DVD Review: Engines to the Rescue

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

ENGINES TO THE RESCUE

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Paul Larson and Laura Beaumont 

Davey Moore

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue and Haliam Jabbour (HIT)

Episodes

Too Many Fire Engines

The Phantom Express

Bill or Ben?

Henry's Hero

Not Now, Charlie!

Special Features

Hey, Hey Thomas! Music video

Working Together Again Music video

Guess Who? puzzle

DVD Intervals:

Mr. Perkins Storytime - Thomas and the Breakdown Train

Mr. Perkins Postcard - The Steamworks

The Earl's Quiz - Pingy Pongy Pick Up and Double Trouble

Really Useful Engine - Edward and Emily

Distributed by

HIT Entertainment/Universal

I'm back with my DVD reviews, after five months. This time I'm reviewing another Wal*Mart exclusive and the first release from Universal, who are now the new distributors of Thomas DVDs as well as others of HIT's brands, which is 'Engines To The Rescue' featuring five S17 episodes. The DVD comes with the 2014 DVD special 'Tale of The Brave' only at Wal*Mart stores across America and Canada. Where do I get these DVDs you ask? Well from a seller by the name 'a.c entertainment for all', which is where I got my 'Trouble on The Tracks' DVD back in April, on Amazon US, credit to them.

EPISODES

My views of the episodes are provided under episodes beneath the DVD cover. Like previous Season 17 DVDs, 'Engines to the Rescue' provides more good episodes. 'Too Many Fire Engines' shows us the importance of fires and how having more then one is very important when it comes to situations like fires. 

'The Phantom Express' shows us that teasing isn't fun and that we can get scared of our own tall tales. 

'Bill or Ben?' shows us the return of the china clay twins in full CGI with a moral like 'The Phantom Express' that teasing isn't fun, plus it has that feeling of an Andrew Brenner magazine story, which has much similarity of 'Diesel's Race', which I own and it's on the TTTE Wikia if you want a look. 

'Henry's Hero' gives us the moralisation that we must keep on going despite some flaws along the way. 

'Not Now, Charlie!' showcase us the infamous purple engine, though in this episode he's more likeable then the previous episodes, literally. Telling us that if we tell jokes all the time and when you come to circumstances', no one would believe us, though in Charlie's case, 'Old habits die hard.' 

I think the stories that stood out from this DVD would have to be 'Not Now, Charlie!' and 'Henry's Hero'.  Both of these episodes shows great amount of writing and some likeable features, particularly the former, even if those writers have their own flaws.   

SPECIAL FEATURES

I wasn't really expecting any changes to the songs, they were just like 'Railway Mischief' at Wal*Mart last year, they just put some random features in to fill up the disc space. Though I was rather surprised that the two music videos provided were slowed down, like in the cinema runs here in Australia and as well in the UK. The puzzles

DVD INTERVALS

I wasn't surprised that the Railway Series story chosen for this DVD was 'Thomas and the Breakdown Train', as I think they were chosen to fit the DVD's theme: 

• Santa's Little Engine (US: 2013/ UK: 2014): The Flying Kipper
• Spills and Thrills (US/UK: 2014): Thomas and Gordon (UK) / Trucks (US)
• Railway Mischief (US: 2014/ UK: 2015): Pop Goes The Diesel
• Tale of The Brave (US/UK/AUS: 2014): Thomas and the Breakdown Train (UK/AUS)
• Engines to the Rescue (US: 2014): Thomas and the Breakdown Train 

I know 'The Thomas Way' in the UK provided 'Trucks' in early 2014, but it really didn't fit the DVD's theme, they should've chosen a story like 'Duck Takes Charge'. However, Mr. Perkins (Ben Forster) provided great enthusiasm during his storytelling and Lorraine Marshall's little illustration edits were good too, it's understandable why she would paint James red as that's how kids know James, plus the first series of the television series were like that too 30 years ago. We also have the Postcard segment about the Sodor Steamworks, good backstory about it, despite the use of 'Kevin the Steamie' and 'Wonky Whistle'. The Earl's quiz is again as usual, knowing the shape or size of things and for 'Really Useful Engines' or 'Calling All Engines!' we have Emily and Edward, I always enjoy these as they give us the backstory of these engines. Of course it's the usual bio that you see on the internet or merchandise, but it's a good way to introduce the young audience who are watching Thomas for the first time. 

OVERALL

The DVD has a good batch of episode that fit well into the theme of the DVD with great morals for kids to learn adding some value to their entertainment. The special features and intervals will be entertaining for them too, but I do hope they add more videos rather then rehashing the same ones that were seen on previous DVDs beforehand, then again 'Railway Mischief' had a special feature of a game with Michael Brandon narrating that was seen in a previous DVD. The DVD menu, while good, wasn't really amazing. Would be good if Universal provided moving footage like in TOTB. But the menu didn't hurt the greatness of this exclusive DVD, on sale only at Wal*Mart

Rating: 9/10

Spills and Thrills DVD Ep.6:The Afternoon Tea Express + Overall

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE AFTERNOON TEA EXPRESS

Written by

Laura Beaumont and Paul Larson 

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Plot

Stephen becomes very excited when the Earl gives him the special job of collecting the ingredients for the afternoon teas at the Castle. But Spencer teases him about being too old and slow.

PRO:
- Moral: Speed isn't everything 

- 'His driver and fireman put on the brakes'

CON:

- Stephen's black funnel
- How is Stephen out of character?

To be honest, I find this very underrated. There many people saying that 'Stephen's out of character!', 'It's unrealistic' etc. Although I do believe it's unrealistic, but I'm letting it slide. There bounds to be some rule bending in Thomas nowadays to make the episode a bit more entertaining, look at S5 for example, over the top crashes etc. despite that I'm never a fan of S5 as I considered it to be the most overrated season in the classical era. But Stephen being out of character? I've watched the episode and he's nowhere near out of character. He's the Rocket and he was built for races, in the TVS and KOTR. I do like it how it implies moral is that speed isn't everything, haven't heard that since 'Thomas the Jet Engine'. But I do understand the error of using the black funnel, as his crest is missing from his tender, so this is his KOTR render. I also like it that they've mentioned his crew putting on the brakes, it seems they're slowly bringing the crew's interactions towards the engines. I do hope they bring that back one day in the series. In the end, I don't really see this as a Sharon Miller script. If it were one the three strikes would've dragged out the whole episode, pointless rhyming and alliteration, poor character development, morals that'll be ignored the next season or episode etc. the three strikes in this episode (Stephen being pushed by Thomas, James and Emily) were over in about over ten seconds and then we near the conclusion of the episodes. This is not the usual five minute stories from the classic series, the show goes about 8 minutes now so things like that have to fill the gap. In the end, I see this as a very underrated episode.

Rating: 4/5

OVERALL

After seeing this episodes during 2013 and early in the new year, there's no doubt that the 17th series had brought a major upgrade in the writing of the show. Andrew Brenner and his writing staff had treated Thomas with great respect that Rev.W.Awdry and his son had created, despite a few bumpy flaws here and there (Steamie Stafford). It's also great how old favourites are brought back such as Duck, Bill and Ben, characters that the current generation will grow up with in their childhood and with their personas being respected by the writer, knowing how Awdry had potrayed them in the series (i.e Bill and Ben being cheeky and Duck being wise about 'The Great Western way.') Plus characters, like Sidney, were giving special treatment, giving them a speaking role as well as bringing back old trains like 'The Flying Kipper'. 

The animation is great, Arc Productions' render had captured what Nitrogen Studios had made from 2009-2012, along with a few added elements themselves on the engines such as lamps on the running board, tail lamps behind the engines etc. despite the many errors that've been faced over the series, but Nitrogen had its fair share of mistakes. 

S17 would have to be the best season since the S8 aired ten years ago in 2004. It's writing is great, the characters are fantastic and the animation is stunning. I'm looking forward to S18 and 'Tale of the Brave' this year and I'm glad that with the writing staff, Thomas is in the right hands. 

RATING:

100 /100

The real rating I give to this season is 107.5, that is the highest rating I gave to a CGI season of Thomas & Friends. Hope that S18 may go beyond S17? 

Spills and Thrills DVD Ep.5: Thomas' Shortcut

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THOMAS' SHORTCUT

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue & Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date
19/10/13 - (AUS)

Plot

Thomas and Bertie love racing, but Thomas got annoyed that Bertie is winning all the time. When he discovered that Bertie has been rerouted and takes a shortcut, he decided to do the same as well! 

PRO:

- Reminiscent of 'Thomas and Bertie'
- Road vs. Rail rivalry
- Harvey's comeback 

- A good three strikes formula 

CON:

- N/A

I love this episode, it brings back the memories of 'Thomas and Bertie', such as the shots of Thomas at Dryaw station. Finally we also have a road vs. rail rivalry plot, much better then the overused Steam Vs. Diesel plot, even though there are good ones in the series. It was a surprise to see Harvey making a comeback and he looks amazing in CGI and his minor role is actually needed, unlike Duck's in 'Henry's Hero' as that role could've gone to anyone or Rocky, he maybe Sodor's only (or one of's) crane, but he was overused much between S13-16 when the show was converted into CGI. Plus there is a three strikes formula, even though there are people who despise this formula, I think it was used well, it doesn't feel repetitive nor annoying as the ones from the Sharon Miller era and it felt like it was needed for this episode. I'll call this one an all time favourite, it's just so good and it feels like an Andrew Brenner magazine story from the 80's or 90's.  

Rating: 5/5

Spills and Thrills DVD Ep.4:Gone Fishing

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

GONE FISHING

Written by

Andrew Brenner 

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue & Haliam Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date

21/10/13 - (AUS)

Plot

Bill and Ben saw Harvey the crane engine at Brendam Docks. They teased him saying that he's going fishing with his hook. Porter helps him to see the positive side of being a crane engine. 

PRO:
- Moral: You're special for who you are
- Harvey's scottish accent

CON:
-N/A

I actually enjoyed this episode, it's nice to see Harvey having a full on role, since S6 as far as I can remember. I love the fact that they given him a scottish accent as his basis, Dubs Crane Engine Engine No.4101, are built in Glasgow, Scotland. Andrew Brenner have done more research then just the Railway Series books, TTTE Wikia and the classic TV series by his side. It especially have a nice moral that brings me back to 'Harvey to The Rescue' when the Fat Controller said this quote: "Different is what makes you special!" it shows kids that teasing should never bother you, you're just more special then they are. That is a great moral to hear in a modern day Thomas episode, particularly that kids these days can be 'trolled' on the internet via social network sites or anywhere inside or outside the internet and sadly they can be underaged, I have seen a few people who argued with young kids, some who are at the age in their 20's. But I don't want to get into too much detail about the issue, but the episode shows that teasing is noting, you're special. But the episode was nice and enjoyable. 

Rating: 4/5

Spills and Thrills DVD Ep.3: No More Mr. Nice Engine

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

NO MORE MR. NICE ENGINE

Written by

Laura Beaumont and Paul Larson 

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date:

19/10/13 - (AUS)

Plot:

Hiro is one of the strongest engines on Sodor, and he is also very polite and gentle. Diesel tells Hiro that the only way to get the trucks to do what you want is to give them a biff and a bash, but Hiro is not convinced.

PRO:
- The trucks being their usual selves
- Moral: Be polite and kind 
- The hill goes straight towards Wellsworth, like in the RWS

CON:
- The trucks wobbling 

Of all the Hiro episodes that I've seen, this one is my favourite, even better then 'The Biggest Present of All!' and probably Laura Beaumont and Paul Larson's best in the 17th series. I love it how the trucks are in their usual troublesome selves, something that the TV series had been lacking for years under the first two years of the CGI series, despite that they've made a comeback in 16th series in 2012 visually even though they weren't troublesome. There is a very important moral for kids that they can learn from Hiro and that is of course being polite and kind to everyone and only punish them if they do something wrong. Plus it amazes me they're following the RWS route well. We have Hiro and Diesel going towards Gordon's Hill and as they went down they went right through Wellsworth station. They did the same with 'Day of The Diesels' in 2011 when Percy, in his stupid self, lead the diesels towards the Steamworks through Henry's Tunnel, since that the Dieselworks is based in Vicarstown and the Steamworks is based at Crovans Gate. If there is one thing I don't like and that is the truck's wobbling, I know a few people who like it and I respect their views on them and I do have to agree it brings a bit of life in them, but they just look too springy when they wobble that it looks a bit toyetic for the younger viewers. But still this episode beats the other Hiro episodes from the past episodes he's been in and includes 'Happy Hiro' for obvious reasons.    

Rating: 4/5

Spills and Thrills DVD Ep.2:The Smelly Kipper

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE SMELLY KIPPER

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue and Haliam Jabbour (HIT)

Plot

One evening at Tidmouth Sheds, James was teasing Percy about being afraid in the dark. So Henry challenges him to pull the Flying Kipper for tonight.

PRO:
- The fish accident
- It has the plot like No Joke For James and the RWS story 'Sliding Scales'
- Moral: A promise is a promise

CON:
- The open wagons were missing the first time James was at the docks
- There was no bravery or ghost in the story for James to deal with.
- Henry being a bit dimwitted about James' promise. 

By no means it's terrible but this story seems to be a bit weak by Andrew Brenner. It has that classic feeling towards itself and it has that feeling of 'No Joke For James' and 'Sliding Scales' fused together. It also has a nice plot towards it about making promises. Though I would go through Arc's spot the goof nitpick, but they're all the same and we're humans, we make mistakes. Plus with the ghost story that James was talking about, there was no ghost or bravery to deal with at first, although it could be that James wasn't brave enough to haul the Flying Kipper. Plus Henry wouldn't be that dimwitted about James' promise, he was right there in the shed talking to him about it. The episode is not terrible, but it wasn't great it was good and there are few tweaks need to be done.

Rating: 4.5/5

Spills and Thrills DVD Ep.1: Away From The Sea

Despite that these episodes had aired its run on Australian and Japanese television in 2013, these episodes have not appeared yet on UK television and so with the release of Spills and Thrills here in Australia as soon to be in the UK, here are my views of the episodes from the 17th series. Please note that the air dates are from Australian television run: 

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

AWAY FROM THE SEA

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue & Haliam Jabbour 

Air Date:

18/10/13 - (AUS)

Plot

When Salty the dockside diesel develops engine troubles, he's worried about being sent away from the docks. A new engine named Porter arrived to help out and Salty feared he was brought to the docks to replace him!

PRO:
- Season 6 reference
- Sandboxes references 
- Porter 

CON:
- N/A

Another great episode by Andrew Brenner, the first time in ten years we see Salty having an episode to himself. It's great how they referenced 'Salty's Secret' at the beginning of the episode and I appreciate it that much. It's also great to see the references of sandboxes, a sandbox is used for a locomotive to have extra grip incase of slippage. Great to see that Andrew Brenner could turn young viewers into possible railway enthusiasts, especially the differences of where sandboxes are placed, such as Porter and Roise having three domes. Speaking of Porter, he turns out to be a great character and of course, like the characters from KOTR, have a reason to be on the Island of Sodor, by helping out Salty at the docks. Even though Porter hasn't have a big role in this episode, I can tell he will have more episodes to come in future. His character is good, like in other episodes, he has the persona of a hard worker down to earth persona.

Rating: 5/5

S17 Ep.20:The Frozen Turntable

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE FROZEN TURNTABLE

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Robert Anderson (Arc)

Ian McCue and Haliam Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date:
26/12/13

Plot

The engines discovered that the turntable at Tidmouth sheds was frozen! Gordon thinks he should have the accessible berth, but Thomas insisted that they should leave it for Percy as he was taking the mail. While the engines find other places to sleep for the night, Gordon decided to take Percy's berth. But Gordon became stuck himself and he can't pull the express! So James took his job and Gordon realises that he shouldn't be selfish. 

PRO:

-  Moral: Don't be selfish 
- The winter atmosphere looks great in Arc's CGI
- The only episode where you see Gordon's tender facing from the berth

CON:

- The turntable was slightly off centred at the start

I enjoyed this episode, I heard from friends that the episode focuses too much on Gordon's selfishness, which is true, but the selfishness has been centred in one episode from mind and that is 'Off the Rails'. I'm not saying that they are wrong as they have there own opinions about it and that is fair. The episode does have a good moral about not to be selfish and think of others first before yourself. I have a feeling that this episode is based off a magazine story, which I own, called 'Gordon and the Turntable'. It has a few elements from the story about the turntable being broken down, instead of frozen. Maybe it was or not, it's just something that I thought of. In the end, I do enjoy the episode. 

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.19:The Missing Christmas Decorations

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE MISSING CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS 

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Bass

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT) 

Air Date:

25/12/13

Plot:
Diesel 10 steals Christmas decorations from the steam engines! 

PRO:
- Moral: Christmas is a time to be kind to others and giving
- 'The Fat Controller likes all his engines!' 

CON:
- Norman's voice sounds too similar Diesel and Edward's UK voice

One of my favourites from the 17th series. Percy's moral about Christmas being a time to be kind to others and giving is a great way to teach young children about the importance of the celebration and of course giving, such as the end with the diesels giving their Christmas decorations that were given to them (the diesels) by the Fat Controller. Plus the quote from Thomas saying that the Fat Controller likes all of his engines, that definitely brings the end towards the whole 'steam vs. diesel racism' issue that was used in S14-16, despite the rivalry they have in the series' history, the steam engines learnt in the Railway Series that diesels can be useful too and I'm glad they're bringing that towards the recent television series. I like Sidney's voice as well in the episode, it reminds me of Warrior from TUGS but more youthful as Warrior's voice is a bit deeper then Sidney's. Though when it comes to voices, I'm not a big fan of Norman's voice. To me it sounds like a fusion of Edward and Diesel put together, I'm not hating it, but it doesn't feel original nor different. But still it is a nice episode to watch on Christmas and it is certainly better then the other episodes from S13-16. As for the 'twinkle toes' bit, I think some fans take the small things a bit serious for a little reference albeit it could be taken as coincidence really in my opinion, doesn't make it the 'best episode ever', the story is more important then anything else as it helps the characters to develop. Not looks nor any kind of reference.   

Rating: 5/5    

S17 Ep.18:Santa's Little Engine

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

SANTA'S LITTLE ENGINE

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas 

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date:

24/12/13

Plot:
The Fat Controller was to play as Santa Claus on the last day of the Christmas party at Ulfstead Castle. However the sleigh slipped down the hill and Thomas was rescue the Fat Controller. In the end, Thomas was almost like a Reindeer. 

PRO:
- A human character playing the lead role
- 'Special Special'

CON:
- N/A

If there is one thing that makes me like the episode is that a human has taken the lead role instead of an engine. The story is all focused on the Fat Controller afraid of riding on a sleigh, even though he was never about it it would be good to have a backstory, but I don't think many things need a backstory, unless if it's about an new engine that they've introduced in the 17th series and the special. Last time we saw a human playing a lead role was in S5 with 'Lady Hatt's Birthday Party' and 'Sir Topham Hatt's Holiday'. We definitely need more episodes like these in future, if any of the writers are reading this.  Some people might think that I'm crazy to put the words 'special special' in the pro list, even though that I've despised it in my views on S13-16, there is some goodness in it. Thomas' job IS actually special, he was going to bring a sleigh ready for the party! The 'special specials' we've seen before the 17th series is stuff like pulling loaded trucks is special and not empties, engines pull those all the time, is a definite example.  

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.17:No Snow For Thomas

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

NO SNOW FOR THOMAS

Written by

Laura Beaumont & Paul Larson

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date:

23/12/13

Plot:

Thomas doesn't like his snowplough and so he decided to hide it and pretend he doesn't know. The Fat Controller had no choice but to leave Thomas in his shed and sent Emily out to clear the tracks. But Thomas felt left out when Emily was having fun in the snow with Annie and Clarabel. The Fat Controller was cross and ordered Thomas to clear the tracks for Emily the next day and so that's what he did.

PRO:
- The snow scene
- 'Thomas plays a trick on his driver' instead of his driver as the engine's hands
- Dryaw station in CGI for the first time
- Dryaw station being part of Thomas' branch line again

CON:
- Snow inside the sheds

I find this episode to be good and enjoyable, the snow scene looks so nice and beautiful at night, especially at Dryaw station, which I have to say the station looks really top notch in CGI and it was great seeing how it's now part of Thomas' branch line rather then being a random station for any engine that are on the main line or branch line. I also like it how the Mark Moraghan says that Thomas played a trick on his driver instead of using him as his hands, rather to have an explanation to why he's doing that. Though I do see some similarity of 'Thomas, Emily and The Snowplough', though many people need something to help. But there is one flaw in Arc's animation of 'spot the goof', their is snow inside the shed, either it's an error or the snow from the night time scene came in from the wind. But the episode is good and enjoyable.  

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.16: Too Many Fire Engines

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

TOO MANY FIRE ENGINES

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT) 

Plot

When a team of railway inspectors came to the Island of Sodor, they question the Fat Controller whether he needs two fire engines? This caused some concern for the fire fighting team, Flynn and Belle. When Belle beats Flynn to two fires in a row, Flynn feels useless and asked Belle to take his place on guard at the Ulfstead Castle Fireworks display and he sulked in the shed. But when another fire started on the same night, Flynn came to put it out. Proving to the Fat Controller that he does need two fire engines. 

PRO:
- Flynn not afraid of the roads
- Flynn's voice
- Moral: Fire's are emergencies 

CON:

- Rocky knowing the emergency
- TFC's US voice sounds forceful and robotic 

With an episode like this, you can tell that Andrew Brenner had experience from his days writing for Fireman Sam, another of HIT's most popular brands. There is a great moral about fire's being emergencies and not episodes like Flynn being afraid of the roads or not knowing what a fire is. Since that Rupert Degas left the series, Flynn had been given a new voice and is voiced by Ben Small, who voices other characters like Thomas, Toby and, in the US, Stanley. His voices sounds much better then Degas' one in my opinion. But there are two cons I have for this episode one is that Rocky still knowing an emergency and not letting one of the workmen telling Flynn or Belle about it. It misses that human interaction with the engines and when you watch the US and UK version of the show, TFC's US voice sound forceful and robotic and that makes him off putting while the UK sounds a bit neutral. But the episode is good and enjoyable.  

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.15: Bill or Ben?

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

BILL OR BEN?

Written by

Andrew Brenner

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue & Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date:

4/10/13

Plot:

Connor is a new engine on the Island of Sodor. When Bill and Ben met him for the first time, they decided to play a trick on him. They pretended that they were super fast when really it was Bill at the start of the race and Ben at the other. When Connor raced them again, he nearly had an accident! The Fat Controller was very cross and ordered Bill to be repainted so they can be told apart. However, the twins had one last trick up their funnels.

PRO:
- The tint of autumn leaves
- Bill and Ben's blue coats
- The near miss with Connor and Henry 

CON:
- N/A

A second episode written by Andrew Brenner and this time about his favourite characters. This was a fine episode and I do enjoy greatly. Bill and Ben were given great amount of screen time and there was not much of Thomas in it as well. The animation of the autumn leaves are just fascinating to look at, the beautiful tints of the autumn leaves gives it such an autumn feeling. As of the twin's blue coats, they do look fine in it as well, but I prefer seeing them in green as a nice nod to their counterparts, but that is just me being a fan. I especially love the near miss that Connor had with Henry, it was tensed to see such a thing happening and it also shows a good moral to kids about the dangers of railway lines and that safety comes first. In the end, there was nothing bad about the episode and I do enjoy it. However if I might add about the blue paint, I don't think it'll be permanent, these are his favourite characters after all, Brenner, and he has such respect for the Railway Series books as well as Awdry's legacy. The episode is a nice watch and I recommend it.     

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.14:Percy's Lucky Day

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

PERCY'S LUCKY DAY

Written by
Davey Moore

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Air Date:

3/10/13

Plot:

After a couple of mishaps with the mail and some cargo, Percy feels unlucky. Stephen gave him a lucky charm that regains his confidence. But Percy lost the lucky charm and had to reign confidence for helping Bill and Ben back on the tracks.

PRO:
- Bill and Ben were in character
- Moral: You don't need lucky charms all the time
- The green flag incident reminds me of 'The Wrong Road' 

CON:

- N/A

Another good episode by Davey Moore, when I first heard this episode my money was on Andrew Brenner as Bill and Ben are his favourite characters. Speaking of Bill and Ben, it was great seeing them in CGI for the first time, however it was strange at first seeing them with red wheels, but I tend not to make that a big deal as their basis, Alfred and Judy, have green wheels as well. The twins were in great character, the banter they had and their own arguing are really much like what they were from S2-S7 and there voices are great as well, the twins are voiced by Jonathan Broadbent with their respective Birmingham accents, which really there basis came from Stafford in the West Midlands in England and that it is where Birmingham is located as their admin HQ, though I thought they would be having cockney youth voices, but I think we have enough of those in the show to be honest. However there voices make them sound mature, but there trickish behaviour gets in the way. The episode has a nice moral that you don't need lucky charms to be lucky, you can always be lucky any day. The episode was good and I haven't seen a bad thing about it, though I have to say it was stupid to have Percy moving and yet there's a crew member in his cab getting all worried, but this problem have been mentioned many times and the crew's are now used as the engine's hands. But in conclusion it was a good episode and worth the watch. However some fans are now moaning about BoCo, no personal vendetta against that as I too would love to see BoCo return towards the series but I think right now we should be thankful for what we got right now. Well tomorrow we'll see the twins again in 'Bill or Ben?'

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.13:The Phantom Express

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE PHANTOM EXPRESS

Written by

Laura Beaumont and Paul Larson

Directed by

David Baas 

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Haliam Jabbour (HIT)

Plot:

One night James tries to scare Percy by telling him that there's the ghost of Ulfstead Castle. Stephen reassures Percy that there's no such things as ghosts. But James sneaks up to them and tries to scare them both which ended up Percy and Stephen in the moat. James didn't know where they are and when he hears them whistling for help, James thought his story is real! 

PRO:
- The mist is rendered much better
- James' cheekiness returns
- The camera angles
- The mention of Stephen's crew jumping clear

CON:

- Percy's mail van disappeared

- Percy looks slightly off angled when he was at the castle

- Stephen should know what an owl sounds like

 

The episode was good and I do love episodes that are focused onto James and Percy, such as 'Percy, James and the Fruitful Day', and we haven't seen an episode like that since season three! However 'Jack Frost' came into mind when I saw this episode, I would say that was the last we see an episode with Percy and James, but Percy seems to be the main character then James, as he landed a secondary role in that episode. I do love how the mist is rendered now, it's, admittingly, better then what Nitrogen pulled as there fog or mist grows to be more thick. The mist was a bit thick as well in the episode, but you can see better. James' cheekiness had returned, it feels of course like 'No Joke For James' from the third season and the camera angles were great, especially that close up of Percy when hearing more of James' 'ghost' story.

 

However there are some problems with the episode, as usual with Arc's animation. When Percy was telling Stephen about 'The Phantom Express' his mail van disappeared and then reappeared again later on when James pulled into the castle. Plus as Percy was at the castle, he looked angled slightly and of course, with Stephen's old age, you think he knows what an owl would sound like?! However in the end it was a good episode and I enjoyed it and it was great to air it at this time of the month as it's the Halloween month, though in my country we don't celebrate that much. Well tomorrow we witness the return of Bill and Ben in full CGI for the very first time.

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.12: The Thomas Way

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE THOMAS WAY

Written by

Laura Beaumont and Paul Larson 

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT)

Directed by

David Baas

Air Date:
1/10/13

Plot:

Harold the Helicopter broke down near Callan castle. Duck and Thomas are to take him to the Sodor Search and Rescue Centre to be repaired. Thomas decided to give Harold a tour around the island through an engine's perspective but Duck insist Thomas that there are two ways of doing things: 'The Great Western way or The Wrong way' 

PRO:
- The flashback
- Thomas and Duck were in character 
- No three strikes formula
- Moral: Not everything can go their own personal way

CON:
- Duck being turned around by Rocky
- 'The Great Western way or the Wrong Way' got annoying for a while

Well, we've seen Duck's comeback for ten seconds in 'Henry's Hero' and now we see him making a bigger role for the first time in CGI and for the first time since the fourth season really, 'Fish'. The flashback scene was great and it's also great that they've acknowledge Thomas' history with the use of Duck's season six model and the use of Paddington station in the background, Paddington is actually the London of the Great Western Railway, its headquarters. Nice to see that Andrew Brenner had kept his word of researching the Thomas wikia site and it was nice of the people who are behind the old photograph to have put Duck in the background of the GWR's main station, showcasing the character's roots and seeing some Britishness in the scene and it was a great bonus to see them mentioning Duck's real name, Montague. Thomas and Duck were in great character, Duck is very much like himself from Season 2, telling the engines 'The Great Western way or the Wrong Way', though I have to say it does get annoying at times, but it shows in the end that not everything can go your way, with the mistakes that Duck and Thomas had made on the way to the Search and Rescue centre. 

Plus there is no three strikes formula, the only mistake that the two engines made was taking Harold to Knapford station, the scene of them going through the narrow tunnel is like the final problem on their journey. However there is one con I have with the episode, that is Duck being turned around by Rocky, it would've made more sense if Duck rolled along backwards and Thomas and Harold looking out for him. Plus him saying 'The Great Western Way or the Wrong Way' got annoying for a while. In the end I did enjoy the episode and so far it's on my list of personal favourite S17 episodes.

Rating: 4/5

S17 Ep.11: The Lost Puff

Back in June 2013, the UK had first witnessed ten episodes of the new and improved Series 17. The episodes went on hiatus from June, as I believe it was done for it's autumn release that it was originally planned to do. Click the links below to see my opinions on the first ten episodes:

- Kevin's Cranky Friend
- Scruff's Makeover
- Wayward Winston
- Gordon Runs Dry
- Calm Down Caitlin 
- Steamie Stafford
- Henry's Hero
- Luke's New Friend
- The Switch 
- Not Now, Charlie

So let's us start of the next episodes with 'The Lost Puff', which made its debut in a Thomas & Friends magazine in the UK, please read the warning first:

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THE LOST PUFF

Written by
Davey Moore

Directed by
David Baas

Produced by
Kallan Kagan (Arc)
Ian McCue & Halim Jabbour 

Air Date:
30/9/13

Plot:

The Fat Controller warns his engines to be careful over broken track. But Paxton the diesel doesn't listen to his instructions and thinks it's fun to go over some wobbly tracks. He persuaded Thomas to try it out but it end up wetting his firebox when he backed into Toby at the water tower. When Paxton overheard from Toby that Thomas 'lost his puff', he misunderstood for what he had said and went around to look for it. Victor explains the misunderstanding and Paxton learns that he should must listen carefully.

PRO:
- 'Has buckled in the hot sun!' a nice possible reference to 'Thomas Gets Bumped'
- The duck
- Stephen's face
- The angles (e.g - Gordon goes under the bridge and Stephen and Paxton looking at the cloud)
- Moral: Paying attention to avoid silliness  

CON:
- The narrow gauge brake vans at Knapford
- Paxton's disappearing brake van
  

This is definitely one of Davey Moore's best written episodes yet. The buckled track reference reminded me of 'Thomas Gets Bumped', as the tracks in that episode suffered the same fate. The use of duck for comedic use was entertaining to see, the angles were fantastic such as Gordon running under the bridge:

Including the scene when Paxton was racing towards Ulfstead Castle, seems that there is a link on that bridge now that we've seen since 'Hero of The Rails' and with him and Stephen looking at the cloud. Stephen's face when he was confused by Paxton's words was priceless to look at as well. However in the end, the episode has a nice moral about paying attention so you can avoid any kind of silliness. But there are some problems with this episode and it's pretty much Arc's use of animation, notice the brake vans that are in a siding are narrow gauge and that after the panning shot, you can see that Paxton has no brake van but when he left, it was there! Arc really need to notice these flaws as they do look unrealistic towards a railway enthusiasts eye, as Thomas the Tank Engine is popular for its realistic charm since the dawn of the Railway Series books. Well, now that we see started with the second half S17, I'm really looking forward for tomorrow's episode, even if it has a certain GWR pannier tank engine in it with a bigger role, which I'm glad to see. 

Rating: 5/5

S17 Ep.10: Not Now, Charlie

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THIS REVIEW CONTAIN SPOILERS, CAUTION IS ADVISED

NOT NOW, CHARLIE

Written by

Davey Moore

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT) 

Plot:

Charlie is a small purple engine who likes to tell jokes. One day Charlie discovers an elephant on the line and tries to alert the other engines. 

PRO:

- Charlie actually doing work

- The elephant

- Moral: Don't make jokes all the time or otherwise someone won't take you seriously during a serious matter.

 

CON:

- Charlie's jokes

 

 

Charlie may as well be slowly growing to be likeable. He's not actually being annoying and goofing off his work just to have fun. He just jokes around while he's doing work, doing work! Sure he may as well did some work in S14 and S15, but this time it looks serious. Looking at the elephant, it looks so real! I thought I was looking at a real elephant for a moment, well done to Arc on such great craftsmanship. It does have a nice moral about making jokes all time or no one will take you seriously. But the one con I have with this episode and that is of course Charlie's jokes. They're not great, but not many people can be a comedian. I was kind of hoping that there would be a slight mention of 'Henry and The Elephant' but I can't expect too much. Plus the episode has a bit of similarity of the S7 episode 'Percy Gets It Right'. So I believe the episode is OK. It did its best and I find better then any of Charlie's other episodes.

Rating: 3.5/5


So far Season 17 has shown some good sign of its new writing style. Sure it still has the three strikes in some places here and there, but it's not as irritating as what S9-16 shows us. Sure the episodes aren't perfect but I'm not one of those people who were expecting it to be like the classic series dumped right in front of me or expecting everything to go their own personal way. It takes time to write good quality episode and who knows when it'll get better? Right now the seventeenth series is now on hiatus in the UK and more episode reviews will come when Channel 5, the provider of the episodes on their kids hour 'milkshake', will announce more new episodes.  

S17 Ep.9: The Switch

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND NOT FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FAN BASE

THIS REVIEW CONTAIN SPOILERS, CAUTION IS ADVISED

THE SWITCH

Written by

Davey Moore

Directed by

David Baas

Produced by

Kallan Kagan (Arc)

Ian McCue and Halim Jabbour (HIT) 

Plot:

When Luke is sent to Ulfstead castle to deliver stone, he meets Millie, the Earl's private narrow gauge engine. They decided to switch jobs for the day.

PRO:
- Millie
- The Vocabulary like 'estate'.
- The Earl asking the Thin Controller permission 
- 'Peas in a Pod' bit of a reference to the classic series
- The castle grounds
- Moral: Respecting others jobs

CON:
- N/A

This episode is good, I like Millie, one of the new characters that will be making her debut in 'King of The Railway' this September. With Millie, she had a great french accent that teaches kids different words like 'bonjour' and 'au revoir'. The stare off she did with Luke was funny. I like it how when Millie and Luke were waiting for the Earl of Sodor, who will also make his debut in September as well, to see if the Thin Controller granted permission instead of Luke and Millie just puffing off without permission like in S17's predecessors. The Earl saying 'Peas in a Pod' is almost a reference to 'Thomas and Bertie' with "Like peas in a frying pan...", the castle grounds look amazing as well in CGI, it really reminded me of the castles that I've seen in Ireland and the UK, minus a narrow gauge railway. The vocabulary is being expanded well with words like 'estate' great thing to teach kids and the moral about respecting others jobs is a nice way to learn about other peoples jobs and that all jobs are important no matter what. It's a good episode and was directed well. 

Rating: 4/5