The Loneliest Champion

Hungrybox is putting together yet another stretch of melee we’ve seldom seen before. So why does his greatness seem underappreciated?

Photo Credit: Jeff Mahieu / @Delta52_

His face says it all.

After another grueling losers run, taking out the likes of Mew2King, Armada, Leffen, and Plup twice, Hungrybox won his first Big House. It’s his sixth 3+ god tournament victory of the year and third in a row. Yet this time, there was no extravagant pop-off. No slammed CRT, no kicked chair, nothing. A simple fist bump and turn to the crowd. Even after clutching yet another tournament that saw him pushed to multiple game 5s, he couldn’t even spare a fist pump. It was the least Hungrybox-esque aftermath I’ve ever seen. The post-tournament interview was straight up depressing.

“Have you ever had everything you ever wanted, and then when you finally have it, you’re like ‘now what?’” “…nah…“

Hungrybox just won the 2nd biggest tournament of the year, and his first Big House ever. So…why does it not only feel hollow to him, but to us too?

There’s an argument that Hungrybox just put together the best three tournament run since Mang0’s legendary MLG/EVO/TBH4 trifecta back in 2014. Which coincidentally coincided with one of Hungrybox’s worst stretches of melee he’s ever played, getting 7th/2nd/9th at those events (fun fact: that 9th place is the first and only time Hungrybox has finished outside top 8 since 2007). The Summer of 2014 is a pivotal moment in Melee’s history for a number of reasons. It also happens to be a pivotal moment in Hungrybox’s too.

At my first smash tournament ever, Super SWEET in June 2014, I met people like Mew2King, Mang0, Armada, Scar, and Toph for the first time. After a dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings, I distinctly remember a conversation between M2K and Scar about how the gods stacked up at that specific time. Mew2King was doing his standard “I’m underrated Armada is still rusty Mang0’s a wiener blah blah blah” routine, while Scar was doing the usual Mang0 defense. However, the one thing they agreed on: Hbox was a distant 5th. He hadn’t won a big tournament since NorCal Regionals in 2013, and hadn’t won a true “major” since Zenith 2011 or Apex 2010, depending on how you evaluate Zenith. Add in the ensuing three majors covered above and it was clear that there was a considerable gap between he and the other four gods.

Until there wasn’t.

After that TBH4 aberration, Hungrybox has not placed lower than 5th at any event. Period. Since then he’s won a whopping eleven events that feature at least three of the Big-6 (before Plup’s addition to the group, go Plup!!). In 2017 alone he’s won 6 of them (Smash Rivalries, DreamHack Austin, Smash ’n’ Splash 3, Shine 2017, GT-X, and The Big House 7). He has the trophy for the biggest melee tournament of all time at EVO 2016. He’s had some strong periods of melee play, most notably this absurd stretch in 2016:

That’s 10 first places, 2 second places, a third place, and a fifth place. Meh.

When you combine Hungrybox’s colossal 2016 campaign with his current year, you have a 2-year stretch of Melee that is nearly unparalleled. In my opinion, he’s not only making a case for the best player in 2017, but he’s also slowly creeping up the all-time ranks. He’s definitely already in the top 5, but there’s now a legitimate argument for placing him above Mew2King and even Ken. He’s won 3 of the 10 biggest melee tournaments of all time. He will ultimately be ranked as a top-2 player for the third year in a row (more on this in a bit), something no one other than Armada can claim. Yet it still feels like we sleep on him and underappreciate his greatness.

People’s automatic default defense to this accusation is usually some bullshit about how Jigglypuff is an obnoxious, boring character that carries him or he’s ruining the game. I’m not gonna tell you how to live your life, and if you think Puff is a boring character, fine. I can’t stop you. But if you really think he’s ruining the game, or that we should discount Hungrybox’s success as a player because of his character choice, you’re a goddamn idiot. Let me dispel the whole “Hungrybox isn’t exciting” trope with two clips:

Big Dick Example #1

Big Dick Example #2

If you were lucky enough to watch either of these live, they’ll stick with you forever. I still get goosebumps when watching the first clip. It’s one of the most clutch performances not just in Melee history, but in competitive esports history, period. To make that kind of last-stock comeback on the biggest stage we’ve ever played on against the best player in the world and of all-time, reset the bracket, and win the whole tournament…it’s unparalleled. There’s a reason we call him “Clutchbox”, instead of “Clutchmada” or whatever other stupid portmanteau I can come up with.

The #1 rank on the forthcoming MIOM 2017 ranks is now strictly a two man race, and it’s a damn close one. As I covered in my last piece, Armada and Hungrybox were tied 3–3 going into The Big House 7. Hungrybox is now up 4–3 for the year, and has added his sixth major tournament (and his first illustrious “supermajor”) trophy to his collection. Armada still has G4, EVO, and Summit 4 victories to boast, but Hungrybox has a resume that is just as strong. There’s no doubt that Hungrybox should be seeded 1st going into Summit 5. There’s also little doubt that if one of these two wins Summit, they’ll likely bring home the coveted #1 spot.

I had a chance to hang out with Mang0 in the aftermath of Hungrybox’s The Big House 7 win. He willingly, if not happily admitted that Hungrybox is “nuts”. He’s playing on a level that we really don’t get to see that often. If Mang0 can appreciate the otherworldly performances Hungrybox is now treating us to, I think everyone else should too.

In the post-Big House 7 interview, Hungrybox says that he feels like he left a part of himself on the stage that night and that he might distance himself from Melee for a little bit.

I really hope he doesn’t.

-Fendy