The Tale of Train Magic

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Midnight Society

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Air Date: Saturday, January 21, 1995
Storyteller: Frank (Jason Alisharan)

Frame: The Midnight Society gathers, awaiting Frank's arrival, as he's up for storytelling that night. The waiting, however, gets under an unnecessarily impatient Sam's (Joanna Garcia) skin, so when she reaches her wit's end, she decides to leave. Just as she's heading out, however, she's stopped in her tracks by a bright light and the sound of a train, which turns out to be Frank, carrying a boombox, emitting train sounds, which provides a segue into his story, which isn't only about trains, but also about how the deep desire for something can lead to disaster.

Story: Tim Williamson (Gregory Smith) is obsessed with trains and wants to follow in his late father's footsteps and grow up to be a conductor. One night, while on a stroll with his brother, Hank (Jesse Moss), the two get separated, and Tim bumps into a strange conductor (Colin Fox) who gifts him a model passenger car for his train layout and promises to make him a conductor. It turns out this passenger car is a replica of one that once crashed near the Williamsons' home, and it serves as a sort of vessel for the deceased passengers. The mysterious conductor wants to pass his position on to Tim, allowing him to be free.

Review: While there are some questionable aspects to this episode, it came across better than I expected. I grew up with a Dad who had a passionate model train hobby. Though I had respect for his skills and talent, I didn't follow in his footsteps, so I typically don't relate to the whole "fun with trains" thing. However, I enjoy the storytelling here, and the episode features an "uncle" type character to Tim named Cap (Ray Aranha), who ranks among the most likable in the series. Even though this isn't something that would have typically been up my alley, it's really not bad in the long run.

Final Rating: Spooked

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