Troy88
03-04-2003, 11:28 AM
[b:post_uid14]Why Use Zangief?[/b:post_uid14]
Because there is nothing more annoying than getting caught in Zangief's super! It's long, flashy, and obnoxious, and when thrown at the end of a combo, takes nearly 3/4's of your opponent's life! I've had people throw down their controller right in front of me after getting super'ed by Zangief! :D Another advantage to using Zangief is that you can be a cheap grabbing b*tch, and use Zangief as an excuse when confronted about it! "Well hey, I'm using Zangief, what do you expect." ^_^ The best thing about being a Zangief user is seeing people's reactions after they've lost to your cheap B.S., because most people don't take him seriously, or in the past have played some "Zangief Scrub" that didn't know what the hell they were doing. So they'll sit there and smirk when I go to pick Zangief as my first character, while they're picking Strider and Wolverine (like the top-tier whores that they are). They go into the fight thinking that because Zangief is slow, that I'm going to just stand there in one spot while they practice their 12+ hit air combos on me. If you are one of those people, then I am here to tell you that Zangief is a whole lot better than you think - in fact, he's downright dangerous in the right hands.
[b:post_uid14]Doing Zangief's SPD/FAB[/b:post_uid14]
First thing you need to do if you're new to using Zangief is learn how to do his moves. I wasn't planning on making this an in-depth guide, so go to www.gamefaqs.com if you don't already know the basics. However, a lot of people that try to use Zangief for the first time complain that his Spinning Pile Driver (SPD) or his Final Atomic Buster (FAB) super is too hard to do, so I will give you a bit of advice in that area. First thing you need to realize is that it is not a full 360 degree motion, contrary to what you've heard or read. It never has been. It is a 270, and it sounds harder than it actually is. Basically, you just do a half circle motion (like you would for Magneto's Hyper Grav in MvC2), and quickly rotate to up while hitting the punch button (2 or more punch buttons to activate his FAB). It makes no difference whether you do the half circle forward or reverse, but the key is to make sure that you hit the punch button as soon as the control pad (or whatever else you use) is in the "up" position. I usually start from forward, to down, to back, and then to up, all in one quick motion. If you've ever used Magneto or any other character that has special moves that require you to do a half circle motion, there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to do Zangief's SPD. If you do it right, not only will Zangief execute his SPD every time, but he will [i:post_uid14]never leave the ground.[/i:post_uid14] I also want to point out that I was NEVER able to do Zangief's SPD when I tried to do a full 360 motion, but when someone finally told me how to do it the right way, it was simple. I pull it off at least 75% of the time I actually try it, and I never leave the ground.
One more note about Zangief's SPD/FAB: if you still can't do the 360 motion without leaving the ground even after trying my method, keep in mind that in the VS Series you can cancel ANY normal move with a special move or super. In other words, have Zangief throw a fierce punch to anchor him to the ground, then do the 360 motion and hit punch again, and Zangief's punch will be interrupted by his SPD/FAB. This is only useful in a few situations, but it's nice to know, anyways. Now, on to the strategy...
[b:post_uid14]Moving Around[/b:post_uid14]
When you use Zangief in MvC (or any other VS game for that matter), make it a point to never stay on the ground. Zangief is big and slow, and that makes him a prime target for jump-in or dash-in low attacks. Screw all that. Jump constantly with Zangief. If you get in a situation where you can't leave the ground momentarily (e.g. you're getting chipped by a helper like Psylocke), make sure you push block your opponent backwards (push all 3 punch buttons at the same time while blocking). I know what you're thinking, "don't you want your opponent to be close to you so that you can do all those cheap grabs?" Well, yes, that is true, but you want to get close to them on [i:post_uid14]your[/i:post_uid14] terms, not theirs. Combo happy Strider and Wolverine users are good at confusion tactics (you'll block high when you were supposed to block low, and vice-versa), so it's better to play it safe and push block them back on the very first hit of the combo that you block. Plus, I can tell you first hand that this is very annoying when someone does this to you constantly. Under normal circumstances, you can perform your combos on your opponent whether they are blocking or not, so long as your hits actually make contact with them. But when you push them back, they try to combo air, and they are stuck doing a move because it isn't chaining into the next part of the combo like it normally does, and they are wide open for attack. Or, at the very least, it gives you an opportunity to get out of there. In Zangief's case, you're able to start your constant jumping routine all over again.
[b:post_uid14]Getting Close[/b:post_uid14]
Your primary objective with Zangief, is of course to get close to your opponent so that you can grab them, and/or force them into situations where they can't avoid his super. ^_^ But some people are smart enough to know not to let you get close in the first place, and will purposely employ a "keepaway" strategy. Captain Commando, Megaman, and sometimes even Spidey can be a nightmare for a Zangief user, especially if they are aware of how much damage you can do to them once you do get close. The two things I rely on the most to get close are super jumping (down, up), and his Aerial Russian Slam (forward, down, forward+kick). The Aerial Russian Slam is nice, because it propels Zangief clear across the screen, and if your opponent tries to jump to get away as you are approaching them, they automatically get grabbed & thrown. If they decide not to jump, you can cancel it at the end with Zangief's splash move (down+HP while in the air).
Another thing you can do is call out a helper and super jump over to where they are while they're getting chipped.
[b:post_uid14]What To Do Once You Get Close[/b:post_uid14]
Always use the splash (down+HP while in the air).This is Zangief's best jump-in attack, in my opinion. It has good priority, has a wide range, and requires no timing whatsoever (as soon as you do the splash move, Zangief stays in that position until he either hits your opponent or they block it). Zangief doesn't have a very high jump, either, so if you keep jumping and splashing, it makes it hard for your opponent to run away to the other side of the screen, because they are either in block stun, or if they try to jump, the splash will knock them back down, because it has such good priority & wide range. The only real option they have is to try to counter it (e.g. Ryu's Dragon Punch). Most people are used to playing against characters like Wolverine, and have gotten used to blocking low to prevent dash in attacks linked to a combo, and aren't used to having to block high constantly. So surprisingly enough, you'll be able to catch them with his splash quite often (until they catch on to your strategy).
After you catch them with his splash, launch them with crouching MP (yes, even Zangief has air combos). Then jump, LP, MK, lariat (3 kicks OR 3 punches at the same time). They will fly off the screen at this point. As they are falling, jump straight up and hit them with Zangief's jumping knees (down+MK). As soon as you land, do either an SPD, FAB, Double FAB (down, forward+tag; requires 2 bars of super), or Ultimate FAB (270+2 or more kicks at the same time; requires 3 bars of super), your choice. If you time everything right, there is no escape. ^_^ As an alternative to the jumping knees, you can hit them with HK as they are falling, and do a (normal) FAB as they are flying backwards. Once again, if you time it right, they cannot get away. I prefer the knees, but it doesn't hurt to change things up occasionally to throw your opponent off guard. These are Zangief's two best combos. They work in every VS game (in the Marvel series, that is), and the damage is [b:post_uid14]EVIL[/b:post_uid14]. One of these combos will leave your opponent with slightly less then 1/4 of their health in MvC (1/8 if you do his Ultimate FAB). :laughlong: The only hard part is timing the SPD/FAB at the end. Technically, the SPD/FAB is [i:post_uid14]not[/i:post_uid14] a part of the combo, because it does not add hits to the combo meter. And if you do the FAB too early, your opponent will see the super being activated, and might have time to button mash (rare, but possible), which sometimes stuns Zangief out of his super. If you do it too late on the other hand, your opponent might have an opportunity to simply jump backwards and avoid it altogether. But once again, if you time it right, there is no escape.
Now, sooner or later your opponent will catch onto your B.S. and start blocking high to avoid getting splashed. So now it's time to change things up a bit. After they block one of your splashes, instead of going for his crouching MP launcher like you normally do, jump towards them and splash again. They'll more than likely block it. At this point, they will be expecting you to splash again, and will still be blocking high. So instead of jumping, hit them with crouching HK. After you sweep them, sometimes you can catch your opponent off guard with a Flying Power Bomb (half circle forward+Kick), because it comes out pretty fast. But your opponent can easily jump away if they are expecting it. What's even better than the FPB is to take a few steps towards them while they are on the ground, and jump over them, and splash on the way down. If you do it right, the splash will hit them from [i:post_uid14]behind[/i:post_uid14], and they will more than likely be blocking in the wrong direction, because they weren't expecting you to do something so cheap. ^_^ From here you get another air combo to SPD/FAB, however, you will be closer than normal to your opponent when you start the combo, so make sure you take a quick step back before you do the knees, so that they still land in front of you.
If they were expecting the crouching HK, cancel it into a Banishing Punch (forward, down, forward+HP). If the Banishing Punch connects, they're SPD'ed/FAB'ed. Sometimes you can SPD them even if they block the Banishing Punch, provided you don't leave the ground when you do it. Ground SPD's have incredible range for some reason. Not that I'm complaining. ^_^ Zangief's Banishing Punch will cancel out most fireballs (like Ryu's Hadoken) as well, and is a good way to get close for a grab if you feel like playing a ground game with Zangief. Any normal move can be cancelled into the Banishing Punch.
As an alternative to hitting them with crouching HK after the second splash, just walk right up and grab them. Make sure you use MP to grab them with (more on this later). Or, if you're quick enough, go ahead and do a SPD/FAB. Once again, if executed correctly, there is no escape.
You can also do a Flying Power Bomb (half circle forward+Kick) after your opponent blocks your splash with reasonable success, because it catches them off guard. This works a hell of a lot better in XMvSF, but still works in MvC. If you're near the corner, all the better (nowhere for them to run when you do it).
Another thing you can do to change things up a bit is to jump, and throw out an MK a little early (so that it's clearly over their head, and it doesn't even hit them). This confuses people for some reason. I throw out the MK early, and they're standing there blocking, I land, they get thrown (with MP). ^_^ Or, as an alternative, cancel the MK into an SPD. Now, normally I do the SPD forward, down, back, to up, but since I'm in the air already, I push up, forward, down, to back (still a 270 degree motion). If your timing is good, you'll SPD them before you even hit the ground, which gives them less of an opportunity to stop you.
As I said before, always use MP to throw your opponent. Why? Well, you have more options this way. Once again, you want to stay close to your opponent, and if you do any of Zangief's other throws, they fly away from you after the throw, and you have to get close to them all over again. But when you use Zangief's MP throw, he throws them straight up into the air, and they fall straight down. From here, you can do 4 different things:
[b:post_uid14]1. Air Combo.[/b:post_uid14] Zangief's MP throw is also a launcher. So after you throw them, you can jump and do his air combo, and end it with the jumping knees to SPD/FAB (see above). However, unlike most launchers, your opponent has the opportunity to block the first hit of the air combo. So if you think they are going to block, don't go for the air combo. But the thing is... most people aren't expecting you to go for the air combo, because they don't realize the MP throw is a launcher in the first place.
[b:post_uid14]2. SPD/Super.[/b:post_uid14] If you do one of Zangief's supers after an MP throw, they'll fall right into it. This catches most people off guard, because the MP throw is very quick, and they don't stay in the air long. However, if they know you're going to do it, they can mash on the way down and stun Zangief out of his super most of the time. If you want to, you can use HP to anchor Zangief to the ground while they are in the air, and then cancel it into his SPD/Super.
[b:post_uid14]3. Launch. [/b:post_uid14] If you are confident that your opponent will mash on the way down from your throw, launch them with crouching MP, air combo, SPD/FAB.
[b:post_uid14]4. Walk underneath them and throw them again. (with MP of course :))[/b:post_uid14] This is downright dirty... people tend to get mad when you do this, so use this tactic with discretion. Very easy to trick people with, and highly effective. Also note that you will not be able to walk underneath them a second time and throw them, due to limits in the game engine. Only two throws are allowed into a combo under any circumstance, in this or any other VS game, and even though the second throw isn't technically part of a combo, the game counts it as such. If you try to walk underneath them again and throw them with MP, Zangief will punch instead. Doing this also eliminates option #2, because Zangief's SPD/FAB is considered a throw (duh), and will miss, unless your opponent stands there doing nothing for 2 seconds after you execute your FAB (which would be really dumb). If you do option #1 or #3 after the second MP grab, you won't be able to end it with an SPD/FAB, for the same reason I just described.
Sooner or later your opponent might start jumping to match your jumps, and try to counter you. Now, to some extent, you're perfectly safe still doing the splash, because a nice little side effect is that down+HP will also activate Zangief's air grab. They'll go to jump at you, you'll air grab, it will look cool, and you weren't even really trying to. But, a lot of characters have more priority in their air attacks than Zangief's splash. So if they jump a lot and it becomes a problem, throw out a jumping jab (LP), and cancel it into a lariat (use the 3 kicks one). Zangief's jab has good priority, and if that doesn't stop them, the lariat probably will. Jump again and air grab them as they are falling from the lariat.
One more tactic I have up my sleeve: If you take out one of your opponent's characters near the corner, SPD/FAB the new one that comes in as soon as they land (or slightly before). Most people are cautious and block when their new character comes in, and that's a huge mistake with Zangief. This works extremely well in XMvSF. So well, in fact, that there's almost no way out of it, even if they know it's coming. But in MvC they can mash on the way in and stun you out of it.
Because there is nothing more annoying than getting caught in Zangief's super! It's long, flashy, and obnoxious, and when thrown at the end of a combo, takes nearly 3/4's of your opponent's life! I've had people throw down their controller right in front of me after getting super'ed by Zangief! :D Another advantage to using Zangief is that you can be a cheap grabbing b*tch, and use Zangief as an excuse when confronted about it! "Well hey, I'm using Zangief, what do you expect." ^_^ The best thing about being a Zangief user is seeing people's reactions after they've lost to your cheap B.S., because most people don't take him seriously, or in the past have played some "Zangief Scrub" that didn't know what the hell they were doing. So they'll sit there and smirk when I go to pick Zangief as my first character, while they're picking Strider and Wolverine (like the top-tier whores that they are). They go into the fight thinking that because Zangief is slow, that I'm going to just stand there in one spot while they practice their 12+ hit air combos on me. If you are one of those people, then I am here to tell you that Zangief is a whole lot better than you think - in fact, he's downright dangerous in the right hands.
[b:post_uid14]Doing Zangief's SPD/FAB[/b:post_uid14]
First thing you need to do if you're new to using Zangief is learn how to do his moves. I wasn't planning on making this an in-depth guide, so go to www.gamefaqs.com if you don't already know the basics. However, a lot of people that try to use Zangief for the first time complain that his Spinning Pile Driver (SPD) or his Final Atomic Buster (FAB) super is too hard to do, so I will give you a bit of advice in that area. First thing you need to realize is that it is not a full 360 degree motion, contrary to what you've heard or read. It never has been. It is a 270, and it sounds harder than it actually is. Basically, you just do a half circle motion (like you would for Magneto's Hyper Grav in MvC2), and quickly rotate to up while hitting the punch button (2 or more punch buttons to activate his FAB). It makes no difference whether you do the half circle forward or reverse, but the key is to make sure that you hit the punch button as soon as the control pad (or whatever else you use) is in the "up" position. I usually start from forward, to down, to back, and then to up, all in one quick motion. If you've ever used Magneto or any other character that has special moves that require you to do a half circle motion, there is no reason why you shouldn't be able to do Zangief's SPD. If you do it right, not only will Zangief execute his SPD every time, but he will [i:post_uid14]never leave the ground.[/i:post_uid14] I also want to point out that I was NEVER able to do Zangief's SPD when I tried to do a full 360 motion, but when someone finally told me how to do it the right way, it was simple. I pull it off at least 75% of the time I actually try it, and I never leave the ground.
One more note about Zangief's SPD/FAB: if you still can't do the 360 motion without leaving the ground even after trying my method, keep in mind that in the VS Series you can cancel ANY normal move with a special move or super. In other words, have Zangief throw a fierce punch to anchor him to the ground, then do the 360 motion and hit punch again, and Zangief's punch will be interrupted by his SPD/FAB. This is only useful in a few situations, but it's nice to know, anyways. Now, on to the strategy...
[b:post_uid14]Moving Around[/b:post_uid14]
When you use Zangief in MvC (or any other VS game for that matter), make it a point to never stay on the ground. Zangief is big and slow, and that makes him a prime target for jump-in or dash-in low attacks. Screw all that. Jump constantly with Zangief. If you get in a situation where you can't leave the ground momentarily (e.g. you're getting chipped by a helper like Psylocke), make sure you push block your opponent backwards (push all 3 punch buttons at the same time while blocking). I know what you're thinking, "don't you want your opponent to be close to you so that you can do all those cheap grabs?" Well, yes, that is true, but you want to get close to them on [i:post_uid14]your[/i:post_uid14] terms, not theirs. Combo happy Strider and Wolverine users are good at confusion tactics (you'll block high when you were supposed to block low, and vice-versa), so it's better to play it safe and push block them back on the very first hit of the combo that you block. Plus, I can tell you first hand that this is very annoying when someone does this to you constantly. Under normal circumstances, you can perform your combos on your opponent whether they are blocking or not, so long as your hits actually make contact with them. But when you push them back, they try to combo air, and they are stuck doing a move because it isn't chaining into the next part of the combo like it normally does, and they are wide open for attack. Or, at the very least, it gives you an opportunity to get out of there. In Zangief's case, you're able to start your constant jumping routine all over again.
[b:post_uid14]Getting Close[/b:post_uid14]
Your primary objective with Zangief, is of course to get close to your opponent so that you can grab them, and/or force them into situations where they can't avoid his super. ^_^ But some people are smart enough to know not to let you get close in the first place, and will purposely employ a "keepaway" strategy. Captain Commando, Megaman, and sometimes even Spidey can be a nightmare for a Zangief user, especially if they are aware of how much damage you can do to them once you do get close. The two things I rely on the most to get close are super jumping (down, up), and his Aerial Russian Slam (forward, down, forward+kick). The Aerial Russian Slam is nice, because it propels Zangief clear across the screen, and if your opponent tries to jump to get away as you are approaching them, they automatically get grabbed & thrown. If they decide not to jump, you can cancel it at the end with Zangief's splash move (down+HP while in the air).
Another thing you can do is call out a helper and super jump over to where they are while they're getting chipped.
[b:post_uid14]What To Do Once You Get Close[/b:post_uid14]
Always use the splash (down+HP while in the air).This is Zangief's best jump-in attack, in my opinion. It has good priority, has a wide range, and requires no timing whatsoever (as soon as you do the splash move, Zangief stays in that position until he either hits your opponent or they block it). Zangief doesn't have a very high jump, either, so if you keep jumping and splashing, it makes it hard for your opponent to run away to the other side of the screen, because they are either in block stun, or if they try to jump, the splash will knock them back down, because it has such good priority & wide range. The only real option they have is to try to counter it (e.g. Ryu's Dragon Punch). Most people are used to playing against characters like Wolverine, and have gotten used to blocking low to prevent dash in attacks linked to a combo, and aren't used to having to block high constantly. So surprisingly enough, you'll be able to catch them with his splash quite often (until they catch on to your strategy).
After you catch them with his splash, launch them with crouching MP (yes, even Zangief has air combos). Then jump, LP, MK, lariat (3 kicks OR 3 punches at the same time). They will fly off the screen at this point. As they are falling, jump straight up and hit them with Zangief's jumping knees (down+MK). As soon as you land, do either an SPD, FAB, Double FAB (down, forward+tag; requires 2 bars of super), or Ultimate FAB (270+2 or more kicks at the same time; requires 3 bars of super), your choice. If you time everything right, there is no escape. ^_^ As an alternative to the jumping knees, you can hit them with HK as they are falling, and do a (normal) FAB as they are flying backwards. Once again, if you time it right, they cannot get away. I prefer the knees, but it doesn't hurt to change things up occasionally to throw your opponent off guard. These are Zangief's two best combos. They work in every VS game (in the Marvel series, that is), and the damage is [b:post_uid14]EVIL[/b:post_uid14]. One of these combos will leave your opponent with slightly less then 1/4 of their health in MvC (1/8 if you do his Ultimate FAB). :laughlong: The only hard part is timing the SPD/FAB at the end. Technically, the SPD/FAB is [i:post_uid14]not[/i:post_uid14] a part of the combo, because it does not add hits to the combo meter. And if you do the FAB too early, your opponent will see the super being activated, and might have time to button mash (rare, but possible), which sometimes stuns Zangief out of his super. If you do it too late on the other hand, your opponent might have an opportunity to simply jump backwards and avoid it altogether. But once again, if you time it right, there is no escape.
Now, sooner or later your opponent will catch onto your B.S. and start blocking high to avoid getting splashed. So now it's time to change things up a bit. After they block one of your splashes, instead of going for his crouching MP launcher like you normally do, jump towards them and splash again. They'll more than likely block it. At this point, they will be expecting you to splash again, and will still be blocking high. So instead of jumping, hit them with crouching HK. After you sweep them, sometimes you can catch your opponent off guard with a Flying Power Bomb (half circle forward+Kick), because it comes out pretty fast. But your opponent can easily jump away if they are expecting it. What's even better than the FPB is to take a few steps towards them while they are on the ground, and jump over them, and splash on the way down. If you do it right, the splash will hit them from [i:post_uid14]behind[/i:post_uid14], and they will more than likely be blocking in the wrong direction, because they weren't expecting you to do something so cheap. ^_^ From here you get another air combo to SPD/FAB, however, you will be closer than normal to your opponent when you start the combo, so make sure you take a quick step back before you do the knees, so that they still land in front of you.
If they were expecting the crouching HK, cancel it into a Banishing Punch (forward, down, forward+HP). If the Banishing Punch connects, they're SPD'ed/FAB'ed. Sometimes you can SPD them even if they block the Banishing Punch, provided you don't leave the ground when you do it. Ground SPD's have incredible range for some reason. Not that I'm complaining. ^_^ Zangief's Banishing Punch will cancel out most fireballs (like Ryu's Hadoken) as well, and is a good way to get close for a grab if you feel like playing a ground game with Zangief. Any normal move can be cancelled into the Banishing Punch.
As an alternative to hitting them with crouching HK after the second splash, just walk right up and grab them. Make sure you use MP to grab them with (more on this later). Or, if you're quick enough, go ahead and do a SPD/FAB. Once again, if executed correctly, there is no escape.
You can also do a Flying Power Bomb (half circle forward+Kick) after your opponent blocks your splash with reasonable success, because it catches them off guard. This works a hell of a lot better in XMvSF, but still works in MvC. If you're near the corner, all the better (nowhere for them to run when you do it).
Another thing you can do to change things up a bit is to jump, and throw out an MK a little early (so that it's clearly over their head, and it doesn't even hit them). This confuses people for some reason. I throw out the MK early, and they're standing there blocking, I land, they get thrown (with MP). ^_^ Or, as an alternative, cancel the MK into an SPD. Now, normally I do the SPD forward, down, back, to up, but since I'm in the air already, I push up, forward, down, to back (still a 270 degree motion). If your timing is good, you'll SPD them before you even hit the ground, which gives them less of an opportunity to stop you.
As I said before, always use MP to throw your opponent. Why? Well, you have more options this way. Once again, you want to stay close to your opponent, and if you do any of Zangief's other throws, they fly away from you after the throw, and you have to get close to them all over again. But when you use Zangief's MP throw, he throws them straight up into the air, and they fall straight down. From here, you can do 4 different things:
[b:post_uid14]1. Air Combo.[/b:post_uid14] Zangief's MP throw is also a launcher. So after you throw them, you can jump and do his air combo, and end it with the jumping knees to SPD/FAB (see above). However, unlike most launchers, your opponent has the opportunity to block the first hit of the air combo. So if you think they are going to block, don't go for the air combo. But the thing is... most people aren't expecting you to go for the air combo, because they don't realize the MP throw is a launcher in the first place.
[b:post_uid14]2. SPD/Super.[/b:post_uid14] If you do one of Zangief's supers after an MP throw, they'll fall right into it. This catches most people off guard, because the MP throw is very quick, and they don't stay in the air long. However, if they know you're going to do it, they can mash on the way down and stun Zangief out of his super most of the time. If you want to, you can use HP to anchor Zangief to the ground while they are in the air, and then cancel it into his SPD/Super.
[b:post_uid14]3. Launch. [/b:post_uid14] If you are confident that your opponent will mash on the way down from your throw, launch them with crouching MP, air combo, SPD/FAB.
[b:post_uid14]4. Walk underneath them and throw them again. (with MP of course :))[/b:post_uid14] This is downright dirty... people tend to get mad when you do this, so use this tactic with discretion. Very easy to trick people with, and highly effective. Also note that you will not be able to walk underneath them a second time and throw them, due to limits in the game engine. Only two throws are allowed into a combo under any circumstance, in this or any other VS game, and even though the second throw isn't technically part of a combo, the game counts it as such. If you try to walk underneath them again and throw them with MP, Zangief will punch instead. Doing this also eliminates option #2, because Zangief's SPD/FAB is considered a throw (duh), and will miss, unless your opponent stands there doing nothing for 2 seconds after you execute your FAB (which would be really dumb). If you do option #1 or #3 after the second MP grab, you won't be able to end it with an SPD/FAB, for the same reason I just described.
Sooner or later your opponent might start jumping to match your jumps, and try to counter you. Now, to some extent, you're perfectly safe still doing the splash, because a nice little side effect is that down+HP will also activate Zangief's air grab. They'll go to jump at you, you'll air grab, it will look cool, and you weren't even really trying to. But, a lot of characters have more priority in their air attacks than Zangief's splash. So if they jump a lot and it becomes a problem, throw out a jumping jab (LP), and cancel it into a lariat (use the 3 kicks one). Zangief's jab has good priority, and if that doesn't stop them, the lariat probably will. Jump again and air grab them as they are falling from the lariat.
One more tactic I have up my sleeve: If you take out one of your opponent's characters near the corner, SPD/FAB the new one that comes in as soon as they land (or slightly before). Most people are cautious and block when their new character comes in, and that's a huge mistake with Zangief. This works extremely well in XMvSF. So well, in fact, that there's almost no way out of it, even if they know it's coming. But in MvC they can mash on the way in and stun you out of it.