If and when I ever get my layout finished (sometime in the 2020s at current rarte of progress) I am wondering if it woudl be possible to create a retro-future model railway. I am imagining a gleaming white monorail, sweeping through parkland studded with Corbusier-type architecture with streamlined befinned cars in the car parks and everyone wearing silver jumpsuits. One of my teachers actually had this idea when I was at primary school (he was a keen modeller) and as a class we actually started putting something together, but never actually got to the train stage (I assume nobody actually makes fictional monorail tracks and rolling stock).
Has anyone out there done something like this, or tried to model any kind of fantasy railway - either set in an imagined future or even not in this world at all? (there was quite a lot of train action on Mars in the movie Total recall I seem to, er, recall - now - a Martian layout - that's be something!"
I did, briefly, consider a fantasy Middle Earth setting, but based in modern times, with rail franchises such as East Middle Earth (based on East Midlands railways) and the like.
Fangorn is a bustling town full of humans with a totaly senile Treebeard used as a swing frame by the local kids, Lothlorien is an Elf themed fun-park, staffed by humans wearing plastic pointy ears, of course, because all the elves went over the sea thousands of years ago, and Hobbiton is the scene of a heavily guarded Hobbit reservation, surrounded by machine-gun towers and barbed wire to keep the rodents inside.
Then I decided I needed to get out more and meet people, and plumbed for a modern central England layout instead.
The setting for the elder scrolls games provides an interesting back-drop, particularly Morrowind. I envisaged 2 different railway systems for the island of Vvardenfell - an extensive 2' 3 gauge network across the elvish provinces and a 3' gauge line linking the imperial domains. Alternatively China Meiville's steampunk novels set in New Crobuzon are good ones as they include a vast steam suburban network centred on one large station and a transcontinental railway.
In terms of fantasy railways which do exist there is a small narrow gauge layout called Bramble Bottom which literally does look like the bottom of a hedge with little people and insects as passengers. And I remember the one that was in a circle with the really tall engines, carriages and people, but can't remember it's name now.
I have updated my Science Fiction & Fantasy Trains page. I found a few more interesting models/modelers, updated the Movie Trains page with more Total Recall photos and the addition of the Back To The Future engine. Look for the little red "NEW" by the entries in the right hand column.
QUOTE (21C164 @ 17 May 2011, 16:28) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>There is another Monorail supplier based on the Wuppertal Suspension Monorail - very expensive - but beautiful models. Available in 3.5mm or 2mm scale
I have added several Ghosts of Mars photos and links to the Movie Trains Page on Science Fiction & Fantasy Trains. Also, am making progress on the layout by laying the next area of track. No photos yet.
I did some captures of the Train Heist in Firefly , after seeing some of the Art and CGI render from the site linked to http://www.fantasy.freeformjournal.com/ , when I went back to have a look the images were only saved to the Clip board
I had not changed the setting as yet
Looks like another excuse to what the Firefly series again
Update: I have renamed my former website Science Fiction & Fantasy Trains. It is now Fantasy Trains at http://www.fantasytrains.net I added a few pictures to the Movie Trains Page, these are of the prop train from Ghosts of Mars. Two more HO engine modeling articles are scheduled for inclusion. Stop by and check it out!
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