The most recognizable and sought-after Pokemon in the entire hobby Years of Base Set nostalgia attached to the character Fan-favorite design that has stayed consistent across generations Heavy presence in anime, games, and merchandise keeping it front of mind 1999 Base Set Charizard, also illustrated by Mitsuhiro Arita, the most iconic card in the hobby Chase-card slots across modern sets where Charizard reliably tops the price list Built as a nostalgia and collector piece rather than a tournament staple
While neither half of the card is all that exciting, being able to cast both of them over the course of a game makes the card extremely valuable
It's -1 to its toughness, which is worse than Animate Dead ($0.99 and 34,592 decks at EDHREC.com) which is only just -1 to power and has the same cost as Persist
Luckily for potential sellers, they're iconic enough that they're typically the first major misprint errors players hear about
That means that while it's not particularly helpful (or threatening) on turn two, over the course of a game it could easily end up making you six, or even ten mana a turn, fueling your ascent to victory