Infinity Train Review: “The Past Car” (Book 1, Episode 9)

“And I would give anything I own
I’d give up my life, my heart, my home
I would give everything I own
Just to have you back again…”
– “Everything I Own”, Bread

Airdate: August 9th, 2019

Written By: Justin Michael

Plot: Tulip has hit rock bottom. Her path off the train appears foreclosed, her friend is a Gohm, and the conductor has threatened her life. She’s resigned herself to nihilism and eternity in this hell. However, the Cat convinces her to take a look at another tape, to try and find a path to cure Atticus. In it, however, she sees the life of a young couple, Alrick Timmins and Amelia Hughes. And the tragic nature of their relationship lays bare the current state of the train.

Review:

What is the purpose of Infinity Train?

And what is the purpose of the Infinity Train?

Meta and textual, two prime aspects of analyzing fiction, the task of any reviewer. (Whether or not I’ve always lived up to that idea will be up to you, the reader.) And any piece of fiction that dares to ask sweeping questions from the audience is worthy of my utmost respect. Guess what? We have a show more than deserving of respect on our table. I’ve gone on and on about how Infinity Train is one of the most intelligent and rewarding shows in the contemporary animation, how it dared to treat it’s audience as equals and not talk down to them. Few animated shows have realized their concept as fully as Owen Dennis’s creation, and fewer still have developed such a devoted fan base that connected so thoroughly with the universe. I can’t praise this series enough, and the fact that we only have half of the planned installments – one of them a pilot that was repackaged as an episode of Book 1 – is a creative tragedy. (Side note: screw you, Cartoon Network.)

The best part is that Season 1 isn’t even my favorite season of the show! Book 1, incredible as it is, isn’t even my favorite book in the entire series! Yes, it somehow gets better from here.

But these last four episodes, and the incredible quality therein, do prove that the gap is incredibly, incredibly close. For we get the two questions up top answered in stunning fashion. And the questions are asked and answered in the backdrop of utter despair for both protagonist and antagonist.

Of course, there is an argument that every protagonist is only as good as their antagonist.

Infinity Train Review: “The Ball Pit Car” (Book 1, Episode 8)

“They didn’t have to be here. They had a place on the train and you took them out of it. You brought them here.” – The Conductor, proving to be one absolute bastard. And that’s before a weapon is pulled out.

Airdate: April 8th, 2019

Written By: Alex Horab

Plot: With many months down in her travels on the train, Tulip Olsen appears close to the end of her journey. In one instance, she finds herself in a cabin that serves as an oversized playground/Jungle Gym, home of the plush Khaki Bottoms. But her challenges in this particular car are about to be countered by larger challenges that have followed her through the train. And this time, she’ll face her darkest hour.

Review:

Well…

…well…

…I had my gut kicked in by Infinity Train.

I mean, I didn’t not expect this the first time around. Come on, I’m a fan of Steven Universe, a show that cut it’s teeth with some of the most notorious tearjerkers in the modern animated television. Further, we’re in the eighth episode of what was supposed to be a ten-episode event. Also, “The Grid Car” and “The Cat’s Car” were already laden with emotional resonance, on top of similarly moving moments in “The Unfinished Car” and “The Chrome Car”. Also also, Infinity Train has less pronounced comedy compared to many of it’s contemporaries – humor that is in this show is more muted. So I was expecting a rather gutting and sobering episode beyond even what we had so far.

Still, SMEGGING HELL.

“The Ball Pit Car” swerved from one of the most idyllic and easy episodes of the show’s first season to the book’s most haunting episode. If your jaw is not left hanging open by the end of this episode, nothing will send it open. The odd part is that this isn’t my favorite episode of Book 1. Not even up to this point! There is a lot of competition for that title, my friends. Still, what does “The Ball Pit Car” bring to the table? You know, besides abject horror?

Well, a nice kick in the gut. Because it slowly seeps in until you’re left astonished at the agony that this episode lays at our feet.

Infinity Train Review: “The Unfinished Car” (Book 1, Episode 6)

“Do not remove the orbs. Got it.” – Tulip. Wise idea… a very wise idea for anybody on this locomotive.

Airdate: August 7th, 2019

Written By: Alex Horab

Plot: Another day, another train car to go through. This time, though, Tulip is trying to ignore the ever-changing yet apparently not-arbitrary number on her hand. Just in time, too, as they enter a car occupied by a civilization of Turtles. One catch, though – the cabin has a lot of features that appear out of sorts, and in some cases, feels unfinished. One-one is displeased and attempts to repair the broken-down cabin. Chaos ensues.

Review:

Is it too soon to contemplate if Infinity Train should stand among the best science fiction shows ever?

Okay, maybe that’s a quick jump to a rash conclusion. I mean, there is a lot of competition regarding the most iconic pieces of science fiction to grace the small screen. We have The Twilight Zone, Star Trek: The Original Series, Deep Space Nine, Babylon 5, LOST, Blake’s 7, Black Mirror, Doctor Who, The Prisoner, The X Files, I could go on. These shows have had years and years, and even decades, to build up global fanbases and have their iconic status settle through time. But that speaks to just how brilliant Owen Dennis’s creation is, the fact that I could make a case for it belonging in the pantheon of science fiction television alongside those aforementioned titans of television as time goes on.

I mean, it fits all of the archetypes you would expect from your typical sci-fi show. Unique fantastical premise? Check. Philosophical allegory? Check. Bits of societal commentary? Quite subtle, but check! Intense world-building? That’s almost the premise of the entire show. Outstanding technical element? Gorgeous animation! Fascinating characters? All hail Atticus! Canceled prematurely because the higher-ups were morons? I sure as hell am never watching Cartoon Network ever again. A rabid cult fanbase? YES!

And IT does all of these elements, and more, with an incredible amount of aplomb. In particular, this show’s world-building is on top form. And it is on top form on every level. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again and again; almost every pocket universe this show features is as explored as humanly possible in the span of 11 minutes. Further, in some cases, it can deconstruct and reconstruct universes and how they work.

Or, in short, “The Unfinished Car”. The sixth episode of Infinity Train.

Infinity Train Review: “The Cat’s Car” (Book One, Episode 5)

“Remember when the days were long, and rolled beneath a deep blue sky
Didn’t have a care in the world with mommy and daddy standing by
When “happily ever after” fails, and we’ve been poisoned by these fairy tales
The lawyers dwell on small details since daddy had to fly”
– “The End of the Innocence”, Don Henley

Airdate: August 7th, 2019

Written By: Justin Michael

Plot: Tulip and Company encounter an old foe – the Cat. This time, they’re on her turf, in her car. And she manages to stop their attempt to leave by convincing Tulip to watch an old cassette tape. Said tape sucks her straight in, driving her to relive memories from the past – particularly those involving her parents. But are her memories being doctored by the mindscape?

Review:

TV Tropes, that delightful little website that you’ve probably wasted precious hours on through the years, has an article entitled “Growing the Beard”. It indicates a moment when a work or franchise improves in quality, at least based on broad opinion. It’s named after Season 2 of Star Trek: The Next Generation, where the show began to diverge from it’s TOS roots and toned down the somewhat sanctimonious tone and lack of interpersonal conflict that plagued Season 1. (Coincidentally during that season, Commander Riker… grew a beard, and that shift corresponded with evolution in his character.)

Normally, such a term applies to a show that had a notable increase in quality. By this criteria, does Infinity Train qualify? On one hand, I would say “no”. This show, to my eyes, already started out as quite fascinating and well put together. In fact, the concept of the pilot itself was enough to sell me, to hint at me that this show would go down as one of my favorites if picked up for a full series.

But here, with “The Cat’s Car”, I do have to make a note of something. I think that this episode was what sent Infinity Train from “excellent show” to “personal Top 5 of all time”. It is one of the most ingenious and painful episodes of Book 1, which is saying something. And it’s one of my favorite episodes in the entire franchise… which, quite frankly, is saying something, given that we have yet to reach “The Ball Pit Car”, “The Wasteland”, and “The New Apex”.

Infinity Train Review: “The Crystal Car” (Book One, Episode 4)

Introducing the Magic Orb that accesses Your Spotify Playlists!

“When I was young, I would listen to the radio
Waiting for my favorite songs
When they played, I’d sing along.
It made me smile.
Those were such happy times, and not so long ago
How I wondered where they’d gone.
But they’re back again, just like a long lost friend
All the songs I loved so well…
– “Yesterday Once More”, the Carpenters

Airdate: August 6th, 2019

Written By: Lindsay Katai

Plot: Traveling through the Infinity Train, Tulip has mellowed out somewhat, yet is still trying to find the rationale behind the ride. Enter the Crystal Car, whose universe engine… well, it’s what it says on the tin. To get out of this car, Tulip and her friends must relay a song with emotional resonance. But is Tulip willing to dive into her soul to find that emotional piece of pop? And need it be emotional, per se?

Review:

Be warned – this review might be a bit more “personal” than others that I’ve published. Which, admittedly, is half the reason I put it off for a bit longer, punting it and stalling on it for what seemed like a while. (Making ground on Steven Universe was just a convenient justification… or at least an excuse.) Anyway…

…it’s the Winter of 2005/06.

My family had taken a vacation down to Florida – more specifically, the Central part of the state. One particular part of the trip involved visiting both my uncle and aunt in Tampa, as well as visiting a family friend down in Bradenton for a few hours. Ergo, my brother and I wound up in the backseat of a Pontiac G6 sedan, driving down I-75 in near-perfect weather. During that drive, my mother had on 101.5 FM, at the time an 80s Oldies station that called itself “The Point”. (For those wondering, it has since reformatted to Top 40 “Hot 101.5”.)

And one song that I recall hearing during that ride? “Heart of Glass” by Blondie.

In retrospect, that was probably my own introduction to “New Wave” music. It was a disco song that felt just different enough to differ from other disco songs that I had heard earlier. (I was an odd child. I am an even more odd adult.) Nowadays, I would consider disco and 80s Alternative to be two of my favorite musical genres, so the fact that “Heart of Glass” stuck out in my mind was probably a subconscious harbinger of the direction in which my own personal musical tastes would evolve. But more importantly… it just sounded so good! Perfect music to cruise down a highway to, now and forever.

Every time I hear “Heart of Glass”, it is forever entwined in my mind with the state of Florida, with that trip, with Tampa, with that stretch of interstate. It is in the upper echelon of my list of childhood memories, a moment, a connection I hope not to forget for quite a while. And it’s not the only pop song to elicit such feelings in me – there are songs that I associate for every moment, every period in my life.

It probably also explains why I find “The Crystal Car” such a fascinating episode, even if others are more powerful to the overall narrative.

Infinity Train Review: “The Corgi Car” (Book One, Episode 3)

“I must warn you, however, that we corgis are a proud people and we hate being picked up.” – Atticus.

Airdate: August 6th, 2019

Written By: Owen Dennis and Justin Michael

Plot: Tulip’s quest to speedrun the train is interrupted when she comes across a train full of Corgis. The world of Corginia is having trouble with flooding, and King Atticus suspects that a monster is behind the disruption. Ergo, Tulip finds herself as the possible savior of Corginia. But is the threat to the car what it appears at first glance?

Review:

My first encounter with Infinity Train was on the morning of November 9th, 2016. Having watched some of the Presidential election results the night prior (disclosure: the mediocre candidate I voted for lost to a nutjob), I spent a part of the morning searching for entertainment to try and escape from the immediate aftermath of the seismic shift. I had been made aware of the Infinity Train pilot circulating around the internet over the prior week, and I figured what better time to dive in than this newfound period of apparent uncertainty? Maybe it could take the edge off, give me something to look forward to in the not-too-distant future. Gotta have some optimism, especially in particularly unsettled times.

Needless to say, I was impressed. Intrigued, in fact.

Such a fascinating setting and interesting protagonist laid down in 11 minutes. It became one of the first shows whose development I kept tabs on from the effective beginning, even before it was picked up for a full series. (I was born years after The Simpsons and Red Dwarf debut, fell into Gravity Falls a few episodes in, and sampled Steven Universe to positive effect before one particular episode pushed me into the water.) I re-watched it while lying in bed when the pilot got a 6:00 AM airing on Cartoon Network in February 2017. And when the show was picked up – even for what at the time seemed to be a “mere” miniseries – it was almost like Arsenal had won the Premier League.

With the third episode of The Perennial Child, we re-imagine that pilot that started it all. We enter – once again for some of us, the first time for many more – “The Corgi Car”.

Infinity Train Review: “The Beach Car” (Book 1, Episode 2)

“Money doesn’t have much value to me. I’ve always been more interested in the peculiar and unique.” – The Cat. She probably has mountains of “final notice” bill stacked up somewhere.

Airdate: August 5th, 2019

Written By: Alex Horab

Plot: Tulip’s path onboard the train is proving a long and arduous journey. Not helping matters too much is One-One’s emotionally-driven actions conflicting with Tulip’s intense devotion to work and logic. By sheer luck, they wind up on the Beach Car, where a mysterious feline is willing to barter with Tulip, payment so the former can obtain information on the Conductor. But is Tulip really going to trade away her closest companion for safe passage home? Well, yes, but will the decision stick?

Review:

There are ten episodes in each Infinity Train book – a grand total of thirty for the series as of this writing.

Now, I know what some of you might be thinking. Wait, are you complaining? Don’t you love a show where every season is six or eight episodes? What about that show that has 17 episodes, only 7 of which are considered truly pivotal? And yes, I do love those shows. I am not complaining in the slightest. However, given that every episode of Infinity Train is eleven minutes long, and most American television shows historically had more than ten episodes per season (even animated series), this series certainly feels economical at first glance. Hell, it was initially advertised as a miniseries!

But it’s not what you have, it’s how you execute your story with the resources available. You can have the best idea in the world, yet if your script has too much bloat, muddling through it all is going to be a chore. Hence one of the many many reasons why I love this show. There’s a clear urgency present over these ten episodes, not just to get our protagonist home, but to establish the rules of the locomotive, to flesh out the world of the train, and to explore the antagonist – be it the self or the powers that be on the train.

Which makes “The Beach Car” interesting. On paper, it’s a rather easy outing. But more than a cursory look demonstrates just how well this series fleshes out new characters and the worlds they inhabit in such a seemingly short timeframe.

Infinity Train Review – “The Grid Car” (Book One, Episode 1)

“There has to be a way off this train that won’t kill me. Okay – everything has rules. Even crazy things have their own logic.” – Tulip Olsen

Airdate: August 5th, 2019

Written By: Cole Sanchez, Lindsay Katai, Madeline Queripel, and Owen Dennis.

Plot: Tulip Olsen’s plans to go to Game Design Camp are scuttled, thanks to her divorced parents not scheduling properly. Insistent on going to camp, she prepares to leg it for 300 miles. Her trek is interrupted by a mysterious locomotive that crosses her path.

Review:

A girl, about 13 years old, trudges through the ceaseless pattern of autumnal snow. The brutality of the Northern American climate threatens to defy her plans to make a 300-mile excursion on foot, a rather foolhardy trip that she has already vowed to make in spite of circumstances that threatened said excursion. With barely any progress in her journey made by nightfall, she realizes that this was not a great idea.

Unbeknownst to her, she is on an accurate path. Not to her destination, but to the center of her mindscape. To a deep analysis of her philosophy, to examine the insistence of holding a logical mind in an illogical world. She will enter a dimension that will stun her at almost every turn, an escape from which is not necessarily guaranteed. This experience will force her to adapt and confront what is tearing apart her psyche.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to my review series of Infinity Train – the closest equivalent to an American version of The Prisoner and Doctor Who. (Except for that one. And maybe that one.)

Welcome to our first episode of the first book, “The Grid Car”.

Infinity Train Review: Intro

“There has to be a way off this train that won’t kill me…”

I’m not even going to bury the lead with this post.

Infinity Train is a masterpiece.

More specifically, it’s my second favorite show of all time. No kidding – as far as I’m concerned, it is bested only by The Simpsons. And unlike that show, which has a small asterisk which all but discredits two-thirds of the screened product, Infinity Train has proven itself an astonishing series through the thirty episodes aired as of this moment.

Yes, this show only has thirty episodes out. Yes, the series has only been on the air for a year and change (not counting the pilot episode). No, I don’t care. This show is so brilliant that I am left wondering why isn’t this a bigger hit?

Oh, right, science fiction and animation. The relegated genre meets the relegated art form.