Hmm, competitive section seems to have died in the past few months...
Anyways, right before my haitus Contrary Serperior was confirmed for release but hadn't actually been released yet. I remember saying that, while a far sight better than Overgrow Serp, it wouldn't have that much impact on a metagame dominated by things like Talonflame, M-Zard, and Heatran. Now that it's actually been released I can honestly say I was wrong. While Talonflame, Heatran, Scarfed U-Turners, etc. are all common threats that Serperior must watch out for, this thing has performed admirably in all tiers it's found itself in, and after actually using it and playing against it, I can definitely understand why it's found itself in OU.
For one thing, the presence of a fast Grass type sweeper is relatively unprecedented. It's somewhat similar to Chlorophyll Venusaur last generation, except Serperior is naturally fast, and of course has Contrary Leaf Storm. This is the defining factor of Serperior and what sets it apart from every other sweeper in the metagame. Everything else has to choose between either boosting its stats or launching powerful attacks. Serperior can do both. It's got a base 130 power STAB move that also acts like Nasty Plot. This ability to keep major offensive pressure while boosting its stats lets it demolish stall, bulky offense, etc. On paper this combination is just broken, and I'd say the only things that keep it from being broken in practice are Serperior's low base Special Attack stats, its lack of solid coverage, and the fact that Grass is a pretty lackluster type offensively.
Serperior also functions great in a metagame where Calm Mind users are beginning to run rampant, being an excellent shut-down to Sableye, Slowbro, etc. while not particularly fearing the burns from Will-O-Wisp and Scald like most physical attackers. These Calm Mind users will be hard pressed to both recover the damage taken from a 130 BP STAB move and deal with the increasing damage from Serperior's boosts, while Serperior largely has nothing to fear from them unless they've already accumulated a significant number of boosts.
On the downside, as I've stated before Serperior's coverage is rather appalling. Its only usable coverage moves are Dragon Pulse and Hidden Power (Usually Fire. Ground and Rock have usable niches). Depending on what Hidden Power it runs, something is going to be hard countering it. If it runs Ground or Rock, bulky Steel and Grass types like Ferrothorn, Skarmory, and Mega Venusaur are going to shut him down. If it runs Fire to take them out, Heatran and Talonflame are going to walk all over it. Whatever type it uses, it's not going to be doing significant damage unless it has a couple Leaf Storm boosts under its belt. No matter what it runs, Talonflame, Mega Beedrill, and other faster Pokemon or Scarf users generally aren't going to have much trouble revengekilling it, but Serperior can afford to switch out easier than most other set-up sweepers thanks to how easy it is for it to get boosts.
Anyways, I was just wondering what everyone's thoughts on Serperior in OU are now that it's actually been released for a few months. I'm sure this has been discussed but I wasn't here for the discussion so I figured I'd bring it back up.