FanFic:The Sodor Engines: Thomas

Thomas is cheeky blue tank engine.

History

Thomas was built for the London, Brighton, and South Coast Railway in 1913. He passed the tests with flying colors, and the supervisor noted that he was "surprisingly hard-working and determined- for a tank engine". He was shipped to Southampton Harbor and worked as a shunter there until 1967. It was a good life, and Thomas had many friends, including James, Percy, Lizzie, and Richard. However, during modernization they were replaced with diesels and shipped off to Barry Island.

Although he was only at Barry Island for a couple of months, Thomas was horrified by the destruction and brutality of the scrapyard. It shocked the naive little engine into the real world. Since then, Thomas has been openly opposed to scrapyards, and respects all engines who have been trapped in one (which is why he helped Oliver).

Thomas (along with his friends) was bought by Sir Topham Hatt in 1968, just days before he was due to be scrapped. He was brought to Sodor, where he shunted in Knapford yards. On the day of the grand opening, Gordon burst a valve. Thomas helped him pull the first express. Sir Topham Hatt was impressed by this and gave him his own two coaches, Annie and Clarabel.

Thomas was a hard and willing worker, and befriended many other engines. He was indeed Sodor's "Number One". Then, in 1976, Diesel 10 and Stephen arrived on Sodor. Thomas felt threatened by Stephen's popularity, and suspected foul play. Then, James and Henry alerted Thomas of Diesel 10's plot. Thomas found Lady, who had long been missing, and with her help was able to defeat Diesel 10. He was honored as a hero, and since then has remained a useful addition to the North Western Railway.

In 1980, Thomas and some other engines were invited to a railway show at the National Railway Museum. While there, he discovered that Diesel 10 had returned and successfully stopped a plot to blow up the final ceremony. He and the other engines were honored by being made part of the National Railway Collection.

Thomas currently takes suburban passenger trains with Annie and Clarabel on the Ffarquhar line. However, he is sometimes allowed to take trains on the main line, and relishes these opportunities. He frequently works with Percy and Toby, and is good friends with them.

Personality

Thomas is a cheeky, fussy little engine, but he means well. The other engines find him kind and funny, and respect him. He is slow to anger but can be pushed over the edge (Percy and Rosie both know this well). Thomas never passes up an opportunity to prove that he is a really useful engine.

Thomas can be a little conceited, and he can be offended by the other engines' teasing. He tries to prove that he is not whatever they call him, but this usually ends in trouble.

Although the characters are an ensemble, Thomas is the undoubted protagonist. This truly shows itself in episode 001 (Welcome to Sodor), episode 050 (Thomas' Special Train), and the feature length special Sodor.

Basis

Thomas is based on a LB&SC E2 locomotive. His association with this class has made it (arguably) one of the most well-known locomotive classes in the world.