ThomasNATION Reviews - The Real Number One
July 16, 2022
THE REAL NUMBER ONE: When Thomas' #1 gets covered by paint, Diesel's comment about Thomas not being number one anymore causes him to doubt himself.
Out of all fourteen movies in the original 'Thomas & Friends' pantheon, I think 'Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure' is the only one that gets Thomas totally right. I'd even say Thomas is full on classic Thomas here! I've seen some people criticize the movie because Thomas is too jerky, but that's Thomas' true character and it always has been. Thomas' true character in the Railway Series is a cheeky little bugger. The modern years kinda neutered him and made him too nice so seeing his original persona on full display here was so welcome: yeah, he's grown some since the early days of course but he still gets a big head from time to time. It was like that in the Railway Series too, he causes his own problems here because of his own carelessness and his arc is overcoming them and proving himself once again. I love how this is reinforced by the symbolism with his number one: when Thomas is all high and mighty, it's totally exposed as normal, but then after he screws up and falls into the cavern, he gets all scraped up and dirty and the one isn't visible anymore symbolizing how low he's fallen with Sir Topham Hatt and then after he proves himself a hero, the sea he falls into washes his side and the one becomes visible again (super clever!) In a weird way, this is a bit of a perfect sequel to 'The Adventure Begins' where Thomas is given his number one and his branch line, and then in this movie, they both get taken away...and both movies came out the same year. I wonder if that was intentional or not.
But I know what you're thinking: why am I talking about 'Sodor's Legend Of The Lost Treasure' and its cinematic impact on the entire fandom when I should be talking about 'The Real Number One'?
Well, if you're looking for a much scaled back episodic version of what is considered by many longtime fans as the greatest movie of the entire Thomas The Tank Engine franchise, then look no further. I know that sounds like I'm already bashing this episode for being inferior to what was a huge landmark in Thomas history, but I'm actually not: while Thomas can be a cheeky little prick at times whether in the original series or in the reboot, the thing that made Thomas The Tank Engine himself so special as a role model for children and longtime fans is that he never gave up on any of his friends since he would be there for them no matter what rather it be giving a push with a heavy load up a hill or rescuing a friend in trouble. This right here is the true Thomas, putting his pride aside after causing trouble in order to prove himself a Really Useful Engine again. But if you're not convinced that this is a 'Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure' copy, Sir Topham Hatt, despite delivering a really mature moral, is perfectly okay with Thomas being late with his delivery of lanterns: while some people say that Sir Topham Hatt was too harsh to Thomas in the movie, I think that was the point since 'Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure' is supposed to be the movie where Sir Topham Hatt gets the most pissed he's ever been at Thomas. Thomas really screwed up earlier by running Gordon's express coaches off the rails and Sir Topham Hatt was furious with him, then he screws up majorly again twice in the same day, so when Sir Topham Hatt sees an explosion and then sees Thomas at the scene, can you really blame him for being so instantly upset? I think I would be too in this scenario, if we're being honest. And as a result, this is one of the few times in the entire CGI era that Sir Topham Hatt feels like a force to be reckoned with, he is not a joke in the movie, he's an actual authority figure and that was a nice breath of fresh air for me personally considering the season right before this they were doing stuff like ripping his pants and revealing polka dot underwear or giving himself two black eyes from playing with a paddleball. But just because it's not a cinematic story, doesn't mean it's not good.
While I will always adore 'Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure' because of how it didn't feel like it was playing down to kids in any regard but rather how they were in full on 'let's make a kick-ass movie mode' with this and they absolutely delivered that to the point that this is where CGI Thomas peaked in my opinion and it never got better than this, I consider 'The Real Number One' as one of the best episodes from this first season of All Engines Go: sure, it's not as grand or epic like 'Sodor's Legend Of The Lost Treasure' was and I know that will leave many longtime fans wanting something so much more than this...but if I were to write a televised episode of this movie but on a much smaller scale, this is honestly what I would've come up with if I were a part of the writing team and it really showed that Thomas is more than just some cheeky little prick that always gets into trouble. Thomas was, is and always will be 'The Real Number One' and that is why this episode gets a rating of a 3.5 out of 5. Even if it's not lost treasure, it is still a treasure to behold.
Final Rating: 3.5/5
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