Nobody Asked - A Maniacal Engineer's Thoughts On The Pokémon LEGO Sets

LEGO Pokémon: Long have I awaited this day. LEGO first teased an upcoming collaboration with Pokémon back in March 2025, and now the first wave of sets have hit store shelves. As a fan of Pokémon, and Bulbagarden staff’s resident Lego Maniac, I have been waiting for this day for decades.

While I know that Mega have had Pokémon building kits forever, I've been eager to see LEGO’s take on this beloved franchise. First, some general thoughts on these sets. The sets appear to contain be a bunch of useful part recolors for existing LEGO parts. In a lot of sets, articulation and joints become jarring due to the ball joint parts only being available in gray and black. Furthermore, it seems like even Technic pins, which are normally a jarring blue or red, or potentially black, are getting recolors as well. Overall, this is an excellent decision that makes the LEGO models look better, and I encourage more such recolors moving forward. It also looks like the details are either brick-built or use printed pieces, instead of stickers. As someone who is very clumsy when it comes to adding decals, I appreciate new prints whenever we can get them.

We do have to talk about the Copperajah in the room though, the pricing. LEGO is expensive, and these sets do specifically cater to adult fans of LEGO (AFOLs). To be honest, ever since the recent release of the $1000 USD “Death Slice” set, I have been a bit skeptical of pricing on LEGO sets. On its face, $650 USD for the largest set seems appalling, so let’s compare it to a few other sets, just for reference. The only other $650 USD set is the Ultimate Collector’s Series Venator-Class Republic Cruiser, which is about 1500 less pieces, but, size-wise is larger due to its length. $500 USD can get you the Rivendell set, which is about 800 fewer pieces, but is still incredibly substantial and comes with 15 minifigures. $680 USD will get you the LEGO Titanic, which has 2200 more pieces and an imposing display presence. At the $470 USD price point is the Hogwarts Castle set, which has 800 fewer pieces, but comes with four unique minifigures, and 27 nanofigures to display around the castle’s interior. It also uses a lot of large stickers to get interior details. All-in-all, I don’t think the pricing is too outrageous, given the fact that it is a licensed product, and compared to other themes and similarly priced or sized sets. Obviously, the $650 USD price point is not one that’s accessible to everyone, but that’s the case with many LEGO sets across many themes.

As far as set aesthetics and functionality go, this is where I will be distinguishing my thoughts on the different sets. The most egregious set as far as appearances go is the Pikachu set, where, from a lot of angles, the head and face of Pikachu, the franchise mascot, just looks…wrong. It’s bloated, bubbled, and stretched to strange proportions. The stand looks very cool, and it’s simple, but elegant, how the studs at the front of the stand display 25, in reference to Pikachu’s Dex number. The lightning bolt shape, and the jumping effect is quite nice, too. The Poke Ball is kind of blocky, but that’s forgivable given that it is, literally, made of blocks, and the round shape is simulated quite nicely on five out of six of the faces. It does look like Pikachu gets decent articulation for posing the ears, feet, arms, and tail, with the additional ability to change out the tail between male and female Pikachu. Overall, though, I would not recommend this set, because, frankly, and unfortunately, Pikachu is completely outclassed by the stand in its own set.

The Eevee set, on the other hand, is quite nice, and fairly reasonably priced. The head is a bit blocky, and the proportions may not be exactly right, but overall, it looks good from most, if not all, reasonable angles. There is good articulation in the ears and tail for changing the pose. While there is articulation in the front legs, it seems like this is designed for more of a standing or walking pose than a sitting pose. Unlike Pikachu, there does not seem to be a way to swap between male and female Eevee, but that level of detail would likely require swapping out the entire tail, instead of just a few parts on the end of the tail, which would increase the price for very little pay off. Overall, this set is the one I would recommend the most out of the initial wave. The price point isn’t too limiting, the aesthetics are acceptable, and the functionality allows for multiple different ways to display it. This is not to say that this set is a “must buy,” and I will be passing on it myself, but in my opinion the value is here on this one.

Lastly, let’s talk about the large set. I’ve already discussed pricing on this one, so let’s talk aesthetics and functionality. Right off the bat, I will say that Venusaur’s face bothers me. The shaping of the head, especially around the eyes, just looks wrong. Its misshapen and a bit disturbing. Aside from that, Blastoise seems to have its proportions completely wrong, though I can’t really tell since there isn’t a good picture of its shell. Charizard’s tail also seems a bit blocky, and I am concerned that there are no images of the flame on the tip of the tail being in-line with the tail, instead of sticking straight up. Lastly, despite doing part recolors, there are still joints and parts that can be seen on all three Pokémon that are miscolored.

All of these points are nitpicks, I will grant you, but for $650 USD and such a prominent franchise, I would expect better. That said, there are positives about the set, as well. All of the models seem to have great articulation, allowing for a wider range of poses. Charizard’s wings are actually done quite well thanks in no small part to part recolors, and seem to use a nice quality cloth piece. Venusaur’s flower also looks very nice. The stand itself is really impressive, and I do like the fact that it can be split into three parts, which allows the owner to display each of the Pokémon separately. Overall, though, I am definitely not willing to spend $650 USD on this set and would much rather wait and see what the next wave of sets will bring. I have a lot of nostalgia for Kanto and the original starter trio, but not enough to overlook the flaws and price of this set. The value is there, for those to whom this set is appealing and the price point is accessible, as evidenced by the fact that pre-orders literally sold out within a day, but, for me, it comes down to specific preferences.

It is a shame that the gift with purchase was only available with the $650 set, but, as a gift with purchase, I think it does everything correctly. It provides additional value for your purchase without detracting anything from the set itself if you don’t happen to get it. As a recent example, the $1000 USD “Death Slice” set had a microscale TIE Fighter gift with purchase for its release, which was meant to be hung up in the set’s hanger bay, which looks relatively empty without it. In point of fact, some of the official set photos still show that TIE Fighter in them, despite the fact that it was only a gift with purchase and is no longer available. In contrast, the Kanto Badges are completely separate from the starter trio set, and a nice addition to any Pokémon and LEGO fan’s collection. The Badges are designed relatively simply, but are easily recognizable, and the case itself looks good too. All in all, this is very much a win. It’s just a shame that so few people are going to actually get this, because it’s a gift with purchase available exclusively with the most expensive set, and that set already sold out in pre-orders.

There's also a mini Pokémon Center available as a gift for LEGO Insiders. From the images I've seen, it looks quite nice, and it is good to see that iconic red roof in LEGO form. Becoming an insider costs nothing, so it may be worthwhile to do so if you want to get this set.

So, to summarize my thoughts, I do still think there is a lot of potential for LEGO Pokémon to improve, and I am very much looking forward to minifigure-scale sets whenever those get revealed. For now though, my wallet is breathing a sigh of relief, as I, personally, will be skipping all of these sets from the first wave.

As always, I am Maniacal Engineer, and nobody asked, but that’s my opinion.

 

It is a nice overall review of the presented sets! Good article!

True, the price is a little on the steep side... If in the North America it is an issue to be adressed, imagine in Latin America! While the general market for these indeed tends to direct more towards the adult audience, it is undoubtebly not accessible to the general public here, hahaha! Considering minimum wage, you ought to work three months just to get your hands on the Kanto Starters Set! (Brazil, in that case...) That with the intended retail price and not from the greedy hands of scalpers... What a cruel world!

Anyway, I'm just happy with such collaboration.

 

It is a nice overall review of the presented sets! Good article!

True, the price is a little on the steep side... If in the North America it is an issue to be adressed, imagine in Latin America! While the general market for these indeed tends to direct more towards the adult audience, it is undoubtebly not accessible to the general public here, hahaha! Considering minimum wage, you ought to work three months just to get your hands on the Kanto Starters Set! (Brazil, in that case...) That with the intended retail price and not from the greedy hands of scalpers... What a cruel world!

Anyway, I'm just happy with such collaboration.

the mega sets are better, I have tons of them, they are good quality and affordable, unlike these ones