>>1262302> One poster posited that it is obvious that Thomas was created to help autistic childrenAs a fan of the books it saddens me a bit when people start theorising about the corporate strategies behind Thomas's creation, as if the fact that it started out as a bedtime story for a train-loving vicar's poorly son is some kind of arcane knowledge. In fact the existence of Rev. W. Awdry or even the fact that the series was adapted from books seems to be largely unknown these days.
Yes, after it was adapted for TV no doubt all kinds of personal/business/political agendas were funnelled into it over the years, but the stories themselves were written with no intent other than entertain and educate the most simple of morals.
>>1262234The thing is, Thomas' world (in the books at least) is 99% true to reality, the only difference being machines are sentient and can talk. They are still judged on their effectiveness and usefulness, just as we would do in reality. If a truck refuses to haul freight smoothly, if an engine refuses to operate trains, what good are they? This is why in the stories they sometimes need to be taught to do the job they were literally created for.
How about an anti-dark moment, where Thomas crashes into a fucking house and not only is everyone fine, but the wife's only complaint is that breakfast is ruined and now she'll have to cook some more?
