LEGO Pokémon's rumoured starting creatures play it safe

LEGO Pokémon's upcoming debut in 2026 is said to consist of 20 models, with rumoured details suggesting that the theme will play it safe to start.

One of the biggest hurdles for the LEGO Group to overcome with Pokémon is representing enough of the brand's 1,025 creatures to please fans over however many years the partnership will last. Treating them similarly to minifigures would likely mean no more than 38 per set (and that's being generous).

Smaller models of them may be easier to include in higher quantities in sets, but even one of Pokémon's biggest figure collection products only has 152 static figures, and that's an extreme outlier that covers a fraction of today's many Pokémon. Bigger figures would take a while to run through, especially based on the most recent rumours, likely ranging between one and three per set.

Even when combining these strategies, 1,025 Pokémon is a hefty number for the LEGO Group to cover in as much time as the theme will last. That's not counting the fact that there's a new generation every few years, adding around 100 Pokémon to the list after the theme starts next year.

This leaves the LEGO Group with the possibility that they won't get to every single Pokémon in the theme's lifespan, and the best bet to please as many fans as possible – as well as provide a good return on investment – would be to stick to the most popular Pokémon at first. That's precisely what the latest rumours posit for the 2026 theme.

It's currently claimed that a March 2026 wave for LEGO Pokémon will cover Eevee, Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander (as well as a second Pikachu model at some point in 2026).

Rumoured LEGO Pokémon 2026 sets

While this has yet to be confirmed, it would be a smart move for the early months of the new theme. Not only are all of these Pokémon from the oldest and most nostalgic generation, but each of them has proven to be significantly more popular than other Pokémon.

Pikachu is the face of the franchise, so much so that a model for the Pokémon was confirmed in the very first teaser for the 2026 theme. The amount of physical merchandise based on Pikachu is immense, and the creature was ranked as the 19th most popular Pokémon worldwide in the official 2020 Pokémon of the year vote, and the seventh in 2021's vote (which was Japan-only).

Eevee followed closely behind at the 20th spot in 2020 and the 21st spot in 2021. Eevee has become comparably popular to Pikachu with fans, even featured as one half of the mascots for the Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee! games. It's also worth noting that Pikachu and Eevee specifically appear in almost every Pokémon title. At the time of writing, Eevee and its Eeveelutions (the fun term for its evolutions) are featured in 168 items of merchandise on the online Pokémon Center store, ranging from home decor to clothing. That's admittedly nothing compared to Pikachu with a staggering 627 pieces of merchandise.

The trio of Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charmander would lean into that sense of nostalgia further, given that they're the first Pokémon players could acquire in the franchise's history. Bulbasaur was ranked as the 13th most popular Pokémon worldwide in the 2020 vote and the 27th in 2021. Charmander and Squirtle may not have broken into the top 30 spots either year, but they are in the top 30 most popular Kanto Pokémon for both years. Looking at the trio's current merchandise, Bulbasaur has 74 items, Charmander has 69, and Squirtle has 79.

Comparing these statistics to those of other Pokémon, such as Lucario, reveals just how popular this specific selection is. Lucario was ranked as the second most popular Pokémon in the 2020 vote, and ranked 29th in 2021. However, the Pokémon only has 32 items of merchandise currently available on the Pokemon Center online store. This spotlights the difference between the Pokémon that are popular and the Pokémon that are both popular and reliably marketable.

All of this is to say that the rumoured LEGO Pokémon character selection shouldn't be surprising, but the rumoured details are still to be taken with caution until an announcement is made. The likes of Pikachu are practically certain for the early days of the theme, and hopefully, the LEGO Group will make a dent in the 1,025 creatures to be covered in however long the partnership will last.

Look forward to the launch of LEGO Pokémon in 2026, and click here to see every LEGO set currently rumoured for next year.

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