The slick black shiny coloring, the coiled tongue scarf, and that ninja stance make it one of the most visually striking cards in the entire set
The drawback is quite significant, but a 1-mana 2/3 deathtouch that becomes a 4/4 lifelink upon transforming is finally a card that can compete with red or white 1-mana creatures
There are symbols that come from things that aren't expansions (the pen from the book cards, the arena logo from the Arena cards, etc.) Are those still considered expansion symbols
At the time, these Creature types were largely created for flavor purposes
Potentially a solid piece in a combat attack deck
In fact, the artwork for these cards is so good that a lot of fans of the physical card game are feeling a little bit miffed at them not being included in a modern, printed set