Marvel's Spider-Man is here at last and that means it's time for yet another Pauper set review once again! Edge of Eternities was a surprisingly lower impact set than many players expected it to be given the cards it offered, so will this smaller Universes Beyond release have the goods to shake things up? We'll just have to dive in and check the set out!

As a note before I get going, though, I am only using the paper cards from Marvel's Spider-Man for the sake of this discussion. Many readers will likely be looking for the Through the Omenpaths equivalents since that's what Magic Online - the premiere choice of Pauper play for many - will use. However, it makes this sort of write-up a bit too chaotic so I'm drawing the line in the sand and just going with the one we can most easily look at for the time being.

With that, let's get to the review!

Let's kick things off with a simple one: the five SPE (Marvel's Spider-Man Eternal Legal) cards. There's only five of these and, frankly, none of them are all that good. They're made for new player Welcome Decks and the quality shows in this regard. They have a rate meant more for new player accessibility and not serious Constructed play. If you read Twisted Spider-Clone, it seems like it might be the one potentially good card for a dedicated counters deck, but why would you want to play it when Bloom Hulk exists?

Next up I want to talk about probably the one thing some people have been talking about: the ten common legendaries in the main Marvel's Spider-Man set. This is breaking some new territory by modern Magic sensibilities. The last time we got common legendary creatures on this scale was Chronicles and - somewhat by extension - the Magic Online-exclusive Master's Edition sets. In the time since then we've seen exactly one other common legend: Skoa, Embermage in Modern Horizons 3. All of them are pretty rough for a format like Pauper.

Since the downshift of Cast Down in Double Masters, it's become one of the format's best removal spells thanks to effectively reading "Destroy target creature" for two mana. It's hard to beat that rate if you're in Black and has made it tough to compete with. Now that we have some new common legends, is it looking like Cast Down may no longer be the go-to?

A few of these stand out to me more than the others. Spider-Man, Web-Slinger is a pretty easy one for something like White Weenies or even perhaps Kor Skyfisher/Glint Hawk decks. You can pick up cheap creatures for good value this way and still have a cheap, affordable 3/3 on the board. It's not something you'll want to go deep on, but one or two copies goes a long way. I feel pretty similarly with Swarm, Being of Bees. This one is pretty damn comparable to Kitchen Imp and while it's largely worse with the lack of haste, it adds another cheap option for Madness decks that like the Imp.

I also like Spider-Man, Brooklyn Visionary as a sweet creature. The rate is pretty solid if you can cast it with web-slinging and best of all it ramps you a bit as well. That's huge, especially if the creature you bounce is either cheap or has a good ETB effect. Spider-Gwen, Free Spirit also provides a sweet amount of rummage value if you tap her for any reason, which is solid. The downside is that it's not uncommon that you play her and she dies before you can generate any value.

There's also outside chances for cards like Doc Ock, Sinister Scientist; Stegron the Dinosaur Man, and Spider-Rex, Daring Dino. All of them are pretty big threats that can be somewhat hard to deal with. Sure Spider-Rex is basically just a glorified Colossal Dreadmaw, but at least this one has a bit more punch with a relevant ward ability. Stegron might see the most potential thanks to offering a pump option in the event that you can't cast it outright, but even then, I'm skeptical.

There's also one particularly notable cycle of new dual lands. These act as sort of allied color versions of the Strixhaven common duals, only instead of scrying, they surveil. That certainly makes them quite a bit better than their enemy color versions if you're playing these colors. The Strixhaven ones only showed up rarely, so it'll be interesting to see if these ones see a bit more play thanks to the utility of surveil.

From here, we're going to look at several individual cards. I'm not touching the individual mechanics since I either already did (all the web-slingers are legendary) or there's only two cards with the mechanic (mayhem). If I feel that the cards are worth covering, I'll talk about them then. With that said, let's get to looking over the rest of the set.

Amazing Acrobatics

Cancel sucks and tapping creatures with one spell also sucks. Put them together for 3 mana, though? That kind of rocks, actually. Given that other Cancel-plus options like Dissolve and Sinister Sabotage don't see play, I'm hesitant to say that this will. However, there could be some merit to the comparison to something like Cryptic Command, and it could play quite a bit better than it seems for the rate.

Angry Rabble

Given the texture of the format right now, I'm not sure that this can realistically be particularly useful. Still, it's not hard to make this generate some solid value. With Gruul Ramp decks, it dishes out some solid damage and can even pay for the counter generating ability as well. It also has some funny little interactions with Affinity cards such as Myr Enforcer, but how much different is that from something like Reckless Fireweaver? There's cool stuff happening here, but probably not enough to make the cut.

Bagel and Schmear

Candy Trail has seen some play here and there and there's some amount of comparability here. Obviously, the lack of scry is likely to be a nonstarter for many, but the option to give a +1/+1 counter boost over the life gain gives it a bit more reach. It really depends on what your deck is trying to do, but it's certainly a card that can see some play.

City Pigeon

Cards that are more or less just Suntail Hawks with upside don't exactly see much play in Pauper. However, this gives you an artifact when it leaves play, which counts for a lot. It's important to note that it says "leaves the battlefield" rather than "dies" so you can accrue some sweet value from the likes of Kor Skyfisher. Overall, though, I'm pretty cool on this one. Cryogen Relic hasn't really made the mark most expected and as such, it makes me less certain that this ends up being a big deal either.

Daily Bugle Reporters

We've been seeing the two +1/+1 counters on a lot of medium creatures like this lately and they haven't done a lot. However, this one is a bit more notable for the flexibility in getting to bring back a small creature from the graveyard instead. That gives it some pretty sweet versatility as a top-end option for something like White Weenies, though at four mana it's probably going to be a tough sell for most decks.

Doc Ock's Henchmen

Repeatable conniving rules and casting this on an opponent's end step really makes up for those questionable stats. Still, even if you get a solid attack in and can put a counter on it, it still dies to a stiff breeze against most instances of removal and blockers in the format, so I'd say I'm not super high on its prospects.

Eerie Gravestone

Two mana artifacts that cantrip on entry are a staple of Pauper, so hey, what's another one? This one probably can fit into certain self-mill strategies fairly reasonably, provided you're using it in a deck with Black in it. It's got some pretty stiff competition overall, though, so I'd probably look at other cards unless you're looking for something specifically in a self-mill archetype.

Gallant Citizen

It's another Elvish Visionary like Spirited Companion and Pond Prophet. Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, most of these see little to no play aside from Spirited Companion which has relevance in Bogles on occasion. This lacks the synergistic uses and as such, likely ends up just being irrelevant outside of more fringe builds of select decks players try to play.

Hot Dog Cart

Three mana value mana rocks suck in most Constructed contexts, but getting two artifacts is never a bad thing. Still, most decks that want that double artifact value want it at one or two mana, and as such, this probably goes nowhere.

Lurking Lizards

This one is sort of what Angry Rabble wants to be, I think. Whereas that one gives you some value for casting high mana value spells but you have to pay for the counters, this one just gives you the counters for casting those spells instead. I think it's far better to have a permanent pump compared to the pinging since it essentially creates more damage in the long-term anyways. Couple that with a solid butt out of the gate and you've got a pretty solid creature. Definitely one I'm interested in seeing if it goes anywhere.

Masked Meower

I saw some comments about this possibly replacing Insolent Neonate in Madness Burn lists but, uh, are we looking at the same decks? The Neonate definitely doesn't see play there, as Voldaren Epicure is by and large just better. In the case of Red Dredge, though, sure I could buy this being a better option. There may even be some amount of comparisons with this and Epicure since here you don't need to pay mana for the discard, though the tradeoff is losing your creature. Good card, definitely acts as a solid role-player in the format, but not a slam dunk option.

Merciless Enforcers

It's another game ender option over the likes of Bloodrite Invoker and Valakut Invoker for something like Walls Combo. I like this one a bit more, though, as you can deal the damage incrementally more easily if you're unable to combo off with it, and you still gain life as well with each hit. Very niche uses, but a great option for those uses.

Mob Lookout

The fact that this doesn't just connive itself but connives a creature you control gives it some modest flexibility. If you target another creature then get a bigger body, looting value, and you still have a modest blocker. If you have to have this target itself, you still end up with the looting value and a really good blocker that chips away at small creatures. It'd need to find the right home, but there's enough going on here to like it.

Oscorp Research Team

Third Path Savant is probably just going to be better most of the time since it doesn't need the colored mana to activate, draws you three cards per activation, and only costs three mana to cast. However, this one is a lot more resilient to removal so it's not outright better, but in general the older card is just going to suit you fine.

Passenger Ferry

There's enough rate here for a big threat that can also push other big threats through. I like that, but I'm still not sure I like a three mana vehicle that basically does nothing when you cast it. Probably doesn't see play anywhere.

Pumpkin Bombardment

Burn spells that only hit creatures usually don't make it in a format like Pauper. There is, however, a little thing called Madness Burn that could take some advantage of this. Sure Lightning Axe exists, but this can be better in the situations where you simply don't have anything to discard. It probably doesn't make the cut given the existing card quality of that deck, but it could potentially show up from time to time if the meta calls for it.

Risky Research

I like mentioning these effects because they do have some history in the format, but that history has obviously long past. This is a functional reprint of Diresight, and that is seeing exactly zero play in the format.

Romantic Rendezvous

At first I thought this was just another Tormenting Voice, but then I read it again. If this is your last card in your hand, then congratulations - it just says "draw two cards." That's a really big deal given the impact cards like Reckless Impulse and Wrenn's Resolve had on the format. It does require you to have no hand to get the most value out of it, but if you can put it in a deck that does that consistently (hello Burn) then this can be extremely good.

Scout the City

Cards like Cache Grab and Seed of Hope have seen nonzero amounts of play in many formats - including Pauper. The uses in Pauper have been pretty niche thus far, but this has some crazy modality to it that can make it a fantastic option for players' toolboxes.

Selfless Police Captain

These types of cards continue to be popular with select subsets of the Pauper player base. They're never a particularly good thing in terms of competitive play, but if you wanna jam it for some more casual or lower stakes gaming, go nuts.

Skyward Spider

The rate on this is pretty good even just at the base level with a 2/2 ward for two mana being rock solid. The fact that it also gains evasion for modifying it slightly really makes it feel a bit pushed. The right deck would need to come along to make it into something and I don't think it has a clear home just yet, but this is one I can certainly see getting played.

Spectacular Tactics

This has to be one of the best modal spells I've seen in a long time. The first mode makes your creature bigger while protecting it from removal spells. The other side is a two mana hard removal spell for big creatures in White. The latter effect interests me the most, taking out stuff like Writhing Chrysalis, Myr Enforcer, Cryptic Serpent, and Avenging Hunter with ease. We haven't seen this effect this cheap at common, so I definitely have to imagine we'll see this show up in the format as a sweet new option in sideboards going forward.

Spider-Islanders

This is a huge beater if you can cast it for its mayhem cost. Which, uh, once again I feel the need to mention that cool Madness Burn deck. This is probably one of the better options to slide in there, offering you a huge threat for cheap. While it lacks the trample of Reckless Wurm, the simple fact that this one costs two mana and not three for its alternate cost is a world of difference in its favor. Consider me a fan.

Spider Manifestation

Two mana value mana dorks aren't exactly what I'm super interested in most of the time. The fact that this can block small fliers and can generate additional mana with multiple high mana value spells, though? That's not too bad! I can't think of a deck that would want this off-hand, but it's got enough going for it that I could see it showing up somewhere at some point.

Spider-Man No More

More of these effects are always welcome, but it's really hard to see this being much better than the likes of Unable to Scream or Bind the Monster.

Steel Wrecking Ball

Runaway Boulder has seen some play in Tron decks and this feels fairly similar in some ways. While it lacks flash, doesn't have the cycle option, and - for what it's worth - hits less, the alternate use is pretty sweet. This one creates a simple meta call: do you want the cantrip or are there enough relevant artifacts in the meta that you want to keep open the option for a Shatter?

Unstable Experiment

This is a great way to see two cards for two mana, but requiring a creature to get that second look can feel like a pretty tall ask depending on the deck.

Venom's Hunger

Right now, this simply isn't worth playing at all. However, it's pretty clear we're getting multiple other Marvel sets which means there's more villains yet to come. As such, this may get more impactful down the line though I'm not super hopeful given the rates in this set.

Vibrant Cityscape

Do you like playing Evolving Wilds or Terramorphic Expanses specifically and want to use New York City as your fetch of choice? Then hey, go nuts with this. For everyone else, move along.

Web Up

Another set, another Banishing Light. That - as well as Oblivion Ring - continue to see no play so it's an easy pass here.

Whoosh!

Speaking of functional reprints, this is just another version of Blink of an Eye and Into the Roil. Those are popular cards for other formats, but not in Pauper, so I wouldn't expect it to show up here.

Wild Pack Squad

Granting both vigilance and first strike is outstanding, but the overall rate is probably way too poor for the Pauper format overall.

For as small as this set was, it turns out there were a lot more interesting cards than I was expecting to see. Many do neat things that will inevitably make it fun to watch what makes the cut as the format settles a bit. We're getting sets on top of sets these days, though, and it won't be long until we get to talk about Avatar: the Last Airbender. With about two months until that one, though, we thankfully have a little time to see how this set plays out in the format.

Paige Smith

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