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The Official Miser’s Guide – Review

“I’ll consider buying Flores’s new book when he knocks the first digit off the price tag.” Those were my words on release day for The Official Miser’s Guide (The OMG), the “self-help” e-book/audio book from everyone’s favourite ego-driven theorist, Michael J. Flores. Thirty-eight dollars for what appeared to be a collection of his podcast appearances, his articles, and regurgitated game theory from others seemed like nothing short of a way for Flores to put his kids through college. No doubt three years early, given their precocious nature.

In general I am a Flores fan. I love Top 8 Magic, I usually enjoy his articles and decklists (as I am able to trim the self-promoting fat and drill down to the valuable strategic content), and when he appeared on episode 10 of Horde of Notions he was on fire. His “Groklar of the Stone Stick” rant on that episode is one of my favourite podcasting moments. He has more than once provided me advice on decks, article writing and general play. It surprised me that I was so apathetic toward this product, even after reading the reviews from people I know and respect.

Clearly, my writing this review means I actually bought the product, since I am not baller enough to get comped a copy. So what happened? Flores happened. On episode 51 of Horde of Notions we welcomed Flores back to talk about The OMG and about Return to Ravnica spoilers. The passion and conviction with which he spoke about his book, and the things he said on the show that were in the book, convinced me to give it a try. I know for a fact I’m not alone there, as at least one other prominent podcast personality took the plunge after that appearance.

Others have broken the book (and Flores) down chapter-by-chapter. I’m not going to do that. I will tell you this: what you get out of The OMG depends entirely on what you’re expecting to get. If you go into this expecting a revolutionary new system that will rescue you from the depths of despair and have you beating Yuuya Watanabe to win Pro Tour Delusions of Grandeur, save your time and ship me the $38 instead. I’ll make far better use of it. If you want all of Mike’s articles, wisdom, and knowledge broken down into 30-40 minute chunks and interspersed with knowledge from others, some touchy-feely psychobabble bullshit, a liberal helping of Flores ego-stroking, and some genuine well-meaning self-help tips… you’re going to find value here.

At this point anybody who clicks on, buys, or listens to anything with Flores in it should know that they are tacitly agreeing to a disclaimer saying, “The perception of reality expressed in this product is that of Michael J. Flores and does not necessarily reflect real life.” This isn’t going to change, because IT WORKS for him. The man has over twelve THOUSAND Twitter followers, has written some of the most enduring and seminal Magic articles in the history of the game, and has a voice that is respected by many of the best players the game has ever seen. These are statements that even his biggest detractors cannot deny. He is also self-aggrandizing, in-your-face, larger-than-life, and boastful. We know this. Yet we listen, read, or watch anyway because he is entertaining. Anyone expecting him to be different here is deluding themselves, and their commentary should be viewed accordingly.

There were times during my 30 days with this product that I grew tired of hearing how great his life is, how much success he’s had (or how often he repeated the same successes, it becomes challenging to differentiate after a while), and how good “Who’s The Beatdown” is (which, while factual, we all know by now). I completely blanked the chapter on dating advice, because I just don’t need to hear that. Flores seems to have decided that an amalgamation of articles allows an amplification of advertising, which is eye-roll-inducing at best and downright obnoxious at worst.

You know what though? More than anything else I’ve tried, read, watched, or been told during some very rough times in my life, The OMG just plain WORKED. It took fifty-one minutes for Flores to start me on a path to a better outlook on daily activities, which in turn made everything that followed easier to absorb and left me better equipped to handle disappointment. I’m referring here to the first chapter and its homework, which was to smile for twenty minutes. It might seem stupid, but that’s only if you take the command at face value and force yourself to physically smile. If instead you reflect on REASONS to smile, it puts you in a better state of mind and allows you to stay positive, even happy, in the face of adversity.

Amateur psychologist stuff aside, there is Magic strategy value to be had here. It is easy to focus on all the things that Flores does WRONG with The OMG, but to do so would do a disservice to the nuggets of wisdom to be found within the silt. Recaps of some key Magic theorems (Philosophy of Fire, Stock Mana, Grand Unified Theory) are worth having at hand for people like me who missed them the first time around, or for easy access later to refresh your memory or educate new players. References to and quotes from all-time greats like Jon Finkel and Zvi Mowshowitz can be seen either as irritating name-drops or useful insights into the minds of professionals who have made a living from the game. Advice on tournament minutiae is oft-overlooked and is probably the richest vein of new information to be found here for any aspiring “PTQ grinder,” or really anyone who can find ways to translate the information to other walks of life.

Of the thousands of Magic articles written each year, you will find precious few that have such broad strategic applications as the information presented herein. Understandably eschewing the popular trend of “present decklist, discuss ways to play it” (as such would be pointless in a book that is designed to be unbound by time context), Flores goes beyond even some of the more focused meta-articles written by the likes of Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa and Sam Black. He attempts to provide us a solid base of skills far above the fundamental, skills used by the upper echelon of players to give them the edge against the average. Most of us have, for example, heard of card advantage. Many FNM-level players strive to obtain it at all costs. Flores not only tells us that’s sometimes wrong, but explains why AND gives us good, real-world examples of how it’s wrong.

If you can stick with the whole thing from beginning to end, I am positive you will learn things. Flores is nothing if not a talented orator, and his mellifluous tones make for easy listening. If you want to improve your Magic game and at the same time hear tips to improve your daily outlook, $37 is a small price to pay. If you are not a fan of Mike’s work, there’s nothing here to change your mind.

The OMG was the catalyst in improving my day-to-day life. For that alone I am endorsing it. My play skill and my writing skills have both been improved from association with Mike, even more so from listening to this book. Smiling so much each day has generally sweetened my disposition, which in turn has enabled me to focus on the positives in life and better deal with the negatives. Understanding certainties has caused me to stop worrying about things over which I had no control. The fundamental appearance of these tenets is grossly misleading, as they are presented in-depth and tie in to many later concepts that are central to Mike’s approach. Reject and accept as you see fit.

I’m not going to sit here and tell you that this book is the I’m OK, You’re OK of our generation or even of the Magic community. There’s a lot in here of questionable or no value, EXCEPT in terms of the attitude it gives you. There’s nothing that will harm you; that’s for sure. Just whatever you do, consult a doctor before starting on the taurine.

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