ThomasNATION Reviews - Bring it on Beresford
May 24, 2025
I've gone on record in saying Journey Beyond Sodor is one of the more underrated Thomas specials. The characters old and new were charming, the songs were total bops, and the scope was at an all time high. It was a great special...mostly. If I had to name one aspect of the special I've soured on, it was Beresford. He's not a bad character by any means, he's just...super pointless. Neither of his scenes really add anything other than additional ten minutes. He was much better in Thomas and the Royal Engine because there he actually impacted the story, but he's the main example of a filler character. But one thing All Engines Go! is good at is reworking old characters and making them great, like Ashima and Whiff. With that said, does Beresford finally prove his worth in this? Let's begin.
It's Plant-a-Tree Day on Sodor and Thomas and Diesel are competing to see who can delive a massive pine tree. But mayhem naturally occurs and the two have to count on Beresford to save the day.
So the biggest issue with this episode is that despite being called "Bring it on Beresford", he doesn't really play as big a role as one would expect. By the time he actually does affect the plot, there's only three minutes of the episode left. Instead the episode is about Thomas and Diesel competing, and not only is that something we've seen over and over again, so not much new is done with it, but it's also pretty misleading. It's not "Percy's Scary Tale" levels of misleading, but it is..."Thomas and the Moles" levels. I will admit, however, that the line "Thomas bit off more than he can chugga-choo" is a legit funny line.
But since this episode is the first to put Beresford into the limelight (besides Hot Air Percy), how is he presented in the world of All Engines Go!? Honestly...it's not a great start. I rewatched Hot Air Percy to confirm my feelings, since it was earlier in the production history, and not much is different after. Here, he's given a super generic personality, since he's simply just friendly and helpful, but can get a little nervous. How many times ya heard that before? The original Beresford wasn't great, but I'll still at least remember his aggressiveness and the interactions he had with Thomas. Overall, it is a big downgrade. But to his credit, I do like this episode's song. It's catchy, it boasts a nice message on knowing your limits, even the little rap part is pretty fun.
Overall, Bring it on Beresford is a pretty forgettable episode. It's not a painful watch, it has the occasional giggle and a fun song, but with a generic plot, misleading concept and mediocre intro to Beresford, it's just a little...eh. Not the worst episode, but I can't really bring myself to rewatch it, so as a result I'm just gonna give it a 2.5/5.
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