#then again if modern mavis is allowed to just be boco than ig modern rosie is within her rights to just be mavis

[thequeenofsodor]

Headcanon: Rosie has been on Sodor way longer than you’d think...

World War II is a notoriously glossed over time in Sodor history. On an unrelated note, Rosie is a USATC S100, a class of locomotive that was built in the USA and exported to Europe for the Allies’ war effort. Rosie’s introductory episode is one which does not feature any kind of origin story, nor is she said to be new. She just kinda shows up and is treated as if she’s been a character who’s been around this entire time... I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this... 😈

During WWII, the North Western’s roster would only consists of the first six engines, a few of the remaining pre-NWR Grouping engines, and presumably a gaggle of LMS loaners who may or may not be called back home to assist with their home region’s war effort. The prospects of this fleet pulling through in one piece don’t look that good on paper IMO. I think it’s not out of the question for FC1 to put in a call for some reinforcements, and given how the North Western was made for the WWI war effort and likely borrowed many War Department engines back then too, it’d only really be following tradition! And so, Rosie enters the picture. Definitely not in the pink she debuts in on TV, probably in some kind of austere black or gray. She definitely wouldn’t have been alone, I’d like to think there could have been an S160 on Sodor too to help with heavy goods. I am a huge proponent of Hank being an S160 instead of a PRR K4 (I’ll probably make a post about that at some point in the future), but it does have the unfortunate affect of knocking Hank’s one and only episode out of canon on a surface level not only by changing his basis but by making his arrival party impossible due to the presence of Toby and Emily, who would not be there in WWII! But again, this is better suited for another post. Let’s just leave it at “Rosie arrives in Tidmouth straight from America, along with an S160 who may-or-may-not-be Hank.”

I figure the reason she comes to admire Thomas specifically so much is because she was likely assigned to work on his branch line, and thus had a lot of proximity to him during her formative years. TK&ELR Coffee Pots 2-4 would still be around until the early 50s, but they were used sparingly after Thomas’ arrival due to their poor condition among other things. So it would make sense to send a perfectly capable, brand-new tank engine to work alongside Thomas in their place. Rosie would be personality-wise where she is in her Model Series episodes: cheerful, childish, and way too idolizing of Thomas. Admittedly I have no idea if the ongoing war would even allow her to be this way, but I suppose she may be in a similar boat to Thomas? He was built and shipped off right at the start of WWI, and yet was still relatively innocent, albeit not to the degree of Rosie... I figure they were both either sheltered from the respective Horrors of War, or it simply did not affect them as deeply as one might think. Man-made horrors beyond locomotive comprehension? I dunno for sure. I also figure Thomas would loooove the attention of his new charge at first, only to slowly get sick of her over time and end up where he is in her debut episode. Upon the end of WWII, all of the S100s and S160s (save the 10 S100s that became the SR’s USA Class) that were based in the UK were repatriated back to the USA. Given Sodor’s history of, ahem, “retaining” their wartime assistance, I don’t think they would have given them back. But since Rosie’s presence would no longer be a priority on the Ffarquhar line, I think she’d be transferred to another depot on Sodor, possibly either Vicarstown (as per her later role in the CGI Series) or Cronk (which in the RWS would be a major hub for rail on the North Western, and could use a dedicated shunter). I figure this work would keep her sufficiently occupied, which is why FC2 wouldn’t just put her back on the branch during the Knapford Harbor renovation, which otherwise in this HC would be way easier than transferring Percy and bringing in Duck to take his place at Tidmouth.

Thomas probably breathed a sigh of relief once he knew he was safe from Rosie’s potential return! Though since Sodor engines love to stray from their allocations whenever the plot demands, that doesn’t mean he’s safe forever...

And of course, as soon as the war ends and she officially becomes one of the Fat Controller’s Engines, this is when she’d get her ever-so-loved Pink livery... To be honest whenever I think of Rosie’s livery timeline I never come up with a reason why she ever chooses pink. Like, obviously she starts in a wartime livery, and then at some point chooses red over pink as a symbolic way of reinventing herself and ceasing to model herself after anyone else. But at the stage in her life where she idolizes Thomas so much, why would she pick anything that’s not NW Blue? I suppose we’ll never know. Anyway since FC1 has pretty much given up all hope of a standardized livery by this point, I’m sure he’d just accept it and resignedly tell the paint shop lads to start mixing a shade that’s never gone on a steam engine before.

I think that’s all the bases covered. The only thing it doesn’t cover is any of the development that would lead to Red Rosie, but I feel like those events would be a decade or two removed from the war and not really on topic anyway. I just thought this would be a fun way to look at Rosie, or at least an alternative to “she’s one of the 10 SR USA Tanks and came to Sodor post-Oliver”. The only real downside to this HC is that its incompatible with my former pet idea that Rosie was a follower of the Railway Series in the post-war years and her idolization was more akin to a parasocial relationship, and that doesn’t really work if she’s arrived on Sodor and stayed there before the books were even published. Oh well, at least this new Rosie HC would be a much more mentally healthy Rosie, lol.