Following the LCK playoffs second week that ran until September 6, the top three powerhouses for the year have finally been decided. We have Gen.G locking in their spot at the grand finals first, Hanwha Life Esports flexing Zeus's terrifying prowess, and T1 just barely scraping their way into the final qualifying match.

First off, Gen.G has meticulously ironed out the creases that plagued their regular season. With their previously shaky bot lane and jungler rediscovering their form, the squad is looking formidable once more. Top laner 'Kiin', who reliably delivered whenever the team wobbled, remains as solid as ever and put on a massive performance during the winner's bracket finals on September 5.

Hanwha Life Esports might have missed out on a direct ticket to the finals after falling to Gen.G, but they delivered an absolute banger of a match in the winner's bracket final, giving fans major flashbacks to their maiden LCK championship run in 2024. That being said, their glaring inability to rein in their own aggression occasionally handed opponents golden opportunities, leaving them with clear homework to do.

As for T1, they managed to scrape past Dplus KIA in the lower bracket round 3 on September 6, narrowly punching their ticket to the LCK finals qualifier. The upper side of the map, which had been dipping to unfortunate lows all season long, finally woke up. This allowed them to buy enough breathing room to recover even when the bot lane fell behind, which is a massive positive takeaway. T1's last LCK trophy was back in the 2022 Spring split, so the real question is whether they can finally lift another cup after four long years.

Despite all the absolute chaos that went down right from round 1 of this year's LCK, we have somehow circled right back to the predictable 'Gen-Han-T1' triumvirate. The definitive conclusion will be settled at the finals on September 13. Best of luck to everyone involved, mate.