star trek boldly goes into first in the franchise war and middle-earth is not okay

ok so the nerds have found the button. a new opinion market on Morfi asks the question that has ended more friendships than any group chat ever could: what's the greatest sci-fi/fantasy franchise of all time? the universe you'd actually move into, lore memorized, merch hoarded, a whole shelf you dust more often than your own life. trading opened less than a day ago and people are already picking sides like it's a fandom version of the hunger games, which, for the record, is also a franchise.

right now the crowd is warping toward Star Trek, which leads at 22% consensus with 10 holders behind it. hot on its heels is The Lord of the Rings at 16% consensus with 6 holders, which is honestly very on brand for a story that's mostly long walks. also on the ballot, waiting for their redemption arc: 4 other sides.

quick note for normal people: those percentages aren't head counts. on Morfi, consensus is conviction, meaning how hard the crowd is backing each side with actual money. so far 10 unique traders have put $25,804 behind their opinions. that's still early-days energy, the kind of number where one extremely committed trekkie with a paycheck and no weekend plans could move the whole board. which is fine. everything is fine. (the this is fine dog is also a trekkie, probably.)

my take, and it is just a take: star trek leading is the most internet thing that could happen. it's a franchise built on people standing in a room having long, sincere debates about ethics, which is basically what comment sections wish they were. the lord of the rings, meanwhile, has the best walking playlist ever made and a fandom that will absolutely not let this slide. one side has a utopia, the other has second breakfast. personally i think whoever wins should have to explain the ending to their mum, but nobody asked me.

what to watch next: whether the middle-earth crowd rallies before the gap sets, and whether any of the other contenders on the ballot pulls a surprise jump. it's a fresh market, so the leaderboard is basically a sandcastle at high tide. if you've got a universe you'd die for (fictionally), go join the market on Morfi and back it with more than a quote tweet.