Preface: The S16 season has officially started, and I believe most fans have been keeping an eye on the recent matches. The LCK games have been quite fierce. Over these past few days, DK's overall performance has been extremely poor, especially in their series against KT—they pulled off the most outrageous reverse sweep in LCK history, easily taking the first two games before losing three straight to KT. The last two games were consecutive massive comebacks: a 10k gold Infernal Soul and a 5k gold Ocean Soul were thrown away. No normal team would ever produce such a match, right? Next, the LCK will determine its first MSI representative—which team will advance first between HLE and T1?

The most absurd reverse sweep in LCK history has been born.

Recently, the LCK playoffs have been extremely intense, with several teams already eliminated. I expected teams with decent regular-season form to deliver exciting matches, but instead they made a huge mess. The match between DK and HLE opened many fans' eyes to DK's true nature. It really is: "There's no escaping the rivers and lakes between us!" In the first two games, DK's performance was quite solid. In game one, their bot lane went all out, dominating KT completely and ending the match in 23 minutes. In game two, KT's BDD remained in poor form, and they were also crushed in a one-sided fashion.

By the third game, things started to go wrong. At 25 minutes, KT had built a 6k gold lead and the situation looked stable, but DK's Smash managed a 3-for-4 trade, repeatedly repelling KT's pushes. Eventually, KT's AD carry secured a pentakill to close out the game. The most critical matches were game four and game five. Early in game four, DK kept trading and the gold gap widened, putting them completely in control. At 34 minutes, they even extended the lead to 10k. Despite holding the Infernal Soul, DK, with a huge advantage, lost a 2-for-3 fight and gave up the Elder Dragon, leading to KT's massive comeback.

In the decisive game five, DK made some early mistakes but achieved a 0-for-3 trade in the dragon soul fight, securing both the Ocean Soul and the Baron. Then came the Elder Dragon issue again. DK instantly collapsed at the pit, and KT's jungler Cuzz stole the Elder Dragon soul, helping KT complete the reverse sweep. In the last two games, one featured an Infernal Soul plus a 10k gold lead, and the other an Ocean Soul plus a 5k gold lead—both overturned when the Elder Dragon arrived. It seems DK's top laner Siwoo had serious problems, always trying to flank and make plays even when ahead, causing the frontline teamfights to crumble.

Next, the LCK knockout stage will become increasingly fierce. The next winners' bracket clash will determine the first LCK team to qualify for MSI, and the showdown between HLE and T1 will be the highlight. Looking at both teams' form, each has a chance to advance, especially T1. Early in the season, their regular season was not particularly stable, but in later matches they grew stronger and stronger, taking full control of the pace. Even top laner Doran has entered a strong phase. Gen.G and KT will compete for a spot in the losers' bracket final. There's a faint feeling that the qualifying spots might once again go to two familiar teams.

Zaijian's take:

A familiar voice rings in my ears: "There's no escaping the rivers and lakes between us; I can't forget that fleeting glance." ShowMaker still failed to qualify for MSI, which shows that DK themselves indeed have issues. If they had maintained the form from the first two games, DK would have absolutely had a chance to reverse sweep and beat KT 3-0 in the third game. But their top laner caused too many problems; the three lost games had nothing to do with ShowMaker. I'll boldly predict that the LCK's MSI slots will go to T1 and Gen.G.

What do you, dear viewers, think about this matter?