It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a— oh, no, you were closer the first time.
BOOM BRAVE NEW WORLD
That’s my prediction for how the movie opens, anyways. Maybe that’s my prediction for the whole movie! But in the meanwhile, we’ve got a whole new season themed on Sam Wilson’s new cinematic outing as the winged Captain America— which, among many other things, means that we’ve got a gigantic forecast to work through, covering all of the month’s new art goodies! So come along, and strap in folks— something something
BOOM BRAVE NEW WORLD
02/04
Season Pass Artist Spotlight!
Artist: He Tianyou
Source: Season Pass
Let’s kick this thing off with the Season Pass— which, funny enough, will actually be variants you likely won’t see for a couple of weeks, at least! But they’re on the pass, and so I’d be remiss in my Season kick-off coverage if I didn’t give them mention here. He Tianyou is our big artist spotlight this month, taking duties for every major character this season, and the pass is a great first stop to see how up-to-snuff he is. To be clear, the answer is very— he’s already had a strong debut, but Tianyou’s strength for color and shadow work (highlighting sharp, clear forms in his anatomy) feels especially on display with this bunch, with a dark but vibrant color palette really making his dramatic figures pop. Viper has the most dramatic lighting of the bunch, and she’s coming in as the Super Premium Pass variant for folks willing to shell out the extra ten bucks— the red and green with all those stark shadows make a compelling case for it. Overall? Like always, the season pass is always the most value you can get out in this game, but these variants make the whole season that much easier to invest in.
Spotlights!
Artists (in order): He Tianyou, Envar Studio, John Romita Jr.
Source: Spotlight Cache
And if you’re on the fence about the pass but you’ve got Spotlight Keys burning a hole in your pocket, Tianyou’s going to be in each Spotlight Cache as well! His Joaquin Torres is one of the two variants Falcon II is launching with, and I think there’s something really wonderful about how Tianyou can capture a very specific setting and even time of day with a minimal but evocative background and skilled color work. And if that’s got you on the fence, we’ve also got an Envar Namora for your troubles, giving us another fine, different-enough approach on the base art’s take on Namora— it’s characteristic of commissions to adhere more closely to Second Dinner’s base art, but we at least see some expressive energy in this Namora, and the underwater colors tingeing almost green is a nice touch. Finally, we’ve got a throwback in a variant cover for Eternals (2006) #2, depicting the OG design for Eternal speedster Makkari. He’s pretty different from the film incarnation that inspired SNAP’s take on Makkari, but it’s really cool that SNAP as a game is able to sustain multiple legacy versions of a character via variants (not unlike Nick Fury!). I love the simple red and the curling energy around him, but what I like the most is how much strange character there is in Makkari’s runner suit here, dressed almost like an Olympic luger and running with the purpose of a proper athlete. A fun side note is that this is a bit of a homecoming for this very piece: Makkari’s datamined art for a very long time was this very cover, so seeing it in-game for long-time players might be a bit of a trip!
Dazzler In The Conquest Shop!
Artist: Sweeney Boo
Source: Conquest Shop
Continuing the trend of Conquest variants not following any discernible trend, we’ve got eternal trendsetter Dazzler headlining the Conquest rewards! I’m not sure what the rhyme or reason is behind these picks, and I’m doubly unsure why they seem actively unrelated to any given season theme. But I’m not complaining about Sweeney Boo’s Dazzler, which plays to her strength for fun expressive heroines and sets the palette to disco-bright— all making for a variant that’s quite the treat to get for free via Conquest tickets.
New Farro Just Dropped!
Artist: Viktor Farro
Sources: General Pool (Super Rare) and Album Reward
All the Farro-enjoyers of good taste out there, beware: your gold is in danger! The Farro album is dropping alongside a classic shop take-over, bringing that sweet, painted beauty into the game 1200 gold at a time. And, horror, it’s probably some of his best work we’ve seen yet! My favorite is probably Ravonna, who’s simultaneously always starved for more commissions and getting some of the best SNAP art I’ve ever seen— something about how Farro tackles a more classically human portrait in that almost horror-lighting palette just hits. Ms. Marvel and Black Widow both tap into that same realism, while Iron Lad and Iron Man showcase Farro’s ability to play with lighting and push his brights. Rockslide and Darkhawk feel a bit more restrained by comparison, but make no mistake: I think every one of these is in serious contention for best-in-slot for each of these cards’ variant catalogues.
Darkhawk’s the album reward here: is it possibly my time to finally own Darkhawk? Will I spend 14,400 Gold instead of 3000 Collectors Tokens? Stay tuned, true believers!
New PANDART Too!
Artist: PANDART STUDIO
Source: General Pool (Super Rare)
PANDART is getting some General Pool additions for 1200 gold as well, bringing Kitty and Angela into the fold with classic PANDART production value: stylized and highly rendered. Angela’s in a pretty dynamic motion for hers, showing off an impressive set of abs while she’s at it, while Kitty is mostly standing there (ostensibly passing through something) and looking cool in classic X-duds. Neither is breaking into my top 3 variants for them any time soon, but I like the almost animated-design look we have from the two of them, and I wouldn’t be mad at having them; moreover, PANDART fans will no doubt be very happy to see more of any kind!
And New Winking
Artist: Winking Studios
Source: Bundle
Winking Studios are up next, and they’re tackling another variant for Corvus Glaive, who’s finally accruing enough work to call a decent variant catalogue. It’s pretty interesting how, for how relatively simple his design is as a dark, scary bad guy with a pointy stick, it’s quickly become recognizable and even iconic, at least within the confines of SNAP’s variant catalog. Part of that is likely because all Second Dinner commissions will hew more closely to the base art than, say, an existing cover— after all, they’re using that base art as the reference! But Glaive’s design is pretty singular no matter what, and Winking has communicated that well, leaning into his classic pointed earpieces and hood in profile hiding a monstrous, exaggerated battlecry. It’s fun, and it’s cool to see some more work from a newcomer studio.
Jonsup Kim’s Debut Jubilee Bundle
Artists: Jonsup Kim/Mooncolony
Source: Bundle
Now Jongsup Kim’s debut (assisted by Mooncolony’s colors) are a real headturner, headlining a bundle with a Jubilee variant with some real attitude. I like the balance of style and detail/texture on the clothes here, giving us a stylized face on Jubilee blowing that bubblegum but keeping the tangibility of her classic yellow jacket (reimagined a bit into something a bit more modern). The pink on her top lining up with her bubblegum and glasses helps keep the palette limited, and the lighting and color on the whole piece help make it all feel very cohesive as piece. It’s a Jubilee variant, which means its up against lots of stiff competition… but I think this one rings in as a real heavyweight off the bat.
Derrick Chew’s NYX Variant Bundle
Artist: Derrick Chew
Source: Bundle
Derrick Chew’s variant cover for the recent NYX (2024) #2 is hitting the game in another bundle, which is both an impressively recent pull and a very cool take on Laura’s latest crunchy streetwear look. Pushing those Wolverine stripes so heavily on a hooded coat and giving her some of that bagginess helps push her away from classic superhero ‘tights’ and into a different ype of texture, and her expression shining through the full cowl is sick. Chew is an artist I’m sometimes a smidgen critical of for often just doing more traditional pin-ups of attractive characters, and this one having so much character is a great reminder how capable of an artist he is— it’s a blast against that wintry backdrop, and I wouldn’t blame anyone for feeling a little tempted to drop the hefty sum on the bundle she’s in. As for the rest of us Children of the Vault, we wait!
Ultimate Fantasy Doctor Doom
Artist: DIVE Eight Studio
Source: Token Shop
DIVE Eight rounds out the big debut day with the Ultimate rarity Fantasy Doom, and it’s a super sick piece, even if it feels a bit like a hat on a hat. Because— really, is interpreting Doctor Doom into medieval armor on a throne really interpretation? Honestly. It’s just Doom. But I do appreciate the slight different design on the mask and the competence with which the whole piece is executed: I think that it’s all rendered exceedingly well, with lots of personality in that ‘ruler in repose’ posture that we love to see. Honestly, honestly? It’s just Doom. And it’s just Doom, which is very often more than enough.
02/05
Fantasy Bundle Brood (With Custom Tokens!)
Artist: DIVE Eight Studio
Source: Bundle
DIVE Eight also kicks us off the next day, with a cool bundle variant that comes with its own custom tokens! Brood here is getting the Fantasy treatment too, which means, among other things, it mostly looks like a really cool version of itself, whether it's particularly Fantasy or not! (Maybe the fantasy is being bipedal.) Either way, this particularly chunky Brood piece feels like a space invader that takes more than a couple of hits to go down, and it comes with Broodlings in the same style, really selling the feeling that you’re summoning a whole contingent of insidious space parasites to commandeer a lane— they’re also rendered with dramatic lighting from below, helping cap off that horror vibe! I know players are often bummed that we don’t get new tokens for every new variant for a card like Brood, but it makes it admittedly cool when a variant does offer the additional benefit. Is that Second Dinner’s devious marketing strategy working according to plan? Maybe. But they do look cool!
Chibi Falcons
Artist: Rian Gonzales
Source: General Pool (Super Rare)
Okay, that’s a fib, it’s Chibi Falcon II and Chibi The Man Formerly Known As Falcon— Joaquin Torres and Sam Wilson get the Gonzales Chibi treatment here, and they’re both clearly enjoying the experience. I particularly like how exuberant and dynamic Torres looks here, though Sam also seems to be really enjoying his burger next to poor Redwing side-eyeing him. There’s not more to say than I always do about Gonzales chibis, so we can cut to the chase: while chibi as a style isn’t for everyone, Gonzales absolutely elevates that style to her best effort, giving them that watercolor tone and all that personality to sell the best parts of the Chibi style. Moreover, in such a serious season, it might be nice to see something a bit cuter for our dynamic duo, embroiled in deadly political intrigue. Or something— movie isn’t quite out yet.
02/06
Mello/Grafit Kate Bishop
Artists: Eduardo Mello/Studio Grafit
Source: General Pool (Rare)
Eduardo Mello teams up with Studio Grafit’s colors to give us a Kate Bishop— giving us enough variants to match Corvus Glaive?! Okay, y’all, time out: how in the world has this happened, Second Dinner? I’ve railed on Corvus Glaive for weeks for being ‘variant-starved’ because there’s not a lot of existing art. Where’s the excuse for Kate Bishop, comics icon and literal Hawkeye? It’s strange to have so few Kate variants, and perhaps stranger that all of them are commissions, when there’s so many existing pieces to work with. But hey! I guess we’ll take what we can get? And Mello gets to flex with his guest colorist here, letting Grafit breathe a bit more life into his lines than we might normally see. The lighting makes all the difference here, bringing a lot of depth to the stubbornly monochrome avenging archers.
02/07
Guardino Ares
Artist: Andrea Guardino
Source: General Pool (Super Rare)
Hopefully, it hasn’t been long enough that you’ve forgotten; Guardino was the mythic mastermind behind the Thor season’s themed variants, giving us painted takes on all the denizens of Asgard that came to SNAP. (Sorry Eitri, didn’t see you there.) But he’s back now with a similarly and appropriately mythic character, applying his trademark edge to the Greek God of Ear. The glowing red eyes and prominent flames in the background feel like Ares really did just walk out of the same flames Surtur’s been chilling in, and it makes for a very imposing variant seeing him mid battle cry, both weapons drawn. It’s a pleasure to see Guardino return; here’s hoping we see more of his work, godly or otherwise!
Creative House Pocket’s Agent 13 Bundle
Artist: Creative House Pocket
Source: Bundle
Next bundle is going to be another Creative House Pocket special, this time giving us a cute anime-take on Agent 13 and perhaps leaning more specifically into Sharon Carter’s relatively recent clandestine actions. Or maybe she’s just got a Grimace Shake in her hands on her off day— who knows? All I know is that reimagining a character like Agent 13 into a broad category/style like anime leaves a lot of room for interpretation, and I think between the fun pose and the SHIELD outfit, we’ve at least gotten a variant that broadens what Agent 13’s wardrobe can look like, especially as someone with more character than your average SHIELD bloke.
02/08
Grecke Supergiant
Artist: Max Grecke
Source: General Pool (Rare)
Speaking of more character, Grecke pours on loads of it onto this Supergiant, giving her more personality than we’ve perhaps ever seen from the most mysterious (and least alive) member of the Black Order. Characters like that are often a bit of a blank slate for writers or artists to really help characterize, and Grecke giving her the no-nonsense demeanor of a scowling telepath really helps us understand just where Supergiant is coming from. (It’s a place of supreme disdain. For our whole planet.) I love the colors and deceptively strong lighting from above, helping accentuate her hooded cloak and making the colors on the piece all pop. The classic psychic-concentric-circles effect is the cherry on top, giving us that psychedelic reminder of who exactly Supergiant is: someone who will ruthlessly make sure your cards don’t reveal until the end of the game, or something. Something like that! I’d believe whatever she tells you; she looks like she means business, here.
02/09
Flaviano Juggernaut
Artist: Flaviano Armentaro
Source: General Pool (Super Rare)
Juggernaut is our penultimate variant here, and it doubles as a triumphant return from Flaviano, who gives us a fun, broad, intentionally flat composition for our favorite unstoppable force as our favorite mutant with knife hands leaps out at him. I love how the whole piece reads, giving us a clear understanding of the staunchness and scale core to Marko’s character: he’s filling the frame with his whole body, screaming even as adamantium hand-machetes come straight for his domed face. The iconic Flaviano colors introduce some really fascinating cool colors into the ordinarily crimson palette for the avatar of the Crimson Cosmos, and it pays off, making the composition of the piece really pop, especially among the rest of Juggernaut’s variants. The silhouette is great; the colors are great; the action is great. What’s there to say? He’s the Juggernaut, b—
02/10
PANDART Blob
Artist: PANDART STUDIO
Source: General Pool (Rare)
BLOB BLOB BLOB BLOB I miss this guy, honestly. That’s not related to this variant— I just love the card. When will my boy return from Arishem? The variant is fine, though— actually, I’ve been in the strange place that multiple people have expressed a bigger disdain for this PANDART variant than I do! I’ve been a critic before, but I don’t really see this piece as anything different from what PANDART normally does, rendering and stylizing a piece to apply a veneer of realism onto a solidly animated look. Is some combination of the face detail, hair, and general rendering off-putting to people? Maybe, but I think that’s just my feeling for lots of PANDARTs! And that’s fine; a variant can’t be for everyone. But what I can say is that it’s a competent, dynamic piece that manages to get a lot of movement out of Blob (via those foreground elements, really)— and so if you end up with this in your next Mystery Cache, chin up! There’s plenty of fine things to admire about this piece. And again: from my perspective, it’s just nice to see Blob in-game again!
But That’s Just How I Feel!
And, frankly, probably isn’t exactly how you feel. But this is your cue! Because it’s the end of the article, and I’m about to wrap up by calling back some joke I made at the beginning of the article. So before that— let me know what you think! How do you feel about this season’s start? Did I miss something about your favorite variant for this week? Are you more excited for variants elsewhere? Let me know below: I want to know, to prepare myself for the whirlwind of new stuff this season promises to bring! There’s lots to look forward to. And so until then…
BOOM BRAVE NEW WORLD
