Thursday 20 September 2018

Season 22: Apology Impossible

Episodes like this should be a reminder that quality isn’t guaranteed just because an episode is set on Sodor.


I know what the intention of this episode was. It was meant to show that James is too proud to apologise... even though this theme has been done frequently in the franchise. Fact is, however, intent means nothing. The execution of the story matters. And in that regard, this episode is atrocious.

It started well; hammering in that James still sees Philip as beneath him and Philip getting frustrated about that. I was hoping that it would lead to a scene where Philip finally stood up for himself against a bully.

But... nope.

Once again, Philip backed down. And the worst thing is he had THREE ENGINES AS BACK UP! They could’ve easily pushed James out of the way and that could’ve led to a scene where everything could be ironed out.

But we couldn’t have that. We just had to have James get his own way and inconvenience everyone else. Again.

“But he looked guilty and apologised in the end. That makes it alright, doesn’t it?”

Well, no. Because the apology felt incredibly hollow and was only accepted by Philip because he’s a naive child (not a knock on him, just describing his character). Not only that, but I’ve watched the show long enough to realise that James will learn nothing from this. He’ll still be incredibly arrogant and think the world owes him everything.

Yes, that little segment at the end says that “you should never be too proud to apologise and own up to your mistakes”. But all I can take from it is “you should never stand up to your bullies”. That is a horrible, toxic lesson to teach, especially to the preschoolers watching this.

Final Thoughts
Philip gets a rough deal with so many episodes he’s in. And this is the nadir of his mistreatment. It’s the same problem he had in The Great Race, only magnified (it was the main plot point here) and made worse (in the former, Vinnie got some comeuppance and Thomas and Ashima were actually there to help him).

The writing team should be ashamed of themselves for letting the episode come out in this state, and it’s earned the title of worst episode ever.
Rating: Atrocious (-10/10)

6 comments:

  1. If the writers really want to put James in his place then give him a taste of his own medicine. Have him interact with a more vain engine than him (be it Rajiv or a new character, I don't mind) and have him have that realisation that that is how he's treated others and how bad it is

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    1. That or put him with one that won’t take any of his nonsense.

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  2. Replies
    1. Yes.

      Frankly, Wonky Whistle has been overhated for years. It’s a bog standard episode from that era, only it has a couple of stupid moments.

      Kevin the Steamie and Fiery Flynn are far worse from that season alone as they have far worse messages and implications.

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  3. While I agree that the episode should have had James back up, I do not think it teaches children to not stand up to bullies, but rather to do so only when safety is not a concern. Philip was concerned that the weight of all the trains would cause the bridge to collapse, and if his concerns were correct, the right thing to do would be to get off the bridge as quickly as possible, which meant backing up himself since James would not do so.

    On the other hand, the moral is still not quite right as it would be necessary to risk one's self if the bully is doing something really bad. Also, they could have had only Rebecca, Thomas, and Paxton back up with Philip facing James alone (unless that still would have been too heavy for the bridge, which is unlikely. Plus, he would not have any back up.) or James agree with the possibility of the bridge collapsing, maybe not even have that scene take place on a bridge.

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    1. If that’s the case, the moral is even worse. If you’re not supposed to stand up to bullies when lives are at stake, when ARE you supposed to stand up to them? That’s not even mentioning that Philip had three other characters backing him up. It would’ve been easier, and better, had James been forced to back off, while the others left of their own accord.

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