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Sodor Research LTD.
Keith Hartley
A former engine fireman on Sodor Railways and the main viewpoint character. He is interviewed for the titular documentary, and gives his accounts on all the happenings.
- And I Must Scream: His final fate. After being torn in half by Thomas, Sir Topham Hatt had him biofused into a truck.
- Half the Man He Used to Be: After Thomas' Despair Event Horizon, he grabs Keith Hartley in a fit of rage and tears him in half.
- The Scapegoat: With all the major players in the bio-fusion operation having disappeared, Keith Hartley became this after the release of Shed 17 as he was the most public figure, with the news media doing everything it can to demonize him.
- Vomit Indiscretion Shot: When Thomas the Tank Engine was first unveiled by his father and grandfather, Keith immediately ran to the side of the shed to vomit. It then becomes a running gag that everytime he's on camera he seems to be vomiting, even on live television. He see,s to have dropped it later on however.
Dr. Owen Routh
A former lab assistant at Sodor Research LTD, and the second main interviewee of the documentary. He explains his experiences working for the project. In Project G-1, he is recruited by HiT Logistics as the head of the titular military project and begins working on weaponizing the bio-fusion process.
- Big Bad: Seemingly this for Project G-1, as the head of the titular military project by HiT Logistics who experiments on the engines and is responsible for their suffering and the chaos that follows. However, the ending implies he's still working for Sir Topham Hatt.
- Face–Heel Turn: While it was never clear where he stood morally, Doctor Routh seemed to show contempt towards The Fat Controller/Sir Topham Hatt and some of his actions regarding Gordon's death. Here he seems to have no qualms with doing these monstrous experiments. Also, Thomas himself turns on Keith and mauls him at the end.
- Karma Houdini: Professor Owen Routh, the man responsible for Project G-1, faces no consequences for his actions and succeeds in biofusing Keith Hartley into a truck.
Sir Topham Hatt
- Well, Mr. Hartley, you've been quite the thorn in our side - the wrench, in our works - the leaves on our rails.
A rich man who gains control of Sodor Railways after buying a controlling share. He builds the company from the ground up to be his moneymaker, taking payment from billionaires who wish to be turned into vehicles.
- Adaptational Villainy: Sir Topham Hatt. In the source material, he's a stern yet fair railway controller who is very close to his engines. Here he's a rude, unethical, money-obsessed, corrupt executive from British Rail who owned a controlling share of Sodor Research and spearheaded the mass-biofusion projects that the Gotzes wanted to avoid.
- Big Bad: Of the original film, as the head of Sodom Research LTD who is responsible for all their horrific biofusion experiments on people to turn them into vehicles, leading to all the conflicts that follow. He is also implied to be the true villain of Project G-1 who was giving orders to Professor Routh in carrying out further experiments.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: As the head of Sodor Research LTD, he knowingly subjects people to a dangerous procedure converting them to living vehicles because they pay him for it, and he displays no concern for the engines that die as a result of his company's experiments. He even intentionally lets people and engines die to protect his dirty secrets.
- Fat Bastard: To the point of it being his In-Series Nickname, due to him being a Corrupt Corporate Executive who cares more about profits than innocent lives.
- In-Series Nickname: Sir Topham Hatt is known by some as "The Fat Bastard/Fuck/Shit".
- Karma Houdini: Sir Topham Hatt vanished after Thomas discovered the inside of Shed 17, and by the sequel has gotten Keith biofused into a truck.
Wilhelm Gotze
- Ate His Gun: After realizing just how far Topham Hatt was going with the creation and use of the bio-fused engines. He finally decides to end it all with a luger. The end result is his room being absolutely filled with sawdust.
- Driven to Suicide: Once he learns about what Sir Topham Hatt is doing with the bio-fused engines, he eats his luger.
- Even Evil Has Standards:
- While Wilhelm was a former Nazi scientist, but even he was horrified by what Hatt is doing with their bio-fused engines. To the point that unlike his son who simply resigned, Wilhelm took it a step further and committed suicide.
- Double Subverted earlier in the documentary where he states he left the Nazi Regime out of fear of what the Third Reich was doing, but the truth was that it was his supperiors (the Nazis mind you) were unsettled by his scientific research.
- Herr Doktor: Wilhelm Gotze and his son Hans, since they are both German scientists.
Hans Gotze
- Like Father, Like Son: Hans Gotze is a science professor, just like his father, Wilhelm. Helps that Wilhelm actually taught Hans a thing or two during his adolescence.
- Herr Doktor: Wilhelm Gotze and his son Hans, since they are both German scientists.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: It was never explained what happened to Hans after he resigned. Although Word of God says that he went into the world of medicine whilst hitting the bottle hard.
Bio-Fused Engines
General
Former humans who were transformed into vehicles through the process of Bio-Fusion.
- Adaptational Species Change: In this universe, the engines, rolling stock, and other vehicles are humans transformed into their current form, instead of having always been engines/vehicles/rolling stock.
- La Résistance: Following the death of his wife Annie, Diesel forms the Sodor Liberation Front to get the government to formally recognise the rights of biofused engines and to recognise Sodor as a refuge for them. The movement ultimately succeeds in doing this, resulting in Sodor eventually seceding from the UK and cutting off all diplomatic ties.
- Single-Minded Twins: An interesting spin on the trope, as it's revealed that most of the twin engines were the result of a single person's cells splitting during the biofusion process.Professor Routh: Of course, these are essentially the same person.
- Twin Telepathy: The experiments at Hit Logistics reveal that biofused twins have a particularly powerful telepathic link owing to their single shared mind. This means that if one is subjected to torture or death, the other experiences the same fate, as shown with Donald and Douglas, and Annie and Clarabel.
Thomas Gotze, the Tank Engine
- Clone Angst: Turns out the converted Thomas was a clone. As the narration explains, every one of the failed clones, while mutated and horribly mutilated from the countless experiments, is exactly the same as the 'real' Thomas, and are no more real than he is. The shock of this experience kickstarts Thomas's descent into going insane and bursting free from his metal components.
- Like Father, Like Son: Thomas likes trainspotting, like Hans.
- Plot-Triggering Death: His tragic train accident is what drove Hans and Wilhelm to develop the Bio-Fusion technicque by fusing Thomas with a train. This technique goes on to be the driving force of the entire plot and changes much of the world itself.
- Vocal Dissonance: Thomas Gotze has a feminine-sounding voice.
Thomas's Clone
In Shed 17, Thomas wouldn't discover who he was, but in fact, who he wasn't.
One of many clones of Thomas Gotze produced in the aftermath of his death. Apart from the 'Final' Thomas, he's the only one who survived the Bio-Fusion process prior to his counterpart's creation. To say that he's an obvious prototype is a bit of an understatement.- Body Horror: In addition to having an Eyeless Face, Thomas's Clone is skinless, leaving his muscles and skeleton exposed.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: Appears at the very end of Shed 17, where he sets up the finale's Wham Shot, then appears very briefly at the start of Project G-1 where he is quickly killed off by John and a group of soldiers. Considering the state he had been left in, this could honestly be considered a Mercy Kill.
Gordon
A failed Bio-Fusion experiment and friend of Thomas.
Kevin Diesel
Kevin Diesel and his wife Annie Clarabella.
A rail enthusiast who was transformed into a train engine along with his wife, Annie Clarabella.- Adaptational Heroism: Downplayed with Diesel. While he's not really depicted as heroic, he's not a villain like he is in the original series. After research at Hit Logistics resulted in the gruesome death of his beloved wife, Diesel formed a civil rights crusade for biofused engines. However, his actions, while well-intended, did result in releasing Project G-1.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Diesel (assumed to be unintentionally) let Project G-1 loose during his kamikaze attack on Hi T Logistics.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: While Diesel's intentions were noble, using himself as a kamikaze to bring down the Hit Logistics building, he had no idea what he'd be unleashing by doing so. Diesel skidded and crashed into the containment cell holding Project G-1, allowing it to break free and go on a rampage.
Smudger
- Trauma Conga Line: Even before the closure of his railway, he would often get into accidents due to his wheel alignment. He was then shoved into a shed for four decades, during which time he was harassed by the Steamies on at least one occasion. By the time he was found by Owen Routh's containment team, he had merged with parts of the shed and the ground, and presumably died when the team tried to extricate him.
Project G- 1
The titular experiment created by Owen Routh. It is an amalgamation of several deceased engines, developed by HiT Logistics as a potential bioweapon.
- All Your Powers Combined: Project G-1 is a culmination of all biofused engines, including Gordon, James, Donald, Douglas, Percy, Toby, Duck, and Oliver to name a few. It's also implied Project G-1 contains their collective consciousnesses too.
- The Assimilator: Project G-1 is able to assimilate any biofused matter it comes in contact with. Upon its release, it drags several engines still imprisoned at Hit Logistics into itself to allow it to grow to titanic proportions in an alarmingly short period of time.
