Honestly, while I've enjoyed a lot of WotC's storytelling over the years (some stories more than others, naturally), I've always felt that they were better at creating worlds than they were at doing anything with them - basically, I enjoy reading the Planeswalker's Guide to *_____* articles more then I do reading the storyarcs they do about the planes. Self-contained stories like Mercy are usually more entertaining to me than Reading about the Gatewatch from week to week.
I hate to bring this up again but it needs to be said: no one is dying. At all. Since Origins only four characters with cards have died: Avacyn, Brisela, Kozilek, and Ulamog. That's all. Only antagonists. And no one at all in Kaladesh.
It honestly feels like these stories are being written for eight year olds who can't handle any of their favorite characters dying. As the story needed anything else to make it feel more like a superhero comic for children than a legitimate fantasy story.
If no one is killed by Bolas in Amonkhet, not a single named character, then I'm done with the story.
I've never really understood this stance. What long running serializations kill off characters with any regularity(besides GoT Way too many people die in that, it seems more for shock than plot most times)?
I don't want to sound rude or condescending I'm honestly curious because enough people here have voiced such an opinion that it leads me to believe that (semi-main or important side)characters do in fact die fairly often in other stories that I simply don't read. I'm open to the possibility that I don't expose myself to the proper sources but currently it just sounds ridiculous that no one goes about killing important characters with any regularity(besides that one) and a significant number of people expect it here.
If you just mean significant consequences like death then I can understand where you're coming from a bit better, but considering we're still on only the third story it still seems rather premature.
I actually think it's a little funny when you compare the carded character deaths in the Gatewatch blocks (Battle for Zendikar, Shadows over Innistrad and Kaladesh) to the Odyssey/Onslaught blocks.
Of the characters in the Odyssey/Onslaught block who got actual cards:
by the end of that story arc, only Jeska is alive, with Thriss', Llawan's and Eesha's fates unknown - everyone else is dead. Compare to BfZ, where I don't think a single carded character outside of Ulamog and Kozilek bit it, or SoI, where we can add Avacyn, Bruna and Gisela (Brisela), and... I can't think of anyone else (did I miss someone?).
It feels like the Gatewatch might have gone too far in the opposite direction from the Odyssey/Onslaught blocks; if Odyssey had too much death, then the Gatewatch hasn't had enough death - or just serious consequences. When fighting Eldritch Abominations that the godlike Oldwalkers couldn't kill conventionally, by chanelling an entire planes worth of mana, and the only consequence is that the two Neowalkers involved felt a little under the weather for a week? Yeah, that diminishes the ending, the enormity of what the characters have accomplished.
Yeah see I wouldn't have minded the Eldrazi on Innistrad -- would've made the gothic thing be way more Lovecraftian, which is never a complaint! But as you said, Eldrazi were ruined for me. We got to see Zendikar, a plane booming with cool lands and plants, turn into a tiring boring plane overtaken by Eldrazi (a "HUGE THREAT" that were easily taken down by 4 twenty something year olds? what???)
Killing Avacyn was ssuuuuch a huge mistake. I know we'll return to the plane SOMEDAY due to how much people love it and the loose ends they left, so maybe they'll find a way to bring her back..? Maybe..? Hopeful wishes haha.
Also, on topic, how freaking AMAZING was the art for new Emrakul?! I'm still impressed, months later!
Well, Sigarda is still alive, but not as strong as Avacyn. So there's still an Angel around for the "Good Guys" to build their Church around, but she's not gonna be strong enough to keep someone like Emrakul from showing up.
But like 5colors said, apparently there was supposed to be a block between BfZ and SoI that got scrapped or shuffled to a later date, leaving us with two Eldrazi stories back-to-back, which left people feeling bored with the bloody things.
And I'll repeat my argument until I die: the Gatewatch should NOT have been able to kill the Eldrazi. The Titans had recieved too much build-up as a threat for "4 twenty something year olds" to credibly kill them. Defeat, like how the Fantastic Four have defeated or redirected Galactus, certainly, but not outright kill.
Ugin imprisoned the Eldrazi because they were destroying worlds and killing millions. He didn't kill them because he feared even greater catastrophe.
Call me skeptical, but I don't think Ugin really cares about the Eldrazi destroying worlds. Yes, he said he didn't want Tarkir to be next, but I suspect even that was just a "supporting excuse" he used to make Sorin more enthusiastic about the whole imprisonment.
Yes, he ultimately trapped the Eldrazi because he feared greater catastrophe, but that was pretty much the whole and only reason - he probably wanted to see what happens to the multiversal ecosystem without the Eldrazi but didn't want it to be irreversible just in case he couldn't deal with the actual consequences (which has its own loose ends because it's based on the assumption that releasing the Eldrazi would fix the problem in time, but that's another issue). Everything else he said ("for the good of the multiverse" and "let's protect our homeplanes") honestly could have been lies he made up just to convince the other 2 oldwalkers because he needed them to assist him for his actual purpose.
He way less temperamental than Bolas for sure, but the way he expressed his "disappointment" with Jace/The Gatewatch after UlaKozi were killed was literally "You ruined my experiment, I've no choice but to fall back to my last defenses against whatever might have emerged from my experiment now" (of course he put it in a more condescending way, but the point is the same).
While I can understand why people are inclined to believe Ugin, I'm skeptical (and paranoid) enough to not take his words at face value, because other than his words, we know as much of his motives as we know the purpose of the Eldrazi. We (as the readers) have not yet been treated to his internal thought process and that is enough for me to not trust Ugin.
I think it's one thing to say that you don't trust Ugin. (You shouldn't, honestly. We don't know enough about him really.) But it's another thing entirely to imply that you might trust Bolas more. (Unless you just mean that you can always trust in Bolas to be Bolas; load your family into a bus, throw you under that bus, and then set that bus on fire, the second it looks to be in his own best interest.)
While I don't think Ugin was lying, it is a fair point: Bolas is more predictable in that we know he'll do what's best for Bolas, and everyone else can just deal with it - so he's on the Evil spectum of the Alignment Chart. Ugin, however, we don't really know whether he's on the Neutral or Good spectrums yet.
Alas,no matter how Doug tries,he is not,and will never be a good storywriter.
It just seems that everything he writes ends up a little off. Too fast pacing. Too cheesy joke. Too descriptive moment,too bad dialogue. A word redundant here,missing there. And when you have the awesome work of Chris L'Etoile with the same characters to compare,this reads like a second-rate fanfic.
It would also help not trying to cram as many things as possible into one story...and if you really have to,then let someone else than Doug write it. This read a lot of like Battle of Thraben - resulting in not enough time for everything and important things happening too fast (death of Brisela,for example).
So Dovin just...planeswalked away. And Hungry Flames were just...toothless.
One thing left me wondering. We are practically at the end of story. Battle is next,and then epilogue (Dark Intimations). Aether Revolt hits shelves this Friday. WHAT are we supposed to read whole February and March?!
Hopefully? The Gatewatch characters going about their daily routines - I mean, what do these people do when they're not kicking Eldritch Abominations in the junk or getting swept up in societal powerstruggles?
I'd just like to see Jace do some Guildpact work, since that's kind of his job, and let the other five members just... hang out. Show us what they do when they're off the clock.
"I spent FIVE THOUSAND YEARS watching as the mere presence of the Eldrazi ravaged my plane and my people because YOU TOLD ME they couldn't be killed, AND IT WAS ALL A LIE!"
To be fair, Nahiri and Sorin tried to kill the Eldrazi before; if two Oldwalkers couldn't do it... well, I'd probably be safe to assume they couldn't be killed. I don't think Ugin lied; he probably assumed it couldn't be done.
However, while we're on the subject; using the Hedron Network to make Ulamog and Kozilek mortal and killable (which I consider to be a complete Deus Ex Machina, but still)... how did Nahiri not know it could do that? She BUILT the bloody things!
Further, as user_938036 pointed out, the whole crew of the Weatherlight had quite a bit of plot armor right up until the end of the saga.
Eh, I wouldn't exactly say that. In their first outing, trying to rescue Sisay from Volrath, they took quite a few casualties. Rofellos and Mirri died. Ertai and Crovax were MIA. Starke was struck blind and Tahngarth was mutated. And, technically, Hanna contracted the Phyrexian plague. Also, remember that they got their asses kicked in the first encounter with Greven and the Predator.
Yeah, sure, at the end of the day it was still trite, fantasy pulp. But the story enforced stakes, you felt as though the characters were in some sort of peril. The same can't be said of the Gatewatch. They've been around for three blocks, as many as the Weatherlight crew were in, and have defeated entities billed as threats to oldwalkers while suffering no losses. That's fine for a Saturday morning cartoon, but a lot of folks, WotC creative among them, bristle at this sort of comparison.
Technically, the Weatherlight crew was around for only *two* blocks, plus two separate sets (Weatherlight and Masques). And in those two blocks, almost everyone of any consequence almost died or died. There were real stakes. Loved ones were dying, people were tortured into hideousness, Karn was forced to constantly crush moggs while he was trying to be a pacifist. Mirri gave up her life for someone she loved. Crovax became a vampire and planar threat. Squee was tortured and killed over and over. Threats were everywhere. Anyone could die (and did).
In the three GW blocks thus far, no one has died. Gideon was almost drowned, but not dead. Chandra was beat up, but not dead. Jace almost went crazy, but didn't. I have no fear, concern, or caring about their wellbeing. That is what I call plot armor, and even if one did die, I am hardly as invested as I was in the Weatherlight crew, which had far more 'real' characters to me.
Shrug.
The problem with that logic is that "death is cheap" rapidly gives way to "DIAA (Darkness Induced Audience Apathy)".
"If there is zero hope of the good guys winning, why should the audience care?"
Say that the Eldrazi did get some hard hits in. Gideon, Chandra are both killed. Jace is driven insane beyond any ability to use his abilities (or even turns evil). Nissa is murdered by Ob Nixilis. Needless to say, Zendikar is screwed, as is Innistrad. Two planes are about to bite the dust, unless you believe Liliana could single-handedly save Innistrad.
So why should the audience care? When every battle turns out like Mirrodin, with the good guys getting their rear ends kicked, the drama shifts from "the heroes can't lose" to "the heroes are incompetent/can't win".
At that point, why would anyone become invested in the survivors or the story?
1) The "Death is Cheap" trope refers to death being treated as a slap on the wrist: what you're describing is the transition from "Anyone Can Die" to "Everyone WILL Die" to "DIAA".
2) Surely Wizards shoud be able to hit a middleground between "There's no threat to the Gatewatch" and "Everyone in the Gatewatch will die painful and meaningless Deaths that make GRRM tell us to cut it out"? I've said it Before, but I'd have preferred if the Gatewatch had to truly unseal the Eldrazi from Zendikar entire, like what was implied when Jace had his little chat with Ugin.
They fight the Eldrazi, destroying thousands of Spawn, lesser- and greater Eldrazi at Seagate, alongside the mortal defenders, but when Ulamog shows up... their attempt to seal it fails, and their most powerful spells barely seem to affect the thing, until ultimately, in order to save what little's left of Zendikar, they "pull the spike from Ulamog's hand".
Zendikar is saved, but the Eldrazi are now free to roam the Multiverse - and the planeswalkers swear an Oath that they will find a way to stop the Eldrazi once again, and to deal with Bolas, along with nayone else who would threaten the Multiverse in such a fashion.
I totally agree with everyone complaining about a 15 year old being not just a pirate, not just a pirate captain, but the commander of an entire pirate fleet. A 15 year old being employed in a dangerous, skill-intensive, illegal occupation is ridiculous enough, but having a high-ranking position of leadership? No, just no. Then there's the fact that grown adults would have to willingly be subservient to a teenager, which would not happen in real life. Imagine being a reasonable, working adult and getting a new job, then finding out that your manager (actually, more like your manager's manager) is 15 years old.
It would make sense if she inherited the fleet from her parents but apparently her parents are Consulate officials so that's pretty much ruled out. I guess that aging could be different for humans on Kaladesh (it certainly is on Ravnica), but at age 12 Chandra was still going to school and being a normal 12 year old, so how a 15 year old would have a very powerful position as a pirate is beyond me.
It just feels like shameless pandering to me. The whole thing feels like the fantasy of a horny but imaginative teenagers. We get it, 15 year olds play this game. If you want to put 15 year olds in the story, go ahead, but make it actually make sense instead of being completely ridiculous. Did anyone actually stop to think this through? Jesus, she doesn't even look 15. Look at the thread that spoiled her. Multiple people said she was hot (they assumed that she was in her 20s, because that's how she looks), but then retracted their statements when they learned her age. Why not just make her a few years older so that it's actually slightly believable? Or just make her a 15 year old badass pirate, but not a 15 year old badass pirate fleet commander.
As for the rest of the story, it could have been better. It was somewhat hard to follow, especially with the POV switching between Kari and Jace, without any spacing or notification for the change. Why not just choose one? Their minds are linked anyway, so either one can get plot-relevant information from the other. Why even switch POV at all? It felt like the story kept repeating "Kari is a pirate" and "Kari has a pet monkey" over and over again, which was annoying. The monkey felt cartoonish, Disney-like, and just generally horrible as an element of the story. Yes, people like monkeys but don't make it feel like a Disney princess's pet for the love of God!
This isn't the fault of the writer, but I feel like the whole pirate thing came out of the blue. There was nothing in Kaladesh indicating piracy of any kind on the plane. If you had asked anyone if Kaladesh had pirates before Aether Revolt, they would have said no. There should have been at least one pirate or pirate-related card in Kaladesh. It didn't have to be a top-down pirate; they could have flavored just about any preexisting U, B, or R creature that's either energy-related or evasive as an Aether pirate. In Aether Revolt we only got two pirates, and no pirate ships (despite other flying vehicle existing). I like the idea of Kaladesh's pirates in general (just not the execution in this story) and I want to see a lot more when we return.
Yeah, at least Domri Rade is believable, in that he's not an authority figure; he's just someone whose Spark ignited WAY earlier than most. But a Pirate Captain/Admiral at age 15? That's going a bit beyond suspension of disbelief.
I wonder if Baan is going to be a recurring character, if not full on antagonist. If so I have to think he may taverse the Multiverse warning other walkers of the Gatewatch's marvelous ability to destablize things.
Perhaps- but Baan strikes me along the lines of Nahiri- outside of the context they were presented in, they probably wouldn't be villians at all.
Like, now that Nahiri's done on Innistrad, she probably has zero motivation to completely screw up another world. Hell, I'm betting there's a good part of her that's wracked with guilt for what she did on Innistrad.
Does Nahiri know that Ugin was dead/in a coma while the Eldrazi were breaking free? If not, she'll probably target Tarkir next. She's already tried to murder an entire Plane to get revenge on one guy; I doubt someone like that can even recognize guilt...
Agree on Dovin, though. He does feel Azorius-y: it's about maintaining order. Lawful neutral, to use a D&D term.
Further, as user_938036 pointed out, the whole crew of the Weatherlight had quite a bit of plot armor right up until the end of the saga.
Eh, I wouldn't exactly say that. In their first outing, trying to rescue Sisay from Volrath, they took quite a few casualties. Rofellos and Mirri died. Ertai and Crovax were MIA. Starke was struck blind and Tahngarth was mutated. And, technically, Hanna contracted the Phyrexian plague. Also, remember that they got their asses kicked in the first encounter with Greven and the Predator.
Yeah, sure, at the end of the day it was still trite, fantasy pulp. But the story enforced stakes, you felt as though the characters were in some sort of peril. The same can't be said of the Gatewatch. They've been around for three blocks, as many as the Weatherlight crew were in, and have defeated entities billed as threats to oldwalkers while suffering no losses. That's fine for a Saturday morning cartoon, but a lot of folks, WotC creative among them, bristle at this sort of comparison.
Yeah, while I don't dislike the Gatewatch as a concept, I agree with the people claiming that they were poorly introduced; giving them a clean win over the Eldrazi, when they had been built up as a threat that three Oldwalkers couldn't kill? It de-fanged both the Oldwalkers and the Eldrazi as a threat.
I'd have much preferred if they had been forced to release the Eldrazi from Zendikar completely, once their attempt to re-seal the Eldrazi were screwed over irrevocably by Ob Nixilis; pull out the nail keeping them on the Plane, to use Ugin's "Titan's are the TRUE Eldrazi's hands"-metaphor.
Speaking of saturday morning cartoons, I think Wizard's should at least take a note from the DCAU Justice League series - don't have the entire Gatewatch present for every story. Split them up, have them work separate cases, and bring them all together for the big season finale (Bolas, Eldrazi, InJacetus League, etc). Give the characters breathing room.
You're over looking a rather important difference that might be gone soon but is currently an important distinction. Each of those groups is/was significantly larger than the gatewatch currently. As the gatewatch grows expect to see less than the full team on each mission(we already know Ajani isn't going to be on Amonkhet because he thinks its dumb to rush head first into such a threat), though I doubt any block will feature a member going solo.
Fair point, though I still think that Liliana, Chandra and Nissa would be enough of a Gatewatch presence in this story, especially with Ajani and Saheeli joining forces with them against Tezzeret and Dovin (and Ajani formally joining the Gatewatch afterwards) - pulling Jace and Gideon into the current story as well makes it feel... crowded.
Further, as user_938036 pointed out, the whole crew of the Weatherlight had quite a bit of plot armor right up until the end of the saga.
Eh, I wouldn't exactly say that. In their first outing, trying to rescue Sisay from Volrath, they took quite a few casualties. Rofellos and Mirri died. Ertai and Crovax were MIA. Starke was struck blind and Tahngarth was mutated. And, technically, Hanna contracted the Phyrexian plague. Also, remember that they got their asses kicked in the first encounter with Greven and the Predator.
Yeah, sure, at the end of the day it was still trite, fantasy pulp. But the story enforced stakes, you felt as though the characters were in some sort of peril. The same can't be said of the Gatewatch. They've been around for three blocks, as many as the Weatherlight crew were in, and have defeated entities billed as threats to oldwalkers while suffering no losses. That's fine for a Saturday morning cartoon, but a lot of folks, WotC creative among them, bristle at this sort of comparison.
Yeah, while I don't dislike the Gatewatch as a concept, I agree with the people claiming that they were poorly introduced; giving them a clean win over the Eldrazi, when they had been built up as a threat that three Oldwalkers couldn't kill? It de-fanged both the Oldwalkers and the Eldrazi as a threat.
I'd have much preferred if they had been forced to release the Eldrazi from Zendikar completely, once their attempt to re-seal the Eldrazi were screwed over irrevocably by Ob Nixilis; pull out the nail keeping them on the Plane, to use Ugin's "Titan's are the TRUE Eldrazi's hands"-metaphor.
Speaking of saturday morning cartoons, I think Wizard's should at least take a note from the DCAU Justice League series - don't have the entire Gatewatch present for every story. Split them up, have them work separate cases, and bring them all together for the big season finale (Bolas, Eldrazi, InJacetus League, etc). Give the characters breathing room.
I just read MaRo's "Odds & Ends" article, and I stumbled across this:
with greater focus on story and Planeswalkers, how difficult is it to decide which (of the MANY) 'walkers make it to print?
My stories about making Tamiyo demonstrate the tension. We're trying to make our stories more Planeswalker-centric, which means we have more Planeswalkers in our stories than we have planeswalker card slots. This means that being in the story is not a guarantee that you'll get a card. So yes, it is causing a lot of hard decisions to be made. Also, the need to color balance means our first choice of lineup often doesn't work out and we have to go back to the drawing board.
So... does anyone else think this might be a problem going forward? I've seen a lot of complaints about the story during BFZ and SoI (the latter especially) focusing too much on the Planeswalkers already, to the detriment of the rest of the story and setting, and now they want to focus even more on them?
I actually think it's a little funny when you compare the carded character deaths in the Gatewatch blocks (Battle for Zendikar, Shadows over Innistrad and Kaladesh) to the Odyssey/Onslaught blocks.
Of the characters in the Odyssey/Onslaught block who got actual cards:
Kamahl
Jeska/Phage
Balthor
Chainer
Braids
The Cabal Patriarch
Seton
Thriss
Kirtar
Pianna
Teroh
Eesha
Aboshan
Laquatus
Llawan
Ixidor
Akroma
Karona
by the end of that story arc, only Jeska is alive, with Thriss', Llawan's and Eesha's fates unknown - everyone else is dead. Compare to BfZ, where I don't think a single carded character outside of Ulamog and Kozilek bit it, or SoI, where we can add Avacyn, Bruna and Gisela (Brisela), and... I can't think of anyone else (did I miss someone?).
It feels like the Gatewatch might have gone too far in the opposite direction from the Odyssey/Onslaught blocks; if Odyssey had too much death, then the Gatewatch hasn't had enough death - or just serious consequences. When fighting Eldritch Abominations that the godlike Oldwalkers couldn't kill conventionally, by chanelling an entire planes worth of mana, and the only consequence is that the two Neowalkers involved felt a little under the weather for a week? Yeah, that diminishes the ending, the enormity of what the characters have accomplished.
Well, Sigarda is still alive, but not as strong as Avacyn. So there's still an Angel around for the "Good Guys" to build their Church around, but she's not gonna be strong enough to keep someone like Emrakul from showing up.
But like 5colors said, apparently there was supposed to be a block between BfZ and SoI that got scrapped or shuffled to a later date, leaving us with two Eldrazi stories back-to-back, which left people feeling bored with the bloody things.
And I'll repeat my argument until I die: the Gatewatch should NOT have been able to kill the Eldrazi. The Titans had recieved too much build-up as a threat for "4 twenty something year olds" to credibly kill them. Defeat, like how the Fantastic Four have defeated or redirected Galactus, certainly, but not outright kill.
While I don't think Ugin was lying, it is a fair point: Bolas is more predictable in that we know he'll do what's best for Bolas, and everyone else can just deal with it - so he's on the Evil spectum of the Alignment Chart. Ugin, however, we don't really know whether he's on the Neutral or Good spectrums yet.
Hopefully? The Gatewatch characters going about their daily routines - I mean, what do these people do when they're not kicking Eldritch Abominations in the junk or getting swept up in societal powerstruggles?
I'd just like to see Jace do some Guildpact work, since that's kind of his job, and let the other five members just... hang out. Show us what they do when they're off the clock.
To be fair, Nahiri and Sorin tried to kill the Eldrazi before; if two Oldwalkers couldn't do it... well, I'd probably be safe to assume they couldn't be killed. I don't think Ugin lied; he probably assumed it couldn't be done.
However, while we're on the subject; using the Hedron Network to make Ulamog and Kozilek mortal and killable (which I consider to be a complete Deus Ex Machina, but still)... how did Nahiri not know it could do that? She BUILT the bloody things!
1) The "Death is Cheap" trope refers to death being treated as a slap on the wrist: what you're describing is the transition from "Anyone Can Die" to "Everyone WILL Die" to "DIAA".
2) Surely Wizards shoud be able to hit a middleground between "There's no threat to the Gatewatch" and "Everyone in the Gatewatch will die painful and meaningless Deaths that make GRRM tell us to cut it out"? I've said it Before, but I'd have preferred if the Gatewatch had to truly unseal the Eldrazi from Zendikar entire, like what was implied when Jace had his little chat with Ugin.
"The Eldrazi titans do not dwell in physical space," said Ugin. "They are creatures of the Blind Eternities, and it is in the Eternities that they remain."
"Until they manifest physically, you mean?"
"No," said Ugin. "I meant what I said. Ulamog remains in the Eternities."
"Then what did I see heading toward Sea Gate?"
"You saw a portion of him," said Ugin. "A projection. Imagine that you reach your hand into a pond. The fish below the surface sees a five-headed monster, and cannot perceive the man attached to it. It mistakes a hangnail for an eye because the truth is beyond its imagining. You see?"
"And when you trapped them . . ."
"Like driving a spike through the hand," said Ugin. "The man will not die, but neither will he trouble other ponds. 'Killing' Ulamog's physical form would be like cutting off the hand. The man might be diminished, but he would survive—and he would be freed."
They fight the Eldrazi, destroying thousands of Spawn, lesser- and greater Eldrazi at Seagate, alongside the mortal defenders, but when Ulamog shows up... their attempt to seal it fails, and their most powerful spells barely seem to affect the thing, until ultimately, in order to save what little's left of Zendikar, they "pull the spike from Ulamog's hand".
Zendikar is saved, but the Eldrazi are now free to roam the Multiverse - and the planeswalkers swear an Oath that they will find a way to stop the Eldrazi once again, and to deal with Bolas, along with nayone else who would threaten the Multiverse in such a fashion.
Yeah, at least Domri Rade is believable, in that he's not an authority figure; he's just someone whose Spark ignited WAY earlier than most. But a Pirate Captain/Admiral at age 15? That's going a bit beyond suspension of disbelief.
Does Nahiri know that Ugin was dead/in a coma while the Eldrazi were breaking free? If not, she'll probably target Tarkir next. She's already tried to murder an entire Plane to get revenge on one guy; I doubt someone like that can even recognize guilt...
Agree on Dovin, though. He does feel Azorius-y: it's about maintaining order. Lawful neutral, to use a D&D term.
Fair point, though I still think that Liliana, Chandra and Nissa would be enough of a Gatewatch presence in this story, especially with Ajani and Saheeli joining forces with them against Tezzeret and Dovin (and Ajani formally joining the Gatewatch afterwards) - pulling Jace and Gideon into the current story as well makes it feel... crowded.
Yeah, while I don't dislike the Gatewatch as a concept, I agree with the people claiming that they were poorly introduced; giving them a clean win over the Eldrazi, when they had been built up as a threat that three Oldwalkers couldn't kill? It de-fanged both the Oldwalkers and the Eldrazi as a threat.
I'd have much preferred if they had been forced to release the Eldrazi from Zendikar completely, once their attempt to re-seal the Eldrazi were screwed over irrevocably by Ob Nixilis; pull out the nail keeping them on the Plane, to use Ugin's "Titan's are the TRUE Eldrazi's hands"-metaphor.
Speaking of saturday morning cartoons, I think Wizard's should at least take a note from the DCAU Justice League series - don't have the entire Gatewatch present for every story. Split them up, have them work separate cases, and bring them all together for the big season finale (Bolas, Eldrazi, InJacetus League, etc). Give the characters breathing room.
Hey, she can team up with Domri and Tibalt on team "Not-Chandra Red Planeswalkers".
No need to apologize, I think we all needed a bit of a break after that ending.
Still a better ending than Bleach.
So... does anyone else think this might be a problem going forward? I've seen a lot of complaints about the story during BFZ and SoI (the latter especially) focusing too much on the Planeswalkers already, to the detriment of the rest of the story and setting, and now they want to focus even more on them?