But why should the fact that it's not as incredibly competitive as the previous years (and that's completely debatable - kaidus and zebbosai were totally sure that with enough work they could compete with the top of the NA scene) mean that it hurts the scene? It doesn't make sense - if people are willing to put in the effort, and they are, and the money isn't a problem, which (for once) it actually isn't due to ESEA, then WHY NOT?! It's gonna be a fantastic event, with the possibility of a few NA teams competing against some new EU teams - of which all of the top three are interested in going to i55!
It's going to be a mashup of some brilliant talent, whether or not the Australians attend. BESIDES all of this, it cannot hurt the scene. It's not like multiplay look at how good the teams are anyway, they only look at signups and people watching. Why wouldn't people turn up and watch to see more people than ever at the top of their respective scenes duke it out in an intercontinental event?!
It's only a positive thing, and it's going to be great - even if it isn't as competitive and nail-biting as i52. Dropping the ball now can only hurt the scene, it's not like there's money now that could be saved up for another event in 16 months time or whatever, or people will get burnt out during i55 and won't put in effort for a HUGE event once MM comes out.