Second Sunrise

What defines a legacy? Sometimes it all comes down to a moment. A soul-crushing defeat, a long awaited title or an unexpected exit; these are the things that can overshadow an entire career. They shine so brightly and with so much influence that it’s easy to be left seeing spots. Then there’s the weight of history. How can a snapshot argue with ceaseless triumphs, perpetual disappointment or contrived inconsistency? A career is rarely one or the other, but when the dust settles it's often one narrative that rises above the rest. For better or worse, it's the fate all progamers suffer.

TY is a man battling this very fate. He is a WESG champion, an IEM Champion, a GSL finalist. The man who brazenly clinched a Proleague title for KT Rolster and maybe, just maybe, a BlizzCon champion. He is also a criminal underachiever and a profound disappointment. When all's said and done, what will it be that defines TY’s legacy?

There are two TYs. The first is BaBy, a prodigal talent with the world at his feet who was only twelve years old when he joined WeMade FOX in 2006. Esports is an industry in which players commonly experience success at a very young age. Still, twelve. That was practically unheard of. With his youthfulness came expectations. People assumed he’d keep getting better until he inevitably stood shoulder to shoulder with the greats. He's pretty good now, but imagine where he’ll be in a few years. Fans of TY were always looking forward, licking their lips at the thought of his seemingly ordained championship.

But those hopes simmered and eventually soured as TY failed to impact Brood War in the manner so many had hoped. StarCraft 2 turned out to be no greener pasture. There was no denying the hints of magic, but then again, no one had ever doubted his potential. His situation only compounded itself as time went on. As he failed to reach the promised land over and over again. Every loss was a confirmation of his frailty. Every win only made the inevitable slip-up more painful. TY was haunted by BaBy, but he was the ghost, incapable of creating a legacy of his own. A question, long since formed, was now impossible to ignore. Was TY the invention of a community hungry for the next superstar or the ascendant hero destined to one day shine like the sun?

Those fans who had ardently, futilely willing him on up until that point, inadvertently spawned a new version of TY. The community, writers and casters included, all played a part in reinforcing this characterization and refining its form. He was no longer TY, the progamer who had dedicated his life to pursuing a championship. He was BaBy, a cautionary tale in unrealized dominance and squandered opportunities. His existence was a sharp rebuke to counting your chickens before they hatched. BaBy was ethereal and insubstantial, a specter of a legend.

Then there is Jun Tae Yang, who stepped out of Baby’s shadow just long enough to win a pair of championships and, at long last, forge a legacy beyond the influence of those who had heaped expectations on him since his debut. Jun Tae Yang is his own man, with a future that belongs only to him.

Winning WESG is the type of moment that can define a career. The fact that it was long overdue only made it sweeter. TY had broken through and reversed the script. He did the same at Katowice, powering through a treacherous field by the skin of his teeth. Winning WESG could be considered as much happenstance as anything else, but his victory at IEM Katowice was the sort of thing fairy tales are made of. It was the product of resilience, grit, unflinching will and tenacity. He was the not the most talented or in form player at either event, but he was the one left standing in the end. He won close series after close series, feeling his way through pitch black labyrinths in a manner no one thought him capable of. Eleven years had passed and TY was no longer the fresh faced upstart. He entered those tournaments as a grizzled and wily veteran who had seen nearly everything there is to see and finally understood what it took to win.

TY was no longer BaBy, but there was no denying who he once was, especially considering it didn’t take long for him to lapse into his old ways. Half a year removed from his pair of tournament victories, it seems more like he was stepping outside of himself for a moment rather than realizing his long prophesied greatness.

So, who is the real TY? Eleven years have passed and the jury is still out. Even in victory he was not the tyrant Baby was supposed to be. His wins weren’t dominant or absolute, they came with asterisks, mitigating factors and cynical remarks. Still, TY is a champion. That’s something which can never be taken away from him and no small feat in a game as volatile as StarCraft II . And yet, despite his recent triumphs, despite becoming Jun Tae Yang at long last, it’s difficult to argue against a "decade's" worth of shortcomings. Losing to MMA in the quarterfinals of 2015 GSL Season 1, failing to get out of the Round of 32 the next season, losing to Losira in Code A the Season after, getting reversed swept by soO in GSL Season 1 2017 and herO at IEM Shanghai; these are but a few of the befuddling losses TY has suffered throughout the course of his career. Whether it’s crumbling mid-series or simply stumbling against an inferior opponent, TY is far from the prototypical champion. He often seems far better suited of the role of fool than the all conquering hero. A Kong is a darling, someone beloved, embraced and cherished for their faults and weaknesses. TY wasn’t even that. He was a choke artist, unable to clear the first hurdle, let alone the last. He was BaBy’s legacy taken form, trapped in a prison that will be with him as long as he plays.

BaBy never became the Bonjwa he was supposed to be, but he made due on an arduous journey by finally realizing his destiny at WESG and IEM. TY has been a progamer for half his life, but has lived most of his career in a phantom's shadow. He is only now becoming his own man. BlizzCon is an opportunity to add a new chapter to a tale that has only just begun, while proving in no uncertain terms that he is greatness, not greatness unrealized. This is the type of golden opportunity Baby let slip by time and again, but Jun Tae Yang claimed as his own. And so we must ask... which TY will we see at BlizzCon?