One of Avatar: The Last Airbender's best episodes receives an exclusive Magic: The Gathering collector's set.

Typically, clip shows are disliked from viewers as a needless diversion, or at best tolerated as a necessity for shows during the period of episodic releases. This wasn't always the situation, though Avatar: The Last Airbender proved it via "The Ember Island Players," a cherished installment from its final season which is now granted an exclusive Magic: The Gathering Secret Lair collection.

Highlights about the Secret Lair

The complete Secret Lair superdrop for the upcoming Avatar: The Last Airbender set was announced earlier this month. It features five Secret Lairs, and although a set named "My Cabbages!" is certainly funny homage to the series' best background character, the additional releases feel a bit uninspired, aside from one remarkable entry: "The Ember Island Players."

Based on installment 17 in the final season of the animated show, this collector's drop features these particular cards:

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

The reason this segment stands out

Audiences of the series fondly remember this episode, which functioned as a summary of the hero Aang and his companions' quest prior to the final episode. Different from standard summary installments, or compilation episodes, "The Ember Island Players" did not stem by budget restrictions or production issues. The producers specifically aimed to give fans a chance to revisit the overall plot, yet they chose to approach it inventively.

In the episode, the heroes view a stage show based on their adventures in a theater located on Ember Island, titled The Boy in the Iceberg. The whole thing is inaccurate, cheesy, and completely amusing. It excels because it plays on the characters' views of themselves, setting them against with how the world (and notably the Fire Nation) views them. It possesses the perfect balance of self-awareness, and it ends up perhaps the finest interpretation of the show we have had.

Worth and availability

When it comes to cost-effectiveness, this is a great Secret Lair because of one major element: Braid of Fire. This particular card is valued between $20 and $40 on various platforms at the time of writing, and for $29.99 you can snag the full set, or $39.99 for the foil version.

Magic's Avatar: The Last Airbender collection can be accessed during early access events beginning November 14 and releases worldwide come November 21.