EDITOR'S NOTE: Apologies on the lateness of this series.  While the first impressions are meant to be posted right after a set comes out, circumstances didn't work out that way -- even despite cpn's article being written quickly after the release of Future Sight.  However, this series is a good read if you like MDV's perspective of set reviews. ~Streetz~

Welcome to First Impressions for Future Sight! This is an article all about looking at the most recent set that Wizards has put out (well, second most recent counting 10th). Now I'm going to have to point this out; I do look at cards very critically. As a casual player not only do I look for the strongest power possible, but I like to keep it flavorful. I'm one of the most active in the Rumor Mill here on MDV as well. Oh, by the way, this is the third part of this series; colorless/multicolor and White were covered in parts 1 and 2, respectively.

Arcanum Wings 1U
Enchantment – Aura (Uncommon)
Enchant Creature
Enchanted Creature has Flying
Aura Swap 2U (2U: Exchange this Aura with an Aura card in your hand)

Ok, for one more mana we get a slightly better Flight. That's fine, nothing big here, but Aura Swap is interesting since it can turn Arcanum Wings into Fool's Demise (or any other aura you happen to have in your hand). Really nothing special here other than the Aura Swap mechanic which might be a viable thing to see later down the line.

Grade: C – Average, but nothing new other than a mechanic that frankly would be more interesting on a better card.

Aven Augur 3U
Creature – Bird Wizard (Common)
Flying
Sacrifice <THIS>: Return up to two target creatures to their owners' hands. Play this ability only during you upkeep
[2/2]

The Blue creature of the Auger cycle for Future Sight. Really, the whole cycle feels like down-graded Magi, but that's just a flavor thing there. I like the double Unsummon on it, but it’s only on the upkeep which makes it seem really weak to me. Blue isn't the top of the line in recursion, so sacrifice almost means it's not coming back without help from White, Black or Green.

Grade B- -- Good body at the cost, plus a good ability with a slight drawback; good for splashing with recursion elements.

Blind Phantasm 2U
Creature – Illusion {Common}
[2/3]

This is almost a benchmark for most of Blue's creatures in the recent sets; it's a vanilla 2/3 creature, which is rare for Blue to do, and it's in a good tribe for blue. But really, in my opinion they are just throwing a vanilla in to show off the text box free Futureshifted Frame in which I have a big thing against, but that's another article.

Grade C – Average, simple as that, not that Wizards didn't want to throw off the newer player that much more....

Bonded Fetch 2U
Creature – Homunculus {Uncommon}
Defender, haste
TAP: Draw a card, then discard a card
[0/2]

Although a nice card, it won't replace Archivist or Cephalid Looter, and like them all it’s easily in burn range, so I'm not into this card as much. It is a nice card, it just won't stay on the field long enough to get the ability off a second time, though haste assures the first activation whereas Archivist and the Looter could get burned before even that.

Grade B- -- It's a nice card, and it's an OK replacement for the Looter (if you only use the Looter for looting, that is). In the end, it's still a Homunculus, and that counts for something.

Cloudseeder 1U
Creature – Faerie Spellshaper {Uncommon}
Flying
U, TAP, Discard a card: put a 1/1 blue Faerie creature token into play named Cloud Sprite into play with flying and “Cloud Sprite can block only creatures with flying.”
[1/1]

The Future Sight Spellshapers cycle, a part of the block-wide cycle of Spellshapers, gives us this Blue token creature maker. Granted, Blue isn't a normal for making tokens, but that has changed as of late with a few cards. Two mana for a 1/1 flyer isn't that bad, you see that in green (Moon Sprite), but there you don't see the extra Spellshaper ability to make tokens. Flavor is nice bringing Cloud Sprite back into the game, but really it wasn't that great of a card.

Grade B+ -- it's different enough to be usable, in a Mind over Matter deck this might actually find a place if there are no other good options in the builder's mind.

Cryptic Annelid 3U
Creature – Beast {Uncommon}
When <THIS> comes into play, scry 1, then scry 2, then scry 3.
[1 / 4]

Wizards did Scry week a few weeks back, and this card was in EVERY article at least mentioned once, so it's hard to say what I can say about it… oh wait, they compared it to Standard, beautiful.... The possibility of digging 6 cards deep in the deck, not bad. If you’re really having a hard time and getting nothing but lands, this will help much.

Grade A- -- still a good card, even though it's going to get countered.

Delay 1U
Instant {Uncommon}
Counter target spell, remove it from the game with three time counters on it instead of putting it into it's owner's graveyard. If it doesn't have suspend, it gains suspend.

Now this card has something going on. Granted, it’s not much, but it’s something. Personally I'd still use the horde of other viable counterspells before I play this one, unless I have some type of denial combo to set up and really make someone feel bad because of it. The way I put it to my friend, I'll counter your Wrath of God with this, and then in three turns you'll see it happen, but I have three turns to make it useless to you or just regular counter it.

Grade B+ -- it give you time to sit and watch the world go away...

Foresee 3U
Sorcery {Common}
Scry 4, then draw two cards.

It doesn't get any sweeter than this. For 4 mana you look at the top four cards of your library and can choose which two you really want, or go 6 cards deep and toss all four of the Scry'd cards to the bottom and hope the next two are worth it.

Grade A+ -- You'll see this in standard, and in other nice formats other than Casual, but it's just nice to have.

Infiltrator il-Kor 4U
Creature – Kor Rogue {Common}
Shadow
Suspend 2 – 1U
[3/1]

Mediocre. I look at the card and think, only in draft would you pick it other than splashing Black for Trespasser il-Vec. This feels like one of your “last minute makes.”

Grade D- -- Almost a failure, and it would be if it didn't have suspend.

Leaden Fists 2U
Enchantment – Aura {Common}
Flash
Enchant Creature
Enchanted Creature gains +3/+3 and doesn't untap during its controller's untap step.

In Blue's normal fashion (Unstable Mutation, for example), we get a decent-sized boost with a potentially large drawback. Most players will keep Unstable Mutation in decks before they use this card. Oh sure, there’s Flash, but really does that help against the drawback? You could also put it on a defender creature, which your opponent will either kill at instant speed or tap and laugh. I could see this in a Simic deck with Green cards to untap the beast this creates, but then there are better cards in Green that'll do the same thing at a better cost. It is probably better to just stick it on an opponent’s creature at instant speed. As long as they can’t untap it with another card, it’s much better than Dehydration.

Grade C+ -- with Unstable Mutation in the block, this won’t see much (if any) play outside of draft as a type of removal.

Linessa, Zephyr Mage 3U
Legendary Creature – Human Wizard {Rare}
XUU, TAP: Return target creature with CMC of X to its owner's hand
Grandeur – Discard another card named Linessa, Zephyr Mage: Target player returns a creature he or she controls to it's owner's hand, then repeats this process for an artifact, an enchantment, and a land.
[3/3]

Any bounce spell is already better than her with the exception she'll be around next turn (if the opponent doesn't care about her). Her Grandeur ability is nice, really much better than almost every bounce spell out there, but it has a hard time coming to full power unless the opponent plays with every practical card type out there, but it does require you to play more than one copy of her, with a preference of four, and having some type of recursion element to really make her worth the play.

Grade B+ -- at the end of the day, she's a 3/3 for 4 in blue, with two abilities.

Logic Knot XU
Instant {Common}
Delve (You may remove any number of cards in your graveyard from the game as you play this spell. It costs 1 less to play for each card removed this way.)
Counter target spell unless it's controller pays X.

Both useful and a hassle all in one card. Good job, Wizards. This is a late game counter regardless in any mono-Blue deck. Good news, it won't eat up your mana if you have Threshold or better; it'll eat your graveyard instead. This is nice if Land Destruction has been killing you, but it won't save you. If you use it early it'll still cost quite a bit since you want to have more mana than the opponent if you don't have cards in the grave. With Cephalid Looters or even Bonded Fetchs, though, it could be useful.

Grade B- -- better than most of the other X counters, so it'll pass this time.

Maelstrom Djinn 7U
Creature – Djinn {Rare}
Flying
Morph 2U
When <THIS> is turned face up, put two time counters on it, it gains Vanishing
[5/6]

Trash rare, I'll call it now. 7U for a 5/6 flyer isn't a good deal in ANY color, especially where flying is almost the normal for every creature in Blue. At best it's a burn spell in blue for five damage, but it takes one turn as a very vulnerable 2/2 and six mana (three to cast face-down and three more to flip) to do even that.

Grade C – Better suited in Green where a 5/6 flyer would be welcomed with open arms, but in Blue, it's not that good.

Magus of the Future 2UUU
Creature – Human Wizard {Rare}
Play with the top card of your library revealed.
You may play the top card of your library.
[2/3]

I have to say this beats out the original enchantment with the exception that this is now open to the horde of bounce, burn, and creature spot and mass destruction. Of course this has been a block that had a ton of hype and power behind it in its creation, and it seems in this end they have ran out of steam and just went and pulled the bottom of the barrel. “Oh yeah, let's do a creature that does everything that the card Future Sight does in the set named Future Sight.”

Grade C+ -- The Time Spiral Magi were so much cooler... go, go Magus of the Jar!

Mesmeric Sliver 3U
Creature – Sliver {Common}
All Slivers have “When this permanent comes into play, you may Fateseal 1.” (Look at the top two cards of an opponent's library, then put any number of them on the bottom of that player's library and the rest on top in any order.)
[2/2]

Did I ever mention that I wasn't a fan of the teamwork tribe? No? Umm... well I said it now, but this Sliver won't be a problem. It won't see play over its smaller, stronger, more pissed off cousin from Time Spiral Screeching Sliver.

Grade D- -- Sliver Permanent, what were they thinking.

Mystic Speculation U
Sorcery {Uncommon}
Buyback 2, Scry 3

This card screams Utility / Tool Box decks; paying the buyback when you have either open mana or nothing else to play to dig through your deck for the needed cards to set up a bone-breaking win is a pretty good deal. I'm not going to call this card bad, because this card screams Spike, yeah, play me, play me, you know you want to.

Grade A+ -- I don't hand these out like candy, but this one would be nice in my decks. And what? It’s still a good card.

Narcomoeba 1U
Creature – Illusion {Uncommon}
Flying
When <THIS> is put into your graveyard from your library, you may put it into play.
[1/1]

What is this card? an Anti-Mill creature? I don't completely understand it. I had to read it twice to make sure it didn't say something MORE annoying then it does. Roughly, this is just a creature with a weird free play thrown in for fun. It has seen use in the notorious NarcoBridge decks, but outside of that, I can’t see it ever being played.

Grade C+ -- Not a fan of it. It feels like R&D had a meeting and only two people showed up, and neither of them was named Mark.  [Editor's Note -- Best line in any First Impressions article ever! ~Streetz~]

Nix U
Instant {R}
Counter target spell if no mana was spent to play it.

Once more another “almost there” card from Wizards. It has a nice range of countering anything that wasn't paid for via mana, i.e. alternative costs ways around it like Mind Storm or Pitch cards like Sunscour. It can counter the powerful Black Lotus, too, so long as you have one Blue mana. It should have been Uncommon, though.

Grade A- -- Limited use, but it has a wide range within that use. Should have been Uncommon.

Pact of Negation 0
Instant {Rare}
<THIS> is Blue
Counter target spell
At the beginning of your next upkeep pay 3UU. if you don't you lose the game

Ok, before I even review this card, three cycles and you’re out, that's my opinion and I'm sticking to it.

The Blue Pact for FS; it's over-costed if you don't win before your next turn, it's lose the game feeling has a nasty stigma, and it could have been handled differently (something like Illusions of Grandeur would of worked).

Grade F – this card fails everything I hope it could have been. I mean if it was UU on the upkeep then I could see it pushed to a C, but 3UU is horrid even with the stigma of lose the game. Design wise I like the cycle, but too many cycles in one set makes me feel like it won't matter what color I play, I'll get all the same powered cards as the other player next to me.

Before you stop reading and start flaming the discussion thread listen to my reasons for the Grade of Failure. One, it's a 0-cost card, and Nix is in block, come on, in Casual there are a TON of other powerful counterspells that would easily take the place of this Pact. Rewind is one less, and almost makes itself free right there, Remand makes the opponent do it again and hurts tempo while drawing you a card, Delay gives me more time to pull a better counterspell and wreaks the heck out of tempo, and Logic Knot, Rune Snag, and Mana Leak all have a powerful effect in the early game. Oh, and I didn't even mention the other counterspell that works the same way but in reverse and without the lose the game stigma.

Even so, I’m forced to admit that it does have some use in combo decks that rely on playing a huge spell for the win. Since this costs 0, you can tap all your lands without worry and still be protected, and if for some reason you don’t win, chances are it’s late in the game and you’ll be able to pay the 3UU.

Reality Strobe 4UU
Sorcery {Uncommon}
Return target permanent to its owner's hand. Remove <THIS> from the game with three time counters on it.
Suspend 3 - 2U

Not another cycle, I swear to... never mind. Cue the trance music... this is kind of a fun cycle of cards, and this one happens to bounce a card back every three turns which really makes a nasty mark on the opponent's tempo, especially with a Paradox Haze or three and maybe a Reality Acid for good measure.

Grade B+ -- it's a good card, but a cycle of it really isn't needed. Cool, but not needed.

Sarcomite Myr 2U
Artifact Creature – Myr {Common}
2: <THIS> gains flying until end of turn.
2, Sacrifice <THIS>: Draw a card.
[2/1]

It's a blue artifact; that's a bit on the new side. I'm not horribly impressed with it, it's just another Myr for Myr Tribal decks, and this one is kind of nice with Jump and the ability to sac it for a card, so it could have a really weak use, but a good one nonetheless.

Grade C -- it's not bad, but it's more for the chump block and sac for a card routine.

By the way, Tynion already covered this one card since it is an artifact and had this to say about it:

“This card tests your “I have read the rule book.” Have you? If you had, you’d know that nothing about the card matters, except the color of mana used to play the spell, in determining the color of the spell. So while this is an artifact, it is a blue spell and blue permanent.

“203.2. An object is the color or colors of the mana symbols in its mana cost, regardless of the color of its frame.”

I noticed a few cards in this set that really say, “This is an advanced players set.”

Not much to say about the card. It is ‘aight’ I guess.

Grade: C”  ~Tynion~

Second Wind 2U
Enchantment – Aura {Uncommon}
Enchant Creature
TAP: Tap enchanted creature
TAP: Untap enchanted creature.

Wait wait wait, hold up for just one moment, this enchantment TAPS! I'm done... thank you for reading. Actually don't quit reading, keep on reading. I mean I've already gone through 5 cycles of blue cards (Pact, Strobe, Magus, Augur, and Grandeur Legend) and I've seen my fair share of “What the?!” cards (Druid Arbor) and then a few favorites (Even the Odds), but an enchantment that taps?

Grade B+ -- because I don't know what else to say.

Shapeshifter's Marrow 2UU
Enchantment {Common}
At the beginning of each opponent's upkeep that player reveals the top card of his / her library. If it's a creature, that play put the card into his or her graveyard and <THIS> becomes a copy of that card. (If it does, it loses this ability)

Ooh, now this is a card I can get into really quickly for my Clone/Thief deck. At 2UU it’s not a good Clone, but it's slightly more playable. Mix up a Time Ebb and this in the late game for powerful results, or mix it with a next turn Body Double to have two copies of the said tossed card, which could be very very nice.

Grade A – because it got my Johnny Sense tingling.

Spellweaver Volute 3UU
Enchantment – Aura {Rare}
Enchant instant card in a graveyard
Whenever you play a sorcery spell copy the enchanted instant card. You may play the copy without paying its mana cost. If you do, remove the enchanted card from the game and attach <THIS> to another instant card in a graveyard.

This card gets a mixed reaction from me. I like it, and I hate it. I like the fact I'm now able to pull a this out and get one of my Twincast's so the next sorcery (read: Glimpse the Unthinkable) is doubled up, and then I get to play with the opponent’s used instants

Grade A- -- I'm not sure why, but I don't see this in anything less then a theme deck or a mill deck, maybe UR Vore, but that's about it.

Spin into Myth 4U
Instant {Uncommon}
Put target creature on top of its owner's library, then fateseal 2 (Look at the top two cards of an opponent's library, then put any number of them on the bottom of that player's library and the rest on top in any order.)

Ok, it's a bounce and evil scry. Instant-powered bounce, which isn't new, but this time it's over-costed with looking at the (Oh god!) top two cards of that player’s library and messing with them, which isn’t too far out of Blue’s league (Extract), but better fits Black.

Grade D – If I see this card in a deck, it'll be all too soon.

Take Possession 5UU
Enchantment – Aura {Rare}
Split Second
Enchant permanent
You control enchanted permanent.

I dare say, this could be useful. For just one more mana over Confiscate this gains Split Second... if only you could gain some mana acceleration to help you out (hmm… Thran Dynamo?).

Grade A – This might actually take over one of the older thief card’s spots, since it's uncounterable.

Unblinking Bleb 3U
Creature – Illusion {Common}
Morph 2U
When <THIS> or another permanent is turned face up, you may scry 2.
[1/3]

Interesting, but not powerful. It's a good utility card, but it leaves a lot of work to do in order to make it worth while... and maybe some eye drops?

Grade C – it's a fine card, but of Limited use and need, unless you’re playing a Morph deck.

Vedalken Æthermage 1U
Creature Vedalken Wizard {Common}
Flash
When <THIS> comes into play return target Sliver to its owner's hand.
Wizardcycling 3 (3, Discard this card: Search your library for a Wizard card, reveal it, and put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.)
[1 / 2]

Wizards hating Slivers? Really now, is this because of the Riptide? The really sad thing is that it hurts this card to hurt a Sliver, plus come on, is bouncing one Sliver really going to make a difference? And what the heck is up with this newfangled cycling? Cycling was fine as it was, and maybe a bit cooler back in Onslaught block, but really now, {TRIBE}cycling? What's next, Colorcycling? Artifactcycling? Enchantmentcycling? Actually Wizards, don't do that... that would be bad...

Grade D – weak card. Its best use is to discard it.

Venser, Shaper Savant 2UU
Legendary Creature – Human Wizard {Rare}
Flash
When <THIS> comes into play, return target spell or permanent to it's owner's hand.
[2/2]

Ok, Vorthos is going to be pissed; I know my mind is screaming with evil words and thoughts. Flash, that's cool, as a 2/2 for 4 that's really nice in Blue, with the added bonus of powerful bounce, yeah, this card wins that A+ ranking, except its name Venser, and for those who read the books, Venser is an artificer, he's cowardly, hails from Urborg, and he makes machines, not magic. Venser happens to be one of those newfangled Planeswalkers (Neo Planeswalkers) who are mortal flesh and bone, have a limited mana supply (if any at all), and/or can walk the Multiverse like the endless powered ones. In Venser’s case, all he can do is Planeswalk. A) He's a Planeswalker, and B) he's an Artificer, so this gains...

Grade C – all of the above... I'm not one to normally go off on little things like that, but when I feel there is a BIG difference between the book character (which up to this point had been spot on, Teferi was a bit off, but he's now mortal for the most point, so I understand it. Jaya, Jhoira, Akroma (both of them depending how you look at it in the book), Ixidor, Phage, Kamahl, etc.. etc... etc... have all been on the money until now, with Venser.) A) He's a Planeswalker. That fact in itself should have bumped him out, granted he’s not limitless, but still. At least I can say to myself that this is the pre-ascendant Venser, much like Jaya was. B) Artificers are not Wizards. Sure they can work together, and even be the same person, but really, he's an Artificer first and a Wizard second. Well, really a Planeswalker, not even a wizard at that, since he can’t cast spells. Third, he’s from Urborg, and he's BLUE? WTF? I mean sure I can kind of get it from the teleporting perspective, but we have Auger of Skulls (the Skeleton Wizard) who's Black, so Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.

Venser's Diffusion 2U
Instant {Common}
Return target nonland permanent or suspended card to its owner's hand.

What, is there another person in the world of magic named Venser? Because like his card, this Venser-inspired card isn't anything like the book version. 2U for a instant bounce or Suspend Denial, nice, good for the block, maybe even finding its way into casual decks.

Grade B+ -- power overrides flavor this time.

Whip-Spine Drake 3UU
Creature – Drake {Common}
Flying
Morph 2W
[3/3]

3/3 flyer for 5 isn't that bad, the off-color morph kind of threw me as another cycle, but the other cycle is really off-color Flashback, which was a Time Spiral thing, so it’s ok.

Grade C -- Average, but better in a WU Flight Aggro deck or WU Control + Aggro deck.

So as a quick recap of the things I hate about Future Sight:

• Too many Cycles; I think I've now counted 6 cycles. (Magus, Pact, Auger, Grandeur Legend, non-creature Morph, self-suspending sorcery)
• Too many cards that I think they really just pulled randomly from the Multiverse into this set.
• Venser being horribly off flavor from book.

MZ is now back off to the Æther and heading to WotC to complain.

~Michael_Zeora~

You can discuss this article in the MDV forums here.
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Articles Spotlights from 2007:
Lorwyn Theme Week Intro & Schedule of Events
Blink And Bounce: Timing is Key
Going Blind: XCB Metagaming - A Prolonged Conclusion.
The Science of Magic: Genetic Engineering, Part Two.
Shifting Lineaments: Casual Metagaming (Pt. 2).
The Dungeon Of Malefict: Pure Evil!
Land Week Introduction & Schedule.
Combofusion: Legends Timeshifted.
One Card to Rule Them All: Coastal Piracy
Irrational Love: Chimeras. The Lego's of Magic.