Infinity Train Theory

I recently encountered a cartoon short called "Infinity Train". If you haven't seen it already, I highly recommend that you do so, as it is amazing and mystifying, and also I'm going to be writing about it, so if you haven't seen it, you won't understand most of what I'm talking about (there's some weird stuff that happens).

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Okay, if you're reading this, you've either seen it, or you don't care about spoilers and/or confusion.

There are (apparently) many theories circulating around on the Internet, speculating on the events and characters of Infinity Train. While watching a video by Youtuber Jayblooey that examined the cartoon short, an idea was mentioned that struck a chord with me and has since become the basis for my own theory regarding the goings on of Infinity Train.

I would like to point out at this time that apart from Jayblooey's video, I haven't looked at any other theories, written or otherwise. I did take an idea from his video and expanded upon it, but most of this is my own thoughts and speculation. If I am copying anyone, I do so unintentionally.

Now, the theory.

The basis of my theory is that the Train is, in fact, a giant testing facility. (What they are testing for is unknown. Why they are testing people is unknown. How they set all this up is unknown. Who "they" are is unknown.)

Individual Cars each contain challenges meant to test the mind, body, etc.

Tulip is a Passenger, a test subject.

(Now, I have seen some speculation about the character's morality, that the Steward (while menacing) is actually of good alignment, while One-One (while helpful to Tulip) is of evil alignment. Part of my theory is that they are both morally neutral in regards to each other, and in fact are co-workers/co-conspirators.)

The Steward is, for lack of a better term, a maintenance droid (Star Wars reference on my part). The Train (testing facility) has been damaged, so a Steward was dispatched to identify and, if possible, fix the problem.

One-One is an Attendant (a term I'm putting in). He/They act as a companion/assistant (someone to talk to, someone to aid in completing challenges as needed) to the Passenger, but also secretly serves as a proctor (or something similar) for the Passenger (studying, recording, and evaluating the Passenger's performance in each car, and also keeping an eye on their physical/mental/emotional states).

Towards the beginning, One-One keeps jumping back and forth on the scales, drawing Tulip's attention from her hand-number to the test of that Car and prevents her from speculating on the nature of the number (and possibly getting too close to the truth by accident). One-One splits apart when Tulip demonstrates an understanding of the test and offers an adequate solution.

Skipping forward, here's a brief run-down of the altercation with the Steward. The group encounters the Steward, One-One disturbs it, and the Steward opens fire. Atticus charges the Steward and is knocked aside. Tulip reveals herself, and the Steward tells her to return to her seat. Atticus turns the lever, shutting off the water main. The Steward turns around briefly, seeing that the problem has been solved, at least short term. The Steward turns back and is slammed by a door. A moment to reset/recover from the impact. One-One (an Attendant) makes itself known. The Steward makes a hasty exit.

Protocol forbids the Steward from harming a Passenger. Atticus was shot at and struck aside as he is only a component of that specific Car, and was interfering with the work. The Steward fled not out of fear, but because it was ordered to do so. Figuring that they are both robotic (or at least partially robotic) One-One was able to wirelessly, silently order the Steward to leave, now! (If they're operating on the same network, they shouldn't necessarily need to communicate verbally to pass information.)

(I remember seeing something on TV about this. Back in 2013, there was an episode of "Making Stuff" with the theme being "Wilder". They were looking at technological advances inspired by nature. One segment looked at a swarm of tiny robots that could be made to function with a hive mentality. This allowed them to coordinate with each other when flying as a group, and also to spread out and search as a group, covering much more ground than a single robot could.

This really doesn't have anything to do with my theory; I'm just making a point that robots can communicate non-verbally. If anyone raises arguments against my theory, non-verbal communication will not be one of them!)

Part of the testing procedure is that the Passenger cannot know that they are being tested. Atticus sniffs Tulip's hand-number and appears to recognize it, but immediately shifts the conversation away from the number. One-One has claimed to have been on the train for his/their entire life but apparently, has not passed on any useful information about it to Tulip. The Steward only says that Tulip is to return to her seat. Most likely, information is collectively being withheld.

List of Terms:

Train - testing facility

Car - site of an individual test

Passenger - test subject

Steward - maintenance droid

Attendant - companion/assistant, proctor

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I should point out that this is only a theory. I freely admit that it is entirely possible that I am entirely wrong about everything. It's just something that I thought up and wanted to share. (Also, I'm pretty sure that Youtube wouldn't let me put nearly this much text into a single comment. I could break it up into a series of comments, but then I'd look like I was spamming.)