HellblazerHawkman
Confused Thanagarian
WE ARE BACK! Part four of The Road to the Best of MK9, a retrospective series here on TYM looking back at some of the greatest matches in MK9 history to eventually determine which was the best of all time. Today happens to be the 7th Anniversary of MK9's release, so in honor of the occasion, we are looking at the first time MK9 hit the big stage: Perfect Legend vs REO at the EVO 2011 Grand Finals.
*image taken from Cake Central, I did not bake this cake to give to MK9*
After battling through some FGC heavy hitters, Perfect Legend took the EVO stage in winners up against REO. Already two of the biggest names in the NRS scene, with a bit of a rivalry underway, this was the moment to decide who was truly the best in the early years of MK9. Perfect Legend brought his perfectly legendary Kung Lao to the table while REO went with a really energetic and optimal Mileena.
In a flurry of tarkatan fangs and razor sharp hats, REO was able to reset the bracket in a 3-2 set. You could really see the different mindsets these two players went in with, as PL closed out games as quickly as he could while REO made sure to always end with a fatality; PL wanted to secure the win, and REO wanted to make a show. And REO's method seemed to be working, he usually came out of their games looking notably the stronger of the two.
That was, until the next set. Perfect Legend seemed to make the appropriate adjustments and began responding to his mistakes from the first set. The key thing here seemed to be his usage of Kung Lao's 24+low hat string, which REO had trouble responding too, especially once PL began mixing up his usual strings with that difficult to deal with pressure.
The turn around was severe enough that REO made the decision to jump off Mileena and onto the robot train with Cyrax. Unfortunately, the character change did more harm than it seemed to do good, and Perfect Legend was able to close out the final game of this set and win the title of MK9 EVO 2011 champion. It was from that day on that everyone in the NRS scene was made to wear razor-rimmed hats for the next two years, until the EVO streak was broken in 2013.
Four down, probably six more to go? We've got plenty more matches to dig through before we get down to deciding which was actually the best, so let us know what else should make the list? If you haven't checked out the earlier contenders, you can go find Tyrant vs. CDJR, DJT vs. Tom Brady and DJT vs. REO at all those links. And go wish your copy of MK9 a happy birthday, it's only 7-years-old and I'm sure it's more than a little upset you forgot the other 6 birthdays.
