Review: LEGO Pokémon Up-Scaled Red Minifigure

LEGO Pokemon Up-scaled Red Minifigure 40868 New Release Review Brick Banter - 2026 September COVER

A Big Trainer for a Big theme!

LEGO Pokémon has been around for a fair few months now, and it seems like LEGO are branching out to a few different formats to see what sticks. With LEGO Smart Play, large display sets and realistic smaller playable models, it seemed like that was it. But LEGO had not touched on their own large-scale minifigure displays.

So with a set that I didn’t expect, how do I feel about it? Read on!

Red

The Red character for this model is based on the exact same Red minifigure found in the large Poke ball set. With the same face printing, same torso details, the figure seems to be about the same.

Until we realise that there are a lot of details bouncing off the figure too! Their backpack, badge and collar are all elements added to the exterior of the figure. Previous up-scaled minifigures utilized a lot more prints, so this is a step to keeping it more akin to a LEGO-aesthetic.

As far as the figure goes, the hat design is very accurate, and done in a way so that it doesn’t sit flat on the head. I’m a big fan of the curvature of the brim too.

I am also a big fan of the hair, as well as the prevalence of flesh coloured bricks. What I’m not the biggest fan of is the weird oblong shaped poke ball. I’m not sure if this figure is supposed to be standalone or not, but it isn’t the same scale as the Smart Brick sets. It’s not the same as the minifigure either. It’s doing its own thing, but it isn’t accurate, which is bizarre.

Verdict

Overall, I may not be the intended target for this model, but certainly isn’t anything crazily new. It’s another IP big figure, and I’m concerned about it’s overall shelf life compared to the actual Pokémon of the franchise. I am, however, looking forward to possibly breaking this down and modifying it, so I can make a Pokémon trainer of my kids.