Insight Into Iceland is your daily recap of the 2021 Mid-Season Invitational.

Look below for Recaps and Takeaways from today’s games, or watch the video version of the Takeaways.

Recaps

You can also get these recaps live on Twitter.

Game 1: UOL vs. RNG – RNG win
UOL Nocturne Rumble Viktor Xayah Alistar
RNG Renekton Morgana Sylas Kai’sa Leona

Cryin solo kills Nomanz, plays aggro with lots of good map activity. Hard snowball for RNG but they limit-test relentlessly, make it feel close-ish though it never was.

Game 2: UOL vs. PGG – UOL win
UOL Urgot Nidalee Orianna Tristana Alistar
PGG Renekton Graves Ahri Kai’sa Nautilus

AHaHaCiK focusing top side, UOL winning skirmishes while PGG focus dragons. PGG can’t create flank angles for team fight at 3rd dragon, UOL get fight+Baron and end.

Game 3: RNG vs. PGG – RNG win
RNG Gnar Volibear Syndra Varus Leona
PGG Urgot Nidalee Qiyana Kai’sa Nautilus

Cryin bullying; Chazz solo Ks him. PGG 5-man dive backfires. PGG find kills; RNG usually trade up. CONSTANT fighting. PGG find one that nets Baron. RNG finally buckle down.

Game 4: RNG vs. UOL – RNG win
RNG Lucian Rumble Ryze Kalista Nautilus
UOL Gnar Nidalee Orianna Varus Alistar

Cryin uses Flash for nothing lvl 3. AHaHaCiK gank top kills Xiaohu. Basically every other moment of the game is RNG’s. Wei is everywhere, killing everything. Ban Rumble.

Game 5: PGG vs. UOL – PGG win
PGG Sett Nidalee Zed Kai’sa Galio
UOL Nocturne Lee Sin Vladimir Kai’sa Nautilus

PGG play through bot. UOL struggle to get Nomanz involved. BioPanther great engage at 3rd drag for an ace, win another fight: soul. Use of lead is clumsy but good enough.

Game 6: PGG vs. RNG – RNG win
PGG Urgot Rumble Orianna Vayne Alistar
RNG Gnar Udyr Ryze Kai’sa Nautilus

Wei outpaths Pabu, controls bot side with GALA/Ming and makes Praedyth’s life miserable. Xiaohu has 6 of RNG’s 7 kills pre-10:00, destroys the entire game. RNG for-fun the win.

Game 7 (Tiebreaker): UOL vs. PGG – PGG win
UOL Gnar Kha’zix Viktor Kai’sa Alistar
PGG Jayce Karthus Lee Sin Xayah Nautilus

Decoy nice roaming and skirmishing, PGG punish UOL extensions. UOL pick attempt into top fails, AHaHaCiK gets caught, PGG 3-0, Baron. PGG fail 1st nexus push, succeed on 2nd try.

Takeaways

THE DEATH OF FATALISM: Even at the peak of the South Korean “gap,” I always championed optimism and fought against the attitude that the gap couldn’t be closed and disadvantages couldn’t be overcome. Pentanet.GG are the greatest celebration of that try-anyways attitude that I could ask for. Sure, it took a Vietnamese absence to open the door wide enough, but overcoming the LCL’s Unicorns of Love is a very worthy achievement and you can’t use global circumstances outside of PGG’s control to take away from their accomplishment. Congratulations to the Oceanic reps, and congratulations to the spirit of optimism!

“ENTERTAINMENT” VALUE: When MAD Lions drafted Kog’maw mid yesterday it gave the game an additional layer of interest. When Royal Never Give Up tried to win 3v5 fights or brute force their way through a choke point against a Viktor, Rumble, and Xayah, it certainly made things fun to watch. When they opted into every single possible skirmish or team fight (and several impossible ones, as well) against PGG in the day’s third game, it was amusing in a Benny Hill kind of way. When they swapped Xiaohu into mid lane and activated Xiaobai, their top lane sub, for the game that could either send PGG through or force a tiebreaker between PGG and UOL, it was downright disrespectful.

I’m sure many of the fans enjoy these things, and from a certain perspective that’s what this is all about, but as an analyst (and a grumpy old man), I have to admit I get frustrated by those plays and strategies, since they often feel ego-driven and an attempt to show up the opponent. It’s a vibe of: “We can even beat you with one hand tied behind our backs!” In the past I’ve been in the minority with this opinion, so I’m curious how other folks feel about it. Feel free to @ me on Twitter about it.