Unexpected Echo of Seoul? Why Michelle May be the Key for the Dynasty

Why start with Minhyuk ‘Michelle’ Choi many might wonder? Why start Michelle on DPS would be an even bigger concern? He isn’t the most well known, the eldest or the newest player on the Seoul Dynasty. He has pulled through for the team when they needed a Sombra. He helped tip points in a massive team fight after he ate one or maybe two ults as D.Va. When Minseo ‘Marve1’ Hwang went onto Sigma it was Michelle who flexed onto Orisa for the team in Season 2. Michelle isn’t a Byungsun ‘Fleta’ Kim deadlift, but could be that linchpin that the team needs the most.

History

Michelle started out his career like most Korean Overwatch players in APEX. He was on MRG for APEX Challengers in 2017. They only placed 8th, under better-known teams like LWRed, MVPSPace, X6, and Might AOD. It was when he changed teams to Ardeont that his luck began to change. With Ardeont he placed 1st in Season 2 Overwatch Pacific Championship in 2017. On Ardeont he was with recognizable Overwatch League names like Taesung ‘Anamo’ Jung, Minseong ‘Diem’ Bae, Joon ‘Erster’ Jeong, and Minyeonghwan ‘Smurf’ Yoo.

Michelle then moved to the Chinese Overwatch Team Lucky Future Zenith (LFZ). It was when LFZ were doing an overhaul and transformed their roster into an all Korean squad that Michelle joined the team. His teammates were other well-known players in the Overwatch League such as Marve1, Erster, Hojin ‘iDK’ Park, diem, and now retired Junseo ‘Lucid’ Yoo. This team won multiple tournaments and bested well known esport organization, LGD’s Overwatch team multiple times.

Michelle came onto the Seoul Dynasty as a relatively unknown player to many Overwatch League fans. Many wondered how much playtime Michelle would see with Joonhyuk ‘Zunba’ Kim on the squad. He surprised the community. Michelle was proficient on DPS and off tanks. He became a staple in the line up in Season 2 as he used the pre-existing synergy with Marve1 to his advantage.

HIGHLIGHTS Seoul Dynasty vs. New York Excelsior | Stage 1 Playoffs | Day 1 | Overwatch League

In Season 3, Tiger Nation has seen very little of Michelle. With the addition of Jaehui ‘Gesture’ Hong and Marve1’s stellar Sigma it seemed as if the Dynasty preferred Marve1 in the off-tank role in case they wanted to switch to double shield. This has left Michelle on the bench for most of the season.

Off Tank Echo

As an off-tank Michelle, as seen in earlier seasons before the 2/2/2 lock, flexed onto not just tanks, but also DPS. There were times in which Michelle would step into the shoes of a Reaper, Pharah, or his prolific Sombra for a triple DPS comp. This gives him a wide knowledge base of different categories of heroes, their abilities, and ultimates. This is needed when it comes to Echo’s ultimate ability. There has, already in the short time span of Echo in the Overwatch League, been times when the wrong duplication made or broke a team fight. Michelle would be able to navigate around transforming into tanks for either aggressive or defensive plays or to add that added DPS if needed.

플레타가 파라로 샌쇽을 정리했다?! 스테이지 3 플레이오프 플레이 오브 더 위크 presented by Nighthawk Pro Gaming [Seoul Dynasty]

Yes, the downfall is flexibility if Michelle would need to switch off Echo mid map. Though with his Sombra or Reaper, that would pair nicely with Seoul’s dive or double shield comps that they like to run. Of all the players in Seoul’s line up Michelle has the best Sombra. Junyoung ‘Profit’ Park has shown that he is still learning the ability, which many thought would be a great fit. People in the community point to that as one contributing factor in their loss to the Shanghai Dragons. Fleta has shown he has a good grasp on the abilities and how to combo them. If the Seoul Dynasty are looking to grab the crown during the Summer Showdown they will need to have an Echo player just in case.

Seoul’s Echo Ace?

The 2/2/2 format has hurt super flexible players like Michelle. The team could use that flexibility to their advantage on the hero that promotes flexibility. Michelle could dust off his DPS shoes and hop in as the Sombra and Echo specialists with a good working knowledge of tanks for Echo’s duplicate. It would be nice to see him be a dedicated specialist that could get subbed in once an a while for play. Michelle’s potential would be horrible to waste on the bench, and Tiger Nation is looking for that throwback in Season 2 where the Dynasty had a continuing rotating roster before other teams had. This is the perfect time with mini-tournaments to test out some new strategies.

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