Review of nanoblock Mega Charizard Y NBPM_058

Mega Charizard Y build and box

This post is a review of the nanoblock Mega Charizard Y build. Mega Charizard Y is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Names:

  • English: Mega Charizard Y
  • Japanese: Mega Lizardon Y

Number: NBPM_058

Number of Pieces: 310

Difficulty Rating: 3/5

Mega Charizard Y front view

Mega Charizard Y was originally in Pokemon Y. Mega is used to describe Pokemon that have mega evolved, which was introduced in generation 6. Pokemon X has its own mega evolution named Mega Charizard X. Mega Charizard Y looks like a more powerful version of a regular Charizard.

Mega Charizard Y front 3/4 view

Overall the build for Charizard Y is quite similar to regular Charizard. You first build your body which is the normal start with a base layer and build up. Next, you make the wings which are the most detailed part of the build. This is because of the layering of blue and orange so that you don’t see how the blue and orange are held together. Finally, you build a tail flame and a head with straightforward directions.

Mega Charizard Y back 3/4

Things I liked:

  • The use of clear blocks for the tail

Things I didn’t like:

  • I’m not sure I needed another Charizard build

Mega Charizard Y tail flame detail

Review of nanoblock Cyndaquil NBPM_029

Cyndaquil build and pacakge

This post is a review of the nanoblock Cyndaquil build. Cyndaquil is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Names:

  • English: Cyndaquil
  • Japanese: Hinoarashi

Number: NBPM_029

Number of Pieces: 150

Difficulty Rating: 2/5

Cyndaquil front view

Cyndaquil is the fire-type starter from generation 2. It is a starter along with Totodile and Chikorita. It is also one of the starters in the new Pokemon Legends: Arceus game. Cyndaquil is generally shown as a very shy Pokemon.

The build begins with a base of bricks. In the second layer, you start to add the dark on the back. You continue to build layers of bricks, and eventually, you begin the flame on the back. The next step is to start building the head. You build the head up from a base in layers circling and creating rings for the head.

Cyndaquil side view

Once you have the started head, attach it to the body you built earlier. Next, you close up the head and make the flame on the back. Once you have completed closing up the head, you add more details to the flame. The final step is to add the details of the feet and the clear bricks that keep the build from tipping.

Cyndaquil fire detail

Overall I think this is a super cute build. Cyndaquil has always been one of my favorites, so I was worried about how the figure would turn out. I like the amount of detail in the flame between the orange and clear red bricks. I wish they had used a lighter color for the light part of his body. It seems really dark compared to the photo.

Cyndaquil back 3/4 view

Things I liked:

  • The amount of detail in the flame

Things I didn’t like:

  • The light section of the body is too dark

Review of nanoblock Totodile NBPM_031

Totodile build and package

This post is a review of the nanoblock Totodile build. Totodile is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Names:

  • English: Totodile
  • Japanese: Waninoko

Number: NBPM_031

Number of Pieces: 150

Difficulty Rating: 2/5

Totodile front view

Totodile is the water starter from generation 2. It is light blue with orange spikes going down his back.

Overall the build is an average build from a solid base. There are a lot of areas with different colors, such as dark red for the eyes and dark grey to make his nostrils. The most challenging part I had was getting the fangs to correctly line up because it is just a 1×1 brick hanging off a 2×3 brick.

Totodile front 3/4 view

Totodile is very recognizable as the little water dragon he is. He does have an excellent line of red going down his back which helps to make it clear which Pokemon you are looking at. I notice his eyes seem to be huge compared to the rest of the Pokemon.

Totodile back 3/4 view

Things I liked:

  • How the spikes ended up looking

Things I didn’t like:

  • Eyes seem super large compared to the rest of the nanoblock pokemon

Link to order: Amazon

Review of nanoblock Chikorita NBPM_030

Chikorita build and package

This post is a review of the nanoblock Chikorita build. Chikorita is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Names:

  • English: Chikorita
  • Japanese: Chicorita

Number: NBPM_030

Number of Pieces: 90

Difficulty Rating: 1/5

Chikorita front view

Chikorita is one of the starter Pokemon for generation 2, and like most grass-type starters, it’s green. Chikorita has 2 notable features that I hoped would be incorporated into the build. First, there is a large leaf hanging off Chikorita’s head. It also has a collar of spikes going around its neck.

Chikorita side view

Overall the build was fairly simple, which is what I would expect from a level 1 build. I was happy to see that both the collar and the leaf were completely intact. The collar is created by studs sticking out of the main body. Once the main body is built, you build a leaf and attach it to the head.

Chikorita back 3/4 view

Things I liked:

  • How the leaf looks floating of its head

Things I didn’t like:

  • One Thing

Link to order: Amazon

Review of nanoblock Pichu NBPM_028

Pichu build and package

This post is a review of the nanoblock Pichu build. Pichu is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Number: NBPM_028

Number of Pieces: 90

Difficulty Rating: 1/5

Pichu front view

Pichu was the first Pokemon build that had a difficulty level of 1 I built. It is a simple build made up of 2 parts, the head, and body.

Pichu side view

The body is a simple few layers of mostly yellow with a little bit of black to make the stripes.

The head is generally a cube that creates a face with black-tipped ears. Overall it was a simple build that took very little time to build.

Pichu back 3/4 view

Things I liked:

  • Cute simple build

Link to order: Amazon

Review of nanoblock Greninja NBPM_070

Greninja build and package

This post is a review of the nanoblock Greninja build. Greninja is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Greninja front view

Names:

  • English: Greninja
  • Japanese: Gekkouga

Number: NBPM_070

Number of Pieces: 180

Difficulty Rating: 3/5

Greninja right side view

Greninja is the 3rd evolution of the generation 6 starter Froakie. There is a unique form known as Ash-Greninja, with the center fin on its head being red instead of blue. While there is not a model for Ash-Greninja, I think if you have a few red bricks, you can customize the build to create that form.

Greninja back view

The build is different from many other Pokemon because it is not based on a sphere on a rectangle Greninja is posed like a ninja. All of the instructions are different and detailed because nothing is mirrored. However, building him was tippy, and he couldn’t stand up reliably until the final hand was attached. It was also hard to use my pad to build, which meant my bricks were shifting more than usual.

Overall I enjoyed the build and liked the final result. I’m not sure how much it looks like Greninja from the games or the anime, but it was a fun build.

Greninja left side

Things I liked:

  • How he is posed means, there was no mirroring in the build

Things I didn’t like:

  • How it didn’t want to stand up until the final step was completed

Link to order: Amazon

Review of nanoblock Pokemon Quest Eevee NBPM_041

Pokemon Quest Eevee build with box

This post is a review of the nanoblock Pokemon Quest Eevee build. Pokemon Quest Eevee is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Names:

  • English: Eevee
  • Japanese: Eievui

Number: NBPM_041

Number of Pieces: 120

Difficulty Rating: 2/5

Pokemon Quest Eevee front view

Inside the primary collection of Pokemon, there have been a couple of subcollections, one being the collection for Pokemon Quest (numbers 36-42). Under the Pokemon Question collection, most Pokemon are simply squares stacked on each other to create a body and head. Each of these also depends on stickers to make a face. Read here for my opinion of nanoblock stickers. So while I own everything in the Pokemon Quest collection, I have only built and will likely only build Eevee. I made Eevee before I knew about the stickers.

The build was really straightforward at the beginning. Starting with a base and building up. This may have been the first time I had seen the ball joint, but it was definitely the first time I had needed to build around the ball. Building Eevee is just building layers to create the Pokemon until you get to the ears.

The ears are my favorite detail but building them took more time and attention since they are slanted. After making the ears, you need to add stickers. My stickers were off-center, so it was a pain to line up; sadly, one of my stickers even ripped even though we were being super careful and using tweezers. The rip isn’t noticeable when you look at the build now that the ears are attached.

You add on Eevee’s tiny feet after building and attaching the ears. The final building step is to connect the tail. Now you have completed the Eevee body! The last step is to add the sticker for its face. Again you need to be careful, so the sticker doesn’t rip and is placed right because you only get one shot.

I think this Eevee is just as cute if not cuter than the original one (NBPM_005). I really like the details of having a moveable tail. However, I had real problems getting the stickers to stick in the right place. Also, even though it has been sitting in a display cabinet for a couple years, the stickers no longer adhere entirely to the build.

Pokemon Quest Eevee back 3/4 view

Things I liked:

  • The slightly posable tail

Things I didn’t like:

  • The stickers

Review of nanoblock Scorbunny NBPM_060

Scorbunny build and box

This post is a review of the nanoblock Scorbunny build. This build is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Number: NBPM_060

Number of Pieces: 180

Difficulty Rating: 2/5

Scorbunny front view

Scorbunny is the fire-type starter from generation 8. Scorbunny has orange ear tips in the games, which are very different from the maroon in the model.

As to the build, there are the body and head to build. In an unusual style for nanoblock, it is hard to tell the difference between what gets added in the current step and what was there in the step before. I think this is so much of Scorbunny is white. If you can keep the layers apart, it is pretty easy to build both the body and the head. I was worried that the model would have difficulty standing on his feet because his head was so large. I was pleasantly surprised to find that he could stand just fine. The colors don’t look right to me, and I find Scorbunny highly muted.

Scorbunny 3/4 back

Things I liked:

  • He manages to stand on his feet

Things I didn’t like:

  • The coloring is all wrong for Scorbunny

Link to order: Amazon

Review of nanoblock Grookey NBPM_059

Grookey build and box

This post is a review of the nanoblock Grookey build. Grookey is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Number: NBPM_059

Number of Pieces: 190

Difficulty Rating: 2/5

Grookey front view

Grookey is the grass starter from generation 8. It’s known for poking things which shouldn’t be much of a surprise because its final evolution is a drummer.

The build is broken up into 2 builds the body and the head. It is hard to tell the difference between the brown and golden brown in the directions. The body is a straightforward build that is built up by adding layers of bricks to create a hunched-over body. It can be a bit tippy when it’s done if you don’t attach the base feet quick enough. The head is an average sphere build where you start with a base and build around the outside and eventually close up the sphere. Then you add Grookey’s branch and top fur.

Overall I really like the build, and I feel that Grookey is highly recognizable. I think that the colors match the pokemon overall very well.

Grookey back 3/4

Things I liked:

  • The coloring for the whole build

Things I didn’t like:

  • Fighting to perfectly line up the tail

Review of nanoblock Pikachu Deluxe Edition NBPM_036

Pikachu Deluxe Edition build and box

This post is a review of the nanoblock Pikachu Deluxe Edition build. This build is part of the nanoblock Pokemon collection. Wondering what else is part of the Pokemon Collection? Click Here for a list.

Number: NBPM_036

Number of Pieces: 560

Difficulty Rating: 3/5

Pikachu Deluxe Edition front view

Deluxe Pikachu was the first deluxe Pokemon kit. I love my giant Pikachu, and he usually sits ready to stomp on one of my Lego cityscapes.

Pikachu Deluxe Edition side view

Deluxe Pikachu is similar to normal Pikachu (NBPM_001), but it uses much larger bricks. The largest brick is 2 X 8, which is larger than anything in most non-deluxe Pokemon sets. Overall, Deluxe Pikachu starts with a solid base and builds up in layers from the bottom up. Bricks of various colors create the stripes and the cheeks. I find that the most challenging part of Pikachu, and the thing I keep fixing, is his tail. The tail itself stays together without a problem. The problem is that the tail doesn’t want to remain attached to the 2×2 brick it is supposed to stay on.

Overall I really like Deluxe Pikachu. I think he looks super cute, especially for where nanoblocks were at the time. Based on the other Pokemon kits that came out at similar times to when Deluxe Pikachu was released, the slanted blocks didn’t really exist, so Pikachu had no choice but to be blocky. If the kit came out today, I could see Pikachu being more curved.

Pikachu Deluxe Edition back view

Things I liked:

  • I just like the giant Pikachu

Things I didn’t like:

  • I wish it was less blocky overall