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The Magic: The Gathering x Marvel Super Heroes set is out now, and there is a plethora of Marvel villains who appear in the set. From baddies like Doctor Doom, Titania, Baron Zemo, Abomination, Taskmaster,Mole Man, Bullseye, Loki, Klaw, and more, the Marvel Super Heroes set contains a wide range of villains from across the Marvel Comics Universe. That said, there is one villain's absence from the set that has fans scratching their heads: Red Skull. 

Red Skull is a longtime Captain America villain whose inclusion in the set was teased by Magic's head of game design, Mark Rosewater, in a post he published on Magic's official website in late June. However, now that the dust has settled on the Marvel Super Heroes set, it's clear that Red Skull didn't end up actually appearing in the set. So what happened?

There are a few possible explanations for why Red Skull got dropped. First, in Mark Rosewater's aforementioned post on the Magic site, he wrote, "Most of these characters stayed in the set, but some did get added and removed." Red Skull seems to fall into this category. 

Secondly, part of Magic's strategy with the Marvel Universes Beyond sets relies on matching characters with a set they're best suited for. In a previous part of the Vision Design document posted on Magic's website, Mark Rosewater wrote, "An important part of making any Marvel product involves being aware of what characters you're using and making sure your set is the best place for them. Numerous characters were removed from Magic: The Gathering | Marvel Super Heroes because there was a better home for them in another set." In other words, "Characters that you expected to see but aren't in this set were most likely saved for a different set." 

So let's take a look at the characters who are in the Marvel Super Heroes set. Red Skull is best known for being one of the leaders of Hydra, and there are a handful of Hydra-affiliated villains who are already in the set. This includes Madame Hydra, Arnim Zola, and Baron Strucker. As such, there isn't exactly a shortage of Hydra villains in Marvel Super Heroes. Magic already had their bases covered without Red Skull being there... but its unclear what other set Red Skull would be a better fit for than a Marvel Superheroes set. 

There's also the elephant in the room: Red Skull is a Nazi. Previously, in 2020, Magic announced that it would be removing a group of cards that contained racist imagery from its card database. Could the character design of Red Skull, who frequently wears parts of Nazi uniforms like a black leather trench coat, fly too closely to a real-life hate group? 

We don't know for sure, because Wizards of the Coast has not issued an official statement on Red Skull. Whether or not Red Skull will appear in a future Marvel Universes Beyond set remains to be seen.  

Whether you are a Commander player, a regular at your local game shop's FNM event, or simply love collecting Magic: The Gathering cards, you've landed in the right place. From Universes Beyond to the furthest reaches of the Magic Multiverse, we've got you covered here at Popverse. 

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