ThomasNATION Reviews - License to Deliver
September 25, 2021
We may be only two episodes into this new chapter of Thomas The Tank Engine's televised history, but it has already made a pretty lame impression on me and that's largely due to the fact that a lot of what these episodes are presenting feel a bit like a knockoff in trying to copy the ideas from the original 'Thomas & Friends' television series but not being quite as creative with it since we already have had 'A Thomas Promise' copying 'Don't Go Back' and 'Thomas Blasts Off' copying 'Percy And The Funfair'. While both episodes do have their moments of entertainment in them, this reboot is gonna need to really try harder in order to make a lasting impact not just on their target kid demographic but also on the thousands upon thousands of longtime fans of the original series...let's see if we can get this reboot steaming down the right tracks in our next episode as we go undercover with Thomas and Percy 'cause we've got us a 'License To Deliver'!
LICENSE TO DELIVER: Thomas and Percy play secret agents while making a special delivery for the lighthouse and facing their fears in the dark
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Much like how the previous episode felt like one big tribute to space missions, this episode wastes no time in setting up the fact that this episode is going to be one big tribute to spy movies (which totally makes sense since No Time to Die drops next week) as we see Thomas pretending to be a secret agent called 'Agent Number One' while sneaking about the railway and trying not to be seen or heard by the big engines like Gordon and James, whom it's great to see that he hasn't been forgotten in this reboot, or by Annie and Clarabel whom while it's awesome to see that they also haven't been forgotten in this reboot either have somehow gained the ability to move by themselves without the need of an engine to push or pull them along the tracks. So as Thomas is busy playing secret agents, he comes across Percy and invites him to join in but it turns out that the little green engine is busy making a delivery of a new light bulb to the lighthouse since the old one is out...and as if the unsafe way that the light bulb is being transported wasn't stupid enough, it turns out that Percy will be travelling in the dark: now correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Sir Topham Hatt say in the eleventh season episode 'Thomas And The Lighthouse' that the bulb must get to the lighthouse before dark so that ships at sea can find their way safely home to Sodor...why do you need to deliver this potential life-saver of the seas in the dark when it's needed the most, are you all just asking for an accident to happen?! I know that this is being done to teach the kids who will hopefully be watching this reboot to not to be afraid of the dark, but this is another case where common sense plays no part in this reboot.
However, treating an important and life-saving delivery like it's not a big deal is not the only major problem that this episode faces because we have ourselves yet another example of taking concepts from the original television series and doing them all over again with what feels like no effort put in...but unlike the first two episodes which borrowed concepts from the model-animated days of the television series, 'License To Deliver' actually borrows a concept from the 'Big World, Big Adventures' era which we saw in the twenty-second season episode 'The Case Of The Puzzling Parts': granted this episode does do some things differently compared to when Paxton and Sidney played special agents like Thomas and Percy donning disguises using old junk as well as turning to Sandy for special gadgets, but comparing these two episodes is like comparing apples and oranges...and in terms of which episode felt more entertaining and worthwhile as a longtime fan of the series, I will always end up choosing 'The Case Of The Puzzling Parts': don't get me wrong, I totally understand why fans didn't like that episode from the predictability of the story to Sidney's forgetful nature feeling like it was amped up to eleven compared to his other appearances in the series...but I'm sorry, Sidney and Paxton are such a comedically brilliant duo together in that episode and there were numerous of moments throughout the episode that actually got me to laugh. So as much as Thomas and Percy tried their best to be secret agents here, they sadly failed in their mission in the eyes of a longtime fan compared to what we had.
But does re-using yet another story concept of the original series ultimately make the episode bad? Not necessarily as we still have to discuss the subject matter of Thomas and Percy's mission as secret agents and...for the most part, it's actually okay: granted a lot of what they do is just them trying to sneak through places without being seen or heard whether it's through Knapford Station avoiding the Troublesome Truck night-guards and Nia or McColl Farm without waking the sleeping cows, but seeing them use their secret color message stacks which oddly look more like coffee mugs in my opinion as well as Thomas using his tank of super slippery gloop to fix a squeaking track switch really feels like stuff you would see in spy movies...although I have to question why they were so afraid of being seen by Diesel: I know that they're pretending that he's a super villain to keep with the theme of secret agents, but why are they that afraid of him...I'm sure Diesel would understand about the importance of the delivery and let them pass and besides, he's already distracted with talking to cows for some strange reason. However, that's not the only thing worth questioning about this mission as we unfortunately have yet another incredibly childish song in this episode: I know that this is being done to teach kids not to be afraid of the dark and I won't deny that this song is better compared to 'I'm Gonna Chug, I'm Gonna Choo' from the series pilot, but listening to this really makes me miss the days of songs like 'Boo Boo Choo Choo' from the original television series - if anything, this actually reminded me of 'The Laughter Song' that Pinkie Pie sang in the series pilot to My Little Pony's fourth generation (wait, why does this reboot keep feeling like 'Thomas & Friends' meets My Little Pony?)
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We are now three for three when it comes to these episodic rehashes...but much like what we got with 'Thomas Blasts Off', 'License To Deliver' wasn't actually all that bad: granted the portrayal of not taking an important delivery like a lighthouse light bulb seriously was incredible stupid and while the concept of secret agents was handled much better in the original television series, I would say that Thomas and Percy somewhat succeeded in making a fun adventure here and that is why 'License To Deliver' gets a rating of a 2.5 out of 5. Just like a lighthouse beaming across the sea, maybe there is also a beacon of hope shining brightly when it comes to this reboot...but we'll have to keep chugging along to see if we can stay on the right track.
Final Rating: 2.5/5
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