty...you can forget it. The last couple of HOF classes have become very midcard heavy which is mind boggling. But the HOF is basically an event for long time wrestling fanatics like us. To the casual fan, they couldn’t care less because these guys are legends from the 80s and earlier. With that being said, do they start to dig into the WCW pile of guys who shined when WCW was in their prime in the 80s and early 90s?

Shore: I think they have to. I think guys like DDP, Goldberg, Arn Anderson, and Glacier deserve to be in. OK, maybe not all of those guys. Seriously, I think there are some good names you could induct by going to the WCW group. The problem of course is that most of the best ones are still active with TNA. And speaking of TNA, they have steadily improved in their Monday night shows. Generation X laid that turd with the no finish in the main event, but the Impacts are getting better. What did you think about this week's show?

Marv: Impact since coming to Monday nights have been good, but of course the ratings don't show it. The only thing that is killing the show in my opinion is the 90 year-old Flair and Hogan feud and the Puppet Abyss. I don't know what is more annoying than seeing Hogan (who could barely walk) pushing Ric Flair in a wheelchair or Abyss doing all of Hogan's mannerisms. Bischoff has been money in his role which makes the show entertaining. My cause of concern is Beer Money, I'm still mad at the fact that they are not the tag team champions. They are the best tag team in wrestling, PERIOD. Yet they are getting booked to look weak and they are now booked in a throwaway feud with RVD and Jeff Hardy. From the looks of things, RVD and Jeff Hardy look like midcarders out there because they are overshadowed by all the AARP carrying members/WCW guys of the 1990s (The Band, Sting, Hogan, Flair). What did you think, overall?

Shore: I stand by what I said, which is the same thing you are saying. The old guys have to go. I think Hogan and Flair will go away after this feud, but I am afraid they have done irreparable harm to Abyss. He is no longer the monster, he is the Muppet. What a shame. They need to kidnap him after Joe escapes. And be careful calling Beer Money the best tag team, the Motor City Machine Gun group will lose their minds. I think it was a better show, but I am still leery of Hogan and Bischoff. They could screw up a wet dream. And why in the blue hell is a there a first blood match for the Knockouts next week? I don't want to see that. That doesn't make them credible. What the hell?

Marv: You think I care what the MCMG have to say? What are they going to do, call me something funny like they did at Generation Me? That Hardy Boyz line was hilarious by the way. But to comment on the First Blood match, TNA has an infatuation with blood for some odd reason. It was bad enough we saw Hogan and Flair bleed their last pints of blood now we have to see the Knockouts do this? Sigh. But as much as they want to load the show up for next week, it will continue to tank because they will be going against the post WM edition of Raw, so they will probably maintain that 0.9 feeling they have been getting.

Shore: They certainly picked a rough time of year to pick a fight with the big dog. But enough with TNA! This is Wrestlemania Week! Be sure to check out my Wrestlemania preview and predictions on Thursday, along with my audio preview on the Dot Net Members' website. And I'll look for your predictions and previews on Friday, plus your new Money in the Bank ranking article. That sounds exciting. It certainly is the best week to be a wrestling fan, isn't it?

Marv: Yes it is, my friend. The MITB article will be based on my confidence level of each participant, so it should be a good read. Everyone will have the pleasure of getting the southern spice of audio that you provide along with the boss. Hopefully Wrestlemania 26 is a spectacle to remember, but until next time...

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