We have to consider the fact that it's easier to be dominant as a pioneer in any competition because later there are a lot tougher competitors. A great write-up.

Badjas

Netherlands2038 Posts

March 27 2016 20:49 GMT

#107

Back in the day, I was a Jaedong fan, and of course very frustrated with Flash's dominance -_-
Hats off though... and to you too Wax, a good read.

I bet report on Jaedong's strong points would also be a good read and I'll take that idea as comfort ^_^

Badjas

Netherlands2038 Posts

March 27 2016 21:01 GMT

#108

On March 24 2016 06:31 [F_]aths wrote:
As much as I respect, yes, revere Flash. He is not the greatest StarCraft: Brood War player of all time. Not even Jaedong is.

It is JulyZerg.

haha! internet high-five to you!
July vs Best OSL finals is etched in my memory forever, was able to watch it live + Show Spoiler [non-live] +

set 1 link (LOUD intro, beware)

[F_]aths

Germany3947 Posts

March 28 2016 00:01 GMT

#109

Ah, the raw and pure graphics.

That OSL was shortly before I began to follow Starcraft. When I couldn't get enough and watched old VODs (most of them in bad 240p resolution) I was most impressed with July, because he often seems to win with the force of will.

Of course, Flash is an outstanding player as well. I watched the MSL livestream when the power outage occurred. I watched (from VODs) the GOMtv invitational which Flash won. And many random games. Good old days

Caladbolg

2855 Posts

March 28 2016 05:32 GMT

#110

Flash... what would have happened indeed, if SC2 didn't enter the picture? I was really hoping for him to reclaim the best terran title since it felt he wasn't 100% when Fantasy started dominating.

nimdil

Poland3751 Posts

March 28 2016 19:07 GMT

#111

On March 28 2016 14:32 Caladbolg wrote:
Flash... what would have happened indeed, if SC2 didn't enter the picture? I was really hoping for him to reclaim the best terran title since it felt he wasn't 100% when Fantasy started dominating.

I'm pretty sure every player's career has it's ifs. If MSL started the same year BoxeR accumulate more than just 3 titles between the two leagues? Would YellOw win something? If maps were more balanced, would sAviOr be even more dominating during his era? If NaDa wasn't hit by family tragedy in the middle of his career, would he transcend the limit of 3 wins? etc.

Caladbolg

2855 Posts

March 29 2016 06:43 GMT

#112

On March 29 2016 04:07 nimdil wrote:

Show nested quote +

If Bisu wasn't so pretty, would he have won an OSL?

StylishVODs

Sweden5331 Posts

March 30 2016 11:14 GMT

#113

On March 29 2016 15:43 Caladbolg wrote:

Show nested quote +

If Bisu wasn't so pretty, would he have won an OSL?

FalconHoof

Canada183 Posts

March 31 2016 03:39 GMT

#114

Thank you so much for writing this... As someone who wasn't aware of the Korean pro scene while it was happening, this sort of reminiscent shit was amazing for me to read. I love Flash, but only after the fact; I hopped on the bandwagon late. The depth oh my Lord, you did an amazing job it took me like 2+ hours to read all this and go through the wiki links and see things like that power outage loss vs Jaedong that I never would have known were it not for you brave internet knight.

HawaiianPig

Canada5155 Posts

April 04 2016 05:20 GMT

#115

As a rabid Bisu fan, I rooted against Flash relentlessly. And yet, when I look back on it all, I just can't deny that Flash was the best to ever play the game. With Brood War sidelined to its current role esports, he may forever remain the best to play the game.

Excellent article as always, Wax.

dAPhREAk

Nauru12397 Posts

April 04 2016 07:20 GMT

#116

flash vs power outage.

natsukashi

Demand2k

Norway875 Posts

April 07 2016 17:23 GMT

#117

Nice article about my favorite esports era, Flash was a true beast,

Mojzii1

30 Posts

April 07 2016 17:53 GMT

#118

On April 04 2016 14:20 HawaiianPig wrote:
As a rabid Bisu fan, I rooted against Flash relentlessly. And yet, when I look back on it all, I just can't deny that Flash was the best to ever play the game. With Brood War sidelined to its current role esports, he may forever remain the best to play the game.

Excellent article as always, Wax.

Well broodwar broodwar popularity hits back up again day by day, you can clearly see that Flash alone ususally reaches up to 20k viewers and i think he peaked at 28 k about. Starcraft 2 tournaments dont have those numbers nowadays. ICCUP popularity incrasing. Well it's not surprising. Blizzard kinda f*ckd up great potential of starcraft 2 and made this game way too easy and less challenging (balance plays a big role too). Nowadays watching sterams of players playing at grandmaster level is nothing special. While watching flash playing broodwar is like wow how can he do that.
Blizzard best shot is to finally relase Starcraft remastered, or maybe slowly shift the direction of which starcraft 2 is heading, because right now every single patch makes the game too easy. Pylon cannons, nydus worms, Liberators, ravagers...

Lebesgue

4542 Posts

April 07 2016 23:27 GMT

#119

I have to admit I wasn't the biggest fan of Flash initially. I did not change my mind till his amazing streak around his first OSL title. At that time I found the way the kid won games just jaw-dropping. It just seemed like he was playing a different game. And so I became an avid fan of Flash.

But then came the bad days... Flash would steamroll average players but would always lose to top dogs in proleague, not to mention his early exits in starleagues... I still saw the flashes of brilliance here and there but there was no consistency. I would still wake up (or stay up) to watch him play in proleague/starleague but it was often disheartening to see him lose again and again...

And then came the memorable 2009/2010 season. If I remember correctly, Flash started it by winning GomTV Season 3 against Iris, and it brought some hope to me. it definitely boosted his confidence. But what followed was unbelievable. Anybody remembers the Winner's League? Flash would come up at freaking all-kill top teams, one after the other. And the ease with which he was doing it against top pros was unbelievable. It seriously seemed as if he solved the game at that time.

One of my happiest memory of my PhD was waking up at 4am to watch Flash dismantle Jaedong 3:0 in Hana Daetoo MSL. What a dominating performance that was. I stayed up till almost 9 am chatting online with other on TL forum