Review: 40892 Kanto Region Badge Collection
Posted by SetToBuild,
On Pokémon Trainers’ travels across the land on their quest to be the very best, they will encounter gyms that challenge their skills. Upon defeating a gym’s leader, the trainer is awarded a coveted Gym Badge. This case contains badges from gyms in the Indigo League located in the Kanto region.
At first it was feared that 40892 Kanto Region Badge Collection would only be available as a pre-order bonus for 72153 Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise, but thankfully that was not the case: it's still the GWP when buying the flagship set of the theme on its launch day today, but probably not for much longer.
Summary
40892 Kanto Region Badge Collection, 312 pieces.
A neat idea is sadly locked behind an expensive set
- Creative badge designs
- Stickers (no exclusive prints)
- Restricted to one set
- Stickers (no exclusive prints for costly set)
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Box
The box art is as complete as that of a retail set, with no exclusivity markers. The instructions don't have the lore explanation pages like most 18+ sets do, but to be fair, if you’re spending this much on a set this size, you’re probably nerdy enough to know what these are.
The box contains three paper bags and one plastic bag with supplemental parts. The ‘glass’ elements were packaged separately in this parts bag. Still slightly scuffed, but this is to be expected by now.
The fact that this set has stickers is a double-edged sword. No exclusive prints means that people who didn’t fork over the cash for 72153 Venusaur, Charizard and Blastoise can recreate the set a bit more easily. However, that also means that the rarity, and ultimately the value, of the set is diminished, depending on the audience. That might help to reduce its scalp-ability, but then again, this is a Pokemon collectible, so it may retain its value just fine.
The sticker designs are simple, so going completely stickerless doesn’t take a whole lot away from the set (there’s a photo of this at the end of the article). Registration on sticker sheets isn’t always great, but this one was nearly perfect. Applying circle stickers should award a badge all on its own!
Completed Model
The case has a series of jumper plates on SNOT bricks to secure each badge down and ensure enough breathing room for each one to shine. The plates and SNOT bricks under each badge would have looked a lot better in black to match the lining of the case, and wouldn’t stick out like a sore thumb when taking the badges out.
The underside exposes the side-built configuration and the SNOT bricks that position each badge.
The 1x10x4 windscreens have been around since 2020, but haven’t been in a set since 2023. They are large enough that the edges of the part don’t obstruct the badges when looking into the case.
When closed, the rear of the case is smooth except for the bumps of the hinge plates.
The clever Poké Ball latch design uses a 2x2 round jumper that slides over the bottom half of the ball.
Even after having seen inside the box while building it, it still felt special to lift the lid and reveal the contents.
Badges
Depending on what source media you’re looking at, the gym badge designs vary slightly. Here, the overall translation from art to LEGO was skillfully achieved. Even the colour matching on the stickers was surprisingly well done on all but the Soul Badge.
Wedge plates make up the rocky octagonal structure of the Boulder Badge. You’ll need a keen eye to line up the sticker lines. Even my application wasn’t perfect. Don’t look too close!
The Cascade Badge is the only one without any added decoration. It’s brilliant enough on its own! Having the 1x2 cut tiles meet on one corner of the circle to create the droplet design is one of those “why didn’t I think of that!?” moments we see in many sets and MOCs. The cut tiles in dark azure come in two other sets.
The base of the Thunder Badge is a 2x2 round modified plate that is currently only available in bright light orange in this set. This element is still relatively new, so its reappearance in this colour at some point isn’t impossible! This element in tan is already available and makes a good alternative. The quarter round tiles are attached using the also relatively new round plate with clip underneath.
The Rainbow Badge uses the same 2x2 round modified plate as before, but in black. The round tiles are a beautiful display of the LEGO colour palette, but there are a couple of colour swaps away from more vibrant colours when compared to the source material.
The Soul Badge is the roughest of the bunch. The decoration could have been missed out on this one, as it's not really needed, and the colour match to the LEGO pieces isn’t perfect.
The Marsh Badge could have also gone without its decoration, as it doesn’t add too much to the overall look, and one less circle sticker to apply is better.
The Volcano Badge expertly uses the Nexo Knight tile and 1x2 cut tiles to illustrate its wacky shape.
The Earth Badge looks more like the feather design found in the show. The 1x2 cut tiles in bright green come in several other sets, but the 2x3 plate with rounded end only comes in medium nougat in 31166 Beautiful Horse.
If you wanted to build this set without the eyewatering pricetag, all of the pieces seem to be easy enough to come by, except for the 2x2 modified plate in the Thunder Badge we spoke of earlier. The window panels might be another pricey acquisition, but there are plenty of similar elements out there to make a different configuration. If you went this route, the display still looks great even without the stickers.
Unless the stud/clip element is still new to you, there isn’t anything of note among the extras.
Conclusion
One of my favourite parts about video game special editions is bringing an item from the game tangibly into the real world. From coins to helmets, it’s surreal to hold things that previously only existed in fiction. Holding this set is a great example of that feeling, and the designers pulled it off very well.
Unfortunately, like video game special editions, unless you’ve got the resources to create the item yourself, that feeling is only available to those willing to pay top dollar. While this set executed well, it is not at all worth aftermarket prices.
There are many images of aggressive shoppers sweeping boxes of rare Pokémon cards off supermarket shelves, only to list them on eBay for 20 times the price, and I’m disappointed to see that LEGO is encouraging more of this behaviour with the scarcity of this item.
I very much hope that they learn from the Fell Beast experience and continue to make this available—at the very least as a gift with purchase of Pokémon sets, even if they don’t make it fully available as a retail set. As we saw at the start, the box art is ready for a retail release, but I’m not holding my breath for that.
65 likes
27 comments on this article
I'm thoroughly underwhelmed.
Great review SetToBuild!
I could be wrong, but I'd say that the badge designs most closely match the in-game sprites from FireRed/LeafGreen. Funnily enough, those are being rereleased later today. Maybe that's why they chose to make this set?
EDIT: Looked it up just now, I was actually thinking of the HeartGold/SoulSilver sprites. These badges match that almost exactly!
It is also a GWP with current orders of the large Pokémon sets. I hope Lego has loads to beat those horrible scalpers.
Stock for the GWP is still available, hopefully those scalpers will be left with £600 of Lego that they're struggling to sell.
@MegaBlocks said:
"Stock for the GWP is still available, hopefully those scalpers will be left with £600 of Lego that they're struggling to sell."
They’re already on eBay, some at around £510. Hilarious.
This would be a great $30 set, or an acceptable $50 set, but locking it behind a $650 purchase is gross. I wouldn't mind as much if any of the other Pokemon sets looked good.
"Still slightly scuffed, but this is to be expected by now."
Expected, but not accepted. It's simply not good enough. Ever climbing prices from the worlds biggest toy maker, and they can't deliver parts unscathed. You'd never accept this from any other product.
As for the set itself, there is a heavy overuse of mostly unnecessary stickers. As the stickerless photo shows, most look great without them. A couple of the badges could have been more accurately designed, in my opinion.
I agree with the criticism of the gold jumpers. They prevent you from displaying the box empty or partly filled, should you wish to create a journey-in-progress look.
While the underneath SNOT parts will be hidden under normal display, it still feels messy leaving it that exposed and discoloured.
@BrickBob09 said:
""Still slightly scuffed, but this is to be expected by now."
Expected, but not accepted. It's simply not good enough. Ever climbing prices from the worlds biggest toy maker, and they can't deliver parts unscathed. You'd never accept this from any other product.
As for the set itself, there is a heavy overuse of mostly unnecessary stickers. As the stickerless photo shows, most look great without them. A couple of the badges could have been more accurately designed, in my opinion.
I agree with the criticism of the gold jumpers. They prevent you from displaying the box empty or partly filled, should you wish to create a journey-in-progress look.
While the underneath SNOT parts will be hidden under normal display, it still feels messy leaving it that exposed and discoloured."
I won't be trying to obtain it as a set, but I'm mildly tempted to try to get the parts to build it from Bricklink/PaB, since it looks fine without the stickers. If I do so, I'll be swapping out the colors of the jumper tiles and SNOT pieces.
@MegaBlocks said:
"Stock for the GWP is still available, hopefully those scalpers will be left with £600 of Lego that they're struggling to sell."
Resellers won't struggle to sell them. They'll just return them.
"Hi LEGO. I decided I don't want this unopened set. Refund please."
I don't get the negatives in the review.
Why is only being able to get one set a negative? (Unless you want to sell one of course.)
Why is there "no exclusive prints for costly set". This is a GWP, not an expensive set.
I don't think the stickers will mean the set value is diminished. It just means that the value is in the sticker sheet and the box. Let's face it, sets like this have most value when unopened. So it makes little difference whether it has stickers or not. There have been many exclusives now where the contents are available in other ways but the exclusive version remains high value because of the packaging.
@CCC said:
"I don't get the negatives in the review.
Why is only being able to get one set a negative? (Unless you want to sell one of course.)
Why is there "no exclusive prints for costly set". This is a GWP, not an expensive set."
The complaint was not that you can only get one copy of the GWP, it is that the GWP is locked behind only one set. (Not an entire theme, for example.)
This is a costly set to get ahold of, even if it doesn't have a price tag of its own.
@SetToBuild said:
" @CCC said:
"I don't get the negatives in the review.
Why is only being able to get one set a negative? (Unless you want to sell one of course.)
Why is there "no exclusive prints for costly set". This is a GWP, not an expensive set."
The complaint was not that you can only get one copy of the GWP, it is that the GWP is locked behind only one set. (Not an entire theme, for example.)
This is a costly set to get ahold of, even if it doesn't have a price tag of its own."
It's "prize tag" is €29,99
Doesn´t stop people from bidding +€100
BTW what happened to pokemon center review?
@CCC said:
" @MegaBlocks said:
"Stock for the GWP is still available, hopefully those scalpers will be left with £600 of Lego that they're struggling to sell."
Resellers won't struggle to sell them. They'll just return them.
"Hi LEGO. I decided I don't want this unopened set. Refund please."
"
They won't accept a refund unless the GWP is returned too.
@watcher21 said:
" @SetToBuild said:
" @CCC said:
"I don't get the negatives in the review.
Why is only being able to get one set a negative? (Unless you want to sell one of course.)
Why is there "no exclusive prints for costly set". This is a GWP, not an expensive set."
The complaint was not that you can only get one copy of the GWP, it is that the GWP is locked behind only one set. (Not an entire theme, for example.)
This is a costly set to get ahold of, even if it doesn't have a price tag of its own."
It's "prize tag" is €29,99
Doesn´t stop people from bidding +€100
BTW what happened to pokemon center review?"
Well yes, but you can't buy it for €29,99 from Lego. Obtaining this set from Lego costs €649.99.
The Pokemon Center was rescheduled. Should be up shortly!
Thanks for the in-depth review. Maybe i will build/'Mimic' it with the pieces in my inventory.
Not being able to get this kit is definitely a bit of a wrench.
Something I forgot to mention earlier: I love it when a review has the same thing as a pro and a con.
I can't imagine caring that much about this set.
Yet, it's sad how many new Lego fans who spent so much money to preorder the big set are getting a taste of the absurdity of Lego machinations when it comes to these FOMO GWPs.
They gave Lego their hard-earned money and excitement, and Lego screwed them over. All the fans who waited till today will get the GWP, and most of the preorder suckers get only the bitter taste of gall.
When I came back to Lego, they were doing all kinds of cool fan service GWPs that were easy to get like Darth Revan, the Stealth Arf Trooper, and the Silver Stormtrooper.
I can't imagine starting to collect the products from a company that acts like Lego does now.
Down with the LAN! (Or, as JANG calls it, 'Lego's Contractor Promotional Network'). Call yourself whatever you like, but don't pretend you're "objective."
P.S., it was cruel of you to bring up the Fell Beast. ;)
@StyleCounselor said:
"P.S., it was cruel of you to bring up the Fell Beast. ;)"
Oh, the Fell Beast that you missed out on? The Fell Beast that you went round and around with Lego Customer Service with and still didn't get? The one that may be your biggest GWP white whale? *That* Fell Beast? ;)
I don’t get this set, to be honest. It looks fine enough but otherwise doesn’t speak to me in the least so good luck to everyone else. Now if this were a Fel Beast, it would be a different story. That’s one that we all just had to have and successfully received. :o)
@Spike730 said:
"I'm thoroughly underwhelmed."
Same here.
I have absolutely no clue as to why these things should be either popular or command any value at all.
To me they look like tat, and quite unimaginatively designed tat too.
I for one will not be one to snatch one of these away from anyone who actually wants them.
@Spike730 said:
"I'm thoroughly underwhelmed."
Then why all the fuss about it being initially exclusive to the big set?
@asherkobin said:
" @Spike730 said:
"I'm thoroughly underwhelmed."
Then why all the fuss about it being initially exclusive to the big set?"
Huh? I didn't make any fuss about it.
@TheOtherMike said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"P.S., it was cruel of you to bring up the Fell Beast. ;)"
Oh, the Fell Beast that you missed out on? The Fell Beast that you went round and around with Lego Customer Service with and still didn't get? The one that may be your biggest GWP white whale? *That* Fell Beast? ;)"
yes
:(
I think I'm falling out of love with the whole Lego thing. Besides @Crux has turned me onto this great Fish Doorbell where you can while away the hours staring into murky Dutch drainage wondering what has become of life, the world, or whether that was just a fish or some post-digested Crux dinner.
https://visdeurbel.nl/en/
@yellowcastle said:
"I don’t get this set, to be honest. It looks fine enough but otherwise doesn’t speak to me in the least so good luck to everyone else. Now if this were a Fel Beast, it would be a different story. That’s one that we all just had to have and successfully received. :o)"
It's a cruel!
Cruel!
Cruel, late winter!
On my own...
Leaving me here on my own, it's a cruel...
@StyleCounselor said:
" @TheOtherMike said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"P.S., it was cruel of you to bring up the Fell Beast. ;)"
Oh, the Fell Beast that you missed out on? The Fell Beast that you went round and around with Lego Customer Service with and still didn't get? The one that may be your biggest GWP white whale? *That* Fell Beast? ;)"
yes
:("
Okay, then I won't bring up the Fell Beast any more. Never again shall I type the words "Fell Beast." No more Fell Beast-mentioning for me! I'll even tell other people to shut up about the Fell Beast.
@StyleCounselor said:
" @yellowcastle said:
"I don’t get this set, to be honest. It looks fine enough but otherwise doesn’t speak to me in the least so good luck to everyone else. Now if this were a Fel Beast, it would be a different story. That’s one that we all just had to have and successfully received. :o)"
It's a cruel!
Cruel!
Cruel, late winter!
On my own...
Leaving me here on my own, it's a cruel..."
Goddess on the mountaintop
Burning like a silver flame
The summit of beauty and love
And Fell Beast was her name