Armo

Armo is a popular toy line of interlocking plastic blocks produced by The Armo Group.

History
Armo was created in 1989, after their founder, James Brickle, took note of how his son enjoyed playing with blocks, but would often accidentally topple his creations. This gave him the idea of interlocking blocks that would connect to each other, providing more sturdy structures. Originally, the blocks were sold by themselves, but by 1990 began being sold in sets with instruction books to build them, and the Minipenguin was invented to populate the newly created Armo structures.

By 2007, The Armo Group was basically rolling in money, so they got permission to build an entire city out of Armo blocks in the United States of Antarctica. It was aptly named Armo City and their headquarters was moved there, and it quickly became a popular tourist attraction. In 2008, the Club Penguin theme was released after Armo made a deal with EBUL, in time for Club Penguin's 3rd anniversary. It was the first licensed theme, and quickly became the most popular theme.

Minifigures
Minifigure is a term which refers to the different characters that come in Armo sets. The original type of minifigure, the Minipenguin, was released in 1990, but as more species were introduced, this name became inaccurate, and the term minifigure was created. It should be noted that not all minifigures are necessarily actual figures; some, like Rocketsnails, are built with Armo blocks as part of the set.

The Minipenguin consists of three separate parts; the head, the torso, and the feet, all of which can be rotated 360 degrees, along with the flippers on the torso. The head has a small hole in the top, which allows the penguins to wear hats and wigs, and the flippers have a groove on the inner side which allows them to hold objects.

The head and feet pieces are created with a process called dual molding, which allows the beak and feet to be a separate color from the rest of the penguin's body. All other details are printed on. Aside from hats, other pieces are produced to go between the head and torso or feet and torso. While some of these are items on their own, such as scarves and ninja belts, others are used to enhance their outfit; for example, knight Minipenguins have special parts to add shoulder plating and a more defined bottom of the armor.

Themes

 * Blockcraft
 * Builder
 * City
 * Club Penguin - Introduced in October 2008 for Club Penguin Island's third anniversary, this theme features landmarks and icons of Club Penguin culture. It is Armo's most popular theme and has the largest number of sets.
 * Concepts - A program introduced by Armo in 2014 that lets penguins post their own ideas for sets online that others can vote on. If a Concept gets over 10,000 votes, it is reviewed by Armo and may be made into an official set under the Armo Concepts line.
 * Mechanic - Made for both educational purposes and enthusiasts, this theme is mostly based on machines or vehicles, and includes mechanism to make certain components move similar to their real life counterparts. An example of this is Aqua Grabber, which features functional headlights, moving propellers, and a retractable claw. Like Structures, they each come with a display mount and a suggested display style once built, and do not include minifigures.
 * Medieval
 * Mystery Minipenguins - Minipenguins released in blind bags, so you don't really know what you're getting until you open it. 2-3 series are released every year and contain 10 Minipenguins, which usually do not have a common theme except in a few rare cases.
 * Ninjas
 * Outer Space
 * Secret Agents
 * Snow Wars - Introduced in 2009 to promote Snow Wars Episode VI: The Jedi Comeback, this theme features sets based on the popular Snow Wars franchise. This was Armo's first theme based on a fictional licensed property, and would later be joined by Blockcraft and Super Smash Mates U.B.E.R. sets.
 * Sports
 * Structures - A theme not made to be played with, instead being designed to be displayed only. The sets under Structures are all miniatures of famous or unique structures and landmarks from across Antarctica, and none of the sets include minifigures.
 * Super Smash Mates U.B.E.R.

Factories

 * Lunixham, United States of Antarctica
 * Snowdon, Puffle'and
 * South Pole City, United States of Antarctica
 * Yank, Puffle'and
 * Fishwow, East Pengolia
 * Western Shops Industrial Division, Shops Island
 * Neo Domino City, UnitedTerra

Trivia

 * At least one penguin has built an entire igloo out of Armo blocks.
 * Due to Armo's popularity, many others have tried to make money by producing and selling their own construction blocks, which are compatible with Armo sets. These brands are nowhere near as popular as Armo and usually of inferior quality. The most well-known one is Elbo.