Today is a special occasion, e.g LEGO finally revealed some of the upcoming ones Pokemon is coming later this year, including Pikachu, Eevee, Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise. This should be a big milestone for LEGO fans as one of the biggest collaborations for the brand and for Pokemon fans, it should be time to look forward to even more ways to actually “catch” them all. I'm a big fan of both LEGO and Pokemonwith the latter being one of my favorite things in the whole world, and let me tell you – after seeing what the collaboration brings, I can be sure my wallet won't be empty.
I don't say that lightly. LEGO Pokemon sets would normally be a dream come true for me, an adult whose child himself only had a handful of safe places growing up with LEGO and Pokemon are two of the most prominent. Even in my adult years, LEGO a Pokemon they remain my safe hobbies, a beacon that I embrace sometimes daily. I played Pokemon Legends: ZA almost exclusively since it came out and my house is decorated with LEGO plants and other sets. However, newly revealed LEGO Pokemon I just feel “bad” about the kits and for that reason I know I won't get them.
Official LEGO Pokemon sets are coming in 2026, but so far they're underwhelming and expensive
LEGO is kicking off 2026 with a bang by releasing around 200 new sets, but its collaboration with Pokemon may not be as exciting as it seems.
LEGO Pokemon sets have gone from hero to zero real quick after today's reveal
Why LEGO Pokemon's Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise set drops the ball
For starters, pun intended, the LEGO Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise set is a mess for many reasons. Let me go through them:
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I've owned and still own several massive LEGO sets, and there's no way to meet Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise if it's intended to hold the weight of that Charizard on a plastic stick while making each Pokemon and its respective biomes separable for frequent play.
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The faces of each Pokémon in the trio are only partially true. Whether it's because they're too boxy, whether it's because the expressions seem to me, the faces aren't up to par with other quality LEGO products. This is especially true for Blastois, in my opinion, as the natural roundness of the face is missing, replaced by a boxy feel. Venusaur has a similar problem, but also a different one, as its ears are rounder than they should be.
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Charizard's tail suddenly ends, making the fire unnatural. Venusaur's body size seems to have shrunk. Blastoise's cannons are too long and narrow.
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The set costs $650, which is a lot and worth it to a large part of the audience. Additionally, the Kanto Region Badge Collection is probably the coolest set revealed today, but is exclusively given as a gift (while supplies last) with the purchase of Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise.
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None of the three Pokemon contain any LEGO Smart minifigures or regular minifigures.
For these reasons, I find the Kanto Pokemon Starter Set inadequate for its price, if not in general. Granted, these are issues that other fans might not notice or think much about, but for me, they're a huge deal breaker.
LEGO has got Eevee right for the most part
The Eevee set is probably the only one that gets it right, but even so, it has some issues. These are:
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The Eevee's ears seem a bit smaller than they should be compared to the head, and the interior missed out on having a darker layer over the brown to better represent the Pokemon's colors.
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Eevee's head is rounder and more accurate than Venusaur's, Charizard's and Blastoise's, but still suffers from too much “blockiness”, especially near the eyes and cheeks.
These are my main gripes with this set, and overall I think it's the best of the bunch next to the virtually unattainable Kanto badges. This is especially true considering its $59.99 price point, while anything higher would be too much. Eevee is one of the most popular Pokemon ever, so this should be good news for most trainers.
LEGO Pokemon's Pikachu Set is $200 nightmare fuel
Finally, the set that I find the most disappointing is the new LEGO Pikachu with Poke Ball, and again I think it has different layers. The main problems are:
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Pikachu's face is honestly nightmare fuel. There have been many designs for the series mascot, from the popular so-called “fat Pikachu” to modern anime takes, and none of them are half as bad as the LEGO Pikachu face.
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The proportions are wrong, the mouth is more prominent than anything else, the eyes look unnatural and have weird gaps above them that look like little eyebrows. The ears are just glorified sticks, the front paws are unnecessarily long, and the Poke Ball lacks the round feel that an Eevee set or even a LEGO Mario Kart set has.
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Pikachu's face and neck are locked in a specific position, so if you choose to remove him from the display, he won't have a natural appearance when he's standing.
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The Pikachu set costs $199.99, which is not much for what is probably the most famous Pokemon of all time and one of the most popular ever.
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At this price, the set should come with a Pikachu Minifig.
Overall, I think the Pikachu and Poke Ball set is by far the biggest disappointment of the series, with Venusaur, Charizard, and Blastoise a close second. However, I think the latter's issues pale in comparison to the former when you consider three models vs. one and Pikachu is probably done far less well than any other ensemble in the wave.
More LEGO though Pokemon sets are coming out in 2026 so there is hope. According to recent LEGO leaks for 2026, these may include some interesting Pokemon like Croagunk, Larvitar, and Cubone, but seeing the current ones, I don't think I can get too excited. I hope I'm wrong.
