Kellan Joins Up – Outlaws of Thunder Junction
Date Reviewed: April 29, 2024
Ratings:
Constructed: 3.63
Casual: 4.13
Limited: 3.25
Multiplayer: 3.37
Commander [EDH]: 3.88
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale. 1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
I had a theory that Wilds of Eldraine and the following sets actually take place 20 years or so after March of the Machine, which might explain how Kellan is an adult and how so many famous characters are seemingly suddenly on Thunder Junction. Unfortunately, Chandra still seems to be in her 20s, which means that theory is probably wrong. Unless the designers are deliberately playing it vague, so they can draw whoever they want in whatever hat they feel like.
On that note, there’s no denying that the cowboy hat seems to suit Kellan, and judging by this card’s effect, he’s ready and able to get things done for the gang. Plotting any card has some unexpected advantages, like keeping it out of range of discard and/or presenting a hanging threat to opponents (or, alternately, a distraction). I think there are decks that would gladly play the card just for the legendary creature trigger – we’ve discussed how the Lord of the Rings set really kicked that pseudo-kindred archetype into overdrive, and giving it a permanent boost capability which works with proliferate and the like may do something similar.
Constructed: 3.5
Casual: 4
Limited: 3
Multiplayer: 3.5
Commander [EDH]: 4
Any pernicious posse needs its operatives, and Kellan Joins Up seems to help represent Kellan finally joining forces (temporarily) with his father, Oko. Kellan Joins Up is an interesting sort of planning spell; it lets you plot a card to be used later, and it oft is safer to plot a non-instant than to hold it in hand. If you plot a legendary creature, you can stand to benefit from the passive counter spread pretty quickly…and it’s worth mention that the counters get spread regardless of where the creature came from.
This is a spell that I can see putting in work, though the mana cost being three colors can definitely be an issue. That said, this is in the color triad with abundant flickering effects, and this can definitely be used to get a nice discount down the line. There’s a lot of subtlety to this card, and I’m interested to see where it lands ultimately.
Constructed: 3.75 (the mana cost might be an issue, but I think the mana fixing is good enough)
Casual: 4.25
Limited: 3.5
Multiplayer: 3.25
Commander [EDH]: 3.75
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