Thomas' Tall Friend (Thomas & Friends)

"Thomas' Tall Friend"
Thomas, it's not necessary to address everything with "Mr."
Series: Thomas & Friends Part of Season: 14 Episode Number: 1 Air Date: 11 October 2010 (UK) 14 November 2010 (US) Writer: Sharon Miller Director: Greg Tiernan Previous episode: Hiro Helps Out Next episode: James in the Dark (broadcasting order) Henry's Magic Box (S14 production order)

"Thomas' Tall Friend" is the season premiere to Season 14 of Thomas & Friends. It aired on 11 October 2010, and was written by Sharon Miller.

Why It's Short

1. This episode appears to be a filler with no significant contribution to the show's overall narrative. It fails to leave any lasting impact on what could have been an intriguing concept, as the events it introduced were never referenced again, despite the continuation of the Sodor Animal Park storyline.
2. As usual for Seasons 12-16, Thomas is depicted as idiotic and foolish.
   • Despite Cranky, Edward, Percy, and Gordon advising him to heed the giraffe keeper's words, Thomas is too impatient and chooses to do things his way regardless.
   • In this episode, Thomas once again uses the honorific "Mr." unnecessarily, referring to the giraffe as "Mr. Giraffe".
3. In some scenes, the narration redundantly emphasizes the obvious or articulates what is already evident onscreen, as is often the case.
4. Continuity error: The narrator claims that the engines have never seen a giraffe before, which seems absurd given that circuses have appeared previously in "Henry and the Elephant" and "Thomas and the Circus." It's likely that the engines would have seen a giraffe during those events.
5. The episode suffers from an excruciatingly slow pace, particularly from the moment Thomas reaches the tunnel and diverts to a siding with buffers. From there, the narrative stalls, focusing too much on Thomas attempting to coax the giraffe to duck while passing under the tunnel. This scene lingers excessively, consuming a significant portion of the episode's runtime. It isn't until Percy arrives that the plot progresses, culminating in the giraffe dozing off after interacting with the leaves on Percy's truck, allowing both engines to resume their journey. This exemplifies the pitfalls of allowing filler scenes to extend beyond necessity.
6. Like most of the episodes in this era, the episode is very formulaic, repetitive and uses the three strikes formula.
7. No clear moral at all because of this episode being a filler episode. Granted, this is not a bad thing for a Thomas episode to lack a moral, but does this excuse this episode's lack of common sense and really frustrating pacing?
8. Unspeakably illogical: What renders a giraffe apt for an open-topped zoo vehicle throughout an entire episode?
   • Apart from that, it is common for this era that none of the freight trains, including those for the Sodor Animal Park, are equipped with brake vans.
9. The episode marked the beginning of Season 14, which was already off to a disappointing start, on a decidedly negative note.

Redeeming Qualities

1. The idea is straightforward yet captivating, as the Sodor Animal Park had not been featured on-screen before. Unfortunately, the execution was subpar due to weak writing and excessive filler.
2. Stanley makes a brief return with a one-scene cameo. Although it's a short appearance, it's pleasant to see him featured.
3. The book at the end is a great surprise to see.
4. Like much of the era's output, it features solid animation, skilled voice acting, and exceptional music.

Reception

"Thomas' Tall Friend" was heavily criticised and panned by fans and critics alike and is considered to be one of the worst episodes of Season 14 and of the entire show for a variety of reasons. It received a 2.3 on IMDb as of 2021.

Trivia

• This episode is the only episode of the fourteenth season where the number in production order is the same as the number in air date order. This is due to the fact that the second episode of the fourteenth series production-wise was supposedly held back to air during the Christmas season.
• The photo album at the end of the episode contains photos from the episodes, "Thomas and the Runaway Kite" and "Creaky Cranky" and one from the special, "Hero of the Rails".
• This episode marks the debut of the Sodor Animal Park in the television series; even though it had previously appeared in several magazine stories.
• This episode aired the same day "Misty Island Rescue" was released on DVD in the UK.

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