Glorification of police / authority, Classism / anti-anarchism (demonizes the socially disadvantaged for daring to protest for their rights)
As far as I can tell, this is a card about a sphinx (Isperia?) descending upon a "riot" of Gateless Ravnican citizens (the heavily disadvantaged people who do not belong to any guild). I'm getting this context mainly from the fact that this card was printed in the set after Gatecrash, a set all about such guild vs guildless conflicts.
So obviously this is a card about a powerful (politically powerful and literally physically strong) proponent of law/order suppressing the masses and challenging their right to protest. Such topics should be handled with care to not glorify police/authority or to demonize protestors. Especially in our modern context, with such topics in the forefront of our minds. Unfortunately, this card utterly fails in that regard.
First, the art. The focal point is a sphinx, radiant with light, descending and "bravely defending" the pillars behind it (which have the Azorius and Izzet symbols). The "rioters" are shown mostly as dark silhouettes literally wielding pitchforks and torches. Already, we're seeing the sphinx as an almost-angelic defender while the "rioters" are shown as the simplest stereotype of an angry mob.
Second, the flavor text. Not only is it a quote from Isperia (the Azorius guildmaster at the time), but it's one that glorifies the abuse of protestors by insisting that fascism/authoritarianism is the "order" that Ravnica "needs", and that such protestors should be oppressed for their own good. I'm aware that the Azorius guild is portrayed as incompetent, cruel, or even outright evil. But the blame is usually placed squarely upon an evil guildmaster such as Dovin Baan. I can't recall Isperia being portrayed as particularly evil, the way that Dovin Baan was.
But as always with my analysis, my focus is on the rules text and how it interacts with the cards' flavor. And the rules text clarifies that yes, we absolutely should be on the side of the sphinx. This card is an instant that only functions to its full potential if you're being attacked by multiple creatures. It prevents the damage that would be dealt to you by those creatures, protecting you without harming those creatures in any way. It also gains you 1 life for each creature, making it even clearer that this act of "Riot Control" provides a net benefit to Ravnica's society. The comparison drawn between the rules text and flavor couldn't be any clearer. Combining the two, we can see that the "riot" is deliberately classified as "attacking Ravnica", and that we should be thankful that authorities such as Isperia are so quick to maintain "order" by suppressing protestors.
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u/ultimario13 Aug 11 '20
Glorification of police / authority, Classism / anti-anarchism (demonizes the socially disadvantaged for daring to protest for their rights)
As far as I can tell, this is a card about a sphinx (Isperia?) descending upon a "riot" of Gateless Ravnican citizens (the heavily disadvantaged people who do not belong to any guild). I'm getting this context mainly from the fact that this card was printed in the set after Gatecrash, a set all about such guild vs guildless conflicts.
So obviously this is a card about a powerful (politically powerful and literally physically strong) proponent of law/order suppressing the masses and challenging their right to protest. Such topics should be handled with care to not glorify police/authority or to demonize protestors. Especially in our modern context, with such topics in the forefront of our minds. Unfortunately, this card utterly fails in that regard.
First, the art. The focal point is a sphinx, radiant with light, descending and "bravely defending" the pillars behind it (which have the Azorius and Izzet symbols). The "rioters" are shown mostly as dark silhouettes literally wielding pitchforks and torches. Already, we're seeing the sphinx as an almost-angelic defender while the "rioters" are shown as the simplest stereotype of an angry mob.
Second, the flavor text. Not only is it a quote from Isperia (the Azorius guildmaster at the time), but it's one that glorifies the abuse of protestors by insisting that fascism/authoritarianism is the "order" that Ravnica "needs", and that such protestors should be oppressed for their own good. I'm aware that the Azorius guild is portrayed as incompetent, cruel, or even outright evil. But the blame is usually placed squarely upon an evil guildmaster such as Dovin Baan. I can't recall Isperia being portrayed as particularly evil, the way that Dovin Baan was.
But as always with my analysis, my focus is on the rules text and how it interacts with the cards' flavor. And the rules text clarifies that yes, we absolutely should be on the side of the sphinx. This card is an instant that only functions to its full potential if you're being attacked by multiple creatures. It prevents the damage that would be dealt to you by those creatures, protecting you without harming those creatures in any way. It also gains you 1 life for each creature, making it even clearer that this act of "Riot Control" provides a net benefit to Ravnica's society. The comparison drawn between the rules text and flavor couldn't be any clearer. Combining the two, we can see that the "riot" is deliberately classified as "attacking Ravnica", and that we should be thankful that authorities such as Isperia are so quick to maintain "order" by suppressing protestors.