Well i played yesterday 2 Fights with jann vs Eater both very intense Fights but it was like burst/powerblow Showdown and that is Not DOA.
You don't have a very good sense of history if you believe that is the case.
I won both Fights close with a Good Defense. Look Then i played with eliot and he is really Shit without a Good burst Game no Balance more in this Game stupid VF Buffed and Eliot still Crap.
The entire purpose behind Eliot as a character is to have priority at range and up close so he is always the one initiating pressure. Having this priority means he sacrifices guaranteed damage setups from strike, and instead he uses the stun game to incredible affect using his super launcher throw in combination with his iWR3P to play a very dangerous game of chicken with his opponent.
It is very straight forward and very effective. It's also the closest thing resembling DOA 4, as he is probably one of the only characters who can operate under that play style efficiently due to the priority of his attacks giving him such heavy command of the match.
So no, Eliot does not need CB or sit downs to compete. This is why I have to keep slapping Eliot players upside the head when they whine about their main character who they have no idea how to play. The real problem with Jann Lee is that he does not need easy access to the stun game from dragon gunner. In fact if they removed that bulk of advantage and just gave him a wall-aligning 66K out of that he would just be fine and people would complain far less in general.
Jann Lee's issues are not with his damage. They are with his ability to bypass all forms of defense without really doing anything to justify it. Dragon gunner into death is the reason you see big damage from him so often, because its the easiest way to open someone up out of the entire cast. Yes, he has to be close to use it, but thanks to him having some of the best ranged tools in the game this is an issue pretty much never because unless you are either Eliot or Hayate, you have to let him attack first.. When Dragon Gunner does what it was intended to do, this problem will disappear completely.