I was thinking the Spirit Tracks example was justified,since it's a magical train and therefore doesn't have to follow the same rules real-life trains do. Discuss?
Hide / Show Replies
That would be natter if put into the main page.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
Even so, we can't just call BS on it because it doesn't function like a normal train. I don't care if it's natter. Somebody is clearly expecting too much from a cartoon fantasy game if they're going to point out something which can easily be Justified or Handwaved.
Considering the Spirit Train is, well, a Spirit Train, most of the complaints make zero sense. However, the idea that absolutely no attempts were made to make the trains in general terribly realistic is notable.
Found a Youtube Channel with political stances you want to share? Hop on over to this page and add them.
So how would one phrase that if we were to re-word the example? Something along the lines of "Partially justified since it's a Spirit Train, but still very noticeable?" I don't know, it'd probably take a better man than I to word it correctly.
I would start off with "Even by the standard of a purely magical train system..." (I assume that the Spirit Train is a magical train). "Partially justified" still makes it look like a Justifying Edit.
"For a successful technology, reality must take precedence over public relations, for Nature cannot be fooled." - Richard Feynman
Loremaster
Do we need to do something about all the Real Life examples, given that this trope is about errors in portraying trains?
I'll let natural selection run its course and if that fails then I'll fix it.
In the Thomas the Tank Engine section it says: "It is not possible to build a railway line over a dam." Yes it is, and it's been done. The Isohaara dam in Kemi, Finland carries one railway track and one automobile lane with signals controlling the flow of traffic on both. It's a funny feeling to ride across: on one side the surface of the water is really close, and then on the other side there's a long (12 m) drop...
Very Manly Muppet
I know we just renamed this trope, but can't we give it a name that isn't a pun off of another existing trope?
'Failroad Tracks' keeps jumping into my mind. :)
My thinking is this is the trope for errors depicting trains, not getting things right. Moved these examples to discussion.
- The Runaway Train is justified in The Taking Of Pelham 123 when the emergency brake is specifically deactivated.
- Aversion: the emergency brake kicks in at the end of the car-train chase in The French Connection.
- That is actually caused by the failsafe signaling system which trips the brakes on the train. The Deadman Device on the train fails when the motorman passes out on top of the controller, keeping it depressed.
The Downton Abbey entry contains an inaccuracy as it refers to LNER teak carriages, however the location used for filming owns no LNER carriages so these where likely the Metropolitan set and various 4 and 6 wheel carriages.
Additionally it might be worth adding to the section that one of the locomotives shown hauling passenger trains was a locomotive in SECR freight livery (despite the ornate livery), certainly not something seen hauling passenger trains on the LNER network.
Edited by jsymons