We've come to the (extended)end of another theme month! We've seen both brick sets and video games based on Pokémon, with quality ranging from bad to... Not as bad. Since we've focused so much time on unofficial Pokémon merchandise, made by manufacturers with the budget of a ham sandwich for a quick buck, I think it's only fair to close Pokémonth out with some OFFICIAL brick sets! Let's end things with a look at the recent Mega Construx line of Pokémon building bricks! ...It can't get any worse than Ionix's take...
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Name: Pokémon Meowth/Pikachu vs. Bulbasaur/Wartortle/Ivysaur/Gyrados/Blastoise
Brand: Mega Construx
Model: DYF08/DYF11/DYF12/DYF13/DYF14/FPM99
Pcs: 30/140/97/94/352/284
Since its start in 1996, the Pokémon brand has since been applied to practically every single type of product and merchandise possible! We have the console games, the handheld games, the virtual pet games, the movies, the anime, short films, comics, webcomics, novels, children's books, trading cards, action figures, miniatures, blind bags, plushes, health products, soundtracks, original board games, board game variants, costumes, kid diapers, USB chargers, sex toys, bedspreads, chairs, dishes, piggy banks, sports equipment, planes, trains, automobiles, bouncy balls, actual Pokédexes, real-life Pokémon Centers, stickers, console decals, pins, socks, shirts, phone cases, backpacks, stationary, wallets, purses, and even video game consoles, just to name a FEW things with the official Pokémon seal of quality stamped on it! This little yellow mouse with static discharge has had his paws in just about EVERYTHING!
And that's just the OFFICIAL stuff. If I were to name EVERY bootleg/fanmade product out there, we'd be here until Generation XIX was released! If there's a fan or a company that knows about Pokémon and has the time and/or money to spare, you can bet that they've either released or are thinking about releasing something that demonstrates their love for the series! ...While, at the same time, making a buck or nine off of OUR love for Pokémon!
Of course, the Pokémon craze has also spread to building brick toys, where it is certainly no stranger. We've already seen several lines of sets and figures, to the point where I've had to dedicate TWO theme months to featuring them, and believe me when I say we haven't even STARTED on our journey through the Gameto and Brickho regions! There's still SO much I could feature here that fits the blog's criteria! ...At least, in terms of the unofficial stuff. When it comes to officially released building brick lines and figures, they're surprisingly as rare as Chansey!
Information about Pokémon-themed building brick lines is very sparse and hard to know where to even start looking. From what I can tell, the first sets were released by Mega Bloks, sometime around 2004-2005, which were based on the then-current Generation III Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire iteration of the series. This line was known as "Build 'n Battle", taking the form of a dice-and-counter-based game, where both players tried to "outroll" each other's Pokémon and eventually rebuild their starter Pokémon into their evolutionary forms! Whoever had the most "purple bricks" at the end was the winner! ...So, they weren't as much "sets", as they were an excuse to make a brick-themed board game to compete with Lego's many releases even back then. ...Still, there was clearly quality and imagination involved, and the buildable figures looked like their counterparts, so not bad for a first release!
Mega Bloks would later release actual sets and figures with the Pokémon license up until at least the Pokémon Diamond & Pearl generation. ...But mostly only in Japan, and by Bandai instead of Mattel. Information about this period is virtually nonexistent, so I have no idea what they released, where it was released, or when they eventually ceased production. ...All I know is that I need to own every single one!
After Mega Bloks, Kawada Co. gave Pokémon a shot in their Nanoblocks line. I've featured the first release of this line(or at least bootlegs of them) before, and, for Nanoblock statuettes, they're pretty good! Kawada Co. has certainly thought so, since they're still manufacturing Pokémon Nanoblock figures to this day, with new waves of figures coming out yearly! ...In Japan. Only 5 of the first wave of Pokémon Nanoblocks were released in the USA, given a quiet distribution by Ohio Art Company in 2015, and quickly forgotten about. ...Should have stuck with the Etch-a-Sketch, OAC...
Kawada Co. is also responsible for Nanoblock+ Pokémon building sets, released in 2014 and 2017, featuring more Lego-like bricks and custom molded figures! ...But, again, only in Japan! If you were American, unless you knew a sweet import store that sold these toys, or you were willing to pay a fortune in shipping on eBay, this was another venue that was pretty closed off to international fans...
The only Pokémon-themed brick release we Americans got since Mega Bloks' original attempt was Spin Master's Ionix range of Pokémon figures and sets, released in 2014. ...And, as someone who has featured their figures and their sets, I can say without hesitation or hyperbole that they're some of the WORST brick sets I've EVER come across! They're bland, they're badly painted, the instructions are misprinted, and their designs SO don't fit with the Pokémon aesthetics! What works for their Tenkai Knights line does NOT work for Pokémon! Is it any wonder that these only lasted a year and 6 sets, and you could find remaining inventory at Toys R Us for $1 each? ...Which was still overpriced by $22.50?
But finally, just last year, we saw the return of quality Pokémon-themed brick sets! Mega Bloks, now under its new Mega Construx label, repurchased the rights, began manufacturing brick sets and figures again, and publicly released them summer of 2017! Now, American Pokémaniacs and Legomaniacs alike can rejoice as they collect, build, and battle their own Pokémon! And what's better after a long day of wandering around, playing Pokémon GO, than having your Pokémon brick models there to greet you when you get home? ...Well, ok, there's what you're thinking, but I'm speaking hypothetically here, from the viewpoint of an already crazy building brick collector and shut-in...
So Mega Construx's Pokémon line may be the most recent AND the most popular and profitable of all the Pokémon building brick releases. ...But does that make it the very best? Like no set ever was? Let's find out!
These are the sets I own, and the sets we'll be going over. I know it's not the whole line, and there are a lot of reviewers you've already seen that were rich and crazy enough to buy the lot, but hopefully, I have enough here to get and give a good idea about the line as a whole. ...And if not, then I'm sorry. I'm clearly forcing you to read this, so you have every right to sue me for wasting your time afterwards.
The box designs are mostly the same, so we'll use Gyarados here as our "prime box example." ...Though, really, what is there to say? Most of the front box space is taken up with a 45° isometric view of the Pokémon in question, standing on the constructable base(or bases, in the case of Mr. "So, you mocked me while I was a Magikarp, did you?!" here.) There's no actual art or action poses, nor does the model look like an artist's rendition like the minifigure boxes we've seen. It's just a snapshot of the completed form of what you're going to get inside. ...Did we really need the entire front of the box to know that?
The exception is with this box for the Pikachu vs. Bulbasur set(and likely all similar battle boxes.) Now THIS is what I want to see! The two Pokémon included in the box, pitted against each other in this beach/forest environment, rushing at their opponents, powers at the ready! THIS is the selling point, right here! Sure, toys are there to help us create a world of imagination to play with them in, but we need a jumpstart to that world, like this! Seeing Pikachu and Bulbasaur here, ready to battle, Pikachu shooting out a bolt of lightning at Bulbasaur, I can feel the money loosening from my wallet!
As opposed to the packaging for Ivysaur, here, who's also stuck in a 45° angle, with an expression that says "Buy me. ...Or don't. Doesn't matter, either way..." ...I guess once Bulbasaur evolves, it loses most joy in its work...
I do like the backgrounds for these boxes. I can't tell if it's stock art, or if it was drawn/modeled for these sets, but each one looks appropriate to the Pokémon and their habitats. And since they're blurred, more attention is drawn to the Pokémon on the front, so it doesn't get lost in the artwork! It figures that if they're going to make the pictures on the front as big enough to fit in a field, they should give them a field to fit in!
The smaller sets also feature this alternate picture of the featured Pokémon, with the caption "Build It!" underneath. A picture that's missing from the front of the bigger boxes. ...I guess they figured that if you've gone and bought a $40 300+ piece set, you don't need to be told what to do with it!
The backs of these boxes simply show another pose for the model you'll be getting, as well as a profile pic of the Pokémon with their name underneath. So, nothing exciting happening on this side, either.
I do love this part here, though. Next to the name, they included symbols indicating what element(s) the Pokémon is! In this case, Gyarados is Water/Flying! That's a nice, though unneeded, detail that gives the box some sorely-lacking personality! Now all we need are some game rules, and the battle system is set! I'm sure Mega Construx has some left over from their "Build 'n Battle" sets they can tweak!
At the bottom of each box are the immediate other sets in the line they may want you to also purchase. ...I would, if I wasn't already busy buying your blind bags, Mega Construx!
The other three sides simply have Gyarados, or the other Pokémon, pictured at other angles. ...These Pokémon are vain as heck!
Plus, there's the regular legal text on the bottom of the box that nobody cares about, and nobody can read, anyway.
And, just in case you missed the giant "Pokémon" logo in the top-right corner
Here's a stock pic of Pikachu waving at you, just to remind you what franchise this is! ...I'm sold!
This Meowth figure is the odd Pokémon out, as it's not actually a set. It's part of Mega Construx's collectible figure sub-line, similar to the standalone Call of Duty, Star Trek, and He-Man figures they also produce. Better than having to buy full sets every time they release a new figure! ...Or is the quality of these figures lesser than the ones included in sets, because they don't need to put as much attention into the cheaper products? Class. You may now discuss. I expect a 10-page paper on it by Monday.
I'm super excited to have found one of these figures, because they each come in their own Pokéballs!
I'll never have enough of those!
Nothing else to say about this packaging, since the rest is mostly blank with some legal text. As is usual for packaging that's just there to complete the overall package that, once bought, will be instantly ripped off and tossed away. No sense in bringing your A game here!
That just leaves us with the "0-3" warning
Despite the 6+ recommendation
Or the 8+ for the larger sets.
Anyone between those ages will have their Pokémon stolen by a passing hobo. Pokémon are delicious, you know! ...At least, I assume this world also eats Pokémon. If there are no other animals, I'd assume the meat industry uses various Pokémon for their burgers and steaks! The original Pokémon Handbook states that Farfetch'd, at least, are delicious. ...Are there Pokémon set aside to be processed into food, or does the world simply eat the slow learners? And if Pokémon are sentient, at least to the point they're self-aware, are the humans technically committing cannibalism?
Alright, I have a lot of Pokémon to construct before this Pokémonth can end, so you'd better pray that I can get these pieced together quickly and release you from this torment! ...Because, like I said, you're clearly here only because you have a gun pointed at your head and you're being forced to sit through EVERYTHING I read, no matter how much I make your eyes bleed! ...At least, that's what certain people have been telling me. YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!
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And here are all the Pokémon, which I've had to take two separate pictures of since the latter two were too big to fit on my table, I've caught for this review! ...Or bought at Shopko, but buying Pokémon doesn't fit with the franchise's message of going out and catching and raising Pokémon yourself! ...Unless you purchased them with coins you won at the Celadon Game Corner. ...From Team Rocket. ...The franchise is a bit hypocritical at times, isn't it?
Let's start at the bottom and work our way to the top! ...And by that, I mean smallest-to-largest. I don't want to come across as someone who sees some Pokémon as lesser to others. If there's one thing you can say about me, when it comes to Pokémon, I am an equal opportunity, unbiased individual! ...As long as they're the fire* or electric-type.
*Which none of these are...
Starting things off is Meowth, from Series 2 of Mega Construx's collectable Pokémon figures line, and easily the best part of the Pokémon shows and movies. ...And, right away, you can tell that Mega Construx has given their Pokémon figures more attention than any other brand we've seen!
This, and most of the other figures and models in the line, is a VERY good interpretation of the Pokémon to brick form! It helps that Mega Construx has actually tried to make a "figure" of each Pokémon, as opposed to the small "miniset" Dargo and SL Toys attempted, and even the custom molds LEBQ made. They're still made out of multiple, mostly standard, pieces, but in the same way Star Wars or Marvel Ultrabuilds are, with each piece built to resemble and function as a head, arms, legs, etc. It's a very "action figure" build, not built like regular Mega Bloks/Construx figures! It's like that giant LOZ Pikachu figure from last Pokémonth! ...Only smaller and slightly more articulated.
Being an "actual" mainstream building brick company, Mega Construx has more money and resources to throw into producing sets. And nowhere is this more apparent than in the paint job given to these figures! It looks exactly like Meowth! Wide, circular eyes, large smile, small fangs sticking out of the top of the smile, the features are all here! And that's just the faceplate, as they've also given us painted ears and a brick that serves as that gold plate Meowths have on their foreheads! There's no scratched paint, no mislayered decals, and the colors match what they represent! I know this should be standard and I shouldn't be that impressed, but when nearly every Pokémon set you're gone through has been trash or near-trash, even the official stuff, you learn to appreciate quality when you see it!
Interestingly, the "tufts" on Meowth aren't part of a custom brick mold. Instead, it's a thin piece of cloth that's sandwiched between the other bricks that make up the head, with the cloth "whiskers" protruding out the sides and top. I like it! It's still convincing and gives the figure detail, and it's cheaper than having to create a custom mold that will likely never be used again. ...And it's not done with STICKERS, which, if I haven't made it clear by now, are an abomination in brick sets!
The design they gave to the arms is a little strange. They're built with standard Mega Construx ball joint pieces, with claw pieces at the ends serving as hands. They work, they give Meowth a wide berth of arm articulation, and they allow him to hold items. ...They just look strange with a creature they're trying to convince us is "real." With the ball joints, thin arms, and claws, he looks like Robo-Meowth!
Which HAS happened! ...Sort of.
The legs can also move slightly to the sides, letting Meowth do a dance!
Again, something he's done before! ...And about as well as the figure allows...
If I had to complain about something that could actually be fixed, I think the tail's too long. His tail's also pretty long in the show, but it's curled, so it's not as obvious. Here, it looks like his tail's almost the length of his body, with a short, brown section at the top! They could have used a shorter elbow piece instead of the long, curved, tan piece, and I don't think anyone would have complained. ...Unless they meant for Meowth to have a tail Mew would be jealous of...
So while I like you and your design, Meowth, we have other Pokémon to look at, so it's time for you to return to return to your Pokéball. ...Which I'm pretty sure never happened in the show. ...Which would be hilarious if it did!
Next, let's take a look at Wartortle! ...Who's usually an overlooked first evolution of the original starter Pokémon, compared to Ivysaur and Charmander, so I'm surprised they gave it its own brick set! ...Also, embarrassed that I don't have a Squirtle for this to evolve from.
Like all the Mega Construx Pokémon figures, at least the ones I own, Wartortle's head is built in two halves, with bricks holding the ears/horns in the middle. Again, I like the build, as it creates a relatively-convincing "head" without having to create a custom mold.
Which they already did for the head, so I'm placated.
The arms use the same claw pieces Meowth did, except the limbs are much shorter to match the stubbier legs the Squirtle family has. ...Which are still long enough to place sunglasses on Squirtle's nose, so figure that one out...
Also, using multiple bricks to create a front shell makes it look cracked and uneven. ...But I like the texture!
Wartortle's legs are on ball joints, giving them a lot of poseability and articulation, and letting you put them into running poses! ...So, a turtle Pokémon ironically has more leg movement than a cat Pokémon! ...And that also makes me want to hear the Pokémon universe's take on "The Tortoise and the Hare". ...Or "The Wartortle and the Lopunny"! ...Think the Wartortle wins by outrunning the Lopunny in this version?
On the back, Wartortle's given a basic dome piece, colored and patterned like the back of his shell. Compared to the front of the shell, which is made of multiple pieces, it looks too smooth and round for the Pokémon model. ...But at least they painted the back of THIS turtle Pokémon, which LEBQ conveniently forgot to do...
They even built a better tail than Meowth's; a very blue, puffy tail with spiral decals at the top! ...Which is apparently how the Pokémon breathes, because it's based on a legendary Japanese turtle beast that grew a similar tail to breathe through. ...I'd comment, but we Americans have the jackalope and the hide-behind, so what's the point in judging other creatures of legend?
Unfortunately, the size of the tail and its placement creates a major flaw with the design: Wartortle can't stand up straight! It's forever leaning over at a roughly 45° angle, its tail too bulky to let it stand any straighter. For a while, I couldn't even figure how how to stand it up, period! ...And now that it is, it looks ready to fall flat on its face any second now...
Though, if you're really inventive, you can pose him in a way that takes advantage of his posture! ...Wish I could find a way to make my posture look as awesome...
As with most sets involving a single Pokémon, Wartortle's given a base resembling its natural habitat that you can pose it on any way you wish! ...As long as it doesn't slam into the pieces jutting out of the base. ...Which it will. ...Often.
In this case, we have what looks like shallow water, with a few small waves, some rocks jutting out, and a small, rocky beach area for Wartortle to hang out on once its gotten its daily swim. It works. ...Can't elaborate much more on that.
We also have... These. These jagged, transparent blue things that are held up by transparent bricks that stick out of the water. ...I'm not entirely sure what they represent. Ice? Splashes? Action lines that appear when Wartortle uses Surf or Waterfall? Since I like using different bricks for different setups, I appreciate ambiguity with my building bricks, but in cases where they're supposed to stand for something, I'd like to know what I'm looking at.
Positioning Wartortle like the front of the box doesn't help to clear anything up, especially since it's too small to reach both jagged water placements. ...I'll just assume it's discovered a new move called Water Scissors and move on.
Something else each set comes with are Pokéballs of many designs! For Wartortle, it gets a regular Pokéball, possibly hinting at its low-level origins. ...It's a different design for a Pokéball, I'll give it that. It's two dome pieces sandwiching a black piece with the white clasp painted on. I can tell what it is, but it's not the best design we've seen.
If anything, it looks like a miniature version of the already miniature brick version of a Pokéball we saw with the LOZ Ideas Pikachu!
The Pokémon trainers we've seen so far are going to have a heck of a time hauling these things around! ...Better spring for the extra large pocket jeans...
Next, we have Ivysaur in its natural environment. A jungle! ...Or is it a desert? ...A Junsert! ...Desgle?
This is one of my favorite figures of the line! Besides the expert paint job on the face, it's just an overall really creative design! The four legs with decals, the front two being slightly longer than the back to give it a more "natural" posture, the big bulb on its back surrounded by leaves, the vines shooting out of the sides, it looks like someone grabbed an image of what a brick version of Ivysaur should look like out of a fan's imagination and gave it physical form! ...It's always the four-legged models I heap praise on, considering Eevee from the Ionix, Dargo, and SL Toys sets, and Bulbasaur from the LEBQ sets were also easily the best parts! I guess if only the top part of a figure is visible, the flaws are harder to see.
The legs are built similarly to Wartortle's, each one made of a curved brick that attaches to a ball joint. The front legs, as I pointed out, are slightly longer, with a sloped brick to give them a little more of an angle and more semblance to tortoise legs, which I think they were going for in designing this Pokémon. It looks REALLY good, and is a detail a lot of other designers probably would have foolishly left out or forgotten about!
The ball joints are also given much more room to move around, so if you want to teach your Ivysaur to do tricks, you can! ...Just don't get Ring Master Stella to train it...
We get (what I assume is)a custom piece for Ivysaur in the form of this flower bulb, surrounded by articulated leaves that can be raised and lowered. This makes it easy to pose Ivysaur's bulb in a way that suggests it's about to launch an attack!
If you ever see Ivysaur's leaves suddenly drop around the bulb, RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! ...Unless you enjoy being sprinkled by one of three debilitating powders, or having a plant burrow into you and slowly transferring your life into Ivysaur...
And, of course, we have Ivysaur's vine-tentacles on either side. Both are made of soft rubber, with hard tips inserted into the ends to give them a bit more form. ...Also, to deliver a more painful blow in battle!
Since they're rubber, they're a little hard to pose, and they can easily rip if you're not careful. Still, they look convincing, and they'll probably last longer than a certain other Vine did...
Ivysaur's environment is much more plain and ambiguous than Wartortle's seeing to be mostly grassland, with a rocky, sandy section on the far right. Maybe these terrains exist in reality, but I'd assume Ivysaur would want to stay as far away from the beach as possible. There's no nutrition to grow on, and its bulb will shrivel in the sun, so it would likely want to stay away from sunny, barren areas for the time being. ...Until it becomes a Venusaur and does nothing BUT stay in the sun! ...But that's a long way off...
The only foliage are these weird, crooked trees, which appear to grow out of rocks on both the grassy and sandy sides. Or maybe they're giant weeds? ...Either way, they were a pain to put together, so I don't want to spend any more time analyzing them...
Ivysaur also gets the same Pokéball as Wartortle, which is again probably the Pokéball it originally emerged from as a Bulbasaur! ...Or it holds its trainer, which it has imprisoned forever... Who said that Pokéballs could only catch Pokémon?
Now, what we've seen so far has been just fine. ...But do you know what I miss? Seeing these cute creatures in a duel to the death. I wonder if they dared to make a set with Pokémon in the heat of battle?
Well, what do you know? Our next set is Pikachu vs. Bulbasaur, in what's likely a first trainer battle with starter Pokémon! Possibly even taking place right inside the Viridian Forest, based on the landscape! Makes a good change-up from all the Bug and Bird Pokémon trainers in the area!
The Bulbasaur in this set resembles a cuter version of the Ivysaur design. It's smaller, obviously, with straight legs, a lighter color, and a more friendly face.
With its elongated face and more angular eyes, this figure also looks closer to the fiercer, less cute original Generation 1 design, despite having the wide smile later designs are usually pictured with. ...Unless the wide open mouth here is a sign Bulba Joe wants to swallow his opponent whole...
Like the Ivysaur, the Bulbasaur is posed as if it's sitting on its haunches, slightly facing upwards. ...Unfortunately, in order to pull this pose off without making the legs appear too long for Bulba Fett's size, they had to lop off its back feet! ...Why is it that, even though I'm constantly joking about calling PETA on these brick sets, I feel more and more that the threat is valid?
Of course, Bulbasaur has its namesake bulb, sitting at an angle on its back. It's still green and not ready to bloom, so Bulbasaur gets to stay cute for a little while longer!
...Until you call it "cute", and it whips you with its rubbery vines that emerge from its bulb!
I can believe that this cute, blue-and-green starter Pokémon will soon grow into a plant creature more dangerous than a triffid!
The other challenger is serious-face Pikachu! Unlike Dargo or SLToys, they decided this Pikachu was bipedal. All the better for carefully aiming and launching devastating electric-based attacks at its opponent!
Unfortunately, this figure has the first artistic "fail" I found with these figures and sets. The eyes are just fine, and match angry Pikachu's face perfectly, and the cheeks aren't bad, but the mouth is... Strange. It's a black corner on the top, with a red-and-pink mouth drawn underneath. The colors don't have an outline around them, or another corner piece at the bottom, so it looks more like somebody painted on Pikachu's face, rather than it being an actual mouth! The corner line at the top could have represented a mouth just as well, or the red-and-pink would have looked more convincing if the line wasn't there. It's like they coudn't make up their mind, so they used both designs! If you've ever wanted a Pikachu somebody drew a mustache on in Sharpie, here's the figure for you, you oddly specific individual!
Most of the other elements are the same as used with the Meowth. Same claw hands
Similar ears
Even the rounded belly. ...However, instead of feet, Pikachu has little nubs. ...This Pikachu shouldn't try walking on two legs...
That leaves the tail as the last unique feature. ...It's basic. It's just 5 pieces built into a roughly lightning-shaped tail, with the base on a ball joint, giving it a bit of articulation. Personally, I would have preferred they made a custom piece for this part, but this works too. ...It just looks like a hammer with how it's built. ...Hammer Tail. Get on that, Nintendo!
Oh, but that's not all, because this Pikachu is packing! With these pokey transparent-yellow pieces, Pikachu can harness the power of Lightning to fry his enemies! If Pikachu doesn't wield this in Detective Pikachu, I'm going to be very disappointed!
I'm sadly not as into this design as the other Pokémon so far. It looks alright, and I can tell it's a Pikachu, but the mistake(?) with the face, the same elements being used as Meowth, and the generic tail design all make this figure a little blander than the other three. I'm probably just spoiled and nitpicky, but I'm a little disappointed the mascot of the Pokémon franchise wasn't given more attention.
...But then you compare it to Ionix's take of the character, and realize that things could have been a LOT worse...
The layout is similar to Ivysaur's, only much bigger with slightly more detail. It's also green and rocky, with a slight touch of beach sand, but there are a few other elements, including these red berries littering the ground. ...At least, I hope they're berries. Otherwise, these Pokémon have a HUGE iron deficiency in their diet...
Of special note is this giant tree on the right, which Pikachu can squirrel up, giving it a safe position to launch its electrical attacks. It looks nicer than the bare bones branches from the other set, and I can use it in other projects! ...Provided Bulbasaur hasn't mastered Razor Leaf to the point it can chop down Pikachu-infested trees...
And that brings us to the fight of the millenium! Pikachu vs. Bulbasaur! Who will win?! ...Well, it depends on which canon of the franchise you follow.
If we're talking games, then Bulbasaur will more than likely win, since Grass-types have the highest defense of the starter Pokémon, and Electrical attacks are not very effective against Grass-types. If Bulbasaur Growls enough to lower Pikachu's attack to nothing, it can takes its time whittling Pikachu's health down before Pikachu does the same to it. Bulba Ray Dudley wins again!
But if this was the TV show/movies, Ash would straight-up state that type advantages mean nothing, then come up with some strategy he pulled out of thin air. Maybe that Bulbasaurs are ticklish, so Pikachu just has to zap the belly to put it out of commission? ...Which would be the more realistic strategy if Pokémon battles existed. And that's what Bulbasaur gets for messing with Jean Luc Pikachu!
Take your pick of whichever you like better. If you don't like either, sorry. I couldn't think of the outcome if this was the card game.
Also, no Pokéball with this set. Moving on.
We're now on the final two, and the largest sets out of what I own. Starting with Blastoise, the final form of Squirtle's evolutions! ...Who isn't made out to be that big in this set.
Sure, it's twice the size of Wartortle, but Wartortle wasn't that much bigger than Squirtle to begin with, and anyone who's seen the show knows that Blastoise towers over everyone like a Charizard! With the size comparison here, I'd guess it's about the size of a regular trainer. ...So about a 10-12-year-old kid...
Just saying that the size of the box was a little misleading...
With this being one of the bigger sets, you'd think it would have the most to offer, and be one of my favorite characters out of the line. ......Surprisingly, that's a "no" on both counts.
Design-wise, the model looks great! They had 284 pieces to work with, and it shows! Both the front and back of the shell are finely shaped and detailed, with outline decals stuck on the outer sides of the shell to highlight the size and shape. Its hand and feet are made from multiple pieces to give them more semblance to hands and feet, with different-sized claws used to show just how powerful Blastoise is(as well as keep him upright.) Even the head is made from multiple pieces, giving it an actual head as opposed to a faceplate! This is the finest Blastoise model I've ever seen, and I doubt many other developers have made anything similar to or better than this figure!
In terms of articulation, on the other hand, there's not much to brag about. Blastoise is a heavy Pokémon, and I guess they decided to show that by giving it virtually no movement! The legs bend only slightly, simply making it harder to stand it up. The head's on a ball joint, but it only moves a fraction of a centimeter in any direction. The arms, I got the most movement out of, but only through careful maneuvering and knowing which way they had to turn in order to move in a different direction. ...And even then, I could only get them to bend and twist in 90° angles, so it can pat its head while shaking its other claw to the side! Since the elbows are made from angled bricks, there's no elbow articulation, so Blastoise is stuck with its arms being mostly useless and barely able to face front...
And despite its mouth open on the front of the box
The actual figure can only open half a millimeter. Forget it shouting "Blastoise!" I don't think it can say anything out of that Elephant Man mouth! ...The historical Joseph "Elephant Man" Merrick, not the film version.
Also, its legs can't bend that way. ...What model were they using to pose for the box? ...Can I have it?
However, its lack of articulation is made up for by one certain feature it possesses. Anyone familiar with Blastoise knows of its legendary Hydro Pump ability. And the designers made it possible for it to unleash it in brick form!
With a press of a button, Blastoise's water projectiles shoot out of its shoulder-mounted water cannons, smashing into anyone foolish to stand in its way! It's impressively pulled off not through springs or (*groan*)flicking, but inserting the projectile into a small chamber, then pressing the button to forcefully eject it from its tight space! There's no risk of the spring breaking, it has the same thrust behind it, and it's not as easy to accidentally set off and accidentally* hit your younger sibling in the eye! This is ingenious, and I'm super happy they incorporated it into this brick figure!
*Purposely, on the other hand, is another story...
All the better to blast a Lombre with!
There's nothing really to say about his section of land. It's a small, watery section, with some seaweed and rocks. ...And that's about it. I think they just included this out of obligation, since there's no way to pose Blastoise on it, but they included some background elements for the other Pokémon, so no reason to break tradition.
However, they did include a different design of Pokéball for Blastoise. This model is a Dive Ball, made specifically for catching Water-type Pokémon. ...So Blastoise is keeping around what is basically the equivalent of a maximum security jail cell to it. ...Maybe it's broken, and it keeps it around to remember its time in captivity. Which you can see in the hit new Pokémon movie: Blastoise Unchained!
Finally, we've come to the biggest model of our tour of the Mega Construx Pokémon: Gyarados! ...Yep. You guessed it. This is my favorite of the lot.
This thing's friggin HUGE! Blastoise had a bit of a size issue compared to its box, but Gyarados here I can tell NEEDED this box size! ...If I were smart, I would have ordered a Mega Construx Magikarp to give you a sense of scale, and how something so giant and destructive can come from such a small, nearly worthless Pokémon. But, if you haven't noticed yet, I'm not...
Still, for the sake of comparison, here's Meowth. ...A soon-to-be-devoured Meowth, since a lesser known fact about Gyarados is that it LOVES cat food!
Just LOOK at that face! That is expert brick craftsmanship if there ever was! The eyes, the little whiskers, the horns on the front, the fangs in the wide open mouth, the fins on the side, everything that makes Gyarados is here! And because it uses so many different bricks to create the roundish head, I don't even have the usual complaint that it still looks "blocky"! This is the best constructed Pokémon model I've EVER seen!
...So long as you don't touch the hinged jaw. I don't know why they gave this guy the ability to open its mouth wider, but it looks like it's broken and hanging by a flap of skin when fully unhinged... Or maybe this is just how it launches its Hyper Beam, and nobody's ever lived to point it out! Thankfully, I'm perfectly sa-
...Yeah, you wish...
The best part about this entire model is that it's almost completely articulated! Gyarados is made out of NINE different sections, with eight of those connected through ball joints and the tail with a hinge! Plus, the jaw, the head fins, the tail fins, and even the spikes on the back can all be swung around! This allows for a good amount of poseability, allowing you to pose Gyarados in the fiercest poses you can think of! ...And a few you can't!
Or you can just have it scratch its head with its tail. Not the most dignified of poses, but at least it can finally reach that itch! Now it's a little bit calmer! ...A little bit.
This thing is so much fun, I don't want to go into much more detail! There are so many poses to put it in, so many actions it could perform, that I don't have time to show everything off! You'll just have to see for yourself! If you're going to buy a Pokémon set, buy this one! ...And no, I'm not getting paid to say that. ...I wish I was...
However, if you are going to see how many poses Gyarados can have, remember that you're still dealing with building bricks. This thing is HEAVY, and too much weight in one direction will pull it right off the pedestal! Unless you're one of those "serious" model builders that Kragles everything, pose the Gyarados within reason!
Otherwise, you'll make it even angrier. And you won't like it when it's even angrier!
The environment Gyarados came with is also the best out of everything! For one, it serves a practical purpose, giving Gyarados the firm foundation needed to pose on top of, without writhing around like a water snake on land. For two, I can tell what I'm looking at! It's all water, with a few rocks here and there. Even the jagged pieces look more convincing, as I can tell they're splashes from Gyarados thrashing in the water! It's simple, yet adds SO much energy to this pose!
Gyarados also comes with a different design of Pokéball. This time, a more common Ultra Ball, which would be sorely needed to easily capture a Gyarados. ...Unless you just train one yourself from that Magikarp you bought from that Fisherman for $500. Me, I've always just stuck with Pikachu throughout the game.
This model is AWESOME! The only way it could be even more awesome is if there was a Red version of it! ...Rare, shiny versions of buildable Pokémon? ...Mega Construx! I know a way to earn you more money! Please send 5% my way once you implement it! I'm holding you to it!
And that's my collection of Mega Construx Pokémon buildable figures! Obviously, that's not the whole line, and there are plenty more to collect. However, just from what we saw today, I can say these are the BEST brick-based Pokémon ever released! Each one is expertly painted, expertly designed, and built with love for the franchise and the fans of the franchise! After SO long, we've finally, FINALLY gotten a brick line worthy of the Pokémon name!
Sure, we'll still always have hilarious knockoff Pokémon lines, giving us ridiculous concepts no official brick company would dare attempt. ...But once the novelty wears off, the lack of quality becomes horribly apparent.
Mega Construx, on the other hand, has produced Pokémon sets that are fun, interesting, AND have high quality in nearly every aspect! If Mega Construx is listening, whatever you're doing with the Pokémon license, do more of it!
Before we leave these Pokémon sets for good(at least, until I find more of them to feature), let's take one more look at the amazing quality and designs we've seen today!
...Hey! Where'd they all go?!
OH, COME ON! ...That's what I get for not calling "dibs" earlier...
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Quality: Once again, it's Mega Bloks quality. The plastic is almost Lego quality, but it's slightly softer and more rubbery, making the connections not as firm as Lego's. Otherwise, the colors are bright and varied, and the paint jobs are REALLY good! I never found a malformed or cracked brick, a splotched paint job, or a large amount of connection inconsistency, where some bricks fit too well and some not at all. I guess the one major problem to point out across all these figures are the face builds. I don't know if it's the quality of the bricks, or how much is sandwiched between the two halves, but the heads can easily come apart with little/no effort, so if you're going to move them, make sure to pinch the two halves tightly together. Besides that, I have no problems with these figure builds!
Design: Unlike the smaller microkit Pokémon we've seen with most of these lines that mostly share designs, each Pokémon here has been given it own individual, unique build! I can tell Pikachu from Bulbasaur, Ivysaur from Wartortle, Blastoise from Gyarados, etc. There are very few repeated features, and each of the facial and other distinguishing features belong to the assigned Pokémon and nobody else! As for how each figure is built, they're VERY well made, for the most part. Each one is built out of mostly standard parts, so there's the normal awkwardness of trying to get something made out of mostly square bricks to look alive. Ionix failed miserably in that regard, but Mega Construx mostly pulled it off, here. A large variety of bricks were brought in to match the curves and textures of the actual Pokémon as closely as possible, given the number of pieces they had to work with. Shells are smooth, leaves are leafy, claws are pointy, everything looks the way it should, and it's not until you look really closely that you notice each individual brick. Even small details like the front legs being slightly longer than the back legs are present to give the figure a "realistic" touch! And while most of the builds are pulled off quite nicely using standard pieces, when they need a certain feature that couldn't be pulled off convincingly with regular bricks, they're not afraid to create some custom pieces, such as Ivysaur's bulb! But what really breathes life into these figures are the paint jobs, which are 100x better than any pirate job we've seen! Each facial expression perfectly matches the Pokémon it belongs to, each painted by someone who knew how to paint Pokémon! Judging by looks alone, these Pokémon are nearly perfect! In terms of features, it's a bit of a mixed bag. All Pokémon have articulation, but it's limited in most cases to the point you're asking if it was worth it. Meowth's and Pikachu's legs can only bend to the sides, Wartortle is permanently hunched over, and Blastoise can barely move its legs, while its arms require some careful maneuvering to pose in any other direction. Ironically, Bulbasaur and Ivysaur, the two Pokémon who should have the most difficulty in moving their limbs, are more flexible than the previous four! Gyarados, made of 9 separate sections joined together with ball joints and hinges, is easily the most poseable of all the Pokémon, and my favorite of the lot because of it! The "environments" that come with each Pokémon do their job and nothing more. Each one is set in the forest, or the water, or the beach, they're all rocky, and they all have water and/or foliage to give an indication of where they're set. There's no gimmick built into them, and barely any room to pose the Pokémon in(none in the case of Blastoise), they're just there for aesthetics. In a nutshell: How the Pokémon look, I have no problems with. How they move and where they're set, there are a few problems. ...But because these Pokémon are built so well, I can cast most of the problems into the nitpick bin. ...Except maybe Pikachu's mouth. What was up with that?
Creativity: Each of the Pokémon look like their franchise counterparts from the show and games! The paint jobs are wonderful, a large variety of bricks are used to give each of them their distinguishing features, and little details to make them more "animal-like", like longer legs, are present and welcome! ...However, when it comes to features and gimmicks, they're unfortunately a little bland. There's barely any articulation with most of these figures, making it difficult to pose them for your action shoots, or just in cool display positions in general. They're just barely above being stiff statuettes, with the barest movement available to give them "life". On top of that, there aren't any gimmicks with most of these figures. They don't fire anything, they don't speak, there's no button to push to make them leap forward, they're simply vanilla brick figures to pose. With the exception of Blastoise, who can shoot "water" projectiles out of his shoulder cannons, and Gyarados, who's extremely flexible and poseable, so the big models have something to them outside of just being "figures". The environments are painfully basic, with only a few elements each to make it clear what they represent. There are some rocks, some foliage, some waves, that's pretty much all that keeps them from being basic baseplates. If the tree that came with the Pikachu and Bulbasaur set is the most exciting feature out of all of the models, you need to step up your game... Still, I liked the inclusion of the different Pokéballs, despite not having much point. However, my biggest complaint is towards the entire line in general. I brought this up with the Ionix sets as well, but the line doesn't seem to want to give fans models they REALLY want! It's the Pokémon universe, with so many different and memorable landmarks! Could we get Team Rocket's balloon, or a Gym building, or a PokéCenter, or even smaller figures of Ash and Team Rocket? I'm grateful we're getting Pokémon, but there's nowhere to use the figures! Maybe it's too early to be complaining about a lack of variety, and we may see these elements sometime in the future, but it's disappointing to get all Pokémon, but no other elements of the Pokémon universe... Still, it's impressive we get Pokémon figures this good at all! Each are expertly built and painted, and for now, that's enough creativity.
Readability: The manuals were different based on the size of the set. For Meowth, and I assume the other collectable figures in the range, the instructions were printed on a folded piece of paper that expands to show each step. Pretty awkward to hold and read, but there weren't many steps to begin with, so it was manageable. For giant sets like Gyarados, we get the standard Mega Bloks/Construx manual that's read top-to-bottom like a calendar. Also pretty awkward to hold and read, but if you can find some paperweights, you can hold the manual down and follow along easily enough. The "middle" sets have the best manuals, being the standard booklets you see in most brick sets, including Lego. These were the easiest to hold and follow along with, and I wish all the booklets were printed this way! Still, across the board, I didn't miss any steps, everything was clear, and there were no printing mistakes. ...Which, for Mega Bloks/Construx, is pretty amazing...
Packaging: For brick sets Pokémon fans have been waiting years to finally own, the boxes don't do much to pump up the action. Each one is basically just a thin box with one or two snapshots of the completed product taking up most of the front, back, and sides. Some of the pictures are even misleading, with Blastoise in a pose that can't be made with the actual thing! False information in advertising? Perish the thought! There's just nothing exciting going on with any of the pictures, save maybe for the Pikachu vs. Bulbasaur box, which gives the impression of an ongoing Pokémon battle. ...But even then, it's just an overall still shot of the figures and environment, with no additional shots to give the impression something's happening. It's pretty clear these sets were made for the adult collector in mind, who's already a fan of the series and knows these characters. Still, it's disappointing that the best part of Pokémon, watching overpowered creatures duel it out, is almost nonexistent on this packaging...
Compatibility: Most of the pieces are standard brick pieces, with fewer Mega Bloks/Construx "trademark bricks" than most of their other sets, and the custom bricks fit in just fine with the standard pieces, so there are no compatibility issues with using these characters and set with other sets.
Overall:
We FINALLY have a readily available line of Pokémon-themed brick sets, and they're worth the wait! The quality's superb, the designs are spot-on, the features give each of them an identity, and there's more effort with these sets than any other official or unofficial Pokémon brick set I've ever seen! Admittedly, more of the figures could have used gimmicks like Blastoise's water blasts, and the environments could have been bigger and easier to pose Pokémon in, but in terms of these Pokémon solely being models, I couldn't imagine them done any better! I'm a little disappointed we still don't have official Pokémon buildings or human figures, but for a brick line this recent, there's still room to grow and expand into other areas of the show and games! If you love Pokémon and/or brick sets, these are a must have! Gotta (Go To Shopko And) Buy 'Em All!
And with that, Pokémonth 2 has come to an end! ...Which started about two weeks into the last month and went two weeks into this month... But that's still technically a month! We've seen more unofficial figures and sets, we got to see unofficial video games for various consoles, and we even got a taste of QUALITY official sets! Yet, despite everything we've seen, the collection of various official AND unofficial Pokémon games, sets, and figures still remains undented! There are DOZENS more games and brick lines to look at, and we will be looking at others in the future! This look may last just as long as the Pokémon franchise as a whole, which, in case you haven't noticed, is also in no danger of running out of steam! It doesn't matter how many Pokémon they come out with, for there is one statement that will always ring true about the series. And that statement is:
And that concludes another theme month. And by this point, I'm DESPERATE to talk about something else! What else do I usually talk about around this time of year? Star Wars? ...Next time: a look at another Star Wars game!
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