Aetherdrift should have been a Multiplanar Resource War
I keep thinking about the next 'In-Universe' Magic set (It's annoying I have to think about it like that). They're saying this is something interesting they can do with the omentpaths, 1 set with 3 planes, and they're making it a big cross plane race where the prize is a magical macguffin, looks like it's a planeswalker spark.
This is obviously going to be another super shallow set, full of generic pop culture references to things like Fast and the Furious and there's already an 'Akira Slide'
All together it's super uninteresting to me. It's neat that Chandra is trying to get the macguffin to get Nissa her spark back but like, a race.
We know one of the planes that will be present is Kalidesh, an Aetherpunk India inspired plane that underwent a revolution against the Surveillance State. Kalidesh is one of the most technologically advanced planes in the multiverse thanks to it's abundance of Aether. It makes sense a Character like Chandra would be able to participate in a race because she is from Kalidesh.
But how much more interesting would it be if this incredible resource was coveted by others in the multiverse, especially now that omenpaths make travel to Kalidesh possible for more than just Planeswalkers!
It seems one of the other 3 planes taking part in this Death Race is Amonkhet, a plane that had all but one city destroyed by the dragon Nicol Bolas.
This plane, and a 3rd that we have not yet visited yet, would understandably want access to a resource as powerful and abundant as Kalidesh's Aether! And that's why I think that this set should have been a large, multiplanar war!
This would be a fantastic way to have 3 planes in a single set, gives a fantastic, less gimmicky, reason for a conflict that would involve Chandra and Nissa, and a internal conflict as important characters have to recon with the idea of holding this resource. Do they give access to the many or withhold it for the few?
This also ties well into Jace's story of the unending conflict in the multiverse. How would he respond to a conflict on this scale, with people he knows are suffering.
I also think this could be a great way to introduce new Battle cards, potentially cards that make you choose a Plane as they enter, and you get a specific effect based on the one you choose, similar to the choices made in Khans Block.
I'm kinda just writing this as someone who joined the game during this era of more 'shallow' sets. I don't want cowboy hats and race cars and fedoras and televisions. I want worlds that people want to explore and play in.
There won't be remastered sets for this era of magic, because they won't be remembered.
I'm not a writer so this might not be the most well written post, but I hope you at least understand how I feel, even if you don't agree.