Who is the Best of the Best? It is always a debate on whether or not Michael Jordan is the best or Jerry Rice. In this article, I will attempt to tackle that question when it comes to Magic: the Gathering in the 2000s. I will be going through each Magic set created in the decade and will select the best five cards (in my opinion) from each. Then, in a follow up article, I will put in order the best card from each set, giving you -- in my opinion -- the top cards from the decade. Having not generated the list as I compose this introduction paragraph, I am excited to see how that shakes things up and makes for an interesting list. Keeping in mind that there are sets out there that have multiple GOOD cards, only accepting one card per set can make it a very interesting list. Let's see how that influences my Best of the Best MTG 2000s wrap up!

---

Special Mentions: None... Overall bad set.

Note: Tangle Wire... What a mess that was. If you didn't experience a Tangle Wire deck, count your blessings. Sure, it was slightly less annoying than Stasis, but only slightly.

---

Special Mentions: Greel, Mind Raker, Jolrael, Empress of Beasts, and Avatar of Will.

Sorry, this set was pretty damn poor. The Mageta Series and Avatar Series pretty much sums it up. Bring on Odyssey.

---

Special Mentions: Collective Restraint, Legendary Dragons, Plague Spitter, Planar Portal, Probe, Pyre Zombie, Recoil, Route, Skizzik, Sterling Grove, Undermine, Urza's Guilt, Void, and Washout

Note: A tremendous step in the right direction. The Masques block was terrible.

---

Special Mentions: Battle Mage Series, Familiars Series, Planeswalker Series, Cavern Harpy, Draco, Eladamri's Call, Gaea's Might, Hull Breach, Quirion Dryad, Shivan Wurm, and Sunken Hope

---

Special Mention: Volver Series, Sanctuary Series, Flagbearer Series, Bloodfire Colossus, Cromat, Death Grasp, Desolation Angel, Desolation Giant, Dodecapod, Fire // Ice, Gerrard's Verdict, Goblin Trenches, Jilt, Legacy Weapon, Lightning Angel, Overgrown Estate, Penumbra Wurm, Prophetic Bolt, Spectral Lynx, Temporal Spring, and Wild Research

Note: Sometimes you don’t realize how good a set is until you start going through it trying to pick the best five cards. My memory tells me that Invasion was the best set of this block, but as I try to pick the best five of Apocalypse, I find myself looking not only at the cards selected as the best, but also at the Special Mentions. Almost any of those could have been included in the Invasion top five.

---

Special Mention: Æther Burst, Battle of Wits, Careful Study, Cognivore, Concentrate, Diabolic Tutor, Firebolt, Innocent Blood, Last Rites, Magnivore, Master Apothecary, Mindslicer, Mystic Enforcer, Recoup, Shadowmage Infiltrator, Skeletal Scrying, Sphere of Law, Standstill, Tainted Pact, Time Stretch, Traumatize, Upheaval, Wayward Angel, Zombie Infestation, and Zombify.

Note: This was by far my favorite Standard format (ODY-ONS). It is really hard for me not to put Haunting Echoes as number one, but Dr. Teeth killed me too many times to not pay my respects.

---

Special Mention: Aquamoeba, Breakthrough, Cabal Ritual, Deep Analysis, Devastating Dreams, Faceless Butcher, Fiery Temper, Grim Lavamancer, Ichorid, Mind Sludge, Petradon, Rancid Earth, Shambling Swarm, Sickening Dreams, Stern Judge, Teroh's Faithful, Vengeful Dreams, and Violent Eruption.

Note: I recall logging in to Magic Online and trying to get a hold of both Circular Logic and Chainer's Edict and being shocked when I found out that of all the Torment cards, these two uncommons were the most expensive cards in the set.

---

Special Mention: Remaining Wish Series, Incarnation Series, Battle Screech, Commander Eesha, Firecat Blitz, Flash of Insight, Guiltfeeder, Mirari's Wake, Quiet Speculation, Seed Time, Solitary Confinement, Stitch Together, and Test of Endurance

Note: I really wanted to vote Anurid Brushhopper as number one, but how the heck could I do that with the Wishes in the same set?

---

Special Mention: Cycle Lands Series, Chain Series, Words Series, Akroma's Vengeance, Arcanis the Omnipotent, Blistering Firecat, Contested Cliffs, Doomed Necromancer, Dwarven Blastminer, Elvish Vanguard, Future Sight, Gigapede, Goblin Sharpshooter, Grinning Demon, Hystrodon, Lightning Rift, Mobilization, Oversold Cemetery, Patriarch's Bidding, Rorix Bladewing, Rotlung Reanimator, Silklash Spider, Silvos, Rogue Elemental, Smother, Starstorm, Symbiotic Wurm, and Undead Gladiator

Note: I eliminated a LOT of cards from this list. This set was chock full of goodness! (That’s ok though, Legions and Scourge will make up for it with a not-so extensive list…)

---

Special Mention Muse Series, Bane of the Living, Chromeshell Crab, Echo Tracer, Elvish Soultiller, Gempalm Incinerator, Nantuko Vigilante, Timberwatch Elf, and Withered Wretch

Note: I could have only gone top four for this set. Scion was… let’s say the best of the rest. I could easily say that Timberwatch Elf could slide into that slot and not feel guilty.

---

Special Mention: Decree Series, Warchief Series, Bladewing the Risen, Brain Freeze, Cabal Interrogator, Call to the Grave, Dawn Elemental, Day of the Dragons, Dragonstorm, Siege-Gang Commander, Stifle, Sulfuric Vortex, and Wing Shards

Note: This set quite possibly could be the worst, most fun set ever. I loved the Decree Series and Mind's Desire, but once you started to get past that, the cards individually were pretty weak and over costed for a meh ability.

---

Special Mention: Artifact Land Series, Shard Series, Spellbomb Series, Talisman Series, Arc-Slogger, Assert Authority, Barter in Blood, Broodstar, Clockwork Dragon, Cloudpost, Consume Spirit, Duplicant, Extraplanar Lens, Fabricate, Glimmervoid, Glissa Sunseeker, Goblin Charbelcher, Lightning Greaves, Lodestone Myr, Loxodon Warhammer, Mindslaver, Molder Slug, Myr Enforcer, Oblivion Stone, Platinum Angel, Seething Song, Shrapnel Blast, Slith Firewalker, Solemn Simulacrum, and Troll Ascetic

Note: This one was really tough. I really, really wanted to say the artifact lands, but man oh man did it suck to see a Boomerang imprinted on a Scepter.

---

Special Mention: Arbound Creature Series, Pulse Series, Æther Vial, Blinkmoth Nexus, Fangren Firstborn, Furnace Dragon, Panoptic Mirror, Pristine Angel, Spellbinder, Sundering Titan, Sword of Light and Shadow, and Trinisphere

Note: Nothing in my list will probably get more criticism than this decision, but hear me out here. I totally understand that Skullclamp, in a vacuum, is better than Arcbound Ravager. However, how long did we really get to abuse it? It was plucked from our hands during the ensuing banning period and what we were left with was a Standard period that was brutalized by Ravager. That's my reasoning, and I am sticking too it! Althought I probably could have made it a 1A and a 1B, but then eventually I have to separate them in my final list, so I will just kill one right now and get it over with. Consider me just following Wizards of the Coast lead and banning Skullclamp before it gets out of hand.

---

Special Mention: Beacon Series, Bringer Series, Blasting Station, Condescend, Desecration Elemental, Doubling Cube, Eon Hub, Grinding Station, Helm of Kaldra, Joiner Adept, Krark-Clan Ironworks, Magma Jet, Roar of Reclamation, Salvaging Station, Solarion, Tornado Elemental, and Wayfarer's Bauble

Note: I could have gone top three on this list... The bad part of the list is that I am coming out of a generally bad set and entering my least favorite block of all time. I stopped playing and even paying attention to Magic when the Kamigawa block was going on. Let’s see how messed up this list will be then…

---

Special Mention: Legendary Dragon Series, MyojinSeries, Azami, Lady of Scrolls, Boseiju, Who Shelters All, Budoka Gardener, Cranial Extraction, Desperate Ritual, Dosan the Falling Leaf, Eight-and-a-Half-Tails, Eye of Nowhere, Forbidden Orchard, Ghostly Prison, Heartbeat of Spring, Hideous Laughter, Hinder, Iname, Life Aspect, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, Jushi Apprentice, Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, Kodama of the North Tree, Kodama's Reach, Nighteyes the Desecrator, Rootrunner, Soulblast, Tatsumasa, the Dragon's Fang, and Time Stop

Note: Did I mention that I hated this block? I am going through the list and forcing myself to read these cards. Not a good sign. I have two more sets of this...

---

Special Mention: None, this set stinks. Jitte and that's it...

Note: I remember what pissed me off about this block now. These cards have truly epic names and give the impression that ‘this card is going to be awesome!’. Not so much. *See Oyobi, Who Split the Heavens* Only one more of these to go.

---

Special Mention: Epic Series, Erayo, Soratami Ascendant, Hand of Cruelty, Hand of Honor, Iname as One, Jiwari, the Earth Aflame, Kami of the Crescent Moon, Kiyomaro, First to Stand, Mikokoro, Center of the Sea, and Promise of Bunrei

Note: *rolls eyes and draws a straw* ... and Maga it is!

---

Special Mention: Guildmage Series, Signet Series, New Dual Land Series, Bottled Cloister, Compulsive Research, Doubling Season, Faith's Fetters, Farseek, Firemane Angel, Glare of Subdual, Golgari Grave-Troll, Grave-Shell Scarab, Hunted Dragon, Last Gasp, Life from the Loam, Loxodon Hierarch, Moldervine Cloak, Plague Boiler, Putrefy, Rolling Spoil, Searing Meditation, Shadow of Doubt, Sunforger, Vinelasher Kudzu, Vitu-Ghazi, the City-Tree, Watchwolf

Note: I feel my depression subsiding again.

---

Special Mention: Bounce Lands, Guildmage Series, Leyline Series, Signet Series, Blind Hunter, Castigate, Cry of Contrition, Debtors' Knell, Dryad Sophisticate, Electrolyze, Ghost Council of Orzhova, Ghostway, Giant Solifuge, Gigadrowse, Invoke the Firemind, Mortify, Repeal, and Savage Twister

Note: Tough choice amongst those three powerhouse creatures. In the end, I chose the one that liked to be Blinked FTW.

---

Special Mention: Bounce Lands Series, Guildmage Series, Signet Series, Split Cards, Avatar of Discord, Coiling Oracle, Condemn, Dovescape, Ghost Quarter, Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, Muse Vessel, Plaxcaster Frogling, Simic Sky Swallower, and Spell Snare

Note: Shockingly bad set if looked at by itself. I don't recall it being this way, but in hindsight, if they had only printed Dissension, it would have sucked minus the top three cards.

---

Special Mention: Snow Lands, Braid of Fire, Coldsteel Heart, Counterbalance, Cryoclasm, Dark Depths, Field Marshal, Flashfreeze, Heidar, Rimewind Master, Icefall, Into the North, Jester's Scepter, Mouth of Ronom, Ohran Viper, Panglacial Wurm, Phyrexian Ironfoot, Rite of Flame, Scrying Sheets, Vexing Sphinx, Zur the Enchanter

Note: It was better than Homelands.

---

Special Mention: Storage Lands, Academy Ruins, Ancestral Vision, Angel's Grace, Careful Consideration, Chronosavant, Dread Return, Empty the Warrens, Evangelize, Flagstones of Trokair, Greater Gargadon, Jaya Ballard, Task Mage, Lotus Bloom, Magus of the Scroll, Might of Old Krosa, Mishra, Artificer Prodigy, Mogg War Marshal, Phyrexian Totem, Rift Bolt, Riftwing Cloudskate, Saffi Eriksdotter, Serra Avenger, Spell Burst, Stonewood Invocation, Sudden Death, Tendrils of Corruption, Trickbind, Urza's Factory, and Walk the Aeons

Note: Time Shifted stuff is not applicable here due to the fact that it was not new material. Although you could argue that Akroma could be in the top of the set again! Then again, after compiling this list, all I have to say is... WOW, what a good set that was. While not even touching the TimeShifted cards, I filled a page with goodness.

---

Special Mention: Aeon Chronicler, Benalish Commander, Blood Knight, Body Double, Boom // Bust, Crovax, Ascendant Hero, Detritivore, Groundbreaker, Keldon Marauders, Magus of the Bazaar, Mana Tithe, Null Profusion, Numot, the Devastator, Piracy Charm, Porphyry Nodes, Radha, Heir to Keld, Simian Spirit Guide, Timbermare, Torchling, and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Note: This is turning out to be a really good block, not only due to the amount of good cards, but that each individual set has some bombs in it. I know you will remember some strong stuff coming in Future Sight.

---

Special Mention: Cool Ass Border (Thumbs up to Wizards of the Coast for something original), Magus Series, Pact Series, Augur of Skulls, Baru, Fist of Krosa, Bonded Fetch, Chronomantic Escape, Coalition Relic, Dakmor Salvage, Delay, Dryad Arbor, Edge of Autumn, Epochrasite, Gibbering Descent, Glittering Wish, Heartwood Storyteller, Horizon Canopy, Jhoira of the Ghitu, Molten Disaster , Narcomoeba, Reality Strobe, Rites of Flourishing, Seht's Tiger, Sliver Legion, Sprout Swarm, Tolaria West, and Zoetic Cavern

Note: In the end, I find myself a little disappointed in this set, and maybe it was because of the build up I had from the previous two. As I was grabbing cards for the list, I found that I was forcing cards from the Special Mention list to qualify for the Top Five list. There is a tremendous drop off from Tarmogyf to Tombstalker. Goyf could possibly win this event, Tombstalker would be lucky if it makes the Top 20...

---

Special Mention: Command Series, Planeswalker Series, Tribal Dual Lands, Vivid Lands, Brion Stoutarm, Broken Ambition, Burrenton Forge-Tender, Cloudthresher, Crib Swap, Eyes of the Wisent, Fodder Launch, Forced Fruition, Goldmeadow Stalwart, Hoofprints of the Stag, Imperious Perfect, Lash Out, Makeshift Mannequin, Mistbind Clique, Mulldrifter, Nameless Inversion, Oblivion Ring, Oona's Prowler, Ponder, Scion of Oona, Shriekmaw, Spellstutter Sprite, Wren's Run Vanquisher,

Note: I really didn't want to do the Special Mentions for this set as I believe that while there are some meaty goodness in this block, I feel that due to the tribal nature of the block, the non-bombs are just filler. I did not like the tribal jank. I want to get back to the freedom of playing a deck of my choice without feeling like I must include a theme or else I can't compete.

---

Special Mention: Hybrid Dual Series, Bramblewood Paragon, Countryside Crusher, Heritage Druid, Idyllic Tutor, Maralen of the Mornsong, Mind Shatter, Mind Spring, Murmuring Bosk, Oona's Blackguard, Recross the Paths, and Stonybrook Banneret

Note: I had to force two cards into the Top Five list. It is my belief that when a card on the Top Five list of any set is played, as the opponent, my immediate response should be, "Ah Shit..." Mutavault and Vendilion Clique don't do that, but neither do any of the other cards in the Special Mention either...

---

Special Mention: Hybrid Dual Series, Liege Series, Advice from the Fae, Ashenmoor Gouger, Augury Adept, Beseech the Queen, Boggart Ram-Gang, Counterbore, Deus of Calamity, Dusk Urchins, Enchanted Evening, Flame Javelin, Fulminator Mage, Giantbaiting, Heartmender, Impromptu Raid, Manamorphose, Murderous Redcap, Oona, Queen of the Fae, Oversoul of Dusk, Savor the Moment, Spectral Procession, Tattermunge Maniac, Vexing Shusher, and Wheel of Sun and Moon

Note: Demigod! Shepherd! YA!! Gimme more! Swans and Finks Oh yea! Firesprout FTW! Good Top Five list. This is what a Best of list should look like.

---

Special Mention: Hatchling Series, Hybrid Dual Lands, Liege Series, Archon of Justice, Ashling, the Extinguisher, Beckon Apparition, Bloom Tender, Cenn's Enlistment, Cold-Eyed Selkie, Deity of Scars, Evershrike, Glen Elendra Archmage, Nightsky Mimic, Nobilis of War, Overbeing of Myth, Quillspike, Spitemare, Stigma Lasher, and Wake Thrasher

Note: Generally weak set. It had some ok stuff, but nothing that really brought fear into me.

---

Special Mention: Tri-Land Series, Charm Series, Panorama Series, Ultimatum Series, Broodmate Dragon, Hell's Thunder, Knight of the White Orchid, Ranger of Eos, Realm Razer, Rhox War Monk, Sprouting Thrinax, Stoic Angel, and Tezzeret the Seeker

Note: I was very selective in this set because it was so easy to find the bombs. Why waste time with 'aight' cards when the set is completely loaded with huge impact cards like Ajani, Blightning and the Ultimatums!

---

Special Mention: Hellspark Elemental, Knight of the Reliquary, Path to Exile, Quenchable Fire, Thornling, and Volcanic Fallout

Note: Whoa... Horrible Set. Following in the footsteps of Shards, this set is full of big creatures who are equally as full of crap. 90% of the five power creatures that the block is based on are garbage.

---

Special Mention: Boarderpost Series, Bituminous Blast, Blitz Hellion, Double Negative, Enigma Sphinx, Identity Crisis, Mind Funeral, Naya Hushblade, Putrid Leech, Slave of Bolas, Spellbreaker Behemoth, Sphinx of the Steel Wind, and Vengeful Rebirth

Note: Better than the last set. Atleast the top few cards are dominating at what they do.

---

Special Mention: New Dual Land Series, Acidic Slime, Ant Queen, Doom Blade, Lightwielder Paladin, Magma Phoenix, Open the Vaults, and Planar Cleansing

Note: Due to the inclusion of new cards in this core set, I am only including those new cards in my evaluation of this set. Old cards are old cards. I am, however, wondering how many Angels are going to win the top spot in this contest?

---

Special Mention: Ascension Series, Dual Land Series, Quest Series, Archive Trap, Blood Seeker, Burst Lightning, Chandra Ablaze, Emeria, the Sky Ruin, Felidar Sovereign, Iona, Shield of Emeria, Khalni Heart Expedition, Living Tsunami, Nissa Revane, Sorin Markov, Steppe Lynx, Teetering Peaks, Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle, and Vampire Nighthawk

Note: We are entering 2010, building off of this set. What do you think? I want to say I am hopeful for the future, but I know from the past that for every one good block, we get at least one bad block afterwards... are we doomed to watch this block go into the dumper?

---

This concludes my evaluation period of the Magic cards of the 2000s. In my next article, I will give you a Best of the Best list. Let me know what you think about my selections. Did I leave anything out? What would you have changed?

Follow me into the forums and let me know what you think.

---

---