U.S. Title: Thomas Saves The Day
Air date: October 30th, 1984
Adapted from: Thomas the Tank Engine, "Thomas and the Breakdown Train"
Every day, Sir Topham Hatt comes to the goods yard at Tidmouth Station to catch his trains. He greets Thomas, reminding him not to be impatient and not to let the Troublesome Trucks tease him if he wants to be a really useful engine.
Thomas works hard in the goods yard, learning about the different kinds of rolling stock as he pushes and pulls them into place. One day, he finds a small coach and two strange-looking cranes. His driver tells him that those cranes are part of the Breakdown Train, and are used for lifting heavy objects, like engines, coaches and trucks should they happen to come off the rails.
As Thomas continues working in the yard, he hears an engine whistling and calling for help. The engine is James, who rushes through the station with a goods train much too fast. James is frightened because the Troublesome Trucks are pushing him, and because his wooden brakes caught fire, he can't slow down. He disappears under a bridge as the Trucks continue to push him faster and faster. Thomas witnesses the whole event, saying he'd like to teach the Trucks a lesson.
Suddenly, an alarm goes off. The Signalman informs Thomas that James has come off the line and orders him to fetch the Breakdown Train immediately. Thomas wastes no time and his driver couples him up to the Breakdown Train.
As he pushes the Breakdown Train down the line, Thomas chants "Hurry, hurry, hurry!" This time, he's not pretending to be like Gordon; he really means it. As he travels under the bridge, he is very cross with the Trucks and hopes James isn't hurt.
Meanwhile, James is revealed to have crashed into a field. His driver and fireman feel him all over to see if he really is hurt, then assure him that the accident wasn't his fault, since his old wooden brakes (which they always said were no good) had caught fire and the Trucks were pushing him.
Thomas pushes the Breakdown Train alongside James and works hard all afternoon pushing the unhurt Trucks out of the way. The Trucks complain as Thomas pushes them, but Thomas tells them it serves them right for what they did to James.
Once the trucks are out of the way, Thomas watches as the cranes lift James back onto the rails. Once he is on the rails again, James tries to move by himself, but is unable to, so Thomas helps him back to Tidmouth Sheds as the sun sets.
When Thomas and James arrive at Tidmouth Station, they find the Fat Controller waiting anxiously for them. The Fat Controller tells Thomas that he heard all about how hard he worked to rescue James and is very pleased with him, saying he is now a really useful engine. He will give James some proper brakes and a new coat of paint, and Thomas his own branch line. An overjoyed Thomas thanks the Fat Controller.
Now Thomas is as happy as can be, as he has his own branch line and two coaches called Annie and Clarabel, whom he puffs proudly backwards and forwards with all day long. He is never lonely, as Edward and Henry often stop by to tell him the news. Gordon is always in a hurry, but never forgets to whistle at Thomas, who always whistles back.
Tropes featured in the episode:
- Adaptation Dye-Job: In the novel version of this episode, James was painted black when he first came to Sodor, but was painted red after Thomas saved him. In this adaptation, James retains his red livery even before the Troublesome Trucks push him into the field. The Adventure Begins, a CGI retelling of the first two Railway Series books rectifies this by depicting James in his original black livery for a majority of the film, only appearing in his iconic red near the end.
- Artistic Licence – Physics: Given James became derailed on a sharp, right-hand bend, centrifugal force should have caused him to fall onto his left side, not his right as portrayed (in the book, he stays upright in the field).
- Bully Hunter: Thomas didn't take it well when the Troublesome Trucks pushed James, causing him to crash on the fields, and he made them whimper in fear once he was clearing the accident.Thomas: This'll teach you a lesson! This'll teach you a lesson!
[Thomas biffs a truck]
Truck: Yes, it will. Yes, it will. - Chekhov's Gun: The Breakdown Train. The driver shows it to Thomas and explains to him that it's designed to lift heavy objects. As James gets himself into an accident, Thomas uses the Breakdown Train to put James back on the rails.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: Thomas gets a great one after helping James with the Breakdown Train. He has earned the approval of the Fat Controller, he was rewarded with a branch line along with two coaches called Annie and Clarabel, and he has also gained the respect of the other engines, especially Gordon.
- First Day from Hell: Poor James. On his first day, his trucks pushed him down Gordon's Hill. His outdated wooden brake blocks were set on fire from the sparks thrown up as he tried desperately to stop, and he wound up crashing in a pasture and nearly getting himself killed.
- Incoming Ham: James' "Help, help!"
- No Sympathy: Thomas showed this to the trucks who were groaning uncomfortably after the accident.Trucks: Oh dear, oh dear!
Thomas: Serves you right! Serves you right! - So Proud of You: The Fat Controller praises Thomas for clearing the accident and rescuing James, and then rewards him with his own branch line.
- Stock Footage: Footage from "Edward, Gordon and Henry" and "Thomas and the Trucks" is used.
