When you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you fall into cultural obscurity. There is no middle ground.

After the original series’ final season(s) overhyped and underdelivered on years of premise, HBO sought to write a new story: One of redemption. Learning from history, the show bought in heavily to an “underdog” of a story, The House of the Dragon.

But any good underdog needs an adversary of gargantuan proportions. Enter Jeffery Bezos, fourth richest man in the world and Lord of eCommerce and all we hold dear. “I want my Game of Thrones,” he beckoned to the team at Amazon Studios. And so, they set out to have it.

As the adage goes, “money talks” and Bezos turned this into a reality, spending a reported $715 million on the first season of The Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power, easily acquiring the title of most expensive TV show ever made.

With two of the most notorious fantasy franchises in history lined up for a dual of the fates, the Marketing Pop team of Maria and Rick take a look at two separate approaches and how they directly impacted fan perception throughout their release.