The hugely popular trading card game Magic: The Gathering (MTG) took players to different magical worlds with over 60 decks of cards, allowing them to engage in battles by summoning monsters and chant spells. The game recently wrapped up a major story set in “March of the Machine: The Aftermath” in May 2023. Since then, the game has revisited different worlds in the Magic universe. .
However, on April 19, MTG went to a whole new world inspired by the Wild West in”Outlaws of Thunder Junction”. To celebrate this new world, MTG Japan posted a promotional video paying homage to the opening theme song “Tank!” from the anime Cowboy Bebop. The video is available to watch on YouTube.
The video features the main characters of the card. However, because MTG is based on fantasy, elements such as Swordfish and firearms are replaced with magical carriages and guns. However, one interesting thing that most people may miss is that most of the text is replaced with tag names and tag effects.
[特報]TVアニメ<#カウボーイビバップ>との奇跡のコラボ──『サンダー・ジャンクションの無法者』がテーマの”オープニングオマージュトレーラー”を、マジック日本公式YouTubeにて特別公開!!
📺 https://t.co/FtynWd9r0Q
記念キャンペーン情報は⬇️https://t. co/RAeLGnXZ9N#CowboyBebop #mtgjp pic.twitter.com/5DgF08DHzU
— マジック:ザ・ギャザリング (@mtgjp) April 19, 2024
[Thông báo đặc biệt] Magical collaboration with TV anime<#カウボーイビバップ [Cowboy Bebop]>──The “Homily Opening Trailer” of “Outlaws of Thunder Junction” is now available on Magic Japan's official YouTube channel!!
📺 https://youtube.com/watch?v=2KcFKj14cYo
For information about the anniversary campaign, see ⬇️
https://mtg-jp.com/otj/
#CowboyBebop #mtgjp
A set of five Cowboy Bebop themed special promo cards: “Ossification” will ship from August 2 to September 19, “Disdainful Stroke” from September 27 to November 7, “Going in the Throat” from November 15, 2024 to January 30, 2025, “Lightning” from February 7 to March 2, 2025 and “Snake Skin” from April 4 to May 29, 2025.
Image via MTG
According to the MTG Japan website, the company is running several campaigns featuring trailers inspired by Cowboy Bebop.
In the first campaign, 1,000 MTG players and collectors will have the chance to win a playmat or card case with the purchase of 3,000 yen (about US$19.40) worth of unopened MTG products from participating Wizard Play Network (WPN) stores between April 26, 2024 and March 31, 2025. However, players and collectors must purchase cards from sets released later January 2021. Along with that, fans will also receive a random postcard based on the playmat and card sleeve with a 3,000 yen purchase. There is no mention of what MTG set must be purchased to receive the postcards.
Image via MTG Japan
©1998 Bandai Namco Music Live Inc. ©SUNRISE ©2024 Wizards of the Coast LLC
Fans will also receive a “Thunder Junction” sticker when purchasing 3,000 yen worth of unopened MTG products from WPN stores and participating in Friday Night Magic events.
Image via MTG Japan
©1998 Bandai Namco Music Live Inc. ©SUNRISE ©2024 Wizards by Coast LLC
Finally, players will receive an original playmat if they participate in the Japan Standard Cup”Outlaws of Thunder Junction”, Playmat Challenge/Pioneer/Modern and Magic Arena Best of One Standard tournaments at the Aichi Players Convention 2024 at the Aichi Sky Expo in Aichi Prefecture, Japan from May 25 to 26. The playmat's design is modeled after the final cut before the title appears in the Cowboy Bebop opening theme with the characters MTG Oko the Ringleader, Rakdos the Muscle, Vraska the Silencer and Kellan the Kid replace Spike Spiegel, Jet Black, Faye Valentine and Ed, respectively.
Image via Magic
©1998 Bandai Namco Music Live Inc. ©SUNRISE ©2024 Wizards of the Coast LLC
The full tag list for “Thunder Junction” is available on the MTG homepage for those who are curious. Unfortunately, the collaborative merchandise is only available in Japan. However, this collaboration helps celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Cowboy Bebop anime and the 30th anniversary of MTG.
Sources: Magic: The Gathering Japan website (link 2, link 3, link 4), game Magic: The Gathering website, Magic: The Gathering Japan's X/Twitter account and YouTube channel, Magic: The Gathering, Comic Natalie