During her Schmoedown career, Nicki “Dimmy” Dimalanta competed in the Star Wars division and is the winner of the 2021 Ultimate Schmoedown Star Wars tournament. Drafted by Samm Levine in the 2021 Schmoedown draft, she was a member of The Usual Suspects during Season 8: War. Here are her reflections on the show we all love, in her own words.
Looking back on the Schmoedown, what is the most memorable moment that you were personally involved in?
I think the first draft was incredibly memorable and luckily Andrew and I were both there for that. To be able to be in that venue and take part in the show live with all the competitors, managers and other MTS crew was so much fun. It was so exciting and different from how the Schmoedown had functioned before because there was a whole new kind of excitement that we hadn’t seen since Anarchy had first happened. To go from that to this new faction-based model that involved a point system where you can single-handedly contribute to your team’s success through wins was fantastic. The level of competition was stepped up considering that not only could wins bring in points for your team, there was also the threat of the faction losing points if a player got knocked out. It also added a whole new level of interest for hardcore fans where they could pick their favorite team and rep their merch or take part in a fantasy league where you can create your own super team and follow their performance throughout the season. People could make constant predictions on who would win based on the announced matchups or speculate on who they thought would be drafted, dropped or picked up throughout the season. I really did feel like it’s own little sport at that time.
What is the most memorable moment that you were not involved in?
I feel like technically I was involved in this (behind the scenes) but I think the biggest and most memorable moment was when Andrew won the Star Wars belt. I could go on and on and on and on about our personal experience of being involved in the Schmoedown including our ups and downs and everything in between. It felt like a lot of it led to that moment. The only unfortunate part is that it happened during lockdown so that match had to be digital, I could only imagine how much crazier that match would have been in front of a live audience. Even still, it was an incredibly memorable moment for me, for both of us. I remember being in our living room while Andrew was in his office playing the match. I was so insanely nervous and sick to my stomach you would have thought I was the one competing in the match. I remember the moment that I heard what sounded like a yell and then like a thud and I was like “uh oh is that a good or a bad sign?” I went over to the door of his office and tried to listen to see if I could get a clue since they had been in there for a long time at that point…then I heard him yell “I WON, I WON” and I burst into tears in the hallway outside the office. I was so so so very proud of him, I still get a bit choked up re-watching that moment in the match. To some people, it may seem silly to get so worked up or emotional about a trivia competition, but to us, it means something more. We’ve always taken our involvement in this show very seriously and feel very passionate about the game and I’m so happy to have been involved in this moment of Schmoedown history.
Which of your matches would you say is the best you played?
I would probably say my match against Gold Leader in the Star Wars tournament final. It was terrifying to think about playing in a 5 round match for the first time not only because it was a longer more stressful match but also because it was against GOLD LEADER and I thought there was little to no chance of me winning that match going into it, to be honest, because he’s an absolute beast, but luckily for me, it went pretty well!
Which match that didn’t involve you would you say is the best you ever saw?
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention A. Damon v A. Dimalanta I, otherwise known as 51-50, for obvious reasons. I also remember being on the edge of my seat for the last Shazam v Korruption title match that coincidentally also ended as 51-50.
How would you describe the Schmoedown’s impact on you?
The Schmoedown made me get outside of my comfort zone in a way that I haven’t done in a long time. It’s been a long time since I’d performed in front of people and on top of that, any performance I’d done up to this point never involved trivia or anything like that. I was reluctant for a while because I just assumed I would get completely destroyed by anyone I would face in the division. I’m a significantly newer Star Wars fan compared to the other competitors and the thought of trying to keep up with them honestly made me feel really self-conscious. I went into every match like “well I just hope I score a couple of points and that I don’t get knocked out.” I was also reluctant because I just knew there would be negative internet comments regardless of how I performed for various reasons….but competing and doing reasonably well despite my hesitation helped me remind myself that I am extremely capable of doing things I set my mind to and to give myself more credit than I usually do. People can say whatever they want to say but just because they say it doesn’t automatically make it true and it absolutely will not change anything about me and what I’m capable of doing.
What will you miss most about the Schmoedown?
There are so many things I’m going to miss. Of course, I’m going to miss watching the show itself because I genuinely love it so much and I’ve looked forward to every video from individual matches all the way through the current Titans episodes. A very small weird part of me will miss studying and competing because although it was really stressful at times, the thrill of competition is usually always fun. I think the thing I will miss the most though is getting together with other MTS personalities for shows/tapings or other hangouts. Even though Andrew and I have only been to a smaller number of tapings since we live on the opposite side of the country, the ones that we have been a part of have been so amazingly fun. I look forward to any opportunity we’ll have in the future to hang out with our Schmoedown family. We’ve gotten to know some people that we would probably never have met if not for the Schmoedown and for that I’m truly grateful.
Nicki Dimalanta can be found on Twitter @Dimmmyyy.
