Brian - I agree with your assessment that it has been a good year. I think as good as Lionel's two new steam engines are that the Train of Tomorrow will be the most treasured new item introduced this year. The Big Boy is awesome but will be soon forgotten as anything other than the newest and best in a long line of Big Boys. The cab forward is also very nice, but it too has been done before other than the fantasy paint scheme. The TOT is a really unique and very well done model of a train that hasn't been done much or at all.
Just my two cents worth.
Art