Untangling The Web
A reflection on the release of Ted “Silkthread” Wang from the Los Angeles Gladiators

The moment I saw Silkthread, I liked him. There is something about him that is so familiar: He looks like the kind of guy who would share his Chemistry notes if you missed class, the kind of guy who would beat The Nameless King for you because Dark Souls 3 is a trek and he’s nice like that. Silkthread just looked like…a friend.
As soon as the L.A. Valiant put him on Blizzard Arena’s stage for preseason matches, Silkthread’s contagious grin began peeking out from behind the thick frames of his glasses, serious eyes bunching up with his smile. This was the face of a kid who just wanted to play his heart out on that stage — and he did! Impressive frags and stats made Silkthread a reliable partner to cover the gaps in Brady “Agilities” Girardi’s hero pool, the two subbing in for one another depending on map type and team compositions.

And then one day, we didn’t see Silkthread anymore. There was radio silence on the part of the Los Angeles Valiant about the fate of Silkthread, Seb “numlocked” Barton, Christopher “GrimReality” Schaefer, and a few other Valla players who hadn’t seen the stage in awhile either.
Finally, it was revealed through Valiant’s own documentary series “Inside L.A. Valiant” (Yes, this was the In-n-Out episode) that Silkthread and several of his teammates had been put onto Valiant’s “Sister Team” and effectively removed from the active roster.
Once again, all was quiet. Until April 3rd of this year, when the Los Angeles Gladiator’s announced that they had picked up Silkthread from their cross-town rivals.

Like many other Silkthread fans, I rejoiced. As he adjusted into his role as flex-DPS on the Gladiator’s roster, he began to open up with fans during his Twitch streams, speaking honestly on his experiences with weight loss and his struggles with self-image. It was refreshing to experience that level of honesty and trust between a player and their community. That trust allowed for subsequent positive conversations in Twitch chat about ways to look after mental and physical health.
There’s a saying on Twitch, which is that “, the Chat is a reflection of the Streamer,” and I think that is proven tenfold by Silkthread, who’s cute Maple Story emotes and witty retorts are mirrored by the welcoming and funny community surrounding him.
Silkthread looked like a friend because he is one to everyone, embracing his team’s communities with open arms and kind words. He is a positive asset to any team that he will belong to in the future not only for his vast hero pool and strong game sense but his love of the game and the overall experience of the Overwatch League.

To say that I am sad to see him leave the Los Angeles Gladiators is a gross understatement. For a person with little professional Overwatch experience before the Overwatch League, Silkthread has shown himself to be an incredibly flexible and valuable player that can adapt well to shifts in the game’s meta and remain a positive member of that team’s community.
Silkthread, here’s to you. Thank you for everything that you’ve done so far, and everything that you’ll do in the future. See you on the stage.
