Magic: The Gathering
Magical Thinking: Worldwake
Welcome back to Magical Thinking, a look back at the cards and art of Magic: the Gathering, set by set, from the beginning. All through the eyes of a casual fan. This week we look at the second set of the Zendikar block, February 2010’s Worldwake.
Things are going pretty wrong on Zendikar. Something is stirring. Something big and bad. It’s making the land even more unstable than usual, and all the more alluring to greedy Planeswalkers. How are the natives coping with the changes? Let’s find out.
Admonition is defined as gentle or friendly reproof, which means this particular angel is just here to give some constructive criticism. Or she could be really annoying and passive-aggressive about it.
I love the aesthetic of tiny baby creatures that can’t quite fly yet, but if you do a thing they gain flight for a turn. Look at the little griffin! They’re trying so hard, you guys.
Um, it’s really not. I know you have protection from Red, but apparently that doesn’t apply to your own hubris.
The weather channel on Zendikar must be pretty wild. “Yes, June, we have a warm front coming in from the south. Oh, and it seems this giant old growth forest has sprouted up around the I-90 so you may want to start off for work a little early.”
Pretty sure this is the character who would eventually become Nahiri. More on her later.
If there were any Magic card I would make real it would be this one. Take that, climate change!
That turtle is as salty as I get when I play Dead by Daylight.
Hey, it’s our old pal Jace. We haven’t seen him since Lorwyn, and this time it seems like he’s actually relevant to the plot.
This is neat. I love it when they take a keyword and mess with it to see what they can come up with it.
Basically it lets you simulate playing Twitch plays Pokemon. How’s that for a deep cut?
I wonder what happens if this guy is on the field at the same time as Platinum Angel?
Yeah, and what are you gonna do about it, mister man, with your wind chimes and your red thing on your face and your awesome abs you can grate cheese off of? If Chandra has the map then finders keepers.
The flavor of this one seems to be when the corrupted land is destroyed, it eventually returns back to its natural state. I kind of like that.
As someone who is currently struggling with an insect infestation, I can say the struggle is real. So yeah, enough of the bug cards. I’m calling a moratorium on them (not really though).
I guess this is the opposite of Romancing the Stone. “Aggressively Loathing the Stone” let’s call it.
Oh my goodness, I love them. Look at the little guys! I just want to hug them.
And just like that Magic perfectly simulates the experience of buying crap on Ebay.
Want to know what killed the dinosaurs? It was a planeswalker having a bad day. So watch yourself.
I love the goggles here, It really gives him a weird steampunk aesthetic. And hey, obligatory Wayne Reynolds appearance.
Man I’d hate to meet the rodeo clown who has to deal with that mess.
If you use this spell to change a target of a counter to Ricochet trap, what happens? These are the questions which haunt my existence.
Nulls are the creation of Zendikar vampires. They’re pretty much creatures that didn’t fully become vampires and so now they are brain eating zombies. They are also super creepy-looking and I love them.
Some mana dorks produce mana, some untap your forests to let you tap them again. It’s definitely an interesting take on the premise if nothing else.
I think these are the guys who got cut from the Bremen town musicians. Elephant is still pretty sore about it, don’t bring it up around him.
OH MY GOD, IT’S GRAPPLER SPIDER OFF THE TOP ROPE! THEY’RE CASHING IN THEIR MONEY IN THE BANK! I CAN’T BELIEVE IT.
This is a really good vanilla card. 4/5 for 3 is pretty decent stats, especially for Green. Did this guy ever see any play?
Here’s Omnath at the very beginning, when they were mono green. I think they are up to four colors now, but more on that later. For now enjoy the first appearance of an elemental who became a legend in their own time.
The new Olympic event: Extreme TTRPG’s, where the die are as big as the players and made of concrete.
So does that mean the sun is a giant wurm egg? Still not as stupid as Kill the Moon (the Doctor Who episode) was.
Okay, don’t dress your dog in bondage gear. That’s just weird.
Hey, it’s the thing from Krull. I think. Looks like it. Probably as absurd, so yeah that’s what it is.
I feel like a map golem has a lot of potential, and should be explored further. Luckily you have a living map to help you with that exploration.
Ah yes, the Eye of Ugin. The big McGuffin everyone is after in this set. So, what is an Eldrazi? Why are they colorless? Next time, dear readers…
And with that we must cut our look at this set short. Sorry this was a bit shorter than usual. The good news is I have the next two weeks off from work for my birthday, so I should in theory get my articles in quicker and earlier, which is good, because next time…they are here. The Eldrazi rise. Stay Magical, my friends…while you still can.
