Written by: Bryce L. Jackson

Notable Matches

Boston Uprising vs New York Excelsior

In the Uprising’s first match after the release of DreamKazper (you idiot), expectations were low as we expected it would take time for the new 2nd DPS Player Mistakes to get accustom. Along with playing the best team in the league, many wrote this match off as just a learning experience. We were wrong. So wrong. The Boston Uprising came out swinging and stifled the stars of NYXL on Volskya winning via full hold. The promise that the Uprising showed early faded after NYXL won Numbani and Ilios. Then behind stellar play from Mistakes, Striker, and Gamsu were able to turn the tide at Junkertown. The Uprising were able to complete their amazing run on a one sided Oasis map to complete the 3-2 win. The kids are alright.

San Francisco Shock vs Shanghai Dragons

At heart, we are all Shanghai Dragons fans.

This match was hyped up all week as Shanghai’s best chance at their first win. Starting off at Temple of Anubis, the Shock came out swinging and the Dragons swung back. Whenever it looked like San Fransisco were going to cap point B, the Dragons scrapped and clawed back to maintain on defense for over 4 minutes. It became the Danteh vs Ado show as each of them gained Dragonblades absurdly fast. The Shock would eventually stunt the dragons just enough to win Anubis in overtime. Then the Dragons were able to win their first map of Stage 3 on Numbani. The Dragons were unable to keep that momentum through the half finally falling to the Shock 3-1. By far the best the team has looked now that Diya is back and the rest of the team seems to be gelling and working on and around communication issues.

London Spitfire vs Philadelphia Fusion

In what has become a hotly contested rivalry, the Fusion and Spitfire squared off for another brawl. It didn’t look like that to start though. The Fusion looked polished and the Spitfire haphazard as the Fusion took the early 2-0 advantage going into halftime. The Spitfire shuffled the lineup and were able to force the 5th Map. In the end, with Fragi going full agro Reinhardt, the Fusion held off the Spitfire and escaped with the 3-2 win.

League Notes

Dallas Fuel announced late Sunday the release of head coach KyKy and DPS player Rascal.

The beginning of the week was characterized by the drama surrounding the release of Boston Uprising’s DPS Player DreamKazper (you gross idiot), but was quickly forgotten in place of epic upsets, Self-Destruct Mania, and games that are shaping to make the Stage 3 Playoffs more interesting than the first 2 Stages. As it stands right now.

London are a surprising 1-3 to start and don’t look as great as they did. With Birdring faltering currently (rumored from some emotional issues), and the shuffling of some players either to try a new strategy of just to give them a break, some of their identity has been lost. Heading into a crucial Week 3, this can be make or break if the Spitfire want a shot at the Stage playoffs.

Overwatch League has a flu problem. This week alone, Fleta, super, Fissure, all had to miss time because of illness. Fleta left their match vs the Gladiators which Seoul eventually lost and Rawkus played with a surgical mask on Saturday. Valiant’s new assistant coach Grimreality also complained about his own illness. This week was the most visible the league illness has been but players have been falling ill through numerous stages. I’m not sure what’s going on at Blizzard, if their not wiping down chairs or headphones or what, but they are not killing germs there. Clorox! Lysol! There’s a marketing opportunity for you in Overwatch League.

Best Performers

Pine (Flex, New York Excelsior)

Carpe (DPS, Philadelphia Fusion)

Space (Flex, Los Angeles Valiant)

Striker (DPS, Boston Uprising)

Fragi (Tank, Philadelphia Fusion)

Gamsu (Tank, Boston Uprising)

Custa (Support, Los Angeles Valiant)

Ark(Support, New York Excelsior)