With 2012 coming to close and everyone looking back at who should win such and such award, Leenock and Life, while still heavily in the chase for player of the year honors, have created a rivalry that is right up there with the best of 2012. While the ESF vs. KeSPA will overshadow any conflict between individuals, you can still have a debate on which player rivalry has symbolized the year of 2012. The best rivalries are the ones where the two players facing off play to their maximum potential and bring the best out of each other whenever they clash. Polt vs. Stephano and Symbol vs. Seed are the two main examples, with all four players benefiting greatly from having a player that forces them to take it to the next level.

Life and Leenock have faced off three times this year, but their battle is not exclusive to what happens inside the game. Throughout the second half of 2012, Life and Leenock have owned the Starcraft 2 world. It is no secret that Zerg was the big winner of the year and these two have been at the head of the charge. Life won a GSL and MLG in a span of a week, and Leenock has also won a MLG and IPL this year, but fell to Life in their only finals clash in Dallas. In their three series, they've faced off in GSL, MLG and IPL, Leenock holding a two series to one edge over his junior.

If you look at what Life is doing, he has become what Leenock was at the start of the GSL Open seasons two plus years ago. Leenock was the precocious fifteen-year-old kid who got attention from everyone for how young he was coupled with how amazing he was at the game. With younger players moving into the scene as the seasons went on, Leenock's age stopped being a factor, and he became more known for simply his amazing play. A lot of the younger players that popped up in the first few seasons of GSL retired or stagnated in skill after time, but Leenock is one of the few who has just gotten better and better through the years. We have seen him grow in front of our very own eyes and become one of the scariest players in the world as the ace of FXO.

The one thing missing from Leenock's collection is a GSL champion. If you asked a group of people which player in the world deserves a GSL that doesn't have one, and the answer would more than likely be Leenock. He has had some of the most iconic series in the GSL, won two GSTL champions as apart of FXO, beat near-GSL level competition to take foreign championships like IPL and MLG. The only time he made it to a GSL was last November in a losing effort, putting on another unforgettable series against the champion jjakji. He came into the series as the heavy favorite, but lost, giving birth to the most unlikely champion in GSL history. Leenock would then continue to rise in the world, winning team leagues and international tournaments, and jjakji had a deep drop off after his victory, now in Code B and not having attended a foreign tournament since IPL4.

It's pretty simple for Leenock. If he wins this championship, he is the best Zerg of the year, and maybe even the player of the year. With a GSL title on his resume, it would be hard not to pick him. He has helped FXO to two GSTL champions, won an IPL, gotten first and second at MLG, and even won the WEM tournament in China. A loss here in the semifinals would give an opening to Parting, Life and even Sniper to make a statement in the finals, but Leenock isn't going to be easy to knock out. He was one of the big favorites to take the title in season four and five, but played below his expected level in the quarterfinals of both seasons, losing 3-1 to both Taeja and Sniper.

For Life, he already has a GSL championship. He is the youngest GSL champion, one of the best players in the world, and he is still in middle school. He got an early 2-0 lead against DRG yesterday, but took his foot off the pedal in the next two games and had to win in the fifth and final game of the night to get into the semifinals. His ZvZ looked much improved against DRG than he has shown in recent tournaments against the likes of Snute and Soulkey, but he is going to need to bring his very best to take out Leenock.

The three times the two rivals have faced, Leenock really has controlled all three series. He took out Life handily 2-0 in their first meeting during Code A and doubled that performance at the most recent IPL, beating Life again 2-0 and sending him to the loser's bracket. The only time Life won against Leenock was during the MLG finals in Dallas, but you can make an argument that series was more of Leenock losing it than Life winning it. Life played perfectly in the final games of that series, but with how both players opened up and what builds they chose, Leenock really should have beaten him if he didn't make perplexing decisions in the most critical moments. Life scraped out a come from behind 4-3 victory to take MLG, but Leenock had to be kicking himself for letting another title escape him.

With Parting still alive in the tournament, this might very well be the final ZvZ of the year. If there were ever two players to send off the Year of Zerg in style, these two would be the choices to have the final GSL ZvZ of the year. Sniper will have something to say about that in the second match of the night, but Leenock and Life will be giving it their all to make it back to the GSL finals for a second time. Life's first trip there was a success, walking the royal road and denying Mvp his fifth GSL championship, and Leenock will be hoping to get back and erase the memories of jjakji triumphing over him a year ago.

This series should be close, but if you look at the history, Leenock should come out the victor. He holds a 7-4 record over Life in their history, and he has looked better in ZvZ than Life has the past few weeks. If Life can play to his absolute peak for five games straight, I don't think there is any player on the planet who can take him out in a BoX series, but he's shown in the past few months that he can get lax and fall apart at points. Leenock, while having the same problem in the last few GSL's, is more consistent and has a longer track record of being dominant than Life does. Expect one of the most spirited matches of the year between these two stars, but it feels like this should be the tournament where we can finally anoint Leenock into the pantheon of GSL champions.

Prediction: Leenock 3 - 2 Life




Parting is Santa Claus. He brings entertainment, amazing games, and a larger than life personality to all the boys and girls who watch Starcraft 2. Last night he put on one of his best performances, having a top five series of the year against Violet that stopped the semifinals from being an all Zerg affair. With Terran having owned 2011 and Zerg reigning over 2012, Parting is the last surviving member of his race that can do anything about a ZvZ final. He is the only Protoss to who have gone the entire year in Code S, and he will be the final Protoss, win or lose, of this GSL year.

Sniper is the teenage kid who goes around his town and tells the little kids that Santa doesn't exist. See those pretty decorations that the neighbors put up in their front yard? Sniper rolls up in his new car that he just bought with the money he won from winning GSL and crashes through the inflatable snow globe. All the kids who show up to the mall with their parents and sit on Santa's lap to ask them what they want for Christmas? Sniper shows up with a megaphone, tells every single child that Santa is some dude getting paid to put up with them for a few hours, and that their presents are made through child labor in poor countries.

He is worse than the Grinch. His job tonight is to show up and to break the hearts of every little zealot in the world. Oh, you think that Parting Claus is going to slide down your chimneys and deliver you a non-ZvZ final? Sniper is here to expose that not only is Parting's "soul build" is nothing more than a gimmick that he was the first one to crush in last season's GSL, but to give the GSL fans another ZvZ final where he will once more be the star attraction. Can you hear that sound, Mr. Chae? That's the sound of thousands of viewers typing words like "Proleague," "MLG," and "IPL" in their browsers as they look for tournaments without Sniper ZvZ's to spend their money on.

Parting showed brilliant play against Violet last night, but Sniper is going to be a much tougher test. Parting tried to all-in Sniper twice in their series last season in the Ro16 of Code S, but Sniper made Parting look like a fool, dismantling him in both games. Sniper embarrassed Parting so badly that not even Artosis or Tasteless could hold back on criticizing how badly Parting played as the favorite in the group. He was expected to challenge for the season five championship, but he fell apart against Polt and Sniper, looking like a fool once more for talking big in interviews and not backing up his words.

Everything changed for Parting when he left Korea for China, taking part in the Battle.net World Championships with the winner grabbing $100,000. Parting made it through the knockout rounds and beat Creator in the finals to take the crown as world champion, going from one of the lowest points in his career to winning the biggest prize in Starcraft 2 history. He continued his momentum a short while after by taking part in the WCG and getting first place there as well, beating up foreigners to take another world championship. Since losing to Sniper over a month ago, Parting has been looking unbeatable, getting through Code A and grabbing $125,000 through two world championship tournaments.

After watching last night's games, a lot of people will be entering this series thinking Parting can destroy the current GSL champion. Parting might have not won the GSL last season, but he still gets a lot more respect than Sniper does. It seems like every Sniper winner interview has him stating that he feels like people don't see him as a worthy champion and just see him as someone who took advantage of a time when his race was at it's strongest. Sniper made Parting look like a scrub in the GSL, but Parting is the one who is getting all the admiration and love while he is seen as nothing but a patchzerg by a lot of the fans.

Honestly, Sniper is kinda right. Parting, while doing amazingly, only beat a single Korean in his BWC and WCG runs. Creator is a great player, but it was a PvP and that was the only time Parting was forced to face a Code S level talent. Sniper, whose championship will more than likely always be linked to Ryung's 'imba imba imba imba' statement, had an absolutely stunning season, beating some of the best in the world at every race like Parting, Polt, Leenock, Ryung and Hyun to take his championship. Parting is seen as a champion of the universe for beating up on foreigners (and Creator), and Sniper is seen as the villain for playing Zerg in a very effective, but supremely dull fashion against top end competitors.

The heavy majority of people want to see Parting in the finals. Not only because it would stop us from seeing another major tournament end in a ZvZ, but because Parting is a fascinating, engaging character that Sniper just isn't. Parting names his own builds, creates stories around each of his games, and makes you engaged in his upcoming matches. Sniper, while possibly being the best player of the entire year, just doesn't have that. He calls Terran players whiners, says that he hasn't gotten the respect he deserves, and says that the game is balanced and the best player will always win. He isn't the most beloved player on the planet, but he speaks his mind and always backs it up by winning.

With Christmas upon us, what will we be unwrapping under the tree on the 21st? A Parting vs. Leenock/Life final that would excite the fans and get them interested into seeing who will be the final GSL champion of the year? Or will Sniper be able to pull out another victory, get to his second straight GSL final, and give us another ZvZ final to finish off 2012? Parting Claus will be coming to town tonight, with a bag full of soulful builds, ceremonies, and special strategies, but Sniper is already lighting a fire in the fireplace, ready to scorch PartinG and ruin Christmas once and for all.

Merry ZvZmas, everyone.

Prediction: Sniper 3 - 1 Parting