Continuing the SF? Ryu Exhibition (Evo2k9+OHN8) writeup, here are the next ten combo explanations.

1:50 / SFA2 While everything juggles within a Custom Combo, that first hit has to connect on its own merit. Ryu’s j.MP has enough juggle potential to connect one more time after the first three hits of the combo, and the CC takes care of the rest. The first fireball whiffs to give Chun Li time to drop a little further. You can see from the blue color that it’s an LP FB while the rest are red HP versions. Originally it was supposed to be a fake fireball but it turns out that fake FB recovery can’t be canceled the way whiffed attacks can be canceled in CC. Since the HK Hurricane Kick was executed just before CC meter ran out, its CC juggle properties remain even after the shadows are gone.

1:59 / SF2HF Ryu’s j.LK isn’t normally a crossup but it works here since he’s moving backwards toward Dhalsim. The first combo is s.LK -> c.LP CPS1 chain, linked into c.LK -> s.HP CPS1 chain. That j.HP works as a crossup because dizzy Dhalsim leans into it, much like SF2CE Guile earlier. The second combo is s.LK -> c.LK -> c.LK -> whiff s.LK -> c.LP CPS1 chain -> j.HK jump cancel. Due to far s.LK’s startup time, that whiff sequence must be frame-perfect to combo. Oddly enough, c.LK combos directly into c.LP as a one-frame link, which is actually easier because the whiff cancel method requires two one-frame actions. The MK air Hurricane Kick connects on the second spin because it looks cooler that way. Dhalsim doesn’t get up in time to show it, but it’s actually a redizzy combo. Hyper Fighting was the first SF game with air special moves, so they didn’t place any restrictions on which air normals could be canceled.

2:05 / MvC HF Ryu’s backward HK air Hurricane Kick transitions into MvC Ryu’s regular HK Hurricane Kick, which looks like it’s moving backwards because Captain America cartwheeled through him prior to the switch. Ryu hits Cap’s MP and LP Shield Slashes with c.HP and F+MP, respectively. The cool thing about the first exchange is that Ryu manages to suki cancel the c.HP before the Shield Slash threat disappears. Everything else is straightforward. Cap’s Hyper Charging Star protects him against Shinkuu Hadoken but not from Shin Shoryuken. The clip ends with Cap giving Ryu thumbs-up (by calling Anita assist, which was chosen because she takes the longest to appear).

2:17 / SFA Since Bison’s c.MP hits Ryu, he gets to utilize charge buffering to minimize the delay between LP Psycho Shot and HP Somersault Skull Diver. Since Bison created the Psycho Shot on the left side, it pushes Ryu to the right when it connects. The lvl1 Shinkuu Hadoken doesn’t knock down in SFA or SFA2, but it doesn’t cause much more hit stun than regular projectiles either. Ryu’s s.HK only combos because of a few extra pixels of starting distance between the characters, which allows the Shinkuu Hadoken to connect a couple of frames after the Psycho Shot does. Since the SFA version of Shinkuu Hadoken has a juggle potential of two, it juggles twice after the lvl1 Shinkuu Tatsumaki Senpukyaku knocks down.

2:25 / CvS2 Blanka’s Counter Attack is unique(ly terrible) because it runs out of invincibility in the middle of startup. Here it’s used as a meaty setup for the second hit of Ryu’s close s.HK after blocking the first. Combined with the counterhit bonus, Ryu gets just enough frame advantage to link into far s.HP xx lvl3 Shinkuu Hadoken. The last part of the clip is kind of cool because Ryu rolls right before Blanka’s lvl2 Direct Lightning freezes the screen, then cancels it into HP Shoryuken after superfreeze, demonstrating roll canceling broken down into components.

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