As ever with March Madness, we began with 64 competitors – this year, all characters from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Now, half of those who entered the fray have been defeated. Who remains?
Elves, Dwarves and Monsters
Let’s begin with a look at this first bracket. Most of the contests here were not close at all: Galadriel, Durin III, Durin IV, Gil-galad, Disa, Finrod and Elrond all took well over 1,000 votes to secure victory. (Durin IV, with over 1,500 votes, took the most votes of any character in all of Round One; but Elrond and Galadriel were close behind.) Of the Elves and Dwarves, only Celebrimbor struggled. To be fair, he was pitted against a Balrog – a fight which would challenge even Gandalf. With a margin of less than 200 votes, the Balrog was victorious! Now Galadriel will take on this mighty foe, in Round Two. All of the pairings in this second round will be nail-biters: Finrod Felagund goes up against Elrond, Disa faces Gil-galad, and father and son go toe to toe, as Durin III confronts Durin IV. Your vote decides who will continue on to Round Three!
Middle-earth March Madness 2023, Rings of Power Edition begins today. Staffer Garfeimao has taken a closer look at the 64 competitors in this year’s bracket, to help you as you make your choices. Take a look at what she has to say; and then head on over to the March Madness launch to vote in Round One!
It is the start of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere; which means it’s time for March Madness! This year, TheOneRing.net brings you Middle-earth March Madness 2023, Rings of Power Edition.
Looking back on Season One of the Prime Video show – and pondering what may be in store in Season Two – our 64 competitors are all characters from The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. Who was your favourite amongst the Harfoots (‘Harfeet!’)? Who would win in a showdown between Prince Durin and his father? Will Elendil eventually go up against his own son? YOU decide!
How you decide, of course, is up to you. You may choose to revisit the show on Prime Video and refresh your memory of the plot lines. Perhaps your vote is based on which actors you most enjoyed in their roles; or perhaps you’ll vote according to the characters you felt remained closest to how they appear in the pages of Tolkien’s books. Or maybe you’ll just toss a coin! It’s up to you; but however you decide, now is the time to place your votes!
How does it work, you ask? Simple! Click on one of the orange division buttons below. Then click the ‘Vote Now’ option that appears above the divisional bracket. This year you get to vote in each divisional match-up in one convenient and visual interface. Note – you need to click each division to vote in their respective brackets. So let’s get voting!
You have until the end of the day Friday March 24th to vote in Round One; on Saturday 25th we’ll announce winners and open voting for Round Two! Let the games begin!
Staffer greendragon recently had the pleasure of sitting down with composer Paul Corfield Godfrey and tenor Simon Crosby Buttle to find out more about these epic works, which are finally being made available for us all to enjoy. It’s been a suitably (in a Tolkien-esque sort of way!) long quest, which has included copious correspondence between Godfrey and folks such as Rayner Unwin and Christopher Tolkien – and has even featured an appearance by one of the Tolkien family in a performance! Find out all the fascinating details in our zoom chat:
Good news for all the fans out there who are disappointed that we have yet to see tales from The Silmarillion performed on stage or screen: composer Paul Corfield Godfrey’s suitably epic opera of First Age stories is now available, in a recording made by singers from Welsh National Opera. We may not yet be seeing these tales; but at least you can listen to them!
There are four parts to this mammoth labour of love, all using text taken directly from Tolkien’s writing (with full permission from the Tolkien Estate). Fëanor, Beren and Lúthien, The Children of Húrin and The Fall of Gondolin are available now; and they will be joined in 2023 by a fifth and final part, The War of Wrath. Here are details from the official press release:
