March Madness 2026 – a look back

Already a week has passed since Middle-earth March Madness for 2026 came to a close. Thanks to all who voted, discussed, debated, and generally played along! This year our theme was ‘Clash of the Collectibles’; our team of volunteer staffers offered their own favourite collectibles, and then we voted to get that down to 64 items, which became our opening bracket:

Three weeks and six rounds of voting ensued. With thousands of votes placed throughout the contest, we saw items we thought might go all the way – such as LEGO sets and Weta environments – fall in earlier rounds. Finally, just two items remained…

Stained glass vs DVDs

Talk about a David and Goliath match up! Some of the best selling DVDs of all time – the extended editions of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy, in box set with collectible statues – versus hand-made, original designs from an independent artist, Geek Orthodox.

At first the contest seemed like it was going to be fairly one-sided, with the DVDs taking an early lead. Gradually, though, the stained glass came back. The final vote margin was 56% to 44% , with the winner being…

Congratulations to Geek Orthodox! A worthy champion, as a creator of unique, beautiful pieces – check them out here.

Here’s how the completed bracket looked:

Thanks again to all who joined the fun. If you have ideas for a future March Madness theme, please let us know – email spymaster@theonering.net See you same time, same place, next year!

Don’t forget, you can always join the discussion with fellow fans, at the Collectibles channel on our Discord.

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