Among Avatar: The Last Airbender's best installments receives its own Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair.
Ordinarily, clip shows are loathed by fans as a needless waste of time, or perhaps accepted as a necessity in television in the era of regular broadcasts. This wasn't always true, but Avatar: The Last Airbender demonstrated this with "The Ember Island Players," a popular installment in its last season which is now granted an exclusive Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair collection.
Highlights about the collector's edition
The entire Secret Lair superdrop for the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender collection was unveiled earlier this month. This includes five distinct sets, and while a set named "My Cabbages!" is clearly amusing nod to the series' beloved recurring figure, the remaining sets appear slightly less imaginative, except for one standout: "The Ember Island Players."
Drawing from the seventeenth episode in the final season of the animated show, this Secret Lair includes these specific cards:
- 1x Phantasmal Image as "Absolutely Accurate Actor"
- 1x Braid of Fire
- 1x Cursed Mirror
- 1x Mask of Memory
- 1x Thespian's Stage
What makes this segment is special
Viewers of the series warmly cherish this particular episode, which acted as a summary of the protagonist Aang and his companions' adventure prior to the final episode. In contrast to other recap episodes, or "clip shows," "The Ember Island Players" wasn't motivated due to production constraints or creative challenges. The producers truly wanted to provide audiences a moment to reflect on the show's narrative, yet they chose to do it creatively.
During the installment, the main characters watches a theatrical performance based on their exploits at a playhouse set on Ember Island, named The Boy in the Iceberg. The whole thing is inaccurate, cheesy, and completely amusing. It works as it plays with the characters' perception about themselves, juxtaposing them against how the world (and especially the Fire Nation) sees them. It possesses the perfect balance of self-awareness, and it results in perhaps the best adaptation of Avatar we have had.
Appeal and availability
Regarding worth, this is a great Secret Lair due to one key factor: Braid of Fire. This particular card sells between $20 and $40 through card retailers currently, and for $29.99 you can acquire the entire Secret Lair, or for $39.99 for the foil version.
Magic's Avatar: The Last Airbender edition will be available for advance previews starting November 14 and launches globally on Nov. 21.