![]() We want them to fit into our brand, and our values, and show how they're fitting in with the team." ![]() Especially with bigger names like Bjergsen. "We want to get them invested in the whole scope of Team Liquid. We've never had a massive five-man roster change, but it's hard to get fans attached to new additions," he says. Luckily we've held onto one or two of our players over the course of the years, so we keep that attachment to the fans. The LCS churns onwards indefinitely - roster turnover is an inevitable, ever-present reality - and if you're producing a television series about a team in the crucible, you'll constantly be introducing brand new faces to the audience. That is one of the greatest challenges for Tapp. Of course, just a few short months later, neither of these players would be playing together for Liquid. But for the bulk of it, this show is about disparate personalities getting on the same page. " Peter says sorry my heart will be fine," adds Olleh.) Squad captures all of the mechanical intrigue of pro gaming - draft orders, ban lists, team fights, and so on. ("I told him that I'm really sorry and that I'm going to fix it. It is a crucial therapy session in Summoner's Rift, because competitive League of Legends requires a fluent, empathetic mindmeld throughout the roster. We watch as the two world-class teammates patch up their relationship, and attempt to get on the same page ahead of a crucial split. In one early episode, Doublelift and Olleh break bread over the former's, erm, aggressive candor during games and practices. It's worth watching if you've never dug into the back catalog, if only because it reveals just how transient the esports business tends to be. Tapp began his work on Squad on season two in 2018, a year that has been rendered retrospectively unrecognizable by the Covid calamity. Everyone was saying whatever they wanted. Back in the day there was no HR, no PR training, it was pretty grassroots," says Tapp. They're all pretty young, and they grew up in this scene. "Certain players are more willing to talk and others are more quiet. It's a living document of the Team Liquid League of Legends brand, warts and all, as told by those who've never been afraid to share their thoughts. ![]() All throughout, Squad never feels hackneyed or contrived. He'll corner Bjergsen for an interview in a beige hotel room on the eve before a bout, or catch the team unwinding in a neon-drenched afterparty or a fluorescent promotional photoshoot - the natural habitat for anyone who's ever made a career in esports. His camera goes everywhere from high-leverage, white-knuckle title matches to the long, monotonous training sessions back at HQ. (“Happy to say whatever is on their mind” represents Dardoch in Breaking Point very well.)Ĭonnor Tapp, senior video editor at Team Liquid, has been capturing that same euphoria across five seasons of SQUAD - a documentary serial filmed in conjunction with Liquid's League of Legends franchise. Pro gaming is a young industry, unburdened by the decades of baggage that has calcified and isolated the NBA and NFL, so here I was, among some of the best League players in the universe, who were more than happy to take me behind the scenes. These kids were affable, unscrupulous, and more than happy to say whatever was on their mind. Bang, Faker, and Smeb were all in tow, grinding away at their strategies before ascending to the main stage in front of a packed house.Īs a reporter, I had become numb to the muted, media-trained pablum dispensed by professional athletes the filibusters at the podium that nobody seemed to enjoy. Within the bowels of America's foremost sports stadium - where Knicks and Rangers mingle on game days - the rosters of SK Telecom and ROX Tigers prepped for one of the biggest matches of their lives. Six years ago, I was sent to cover the LCS World Championship semi-finals at Madison Square Garden in New York City. What's Going on With Squad?: COVID, burnout and a new approach
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