It was 2017 and Mattel had showcased the future of Thomas & Friends with the idea of him going around the world at MIPJunior in Cannes, France. Sadly by 2020, it had made Mattel end the original show and led into the development of 'All Engines Go!' The new iteration of the show all started with the 2018 special where we were introduced to the new character Nia who was an engine that lived in South Africa and would join Thomas on his global adventure.
Since it had been five years since the movie's release, does this hold up today? Well let's all take a dive in this re-review of 'Big World, Big Adventures'.
But first:
THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANDOM
BIG WORLD! BIG ADVENTURES!
Written by
Andrew Brenner
Directed by
David Stoten
Produced by
Ian McCue
Micaela Winters
Tracy Blagdon
Release Date
5/09/18 - AUS
12/11/18 - UK/IRL
10/09/19 - US
Distributed by
HIT Entertainment/Mattel
MY VIEWS
Later that day, Bertie came to the big station and asked Percy where Thomas was as he didn't wait for his passengers. Emily told him that Thomas left his coaches in the yards but she had no idea where he went after that and then Gordon arrived feeling very cross about Thomas' trick with the fish trucks. Even the Fat Controller wondered where he was since he wanted Thomas to take a goods train to Arelsbrugh. That was when they all realises that Thomas was nowhere to be seen.
And so we'd gotten our first song of the movie 'Where in the World is Thomas?' I remember when the special was announced, everyone thought it was a reboot of the original show but this song proved that it wasn't since they'd made so many mentions of past events that had happened and looking at the song now with the fandom's constant debate about the timeline of the show being alternative or one, this whole kinda proves that it is one timeline since they had referenced some moments from some classic series episodes, Misty Island, even though it was retconned and some CGI episodes.
So the song showcased the worry of the engines and wondered where he could be until Emily was told by Carly that he was loaded onto a ship. Though by the end of it all why was Edward in the shed when we had an episode from the previous season where he left? I think maybe the special was in production with S22 alongside since that David Stoten looked after the specials while Dianna Basso looked after the episodes and that maybe 'A Shed for Edward' wasn't ready to be made yet, this is all speculation, don't take it as fact!
Meanwhile, Thomas had arrived in Dakka in Africa with Ace alongside and Thomas marvelled at the vast difference of it all. Later on they arrive at the race track and Ace met up with other cars that he knew from other countries. When Thomas told them that he was to follow them they all share there doubts of him crossing the Sahara. Thomas then said that Ace invited him and we see more of Ace's character where he pretends that he didn't invite Thomas and told him that there aren't any tracks across the Sahara even though he'd told him earlier that there was.
So Thomas was alone as Ace made his way to Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. However some trucks in a nearby yard were going there and thought Thomas was suppose to be there engine, when really it was a different one according to the yard manager who doubted Thomas due to his size, like what Gordon did to him earlier. So Thomas was determined and he set off. I like the idea that the trucks are different around the world in comparison to ones on Sodor they were happy to see Thomas and we in support of him as well.
Meanwhile back on Sodor, the Fat Controller was at the docks talking to Carly on why she loaded Thomas onto a ship bound for Africa. Carly then mentioned about him letting Thomas onto the ship so he could be the first railway engine to race around the world which made the Fat Controller feeling terrible that Thomas would take his stance literally. I kinda like this side of the Fat Controller we were seeing. Instead of him being cross he was worried that Thomas was in places that he doesn't know since the world is big place and so he must get to Dakka for which Carly lifted him onto a ship for comedic purposes, despite the danger of it all mentioned by Cranky.
As the Fat Controller was loaded onto the ship, Thomas meanwhile was crossing the Sahra desert with his train having a ball until he stopped to pick up more trucks while the yard manager there had his doubts about Thomas due to his size and as Thomas' journey continues more and more trucks were placed on his train that it became too heavy and at one of these sidings we meet our second new character Nia.
It's a shame that Nia's character from the movie hadn't been transffered to the show in the aftermath of it all. We see her being sassy and having some sense of humor but she means well and also was willing to help Thomas with his heavy load despite that Thomas didn't want any since he was being doubted by everyone due to his size. However that point would be proven correct when they came to a large hill and with a heavy train and Thomas' size, he couldn't make it to the top. Thomas tried to justify a different reason why it's hard but even he admitted that the job could be done for a larger engine and soon he slipped down the hill. Fortunetly Nia came to rescue him just in time.
However Thomas, despite his relief, was still stubborn and told Nia he doesn't need help but despite that Nia wants to help since Der es Salaam is 5,000 miles away which annoys Thomas, Nia suggested to Thomas that the trucks should help but Thomas had his doubts and so Nia suggests a song to pass the time which leads us to our next song 'Wake Up'. I love the African music for the song which is made by local session musicians from Kenya according to the Thomas wikia, and I like that Thomas steam had become like a little storm cloud you see in cartoons that suggest the character's bad mood and the song talks about that you shouldn't get angry since you're just missing out on things from the world.
As Thomas marvelled at the sites of the African continent, they came towards a large elephant on the track, something that Thomas is not accustomed too and Nia was giving Thomas some sass after his boasting about blowing his whistle to move animals away from the track. But the trucks stopped it by singing a lullaby called 'Enda Ulale' which is 'Go Sleep' in Zulu which surprises Thomas. A nice little song and it showed how different the trucks are to the ones on Sodor. Instead of being troublesome they were helpful.
Meanwhile the Fat Controller arrived at Daka the next day and asked the locals if they have seen Thomas but no one did. However he was helped by a cameleer as he told him that the racing cars were in the Sahara. Later Thomas and Nia arrived at Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. Thomas told the trucks to look out for Ace which surprised Nia and then Thomas explained that he and Ace were going around the world together which made Nia question Thomas' stance about doing things on his own instead of having help.
Meanwhile Nia's friend Kwaku, a Garratt, arrived at the docks with their own way of saying hello. It's really sad to see this scene now since the original show had been canned thanks to Mattel's bad decision making for the Thomas brand during this short lived era as we never got any closure for Nia and Kwaku. I believe the production team had plans for that to happen but they left it too late by the time 'All Engines Go!' was made as its replacement. They should've let Thomas visit Africa first in S23. My idea for their reunion is that it should be a Christmas episode on Sodor and have it named after the AEG episode 'Nia's Surprising Surprise'. Such a shame as they deliberately left it open ended.
Thomas then asked Kwaku if he had seen Ace. The garratt locomotive did but told him that they were gone which left Thomas feeling sad but it got Nia saying that Ace doesn't sound like much of a friend which offended Thomas since he looked up to Ace. Nia wants to help but Thomas told her she can't and that he would find the ship to Rio de Jinero by himself, even though he didn't know which ship would take him.
So Thomas was loaded and to his surprise Nia was being loaded because she always wanted to see the world such as the rainbow mountains in China for which Thomas thinks they were literally rainbows as mountains. But Thomas told, childishly, that he was to be the first engine to race around the world, according to Ace but Nia says that she would be the second and started to talk some smack about Ace not being on the ship or helping Thomas.
Soon the ship sailed away and by nightfall Thomas saw that Ace was on the same ship as him. Thomas asked him where he was but Ace said that he should be a free spirit and not having any baggage holding him down, refering to Nia and I believe this was to get back at her for talking smack about him back in Africa after questioning Thomas about him since he told Thomas that he heard them talking showcasing more of his personality traits as a manipulator.
Soon they came to Rio de Jinero in Brazil and Thomas and Ace went to get refueled ahead for the race in the amazon rainforest I kind of like the vibrant colours that represent Brazil. However Thomas was stopped by workman asking him where he was going and what cargo. When Thomas told him that he was only following the rally, the workman told they only give coal and water to engines unless they are doing something useful. Thomas wants to prove that he was useful and so he was ordered to take a load of trucks full of coffee beans to San Fransisco in the United States of America with a little help from Nia.
This leads into the next song 'We're Friends' as they traverse through Brazillian carnival in Rio and the Brazillian countryside while Thomas was being annoyed with Nia's presence, thanks to Ace's influence. Nia suggested that they should stop for water but Thomas told her that they don't have to stop to fill up. Thomas thought it was for her but Nia told him that she has extra tanks but really the water stop would be for Thomas. But Thomas told her that they don't have time as they want to catch up to Ace.
Which they did as he and his racing friends race there way through the rainforest. Thomas was glad to be reunited with Ace that he and Nia missed the water tower. However Nia was worried that Ace might have an accident since he was going too fast but Thomas thought that she was jealous because she was going too slow which leads us to the most pointless fantasy sequence for filler and for advertising the newest Trackmaster set at the time which was Turbo Thomas. The other fantasy sequences were fine since they feel more natural but the turbo scene feels corporate for merchandising reason so they can please the head honcho at Mattel because after all merchandising always comes first, creative second.
Back in Africa, the Fat Controller and the cameleer trek through the Sahara to find Thomas with some comedy mixed in. Back in Brazil, Thomas and Nia were still on their way to San Fran when Thomas saw Ace in an accident. Ace told him not to worry as he was waiting for the emergency crew to help him but then the sound of an animal began to scare him, which was comedy to Nia, showcasing another trait which is him scared of wild animals and so he was glad that help had arrived which was Thomas and Nia. However the animal Ace was scared of was only a monkey.
So Ace was loaded up and they were on their way again but then Thomas ran out of water, thanks to his negligence from earlier. Even though it was one time they did that where ever since S7 an engine running out of coal means they are low on steam which doesn't work since water is what help makes steam and without it the boiler will get dry and it'll result into an explosion.
An idea was to be done quick in order to move again and thanks to a drop of water, Nia had an idea which was to use the leaves to create a funnel to let water go into Thomas tank giving him water. This gives us another trait of Nia which was her cleverness which would become a staple for her character in the aftermath. I also liked the fact that Nia's crew is female something that the original series should've done years ago.
With the rain pouring and tanks full, they set off again. Back in Africa, the Fat Controller arrived at Der es Salaam looking for Thomas but to no avail until a crane lifted him and told him that he loaded him onto a ship to Rio. Back in Brazil, Thomas, Nia and Ace trek their way through the rainforest but the ground began to sink thanks to the rain and they have to travel fast to find solid ground. They came to a bridge but then it started to fall, which like 'King of the Railway' when Stephen was about fall due to a rotten wooden bridge, feels very pointless in the film for the sake of drama. It didn't add anything for the characters like Thomas trying to prove himself despite his size.
They made it across and the rain had stopped and we are led into our next song 'Free and Easy' which is pretty much an ego song for Ace. During the song we see Carlos, as the engines arrive in Mexico, who was last seen in 'The Great Race'. There was a scene where Carlos was mimicking Tontatiuh, the sun god of the Aztec and other ancient peoples of Mexico that was uploaded on YouTube back in 2018 but was not in the final cut very likely pulled due to the idea of the Mexican audience being offended which is a lucky save.
We then have another scene with the Fat Controller this time in Brazil when a diesel engine told him Thomas went to San Fran. However despite it being another useless scene from a useless subplot it at least had some build with him having the idea of taking the plane to search for Thomas.
Meanwhile Thomas, Nia and Ace arrived in the United States as they trek their way to the Salt Flats in Utah for Ace's fourth race where they met Sam on the Morenci Loop, the once Wooden Railway exclusive toy now canon to series. I remember when the movie was first shown in the UK, TheTopHatts said that there was a character that no would expect would show up and everyone thought it was someone like Bear or some other obscure character that hadn't been seen in a long time but it turned out to be Sam. Self hype is a common problem in many fandoms.
The scene between Nia and Ace on what is useful, the coffee beans or Ace, is something that I see as Thomas' shoulder angels. Nia is the good and Ace is the bad and they really bounce off from each other when it comes to morality. Back in Brazil, the Fat Controller caught Emerson the plane to lookout for Thomas in the rainforest but nothing.
Back in America, Thomas, Nia and Ace traverse through the American desert with Ace being a hypocrite over Nia and Thomas' idea of fun by going down backwards on the Morenci Loop but Nia called him out on his BS. But Ace was making excuses and think racing is better than being coupled up which gives him the idea of having Thomas and Nia race each other only for Ace to trick Thomas into abandoning her so they can make their way to the Salt Flats which shows more to Ace's manipulation and that it shows that Nia isn't always going to be clever since she gave into Ace's teasing.
However Thomas and Ace became a runaway and yes we see Thomas and Ace doing a massive loop around a rock tunnel unrealistic as hell but at least it wasn't as hyped up as the bridge jump in TGR. I still believe this was for a set that Mattel had in mind, though I could be wrong, but it screams that and they had done a set with a massive loop for AEG four years later. Anyway as they landed safely on the rails, they nearly collided with Beau, a new character for the movie and his only appearance in BWBA.
As Thomas bashed into his trucks they became a runaway again when they collided with his train resulting them going down an old mine shaft and in the end derailed after colliding with a mine wagon that was abandoned, though still smiling, what a little trooper. Despite the runaway scene being entertaining I think it would be a bit overstimulating for people on spectrum with the fast pace, loud noises of screaming etc.
Thomas felt bad for abandoning Nia but Beau came to the crash site and went to help Thomas however they don't have a crane but they have people power or if not they would get dusty instead. Beau might not've had much character thanks to Mattel cutting BWBA short but from looking at his character he's got the sort of old prospector vibe with him going off his rocker for a bit hence him laughing at his duty and rusty rhyme despite it being very dark. His comment about Thomas talking funny joke makes more sense in the UK dub than the US since the accent is different to his and it didn't translate well for the US dub since Thomas in the latter speaks American.
It was also interesting to see that this scene is where Thomas started to show some distrust to Ace for playing a trick on Nia. I also wish we had a scene with Nia showcasing her anger towards Thomas for abandoning her, thanks to Ace. It might be pointless to some but if we can have Gordon with a scene pulling fish wagons to deliver a joke we should have one with Nia.
As dusk fell, Thomas and Ace were waiting for help and Thomas hoped that Nia would be OK. The next day, the people and horses came and lifted Thomas, Ace and his train back on the track. I guess this was to showcase to Thomas that despite his size everyone needs help sometimes. After being rerailed Thomas sets off again.
Meanwhile the Fat Controller was in San Fransisco looking for Thomas, this time, in our pov, he was ahead of him. He asked one of the engines if he had seen him but alas no success. Meanwhile Thomas and Ace reached the Salt Flats in Utah but Thomas was worried about Nia. When Thomas pulled up Ace, being the cool guy in front of his racing comrades, called him slow which offended Thomas resulting him to end his friendship with Ace, pity it was forgotten by S24 three years later.
The scene was good because it showed who should be trusted most, an engine who knows what is useful or not or a race car who puts himself first and Thomas chose the former and wants to make amends with Nia and thus ends Thomas' friendship with Ace, for the time being as Thomas heads towards San Fran. But by the time he arrived Nia had already left for China. So Thomas found the next ship to China and so we come to our second last song 'Sometimes You Make a Friend' probably the best song of the movie and John Hasler sang beautifully in the UK dub.
As Thomas came to China he met up with Yong Bao and asked him if he had seen Nia however a passing engine told him that she saw her and that she was going to Zhangye Danxia, the Rainbow Mountains, and so Thomas set off to find her but Yong Bao told him that he needs a snowplough to cross the mountains.
As Thomas came to a snowy mountain he could see Nia and tried to call out to her but Thomas' echo resulted snow falling down causing an avalanche and it caught Nia that sent dangling over the edge of the mountain. I wish though we had an episode following this moment like Nia would've been scared of snow instead of loving it.
Thomas began to pull Nia away from the cliff but Nia think he needs to have some help but she was heavy and Thomas struggled on but thankfully Yong Bao came to help and assisted Thomas up the mountain saving Nia from disaster. In the end, Nia was back on the line and Thomas finally learnt that he should always ask for help instead of doing things by himself despite his size.
So it's now time to head back to Sodor where Thomas and Nia would return as the first railway engines to race around the world with the reprise of the song 'We're Friends' as they travel through India and then Europe and Sodor. Thomas realised that now he's back on Sodor his life would return back to normal and Nia would be going home but Nia revealed that the shed she lived in is destroyed and she has no home and so Thomas decided that maybe Nia could stay on the Island of Sodor as her new home.
I remember back when the special was new the Daily Telegraph here in Australia made a petty news article about how Nia being a represenitive for refugees is 'politically correct', because god forbid being sympathetic towards a refugee who'd lost their home is bad according to that monster called Rupert Murdoch and these days they would give it the dead meaning of a buzzword 'woke', but if that's the case then it's good that children, who are refugees as well, could have someone relevant to them, regardless. Look at the children of Ukraine who had lost their homes thanks to Russia's invasion in 2022 or the children of the Gaza strip recently thanks to the ogoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, my thoughts go to all the victims of those conflicts and other conflicts that I hadn't mentioned. Nia may not have gone through conflict, or so we thought, but her loosing something that was a home very likely brought those children, even the ones prior to the conflicts that I have pointed out, close to home.
Earlier as Thomas and Nia travelled through India, Mr. Percival, who was looking after the engines while the Fat Controller was looking for Thomas, recieved the news that Thomas had been found and he was bound for Sodor and when Thomas and Nia puffed into Knapford with the engine welcoming him home. I love that scene and especially the joy of the Rev.W.Awdry's CGI counterpart seeing Thomas again. It feels like he was happy to see his son again, not literaly speaking. Plus the whole reunion of Thomas with his friends was so wholesome to see, especially with Philip dancing. People may not like the bouncing but its implementation in the show since JBS had actually elevated, despite that these engines are suppose to be real engines and it's more subtle than what we got later in the aftermath of the original series.
After introducing Nia to everyone, Thomas asked Mr. Percival for the Fat Controller but it turns out he was still somewhere in the world looking for Thomas as we end his useless subplot with him on a ship bound for China with Ace who knows Thomas.
END
OVERALL
But nonetheless he was toxic and was a terrible friend to Thomas who used his blindsidedness to his advantage. I also like how the entire theme of the movie was about proving yourself but it's also good to ask for help. Nia's character was great with her sassiness, intelligence, cleverness and kindness she was pretty well rounded character and I remember people were saying that she was a 'Mary Sue', a character without any flaws but in this special we see that had given into Ace's manipulation that led to her being abandoned by Thomas in America. But it is a shame that the show focused on her cleverness side in the aftermath of the special.
Thomas' character was great too and he reminds me of his character back from Awdry's early books with him wanting to prove himself, always causing trouble but knows his rights and wrongs in the end. Brenner I think had captured that kind of Thomas really well. Though I will say Thomas' stance of 'wanting to see the world' had been recontextualised to suit the idea of Thomas literally going around the globe when really it was a saying that Thomas wants to see things beyond the rail yard of the big station, I wish they hadn't done that but what's done is done.
However I am not a fan of the Fat Controller's subplot while it was made for comedic purposes they felt unneeded if you cut them out it won't be a big loss to the story, just like Diesel's subplot in TGR, it went nowhere and didn't give off a good ending to the special. Perhaps if the special was longer maybe there could've been a scene with him reuniting with Thomas on Sodor or have it as a post credit scene.
I will say though that the special would work like the other yearly special and not as an introduction for the refresh that the show went through. Sure it was to increase more cultural diversity for the show which I have no problem with since it's good to learn other people's culture, language and lifestyle. But maybe the movie could've been an overaching story arc instead.
The movie would set up the newest season of that year and instead of Thomas and Nia crossing Asia and Europe from China like the original did for its ending maybe have their ship knocked off course from a storm and have them go to Australia, which is on the otherside of the world and because of the storm, they were stuck which would give the excuse for them to be in different countries and along the way they learn the different cultures of the world as they make their way to Sodor. Meanwhile you can have episodes alongside of the engines on Sodor dealing with the idea of Thomas being lost and dealing with him not being their. and you don't need the Fat Controller's subplot but at least have him worry.
The final episode of the story arc would be a Christmas episode on Sodor and there was news that Thomas was coming home but a snow storm came and blocked the tracks and the engines were determined to make sure Thomas comes home soon.
In the aftermath you can give the international engines their own series perhaps with Thomas and Nia getting postcards from friends he had made during the last season and we see the stories based on what they were getting up to since Thomas and Nia's arrival. I didn't mind how S22-24 were a mix of international and Sodor stories but it could've worked better as a one off and then turn it into a side series like what 'Jack and the Pack' was suppose to be around S7.
The BWBA movie was overhated but it has its flaws but I'd enjoyed it and I think it's better than that 'Race for the Sodor Cup' movie from AEG.
So that's my re-review of Big World, Big Adventures. I know that S2 of AEG had ended its run and I will make reviews of those episodes. I know some people aren't a big fan but this my blog and I can do what I want.
OVERALL RATING
9/10
