Emily Knows Best (Thomas & Friends)

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"Emily Knows Best"
Emily thinks she knows best, but doesn't.
Series: Thomas & Friends Part of Season: 9 Episode Number: 17 Air Date: 28 October 2005 (UK/IRL, Nick Jr.) 30 October 2005 (US) Writer: Marc Seal Director: Steve Asquith Previous episode: "Henry and the Flagpole" Next episode: "Thomas' Day Off"

"Emily Knows Best" is the seventeenth episode of the ninth season of Thomas & Friends. It aired on 28 October in the UK, and on 30 October 2005 in the US, two days later.

Plot

Emily is taking visitors to the ruined castle, where a queen once lived. Emily wishes to be a queen, since they tell everyone what to do. She decides to visit Toby and Percy in the shunting yard, which is just down the line from the castle whilst waiting for the visitors to explore the castle.

Bad Qualities

1. In line with her portrayal in Seasons 8-10, Emily comes across as quite disagreeable in this episode. She assumes she knows best, takes on a domineering role, and orders Percy and Toby around. Additionally, her casting as the lead character seems inappropriate when Daisy, who is characterized by her self-assured nature and tendency to command Percy and Toby, would have been an ideal fit for the main role.
   • Throughout the remainder of the episode, Emily merely instructs Percy and neglects her own duties until the crash happens. Moreover, by not resuming her tourist run, she is likely about 35 minutes behind schedule. It's unsurprising that her casting in this episode was questioned, and equally unsurprising that she faced no repercussions for abandoning her coaches and passengers.
   • Emily may have apologized to Toby and Sir Topham Hatt, but she didn't apologize to Percy and Mavis for her misdemeanor earlier. Although, this is the least of the episode's problems because Emily is grateful that Toby knew what to do and that she set things right for Percy, Toby, and Mavis after all.
2. The premise of this episode may appear redundant with Emily as the focal character, given that she should understand the importance of work over play in her role. Despite being two seasons beyond her introduction in Season 7, the narrative fails if Emily is portrayed out of character. Characters like James, Gordon, and Daisy, known for their bossy and fussy natures, would have been more fitting for this episode, perhaps Daisy in particular.
3. There are four plot holes that highlight the issues with this episode:
   • If Percy and Toby were instructed to shunt trucks at the castle, it is unclear why Toby would take some of the trucks as though he were tasked with pulling a goods train.
   • Why was Mavis pulling stone trucks to the castle anyway?
   • If Emily is reprimanded by the Fat Controller/Sir Topham Hatt for causing confusion and delay, then it raises the question as to why she wasn't scolded for leaving her coaches at the Ruined Castle. The passengers would understandably be upset with Emily, as she was responsible for leaving them and their coaches stranded.
   • If the telephone lines near the Ruined Castle were down, then it would not be possible for the stationmaster to telephone for help.
4. Toby's crash isn't necessary for this episode since he is a steam tram equipped with cowcatchers at both ends. Indeed, he may run over a telephone pole, but he won't derail if his cowcatcher can clear it aside, unlike his derailment due to a boulder on the quarry track in "Toby Feels Left Out."
5. The narrator's dialogue appears clumsy at times. For instance, he mentions that Mavis is unable to move because she is stuck among the trucks, despite the fact that she is obviously derailed. This could easily be perceived as a mistake in writing.
6. The narrator mentions only Toby being placed back on the tracks, omitting Percy and Mavis, which is ironic given that they had been re-railed by the time Emily encountered them again, prior to her reprimand for her actions.
   • Mavis is never seen in this episode again after the crash!

Good Qualities

1. The camera shaking effect is really cool.
2. As usual, Percy, Toby, Mavis, and Sir Topham Hatt are likable characters.
   • The funny thing is that Toby is in character and acts like his old personality which is ironic considering this episode came after "Toby Feels Left Out".
3. The idea of Emily acting like a queen was a neat idea despite Emily being a miscast choice for the idea.
4. The ending makes up for the episode's flaws. Emily apologizes to Toby and redeems herself to fix the damage that was done.
5. The episode does teach a good moral to kids that "no-one knows everything".
6. The setting of the Ruined Castle looks really interesting.
7. The crash scenes are nice.

Trivia

• A deleted scene from "Calling All Engines!" is used.
• In the individual version of the episode, the music at the end is omitted, except for in The Greatest Stories US DVD.
• This is the first time the camera is shaken to simulate an accident scene.
• This is the third episode in the ninth series, after "Rheneas and the Dinosaur" and "The Magic Lamp", where Thomas does not speak.
• When Percy gets the trucks moving, the front truck is wearing Toad's face mask.

Reception

"Emily Knows Best" received mixed reviews from fans and critics of Thomas and Friends alike.

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