Double Jump Thunder Viability

[Brokemon]

Hey guys!

Double jump thunder is definitely my favorite and IMO, the most stylish way to edge guard or in certain cases, recover.
I notice that with ESAM and NAKAT that sometimes when they go for the offstage Bair to stage spike that if they miss it they'll double jump thunder instantly and then quick attack to get back onstage, and then of course sometimes they'll jump way offstage to try and get the spike to be stylish.

I was just wondering how viable this actually is, is it even really worth doing?
I know as a recovery that it's good for possibly getting a surprise spike from under the stage and for covering the space above you to prevent you from being edge guarded, but what about when you're the one edge guarding?
I love doing it but I feel it gives up stage control most of the time because it's not the easiest move to connect.
I was hoping some of you more experienced pikas could give me some insight as to when I should try the Double Jump thunder as an edge guard, and when it's a waste of time. Thanks!

 

[Noro~]

It's a nice mix up. Once you conditioned your opponent to recover high (through the use of b-reverse thunder over the ledge, falling Bair, Fair etc.) you can net some nice edge guards with it. However, you should refrain from spamming it, as it's really predictable and everyone except the worst of recoveries can just wait out the thunder.
You can also go off stage in a patern that would suggest a double jump thunder edge guard, and instead wait for your opponent to react to that patern. If he expects the thunder and stalls his recovery you can try and cover that option.

Mind you, most of this is extremely matchup dependent. Against some characters (i.e. Fox) it's a complete waste of time to go offstage to dj thunder imo. In those cases I feel it's much better to cover the ledge with Nair or b-reverse thunder.

Btw. if you plan on using Upthrow > thunder you should mind your usage of thunder. Hitting the falling bolt will stale the Hitbox around Pikachu, hampering its killpower significantly.

 

[AncientCode42]

I've been hearing about this Pika technique for quite a while now. I haven't used it myself but I do plan on using it, I just need to master it first. lol How good is really? Is it matchup depended?

 

[Brokemon]

I personally think that it is very match up dependant, like I never go for it against characters who have reflectors.
It's really good for characters who have bad vertical recoveries and rely on horizontal movement such as DK, Ike, Luigi, etc because you can easily catch them if you get the timing correctly.
I find it very good for the recovery mixup too because sometimes it catches people off guard and as I said earlier, it covers the space above you if they are trying to edge guard