Why Do the Cats and Dogs in the Newest Secret Lair Look So Cute?
General forum
Posted on March 23, 2025, 4:58 p.m. by DemonDragonJ
WotC recently revealed the newest Secret Lair: Cats versus Dogs, and I severely dislike how the animals depicted are domesticated and sickeningly cute; M:tG is a game of conflict and battle, so I wish to see fierce and aggressive cats and dogs, animals that look as if they can kill other animals with ease, and I hope that other players share my opinion, on this matter. I would like to emphasize that I understand that everyone has their own opinions, on this matter, so I am not saying that there is anything wrong with being fond of cute animals, only that I believe that cute animals are out of place in a game about conflict and combat.
What does everyone else say, about this? Why are the cats and dogs in the newest secret lair so cute? I certainly am interested to hear your opinions, on this subject.
DemonDragonJ says... #3
Crow_Umbra, that makes perfect sense, so I certainly appreciate your explanation.
March 23, 2025 5:11 p.m.
Counterpoint, the dog familiar fetching a bone for their necromancer master was so cute it explored a new flavor of mtg I hadn't thought of previously. So secret Lair gives us new opportunities for flavor I enjoy even if I don't enjoy the concept of SL itself.
Also, fwiw mtg is not all just about battle Lore wise. They build some pretty rich worlds where we see all kinds of magic that isn't just combat. I like seeing complexity like that
Crow_Umbra says... #2
One of the major selling points of Secret Lairs is that they're for alternate art styles that we wouldn't typically see in main-line sets. I know that trend has blurred a bit more with recent art treatments in some sets like Aetherdrift.
Regardless, I don't think it's entirely out of the question for Secret Lairs to be where WotC does cutesy, weird, or offbeat stuff that they wouldn't typically do. You aren't the target audience for that product, and that's okay.
People like cute things, and the novelty of it being a change of pace from the typical tone of MtG is probably a selling point for some.
I was planning on picking up the Beagle Basilisk Collar as a single, since I had a couple of Beagles growing up. Today would have been their 17th birthdays.
March 23, 2025 5:09 p.m.