LEGO Pokémon demands a collectible series, but not minifigures

The 2026 LEGO Pokémon theme demands a single kind of set above all else – a collectible series that doesn’t need to be all about the minifigures.

LEGO Pokémon is coming to the portfolio starting next year and we’ve been exploring what the exciting theme might feature from minifigure-scale models to buildable figures. Above all other options, though, the 1,025 creatures in the franchise need a collectible series of some kind to get through as many as possible during the multi-year partnership.

Assuming that the 12-figure framework currently in use is here to stay, the LEGO Group would need just over 85 LEGO Pokémon series to get through every single Pokémon. That’s almost certainly not going to happen, but the Collectible Minifigures framework is still ideal for LEGO Pokémon, even if minifigures aren’t the best fit for every Pokémon in the Pokédex.

It’s good news then that later this year, the trend of LEGO Collectible Minifigures series being all about minifigures is being broken through a collection of 12 buildable cars in 71049 F1 Collectible Race Cars.

The brick-built models are something new for the LEGO Group’s blind boxes, but the concept of smaller, individually-available builds is familiar. Something similar would suit Pokémon well while allowing the LEGO Group to get through as many Pokémon as possible during the partnership.

This wouldn’t be a new idea for the LEGO Group to explore, thanks to the three-year Mixels theme. The retired range offers buildable figures in labelled bags as opposed to the blind boxes that the current line of LEGO Collectible Minifigures has become known for.

Labelling specific buildable LEGO Pokémon might not be as profitable or tempting for the LEGO Group, yet Mixels still proves that standalone and affordable buildable figure sets can be effective – especially with the brand recognition that Pokémon provides. Mixels only had nine creatures per series though, increasing the necessary number of series to get through all Pokémon to over 113.

Should the LEGO Group want to keep the experience blind, they’ve had experience with that too via the Super Mario Character Packs, all of which were blind boxed with no way of identifying the contents inside. Such a tactic wouldn’t be preferable for Pokémon, but may be inevitable.

With the few details we have on LEGO Pokémon – namely that it’s coming in 2026 – note that everything discussed in this report is only speculation and there are no further official details for LEGO Pokémon just yet. You can read more about the announcement for the theme by clicking here.

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