Annie and Haseya: Indigeneity in Magic

This video was a long time in the making. Join me in examining Magic: The Gathering’s triumphs and missteps in depicting an entire subcontinent of cultures, from 1995’s Ice Age to 2024’s Outlaws of Thunder Junction, in an attempt to grapple with my own heritage and what the two might mean when put together.

Special thanks to Dan Olson for teaching me the word ‘homoosian’ and Rhystic Studies for not suing us for bastardizing his whole style.

Decklist:
https://moxfield.com/decks/bZaLwu6J6U...

— Credits —

Script by Joseph McDevitt
Narration by Joseph McDevitt
Script Editing by Bobby Fasciano
Video Editing by Bobby Fasciano
Additional Voice Work by Evan Tomljanovich, Kat Pon-Cooper, Bobby Fasciano, and Lily Fasciano
Music by Alicia Chapman

— Socials —

Instagram
instagram.com/bogstompersmtg
BlueSky
bsky.app/profile/bogstompersmtg.bsky.social

— Bibliography —

Stevens, A. (2022, September 29). More than Crusades & Jihads; I was a Disruptive Student. Commander’s Herald. https://commandersherald.com/more-tha...
Brightman, R. A. (1988). The Windigo in the Material World. Ethnohistory, 35(4), 337–379. https://doi.org/10.2307/482140
Johnson, F. (2022). A Creature Without a Cave: Abstraction and (Mis)Appropriation of the Wendigo Myth in Contemporary North American Horror. Reinvention: An International Journal of Undergraduate Research, 15(S1), 3. https://doi.org/10.31273/reinvention....
McCoy, D. (2020, June 11). Wizards Bans 7 Cards with Racist Depictions, Including Invoke Prejudice. Hipsters of the Coast. https://www.hipstersofthecoast.com/20...
Wizards of the Coast. (2023, November 3). Card Updates Coming with Khans of Tarkir on MTG Arena. Magic: the Gathering. https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/ann...
Haekel, J. (2022, September 8). Totemism. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/tote...
Magic: The Gathering. (2024, February 24). The Preview Panel | MagicCon Chicago [Video]. YouTube.
   • The Preview Panel | MagicCon Chicago  
Edgmon, H. E. (2024, March 14). Outlaws of Thunder Junction: Blood is Thicker than Venom. Magic: the Gathering. https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/mag...
Macleod, C [Spice8rack]. (2024, February 20). A Very Normal Look at Tarkir [Video]. YouTube.
   • A Very Normal Look at Tarkir  
Macleod, C [Spice8rack]. (2024, June 1). Magic: The Gathering & the Death of the Future [Video]. YouTube.
   • Magic: The Gathering & the Death of the Fu...  
Annelli, J. (2024, April 30). The Omenpath Handbook: Thunder Junction. CoolStuffInc. https://www.coolstuffinc.com/a/jayann...
Rosewater, M. (2025, February 6). Yes, we’re being a bit more exact in how we use Shaman, to be reflect what Shamans are. Tumblr.
https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post...
Rosewater, M. (2025, February 23). New Shaman cards can still happen. The issue is what we’re labeling a Shaman has gotten narrower. Tumblr.
https://markrosewater.tumblr.com/post...
Diószegi, V. (2025, July 19). Shamanism. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/sham...
Aldred, L. (2000). Plastic Shamans and Astroturf Sun Dances: New Age Commercialization of Native American Spirituality. American Indian Quarterly, 24(3), 329–352. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1185908


— Chapters —

0:00 - Introduction: ‘Indian Genes'
4:06 - The Wiitigo: Magic’s First Indigenous Monster
8:11 - Totem Armor: Savage Auras
11:53 - Thunder Junction: A Land Without A People
17:18 - The Cactusfolk: The Unpersoned Indigenous
22:30 - Ratonhnhaké:ton: A Memory Tucked Away in the Attic
28:20 - Shaman: Cultural Carnism
34:10 - Conclusion: Magic Will Never Represent Me

— Tags —

MTG, Magic: The Gathering, Magic: The Gathering Video Essay, Magic: The Gathering Lore, Magic: The Gathering Story, MTG Lore, MTG Story, Wizards of the Coast, Thunder Junction, Outlaws of Thunder Junction, Universes Beyond, Magic: The Gathering Universes Beyond, Assassin’s Creed, Magic: The Gathering x Assassin’s Creed, Ubisoft, Final Fantasy, Magic: The Gathering x Final Fantasy, Square Enix, Colonialism, Decolonization, Settler Colonialism, Imperialism, America, Colonization of America, Native Americans, American Indian, American Indians, Indigenous Americans, Indigenous Peoples, Indigeneity, First Nations, Shaman, Plastic Shaman, Commander, MTG Commander, EDH


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