U.S. Title: An Engine of Many Colors
Air date: September 13th, 2018 (UK)
James needs to be repaired after a crash, but hears that there might not be enough red paint. That night, he has a succession of dreams about being repainted different colours. Each colour seems fine once he gets used to it and even makes him more splendid. But each time that James starts to show off, he dreams that he has another crash.
Interesting trivia: this episode is written by a Promoted Fanboy named Michael White.
Tropes:
- All Just a Dream: James says this after he wakes up from his nightmare of being painted blue.
- An Aesop: It doesn't matter what you look like as long as you work hard.
- Attention Whore: James, obviously, who keeps showing off even in his dreams.
- Call-Back:
- James has to be repaired after his crash in "The Fastest Red Engine on Sodor".
- The Fat Controller mentioning the time he threatened to paint James blue if he misbehaves again is what triggers James' dreams of being painted different colours.
- Camp Gay: James seems to have shades of this, as he imagines his coaches, his trucks, and even his paintwork with glitter on them and doesn't even have a problem with it, as it makes him even more splendid.
- In the And Knowing Is Half the Battle segment, Thomas recalls the events of "Spencer's VIP".
- Everything's Better with Sparkles: In James' dreams, his coaches, his trucks, and his paintwork all sparkle.
- I Resemble That Remark!:
- In James' first nightmare where he's painted blue, he pickets, "Nobody thinks blue engines are splendid!", to which Thomas (who is blue himself) rolls his eyes and groans in annoyance.
- In James' second nightmare, he is painted green. He remarks it's terrible, earning a Death Glare from Percy.
- Lower-Deck Episode: This episode is "A Shed For Edward" from James' point of view.
- Nightmare Sequence: Instead of having the standard Fantasy Sequence, James has three nightmares.
- Rule of Three: James has 3 nightmares.
- James is painted blue like Thomas, Edward, and Gordon. He pulls the Express, and shows off, which leads to a crash.
- James is painted green like Henry and Percy. He pulls a heavy goods train, and shows off, which leads to a crash.
- James is painted silver like Spencer. He pulls Spencer's coaches, and shows off, just barely avoiding a crash this time, though the dream takes a trippier tone afterwards.
- Sanity Ball: Spencer and Gordon, who are both pompous Attention Whores, both hold one in James' dream, as they both warn him not to show off again.
- Straight Man: Thomas, Rosie, Spencer, Gordon, pretty much every other engine in James' dreams.
- Synchronous Episodes: This episode takes place at the exact same time as Series 21's "A Shed for Edward".
