GradiNG
Overall BGS 9.5 GEM MINT
This particular copy is graded a BGS 9.5b with the 9 subgrade on corners.
Rarity & Collectability
For some reason it seems like Dragon Whelp suffers from lifted Alpha corners. Of the 19 copies in BGS 9.5, only four of them are quad.
Impressions & Artwork
Dragon Whelp by Amy Weber was my personal favorite card in the 90’s. Because I had an unhealthy obsession with everything Dragons akin to other teens with more imagination than brawn, Dragon Whelp seemed to cover the perfect Ven Diagram of cards that I would be drawn to. A baby dragon hatching out of an egg with cute feet! What’s not to love?
An oddity I recently noticed was that Amy painted a belly button on the dragon whelp. Of course a belly button would be expected out of a mammal but not one hatched from an egg! Only took me thirty years of scrutinizing one of my favorite cards to notice.
Usage & Gameplay
I don’t recall Dragon Whelp seeing much “competitive” table top play as it was always overshadowed by Poppa Shivan. I do like how if you firebreath it more than three times, it becomes a bit much for the whelp so it dies. In retrospect, it’s a very well balanced and solidly designed magic card. While it doesn’t wow you with stats, it stays true to its color, is powerful with mana investment, flies and stays true to what you think the creature would do if Dragon Whelps were real.
Coming full circle, I recently won an Arena draft in the Dominaria United reprint with a couple of Dragon Whelps leading the way. It turns out the card is actually pretty decent, and the mini fire breathing is more powerful than it seems at first glance.
Memories
Many of us had that card which we loved and collected for the art despite the perceived value or power level. Dragon Whelp was the card that I always traded for. Whenever I saw it in someone’s binder I would ask to trade for it. Sometimes trading even the formidable Serra Angel or Sengir Vampire would have to go in lieu of this little guy. I was able to collect over sixty copies of this card which I still have with me today. Each card carries a memory of a deal made and a friend found.
Or maybe this was simply my first spec that never amounted to anything. 
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