During her Schmoedown career, “Lightning” Liz Shannon Miller competed in the singles and teams divisions. Drafted by Winston Marshall in the 2020 Schmoedown draft, she was a member of SWAG during Season 7: The New Era and 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 feel like other people will have a better sense of my most memorable moments, but if I’m going to try to decide them for myself… In terms of infamy, probably when Lightning Time beefed it with that goddamn “Just Go With It” question in our title match last fall. (Seriously, that movie can go to hell.) On a personal level, my 2020 match with William Bibbiani was a personal highlight — I played well, Bibbs was the ultimate gentleman of the sport, and it was just an overall great time.
What is the most memorable moment that you were not involved in?
Oh, that’s for other Schmoedown scholars to say. I’ll say that I personally got a real thrill out of following Shazam’s incredible title run over the last year or so — they were always easy to root for (even when I was playing them myself).
Which of your matches would you say is the best you played?
By the numbers, what may end up being my very last Schmoedown match — my teams match with Brandon Hanna as Plot Twist — is probably my very best in terms of accuracy: Only got one question wrong in a first round of 10, was perfect the rest of the match. That felt pretty good, even if we ultimately didn’t win it.
Which match that didn’t involve you would you say is the best you ever saw?
Any match with Ethan, I know is going to be a barnburner. His title matches from last year were all masterful.
How would you describe the Schmoedown’s impact on you?
The Schmoedown pushed me out of my comfort zone, gave me a burst of confidence in areas I didn’t know I could be confident in, and brought some really wonderful people into my life, folks I hope to consider friends and colleagues for years to come. Plus, it was a helluva challenge and I always enjoyed doing my best to rise to it.
What will you miss most about the Schmoedown?
The community of fans, and honestly just getting to play. If anyone wants to start up a pick-up league or something, let me know. My thirst to test all this release date knowledge I’ve been accumulating is quite real!
Liz Shannon Miller can be found on Twitter @lizlet.
