A tank engine is any locomotive that carries its fuel and water supply on the locomotive as opposed to carrying them a separate tender pulled by the locomotive. The water is stored in a tank or tanks mounted on the locomotive, hence the name "tank" locomotive.
I have only seen a few of the Thomas videos but believe most of the wheel arrangements are real.
Many British and possibly other European locomotives had their pistons and main rods located between the frames making them invisible from the side. This also made them much more difficult to maintain which is why in this country they were most often mounted outside the frames where they can be easily seen and serviced
Gary Buchanan
June 29, 1998
Just to add some more to Gary's accurate response be advised that the nomenclature you see in rail publications referring to tank engines adds a "T" to the Whyte wheel designation system such as 0-6-0T or 2-8-2T or even 2-6-6-2T etc. Tank engines were most common in the logging industry or as shop switchers on the bigger roads. Tank engines were generally not used for longer distance runs in the US, especially after the turn of the century, but the added weight on the drivers made them very useful for industrial operations. In England, not much biogger than half the size of California and mostly flat, the tank engines performed well, many of them in passenger service on shorter runs.
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What's a Tank Engine?