The first tournament that I remember watching was Season 1 of Gosu Coaching Premiere League. Blame my friend Fallen for not introducing me to TeamLiquid sooner. But everyone has to start somewhere right? I was cheering for Root at the time and didn’t know much about any other teams besides TeamLiquid. I remember watching Mana and Hasuobs and being incredibly impressed with their level of play. After GCPL, it seemed like mouz always had one player in every tournament; almost like TeamLiquid. Their consistency also struck me as a defining feature.
Remember the GSL World vs Korea match where Team USA barely lost 8-7 to Korea? Morrow was there. I remember loving his Zerg play. Like Hasuobs, I always thought he had solid Zerg macro.
I’ve stated before that TSL3 was my favorite tournament of 2011. TSL3 saw the rise of my second favorite Terran, Thorzain. He romped through FruitDealer, knocked out TSL2 Champ Tyler, edged out MC, and conjured up a victory against Kas. (Thorzain admitted that TvT was his worst matchup at the time.) For the coup de grace, Thorzain reversed a 3-1 disadvantage and beat Naniwa in the finals. This relatively unknown player had catapulted into the limelight. He was immediately picked up by mouz, where he continued the mouz tradition of being consistently good.
I remember at the NASL Season 2 finals, when HasuObs walked down the red carpet with Amon Amarth trumpeting his arrival.
And I remember how much team bonding between Thorzain, Morrow, and Hasuobs was happening when I spotted them at MLG Winter Championships in Columbus. On Sunday they all dressed in street clothes, no uniforms, and quietly walked into the North Market to enjoy it without being mobbed. I’m pretty sure no one else noticed them. I just thought it was awesome that they snuck away from the frenetic tournament to enjoy some time together as friends.
Thorzain, Morrow, and Hasuobs hanging out at MLG Winter Championships
For me, the core of mouz was a constant in the SC2 scene. Mana, Hasuobs, Morrow, and Thorzain were this rock. They are incredible gifted and unassuming. I feel like I have so many memories associated with them. I always felt like they were sort of like Socke. No one expects much from them (except for Thorzain) but they always seem to show impressive results. But where they shone was in the team leagues. I always enjoyed that like TL and EG, the mouz guys were team-first. Even as I’m watching Homestory Cup V, I see Mana and Hasuobs casting together.
Now with the departure of Thorzain to EG and Morrow as a free agent, the scene looks a little different to me.
Thorzain in the proper polo at MLG Winter Championship
Thorzain in his new and perplexing uniform
One of my three pillars in the scene is now gone (Please don’t ever change your lineups EG and TL). It makes me a little sad. Here’s to mouz of my memory. I hope Morrow finds a good home just as Thorzain did. And I hope that mouz will continue being the rock solid team I’ve come to know.