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This is it. The matchup we've all been waiting for. One name from each side of the bracket has fought through surging Cinderellas, battle-ready bots and fickle pharma voters to make it to the championship round, but only one can take home the title.
Will it be lilting underdog Trulicity or run-and-gun favorite Vimizim that'll hoist the trophy come Wednesday? Relive each drug's journey to the finals below, and remember--only you can write the end of their stories.
You've got through Tuesday night to make your choice.
May the best name win.
-- Carly Helfand (email | Twitter) and Damian Garde (email | Twitter)
FierceMadness finals
To no one's surprise, top-seeded Vimizim cruised past the admirable but overmatched Keytruda, 482-80, to buy itself a ticket to the finals. "Keytruda starts well but ends badly," said one reader, referring either to its phonaesthetics or late-match vote-getting, or both. "And it sounds like an old Bavarian or Austrian grandma." Another chalked up Keytruda's loss to a fishy sound: "Hey, Bob, remember the time we caught a 50-pound Keytruda off the coast of Mexico?" A third explained the semifinal result like this: "'No, no, not by the hair on my vimi zim zim!' sounds a lot more fun than huffing and puffing the key to intrude."
Now Keytruda joins Plegridy, Natpara, Movantik and Hysingla among the viable contenders felled in Vimizim's race for the title. What's the key to Vimizim's success? "In the future, the only vowel will be I," guessed one voter. "Vimizim has the perfect combination of assonance and rarely used consonants," figured another, and it "sounds like a car revving its engine to win this race!" according to a third.
Meanwhile, though Sovaldi may have recently grabbed the fastest-launch-ever crown--and it may be "stately and powerful in a Godfather type of way"--it's not winning anything on Trulicity's court. The Diabetes bracket champ bested the Gilead ($GILD) med by 20 votes in a 144-124 contest that earned it the chance to compete on the national stage.
Will Vimizim take its place alongside Savaysa, Jardiance, Afrezza and Invokana on the list of drugs Trulicity has sent packing? To some voters, it all depends on the med's identity. It's "a synthesis of truth and duplicity. Who knows what you'll get?" one argued. "Trulicity sounds like a vacation destination that would be hyped by an unethical travel agent," another contended. "I believe I read about Miss Trulicity in a Lemony Snickett book, didn't I?" asked a third. To others, though, it doesn't matter: They're singing the "clear eyes, true heart, can't lose," mantra.
No. 1 Vimizim vs. No. 6 Trulicity
Vimizim
Maker: BioMarin ($BMRN)
Indication: Morquio A syndrome
Sounds like: A crossed-out idea from the brainstorming session that led to Wreckx-n-Effect's biggest hit
Trulicity
Maker: Eli Lilly ($LLY)
Indication: Diabetes
Sounds like: A truly next-generation dating app