A standout among Avatar's best episodes is honored with its own Magic: The Gathering special card drop.
Ordinarily, recap episodes face criticism among audiences as a needless time filler, or perhaps tolerated as a necessity for series in the age of weekly production. However, this wasn't the case, and Avatar: The Last Airbender showed it through "The Ember Island Players," a popular installment from its final season which is now receiving a dedicated Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair drop.
Details regarding the collector's edition
The entire Secret Lair superdrop for the soon-to-release Avatar: The Last Airbender set was announced on November 4. Containing five separate collections, and while one titled "My Cabbages!" is clearly humorous tribute to the show's most famous minor 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 the beloved series, this Secret Lair contains the following cards:
- 1x Phantasmal Image portrayed as "Absolutely Accurate Actor"
- 1x Braid of Fire
- 1x Cursed Mirror
- 1x Mask of Memory
- 1x Thespian's Stage
Why this segment stands out
Viewers of Avatar fondly remember this particular episode, which acted as a review of the protagonist Aang and his companions' quest before the series' finale. In contrast to other recap episodes, or compilation episodes, "The Ember Island Players" was not driven by budget restrictions or production issues. The show's makers genuinely intended to offer viewers a chance to recap the overall plot, but they decided to execute it with flair.
In the episode, the crew watches a stage show depicting their adventures in a theater located on Ember Island, named The Boy in the Iceberg. The entire performance is factually incorrect, cheesy, and overall hilarious. It excels because it plays on the characters' views about themselves, contrasting them with how the world (and especially the Fire Nation citizens) perceives them. It possesses the perfect balance of self-awareness, and it becomes arguably the top rendition of the show we have had.
Worth and cost
In terms of value, this offers a fantastic Secret Lair for one simple reason: Braid of Fire. This specific card trades for $20 and $40 on online marketplaces currently, while for $29.99 you can snag the full set, or for $39.99 for the foil version.
Magic: The Gathering's Avatar: The Last Airbender edition can be accessed for pre-release events on Nov. 14 and debuts internationally on Nov. 21.
