Infinity Train

Did You Know?

• Owen Dennis planned eight seasons covering themes of grief, guilt, revenge, and acceptance, with Book 8 touching on Alzheimer's disease.
• A full script for a Book 5 Amelia-focused movie was written but passed on by Cartoon Network Studios for lacking a 'child entry point.'
• The series was removed from HBO Max in August 2022 and from digital purchase platforms in October 2023.

Synopsis

The series takes place on an apparently endless train moving through a barren landscape, with cars containing bizarre and fantastical environments. The train picks up passengers who have unresolved emotional issues or trauma. As they travel through the cars, their adventures allow them to confront and resolve these problems, represented by a glowing number on their hand that decreases as they succeed. When the number reaches zero, a portal opens and they can leave the train. The first season follows Tulip Olsen, a girl dealing with her parents' divorce, accompanied by the robot One-One and Atticus, a talking corgi king. She uncovers the train's secrets and confronts Amelia, a passenger who usurped the Conductor role from One-One. Tulip persuades Amelia to adapt to change. In a first-season episode, Tulip frees her own reflection from a mirror world. The second season focuses on that reflection, MT, now a fugitive from enforcers. She teams up with passenger Jesse and a magical deer named Alan Dracula, helping Jesse leave the train and then returning to help her escape. The third season centers on Grace and Simon, leaders of a cult called The Apex who vandalize the train to keep their numbers high. Their travels with a girl named Hazel and her gorilla friend Tuba make Grace more sympathetic to the train's denizens. After Simon kills Tuba, Hazel is revealed to be one of Amelia's creations, and Grace realizes her beliefs about the train are wrong. Grace begins to mend her mistakes.

Characters

Tulip Olsen, voiced by Ashley Johnson, is a 13-year-old girl struggling with her parents' divorce who ends up on the train while heading to a game-design camp. She is analytical and determined. Naomi Hansen and Lily Sanfelippo voice younger versions of Tulip at ages 5 and 6 to 8, respectively. One-One is a spherical robot made of two hemisphere-shaped robots, formerly known as One. In Book 1, One-One accompanies Tulip and later learns it is the rightful Conductor, resuming that role at the end. In Book 4, set in 1986, One bonds with Amelia before she usurps his position. Glad-One, voiced by Jeremy Crutchley, is the exuberant part of One-One. Sad-One, voiced by Owen Dennis, is the morose part. Atticus, voiced by Ernie Hudson, is a talking corgi king who joins Tulip. Guest voices for Book One include Matthew Rhys and Ron Funches. MT, also voiced by Ashley Johnson, is Tulip's reflection freed in Book 1. In Book 2, she is a fugitive from reflection police and accompanies Jesse while struggling with her identity. She later names herself Lake. Jesse Cosay, voiced by Robbie Daymond, is a passenger who befriends MT and learns to stand up for others. Alan Dracula is a magical, silent, shapeshifting deer who serves as their steed. Guest voices for Book Two include Wayne Knight, Laraine Newman, Nea Marshall Kudi, Bill Corbett, and Rhys Darby.

Production history

Owen Dennis, previously a storyboard artist on Regular Show, conceived Infinity Train in 2010 as a film. He was inspired by the unsettling feeling of waking up on a return flight from China, seeing people staring into screens in a dark, quiet room. Like protagonist Tulip, Dennis created video games as a teen, including mods for Half-Life 2 and Unreal Tournament 2004. He cited Myst as a primary influence since age 13, along with Doctor Who, Agatha Christie, The NeverEnding Story, The Matrix, Philip K. Dick, Star Trek: Voyager, Sliders, and The Adventures of Mark Twain, as well as novels like Nightbirds on Nantucket and The Wolves of Willoughby Chase. Dennis described Infinity Train as 'Saw for kids,' a morality play about machinery helping one overcome personal issues. The series has three staff writers plus Dennis and supervising producer/director Maddie Queripel. Cole Sanchez worked on Book 1's story team before leaving for Summer Camp Island. Each episode involved a writer creating an outline, expansion, and script, then sending it to two board artists who had five weeks to produce thumbnails, full boards, and clean-ups before animation. Animation was done by Sunmin Image Pictures in Seoul, South Korea using traditional methods.

Reception

Infinity Train received critical acclaim from its debut. On Rotten Tomatoes, each season has a 100% approval rating, with season 1 based on 8 critic reviews and the other three on 6 each. Caroline Cao of /Film called it a 'wild triumph,' while Nerdist's Andrea Towers declared it 'one of the best animated programs of the year.' Reuben Baron of CBR compared it favorably to Over the Garden Wall, calling it 'a beautifully handled piece of self-contained, character-driven storytelling.' Skyler Johnson from Comic Watch praised its 'emotional depth that is rarely seen in children's television' and 'stellar voice action.' Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media gave it 5 out of 5 stars, praising positive messages about friendship and self-reflection. The third season received particular acclaim. William Hughes of The A.V. Club praised its darker themes, calling it 'the best, most challenging season yet.' Petrana Radulovic from Polygon noted its complex character arcs. Andrew Kolondra Jr. from The Vanderbilt Hustler called season 3 'genre-defying,' saying it helps animation break free of being seen as 'just for kids.' Beth Elderkin of io9 praised season 3 for avoiding black-and-white morality, especially episode 5 for its 'stunning revelations.'