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I don't know why, but hearing "NEW SECRET LAIR ALERT" brings warmth to my cold dead heart.

I love when we get to see the profs thought free-form instead of scripted like normal

My biggest issue when buying foils is that sellers set their condition as “Near Mint” when it’s curled to high heaven.

I feel like the prof could do a state of magic grading video/series in June on whether the state of: modern; standard; commander; the local gamestore; arena; etc are in a good state or whether they need to do summer school to improve

A story about secret lair foils. I ordered the Post Malone set and the 40k orks set, both foil at the same time. I received them both opened them up and noticed the orks were already curling. Post's foils we're perfectly flat. Today, those same ork foils are causing a hard sleeve to bend. Post's? Perfectly flat in a binder. I have no idea what black magic (cuz it was a black set, hah puns!) they used for Post's but I'm super curious if anyone else noticed it. Or maybe I got extremely lucky.

Now there is a man who knows how to review Secret Lairs!

NEW SECRET LAIR ALER - oh wait nvm. Good vid prof💜💜

Hey Prof, just wanted to let you know this format works very well in my opinion. Especially the freeform talking leading to a narrated block about the mentioned topic is something I enjoy. :)

I adore the more subtle look of the etched foils

I wanna see Garret on shuffle up and play, along with Chang, and Abed

I was hoping for a 30 minute "NEW SECRET LAIR ALERT" video

Me and a friend ordered some secret lairs together to save on shipping. When the package finally arrived after several months, HALF the content was missing. Full taxes charged, the receipt listed our full order, yet there was only 3 packs inside when we ordered 6. Still no response from their customer support because they are experiencing a "high volume of contacts" which is no surprise if they manage to mess up shipping like this.

This hybrid format is awesome - more if you can!!

One of the things I've come to appreciate about the volume of Secret Lair, and really the volume of all MTG products, is that it forces me to reflect on my FOMO and help me overcome it because i cant possibly keep up with it all

I actually prefer the textured foils. They have the brushed texture of etched foils all over the card, but the picture is bright, clear, and foil. I think it’s the best of both worlds and I love them.

i love these free form videos. It's nice to just hear the prof give his thoughts about where magic is headed and how its been doing

As far as the secret bonus card goes, i do wish they said if the bonus card had the same style as the secret lair, or if it is a generic extra card. Especially in the artist series.

Interesting contrast with the etched/brushed vs normal foils!

I’m fine with a lot of different art styles per secret lair drop. Gotta make sure there is something for everyone. I wish they had some consistency though, or at least tell us what it is if there is a consistency. Like, 2 drops related to the corresponding set, 2 drops that artist series, 2 off-the-wall things, and 1 basic land drop. Something like that so that we know what to expect. And that includes knowing the consistent amount of cards per drop. Instead each lair just feels so wildly different that it takes just even more to grok. It goes back to what you said about each set having a ton of different versions. Good that it can cater to different people, but it makes it such a mental challenge to comprehend it all!

I absolutely love the etched foils. Not just for the aesthetics but for the lack of curling. I've had a lot of unsleeved etched foils sitting in a drawer now waiting to be tucked away into a deck and they are straighter than the Ikoria foils that were immediately sleeved.

Etched Foil cards look so good. But also the foils from dominaria remastered were very solid.

Youve mentioned how unscripted videos can be tough for you to make, so I hope this mixed scripted-unscripted style was more comfortable! Another great video as always ^u^

Before there was Secret Lair there was the From the Vault series which wasn't the exact same thing but something somewhat similar by reprinting cards throughout Mahic's history around a particular theme. Just without the alternate art.

These videos are such quality. The Prof really goes all out and it shows in how well made and informative they are

Prof always making good insightful comments about MTG. I agree on many points about Secret Lair, they do release them too frequently and they need to do more WPN exclusives. We all need to recognize the potential for this game to get back on the tables this summer and make sure our LGS situations stay strong. Without dedicated places to play all card games are on a path to exile 😉

Prof i just wanted to let you know that today i received my "Academic" deckbox. Great work. keep it up and thank you!!

I’ve switched to Etched Foils whenever possible, I notice a lot less (if any) curling and like the style

Prof, I appreciate who you are and what you've done for the community. I truly hope I can play in a pod with you some day. Or even play my jank modern decks (inspired by your videos) against your merfolk!

Your shuffle up n play series has brought me so much joy over the past year. This product is amazing and what you have made after continues to be of the same quality!

With how big the old boxes were I was shocked to find that I did not get at least a playset of all the full text lands

I know you hate doing unscripted bits, but want you to know you did a really good job

I enjoy you going back and forth between scripted and free form.

Loving the new free form you. And also loving my new kickstarter deckbox and accessories. It finally arrived. Well worth the wait. Thanks for everything you do Prof!

Etched foils, particularly the Dan Frazier talismans, are some of my favorite foils i opened mine as soon as I got them and they haven’t curled a bit (the ones not in commander decks are just in perfect fits)

I like how genuine you are. I feel like I'm the one opening the secret lairs. Ty much for all you do

I love this format! I want more calm sleeving having a chat videos

Hey Prof, I dont play MTG anymore unfortunately but I still have a love for the game. Im not a consistent viewer of your videos, but whenever I get a chance to watch, you are ALWAYS spitting FACTS!!! Thank you for looking out for the community.

I like this free-form style of discussing. It feels more relatable and organic.

That mixture of free-form and scripted was really something, sets an interesting pace, combining imo the best of both worlds, hope you'll make more like that in the future :)

I don’t think I’d love this game as much without you’re content Prof. Always fair, always informative, and always full of joy.

If anything will be the real death of Magic, it will be WotC killing local game stores. Secret Lairs are a big part of this issue

That mock UN episode was one of my favourite episodes of community, but i completely forgot about the Crisis Alert. I just assumed Erik Charles Nielsen was a magic youtuber. I mostly just remember Troy's Georgian Accent from that episode

Yeah ETCHED FOIL never curls for me. I am not exxagerrating when I say I have bought most of the etched foils (non secret layer) that they have made, and not a single one has curled. That's one reason I love them so much.

Personally I like the old foil style, where only parts of the art/card were highligted and the rest pretty much normal/non foil. Don't know where these came from, but I got some and they are gorgeous! All over foiling sometimes really ruins the visual experience. Regarding curling: AFAIK the curling happens, when the humidity in the printing facillity differs from the humidity in your area. Most times curling can be fixed by either readding/removing moisture to/from the cardboard. This can be achieved with packs that are used for humidifying plants/cigar boxes, or de-humidifiers like silica. There are some really good tutorials for this on YT! Once flat, just put them in a sealable inner and normal outer sleeve and they should not curl again.

I personally like the etched foils a lot more than traditional foils.

" 'Hella' Curled"!🤣 Accurate and good use of the word. Keep it up prof

New secret lair video alert!!! New secret lair video alert!!! New secret lair video alert!!!

Could call videos like this “after hours” it’s very laid back and relaxed great video as always!!

Hearing the joy in your voice when you said this Felwar Stone is for Brian brought a smile to my face

Love the video format and the analysis. Thanks for your thoughts Prof!

Hey Prof, random viewer from Switzerland here. This is unrelated to the video but I just got my deckbox from your kickstarter and I love it, thanks a lot!🥳

Hey prof my post didn't upload on the TCC reddit but I just received my Acedamic and I wanted to say thank you To you and your team at TCC Keep it up to good work

After so many ads... I finally bought some raycons. Well done professor.

I have been so dissatisfied with foils that I have just gotten rid if as many as possible. My Masterpiece Ornithopter (which isn't too curled) and my Secret Lair Ornithopter (which is unplayable curled) don't have nonfoiled artwork available which is sad. So I haven't replaced them yet

OH MY GOD an episode with Erik Charles Nielsen (Garrett) would be the greatest thing ever. That actor is hilarious, Community is my favorite piece of media of all time. I would love to see him play, but even just having him talk would be cool.

The etched foils are some of my favorite cards. I really hope we see more of them.

I always figured the 'Secret Lair Alert' skits were all about the frequency. I always got the idea that your opinion on them was pretty much 'some are good, some are bad but there are too many' :)

Luv ya prof !!! Keep hitting us with your great content !!😊

Thank you for the deck box!!!! Bought two of them and love them!!

37 minutes? Hell yeah, love the long videos Prof.

Patiently waiting for the Prof secret lair

Loved the video prof! Speaking of DMR collector foils I bought a box and can say they look absolutely STUNNING. I was however very disappointed with the curling. Where I am is not excessively arid or humid and the curling was slightly worse than the traditional foils shown around 16:00. It’s a lot of money to spend for the frustration that curling causes when sleeving, shuffling, storing, playing, and just appreciating the cards. WotC makes money hand over fist and the idea that their product is not some technological achievement in the scale and quality of printmaking speaks to their prioritization of the wrong kind of paper

I liked Secret Lairs at their introduction. An end of the year super drop with various themes. Initially I thought they would continue like this, like over the year artist at Wizards would be able to experiment with cards, and at the end of the year they would do another drop. It wasn't until Secret Lairs became abundant and constant that I started to hate it as a product line. It just adds to the product fatigue, and it makes me not want to buy any secret lair, because what if next month there is a better one!

I love the art of the. talismans. I picked up a talisman of dominance for my Wilhelt commander deck. Beautiful.

Thank you for the great video and review Professor. Even though I haven't bought and probably will not buy any secret lairs, I gotta say I love the trade-off of reflectiveness vs curling. I prefer to get alternative art styles more than foils and most of all the borderless style. But I would rather have all my cards non-foil and simple art than have them curl. Old or new cards, I like to be using them in good quality sleeves as a battle deck so the curling actually ruins their use in the deck. So yes, less curling over more reflectiveness 100%.

Actually love the pacing of this video. It was nice to chill out as I get ready for bed

I really agree with the basic land sentiment. I would love to get more in the bundle. I also think that a possible nice option would be to buy bundles buy color. a pack that is 10 of just one basic for example. It would be really nice for folk wanting them for specific commander decks knowing you don't need ALL the basics.

Enjoyed hearing your unscripted thoughts on these! They've definitely improved the foils since the earlier iterations, despite them still curling. Aside from non-curling foils, my other Secret Lair wishlist item is that they stop including basic lands as the secret bonus card. I'll take a Sliver any day of the week!

That tireless tracker is straight adorable. Gonna have to buy that now

The arts are great, but yeah with the values in question it turns out to be kinda subjective on what you want of each secret lair. Great video prof.

Love this opinion piece. Also you have to start the pull from the left. If you start from the right, it will break.

I prefer the shininess of traditional foils over etched foils 🌞💛

On the subject of foils, I vastly prefer the Etched foils from some of the secret lairs and commander legends over current foils or even some of the new variants of etched foils. However, there will always be a soft spot in my heart for classic foils. When they do retro border cards and they foil them correctly I love it. I run all foil basics in my Windgrace deck and I use Mercadian Masques foils.

it would be so awesome if you could get eric on, id love to hear him talk about literally anything

Would love to see Erik on an episode of Dies to Removal or even Shuffle Up and Play.

I like the quality of the foils from Dominaria Remastered. They had a mild shine to them that looked luxurious and classy to me.

Bought the Talisman collection as well, it is a surprisingly great print.

Hey Prof, Would love to see an updated Sliver Overlord deck tech!!

100% agree about basic land offerings. Granted I proxy 99% of the cards I play with through a professional printer, and as a digital artist I can drop in whatever art I want... I realize not everyone else can do this. And with any 3-color commander deck I typically run 6 of each basic land, that put someone who wants a specific art currently into needing to buy about a half dozen of them just to build a deck. In almost every format, you need multiple basic lands in your decks, so offering several printings of the art style should be the norm so people can actually use them in their decks.

Thank you professor for the great deckbox.i Iove it

I do enjoy some of the foil etched cards Queen Marchesa is one of my favorites

I freaking love your tie!

Regarding the question about preferred foiling method: since foils are not special any more, I'd rather have no foiling at all so I can best enjoy the art ^^

Great work, Prof!

I keep staring at the street fighter secret lairs but like I'm worried about curling and its literally the only reason I'm second guessing it and this kind of plays into what this video is about.

Don't forget that the Stranger Things were also printed in SLDs, and then got Universes Within versions too.

i dont know this guy he dont know me but he has almost the same flavour of good cards / good looking card then myself.. a true magic enjoyer with a great eye for beautiful cards

My Thalia Secret Lair foils are comically curled, to the point of being pringles EDIT: After finishing the video, definitely thought it was a well balanced, honest set of statements about how Secret Lairs have improved while still having some way to go.

The elder dragons aren't traditional foils, they're the more expensive set that uses the stained glass foiling treatment from dominaria united

I really like the newer style foils. I've been lucky to get a few older style foils from friends and I love the shiny, but the new style is sleek and has a really nice feel. The idea they curl less is nice too, though I haven't played long enough to see that become and issue yet.

I think some of them might be worth it. To me at least, some looks real good. For instance: I am making 5 tribal decks for EDH. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 color, for fun. Looking over my old love, of Oona, quuen of the fae's Faerie deck, I see she have a special edition, as well as Bitterblossom, and several other Fae staples I had back then, with borderless, special artwork, that's just stunning. Most of them from these secret lair drops. I have handled enough borderless now, to say that I love those greatly, over regular ones, so to me they are worth it, and I will be getting those. The deck will be more expensive, but the looks do matter.

I used to enjoy getting foils for their (perceived) rarity, but I've since decided I'd rather have my whole deck in a single style and it's cheaper to do that with non-foils. However, I do like the less shiny etched foiling, so I might come around to picking up a few of those eventually.

I came from yugioh and Pokémon and it’s insane the quality difference between a standard non-promo Pokémon/magic foil and that of collectors booster promo from a couple years ago

I love wacky art on magic cards. I got the extra life Craterhoof secret lair. I love using the children's art versions.

You should try and get garret on an episode of shuffle up and play and do something beginner friendly like jump start or card kingdom battle decks. I love community so it would be an interesting crossover!

I actually really love the etched foil. My only concern about it is how dark the art can be. But doing a border only etch would be very cool as well.

For me personally, the best foils I've ever seen in MTG are those that have been in recent Collector Boosters - not just Dominaria Remastered (although those are great) but in All Will Be One as well. The card quality is higher for sure, but you can also tell that the foiling is slightly muted - it doesn't have the ultra metallic luster, and it just seems to blend with the color on the art card better rather than just glaring. Interesting side note: in DMR, the retro foils from the Collector Boosters are different than the same card retro foil from Draft Boosters - CB retro foils don't have foiling on the art while Draft do. Also, it's interesting that curling isn't a new thing. I recently ordered a foil set of the panorama basic lands from Champions of Kamigawa (20 total cards from a bunch of different sellers) and they curl pretty bad, albeit in the other direction. Same is true for some of the Shadowmoor foils.

That's basically where my thoughts are at. They're very much "Are these some of your favorite cards? Here they are with new art and even in foil for the first time" If you like it (and have the money to spend on it) then get it. On Foils. . I actually like the etched foiling even more than the full foil treatment. . .I think it has the effect of giving the cards a little gilding without being completed foiled and it looks better in my opinion. Weirdly most of the older foils in my bulk seem to have very little curl. . . nothing that a sleeve (if I bothered) wouldn't deal with if people were grumbly about it. Land Drops. . .just. . .let us buy land packs already. People absolutely want to bling on their decks with awesome art for their lands. . . let us buy them in bulk at $0.50-$1.00 a piece depending on treatment. I think it sucks that Ichor lands were released in such a limited fashion. . .if full arts are going to offered alongside (sometimes with multiple treatments themselves) why keep stripped basics at all? The full art and phyrexian lands for ONE were amazing.

Etched foils wouldn't really have a reason to curl, ever (unless you do something to the cardboard itself that warps it) because what makes the cards that use the traditional foiling process curl is their foil layer: a shiny, metallic holographic sticker, affixed to cardboard backing, that the artwork is then printed on top of, with the layers of ink applied lightly enough that light gets through the ink to reflect off that holographic backing (the parts where the card isn't shiny are just where enough layers of ink are applied to make them fully opaque, the entire face of the card from edge to edge is the part that's shiny). If you've ever seen a custom foil card someone's made using the "foil peel" technique, what they were doing was physically separating that sticker from the cardboard, and washing away the ink printed onto it, to apply their own art. The cardboard backing absorbing/releasing moisture causes it to expand/shrink, but because there's a sticker on the one side that doesn't expand or contract at that same rate, the card bends up or bends down, depending on whether it's too much or too little moisture that cause the curl in the first place (modern card curling, out of the package, is nearly always the "dry curl", aka, being caused by the cards having been printed in an exceedingly moist environment initially, and then leaching that moisture out, and shrinking, when moved to drier climates - the sort where cards curl because you're in the humid environment, and they were printed in a mostly dry climate, is where the edges curl up towards you as you look at the card face). With etched foils, what's making the shiny parts of the card reflective of light is specialized metallic ink, chemically etched onto the card face directly (hence the name), so there's nothing there to make the card curl when the cardboard takes on or releases moisture.