Among Avatar: The Last Airbender's best episodes receives a dedicated Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair.
Usually, clip shows are disliked among audiences as a pointless diversion, or at best accepted as a requirement in television during the period of regular broadcasts. However, this wasn't true, though Avatar: The Last Airbender showed it with "The Ember Island Players," a popular segment during its concluding run which is now getting an exclusive Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair collection.
Information of the special release
The entire Secret Lair superdrop for the forthcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender edition was unveiled earlier this month. Containing five distinct sets, and even though a set named "My Cabbages!" is certainly humorous tribute to Avatar's most famous minor character, the remaining sets seem somewhat lacking creativity, with one notable exception: "The Ember Island Players."
Drawing from installment 17 in the final season of the beloved series, this collector's drop features the following cards:
- 1x Phantasmal Image as "Absolutely Accurate Actor"
- 1x Braid of Fire
- 1x Cursed Mirror
- 1x Mask of Memory
- 1x Thespian's Stage
Why this episode is special
Fans of the series fondly remember this particular episode, which functioned as a summary of Aang and the group's journey before the series' finale. Different from other recap episodes, or retrospective segments, "The Ember Island Players" did not stem due to production constraints or creative challenges. The creators genuinely intended to offer viewers a chance to revisit the show's narrative, however, they opted to execute it with flair.
Throughout the segment, the crew observe a stage show depicting their exploits in a theater set on Ember Island, named The Boy in the Iceberg. The entire performance is wildly exaggerated, cheesy, and overall hilarious. It succeeds as it plays on the characters' views of themselves, contrasting them against how the world (and especially the antagonist nation) perceives them. It possesses the perfect balance of self-awareness, and it ends up arguably the best adaptation of the show available to date.
Value and availability
In terms of value, this is a great Secret Lair for one simple reason: Braid of Fire. This particular card is valued between $20 and $40 through card retailers currently, while for $29.99 you can acquire the entire Secret Lair, or for $39.99 for the foil version.
Magic's Avatar: The Last Airbender collection will be available during early access events beginning November 14 and releases worldwide on Nov. 21.
