A standout among Avatar: The Last Airbender's most beloved installments is honored with its own Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair.
Usually, recap episodes are disliked from viewers as a needless diversion, or perhaps tolerated as essential for series during the period of weekly production. However, this wasn't the case, though Avatar: The Last Airbender showed it through "The Ember Island Players," a beloved installment in its last season that is now receiving a special Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair release.
Details regarding the Secret Lair
The entire Secret Lair superdrop for the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender edition was announced on November 4. Containing five Secret Lairs, and while one titled "My Cabbages!" is certainly funny homage to the show's best background character, the additional releases seem somewhat lacking creativity, with one notable exception: "The Ember Island Players."
Based on installment 17 in the final season of Avatar: The Last Airbender, this Secret Lair features these particular 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 episode stands out
Viewers of the series warmly cherish this particular episode, which acted as a recap of the hero Aang and his companions' journey leading up to the conclusion. Different from other recap episodes, or "clip shows," "The Ember Island Players" did not stem by budget restrictions or creative challenges. The producers truly wanted to provide audiences a chance to revisit the series' story, however, they opted to do it creatively.
Throughout the segment, the heroes view a theatrical performance based on their adventures at a playhouse on Ember Island, named The Boy in the Iceberg. The whole thing is factually incorrect, over-the-top, and overall hilarious. It succeeds because it plays with the characters' perception about themselves, setting them against against how the world (and notably the Fire Nation citizens) sees them. It possesses the right amount of introspective humor, and it ends up possibly the best adaptation of Avatar released so far.
Appeal and availability
In terms of value, this offers a fantastic Secret Lair due to one key factor: Braid of Fire. This particular card sells between $20 and $40 on various platforms as of now, and for $29.99 you can acquire the complete collection, or for $39.99 for the foil version.
Magic: The Gathering's Avatar: The Last Airbender edition is available for advance previews beginning November 14 and launches globally on Nov. 21.
