Images courtesy of Wizards of the Coast
Back in February, The Command Zone announced the Magic: The Gathering cinematic universe (MTGCU). Hasbro Entertainment and Legendary Entertainment announced their plan to collaborate on a Magic film. A television series is also in the works. However, because these plans are so tentative, fans are left pondering: what should the film be about?
Well, fret not, because we have some ideas that might work! Magic is such a rich and storyline-diverse property that there will surely be something that fits a cinematic universe. Let’s explore these possibilities with a list of five possible options for the first arc of the MTGCU.
#5. Post-March of the Machine (Omenpath Arc)
The first option that we can explore is the storyline post-March of the Machine. This avenue is full of certain tropes that would make it ripe for the picking for a television series. The aftermath of the Phyrexian Invasion is a big deal to players right now, and it would be logical for Hasbro and Legendary to capitalize on this.
However, the main issue that stops it from being a good fit is that the “many hats for many planes” concept doesn’t translate well to a single film. The Magic: The Gathering movie is set to come first. As such, there should feasibly be a better fit for a live-action cinematic universe to debut with.
#4. The Weatherlight Saga
Next, let’s take a look at the Weatherlight Saga. This epic of Magic‘s past is an amazing story, rich with the kind of slow-burn that would translate well to both a film series and a television series.
You could get many films and many seasons of long-form TV out of Urza’s fight against the forces of old Phyrexia. This option also allows for later arcs to spawn. The issue? It may be a bit too long. Unless Hasbro Entertainment and Legendary Entertainment are prepared for the long haul, this isn’t very feasible.
#3. The Gatewatch & the Bolas Arc
It’s no surprise that the Gatewatch is heavily inspired by the superhero film craze of the past couple of decades. It’s also one that came from a renaissance of sorts for Magic: The Gathering, where many people were joining the game at a record pace. As such, we could see this story being picked as the debut film and television story for the MTGCU.
The trouble is, many enfranchised players felt that the Gatewatch storyline was shoehorned into too many Magic sets. This could remove credibility from the idea’s reliability as a show pitch, especially since the MCU is already doing all of this and more.
#2. March of the Machine
New Phyrexia’s invasion of the multiverse is a huge deal. It also has very similar positives to the same concept pitches as above. It features an old foe in the Phyrexians, an elite team of planeswalkers to face them, and leads to the Omenpath arc. There’s a lot of good to come from this idea.
However, the issue with this pitch may come from the budgetary constraints that Hasbro and Legendary are most assured to face. The New Phyrexians will likely need to be created with massive special effects costs, and even one Praetor is going to cost an arm and a well-oiled leg. Do they really want to spend that much for their debut entry in this cinematic universe? Ask The Mummy (2017).
Time will tell whether they have that much faith in this idea, and maybe my cynicism will prove inaccurate, but I don’t think this’ll happen.
As for the best option for a pre-told story to adapt into the MTGCU, my answer may surprise you.
#1. The Magic: The Gathering Movie Should Be…
The Mirari Cycle!
Believe it or not, the Mirari Cycle consists of not only the Odyssey and Onslaught blocks, but the Mirrodin and Time Spiral blocks as well. The main story is self-contained enough for two to three films, and can easily set up both Nicol Bolas’ return and the March of the Machine.
The characters in Odyssey and Onslaught are renowned in the pre-Mending Magic canon. They recur time and time again in sets that reference past characters. It only makes sense for such an epic story to be the focal point of the MTGCU.
The story also has a few opportunities for microseries spin-offs in the form of Karona‘s sojourns across the multiverse. These journeys can be applied once the films yield a reasonable amount of commercial success. After this, Hasbro and Legendary can use the microseries to tease Moons of Mirrodin and possibly also the Time Spiral story.
Of course, this list should be taken with more than a pinch of salt. It’s certainly wishful; please feel free to disregard my own biases for the #1 pick.
But now, let’s hear from you. Are you excited for the Magic: The Gathering cinematic universe? What pre-established story arcs would make for a good adaptation? Sound off below!
Want more predictions? Check out our guesses at what will come in the upcoming Spider-Man / MTG crossover.
