Thomas the Tank Engine introduces first autistic character

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Thomas & Friends welcomes first autistic character to cast - meet Bruno the Brake Car! Picture: Mattel

Bruno the Brake Car will be voiced by nine-year-old actor Elliott Garcia, who also has autism.

Thomas the Tank Engine is getting a brand new friend as the popular kids TV show introduces its first ever character with autism.

Bruno the Brake Car, who is set to chug onto our screens later this month, will be voiced by nine-year-old autistic actor Elliott Garcia from Reading.

The "detail-oriented" bright red engine travels in reverse at the end of the train, which is said to give him a "unique perspective on the world", explains US company Mattel, who acquired Thomas the Tank Engine in 2011.

The "joyful, pun-making brake car" is able to express his feelings when he's overwhelmed, stressed or excited by "flapping his ladders" and has a lantern to signal his emotional state.

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Bruno the Brake Car will join the gang later this month. Picture: Mattel

He enjoys "schedules, routine, and knows where all the tracks lead on Sodor," adds the toy giant.

Bruno, who also wears ear defenders when there is a loud noise, will play a "vital role" in the children's programme and bring more diversity to the tracks.

Speaking of his brand new role, Elliot described Bruno as "funny and smart" but explained "he can get really overwhelmed, he can get worried, and he uses comedy to get past situations".

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The bright red engine is the first Thomas and Friends character to have autism. Picture: Mattel

Through Bruno's on-screen presence Mattel hope to introduce the Thomas & Friends audience to "a positive, neurodivergent role model."

The American organisation said it worked closely with writers, spokespeople and experts, including the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, to create an accurate representation of autism.

Zoe Gross, director of advocacy for the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, said the show receiving "autistic input" was crucial in developing the brand new character.

"Autistic people have been involved in all aspects of creating Bruno, from us as consultants to writers on the show and Bruno's voice actor — this makes Bruno ring true as an autistic character," she explained. "I hope that Bruno will provide viewers with meaningful examples of inclusion in everyday life."

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Elliot Garcia, 9, who will voice the new train, described Bruno as "funny and smart" but explained "he can get really overwhelmed". Picture: Mattel

The senior vice president and executive producer for global content development and production at Mattel, Christopher Keenan, believes autism is "underrepresented" in popular children's TV and instead "deserves to be celebrated".

"So much care and thought went into the development of his character, and we can't wait for audiences to meet and love Bruno as much as we do," added Keenan.

Bruno the Brake car has been added as a new series regular and will make his debut in the season 26 premiere of 'Thomas & Friends: All Engines Go'.

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[EDITED to fix broken links] Original, Archive
 
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Why would they do this? People with real autism are fucked up. I doubt they even watch TV. They are too busy flapping their arms quacking like ducks and doing shit paintings in their parents bathrooms. The weirdos with the trendy "autism" are just socially retarded weirdos and their parents just had them diagnosed with autism because it's easier to deal with that than the fact you just birthed a weirdo. These types don't even understand jokes. They can't do people stuff. You have to explain jokes to them. It reminds me of that post I saw once that said one of the 9 levels of hell is having to repeatedly explain jokes to "autistic" people.
 
An autistic train for an autistic fandom. Makes sense.
 
Silver-kerching said:
You win this round
Also
Did you ever see that episode were they flat out buried a train that was naughty alive ?
Old Thomas was mad authoritarian
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Didn't bury. Bricked into a tunnel. It was Henry and he wouldn't come out the tunnel cos it was raining and he didn't wanna ruin his paint so they bricked him in.
the stop animation ones narrated by Ringo Starr and based on the books are way, WAY better than that shite on tv these days. I watched that episode decades back and it scared me witless to point I remember it now.


Whatever it is now is a fucking abomination.
 
Oilspill Battery said:
wtf happened to the artstyle, wasn't this stop motion animated
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It was originally electric-powered models and handmade sets that were recorded with a movable hanging camera, with a narrator that acting like he was reading a story that matched with what was happening on screen. It had some surprisingly dark stuff in the earlier seasons (There was a threat of engines being "scrapped" aka killed if they "weren't useful"), But seems that they've decide to get rid of the models and narrator and do flash animation with voice actors like everyone else. The writing is probably as toothless as the animations looks too, which makes sense as nobody who worked on the model seasons is there anymore.

Regardless, this is just another example of the horrible state of the moden entertainment industry I guess. I'm not sure what would make this stand out from another kid's show besides starring trains, which won't be very noticable. I guess it works as a distraction, which is basically children's animations today; no lessons or teaching, just something to keep the kids quite for a half-hour or so.
 
Tacitus Kilgore said:
Why would they do this? People with real autism are fucked up. I doubt they even watch TV. They are too busy flapping their arms quacking like ducks and doing shit paintings in their parents bathrooms. The weirdos with the trendy "autism" are just socially retarded weirdos and their parents just had them diagnosed with autism because it's easier to deal with that than the fact you just birthed a weirdo. These types don't even understand jokes. They can't do people stuff. You have to explain jokes to them. It reminds me of that post I saw once that said one of the 9 levels of hell is having to repeatedly explain jokes to "autistic" people.
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Low functioning autists love TV. They tend to be obsessed with it.
 
DoubleD said:
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I seem to recall, in the original series, that all the engines (including Thomas) were occasionally shown to drive backwards. AFAIK, it was common in the age of steam for a large train to be run with two engines – one to push and the other to pull. The advantage of this arrangement is that it made it very easy to switch directions. Yet it's remarked upon here as if it's something specific to this character. So I'm guessing all the other engines in the rebooted series only ever travel forwards?! Immersion in world = ruined
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Why is it these days people need representatives of themselves in media? When did everyone become narcissistic oversharing exhibitionists?
 
-Charlemagne- said:
It was originally electric-powered models and handmade sets that were recorded with a movable hanging camera, with a narrator that acting like he was reading a story that matched with what was happening on screen. It had some surprisingly dark stuff in the earlier seasons (There was a threat of engines being "scrapped" aka killed if they "weren't useful"),
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The early Thomas seasons were something right out of Edgar Allen Poe, or maybe WH40k. On top of the humans threatening to have their slaves dismembered alive if they can't work any more, there was the time one engine didn't want to get wet, so they wall him in alive. There was another engine who, because he had wonky wheels and derailed a lot, had his wheels removed and was used as a stationary boiler instead, while still alive. So this is a society where if you're disabled, you'll have your limbs amputated and be used as a piece of living industrial equipment because you can't perform physical labour.

The humans know the trains are sentient and can feel fear and pain, but they do these things anyway. Thomas the Tank Engine isn't just one of the darkest settings in children's TV, it's one of the most grimdark dystopias in all of fiction.
 
Kiwi Farms introduced its first autistic character when the first user signed up.

This forum was founded by autists, about autists, for autists... it was very anti-progressive of the trannies to try and shut it down.

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