Troublesome Engines
by Chase the Ferroequinologist is an adaptation of a couple of Railway Series books, namely James the Red Engine, Tank Engine Thomas Again, and Troublesome Engines, told in the style of The Adventure Begins and set in the same universe as Thomas and Friends - Original Episodes.
Percy is a tank engine working in a railway work, except that his job is riddled with difficulty, especially with many of the other engines bossing him around. Meanwhile, on the Island of Sodor, Gordon, Henry, James, and Edward try to deal with the aftermath of Thomas getting his own branchline, with all but Edward loathing to shunt their own coaches and trucks and Henry suffering dreadfully over having a flawed firebox. When James, Gordon, and Henry do the unthinkable, Sir Topham Hatt calls in Percy to try to alleviate the situation... except that Percy, due to getting constantly picked on by a tender engine back then, thinks that the three tender engines are all bullies and cowards. Meanwhile, Thomas gets to work on his branchline, meeting new friends along the way, some with less than pleasant first encounters than others.
Will everything work out for everyone? How will Thomas fare with his new job? And will Henry, James, and Gordon prove to be really useful and compassionate engines?
This story contains examples of
- Adaptation Expansion:
- Percy's life before getting bought by Sir Topham Hatt is detailed, namely that he works at a rail yard as a pilot engine and he gets bossed around by a tender engine named Clyde.
- Henry getting involved in the strike also takes a buildup to why he joined. Firstly, his small firebox makes him unable to make steam as well as everyone else, then he gets scolded by Thomas for being late, and the straw that broke the camel's back was when he gets whooshed by an elephant.
- Bertie's challenge with Thomas is given an explanation: he saw Thomas rush by at a crossing, getting covered in snow in the process. Deciding to prove he's the fastest (and due to getting annoyed by his predicament), he decided to challenge Thomas to a race once the snow is melted.
- The Dog Bites Back: Chapter 5 sees Percy exacting retribution on Clyde and his bullying by wheeshing him with steam. Bonus points for the method used being similar to Clyde blowing soot at him earlier.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Bertie is introduced one chapter before the story about his and Thomas's race.
- Extreme Doormat: From the first chapter, Clyde is shown to have let the other engines know of Percy being meek enough to do whatever they demanded, letting them harass him very often. The fact that it was policy to help other engines when they ask for it does not help matters.
- Jerkass: Clyde is shown to be utterly mean to Percy, from insulting the tank engine, to letting the other engines know of his Extreme Doormat tendencies. One incident had him bash a few trucks to make a mess in such a way that Percy ends up getting framed for it.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Gordon lets his ego get to his head and causes trouble, from leading a strike and teasing Thomas about being late, to locking out Percy from the main sheds during winter. He ends up facing a series of unfortunate events, from getting shut up for leading the strike, to passing a signal that leads him away from the mainline, something which also gets him into very deep trouble with the Fat Controller, who lays down the law on him after the mishap, calling him out for his inflated pompousness.
- Once Done, Never Forgotten: Chapter 2 featured James needing bootlaces from Jeremiah Jobling and getting a stern talking to from the Fat Controller. Even though no punishment was given, James ends up receiving ridicule from the other engines about the incident once they got word about it. Even Percy, who learnt about it from Edward, also jumps on the teasing bandwagon.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: In Chapter 10, The Fat Controller rakes Gordon across the coals for the trouble he caused, his sheer ego, and his laziness over shunting.Fat Controller: You lead a strike among my engines, you're rude to every engine who you believe is below you, and you hold yourself in the highest regard there is.
Gordon: B—
Fat Controller: Let me be very clear, Gordon. My engines treat everyone fairly. My engines aren't rude to others. And my engines shunt. All of them. The world does not revolve around you, Gordon. You need to realize that sooner or later, or I will send you away.
