So it looks like there is a bit of confusion and anger regarding our March Madness picks. Allow me to clarify so that you might better understand how and why we made the choices that we did.

Let’s start off with the four divisions and why the characters we have are there: Rapture, Oolong Island, Narnia and Phantom Zone.

Rapture – Video games.
Oolong Island – Sequential arts.
Narnia – Sci-fi and fantasy novels.
Phantom Zone – Movies and TV.

Hopefully that clarifies things for you folks a little better.

There are a few anomalies throughout like the multiple Jokers (Ledger, Nicholson tag team) and the Joker from the DC Comics. The Zeus you see in Rapture is from the God of War series. The ‘Colonel’ from the Phantom Zone is the bastard from Avatar. Two Draculas, right? Well, one of them is from Castlevania.

Now this is where you have some say. Because we have so many first round matches, we’ll be taking into account reader submissions for the first couple rounds. So for today let us know who you think will win their first round matches from the Rapture and Oolong Island brackets only.

Click on the photo below to enlarge or get the printable PDF version here.

You Can Pre-order the Samsung Galaxy S III Now, but It’ll Cost You

It’s “friggin’ huge,” as my colleague Jared Newman recently quipped, and Samsung’s Galaxy S III is also going to be friggin’ expensive if you’re in the U.S. and want firsties. While the phone’s stateside launch date is still “early June,” Amazon has started taking pre-orders for the international version.

Reviews & Features

March Madness: How Does This Work?

By Peter Ha | March 16, 2010 | +

Related Topics: bracket, hive mind, march madness, oolong island, rapture, villains, Reviews & Features

@Techland

doubleang

Im out of my element on some of these, but Ill contribute where I can:
DK V Bowser: Gotta go with Bowser. smarter, and has an army, not just an assortment of barrels.
Sephiroth V Zeus: Given that this is just the video game Zeus (and therefore defeatable), Im gonna say Sephiroth. 9,999 hit point make for being a real pain in the butt.
Blinky v Mother Brain: Sorry metroid fans, but Im going with the ghost. He runs away alot, but he is basically immortal
Dr WIly vs The FLood: Gotta go with the flood. Sure Wily has some robots and henchmen, but the flood can take out entire civilizations.

Lex Luthor vs Norman Osborn: Luthor. No question
Joker vs. Swarm: Joker. The comic book version of the Joker (and not Jack Nicholsons portrayal) is bad-assed. Some Bee-dude isnt gonna take him.
Magneto vs Lucy Van Pelt: By no means could Lucy win any conventional battle, but being made of leather and possessing no metal bits, I dont know how Magneto is ever going to kick that football
drlinus

lucy van pelt trumps magneto.
ryanoneil

Darkseid vs. Galactus: Unless Galactus can sing, Darkseid. (hard to believe this is a first-round game, I’d love to talk to the head of the seeding committee)

Lex Luthor vs. Norman Osborn: Lex.

Pruneface vs. The Kingpin: Pruneface because Dick Tracy rules.

The Joker vs. Swarm: Joker. I mean, the Joker has foiled Batman for decades

Dr. Light vs. Dr. Octopus: Dr. Ock, mostly because of what I don’t want to see in the second-round

Lucy Van Pelt vs. Magneto: Lucy is a classic villain. She overcharges for “advice.” She hates animals and animal kisses. She slugs people at will and without warning. She hates Beethoven. She picks on the weak and dumb. Magneto should be no problem for her.
alaskanturkey

Donkey Kong
-
16th Colossus
Sephiroth
-
-
Dracula
The Flood
Galactus
Lex Luthor
Ra’s al Ghul
Light Yagami
Kingpin
Joker
Doc Oc
Magneto
Kristin

Lex Luthor beats Norman Osborn
The Joker beats Swarm
Dr. Octopus beats Dr. Light
Magneto beats Lucy Van Pelt
adreas0

I kinda hope that they change one of the two Dracula’s for Sasuke Uchiha from Naruto.
jacobblues

OK, I’m not familiar with most of the Rapture set, so my only call in that bracket is Donkey Kong coming out on top because I’m old school.

As for Oolong Island I have one complaint in that Galactus & Darkseid shouldn’t be matched up in the early rounds, you’re talking a 1 vs. 2 pick something that the NCAA matchup doesn’t do. It goes highest against lowest, so if we follow tradition, they wouldn’t meet until the later rounds.

Oolong Island:
Galactus
Lex Luthor
Ra’s al Ghul
Light Yagami
Pruneface (old school again)
Joker
Doc Oct
Magneto (early 2nd rounder, Doc oc gets shredded, literally by Magneto).
jacobblues

One more nitpick in the Narnia category. Frankenstein; are you presenting the “good” doctor, or his monster (technically the “monster” is called Frankenstein’s monster).

One more nitpick, the Grinch? Thanks’ to Suzie Woo, he becomes a good guy. I mean really, if you’re going to use a Chuck Jones animated character (OK, Seuss, but still everyone knows the Grinch from the animated TV special) you could go with “Super Genius” Wile “E” Coyote, a cool matchup indeed against Dr. Moriarty. The destruction alone in that battle would be classic.
timothydillian

In the Phantom Zone Final Borg & Hal9000 make an alliance & destroys all comers in true Raslin’ tradition.
http://theuselessinformationfile.wordpress.com wolvenspectre

Oolong Island

Galactus
Lex Luthor
Ra’s ala Ghul
Light Yagami
The Kingpin
Joker
Doc Oc
Magneto

Rapture

Donkey Kong
GlaDOS
Cole McGrath
Zeus
The Boomer
M.Bison
The Flood