I'll be the first one to admit Phyrexia: All Will Be One (ONE) didn't excite me right out of the gate. The Limited environment seemed unnecessarily fast-paced, and this largely turned me off from the most common method I used to engage in new sets. I don't think I opened a single booster pack of the set either, since none of the cards particularly resonated with me as a collector.

Why, then, did I decide to take on an article highlighting the artwork and illustrations of ONE? At first glance, much of the artwork in this set has a "sameness" to it. The White cards follow a common red and white color palette, many Blue Phyrexian creatures have either tentacle-looking protrusions or spikes coming out of their body, Red cards contain an excess of fire in their illustrations, etc.

So, rather than cover a similar-looking piece over and over again, I'm going to approach this set with a creatively different mindset. I am going to identify the one card from each color, as well as colorless, that stands out the most for deviating from the Phyrexia: All Will Be One formula.

White: Resistance Reunited

In a set full of destruction, committed by hideous creatures of nightmarish proportions, Resistance Reunited struck me as relatively out of place.

First and foremost, you have a storybook moment where Elspeth and Koth, a White and a Red Planeswalker, are embracing. I'll admit I'm unfamiliar with the story of this set, but I am confident Aurore Folny accurately depicted this important event in this card's artwork. What strikes me as unique, though, is the obvious joy the characters are experiencing in both the foreground and the background.

Take a look at Elspeth's and Koth's faces - they genuinely look delighted to be seeing each other again! The flavor text backs this observation up, as evidenced by Elspeth's inclusion of the words "my friend" in her dialogue. I suppose I can't blame them. In a world where Phyrexians are wreaking havoc with fire and destruction, to find a friendly face in a crowd must be a warm relief and a reason to celebrate.

As far as White is concerned, this is also one of the only cards depicting humanoids as the central focus. Most of ONE's White cards depict either Phyrexians or Cats, making Resistance Reunited even more of a standout.

Blue: Blade of Shared Souls

Much of Phyrexia: All Will Be One's Blue cards are filled wit horrific creatures riddled with tentacles, spikes, or other protrusions coming out of their bodies. The Phyrexians in particular are a strange-looking bunch, and it's hard for me to decipher their heads from their toes given their strange anatomy.

When I browsed through the set to find a Blue card with something a little different, my eyes quickly gravitated toward Volkan Baga's Blade of Shared Souls. The card has a blueish color palette in the background, much like most of the other Blue cards in the set. However, the foreground depicts a golden-hued arm selecting a golden sword off a weapon rack of sorts. The yellow-brown color choice strongly contrasts with the blue background, helping this card stand out.

Perhaps what attracted me most to it, however, is the suspicious lack of Phyrexians depicted in the illustration! This was clearly the card's intent since the first ability on the Equipment is "For Mirrodin!" Blade of Shared Souls is a card designed to give the "good guys" fighting the Phyrexians some hope.

Black: Black Sun's Twilight

Nearly all of the Black cards in Phyrexia: All Will Be One depict some sort of hideous creature in their art. Whether it's a straight-up Phyrexian or an abomination of sorts that used to be a different creature, Black's cards really bring to life the hopeless nature of this world (unless you're a Phyrexian, I suppose).

Therefore, as I was browsing Black cards from ONE, I was surprised to find this relatively calming piece of art by Jonas De Ro. Depicted on the card is a monument with an intriguing inscription quoted in the flavor text: "Where once there was complacence, Sheoldred brought ambition, and soon the will of Yawgmoth reigned."

This monument contains historical meaning - it honors Sheoldred for her inspiration. When I look more closely at the monument, I can see the similarity to Sheoldred herself. My favorite part about the card's art, however has to be the beautiful (if a little dark) landscape in the background. The land is a desolate place, but that doesn't mean it can't be beautiful at the same time. By leaving ugly, deformed creatures out of the art, we can appreciate this world for its beauty, as twisted as it may be.

Red: Hexgold Slash

Red is all about burning and fire in this set - cards such as Hazardous Blast and Kuldotha Cackler epitomize this. Why, then, did I choose a direct damage spell as my "unique art" for ONE?

It all comes down to Eli Minaya's creative approach to Hexgold Slash's art. Yes, Hexgold Slash is a burn spell in the sense that it does direct damage to a creature. That's where its similarities end, however. Minaya's art doesn't depict the fire and burning that many other Red Phyrexia: All Will Be One cards highlight. Instead, you have a human figure slashing a Phyrexian creature with a sword in a rather abstract depiction. No fire. No burning. No mess!

I love how the artwork is simplistic in style - there is no background whatsoever. Instead, you have the two figures in the foreground and a sea of white surrounding them. The result is an effective illustration that stands out from the rest of the set. Hexgold Slash may not blend well above the couch in my living room, but the art itself is one of my favorites from ONE.

Green: Tyvar's Stand

In Phyrexia: All Will Be One, Green is all about the sacrilege blending of Phyrexian creatures with nature. The result is a selection of creatures including Tyrranax Rex, Skyscythe Engulfer, and Lattice-Blade Mantis. Tyvar's Stand, illustrated by Kieran Yanner, is a story spotlight of a different turn. The art illustrates a confrontation between Tyvar, an Elf Warrior, and a Tibalt. Clearly, Tyvar is winning the fight!

That already makes this card somewhat unique. In a world where Phyrexians have completely taken over, Tyvar is managing to stand toe-to-toe with the enemy. Artistically speaking, this card also stands out for its limited use of green in its color palette. So many other Green cards in ONE heavily use viridescent shades with luscious greenery in the background. Not so with Tyvar's Stand. You have the subtle green shading on Tyvar's face covering and a trace of green on a piece of cloth trailing behind him. Had this artwork appeared on a Red card, I don't think it would have seemed at all out of place.

Colorless: Terramorphic Expanse

I could have taken the colorless art discussion in any number of directions. Artifacts like Staff of Compleation and Phyrexian Atlas caught my eye at first glance. Monument of Perfection and The Filigree Sylex also get honorable mention for depicting illustrations that I particularly enjoyed for their beauty.

Instead of selecting an Artifact, however, I decided to give a nod to a Nonbasic Land due to its artistic simplicity. Adam Burn's illustration for the mana-fixing perennial is one that follows the old adage, "Less is more." In the foreground we have a figure that simultaneously looks like an undead creature and a dead tree. Maybe it's a Phyrexian creature aimlessly wandering the barren landscape.

In the background, things start to really get abstract. I see some semblance of a burning tree in the background, but the dust being kicked up is so violent that it blurs the rest of the image. This effect is what caught my eye in this card's art. Rather than being an overly detailed, horrendous landscape of Phyrexian creatures, we have a creepy, almost Lovecraftian piece of art. The unknown features of the background give you just as much discomfort as the figure in the foreground. It's that unknown quality that really brings the artwork to life.

Wrapping It Up

I want to wrap up this week's article with an honorable mention out of the pool of ONE's multicolored cards. In particular, I'm going to shout out Melira, the Living Cure. Not because I think it necessarily clashes with other artwork in the set - rather, it's because I love Miranda Meeks' depiction of this purer, revamped version of Melira.

This is another rare card in Phyrexia: All Will Be One where you have a sense of hope. This is fueled by the strong, poised central figure (Melira) surrounded by a bit of divine light. Meeks uses a creative palette of colors to illustrate the background and the foreground. The result is a combination of reds, greens, pinks, and blues that help this card's artwork pop. I imagine a foil version of this card is absolutely stunning.

I wouldn't necessarily describe most other cards in the set this way. Most cards follow a given theme of darkness, warped creatures and distorted nature. There isn't much room for hope, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Not only does it make for a cohesive set, but it also helps cards like those I mentioned this week really stand out as exceptional.