U.S. Nationals was a big focus this week in the world of podcasts. Ali Aintrazi took it all down to become the 2011 U.S. National Champion.

The real breaking news of the week, however, was the announcement by Wizards of the Coast that the format of Pro Tour: Philadelphia will be the brand-new Modern. Be sure to tune in to the fledgling The Great Debate featuring Sam Stoddard, Gavin Verhey, and Chris Lansdell, which focused its third episode on the news as it broke. The guys do an excellent job examining the Banned List and analyzing the format’s potential.

If any of my readers have ever considered starting a podcast but weren’t sure where to start, I want to take a moment to recommend this top-notch article by Andy of CommanderCast: “If I Can Podcast, So Can You.” Andy breaks everything down in an easily digestible how-to. The best part: Everything he recommends is free (legally!).

Format Staples

Format staples are my favorite shows and the shows I believe are the most important for someone interested in Magic: The Gathering and podcasts to be listening to week in and week out. You want these in your seventy-five.

CommanderCast #38 – Call-InFerno

Running time 1 hour 45 minutes

• Andy and Donovan host another CommanderCast call-in episode.
• The guys have nine separate callers on the show to discuss everything from interesting theme decks to pimping out Commander decks.
• Tune in for a great grab-bag-style episode with a number of topics covered.

The Eh Team #48 – Shark Week

Running time 2 hours 4 minutes

• KYT, Scott, Jesse, and Jay talk with U.S. Nationals Champion Ali Aintrazi.
• Scotty Mac is in top form with his usual excellent interview skills. The guys talk a lot about Ali’s history with the game and his penchant for rogue deck-building.
• It’s nice to see that Jay’s disdain for rogue deck-builders isn’t just a personal beef with Jesse. He trolls Ali pretty hard throughout most of the episode for his card choices, obviously all in the spirit of fun.
• One great discussion that I would like to point out is the question of when someone should be considered a Magic “pro.” There isn’t a clear consensus among the guys on the show. What do you guys think? At what point is someone a pro?
• Definitely another high-quality Eh Team episode.

Horde of Notions #16 – Mailbag

Running time 2 hours 22 minutes

• The regular HoN crew: Chris, Jack, Adena, and Noyan are joined by Job Loucks this week.
• This week, the crew review and answer a ton of listener e-mail.

Inside the Deck – US Nationals

Running time 7 minutes

• This week, Inside the Deck is at U.S. Nationals, hosted at GenCon in Cincinnati.
• The Inside the Deck team talk with Luis Scott-Vargas, Patrick Chapin, David Ochoa, Ali Aintrazi, and more to learn a little bit more about qualifying for Nationals and what winning Nationals means.

Limited Resources #94 – Card Evaluation Revisited

Running time 1 hour 29 minutes

• With Jon now joining the show as a more regular host, he and Marshall revisit card-evaluation, Limited Resources style.
• The guys discuss BCSM (Best Case Scenario Mentality) and general card-evaluation basics that can be applied to any set played in a Limited format.

The Magic Show #239 – The Full Nelson

Running time 12 minutes

• Evan Erwin sits down with Brad Nelson to discuss U.S. Nationals, Caw-Blade, M12 Draft, From the Vault: Legends, and Innistrad.

Magic TV #98 – U.S. Nationals Recap

Running time 24 minutes

• This week on Magic TV, LSV talks with David Ochoa about their respective experiences at U.S. Nationals.

Monday Night Magic #271 – Like Wesley Snipes at a Tax Seminar

Running time 32 minutes

• Show notes:

• Oh god, it happened again, the internets ate my podcast so Tom is bringing you a late solo show. Yup, that just happened.
• But it is a good thing, since we can talk about the official roll out of Modern at PT Philly, the full list with art of the FTV:Legends set. Universal drops the MTG movie, the new ISD Garruk art, some kick butt Three Werewolf Moon card sleeves and more.

Yo! MTG Taps! #75 – See Also: Jund

Running time 1 hour 3 minutes

• Joey Pasco and Bigheadjoe discuss the results of U.S. Nationals, taking a close look at the banning of Jace, the Mind Sculptor and Stoneforge Mystic . . . Has the continued dominance of Caw-Blade proven that the bannings were unnecessary?
• The Joes also discuss a few Innistrad spoilers and rumors before closing up with a discussion of Joey’s Hall of Fame ballot.

The Sideboard

The Sideboard includes shows that may or may not record every week but are quality podcasts that you may be interested in. At a minimum, I will provide the show notes, but in the case of better-than-usual episodes will provide recap or commentary. You don’t run them in every deck, but they are often a great metagame call.

Freed from the Reel #129 – The Lull Before the Rush

Running time 28 minutes

• Show notes:

• Join AJ, Keya and Seb as they discuss the impending M12 release, with the impacts and repercussions from formats to prices.
• News:

• M12 is on the digital shelves! Release events coming. M12 will become base set payout following Aug 3rd downtime. M12 is already standard legal. The prerelease took place over the weekend.
• Modern Magic Confirmed at Comic-con!

The Mana Pool #192 – Completely Out of the Deck Box

Running time 1 hour 44 minutes

• Show notes:

• Holy crap it’s the Mana Pool! Because you asked for it (well, at least a couple of you asked for it) this is an Out of the Deck Box episode! We’re taking a look at Mike’s mono-white Wrath of Emeria deck in all its world-destroying glory. Then Dirk cries havoc! and lets slip the Slivers of war. Brian is up next with his Grixis-colored Phyrexia-aligned Rage Extractor deck, which made its first appearance at our last gathering. I bring up the rear with a look at my Progenitus Commander deck, with a name that I blatantly stole from Claire, formerly of the Avant-Card Show.
• Of course, that’s not all we did this episode. We took a look at the decks that were at the top of the standings at US Nationals, with their pigeons crapping all over everything and giving people meningitis. And while Brian was away on baby care duties, we went over some emails, of course. We always have emails. And because I’ve patterned my podcasting manner (loosely, of course) after Kermit the Frog, the music is from The Muppet Show. Oh yeah.

MTG Brainstorm #11 – I’m Sick of These Decks!

Running time 1 hour 3 minutes

• Show notes:

• This week on the Brainstorm we talk about the 2011 USA Nationals and what decks we liked and the one’s we don’t. We talk about some decks we made and what’s the best way to put one together.
• The Mtgbrainstorm contest has started we are looking for decks that are easy to make, but must be able to play at FNM or higher. The contest will start Aug,12, 2011 and will end Sep,12,2011. For more information listen to the podcast or go to http://www.mtgbrainstorm.com/

MTGCast Interviews the Men of Magic #60 – Osyp Lebedowicz

Running time 1 hour 26 minutes

• Show notes:

• This weeks show is with Osyp Lebedowicz. We go into the Hall of Fame voting, with ideas to make it better. Also, find out what the most difficult Table 1 in magic history was with him in it. Truly a man who has more passion for magic then most people do. Enjoy this week with the future Hall of Famer.

Pauper to the People #20 – Stimulation Match

Running time 37 minutes

• Show notes:

• Rogue podcasting, while not the norm, is not entirely unheard of in nature. Witness the host Chris, bereft of co-host Matt (sick with influenza) forge onward with the show. He divulges his initial list for the blue deck challenge, gives a brief cube update, and approaches control from an aggro player’s standpoint.
• In an attempt to make things sound a little less empty during the show, music has been added from Chris’s band, Pitch the Woo. You won’t even hear the yawning void if you don’t listen closely.

Scrubland #50 – Seizures!

Running time 57 minutes

• Show notes:

• This week the guys discuss U.S. Nationals and what that means for the meta while Bourroughs describes his adventure in Indianapolis. The best four days in gaming are over and Scrubland tries to figure out what the coming weeks have in store at your competitive level events.

In Development

Shows in development are newer podcasts. I will keep you guys up to date on new shows as they arrive on the scene, at a minimum providing show notes and possibly providing recap and analysis (I'm more likely to start writing about new shows once they've made it through five episodes and have begun to hit their stride). Consider these shows the cards you play with for the first time at the prerelease: You are excited to try them out but no one is sure how much play they will see.

The Great Debate #3 – Modernizing Philly

Running time 34 minutes

• Show notes:

• Wizards of the Coast has announced that Pro Tour: Philadelphia has been switched from Extended to the new Modern format. Chris, Gavin and Sam give their thoughts on the switch, the format and what happens next.

So Many Insane Plays

Running time 1 hour 55 minutes

• Show notes:

• Kevin Cron and Steve Menendian interview Vintage Championship Finalist Paul Mastriano and New York tournament organizer Nick Detwiler.
• Segments:

• 00:00:19: Paul Mastriano
• 01:18:29: Nick Detwiler
• 01:51:15: Closing