American Rail

***American Rail*** is a fan-made spinoff of Rev. Wilbert Awdry's *Railway Series* and the *Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends* television series by Britt Alcroft and David Mitton. The series was created and directed by YouTube user KeeperofToast and follows the adventures of the locomotives of the Dallas and Northern Railroad.

## 2013 Series

The original *American Rail* series officially began in 2013, though the first episode was not uploaded until early 2014. The series followed Terry, Desmond, Angelica, and (if it was continued) early versions of Alfred, Rex, Rachel and Cromford, all locomotives owned by the Dallas and Northern Railroad, then a heritage railroad. The series was filmed using a Nintendo 3DS on KeeperofToast's floor layout, which was very small and had no scenery. Two episodes were uploaded, but only the first survives. This version of *American Rail* would become more fantasy-based as it progressed, but due to issues with filming and the set, it was cancelled.

## 2014 Series

*American Rail* saw the light of day once more in June 2014 with the uploading of a video called *American Rail Character Slideshow.* The video featured manipulated images depicting various characters from the new *American Rail*. The original characters were present with modifications from their original incarnations, as well as 4 new characters, three of which were preserved engines. In this version, the Dallas and Northern Railroad was made a class II railroad, complete with freight service and branch lines Three additional slideshows followed, as well as a video titled *American Rail Whistles and Horns*, which (at the time of writing) is the most viewed video on KeeperofToast's channel. The series initially slated for an August release and would have been created in Railworks 2014, though later this was changed to Trainz and even a return to models was considered. Ultimately, this version was cancelled in 2015-2016, but the final rendition of this version greatly affected later reboots.

## 2015 Series

In late 2015/early 2016, a third attempt at *American Rail* was made, this time in comic form. The series was much the same as the final 2014 rendition as far as plot and characters go, but ultimately this was also cancelled.

## 2017 Series

Finally, in early 2017, a reboot of *American Rail* was announced with the upload of new concept art of Rex to KeeperofToast's DeviantArt page. This new attempt takes the 2014/15 series and significantly modifies the history of the Dallas and Northern Railroad, the characters, and the plot to present a more realistic take on the series. The new series will introduce many new characters, both steam and diesel, as well as original locomotive classes made for the Dallas and Northern Railroad, which is now a Class I railroad. The series takes place between 2013 and 2016, and will focus on the interpersonal relationships of characters.

## Characters

**Locomotives**

* Dallas and Northern Railroad Locomotives
* Puffy
* Vinny

**Humans**

* Phineas Sherman
* Natalie Sherman
* Garrett Ferguson
* Donovan Sherman
* Angus Lentz

## Railroads Featured

* Dallas and Northern Railroad
* BNSF
* Union Pacific
* Fort Worth and Western Railroad
* Grapevine Vintage Railroad
* British Railways
* Southern Railway (UK)
* North Western Railway
* Amtrak