Juri joins Street Fighter V, sadists everywhere celebrate

Juri Han is now part of “Street Fighter V,” bringing with her an arsenal of lethal kicks, and a host of super edgy quotes such as “Let me hear your sweet scream” and “Where do you want me to break you first?”

First introduced in 2010’s “Super Street Fighter IV,” Juri is a Taekwondo expert from South Korea. Unlike many young South Koreans, however, Juri doesn’t show the slightest bit of interest in “StarCraft” and “League of Legends,” instead preferring the simple joys of breaking people’s bones.

Ms. Han, you see, is the consummate sadist. Ever since M. Bison slaughtered her parents, she’s been on the path of vengeance – a path that eventually introduced her to the delights of making others suffer. How very edgy!

In fact, Juri is so edgy that her “Street Fighter V” titles include unforgettable gems such as, “True Face of a Sadist,” “The Joy of Annihilation,” and “Destruction Addict.” Used to describe any other video game character, such as “Overwatch’s” Reaper, titles like these would bring on a storm of cringe so powerful you’ll end up swearing “The Human Centipede” is the quintessential first date movie. But with Ms. Edgy McEdgy here, those titles feel just right. Sort of. Maybe.

Street Fighter V's Juri. Images: Capcom

The edgelord (edgelady?) returns!

Juri fans, prepare for some potentially earth-shattering news: our favorite psychopath has changed drastically from her previous incarnation. Gone is her infamous dive kick. She’s lost her teleporting counter. Her pinwheel kick, instead of being purely horizontal, now has more vertical options.

In place of her old moveset, Juri has three new special moves.

The aforementioned pinwheel kick is now her Tensenrin, which is performed by doing the Shoryuken motion and pressing a kick button. The light version is most like the pinwheel move of old, traveling a short distance forward and causing minor damage. It can, however, be canceled into her Critical Art.

The medium and hard versions arc upwards, giving them anti-air capabilities, and also knocking opponents into the air. All three versions, as well as the EX version, are good combo enders.

Ryodansatsu, which is accomplished by doing a reverse Hadoken motion and pressing a kick button, is an overhead flip kick like Chun-Li’s. It’s very fast and causes a knockdown upon hit. With precise timing, it can even go over fireballs, making it a great way to punish projectile spammers. Its EX version can be comboed into a hard Tensenrin, while light, medium, and hard versions can be canceled into her Critical Art.

Lastly, we have her Fuharenkyaku, her most interesting and versatile special. This is what her fireball has mutated into, and is executed by doing the Hadoken motion and pressing a kick. Fuharenkyaku starts as an upward kick that knocks opponents into the air and cancels fireballs. Doing that first kick, however, allows her to store an extra move, which she can then unleash by performing the Fuharenkyaku a second time. This extra move changes depending on the strength of Fuharenkyaku.

Light Fuharenkyaku has her storing a slow-moving, short-range low fireball. Medium Fuharenkyaku charges a jumping heel drop. Hard Fuharenkyaku stores a fast, horizontal double-spin kick. The charges are lost every time Juri performs the extra move.

Juri can hold charges of all three extra moves simultaneously. She can then string them together for some beautiful, devastating combos.

EX Fuharenkyaku is an excellent multi-hit combo ender.

Her Critical Art, Sakkai Fuhazan, is executed by doing two reverse Hadoken motions and pressing kick. This has her letting loose a huge wave of energy, which travels quickly and horizontally. It can be used to close out combos.

And now, on to her V-System.

Juri’s V-Skill, Kasatsushu, has her rushing forward. If her enemy is within distance, she moves behind them and knocks them down with a vicious kick. Kasatsushu can be charged; the longer the charge, the faster the forward rush, and the farther it travels.

The forward rush can be cancelled by inputting the V-Skill again, while the charge can be canceled by dashing backwards or forwards.

Her V-Trigger is the Feng Shui Engine Type alpha, which temporarily buffs Juri. Performing certain moves drains the timer gauge, causing the V-Trigger’s effects to end prematurely.

Feng Shui Engine Type alpha allows Juri to perform all her Fuharenkyaku extra moves without having to charge them. Her light Fuharenkyaku fireball also comes out faster, and travels a greater distance. Lastly, the V-Trigger also allows her to string together ground and air normals, making it possible for her to do some truly crazy combos for shocking amounts of damage.

Juri has slightly lower health and stun potential than average. A number of her normal attacks also lack range.

But she makes up for all this with her excellent mobility, her flexible array of moves, and her potential for ridiculously damaging combos. That, and her more… colorful innuendos are entertaining.

The roster is almost complete!

Juri is now available for purchase using Fight Money, or real money through the PlayStation Store. Making the purchase will not only allow players to use the character online and offline, they’ll also be able to access her Character Story.

Additionally, Laura, Cammy, and Ibuki’s Summer costumes, as well as Juri’s premium and Character Story mode outfits are now for sale in the online shop.

Juri is the fifth of the six DLC characters promised by Capcom. With her release, the “Street Fighter V” roster is almost complete. All we have to wait for, now, is the last downloadable character, Urien, whom we can expect to launch sometime next month.

And after Urien, who knows? Will Capcom release a second batch of DLC characters? If so, which fighters will we be seeing in the future? There are rumors of Sagat, a.k.a. “The King of Muay Thai,” making a comeback. If he does return, how will his expulsion from Shadaloo affect his place in the “Street Fighter” mythos? More importantly, will it alter his playstyle as radically as Juri’s has been changed?

Expect more “Street Fighter V” news from GMA News Online, soon! — BM, GMA News