Husky Starcraft

"Hello everyone, this is H- to the -usky Husky here, and we are back with some more Star Craft 2 action!" —Husky

HuskyStarcraft is a YouTube channel starring Mike "Husky" Lamond, who casts Starcraft II matches. Originating from Oregon, he gained his first 10,000 subscribers on a now-defunct YouTube channel called "EsportsReport", covering Starcraft Brood War professional games. Afterwards, he created the "Husky Starcraft" account, covering exclusively Starcraft II, which has since then exploded in popularity and fueled his own rise to prominence.

Known for his enthusiasm and Motor Mouth, he is currently the most popular English-speaking Starcraft II commentator on YouTube, with more than 600,000 subscribers and a regular viewership of 150,000 viewers. He also holds the number 1 most subscribed "Reporter" award. He shows a wide knowledge of the players, the tournaments, the strategies and the Metagame, although amongst other Starcraft II commentators he's criticized for less analysis and more play-by-play (which he just accepts, as that's his Signature Style).

Compared to other commentators, he is considered the most energetic and "fun", with his casts appealing to many fans of Starcraft II who previously have never heard of it, and many people who enjoy watching Starcraft II without owning the game. Unlike other commentators, he also avoids swearing in his casts. Most prominent is his new band, Nerd Alert, which he started with Kurt Hugo Schneider and ivyleaguepunk, which makes parodies and original songs based on Starcraft; their "Banelings" song garnered more than 4 million views by the end of the first week.

The channel can be seen here. He is also a prominent member of The Game Station, frequently appearing in skits. He also has a second channel, which he uses to post non-Starcraft videos and unedited livesteam footage (including Starcraft-related ones).

Compare and contrast with Total Biscuit and Day Nine's Starcraft II commentaries.

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Provides examples of:

• Arch Enemy: Apparently with Jesse Cox of OMF Gcata, whom he interacted with for one of the first times on video in the second The Game Station podcast. Amazing how much of a reaction three hours causes.
• Attention Deficit Ooh Shiny: Some things will distract him whenever he cast; the most known thing is Pylo, though he's also been known to zoom in on random doodads and critters.
  • He's also known for coming up with the weirdest backstories or analogies for any random unit that amuses him.
• Big No: When Pylo was destroyed.
• Catch Phrase: How Mike starts his videos:

Hello everyone, this is H- to the -usky Husky here! THOR IS HERE! Fleet bacon on the way. It's gettin' too hot! Hope you guys enjoyed it, and I will see you guys next time!

• Cool Car: Had an entire video devoted to his beloved car (a 2011 Subaru WRX STI), which he spent several years working for.
• Keet: Not even getting his car broken into stops him from being cheery on-camera.
  • He even sounds pretty upbeat after being woken at 1:30AM by a fire evacuation.
• Large Ham: At times. Particularly when he joked about casting his family's Thanksgiving Dinner.
• Motor Mouth: Especially during the micromanagement-heavy parts.
• Promoted Fanboy: Very much so.
  • Growing up as a fan of professional Starcraft Brood War commentary and gameplay, Husky is now one of the most well known English casters; he is also a fan of Day Nine, who frequently commentates with Husky now.
  • Husky's fame as an amuteur commentator also led to him getting Beta keys to Starcraft II, which led to his channel mushrooming in popularity.
  • Husky and Kurt were also, weirdly enough, fans of each other before they knew each other personally; Kurt just sent Husky an email one day asking if he wanted to create Starcraft-based music together, and a few months later Husky remembered the email and wrote in the draft for "Banelings".
• Real Men Wear Pink: Loves the color pink for some reason.
• Seinfeldian Conversation: A few minutes towards the start of every cast tends to be these. The opening of a Starcraft game tends to be boring economy building, but Husky doesn't like speeding games up in case something crazy does happen, and even when he prepares player stats to read out they often don't fill much time. To avoid awkward silences while he waits for the conflict to start, he rambles about pretty much anything that happens to hold his interest, from recent events in the Starcraft community to pulling off slick stunts on his desk chair.
• The Stoic: Seems to have no emotion outside of Starcraft casts. It's seriously like a switch was flicked and all the energy was turned off. Watch the second episode of The Game Station podcast, where he plays up the "emotionless man" haircut he recently got to absurd levels.
• Straight Man: Acts this way in the second The Game Station podcast. Mostly toward's Jesse's Wiseguy, but really to everyone.
• The Unfunny: Going with The Stoic outside of Starcraft; during the second The Game Station podcast, Total Biscuit and Dodger are cracking up over Jesse Cox's jokes, while Husky stares straight on. Apparently, Husky had sworn to brace himself against Day Nine's humor, and has become immune to Jesse's.
• Verbal Tic: "I feel like...". Shared with his friends, too, such as Ahnaris Starcraft and Press Heart to Continue.

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"...I hope you guys enjoyed it, and I'll see you guuuys next tiiime!"