Despite what the above quote may say - I can assure you it is not the truth. This is not, ladies and gentleman, the week of Jaedong. Yes, he did triumph over Canata in the MSL and Zero in the OSL. He is #1 in the Power Rank, in ELO, and just became the first person in history to break 3,000 KeSPA with a commanding lead over his rivals. Finally, he delivered the final killing blow to CJ Entus in a high-stakes ace match

And yet, we must give pause and ask ourselves, is there really any surprise in a winner doing some winning? Jaedong has gold medals, fans, and proleague success precisely because these fantastic accomplishments are the things he does all the time. There is a reason, during the first night of these fantastic proleague semis, that the basically unknown Perfectman was chosen as MVP and not Jaedong despite his clutch win over CJ’s best player: the magic of the unexpected.

A rookie showcased brilliant play against a veteran, beat the odds, and pulled out a great win that left fans cheering and impressed. Jaedong merely delivered what we already expected of him. Perhaps that is the burden of being a titan: your wins become expected rather than celebrated, but whatever the case – it was the night of Perfectman, not Jaedong.

The same principle applies to this week. Give amazing credit to LJD for a goddamn stellar accomplishment and for playing Zerg (and Starcraft in general) at such a high level so consistently, but this is not the week of Jaedong.

This is the week of Oz.

Now, in the first time since the loss of Anytime and fOrGG, do people other than the Hwaseung loyal see the capabilities of this team. They see the potential in its rookies, the power of its rigorous practice schedule, and the leadership of its coach. What was laughed at and discounted as a one-man, no depth, “Jaedong Oz” became the playoff monster who took on the most “deep” team in Korea in two consecutive Bo7’s and walked away the champion.

Obviously I’m favoring the first day of play over the second, where Oz got 4-0’d (though while looking strong, especially Hiya) and that is because with every single playoff match so far going to super ace, it seems that any team that has made it this far is good enough to beat any other. So whoever loses the first night’s match (which would’ve been it under the old system) is driven to practice heavily and win the second. A night of celebrating your first day win seems to have caused every team that got it to lose on Day 2. It doesn’t change the fact that Oz won a Bo7 on depth, not Jaedong.

Now all that awaits is what could rightfully be called the final boss of proleague, SKT1, an organization that probably holds more team trophies than everyone else combined. This unlikely crew of underdogs prepares once again to fight against the odds in a grab for lasting glory and the right to be mentioned amongst the best. Jaedong, now secure in his dominance over the Zerg race after putting down the only real challenger, must face a far more deadly and far more experienced opponent: the only one in his path to unquestioned #1…. Bisu.

Fans of epic Stacraft… you are in luck.
See you at the finals.

The last two weeks have been a rollercoaster of CJ emotions. First, the ridiculous high of Movie's ace win over Leta, then the loss in the second match against Hite, then EffOrt's super ace win over Yarnc. The second match against Samsung was even more ridiculous, as CJ went from the pits of despair, 1-3 down and losing, to four straight wins and an euphoric ace match over Stork.

Then this weekend, Oz came out firing and CJ's players choked away a 1-0 lead to lose 1-4. It felt hopeless -- we had to beat the all but invincible Jaedong on a map (Neo Medusa) that basically forced a ZvZ. But when CJ rolled through Oz 4-0 on Day 2, including an improbable and hilarious Orion upset of Jaedong, we thought... "maybe." It was a crack in Lee Jae Dong's armor. And when the lights turned on and two Zerg players stood side by side, ready to play one game to decide it all, we finally did not feel that Jaedong fear. Instead, it was a feeling of excitement, of anxiety, of hope.

We had hope. We were the underdog, no doubt about that, but we were defiant. Because EffOrt brought with him the weight of history and the fire of someone who wasn't intimidated by the reigning Zerg king. We had a fierce kid who carried us through Hite and Samsung, and we believed in him. We knew he may never be as accomplished as Jaedong. We knew he may never reach Jaedong's peak skill level. But we also knew at this moment that we would never trade him for anyone. Effort was capable of a win. He's our own home grown CJ ace. We watched him rise, stumble, and gain confidence. we watched him break through. Finally, after all these seasons, we had a player who made us feel like we were watching the ghost of Ma Jae Yoon.

Alas, it was not to be. But that does not mean this season was a failure. CJ Entus won two playoff matches, but more importantly, successfully transitioned to their next generation. Effort, Skyhigh, and Movie will all be here next season, with one more year of experience under their belts. Great run CJ. Keep fighting, and Watch the finals with hunger. Because next year, we're going all the way.

- Your thoughts on your win in the final ace match?
▲ I thought a lot about the final ace match on the way to the studio today. Even if I won today, my team might still end up losing so I was worrying a lot about playing on Neo Medusa, and prepared a few plans. I am relieved that we ended up winning, and I hope I don't get too complacent just because we won today, and I want to eventually win in the Grand Finals with a smile.

- You lost to Orion today in the fourth set. Did you have insufficient practice time?
▲ It's not that. When I practice for my games, I practice for both but Orion played mindgames well, using something I did not think of. I too thought that I had lost completely in the psychological warfare. That is why I immediately put that aside and concentrated on the next match, focusing on the micro, just the way I practiced. I knew that there was a high chance I would be playing against a Zerg in the final ace match.

- Were you certain that EffOrt would be sent out in the final ace match?
▲ I thought that they might send out a Terran, but I was over 80% sure that they would send out EffOrt.

- How did you feel when you confirmed that EffOrt was playing in the final ace match?
▲ I felt very good. I defeated him yesterday, and as I warmed up after doing some mutalisk micro in the fourth set. After the match started, I was in a favorable position, and I felt that as long as I win here and now, I would be able to feel a sense of satisfaction. I played the game with my mind at ease.

- You are now ranked 'most number of wins' in the post-season of Proleague.
▲ It's a shared first place, but there is still a chance for me to take it all for myself, so I feel that I will definitely be able to become the sole number one. I am very proud of setting such a record, and I want to set a record no one can ever surpass.

- Any final words?
▲ So many players helped me with practice. Especially Samsung Khan's great and oDin. eSTRO and KT players helped out as well, and I received a lot of help from WeMade FOX players who helped me practice simulated games. I am grateful to everyone who helped me with practice.

---

- Your team is finally going to the Grand Finals after two years.
▲ It's our first time in two years so it feels refreshing. We lost the first time we got into the Grand Finals, so we will prepare hard for this Grand Finals and produce good results.

- The game was forced to go into the final ace match.
▲ When we first returned from our vacations, we felt it was impossible to practice for both day 1 and 2's maps in such a short period of time. Thankfully, Jaedong's record on the final ace match was good so we knew that as long as we won in day 1, we would be able to get into the Grand Finals. Maps used in day 2 are very luck and scouting-dependent, so although we weren't able to guarantee a win in the normal day 2 match, we were confident of winning the final ace match. However, a 0-4 loss in day 2 came as a surprise. We will use our remaining time to prepare hard for the Grand Finals.

- How would you rate SKT1, your opponents in the Grand Finals?
▲ SKT1 is very strong in the Grand Finals, and they even have a record of wining the 'triple crown' (TN: Winning both Round 1, Round 2 and Grand Finals in the former Proleague format). I think that for both SKT1 and ourselves, this finals will be very meaningful. SKT1's coaching staff and players' teamwork and large number of ace players is a huge plus for them, so I believe that they will not be an easy opponent.

- How do you intend to prepare for the Grand Finals against SKT1?
▲ I will send the players our accordingly after looking through their capabilities and deciding on the finalised build to use. There may be snipes going on, as shown in day 1, so I will work hard to make full use of the players' capabilities.

- The main players, other than Jaedong, are still continuing to slump.
▲ It's a very worrying problem. The new players won yesterday so I believed that the main players will pick up that momentum and do well today, but they all disappointingly lost. I believe that they themselves will know what is wrong the best, and that they will perform better in their next matches. I hope that everyone will go all-out with the remaining time we have to work hard and even unlock their hidden potentials.

Source:
Interview with Jaedong
Interview with Coach Cho