ThomasNATION Reviews - The Great Little Railway Show
July 01, 2020
Hey all, JF here, and boy howdy am I excited for this one. The Great Little Railway Show comes to us from Michael White, who has already made a great impression this season with Thomas and the Royal Engine, which remains the season’s best episode. But how does this episode go? Will it have us screaming #TGLRules (god, I am so sorry I had to bring that back) at the top of our lungs? Let’s begin.
Percy learns that a railway show is being presented at Ulfstead Castle, and immediately goes to tell everyone about it, such as the Narrow Gauge engines and the miniature engines. Unfortunately, this causes work on the railway to screech to a halt due to there being no engines there.
Like with most of Michael White’s episodes, this episode contains a few references to past episodes, especially from the Narrow Gauge engines. Just to name a few, we get a mention of Peter Sam’s special funnel, a direct shoutout to the episode Trusty Rusty, and even a scene in which Peter Sam claims that Sir Handel has “steamroller wheels”, which makes for both a nice callback and maybe an indirect mention of George? I don’t know, but it’s still a nice moment. Even the fantasy sequence is a direct reference to the Meet the Contenders videos from 2016. What I'll give Michael credit for is that the references aren't overbearing, to make way for the story.
The episode itself is also very tightly written, to the point where it almost feels like an episode from the Brenner era. The plot progresses in a very natural way in a brisk pace and it never really feels boring. I’ll also give props that the twist at the end, which I won’t give away for the sake of those who haven’t seen it, is really clever, and I will admit I didn’t see it coming. One last thing I will commend is the choices of characters they have here, especially with how it gives the lead role to Percy. I love how they utilise his naivety to progress the story, plus the added bonus that he is given the proper characterisation he deserves.
Actually, that point brings us to our one major criticism: the characters seem perfectly okay with abandoning their work load just for a railway show that hasn't been confirmed by their controller, so some could interpret them as out of character.
So to conclude, while not as great as Thomas and the Royal Engine, this is still a solid episode. I highly recommend you check it out, as this is high proof that Michael White is indeed the current best writer, and with that, it earns itself a 4.5/5.
Final Score: 4.5/5
About the Author: JF the LOLZOR
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