TV Madness 2019: Blindspot and Chicago PD do battle in round 3!

TV Madness 2019 is officially upon us! March is one of our favorite times of the year for many reasons — spring is in the air, the days are getting longer, and the idea of a bracket is a part of our pop-culture lexicon. TV Madness is CarterMatt’s version of March Madness, where a number of fantastic shows from across the map face off against each other. There are seedings, head-to-head showdowns, and the performance of each show is based entirely on you, the reader.

As we’re starting to dive further and further into round 3 of this tournament, it’s becoming all the clearer that TV Madness 2019 is the year of upsets. There are Cinderella stories popping up all over the woodwork as the second round has seen the elimination of two #2 seeds and also now a #1 seed — Hawaii Five-0 was defeated by Blindspot in a hard-fought showdown with thousands of votes on each side. Now, the Jaimie Alexander – Sullivan Stapleton series is facing off against Chicago PD, which managed to overtake Shadowhunters for an impressive victory of its own. One of these two is gearing up for a first-time appearance in the final four … but which is it?

If you’ve taken part in CarterMatt’s TV Madness before, you likely know how this works — we spotlight the two competitors and then, on the other side of it, give you a poll for you to commence your voting! The poll is located at the bottom of this article.

How voting works – Vote however often you would like! (Technical instructions for multiple voting can be found right above the poll.) We will keep this poll open until Monday, March 25 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern time, which is when the final four will officially kick off!

You can see the full bracket (including start dates for each individual round) in the graphic at the top of this article.

The competitors

Blindspot (#5 seed) – The NBC drama is impressing in just about every round so far in this tournament, taking out a solid opponent in The Resident and then truly showcasing its might against Hawaii Five-0 — it’s definitely making a case for having one of the most passionate bases out there, and perhaps one of the most underrated as well. These are fans who love their show and these characters, and are fighting in tandem with this tournament to get the series a season 5 over at NBC. We’re hoping that it gets there, and we’re glad that there are still so many episodes this season. Some of these hiatuses have been awful, but at least there’s a batch of good stuff coming up soon.

As for this TV Madness showdown, the goal for Jane, Weller, and co. should just be this — proving that they are the stronger of two NBC crime shows — they’re pretty different outside of the core genre, but they each have fans who will fight for them all the way to the finish line.

Chicago PD (#3 seed) – Chicago PD doesn’t have the same sense of anxiety surrounding it that Blindspot does — it already has that renewal for another season, and ratings-wise it’s a part of a super-successful franchise that continues to roll along like the steamroller that it is. Even though there is less urgency on the part of fans here, that’s not stopping them from pouring out their love for all things Intelligence. Few shows present the world of being a cop with this much realism and grit, while also giving you so many great characters and memorable face-offs in the process.

Let’s also not overlook a couple of things that make Chicago PD stand out — its epic crossover potential and one of the more robust ‘shipping communities out there, especially when you think about the sheer number of options that these characters have with the other One Chicago shows. It’s a serious show, but one with a fun community. We’re stoked to see what happens here!

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