Welcome to Diva Debates, the biggest battle since David and Goliath, Buffy and vampires, Trish and Lita… we present to you, Erin vs Melanie! In Diva Debates, we will battle it out fo your vote - giving you two sides to a Diva argument. Once you’ve read both of our arguments, you can vote for who you agree with the most, the blogger with the most votes wins! This week’s debate: Ashley and Maria should win the BunnyMania match at WrestleMania 24

In the red corner, fighting for is Melanie and in the blue corner, fighting against is Erin. Let battle commence! And remember, you decide who wins!

Melanie: Being the grandest stage of them all, WrestleMania is all about giving back to the fans. A night of celebration of true talent and fan appreciation, WrestleMania comes but once a year. On WrestleMania Sunday, the fan favourites get to have their time in the limelight - getting the win over those dastardly heels, sending the fans off home happy! If that logic stands up at WrestleMania 24, it should most certainly be the fan favourites - Ashley and Maria - who get the win in the BunnyMania contest. WrestleMania is famed for making history and “WrestleMania moments” and the only way to do so, is to have Ashley and Maria go over Beth and Melina. And with no Women’s Championship on the line this year, it would not hurt credibility to have the less experienced faces go over compared to previous years – namely WrestleMania 23.

When one comes to think of it, Beth and Melina in this match are dispensable. “BunnyMania” hinges on the Playboy covergirls involved, Beth and Melina could easily be replaced by anybody. Their position in this match is to guide to Ashley and Maria and make them look good. Maria is after all, this year’s Playboy covergirl and through WrestleMania, it is WWE’s job to promote it’s current Playboy covergirl – for the best interests of both Playboy and WWE. Giving Maria the rub here is in the best interest of WWE and it would be wise to give her and Ashley the win in this match. Furthermore, with all the emphasis based on Maria over the past few months – would it not be a huge loss if they dropped that momentum right at the last second? Maria has been a pivotal part of WWE programming over the last few months, taking part in a major angle with Santino and the unveiling of her Playboy cover. For this storyline to come full circle, Maria would need the win here.

Bottom line, with all the celebrities involved (Snoop Dogg, Kim Kardashian) and the hype surrounding Maria’s Playboy release – it would make no sense for Beth and Melina to go over. Sure, they may be more experienced wrestlers but the truth is, wrestling ability goes out the window compared to money and that’s what WWE stands to make here. No way would they invest money into signing Snoop Dogg and Kim Kardashian to be part of a match that would not have a “good-time” feel to it in the end. With all the Divas surrounding the ring, Snoop and K-Dash in the ring celebrating with Ashley and Maria – and the fans cheering – is that not a WrestleMania moment at it’s best?

Erin: It’s ridiculous to think even for a moment that it would be acceptable for Melina and Beth to lose this match. In every possible category of comparison, they dominate Maria and Ashley. Wrestling ability? Check. Marketability? Check. Microphone skills? Check. I could go on and on, but I’d think it best to break it down into a few statements for each, just to demonstrate - if it wasn’t obvious already - why they are, in every manner, better suited and more deserving of a win than Maria and Ashley.

Firstly, when you think of wrestling, what first comes to mind? Besides the clichés and fanfare, what does it come down to? The ability to work a match. Melina and Beth have several years of experience, and most certainly know how to work a match. They worked their way through the indies, spent considerable time in OVW, and came to the WWE, immediately showing their talent and worth. Ashley and Maria came up through the Diva Search which, while a great opportunity, clearly doesn’t aid in harvesting true wrestling talent or love for the business. Melina and Beth, however, never once ruined a match or embarrassed themselves through horrible missteps or unbelievable sellings. They know how to sell and throw punches, protect their opponents, and structure a match as to where the high spots and low spots should be. They can pace their matches and spread their move sets throughout, whereas Ashley and Maria merely have a few select go-to moves, ones that get old quickly and make a match resemble something more along the lines of a carefully choreographed dance rather than a spontaneous wrestling match. Although, I’d be afraid to allow either of them fly by the seat of their pants, because God knows how that would turn out. And besides, there’s only so much you can do with fragile-looking elbow drops and fucking ridiculous looking Bronco Busters. (Newsflash, Maria - it was old when X-Pac did it. Suffice to say that it’s died a painful death a long, long time ago). Bottom line, Melina and Beth rarely look antsy, uncomfortable, or awkward in the ring; adjectives which Maria and Ashley are also described with. If this were a legitimate fight, there’s no question who would win - Melina and Beth - the two women who deserve to win even if the bout is more predetermined and planned-out than a Broadway musical.

Secondly, a wrestler must always be marketable. This is sports *entertainment* after all. Melina and Beth may seem to have a disadvantage in this, as Maria and Ashley have both graced the cover of Playboy magazine. However, merely posing naked in a passed-its-heyday men’s magazine does not make one marketable. All it truly takes to make it in Playboy is a semblance of relevance in the entertainment industry and an agreeable look. So, if you have a somewhat relevant name, a good figure, and a decent face, voila! You can be in Playboy too. Thus, this isn’t some grand achievement or true marketable attribute. Marketability lies in one’s ability to communicate effectively and have a engaging personality. Melina and Beth have both proven to be charismatic in their own ways benefiting their characters. Melina is flamboyant and the “A-list Diva” and Beth, while being more of a strong, silent type, still manages to speak in a manner that makes one take notice. She is powerful and effective in this way. Maria was a sporadic interviewer on RAW at one point, and when not hiding behind a ridiculous “ditz” gimmick and the most annoying “puckering, thinking hard” face imaginable, Maria isn’t that engaging. She can speak up and her voice carries, but it never seems as if she really has anything worthwhile to say. It’s like she’s a cheerleader - a lot of “rah rah rah”s to get the fans to cheer, but not much substance in the way of cutting a promo. Other than that, what makes her marketable? Maybe to the men she’s fascinating, but when not considering her looks, what grabs your attention? Not much at all, I’d think. Ashley, in her punk-rock persona, must not feel the need to express herself verbally, because she rarely does. She can toss up all the “rock on” hand gestures she wants, but no one above the age of 12 is going to find that legitimately marketable. She may appeal to the teenage crowd, but any true “punk rock” fan is going to see her rebel act as fake and shallow, limited to the clothes she wears, the colored streaks in her hair, and the tattoos on her skin. Possibly akin to Avril Lavinge - it’s all in the image, but even the image is empty. Bottom line - Melina and Beth have legitimate gimmicks and personality to boot. She does rest on their image alone, which Maria and Ashley seem to be doing.

The future of the company seems to lie in successful characters, and Melina and Beth have staying power. Both have held the Women’s Title at least once, and neither seems to be going stale as of yet. They keep their matches fresh and always seem to be eager to prove their worth, be it in the ring or in a backstage segment, selling a storyline. If the WWE wants to carry their company on the backs of its performers, they would be wise to invest in the likes of Melina and Beth, as their skills are abundant and don’t have to be “carried” through matches and promos. Why invest in an employee whose hand you need to hold? Maria and Ashley are slowly becoming more competent in the ring, but how long have they been in the company? If one has to slow down a match to better suit their skills, what’s the point in pushing them? Stick with quick-learning, fast-on-their-feet performers who earn and keep their place through hard work and perseverance.

Basically, pushing Melina and Beth to win the match is the wise choice - they will benefit you in the long run. Why waste time on women whose ring work is slower than an old woman crossing the street? What sense is in that? Show respect for the achievements on the Women’s Division and let Melina and Beth come out on top in the most highly publicized match of the year. Let the mainstream audience see that these are the women that the WWE wants to be known for, not the likes of Maria and Ashley, who are sub-par wrestlers, non-existent characters, and about as marketable as any big-boobed woman waiting tables in Los Angeles.

If Maria and Ashley win, good for them! I just know that I will be disappointed that the WWE went the most obvious and easiest route - squashing the true talent by shining a light on the flavor(s) of the month.

• Now you’ve heard both of the arguments, who should win? Vote now!