by: Zealously

Afternoon Matches - 04:10 GMT (+00:00)

LG-IM_First vs. SKT_LabyRinth

The first match of day two features the virtually unknown Labyrinth, who has perhaps already created a base of anti-fans that will stick around for a long time. His road to Code A included wins over Whale, TurN, Sparta and – most notably – his teammate Bisu.

Although the players he beat to get to this point are decidedly decent, they don't nearly match up to Labyrinth's opponent – LG-IM's First. Since switching to Starcraft II in early 2012, First has evolved to become quite a force both online and offline, grabbing two high placings at MLG tournaments and a championship at IEM Katowice over TvP expert MVP.Dream.

This match appears to be the most clear-cut of all the matches in Day 2. First has very strong PvT, certainly among the best in the match-up. Labyrinth gets bonus points for making it through the Prelims as a complete unknown, but this match should be quite one-sided.

First 2 - 0 Labyrinth


KT_Flash vs. Samsung_Sola

The last few days have been tough for the Ultimate Weapon, losing two ace matches in Proleague and taking losses to players he was considered favored against.
His Code A opponent, Sola (AKA Bbatta), has very little relevant information to go on while judging his abilities. On one hand, he took out Stephano in Proleague and managed to get through the prelims while many KeSPA A-teamers didn't. On the other hand, he has no recorded games against Terran which makes gauging his form in the match-up very difficult.

Flash always has a horde of fans hyping his every move and making excuses for his every loss, but with the games he has shown against Zerg overall – not just in his recent rough patch – makes him the favorite in this match. However, given how little we know about Sola's ZvT, there is always the very small possibility that the Samsung Zerg, no doubt learning from RorO, breaks out as a surprise and knocks another favorite out. Flash has certainly shown some weakness recently, and if Sola properly exploits his predictability, he may stand a chance.

Flash 2 - 0 Sola


MVP.Dream vs. MaruPrime

Dream vs. Maru is an intriguing match-up. When Maru was supposed to attend IEM Katowice but couldn't because of his age, Dream (who is not even a calendar year older) took his place. Of course, Dream went on a tear and took down a string of good players to end up in second place, losing to First in the finals. I still can't help but feel that the Prime Terran missed out on his chance for a true breakout in Katowice, after failing to live up to his significant hype early last year.

But, with Dream taking his place in Poland, Maru had no choice but to stay in Korea and watch as his replacement tore through one great player after another. This sets the stage for quite the grudge match between the two, with Maru wanting to show that he was the guy that was supposed to tear up Katowice, not Dream.

With Dream having a very poor TvT record historically, and Maru having great TvT practice partners in MKP and ByuN, it looks like the Prime Terran is the favorite. However, he will have to watch out – Dream will replace him in every sense if he should slip.

Maru 2 - 1 Dream


LG-IM_Happy vs. MVP.Killer

Killer is back in the GSL after taking on the role of the wise old veteran on MVP, receiving praise from just about every MVP player for giving good advice, keeping the team motivated, and generally being a great teammate. But Killer explicitly rejected the notion of a full switch to coach in his qualifier interviews, and he fully intends to kill people until he gets back into Code S. His opponent would not be Happy at all if this came to pass, and so he intends to stop Killer before he gets even close to his goal.

It is undeniable that Happy is quite a forgettable player, receiving little attention despite being quite solid. He was the only Terran before Mvp to beat Rain in Code S Season 4 – a very significant feat, but somehow this was quickly forgotten. In general, everything Happy does is quickly forgotten as everyone has their eyes fixed on his teammates Mvp and Nestea. With all three currently in Code A, Happy now has a chance to finally, just maybe, make a name for himself (though don't count on it - he's been overshadowed in similar situations before).

Killer isn't a bad player at all and has every chance to improve further, but right now their recent TvP stats speak for themselves – Happy is 7-3 while Killer is sitting at 3-7. Happy may be unremarkable, but he is very solid and thus a favorite going into this match.

Happy 2 - 0 Killer


Evening Matches - 09:10 GMT (+00:00)

ByuNPrime vs. EG.Revival.RC

Both good players, Byun and Revival have had suffered from poor records in their recent TvZ games. Although Byun played decently in Code S, he took several losses to Zergs in his Up/Down groups, only managing to beat Jaedong out of the four Zergs he ran into. Revival, on the other hand, has been a little bit more convincing in the match-up, most notably pulling a miracle comeback against Light in Proleague. Still, neither player has been terribly convincing recently, meaning that the series could go either way depending on which player is in better shape tonight.

Byun has shown us that when he's comfortable and confident, he's a force to be reckoned with – but when he isn't he, much like his teammate Marineking, tends to choke horribly. Revival has been playing quite a bit in Proleague and has shown that he can handle himself better under pressure than Byun can, though neither is an ice cold killer. This in combination with his slightly superior recent record makes Revival the favorite in this series by a small margin, but a confident Byun could easily bring out the upsets.

Revival 2 - 1 Byun


Quantic.Center vs. LG-IM_Seed

The Ro48-rematch from last season features Center vs. The fallen GSL champion Seed. The LG-IM Protoss' tale of decline has been repeated so many times that I won't go on about it at length, and it will suffice to say that Seed has a lot hanging on this match. Although he managed to claw his way back to Code A from the Prelims, Seed still has a long way to go before he proves that his Code S championship was no fluke.

As for Center, all he needs to do is win. He was the superior player out of the two last season when he knocked Seed out, and he hasn't gotten any worse. He went to the Up/Downs, played well, and was just barely eliminated in the wild card games. If Code S had 33 players, Center would be in. As such, it's Seed who will decide this match. In his Code A interview he explained how he had realized that he needed to work harder than he did after he followed up his championship with an "elimination at the speed of light."

This series will come down to whether or not Seed was actually serious about that. If he has practiced and prepared properly. If he is back in shape.
There are many ifs in this series, but if Seed brings his A-game, Center should not stand a chance even on a good day. But a mediocre, disinterested Seed is at serious risk of getting rolled and banished to Code B once more. With how Seed looked when he was eliminated last season, I'm not convinced he's back yet.

Center 2 - 1 Seed


LG-IM_ByuL vs. CJ_EffOrt

LG-IM has an eye for talent, that much is clear. After being recruited about two months ago, Byul has already had a temporary stay in Code S – crediting Nestea and First for clever builds that got him there. Against his opponent Effort, he might need more great builds. Effort's best match-up ZvZ currently sits at 70% with a string of good performances in Proleague,

Unfortunately for Byul, ZvZ happens to be his weak spot. Although he isn't terrible in the matchup, he has more losses than wins in the match-up, and against someone like Effort who seems to thrive in the mirror match-up, this is really bad news for the LG-IM recruit.

One factor that we must consider with this match-up is Nestea. The three-time GSL champion went out in somewhat embarrassing fashion in Code S, but he seems to have a never-ending supply of intelligent strategies and clever builds. Although Effort is favored in this series, there is no telling what the two LG-IM Zergs have come up with in the teamhouse.

Effort 2 - 1 Byul


LG-IM_Mvp vs. SKT_soO

There is always something strange about seeing Mvp fighting for his life in Code A. The winner of the second Nestea award does not belong in Code A, and he will no doubt fight tooth and nail to prove that. His opponent, soO, is perhaps exactly what Mvp could have asked for. To say that soO hasn't performed up to expectations in Proleague would perhaps be somewhat of an understatement, as he is taking loss upon loss in in bewildering fashion.

In fairness, soO's best match-up this season has been ZvT where he is currently 3-3, but his wins have not been particularly impressive (beating Thorzain and Last and going 1-1 against Innovation). Mvp did not play the best games of his career in Code S either, but an Mvp with preparation is always a (relatively) good Mvp and a serious threat to any player, especially one with mostly mediocre performances recently. So unless soO immediately shapes up and brings some of the preparation that KeSPA teams are always credited for, I don't think the SKT Zerg stands much of a chance here.

Mvp 2 - 0 soO