The first Code A of the new year and the new expansion is upon us. With all of last season’s top 8 seeds being dropped, and only herO and MyungSiK having already qualified for the Code S ro32 via the PreSeason, the field is ridiculously stacked. With 60 players qualifying, pretty much every single top progamer made it into Code A. Here’s the closest we came to upsets:

MC, despite being retired, has maintaned his skill pretty damn well, remaining near te top of the Korean Ladder throughout Legacy of the Void. Unfortunately, he failed in the qualifiers for Code A, having lost 0-2 to Super and 1-2 to DeParture.

In a group with sOs and Reality, the next biggest name, Ryung, was unable to make it out. After losing to sOs, Ryung was only able to take a single game off of ???? (DongRaeGuling) the rising SBENU Zerg player.

If the only active top-end Korean pros really missing from Code A are Polt and Hydra who live in America, herO and MyungSiK who qualified directly into Code S, and MC and Ryung, one of which is retired and the other who hasn’t preformed well in big Korean events for years, I’d say we have a pretty amazing season ahead of us.

Out of the upcoming 30 matches, here are the ones that I’m most looking forward to:

Dream vs HyuN

We haven’t gotten to see so much out of Dream in LotV yet. Being one of the still rising young guns, and one of the real stars of 2015, he’s a player you’d hope to have in Code S. HyuN, on the other hand, has been kind of grounded in Korea. A player who has really made his career on the road, HyuN will be looking to re-prove himself in Korea this year. While I would normally always give Dream an edge in this matchup, let’s not forget that HyuN has always enjoyed Roach-based armies. LotV definitely made Roach play vs Terran much more viable before. When you add in HyuN’s depth of experience, I think that he has a good shot at taking this series down. Either way it should be a close one.

GuMiho vs Dark

Early in 2015, Dark was in my mind the best Zerg in the world. With unrivaled macro and a style completely his own, Dark is without a doubt someone to be feared in the late game, especially since LotV has given a boost to Zerg in this area. GuMiho, on the other hand, we all should remember for his ridiculous turtle mech play against Zerg…. a style that as of yet has not been solved in LotV. I’m not worried for him, though. If you think further back in GuMiho’s career, he was one of the first and only players to actually be harassing in 5 locations at once. Yes, he played lots of turtle mech, but he is also one of the fastest players in the world.

Bomber vs Seed

Two of our very old school progamers meet each other in Code A. Bomber…well, he’s Bomber. He doesn’t need much of an introduction. Seed, though, I’d like to remind people about. Yeah, he hasn’t done much lately. Yeah, he was a Code S champion long ago. Yeah, that’s not what I’m talking about. Back in the beginning of GSL and SC2, Seed was one of the Protosses figuring things out. His creative and different play from that era has only really been surpassed by sOs. Perhaps Seed will have some new tricks up his sleeve to show us in this match.

TY vs Patience

I am purely excited by this because of TY. Patience is a pretty good Protoss, but nothing spectacular or different. I expect him to play very agressive openings vs TY in this series. If he doesn’t kill a BUNCH of SCVs or out right make TY leave the game, he shouldn’t be able to make it into Code S. This match still excites me though. To see TY play LotV again is like to be reunited with the people you love most after being away for a hundred years.

Dear vs sOs !!!

This match is a shame. Both players clearly belong in Code S, but only one will make it through. Dear put up a very strong showing during the GSL PreSeason. He qualified for week 1, and then beat Rogue and Jjakji in week 2 before falling to the eventual winner MyuNgSiK in a strong series in the semi finals.

sOs didn’t play GSL PreSeason Week 1, but in Week 2, he lost to Armani 0-2 in the qualfier, falling out during his first match. During the Code A qualifier, sOs had a pretty easy road, but fell 0-2 to the first real obstacle in the form of Reality (who has been playing really really well to be fair). sOs also fell in the SSL qualifier 0-2 in his first match to ByuN.

So having typed this all out, it looks Dear favored, right? It’s sOs in PvP though. Absolutely anything could happen.

Hurricane vs Soulkey

Hurricane has been in everything so far. GSL PreSeason weeks 1 and 2, and has made it into the SSL top 16. Soulkey, looking similarly good, was in the PreSeason week 2, and the SSL top 16. I would definitely consider both of these players to be within the top 32 in the world at LotV at the moment, and it will be a sad (yet entertaining) match to watch for this reason.

Life vs Bunny

Life is almost a perfect human. Perhaps the greatest player ever in SC2 alongside MVP. Countless tournament wins. Always breaking the mold with his aggressive plays. Went right top the finals vs an almost too-good herO in the GSL PreSeason Week 1. In the SSL qualifiers he barely lost, losing 1-2 to both RagnaroK and Hurricane, two players who are absolutely on fire right now. And then came GSL PreSeason Week 2, where Life faced an opponent who’s got a vicious streak a mile wide. And sharp pointy teeth. Bunny beat Life in week 2, followed by Losira, until he lost to TY, perhaps the best player currently. This one could really be close. Will Life fail to make it into Code S?

Leenock vs Jaedong

What wouldn’t I give to see one of these two crush this season? The list is short. Flash is retired. Bisu is retired. FantaSy is retired. JangBi is retired. EffOrt is retired. Only Jaedong and Stork (kinda) remain.

Maru vs Zest !!!

With one of these guys not making it into Code S, I feel like I should be asking for a refund. Sadly, GSL is free this year :( At least this will be a ridiculous match. Hopefully Maru is doing a bit better in time for it.

INnoVation vs Stork

INnoVation finally going to be televised in LotV! How will he have adapted? More importantly, STORK! One of the few remaining gods from SC1, and now a playing coach, I’m always excited to see Stork in official TV matches. His high-level experience is far beyond anyone else’s aside from Jaedong, and now that he’s a coach, he will have a fresh perspective on how to play. Expect awesome builds but not necessarily wins in this match.

And think, there are 20 more matches to watch on top of all of these. It’s going to be a good season of Code A :D