Global Series Trailer

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Happy Friday MTG peeps,

We do have some Magic: the Gathering news to report to you on the new Wizards of the Coast product ‘Global Series: Jiang Yanggu vs. Mu Yanling’.  Specifically, we do now have a proper Video Trailer posted over at the Chinese website bilibili.com as well as a product page update over on the mothersite.

First - do pop on over to the trailer posted here.  From the video, redditor waynedu posted an unofficial translation on the two planes walkers -

Jiang Yanggu
He doesn't know his name and family. He named himself Yanggu (literally "vale of sunrise") after the east most vale. To save the Jiuli Clan which is haunted by plague, Yanggu ventured in to the Mountain of Ten Witches for a solution, but find himself acquainted with a mystery lady through battle. With her help, Yanggu tackled the threat of plague. In order to find out who he really is, he went onto the journey of expedition with the lady.

Mu Yanling
In the thundering roar of Kui cattle, violent wave devoured Mu Yanling's homeland. Luckily, she was saved by Lishan the wanderer. But when the two went on the journey to Yunmeng the Great Lake, Lishan suddenly met a bizarre death. Holding Lishan's body, poor desperate Yanling cried and lost consciousness, but when she wake up, Lishan's body is nowhere to be found. Despite the sorrow and shock, it gave Yanling a glimmer of hope - could Lishan be alive?

We will bring more story about the two planeswalkers, please stay tuned.~


From the mothersite :

Jiang Yanggu
If they woke up with no memories, most people would give in to despair and panic. Instead, Yanggu gave himself a new name, grabbed his sentient hound friend, and set off on an epic quest for answers.

Mu Yanling
Unbowed by the losses that have haunted her life, Yanling journeys across worlds, digging for the arcane secrets that might right the wrongs of her past.

This product is really great in its goal to untap a potentially massive yet unexplored and undeveloped market.  We certainly applaud the effort but we think that (from our Canadian viewpoint), the Americans, no matter how deeply they engage their Chinese consultants, this product is not going to be a success.  We think that Wizards will realise that the disappointing response to this product is mostly due to not engaging and tapping into the existing Magic: the Gathering fan base, who do not want anything like this at all, but actually something not at all far removed from the existing products already available. 
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Global Series: Jiang Yanggu vs. Mu Yanling

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Happy Thursday MTG peeps,

We wanted to take a look back at the Valentine's Day Mini–Announcement Day, posted by Blake Rasmussen to pick up on a product announcement which was folded into the article.  Specifically, Global Series: Jiang Yanggu vs. Mu Yanling, aka "GS1".  Here is the original text -

Finally, we're trying something a little new with a pair of Chinese-market-specific Planeswalker Decks featuring new Planeswalkers created particularly for China. Now, don't worry, you'll have an opportunity to get a similar English version of the same product created for international audiences. Both will release on June 22, 2018.

Wizards of the Coast had brought together a team of Chinese artists, writers, and folklorists to craft a brand-new branch of Magic story and play, rooted in Chinese aesthetics and mythology, culminating in two  60-card decks that feature two new Planeswalkers Jiang Yanggu and Mu Yangling, their themes and story.  For an MSRP of $30, here is what you get -

• Two 60-card decks, with 2 foil Planeswalker cards
• One foil double-sided token
• Informational insert

Magic: the Gathering fans speculation to date have focused on themes and stories in line with that provided within Portal Three Kingdoms, released in the Spring of 1999.  This set was designed specifically for the Asian market in mind and focused on the historical tumultuous period of conflict of Wei, Wu, and Shu kingdoms near the end of the Han Dynasty in 184 AD.  Real events such as the Yellow-Scarf Rebellion and Battle of Red Cliffs as well as a host of characters such as Cao Cao, Lord of Wei, Liu Bei, Lord of Shu, and Sun Quan, Lord of Wu, were adapted to cards.

Our personal speculation is that although there may be a nod to Portal Three Kingdoms, we do not expect any reprints (Imperial Recruiter, Imperial Seal, Borrowing 100,000 Arrows, etc.), but would rather see popular myths and stories adapted to the set.  Some fokelore we speculate that may see representation in this set :

•  Sun Wukong - the Monkey King ! Should such a card see print, consider us head over heels with our socks knocked off.

• Moonfolk - not the Kamigawa block, but perhaps something along the line of an immortal Hou Yi and his evil student Feng Meng.

• Nian - A monster with mountain walk or island walk.

• Dragons (a full cycle), Lions (Rui Shi), and a white serpent from Hangzhou.

• A full cycle of 12 Zodiac creatures.

Looking very much forward to the start of previews for Jiang Yanggu vs. Mu Yanling, and even more to any storyline Wizards of the Coast hopefully will have.
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