Pokéman fans say Lego’s expensive Pikachu set is a monstrosity

Pokémon’s debut Lego set couldn’t possibly leave out franchise mascot Pikachu, but many fans aren’t thrilled to see the electric rodent among its Kanto brethren. A combination of price, design, and previous releases have left fans feeling both disappointed if not slightly horrified by Lego’s rendition of Pikachu.

The set, which will be released on Feb. 26 alongside a Poké Ball, is made up of 2,050 pieces. Hefty! The Pikachu also costs $199.99. No, it doesn’t incorporate Lego’s new Smart Brick technology. It’s just an expensive, giant yellow rat that looks like an animatronic out of Five Nights at Freddy’s.

“Something about Lego Pikachu’s face feels off,” one X user wrote in response to the official photographs. Most people can’t seem to get over Pikachu’s uncanny, blocky face. “Nah someone gotta answer for this shit,” another user wrote in a post with a crying laughing emoji that zoomed in on Pikachu’s visage. A different Pokémon fan went so far as to call Lego Pikachu a “monstrosity.”

One reason that people are hyper-fixated on Pikachu’s looks like is that 2022 saw the release of a Mega Bloks version of Ash Ketchum’s best friend. Some Pokémon fans maintain that the earlier iteration looks better than what Lego is releasing in 2026, and for much cheaper to boot. The Mega Bloks installment of Pikachu goes for a mere $47 as of this writing, and it’s about the same size as Lego’s Pikachu. Sure, there’s no Poké Ball to accompany the Mega Bloks version, and the design is arguably kinda funky as well. The Mega Bloks offering, however, has the superior version of Pikachu — fat Pikachu — and it’s poseable.

“Lego seriously looked [at] Mega and thought; I can make it worse!” one Reddit user joked.

The loudest gripe, however, has to do with the price. Lego prices seem to be continually inflating upward, and at $649.99, the new Pokémon starter set also commands an eye-watering investment. But even within that context, $199.99 for Pikachu seems outrageous. Lego Eevee is about the same size as Lego Pikachu, and that set only costs $59.99. The brown multihyphenate monster is also way cuter than Lego Pikachu without costing an arm and a leg.

“Pretty disgusting they could have made Pikachu $70 or $80 judging by Eevee’s price, but they just had to include a black stand and a [Poké Ball] to make it $200…” one Reddit user wrote in a thread discussing the new Lego sets.

Despite all the complaints, though, Lego knows exactly what it is doing. Earlier today, Lego’s website was having trouble loading due to how many people were trying to purchase the new sets. In some regions, Lego Pikachu is already sold out. Welp.