Pull up a video on R.Mika or Zangief from Street Fighter, King or Armor King from Tekken, Tina, Bass, Bayman, Leon, or Ryu from Dead or Alive, or most evil, Luvia Edelfelt from Fate Unlimited Codes.
R.Mika and Zangief are grapplers with command throws and Mika has throw strings iirc... R.Mika in particular has a "Stand and taunt" special boost that if not punished begins to power up her next throw... up to 100% if she completes it. Zangief has a reputation as being THE original big boi grappler. his 720 super, the SPD, is the thing of nightmares if you don't know how to interact with it. also anti-air GRABS which flies against the typical wisdom of "can't grab a jumping opponent" and anti-projectile smacks to counter your attempts at zoning... all of this with a wonderful coat of super armored moves. Takes less damage, can't be flinched, and often gets closer in the process of the attack.
King's combo throws can result in 50/50s that if you choose wrong, you're eating 20%-25%+... per input. King doing 80% off a single interaction isn't uncommon and he still has decent pokes and sweeps. You basically have to call the correct counter throw buttons the first time or you're in a world of hurt.
Ryu has mutlihits, high stun, good juggles, and both a grab and hold version of his Izuna Drop. Holds are a mechanic in Virtua Fighter and DoA where if you input the hold button and a specific direction, you can either parry or
COUNTER attacks as a sort of psuedo-grab, each hold is only good for certain attacks, like anti-air holds, anti-high, anti-low, etc. some ONLY work on certain attack types like anti-kick or anti-punch. From Dead or Alive 1 through 3, a good call on a hold could routinely knock off 30, 40 or 50% off someone's life bar. later games nerfed the interaction, but it can still save you in a jam.
Tina and Bass are basically pro-wrestlers, lots of flashy, big hitting moves that look (and are painful) with multipart throws and command throws being part of their arsenal
Bayman and Leon are military fighters, very straightforward, efficient attacks, more hold specialists than traditional grapplers, they punish bad attacks with multipart holds that break arms, snap necks, and pulverize joints. their throws and holds are pretty much indistinguishable.
Luvia is just fucking busted. She can infinite off a jab. Namely, her most busted interaction is a a command grab, jab combo that if executed correctly is literally inescapable.
TL: DR grapplers, especially grapplers that can string throws together, are fucking TERRIFYING. for low HP characters, one interaction can be a T.O.D. and for everyone else, it can wipe out a life lead instantly.
