Stex Appreciation Month - Tumblr Posts

ITS STEX APPRECIATION DAY STINKIES I HOPE YOU GUYS ARE READY TO HEAR ME YAP (credit to @isaterriblebore for doing this event !!)

Day 1: rusty the steam engine 

- Favourite Actor?

i have A LOT but that’s oksies, but my absolute favorite is kellen davis, he’s just straight up rusty to me oh how i WISH there were audio or footage of him ,,,, kellen is followed closely by ray shell and jeevan braich (whose rusties i adore equally so don’t make me choose), i also have a soft spot for bobby collins and kapa kitchen, and ROMMEL SINGSON I ALSO LOVE HIM

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

i have 3 and two basically aren’t in the show anymore, but obviously the starlight sequence is peak, especially when the actor for rusty does a good STARLIGHT EXPREEEESSSSSSSS yell, i just love that even in general. as for the two cut songs, the ORIGINAL call me rusty and be a pump are like actually so PERFECT when it comes to rusty’s characterization and motivation, showing how upset he is about his treatment from the others and the railways, his resolve to prove them wrong, and be a pump (despite how weird it makes his backstory) is so perfectly sad and j shows how this pushback he’s received for trying to follow his dreams ever since he was built, it just gives so much depth to him that i’m so sad was cut from the show. and that last line “and since then i know i’m a train but deep down in my stump, i’m a pump…” IT HURTS. also in the 2018 bochum update, the moment after terrorizing rusty where you hear echoes of crazy, followed by him literally limping back to the yard is also just SO PEAK AND SO SAD.

- Favourite Costumes?

rusty’s costume has always been perfect, which is probably why it barely changed outside of the revival show, so i will just say that my favorite rusty costumes have to be ones where he has a long curly mullet and a silly steam engine hat is peak rusty design to me (though any rusty with long hair is already pretty perfect), also the 2018 bochum costume of his smokebox door being put on his chest again so that a disco ball could be projected onto it is absolutely perfect and so fucking funny to see in practice

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

ship-wise, PRUSTY FTW THEYRE MY FAVORITE STINKIES IN THE WORLD, bonus points if you add hydra into the mix, i’d say rustlectra too because i think rusty and electra being a thing is actually hilarious, and friendship wise, i think dinah and rusty is an interesting pair that i wish was explored in the show, they both were mistreated by the same people in different ways, which already gives them a lot of ground for a friendship, dustin and rusty, caboose and rusty (pre-betrayal), slick and rusty, basically anyone that’s not greaseball and rusty is fair game in terms of friendship

- Headcanons?

i don’t think rusty is that old, it might be because i can’t take the idea that he’s a crusty musty gusty dusty rusty not at all trusty old man being bullied by a bunch of actual children trains seriously (even if he looks younger than greaseball and his friends), but i think rusty was built in 1960 and is rather young for a steam engine, possibly the youngest one in active service, even if it is unrealistic (this isn’t to discredit anybody who DOES see rusty as old though, not at all !!!)

- Unpopular Opinion?

rusty NEEDS to be jaded and a little angry again, as much as i’ll love rusty in whatever form he takes, him having some bite to him makes him so much more interesting, also i need to say this, rusty isn’t this innocent victim of pearl’s cruel abuse because rusty absolutely was not faultless regarding their relationship. he was pushy with pearl and just didn’t consider pearl’s own autonomy when it came to her decision as to who she wanted to race with (which is even more understandable in versions where he and pearl literally just met) he was JUST as flawed as she was.

STEX APPRECIATION MONTH DAY 2: PEARL THE OBSERVATION CAR

- Favourite Actor?

QUITE A FEW. lovette george is just pearl to me, if you gave her a pink wig then that would make her extra peak imo, reva rice, stephanie lawrence, nikki belsher and also like big shoutout to KAYNA MONTICELLO FOR BEING ANOTHER PEARL WHO IS STRAIGHT UP JUST PEARL TO ME. (kayna if you’re seeing this HI HI HI KEEP BEING AMAZING ✨)

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

any pearl scene is like, amazing as is, but he whistled at me is a standout pearl song and it is a DAMN SHAME it is gone. as weird as it sounds that pearl didn’t want to get with rusty because he wasn’t EXACTLY like her dream train, i think it establishes pretty well that pearl is a hopeless romantic who doesn’t fully get how romance works (same applies to rusty but i already spoke about him), and it also shows that she still does care for him, even if just as a friend despite her rejecting him. also in “hey you, yes you” i love her defending rusty from greaseball and actually making gb change his mind about rusty being in the race, yet another example of her caring about rusty despite rejecting his romantic advances. while i do prefer pearl and rusty having some history prior to the show, whistle at me is actually so cute. the way pearl is like the only person who likes the sound of rusty’s whistle and encouraging him not to be ashamed of it, and then learning how to whistle herself will never NOT be adorable. how could i forget only you/he, I LOVE PEARL BEING ABLE TO REFLECT ON HER ACTIONS AND BEING ABLE TO MOVE PAST THEM. I LOVE PEARL SHOWING SELF AWARENESS TO HER FLAWS AND HOW THAT COULDVE AFFECTED OTHERS. I LIVE FOR PEARL IMPROVEMENT, there was one that i saw (from one of the uk tours i believe ???) where she was so ashamed that she couldn’t even look rusty in the face when he came to find her, and the thought of her costing him the race is enough to bring her to tears which is like. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH- and her and rusty’s little arm thing which finally shows that they’re in sync with one another, ready to officially start a relationship is SO BEAUTIFUL IT SPEAKS LARGER WORDS THAN IF THEY KISSED IMO.

- Favourite Costumes?

my favs have to be the early costumes, olc (like any olc pearl costume), broadway, and japan/australia tour are really what i’m looking for in a pearl costume, they’re so cute and streamlined and pink and sparkly, extra points if pearl has a curly pink ponytail. also i would be lying if i didn’t like pearl’s purple color scheme in wembley, it’s also VERY cute (it’s almost like purple is the best color huh)

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

duh of course prusty is at the top because they’re amazing and i love them and i would gladly sell my soul to them if they asked, but i’m also a pretty big fan of pearl and dinah, and weirdly pearl and belle the bar car (my problematic faves). as for platonic relationships, i’m SO SO interested in the idea of pearl having to earn back dinah’s trust and forgiveness for how she treated her in the show, but even moving past that, i love exploring their friendship, as in my head, they’re the youngest of all the coaches and therefore gravitated towards each other, i’d say that ANY pearl friendship with the other coaches is fun to think about !! as with rusty, i think the idea of electra trying to be besties with pearl despite having done nothing to earn her forgiveness or friendship is absolutely hilarious.

- Headcanons?

at least for my pearl, i headcanon that she began life as a more vintage looking observation coach (but upper class nonetheless), and once she reached adulthood she decided to be rebuilt into a more modern looking, streamlined dome coach. this new kind of coach fashion was very alluring to her as she was growing up, and while she doesn’t hate how she looked in the past, she definitely prefers how she looks now.

one more headcanon !! when pearl first arrived to the yard, she was aware there were a few steam engines still around, and the first person she saw was ashley, and because of her chimney, pearl thought she was ONE of the aforementioned engines, and developed a crush on her as a result, but even after learning that ashley was a coach like her, pearl’s one sided crush for ashley persisted for a few months until she had her little dream about a certain kind of engine, an engine moved by steam.

- Unpopular Opinion?

considering i’m the captain and founder of the very real and official pearl defense force, and since i’ve seen a fair number of people dislike her, pearl, while definitely flawed, is not a bad person ???? omg i cannot believe that this could be considered an unpopular opinion, but i’ve already said my peace on why pearl isn’t this cold hearted bitch that some people think she is, so i would like to add something to my already established opinion about pearl’s flaws: pearl doesn’t have to be LITERALLY A DAY OLD in order for her flaws not to dictate whether or not she’s a good person. even if she’s been around for quite some time, her being a hopeless romantic who sucks at empathy and reading social cues are obstacles she can overcome and move past, and flaws are what make us human (especially when compared to greaseball, cb and electra, pearl is LEAGUES more redeemable than any of them)

DAY 3: ITS GREASEBALL ITS GREASEBALL ITS GREASEBALL THE DIESEL

- Favourite Actor?

nigel casey and al knott are PEAK greaseball to me, followed closely michael quinn, jeff shankley and rob torti !!!!

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

oh i have many, rolling stock, pumping iron, taunting rusty, ESPECIALLY terrorizing rusty, it’s ABSOLUTELY PEAK but i already spoke my peace on that, i also ADORE HIS APOLOGY TO DINAH IN THE 2018 BOCHUM UPDATE IS PEAK GB APOLOGY. THE WAY ITS FRAMED AS HIM HAVING TO COME TO DINAH’S LEVEL INSTEAD OF THE OTHER WAY AROUND IS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING FAVORITE GB APOLOGY SONG.

- Favourite Costumes?

i’d say that the japan/australia tour had the best gb costume in my eyes, but basically any greaseball costume is like perfect to me. gb’s design peaked on the first go and they stuck with that ever since, even in the revival you can see how despite greaseball looking so different, she still has the yellow and black color scheme and general triangle shaped torso. (also despite me ADORING her prototype wig and frankly preferring it, gb’s current wig still fits her very well !! giving her a mullet was a perfect substitute for the og pompadour/elephant’s trunk)

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

gb and the gang polycule truther FOR LIFE. also gb’s friendship with cb is always interesting even if it never got explored outside of there’s me and the intro to wide smile.

- Headcanons?

i think that greaseball is actually very smart, especially smart with all of their little cheating schemes. the reason that they can’t spell sorry correctly is because they’ve never once said or spelled it out before in their life ever up until having to apologize to dinah by the end of the show.

- Unpopular Opinion?

idk how unpopular but i HATE HATE HATE greaseball being converted to a steam engine at the end of the show, regardless of the show i hate it. i pretend it just doesn’t exist. like i could rant all i want about that but… i’m a little lazy ya see. either way it’s a stinky plot point that i refuse to acknowledge the existence of.

DAY 4: DINAH THE DINING CAR

- Favourite Actor?

FRANCES RUFFELE, JANE KRAKOWSKI, DEBBIE WAKE AND EVE HUMPHREY ARE THE QUINTESSENTIAL DINAHS IN MY HEART

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

any dinah centric song is perfect to me, there’s me (including “that was unfair”) is very cool since it gives dinah a lot of depth, showing that while she is extremely attached to greaseball, she is very much not afraid to call him out when he’s doing bad things, also a huge fan of the variant, that’s me which is a fun way of looking into why dinah chooses to stay with greaseball despite her saying that he has left her before. i just really love any version where dinah stands up to greaseball, be it when they are being coach-ist in 2018 bochum and wembley, or when she tells greaseball to let rusty race him in “hey you, yes you” and continues to speak even after being told to shut it. also as always UNCOUPLED is dinah’s like, magnum opus, it’s SUCH a good song, it’s SUCH a good insight into dinah’s psyche, and such a good progression of emotions, to controlled sadness growing into BIG sadness, to anger to sadness once again (also i think it’s funny how eve humphrey perfectly hams up dinah’s sadness by having her BAWLING, HYSTERICALLY.) also both versions of dinah’s disco are wonderful, i love seeing dinah take her life into her own hands and decide what is gonna happen to her, same applies to girl’s rolling stock as well, i just LOVE seeing her gain more confidence and independence, it’s so sweet.

- Favourite Costumes?

like rusty and greaseball, dinah’s costume was already pretty, but the japan/australia tour dinah costume is PEAK dinah costume imo (and by extension any dinah costume between 1986 and 1990)

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

i have been infected with kitchen repair syndrome, yes it is chronic, yes it has become terminal, no i am not upset (thank you @tabooi for enlightening me with dinahwrench thoughts forever). as for platonic relationships, HUGE fan of her and cb being friends, i like thinking about her friendship with pearl pre and post-show, i LOVE her being besties with all the coaches, especially buffy since she’s also the only food-coach, and i think rusty is an interesting friendship i haven’t seen much of, with them being able to understand how greaseball and pearl have upset them (though i might not be looking hard enough LOL)

- Headcanons?

for my dinah (when she is an actual coach), when she was first dispatched into work, she was enthralled with the hairstyles of the waitresses that worked inside her, so she had two large lamps fitted to the side of her head to mimic the shape of the waitresses’ hair, and even better, the sign above her head very much resembled their waiting tiaras as well. additionally, when she was first opened, dinah’s restaurant was originally called “someone’s in the kitchen with dinah,” but dinah soon had it changed to “dinah’s diner” since she believed it rolled off the tongue much better than the former.

- Unpopular Opinion?

i don’t see dinah with a straight southern accent, i see her as having more of a southern belle accent, she seems more like a southern belle to me

DAY 5: ELECTRA THE ELECTRIC ENGINE

- Favourite Actor?

JEFFREY DANIEL AND DAVID MICHAEL JOHNSON AND TOM PIGRAM AND ZAINE GRIFF ARE PEAK ELECTRA AND I DONT THINK WE HAVENT REACHED THAT PEAK SINCE

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

AD/DC is stex’s showstopper for a REASON, ESPECIALLY WHEN ITS SCARY AND MYSTERIOUS AND ROBOTIC I JUST LOVE AC/DC. ADDITIONALLY I LOVE ELECTRA BEEFING WITH GB IN CODA, AND INSULTING RUSTY AND POPPA IN LAUGHING STOCK. and in the rap when electra continually refuses to race with rusty, before reluctantly agreeing to is pretty fun, AND ELECTRAS PARTS IN CB IS PERFECT. and no comeback, NO COMEBACK IS PEAK ELECTRA SONG. IT CONVEYS SO MUCH EMOTION, anger, embarrassment, sadness, PURE FURY AND MALICE, ALL PERFECT FOR THE AMOUNT OF DISGRACE ELECTRA IS IN. also them bargaining with slick/brake van with money to help them win is perfect especially when they are played as more desperate. it would be remiss to not mention electra spontaneously kissing gb during ORARTM, and them literally exploding after being so furious at seeing rusty winning the race.

- Favourite Costumes?

1987 japan australian tour was the BEST electra costume and i will not take criticism, also 2018 monochrome electra is pretty cool too, especially that glow in the dark hair ,,,,, i love watching it sway about whenever electra moves around.

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

electra and the components polycule FOR LIFE !!!!! i’ve seen some people headcanon that dinah actually really gets to know electra and becomes good friends with them and i think that’s super cute so now i’m adopting that for myself !!! and as always, i think the idea of electra trying to be friends with pearl and rusty without doing anything to earn their forgiveness or friendship is super funny, especially if they don’t acknowledge that rusty and pearl DONT like them at all LMAO. also i do think that electra and the some of the components (basically everyone besides purse) have more of a proper friendship rather than a master/servant or boss/employee relationship. while yes, the components DO work under them, and electra is the one giving them money for their work, it’s much more similar to greaseball’s friends and how they back him up. as for purse, i think that his relationship with electra is similar to kermit and miss piggy’s from the abc muppet sitcom, and mettaton and burgerpants from undertale.

- Headcanons?

- i think that electra tried making a mobile phone line, the “ephone infinity deluxe 2.0: the phone of the future” which was literally just an iphone with a phone case that looks like electra, and siri was replaced with a electra’s voice ai, and that it was hastily coded in, making the phone unusable. when purse told electra to make an apology for scamming their fans, electra decided that the best course of action was to film a whole edm music video on public television called “MEA CULPA” (emphasis on ME)

- i think electra did try to leave after the embarrassment after losing the race and after a day of not having their components tending to their every need, in addition to no one giving any positive attention, electra returned to the yard but the components since moved on to other things and different people, and much like greaseball, because of their bad decisions, electra was made to do the boring shitty jobs rusty used to do, until he came back from his world tour

- i think much like mettaton, they have a cd album they play for purse which is full of songs about how bad he is at is job whenever they think he’s doing poorly.

- my electra is a streamlined, modern passenger train, rather than an sncf 40100

- Unpopular Opinion?

say for slick, electra is the least out all the stex villains. electra’s biggest crime is being fr*nch but aside from that, they’re just kind of a dick, play unfairly and conspire with cb.

DAY 6: ASHLEY THE SMOKING CAR

- Favourite Actor?

BY FAR RENEE CHAMBERS IS MY FAVORITE, SHE SCREAMS ASHLEY TO ME

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

i love ANY of ashley’s introductions, they offer so much characterization despite how brief they are. she’s trying to quit smoking, but the stress of knowing what it could do to her causes her to smoke even more, there’s also the line about ashley being the LAST smoking car like, ever. i think it offers some interesting concepts for her character that i wish could’ve been explored (connecting her with the theme of obsolescence the show has going on). also that one bit of rusty king of the track where she hopes that she also won’t go out of fashion shows that she possibly FEARED becoming obsolete, as she likely would’ve witnessed steam going out of style firsthand. her and buffy comforting dinah and encouraging her to be amazing is in and up itself, AMAZING (even if i would’ve liked for them to have encouraged her to become her own independent coach rather than trying to win back greaseball’s affections)

- Favourite Costumes?

definitely broadway, japan/australia tour and early bochum, especially when she had the braided chimney instead of the flat one, it added so much beautiful texture that the flat chimney just cannot compete with.

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

i’m a basic bitch so of course I LOVE smoked buffet, there’s absolutely no way that she and buffy have NOTHING going on when girls rolling stock’s choreography is how it is, there’s absolutely no way. also i like to think that sans buffy, ashley is a big sister figure to the other coaches, and i think that especially is the case with dinah which i absolutely adore. i also like exploring her relationship with pearl is super interesting because they’re on the complete opposite ends of the spectrum, pearl is modern and new, while ashley is on the verge of becoming obsolete. her relationship with rusty is interesting too since they BOTH are becoming obsolete, and would be facing the same issues together, just in general ashley has a lot of potential for very interesting relationships it’s just that alw and richard stilgoe fucking suck ass at writing women that these were never ever explored.

- Headcanons?

i think that ashley initially DIDNT smoke, despite being built FOR smokers, ashley never saw the appeal in her youth, nor did she find it relatively interesting. however as more and more smoking cars began coming out of fashion, ashley feared that she may be next, especially as she became the last living smoker on the railroad. she could be repurposed and lose her identity, she could be preserved, made into somebody’s house, put in a museum, or worse, scrapped. this stress got to ashley quite a bit, and since most of her passengers talked about how smoking helps to calm one’s nerves, she decided to try it for herself. it didn’t do a thing for her, but as time went on she began to smoke more and more until it became a habit for her to light a cigarette whenever she needed to calm down (which only got worse when she realized she might have a stroke if she doesn’t stop)

- Unpopular Opinion?

ashley’s vegas showgirl costume is actually pretty good !!! especially compared to the other coaches, even if i do prefer her older design more.

DAY 7: BUFFY THE BUFFET CAR

- Favourite Actor?

CATHY MCIVOR AND AIKO NAKASONE AS HOW I ENVISION BUFFY TO LOOK, AND NANCY WOOD FOR HER VOICE

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

since buffy and ashley are always in the same scene, my favorite buffy songs are my favorite ashley songs !!! her lotta locomotion introductions are so confident yet self aware, like buffy KNOWS her food is kind of decent at a low price and she’s OWNING it, she will try and humor you and pretend to be sincere, but she’s a woman who knows her own worth, which is why i love her hearing out and comforting dinah at her lowest moment, and encouraging her to be amazing is so so nice to see. it’s also nice seeing her be so invested in rusty and pearl’s relationship in the olc, i think it’s cute !!! their love life is her soap opera.

- Favourite Costumes?

like all the other (non-pearl) coaches, buffy reached her peak with broadway, the japan/australia tour and early bochum had the best buffy costumes, her design is by far the homeliest out of all the coaches, especially when she has a nice, brunette hairdo

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

i don’t really think about buffy that much, but i love her and ashley as my main ship for them, and her being friends with the other coaches !! also her hating on rusty when she was gonna race with him was funny but sad, but nice to him buffy :(.

- Headcanons?

out of all the coaches, buffy is the most stable. she isn’t fickle with relationships, overly dependent on her partners, nor does she feel threatened by the concept of obsolescence and have an addiction to smoking, she’s just out vibing in the world, serving sub par food that she knows is bad, and she’s owning it. we got to give buffy some respect for that ! also, much like ashley, buffy is on the older side, being about 33

- Unpopular Opinion?

out of all the coaches, buffy has the absolute least going on, which obviously isn’t a bad thing but i can’t be the only one who find

DAY 9: BELLE THE SLEEPING CAR(S)

- Favourite Actor?

honest i love both of memphis belle’s og actresses !! pp arnold and janet williams adderly were perfect for og belle. as for belle jr, ashlyn weeks and bethany rose-lythgoe are also both perfect for this belle.

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

for memphis belle, i’m ALWAYS a fan of her song, suggestive as it is. i love how belle knows her worth, and holds her head high, knowing that while she has lost her youth and beauty, she’s still the same sleeper as she was before, and her run down state says absolutely nothing about who she is as a person. additionally i love her passing down her knowledge to dinah in girl’s rolling stock, telling her that she can be awesome on her own (even if it is in service of getting greaseball back together with her) also her racing with rusty and defending him during the rap is amazing hello ???? i love belle being one of the few characters with an actual moral compass LMAO

for belle jr, she appears to be similar to belle the BAR car so most of my favorite scenes from her are the same for the bar car, however, i’m such a fan of her leading i am me and her and tassita assuring dinah that she is absolutely NOT at fault for greaseball breaking up with her. i love jr has the same moral compass and the desire to empower her fellow coaches as the original belle, it’s very much in spirit of what memphis would do.

- Favourite Costumes?

both of memphis belle’s costumes are pretty fire to me, but her broadway costume in my eyes is the most realized it has ever been. one of her shoulder boxes falling off, her little hat, her broken wheels, but that’s a tangent for another time.

belle jr has had one costume thus far and i have to say she has the strongest one out of all the coaches. her purpleness is like the best thing that could’ve happened to her, her shoulder pads, and neck pillow and spacey whoville hair is such a vibe ,,,,

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

i’m very much a fan of both belles being close with the other coaches, and in a sense, being their LIFE coach. them both trying to help the younger coaches to flourish and be happy is so wholesome. i’m also interested in their relationship towards each other even if they never met and don’t even exist in the same show, im a sucker of the idea that memphis belle is belle jr’s mother, or at least a mother figure towards her. her being a parental figure to jr would certainly explain the latter’s inclination to empower her fellow coaches. additionally, memphis belle’s relationship with rusty is cute, it’s like he’s a grandson meeting his old man’s old flame from his youth, i think it’s cute !! if we also operate off the idea that jr is memphis’s daughter or daughter figure, i love the idea of her and rusty having a sibling like relationship, which could extend to slick as well (it completes the triad of rolling stock siblings !!!)

- Headcanons?

i think that belle jr was rather shy and reserved when she was younger, especially when she was brought in to replace memphis in the passenger train, og belle was EXTREMELY high class prior to retirement, so she left very big shoes to fill. however, much like poppa/momma with rusty, belle senior taught jr all that she knew about providing the best service to whatever passengers she would carry.

- Unpopular Opinion?

i don’t really have any !! i think that both belles are pretty awesome !!!

DAY 10: TASSITA THE QUIET CAR

- Favourite Actor?

tassita hasn’t had many actors, but renz cardenas was the BEST ACTOR HE COULDVE GOTTEN HELLO ???? i’m such a fan of him as tassita from what i’ve heard, he gives i am me such a full sound with his deeper voice, likewise for the coach’s lines during freight !! i love how displeased he is when the trucks show up, the way he delivers his lines when the coaches are badmouthing them is, in his words: “that’s brilliant!” except i’m not being sarcastic like he was.

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

since tassita to my knowledge only appears with belle, i mainly like whatever scenes he has that belle was also in. i like how he defends pearl from the other engines, it’s cute how he helps belle lead i am me, and when he tells dinah that she is absolutely NOT at fault for being dumped by gb.

- Favourite Costumes?

like belle jr, tassita only has one costume and to be honest, call it stockholm syndrome but i’ve certainly grown on his costume overtime, even his silly little baby pigtails LMAO. his orange and blue color scheme is pretty nice, he looks like candy ,,, also i really like how tassita dresses femininely like his fellow coaches. he also has a skirt but also not really a skirt but there’s no way it’s not a skirt, his silly pigtails and long eyelashes and makeup, very nice seeing feminine dressing men in media !!!

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

i like his friendship with belle !!! they remind me of the cool queer upperclassmen i see at college that i desperately wanna be like. his friendship with dinah is also super cute, and the way he incorporated pearl into their little group is cute as well !!! the way he also wants them to be independent and happy is very very wholesome !!

- Headcanons?

he and belle are placed close together in the passenger train, since ppl are required to remain quiet while inside him, it makes sense to place him next to a sleeper. additionally, i think that tassita styles his hair the way he does to try and resemble a loud cockatoo, trying to show how despite him being a quiet car, he’s hardly a quiet person. all he needs to do is grow it out a bit more and turn it into a more accurate (and better) looking mohawk.

- Unpopular Opinion?

this isn’t an opinion it’s a fact and i’m tired of pretending that it’s not, TASSITA IS NOT THE FIRST MALE COACH. STRIKE THE MAIL VAN WAS. ITS JUST THAT ALW AND HIS LITTLE DISCIPLES WERE TOO SCARED TO GROUP HIM UP WITH THE GIRLIES. BUT THATS OK. TASSITA IS STILL THE FIRST FEMININE PRESENTING MALE COACH WHILE STRIKE WOULDVE PRESUMABLY BEEN MORE MASCULINE PRESENTING. but i cant pit tassita and strike against each other, when i could just have them make up and then make out instead.

DAY 11: THE ROCKIES !!!!!

- Favourite Actor?

honestly i think any actors for the rockies are pretty fire in my opinion, but i will say having a girl rocky is like one of the best things that could’ve happened to them !! also i’m a fan of the 3 girl rockies even if they were in the joke matinee in london and never appeared again.

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

you already KNOW i’m gonna say right place right time because that really shows the rockies at their best in my opinion. is them telling rusty to give up rather rude? yes. but are they doing it out of malicious intent? no. are they based and true when they say that the system is rigged to put certain people on top and others on the bottom? yes. and are they absolutely killing it as they say it? also yes. it’s brief, but i love how it shows how the rockies have been so jaded by how they’ve been treated by the system that they’ve just nilhistically accepted that it’s always gonna screw them over, and gave up trying to change it is actually like really depressing ????? they seem more so interested in surviving train classism than changing or defying it. also there’s this one clip from a vegas boot where the rusty hater tries to attack rusty, only for the rockies to all fight him off which is super cute. NOBODY hurts their little bro and it’s so wholesome, i love how much they genuinely care for rusty. even when they tell him to give up, it seems more like they’re telling him to not waste his breath on something that’s inevitably gonna fuck him over than them bullying him. also i love how upset rocky 1 is when he founds out that the british engine was scrapped (btw does that mean the british engine DIED ?????)

- Favourite Costumes?

i love both their london and post-london costumes equally !!! the london ones are a bit more abstract than the broadway ones in terms of how well they resemble actual trains, but honestly i’m quite a fan of how they more lean into the boxing look. that also why i prefer them without their shoulder boxes on when it comes to their post-london costumes, they really look much more like actual boxers that way. however i will say, i love how big their shoulder boxes are, i think it’s cute, it’s like their little puffy sleeves :3. also pink rocky is the best rocky i love pink rocky they could never make me hate you pink rocky

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

idk where the hell it came from but i love the ship of rocky 1 with the british engine, it’s so funny how upset he is to found out that british was scrapped. like that’s his man !!! and his ride !!! wtf !!! in terms of platonic relationships, i love how they’re friends with rusty, and seem rather protective of him. they’re like his big siblings, they’ll definitely mess with and tease him sometimes, but the moment anyone tries to fuck with him (cough cough rusty hater cough cough) they will personally rip them up. NOBODY messes with their little bro besides them. i also love how fond they are of poppa/momma !! it’s so cute they hype the old steamer up before they sing, and how they get really defensive of momma/poppa during laughing stock. they’re so loyal, i love those guys !!!

- Headcanons?

the rocky’s shoulder boxes are only necessary when they are doing freight work, in all other situations, the rockies find them clunky and hard to work with so they choose to leave them off whenever they can.

if the rockies had their own racing helmets, they would resemble real life boxing headgear that protects the entire face

also i like to think there are actually 8 rockies in total. the four original broadway rockies, the elusive pink rocky, and the 3 london all-girl rockies. the first four consist of 3 guys with rocky 3 being the token girl, and the second four consist of 3 girls with pink rocky (rocky 5) being the token guy.

- Unpopular Opinion?

as happy as i am with the inclusion of rocky 3 becoming a girl, it seems as though they REALLY wanted to convey that she was a girl. the ponytail coming out of her boxing headgear, the eyelashes and lipstick? look i’m all for her being pushed as a girl don’t get me wrong, but i don’t see why that she has to have traditionally feminine design features to show that she’s a woman you know ???

DAY 12: HIP HOPPERS

ok guys i’m gonna be so real, most of what i said about the rockies applies to the hoppers, so just go to their post and whatever it says there is my feelings on them right now.

- Favourite Actor?

like the rockies, i think any actors for the hoppers are pretty cool, but big shoutout to one of the asia tours making hopper 3 a girl, so shoutout to her.

- Favorite Costumes?

i mean their costumes have basically remained the exact same, but i will say this: i saw a design for a SIXTH hip hopper, which implies the existence of hoppers 4 and 5 which means POTENTIALLY MORE FREIGHT FRIENDS ???? i love that, and i love hip hopper 6

- Headcanons?

same headcanon for the rockies, there are 3 other hoppers, 2 girls and 1 guy this time though. they live in a different yard but they occasionally come and visit their siblings during their off season

- Unpopular Opinion?

as much as i think they’re funky, the hoppers suffer from the same thing as rapping rum tum tugger from cats, where their portrayal as breakdancing rappers can come across as VERY stereotypical and i frankly do not vibe with that (especially considering that as far as i’m aware, almost all of their actors have been white). now if they were based on the 90s cool kid aesthetic rather than contemporary hip hop and rap, i’m sure that they would come across much better than how they did.

DAY 13: FLAT TOP THE BRICK TRUCK !!!!!

- Favourite Actor?

by far, DENNIS COURTNEY IS MY FAVORITE ONE by far, i’m such a fan of how much of a little guy his flat top is complete with his wonderful helium laugh, like he screams FLAT TOP to me in so many ways i just cannot ignore it. also it would be remiss to overlook paul reeves, he was the first flat top i was ever introduced to and he also just fits the character so well ….

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

anytim flatty is onstage it’s actually amazing. his introduction is the perfect way to become acquainted with this angry little guy. his scenes with poppa are also really funny, the way he is so contrarian to poppa/momma’s praising of steam by praising oil instead is hilarious. also the he calls steam engines stinky, to their FACE is hilarious and i will never ever not love that. i also love how he worships greaseball during pumping iron i really think he should be added to the roster of greaseball simps in the song but that’s just me. where flat top gets really interesting is when you see his background arc of him truly seeing that greaseball isn’t this untouchable god that he deems him to be. the way he looks so uncomfortable when gb and cb are discussing their plans to sabotage rusty is really good characterization showing how he’s starting to question whether or not greaseball is as cool a guy as he thought. the best scene flat top has though is after rusty is beat up, where he returns rusty’a helmet, asks if he’s ok, before telling him that he’s never gonna beat greaseball, and that he should just give it up, but you can tell he has no malicious intent with what he’s saying. he just doesn’t want rusty to risk getting hurt again, in what he believes to be a losing battle. it speaks so much to how this edgy contrarian flat top portrays himself to be is really just a facade he uses to look cool, and deep down despite not showing it, he really does care for the stinky steamies that he claims he hates. very interesting character even if he doesn’t do much.

also anything flat top does with his brick is amazing, and his helium laugh alongside the little dance of approval he does for poppa in the 1st us tour is the best clip of him ever i will not be taking criticism it’s so fucking cute.

- Favourite Costumes?

the london punk-style costume is the goat when it comes to flat top costumes, they certainly leaned too hard into him being a grimy truck when he came to broadway, HOWEVER !!! however, i do like him carrying his pet brick on his head, that’s very cute.

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

obviously flat top and all of the freight cars is fun, especially dustin because of how opposite they are. dustin is shy and meek, flat top is loud and bombastic, yet they jive so well together !!! his relationship with rusty is also very interesting for reasons i already explained. i like to think they become much closer after the events of the show.

- Headcanons?

here are some headcanons i have about flat top’s antics throughout his life:

- flat top SAYS that his graffitied tattoos were unwillingly painted onto him by vandals, when really he actively been paying people to give him more soley so he can flaunt his “sick tatts” to the other trucks

- flat top has taught and encouraged the use of swearing to children, especially around authority figures like their parents and teachers

- stole ashley’s cigarettes to see how many he could smoke at once

- unsuccessfully convincing dustin to smoke weed with him

- successfully convincing slick to smoke weed with him

- throwing around his bricks and accidentally hitting a man in the head and giving him a concussion

- one time he taped a piece of paper that said the words “kick me” on rusty’s coal bunker, you can probably infer what happened after

- flat top got really angery that no one chose him as a race partner, so before going back to the yard, he went behind the british engine (before he was disqualified) and spray painted “this rase is STOOPID” on his side

- Unpopular Opinion?

i believe it was @strangeandinteresting who said this in a discussion so credit to them, but FALT TOP TOTALLY SHOULDVE REPLACED DUSTIN THE FINAL. the entire show flat top is a little shot and doesn’t like steam engines, he’s very much a fan of oil, and wants to be part of greaseball’s gang. recent productions have done so much for flat top’s character where he sees that greaseball isn’t this super cool god that he thinks he is, culminating in him switching to rusty’s side once he sees the evil that gb is capable of. it would make SO MUCH SENSE if flat top was the one to race with rusty to fully round out his character arc of sticking by the stinky steamies that he claimed he hated. plus, it would actually give ALL of the trucks relevance in the story !! dustin races with poppa, the rockies have right place right time, and flat top would be the one to race with rusty in the final. of course, dustin being rusty’s partner also makes sense, but considering what this could do for flat top and actually giving him some relevance in the story, im surprised this wasn’t done earlier.

DAY 14: DUSTIN THE BIG HOPPER

- Favourite Actor?

GAVIN ASHBARRY ALL THE WAY. it is so much better to cast actual plus sized people for this character, rather than putting thin people in fatsuits. also, one of the vegas actors for dustin, i can’t remember who, has the perfect voice for him. gavin perfectly looks the part for him, and the vegas dustin has the perfect voice for him.

- Favourite Song/Scenes?

god, any scene dustin has is a delight. i love how we see that while dustin is shy and meek, he definitely isn’t afraid to defend himself or others, like when he snaps back at the rockies for saying his head is filled with rocks during freight, or when he tells flat top that leaving out steam trains isn’t fair. additionally, i just love the way he is going ham on the harmonica it’s so funny, and the way he falls down on the floor like a doll after being pounded on the head makes it even funnier (DISCLAIMER I DO NOT STAND FOR THE OBVIOUS HOPPER ABUSE HERE. ABUSE AGAINST HOPPERS IS VERY MUCH NOT OK)

- Favourite Costumes?

honestly i love all of dustin’s costume, they’re so fitting for him. however i LOVE his grim reaper cloak he wears during the final race in the obc, it’s so funny and it makes him look so mysterious and kinda scary at the same time !!! i’m absolutely obsessed with cloaked dustin you guys don’t even know.

- Favourite Ships/Friendships?

i don’t really ship dustin with anybody, i just think he’s everybody’s friend, but i always found his relationship with flat top really cute since how obviously different they are, and obviously him and rustyyyyyyy

- Headcanons?

honestly, i don’t have much. i do think that dustin is one of the only trucks that the coaches can tolerate however !!! he’s just such a nice guy that whenever they talk shit about the freight, it’s NEVER in regards to dustin. never ever.

- Unpopular Opinion?

honestly, dustin is kind of one note. BUT THATS NOT A BAD THING THAT IS ABSOLUTELY NOT A BAD THING. THE FACT FHAT DUSTIN IS SUCH A SWEET DUDE OVERRULES ALL OF THAT. and also doesn’t really need to be a complex character who goes through a character arc since like, besides dinah, he’s like the only characters with an actual moral compass 💀

Starlight Express Appreciation Month 2024!!

Day 17: Joule!!!

🎶Space Electra🎶