Doctor…Who?

Since its unveiling, the latest product from Universes Beyond: Doctor Who, has seen some controversy. The lack of apparent connection between the card game and television shows has been at the forefront of these complaints. Looking back, the Universes Beyond: Warhammer 40,000 Commander decks and the crossover with The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth have both felt more thematically coherent when compared to Doctor Who. 

$45.00$54.99

$0.99$0.99

Being one among many sceptics when the product was initially announced (with no previous knowledge of Doctor Who), even my personal opinion on the matter has shifted since the full set was revealed.

One of the main positive aspects of this launch is many cards' ability to integrate well within gameplay and fit well among other cards from our typical releases. This is a significant advantage, considering that many cards from this set will likely become staples or must-plays in various formats.

There is however an excessive amount of cards being dropped in this set. Sure, between decks and available boosters, there are only 189 new cards. But when you consider all available versions, that number skyrockets to 1165 in total. Variety may be the spice of life, but too much of anything can be a bad thing.

Just This Once

Think back to the first time you ever played Teferi's Protection, and if you haven't, then to the first time you saw it played. It was more than likely a moment that saved you from defeat or perhaps gave you a little more time to win on your next turn. Whatever the case, we can't argue with how much Teferi's Protection has changed the game and elevated the power level in EDH for decks that could play it.

Now that we've set the scene, let's discuss Everybody Lives! and how it compares. Being discounted by one mana, having a slightly weaker effect that affects all players, and not exiling itself upon resolution makes for a significant difference. Outside of the current jokes surrounding never-ending games, with the help of Isochron Scepter, Everybody Lives! is shaping up to be another card that will significantly alter the power level of white-running EDH decks.

Available in the Timey-Wimey deck as well as the Collectors Boosters, it’s currently readjusting in price to an average of $25. Predictions encompassing this card allude to a steady increase in value until it receives its first/second reprint later down the line. As more people get to play with it, and as more material with gameplay circulates online, the price can only become more prominent.

The Big Things - The Secret Lair Effect by Harvey McGuinness

Welcome to Jurassic…Wait, Isn't That the Next Set?

Available in the Blast from the Past Commander deck, Displaced Dinosaurs is a great pickup for many other Historic-based plans. While very topical with our return to Ixalan next month, as well as the following Universes Beyond product being a Jurassic Park crossover, Displaced Dinosaurs stand on their own two, or rather, four feet. Enabling all Historic permanents to enter as 7/7 Dinosaurs, in addition to any other type they have, can be a game-ending scenario. Not only does this scale up most legendary creatures into massive threats, it also changes commonly generated tokens such as food, clues, or treasures into viable game finishers. Reviewing the recent pushes in food generation as received in the Lord of the Rings crossover, as well as Wilds of Eldraine, it takes very little effort to create an efficient engine capable of going infinite.

The presale numbers for Displaced Dinosaurs put it at a stable $27 average. Given how unique the effect of the card is and its future potential, the price range is likely to be maintained around the $10-$15 mark unless a large number of these flood the market due to it being placed at an uncommon slot in the Collector packs.

Living in a Blue World 

The last two cards on my radar, as the title of this section suggests, are both blue. Cyber Conversion and Flatline, both of which are a mixed bag in terms of effectiveness and expectations due to their closest comparisons.

Cyber Conversion is currently tumbling down in price from pre-sale figures of $19 to approx. $11. Reminiscent of Reality Shift, both are creature removal in different ways, however the result is very similar. Thus, the price of these is likely to match up in the long run as well. Reality Shift has never been an expensive card, but has decent popularity at lower-power tables. Therefore, Cyber Conversion will more than likely occupy the same spot-removal slot in those budget decks.

Flatline evokes a slightly powered-down version of Polymorphist's Jest. While the Jest only targets a single player's board, the key difference is the loss of all activated abilities. This is becoming more and more relevant as creatures tend to have some sort of immediate impact on the board to be viable in play. On the other hand, Flatline impacts all opponents, reducing their creatures to harmless 0/1s with whatever text they may have on them. This wider-reaching effect works better if you have a way to remove the creatures from play or, as a last resort, save you from a lethal attack. Currently averaging at $7 and likely to bottom out around $3, Flatline is yet to reach its all-time low.

Everybody Lives!	CardKingdom $17.99	TCGPlayer $21.45
Everybody Lives! (Extended Art)	CardKingdom $27.99	TCGPlayer $23.88
Displaced Dinosaurs	CardKingdom $14.99	TCGPlayer $18.56
Cyber Conversion	CardKingdom $3.99	TCGPlayer $5.63
Cyber Conversion (Extended Art)	CardKingdom $6.99	TCGPlayer $6.21
Flatline	CardKingdom $2.79	TCGPlayer $3.70
Flatline (Extended Art)	CardKingdom $3.49	TCGPlayer $3.44

Farewell Again

Putting aside the new and exciting cards and spending some time on the reprints included in the set, there are some cards that make great additions. The most hated among them, of course, is Farewell, which has plagued many EDH tables since Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. But not all reprints are as unwelcome as that one. Between Carpet of Flowers, Snuff Out, and some of the Horizon lands, there are enough cards in the $10-$15 range to create worthwhile single pickups.

$5.45$5.99

$3.25$2.99

While apprehensive at first, my interest in this product has increased over time. Some inclusions have definitely excited me and made me look forward to their release, as well as other products coming down the line from Universes Beyond. Whether you’re looking for the full decks or just to pick up some singles, this product is definitely worth taking a look at.

As always, join me again next time on New Horizons as we fill our cauldron with more Secret Lairs.

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New Commander Staples from Doctor Who by Steve Heisler