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Usually, summary installments are loathed from viewers as a pointless diversion, or at best tolerated as essential in television in the age of weekly production. This wasn't always the situation, but Avatar: The Last Airbender proved it with "The Ember Island Players," a popular episode in its last season now being receiving a dedicated Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair collection.

Highlights of the Secret Lair

The full Secret Lair superdrop for the soon-to-release Avatar: The Last Airbender set was announced earlier this month. Containing five separate collections, and even though one titled "My Cabbages!" is clearly funny homage to the series' best background character, the other collections appear slightly uninspired, with one notable exception: "The Ember Island Players."

Based on the seventeenth episode in the final season of the beloved series, this collector's drop features these particular cards:

• 1x Phantasmal Image as "Absolutely Accurate Actor"
• 1x Braid of Fire
• 1x Cursed Mirror
• 1x Mask of Memory
• 1x Thespian's Stage

What makes this installment remains memorable

Viewers of the show clearly recall this installment, which functioned as a summary of the protagonist Aang and the group's adventure before the series' finale. Unlike typical clip shows, or retrospective segments, "The Ember Island Players" wasn't motivated due to production constraints or production issues. The creators specifically aimed to provide audiences an opportunity to reflect on the overall plot, but they decided to approach it inventively.

Throughout the segment, the heroes view a play depicting their exploits in a theater located on Ember Island, titled The Boy in the Iceberg. The entire performance is wildly exaggerated, over-the-top, and utterly comical. It succeeds because it plays with the characters' perception of themselves, setting them against with how the world (and particularly the Fire Nation) sees them. It has the perfect balance of self-awareness, and it results in arguably the finest interpretation of Avatar available to date.

Appeal and availability

In terms of value, this offers a fantastic Secret Lair because of one major element: Braid of Fire. This specific card trades for $20 and $40 on various platforms currently, and for $29.99 you can acquire the complete collection, or alternatively $39.99 for the foil version.

Magic: The Gathering's Avatar: The Last Airbender edition can be accessed for advance previews beginning November 14 and releases worldwide come November 21.