Kwiggle vs BladezThe community has seen this match over 1,000 times, but somehow you can still see the desperation and the struggle between them both when they fight. They have real match chemistry because they are input experts as shown with combos, zoning, and environmental damage.
Matt Ponton vs. Killy Now, this is a matchup we do not get see that often if at all. This might be the first time I've even seen this matchup at a DOA5 tournament. If you remember another instance, let it be known in the comments.
Matt Ponton goes off the wall in the Azuchi ninja hideout with Mai to combatant Killy's Lisa. Matt puts on a great offense, using a wide array of moves outside on the rooftops. He uses mix-ups to keep Killy confused and puts him on the defense. Easily defeats one of the top players of the tournament this match.
Killy quickly switches to his main star, Tina, and they begin on Scramble and the offense begins on Mai. You can see a more comfortable defense from Killy so Matt begins to throw him, but Killy's offense is too strong and he makes great transitions to get the quick win on Scramble.
So Matt makes his switch to Bass, and we see a jumping power bomb in the desert right away. Low throws from Tina, and ground grabs. They both zone and fish for stuns. We see a shining wizard from Tina and more ground grabs than I think I have ever seen. All of this throws off Matt completely in this match and loses the set.
GHP Guy vs Rojikku This is a good example of a player who wants to rush down to give a beat down while the other one is playing a slower and more defensive game. Each strategy seemed to work for them both. Rojikku did a good job of going in for heavy damage and confusing setups, and GHP Guy was making great reads and blocks.
Later on in the match, GHP was able to adjust to the offense accordingly and came in with quick jabs. Hayate has a lot of guard breakers but the effectiveness of them only lasts for so long. If you are playing defensive enough you don't need to fear them as much and GHP proved that today.
Kwiggle vs Killy To open up Kwiggle chooses Phase 4 to go against Killy's Tina. This is a good match-up because even though Tina isn't as fast her speed is good enough, and she has the ability to take full advantage of Phase 4's unsafeness with damaging throws.
Kwiggle keeps the distance from Tina so he can set-up his strategies and combos. The first match is won by Kwiggle and it goes into last round. It's exciting because these are two top competitors in the prime of their game.
Going into their next match the exchanges start happening and Tina throws out two bull dogs in a row and wins a really fast round. Kwiggle adapts, and they are both pecking at each other's feet for slip damage on the shore of Zack Island. They space for a while and Kwiggle continues to find his footing and gets the win after some crazy mind games.
GHP Guy vs JagerKasumi and Phase 4 are finally going to have their epic show-down of good and evil and the atmosphere of Lorelei and music set the tone for a dark and defensive match. GHP Guy plays such a defensive game against Jager and takes him down quick.
Jager quickly transitions to Rig, but GHP Guy doesn't care and keeps up his perfect defense and offense. Jager does the best he can to push him against the wall and is able to adapt using the same parry a few times as an offense builder. GHP goes for slower stuns and back to his defense, but Jager is able to start a great flow.
Speaking of flow they are so focused on each other's moves that they are not worried about being busted through the raft, and they never do. GHP has some of the best defense I've ever seen because he gets somewhere with it. He adapts to the moves people throw at him and he counters with enough damage to get by. He tries his hardest to not over-extend in the match and he wins again.
BladeZ vs Sonic Fox Bladez goes right into Mila's 50/50s and zones Sonic Fox's Phase 4 when he needs to. Builds a great early offense, but Sonic catches on to it and puts on a great defense and offense against Mila. BladeZ suffers an early defeat and switches to Eliot for the next round.
The circus variant with walls and balls prove to be a great playground for both of them in the second game. Bladez has better environmental damage off the wall, and I believe this level does favor Eliot. Sonic Fox does a great job of highlighting how consistent the neutral throw game for Kasumi can be but doesn't win this match.
Afterward, it's back and forth wins for both of them, Sonic Fox winning on the Fire Wheel variant of the Circus, and XcaliburBladeZ scores a fast game at the Ninja Hideout to secure his advancement to the next round.
Kwiggle vs GHP Guy GHP reacts well to Kwiggles speed right away with solid defense and reads. Kwiggle is smart though and he waits for the damage to come to him zoning for stage knock offs and follow up damage on Lost World. GHP is smart too and interrupts Kwiggle's strings. This match is 10/10 and Kwiggle takes the first win in last round.
They continue onto Scramble and in this round, you see examples of the fighters saving the environments for later so they don't go to waste when needed the most. We see a healthy exchange of round wins, and Kwiggle decides to use the generator in the third round and follows up with a great combo that still isn't enough to get the round on the disciplined GHP.
GHP shows Kwiggle he can beat him, so he switches to Christie and they start fighting in the practice wrestling ring. This is where it starts getting lethal for GHP. The wall damage that Christie brings to the table nets Kwigs two fast rounds, but GHP is still fighting. I don't know if I've seen someone handle Christie's lows better than this guy! Kwiggle wins but it's a great display of talent from GHP.
Kwiggle vs Sonic Fox
Kwiggle switches to Christie and for Lorelei and Phase 4 continues to show how amazing her neutral throw is busting Kwiggle into environments and off the stage for massive damage. After two matches, Kwiggle gets nasty on that wall and comes out with the win.
They go right into the next game and on Danger Zone. This level is built around the environmental awareness of Dead or Alive 1, and Kwiggle's damaging combos, wall advantage, and studious nature take Sonic Fox out.
After Kwiggles asserts his dominance with Christie, Sonic Fox decides to pick Christie for their next match at Lost World. The mind game seems to work on Kwiggle at first, but he picks it up and we start seeing a ton of mid-kick holds that are so close range with no knockback that we don't see as many cliff tosses. Sonic Fox takes the victory with a great stun game to end the back and forth bout.
Zack Island is the last match and the brothers aren't holding back. We see plenty of counters and grabs in this mirror and is temporarily exclusive to holds. It gets to a point where you know each other so well that every match feels like a real fight. Kwiggle ends things with a guaranteed slip stun combo that appropriately moves him to grand finals.
Grand Final Kwiggle (L) vs Bladez (W)
Kwiggle (L) vs Bladez (W)Kwiggle starts his game with Phase 4, but after being comboed to death in the first game he makes his switch to Christie to fight Bladez' Eliot. Eliot does a good job of keeping Christie on the ropes of the ring. This allows him to continue his combo after the launch throw or standard launcher and Eliot is a combo fiend.
Christie begins to take advantage on the inside of the dragon temple with power launchers that hit the ceiling, great wall damage and consistent combos. These perfected factors gave Kwiggle a much-needed win after losing two games to Eliot.
Bladez is so well studied with Eliot, it's hard to get past the damage, the stuns, the counters and all of the other great tools at his disposal. He continues to be a fighting champion and takes away the reset option from Kwiggle to secure another victory at Summer Jam.
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