History WesternAnimation / FiremanSam

* ChekhovsSkill: One episode had Norman briefly look at a training exercise at the fire station when he wanted to ask Sam if he could borrow his binoculars for a bird-watching trip. Said lesson points out that if a fire is in an enclosed space like a box or under a car hood, [[RealityEnsues opening said space makes the fire worse.]] Later, Trevor's bus briefly catches fire under the hood, and Norman, of all people, tells him not to do it.

* RealityEnsues:
** In ''"Set For Action"'', [[spoiler:Because Sam allegedly botched a safety check which could've resulted in the camera crew's deaths, he's fired as a result.]]
** In ''The Great Fire of Pontypandy'' Norman starts a campfire against safety regulations, which spreads out of control. While most of Norman's antics before and after don't get much more than a stern finger wagging, in this case the authorities and his mother are understandably ''furious'' with his actions, which destroyed a good amount of wildlife and could have done the same to the town.

AcquaintedWithEmergencyServices: Pontypandy may be a small town but one can't help but suspect there are other reasons everyone in town knows the emergency service personal so well. Special notice should of course goes to Norman Price.

AcquaintedWithEmergencyServices: Pontypandy may be a small town but one can't help but suspect there are other reasons everyone in town knows the emergency service personal so well. Special notice should of course go to Norman Price.

* AnAesop: Manages not to be {{Anvilicious}} about it most of the time.

* SanityBall: In some cases Norman, of all people, can be the sensible one. In "Stuck in the Mud", Trevor was blinded by pride and opened the bonnet of his bus to check the overheated engine despite Norman's warnings, only to let in enough oxygen to set it alight. In "Cadet Catastrophe" he tries to prevent Sarah and Mandy from messing around with a petrol canister.

* SeenItAll: Averted. This Pontypandy. Characters have been surprised by such emergency calls as a flare being spotted by a high flying space sandwich and a fire breathing dragon setting fire to Bessies's barn. Sometime's they've mention they've thought they seen it all though.

* LethalChef: Elvis Cridlington.

* ThemeNaming: Most of the fire brigade's vehicles are named after planets (Jupiter, Venus, Neptune, Mercury) or constellations (Hydrus, Phoenix).

* AnimationBump: The fifth stop-motion season had a pretty huge one (being animated by a different team a decade later) with overall smoother animation and added lip-sync. The CGI seasons also got increasingly more polished (the earlier ones suffered the usual downfalls of their time, with stiffer, floatier movement and occasional dead eyed expressions).

* ADayInTheLimelight: When Elvis breaks his leg, Station Officer Steele has to take over his duties [[spoiler:and makes such a hash of it, ''Elvis'' has to save ''him'', earning Steele's respect.]]

** Several designs and layouts changed dramatically from the original series. Pontypandy also went from a fairly small cosy village to a reasonably large coastal town.

* WeekendInventor: Sam in the original series. Mike Flood builds an impressive rocket in the CGI series. Mechanic Joe Sparkes takes this role up starting in Series 9.

* PrideBeforeAFall: Most of the problems that stem from Norman's arrogance.

* {{Retcon}}: In the original series, Penny was actually stationed in Newtown. She came to Pontypandy to help conduct a series of drills, and later on [[DropInCharacter came by once in a while to visit or when an extra hand was needed (similar to Chief Fire Officer Boyce in the later episodes)]]. The later series change it so that she's a regular member of the Pontypandy Fire Service.

* WomenAreWiser: Played straight with the Floods and Sparks families, with the fathers being {{Living Disaster Area}}s ([[NotSoAboveItAll though the mothers do cause some emergencies as well]]). Played with elsewhere. Sometimes James is more cautious than Sarah, while Sam is arguably the most competent of the fire brigade team (if still sometimes eccentric).

* SanityBall: In some cases Norman, of all people, can be the sensible one. In "Stuck in the Mud", Trevor was blinded by pride and opened the bonnet of his bus to check the overheated engine despite Norman's warnings, only to let in enough oxygen to set it alight.

* TheAce: Fireman Sam himself.

** To a lesser extent Mike, who is a hopeless handyman and one of the biggest sources for emergencies in Pontypandy, but sometimes demonstrates a niche knowledge that helps solve the problem of the day.