‘Friendly Fire’ Ending Explained & Full Story: Did Team Isla Win The Project Xandata Grand Prix?

0 COMMENTS

Most Popular

Filipino films lately have been making quite the stir, especially on Netflix. A lot of them get a new life and a wider audience, which is good, since more people need to watch cinema that comes out of the Southeast Asia belt. Friendly Fire is a story of an avid gamer, who is trying her level best to make it her profession. Sadly, her family never took her passion seriously until someone did and gave her a chance to prove herself.

Spoilers Ahead


Was Hazel good at gaming?

Hazel was a poor girl living with her mother in the Philippines and was trying her level best to financially provide for the both of them. She also had an older brother, Aero, she was attached to, who was now in prison, awaiting his release. Hazel had worked at a gaming parlor for many years since her graduation, and the only reason was for her to be able to gain access to online games. Hazel had aced it, and she would help all the young children that would visit the place. Hazel was specifically good at Project Xandata, a popular online game, and one evening she was able to defeat Team Isla, one of the prominent gaming teams planning to take part in the Project Xandata Grand Prix. Hazel used her old mouse, which she referred to as ‘Mickey Mouse,’ for the win, and considers the object her lucky charm. 


How did Hazel join Team Isla?

Hazel’s win caught the attention of Madame Sonya, the owner of Team Isla. She was keen on having the young girl audition in the wake of their star player Adrian moving to South Korea’s gaming team for better money. Adrian was extremely popular, and his exit left a void in Team Isla. Sonya was an instinctive woman, and she believed Hazel could be a good replacement, but she wanted to test her. Hazel again used her ‘Mickey Mouse,’ and in no time she passed the test with flying colors. The setup was interesting, and it was headed towards Hazel’s talent finally being recognized. 


Did Hazel leave her family?

Hazel’s mother was emotionally abusive and was not supportive of her daughter pursuing professional gaming. As a woman who never contributed financially to the family, she depended on Hazel for everything, including money, so that she wouldn’t have to work. Although a non-contributing parent, her mother constantly kept complaining and reminded Hazel’s older brother was set to be released from the prison. Hazel was finally able to ignore her mother’s taunts and took up Sonya’s offer, as working for her would give her a monthly salary and better living conditions. Hazel was craving a life away from her abusive mother, but she was worried about her Aero and how he would react to her choosing professional gaming over taking care of the family. Aero taught her how to play Project Xandata, and Hazel was forever grateful to him for sharing that knowledge, yet the guilt crept in when she decided to leave her mother’s home and chose to live with Team Isla.


Was Hazel having trouble fitting in?

Hazel, on joining in, was welcomed with open arms by her teammates, Ryan and Von, and the team leader, Kuyan. Since she had been playing alone all this while, Hazel had to learn to become a team player, and that was not an easy transition. Sonya repeatedly asked her to trust her team members if she wanted to be able to understand how Team Isla operates, especially during game fights. Hazel had trouble working with the new mouse given to her, and she had to switch to her ‘Mickey Mouse’ to be able to function well. Hazel was on the back foot initially, but she quickly adapted to the team environment. Hazel, however, was shocked and froze up on learning her brother had joined the game from the gaming parlor; it was his way of intimidating her. Aero was possessive, and just like his mother, he was not in favor of Hazel continuing her life as a professional gamer. Aero got into trouble after pursuing online gaming and was not keen on Hazel following his footsteps. On meeting Hazel, he was convinced about her gaming abilities and let go of his resentment since she was far more talented than he ever was. Aero’s sudden transition was unexpected.


Why did Hazel apologize to her family?

Team Isla finally competed for the qualifiers against a foul-mouthed team whose tactic was to cuss their opposition out. Team Isla was not sure if Hazel was cut out for it, which was slightly sexist, but Von, Ryan, and Kuyan prepared her for the worst. Team Isla had been an underdog team ever since Adrian’s exit, but they proved the doubters wrong by winning the qualifiers. Hazel got into the flow of the game effortlessly, and that contributed to Team Isla’s win. Sonya was aware of Hazel having trouble with her family, but she asked her to make up with them before leaving for the Project Xandata Grand Prix, the gaming tournament to be held in Hong Kong. Sonya also opened up about her experience working with Adrian, who began to see himself as bigger than the team and asked for a raise. As a CO, she couldn’t play favorites and refused to do so and attributed the winnings to the team and not Adrian himself. 

Sonya was a team player and wanted to set an example for herself since there were not many women in the world of esports. From one woman to another, she was encouraging Hazel to get better as she saw a bright future in her as a gamer. This was peak women supporting women, helping each other grow. Hazel apologized to Aero and her mother for walking out on them. To her surprise, her mother and brother offered their support to her as she was headed to Hong Kong with Team Isla, representing the Philippines for the gaming tournament. This heartfelt moment between family members as they reconcile instead of bickering over the past was a sign of moving on. 


What happened in Hong Kong?

On reaching Hong Kong, Hazel was introduced to a whole new world, yet she was excited since this was her first time, and hopefully it wouldn’t be her last. Thanks to Sonya and her teammates, Hazel was comfortable in the environment and was looking forward to meeting Adrian. The night before the tournament began, Hazel, Von, and Ryan ran into Adrian and his team that was representing South Korea, and it was not a pleasant meetup. Adrian turned out to be an arrogant person who began to bully Team Isla and tried to manipulate Hazel. His plan was to turn her against Sonya, a trick to create a rift in the team that would affect their performance in the tournament. Sonya was right about Adrian, as he moved only for personal glory and nothing else. If he was a team player, he would have greeted them and wished his ex-team good luck. 

Adrian’s conceited and overconfident nature was palpable, and Hazel thankfully did not fall for his antics. Sadly, Von and Ryan were agitated by their ex-teammate’s conversation, and Von ended up injuring Ryan in that scuffle. This was not a good start to their tournament, and Sonya asked them to get their act together before they enter the arena. Her only concern was winning, and she could not afford a rift in the team before the big tournament started. She was aware Adrian would pull a stunt, but she did not expect her team to give him the satisfaction of reacting to his antics.


Did team Isla win the Project Xandata Grand Prix?

As the tournament began, Team Isla quickly became the crowd favorite. All of them were looking forward to the new team member since Adrian’s exit and judging how good Hazel would be. This time, Hazel was concentrating and using her “Mickey Mouse” as well. Since this was the story of a good team that suddenly became an underdog due to a high-profile exit, the team’s comeback was crucial to the plot. Hence it was essential to portray this team’s struggle, yet they were able to get past several rounds before reaching the semifinals. Sonya was happy with the team’s performance, especially Hazel, who was a rookie. Participating in the tournament was her dream come true, and she did not take anything lightly since the team entrusted a lot of faith in her. She was a good player, but she needed to be the best to defeat the best teams that were selected for the tournament. Hazel wanted to win this for her brother, since he taught her the game, and with this win, she would be able to change her life for good. 

As Team Isla began their game for the semifinals, Hazel’s ‘Mickey Mouse’ malfunctioned for a bit. It was an old mouse, and it was bound to stop working since she had been using it constantly ever since she joined Team Isla. This was a typical obstacle faced by the lead, and the semifinal concluded with her mouse working again, out of the blue, and Team Isla marched into the finals of Project Xandata Grand Prix. The team was happy with the results, and Sonya shared a secret to put Adrian on the back foot. Sonya had known Adrian long enough to understand his pattern of play, and she used it to her advantage to defeat his team that was representing South Korea. The final game began with Team Isla on the back foot since Von and Ryan’s characters were killed in the game by Adrian. This was Adrian’s shocking move to weaken Team Isla. He wanted to get back at Sonya and her team for not remunerating him enough for his skills and talent. Adrian was driven by anger, but Hazel was driven by the desire to  see her team win. Hazel was in a tough spot, and yet, thanks to her presence of mind, she was able to defeat Adrian and his team in the finals. Everyone was proud of Hazel for not cracking under pressure and taking the team forward into victory. 

Friendly Fire ended with Team Isla being the champion of the Project Xandata Grand Prix, and it was just the start of their winning streak. Their win was inevitable since they were the underdog team. Their win proved that Sonya was a good leader and she’d made the right choices. She retained her old team and added only one new player, played by the rules till the end of the tournament. This win was a big deal with Hazel, as well as it was a culmination of her hard work and passion. 


Smriti Kannan
Smriti Kannan
Smriti Kannan is a cinema enthusiast, and a part time film blogger. An ex public relations executive, films has been a major part of her life since the day she watched The Godfather – Part 1. If you ask her, cinema is reality. Cinema is an escape route. Cinema is time traveling. Cinema is entertainment. Smriti enjoys reading about cinema, she loves to know about cinema and finding out trivia of films and television shows, and from time to time indulges in fan theories.


 

 

Latest articles