Splatter and Dodge

“Uh, destroyed? Did you say destroyed?"
"The 'D' word?"
"Like hurt?”

― Splatter and Dodge, Thomas and the Magic Railroad

Splatter and Dodge
Model Series File:SplatterModel.png File:DodgeModel.png
Class: BR Class 08 Designer: British Railways Builder: BR Crewe, Darlington, Derby, Doncaster or Horwich Works Built: sometime between 1952 and 1962 Configuration: 0-6-0DE Top Speed: 20 mph

Splatter and Dodge (collectively referred to by Diesel 10 as "Splodge", a portmanteau of their names) were Diesel 10's bumbling minions.

Bio

Splatter and Dodge are two diesel shunters who, at one point, worked alongside Diesel 10. Diesel 10 referred to the two as "Splodge", claiming he did not have time to say both names.

Diesel 10 wanted to rid the railway of steam engines, and were complacent with his plans, regularly keeping a lookout for their boss and being present when he was scheming.

The two eventually grew tired of Diesel 10 and when he tried to chase down Lady and Thomas, they refused to follow him.

What happened to them after that is unknown, although it can be assumed they returned to the Mainland.

Persona

Both engines are simple-minded, awkward, cowardly and tend to banter. Splatter is the more talkative of the two, while Dodge is more intelligent. Although Percy fears them, they do not have the intelligence or villainy to match Diesel 10's. They enjoy watching Diesel 10's plans backfire, but are also prone to making a mess of things. Despite initially siding with Diesel 10, they seem reluctant to destroy a fellow engine, even a steam engine, and eventually abandon Diesel 10 in the end.

Basis

Splatter and Dodge are based on BR Class 08 diesel-electric shunters. Over seventy members of this class survive today in preservation, while around 100 remain in service on the national rail network. They were in fact the most successful shunting engines in the world, with 996 of them built. Diesel, the Diesel Shunter, 'Arry, Bert, Paxton, Sidney and the Great Railway Show Diesels are also members of this class.

However, unlike the other BR Class 08s, Splatter and Dodge have been modified without ladders going up each side of their fronts.

Livery

Splatter is painted purple and grey while Dodge is painted olive and grey. Both are heavily weathered, and both have their names painted on their sides in white.

Appearances

Television Series

Specials:

Thomas and the Magic Railroad

Voice Actors

Splatter

Patrick Breen (original workprints only)
Neil Crone (final cut)
Naoki Bandō (Japan)
Andreas Mannkopff (Germany)
Ernesto Lezama (Latin America)
Martín Soto (Latin America; TV Version)
Louis-Philippe Dandenault (French speaking Canada)
Yigal Mizrachi (Israel)

Dodge

Patrick Breen (original workprints only)
Kevin Frank (final cut)
Hiroshi Iwasaki (Japan)
Klaus Sonnenschein (Germany)
Ricardo Mendoza (Latin America)
Carlos Íñigo (Latin America; TV Version)
François L’Écuyer (French speaking Canada)
Saar Badishi (Israel)

Trivia

A behind the scenes picture shows them without their names.
Splatter and Dodge are repainted from Arry and Bert's fifth season models. The hazard stripes from the latter diesels are even visible under their paintwork in a rare promo.
In an SiF interview with Chris Lloyd, it is revealed that Splatter and Dodge's models never came back from Canada after the filming of Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
Splatter and Dodge's television series models do not have handrails, yet some of their merchandise lines do, possibly modelling after Diesel.
In the original script:
- Splatter and Dodge never turned on Diesel 10. Instead, George, who was to be one of Diesel 10's henchmen, turned on them, causing them to rush at him, only to smash into each other and derail. In another version of the script, they were trapped in a siding when Junior, helped by George, pushed a large boulder down into their path.
- Another difference from the original script was that their boss referred to them as "Spladge" instead of "Splodge".
Early concept artwork shows that Splatter was going to have hazard stripes of some kind along the lower portion of his body, and Dodge was going to have handrails on his running plate. In addition, both were drawn with significantly different facial features to one another.
Some production made Splatter and Dodge face masks are in safe hands of Twitter user Diesel10TV.