For better or worse, Secret Lair drops don’t receive as much fanfare as a new main MTG set does. That being said, this sub-brand continually offers a larger share of cards to the MTG community. Following the switch to making drops limited-run the demand for these products has skyrocketed to new heights.
Should you manage to grab yourself the right Secret Lair drop before it sells out, you may have yourself an incredibly sought-after collectible. This is especially true for Universes Beyond Secret Lair drops, which have a dramatically increased allure. Sure, a reprint of Coat of Arms may be nice, but a Hatsune Miku MTG card is in a league of its own.
Even outside of Universes Beyond drops, Secret Lair has played host to no shortage of unique and divisive themes. Between sAnS mErCy and Goblingram, it’s clear that Wizards of the Coast isn’t afraid of making some cursed experiments. As wild as these recent drops may be, they’re nothing compared to what might be coming next.
Following comments from MTG’s Lead Designer, Mark Rosewater, it appears that Secret Lair drops may be getting even wilder still. So long as enough players want them, it appears that Taylor Swift and Gray’s Anatomy Secret Lairs could be on the table!
Mainstream Becoming Magic?
On Blogatog, Tumblr user Nakamagic recently asked a question that many players may have been thinking about but were simply too afraid to ask. Is there a chance that topics in mainstream media like Taylor Swift or Gray’s Anatomy will be introduced to the world of Magic?
Many MTG players may wonder why someone would even want these crossovers in the first place. After all, many of the Universes Beyond crossovers have had some sort of element in common with MTG. The upcoming Assassin’s Creed crossover, for example, is another monolithic gaming IP with similar themes to aspects of Magic’s expansive lore. Assassins exist in both universes, alongside war, conspiracies, and myriad unique weapons.
The same simply cannot be said for Gray’s Anatomy or Taylor Swift. Magic is decorated with heavy fantasy elements. Gray’s Anatomy may be fiction, but there is no fantasy involved. There will be no Wraith fighting, or fighting off oil-infested monsters from taking over an entire Multiverse. Despite this lack of connection, these hypothetical Secret Lair drops are by no means a bad thing.
The appeal of these Secret Lairs, at least from the perspective of this Magic player, is to expand the game to a new audience. While Nakamagic’s wife isn’t interested in Magic itself, she is interested in the two topics requested. Ultimately, while this Secret Lair may seem rather odd, there is the potential for it to bring in a ton of new blood.
To be clear, when asked this question on Blogatog, Mark Rosewater did the usual, and simply turned the question towards the playerbase. This suggests that, while there is potential for these to become a real thing if enough players want it, it is nowhere near a confirmed thing.
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What do Players Think?
As many may expect, the idea of these Secret Lairs has received staunch disapproval from the MTG community. Some players are going as far as to say that “they will burn their entire collection” if either of these ideas truly come true. Gray’s Anatomy and Taylor Swift are so far removed from almost anything that Magic has ever done, drawing a line for many MTG players that they do not want Wizards to cross.
Otherwise, there is a rising concern that Magic is getting polluted by unrelated IPs. Very few players are interested in the idea of Magic devolving into a game where various Stranger Things characters destroy something from Deal or No Deal. This completely ruins the fantasy element that Magic has cultivated for multiple decades.
“No.
I’m sure some people would buy it. It might even sell well. But I object to secret lairs based on celebrities. I objected to the Post Malone one as well, but he at least has the half assed justification of actually playing magic.
Grey’s Anatomy – how would you even do that? I watched like 8 seasons of that damn show before realising the writers are hacks (or up until whatever season was the plane crash…. That was too far lol) – and it’s even less Fantasy Fighting Game With Spells appropriate than The Walking Dead.
This would be waaaaay too far in the trend of the Cardboard Crack ‘My Travis Scott goes sicko mode to destroy your Whopper’. No thanks.”
Kyleometers
The One Connection
As mentioned in Kyleometers’ comment, a hypothetical Taylor Swift Secret Lair may not be as far-fetched as you might think. After all, Wizards of the Coast has created a Secret Lair dedicated to a celebrity before; Post Malone. While these two music icons may be from the same industry, there’s a lot more to this story.
First and foremost, Post Malone is a massive MTG fan who isn’t shy about sharing their love for the game. From collecting cards like Black Lotus and the One-of-One Ring to appearing on shows like Game Knights, Post Malone is huge in the world of MTG. While some players didn’t love it, this connection made their personal Secret Lair drop significantly more agreeable than any random celebrity.
Curiously, while the Post Malone Secret Lair may have made sense, many MTG players still took issue with it. Specifically, quite a few players lament the retro frame basic lands that Post Malone scribbled over for the Secret Lair. Thanks to this, it seems that Secret Lair drops may need more than a familiar face to sell well.
That being said, many players also complained about the poor reprint choices for the first Hatsune Miku Secret Lair. Despite these complaints, this Secret Lair drop went on to sell out in a matter of hours. Evidently, Universes Beyond celebrities can clearly sell. It remains to be seen if Taylor Swift and Gray’s Anatomy could achieve the same lightning-fast Secret Lair sale.
Before we see any sale take place, however, this Secret Lair drop will actually have to be made. For better or worse, this seems unlikely at best, given the reaction from MTG fans. While this seems like a cut-and-dry case, it’s worth noting a lot more MTG players exist outside of Reddit. Beyond this, even more potential players exist who could be tempted by such a Secret Lair.
Thanks to these potential players, there’s a non-zero chance a Taylor Swift or Gray’s Anatomy Secret Lair could exist eventually. Ultimately, we’ll just have to wait and see what the future brings.
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