Ginyu Force > Baby Punching Marathon 2-1
The time has finally has come for my most anticipated match of the season: Ginyu vs BPM. Last season two of the best and closest games were fought between two teams, Ginyu of course formed of mostly Tangerine players, so I whole-heartedly expect to see a thrilling nail-biter of a match this Monday. In fact I do believe BPM might be looking for a little recompense after Tangerine knocked them out of last season’s playoffs in a narrow 3-2 victory on gullywash. But regardless of history and the outcome of this match BPM and Ginyu are and will remain good friends. Unfortunately I also happen to love hanging out with all those guys which makes this probably one of the harder matches I’ve had to predict, but after a long deliberation I’m going with Ginyu Force to clench the victory here, which will also more than likely set them up for an undefeated regular season. It’s going to be far from easy though as BPM, after 4 episodes, has finally powered up to their final and most potent form. Pulse is back from outer space and he’s ready to stomp on nerds, as is Kapoww who finally gives BPM the solid and consistent starting demo that they needed. Boink and Bronze, of course, are always ready to go buck and top frag any match they play in, and if this week were a different map (a 5cp or KOTH) I might have gone with BPM to win. I’m afraid though that BPM’s aggression will land them into trouble more often than not as they’ll feed picks and advantages to the patient and calculated beast that is Ginyu Force. Sitting at the heart of that beast on pl_barnblitz will be Cusideabelicoln, Duwatna, and Huey Lewis. My former teammate Abe will once again prove why he’s the best engineer with keen spychecking and creative gun placements. As good as Kapoww is, I don’t feel he’s taken this map as seriously as Duwatna who’s turned spamming stickies on this map into a science. BPM will have a tough time not popping early against Duwatna, and once they do they’ll Huey Lewis immediately standing in their way pushing them like a 9 lb newborn. BPM offensive capabilities are nothing to underestimate however, so if Pulse can go huge and they can secure 4 or 5 minute times I suspect Ginyu will have a tough time replicating that. Either way this’ll be one for the history books.
Menace to Society > Quality Control 2-0
Quality Control is in an interesting position right now. They’re surprisingly good and have a lot of sleeper talent on the team. Pretzel on heavy is looking to be the next Arthur. His tracking and position are excellent and with the right team around him I can see him being a major force to be contended with. Mang, who’s playing soldier, has a natural gift for just being flat out good at TF2. I’ve seen him tear up pugs on almost every class so he’s definitely a player to be watching out for. Pairing all this newer talent with some more experienced ones like TMP and SteveC have given QC a solid spot as one of the better middle platinum teams, but unfortunately it won’t be enough to put much of a dent in a top 4 team like mTs. Although a season of experience and a few roster tweaks and I could see QC poking their heads into the top in the future.
Blunderful > Ghetto Afterthought 2-0
Blunderful, fresh off an excruciatingly close win against GG last week, seem to be returning to their previous form. Squidfrog and the gang are experienced veterans and it’s really showing this week. They’ve been winning convincingly in scrims this week and I suspect the same thing will happen come Monday. Enryu is a strong demo and with Squid at his back they are a formidable combo. Noko on spy will come up with some huge plays that I’m not sure GA will be able to answer with Finndy. Revels on sniper might be able help fill that gap with his own picks, but that’s only if he isn’t being constantly pressured by UseofToaster running wild. GA has some solid talent and teamwork for being relatively new, but against a Blunderful that’s on form they’re a little out-classed.
The Syndicate > Gangsta Gang 2-0
Ahhhh here we have a battle between two previous champions of platinum. Neither team is what they used to be but Syndicate I believe is still the stronger team, and I’m sure they’ll be ravenous for a victory here after falling to upsetting 8th place in the standings so far due to a fierce schedule. GG of course has the infamous Big Raz Team Carry, but I’m not sure even him and all the Braveheart speeches that Seabass can deliver will be enough to combat a team with players like Shrugger, Jake, and Fathom.
Chain Reaction > Playing Naked 2-0
Chain Reaction is swiftly becoming a tough middle platinum team with all the astute roster changes they’ve made. Boulder on demo and Misskay on medic will make this team a definite one to watch for as they crawl back from their early season deficit. Playing Naked on the other hand I’m glad are still hanging in there, and I’ll be honest they’re doing better than I expected after seeing them beat up Axl Wat last week. They’ve got some strong 6v6 DMers like Trance, ReaL, and Dash so if CR isn’t careful they could slip up and drop a round, but I’d be surprised if Naked could adapt to pl_barnblitz well enough to put up a close fight.
Axl Wat < Kimberlite Council 0-2
Axl Wat is going to make me hate predicting their matches because I never know when they’re going to bust out YZ50 and Dummy, but I think kLITe deserve to take a win here and get back into the middle platinum brawl. They’re a strong team that’s been on the receiving end of some very tough and close losses, and I’m excited to see what the rest of the season holds for them. KLITE is an example of a team that really makes me feel my age as a highlander player. I remember when their medic phorofor was some nobody in pug.nahl that I used to get frustrated being on the same team with. Now 6 months later he’s on a promising team in platinum. Same goes for others both on kLITE and other teams. It’s good to see up and coming teams working as hard as I did on Bonus Points—makes me all gooey and nostalgic. Anyway I wish kLITE luck this Monday.