ThomasNATION Reviews - Hot Air Percy
May 17, 2025
Ever since Percy first came to Sodor to help out Edward in the yard when the big engines went on strike in the original Thomas & Friends series, he has made so many great friends whether they ride the rails or roads or hover in the air but his best friend on the North Western Railway has always been the number one engine himself: Thomas. Sure, they may get into scraps from time to time but they always find a way to strengthen their friendship in the end with a happy toot of their 'best friends whistle' as they tell each other everything, and I've gone on about how this was expanded on in All Engines Go. So with that said, let's see how Thomas and Percy's friendship gets tested this time around when they have to deliver a balloon...wait, why does that sound so familiar?
Ask any fan what they would declare the worst episodes from the original series would be and one example that would be brought up is Season 15's 'Up, Up and Away'. Rather it be how we're supposed to believe that Mr. Bubbles blew up all four of those balloons by himself which by the way need helium to float or the writing making Thomas and Percy act like the biggest idiots that Sodor has ever seen, this was one of many examples of how the franchise had reached an all new low in the eyes of many fans to the point where they couldn't even finish an episode before turning it off. Things really were that dour by this point in the franchise, weren't they? But seeing as Nia's big balloon adventure turned out okay back during Season 1, could Thomas and Percy do the same thing and maybe improve on this concept? Well, they did the same thing...just not as strong. Imagine if you took the scene of Thomas and Percy talking about the hot air balloon from 'James and the Red Balloon' and added in the scenes of Duncan trying to get rid of said balloon from 'Duncan and the Hot Air Balloon' but accidentally mixed in the nonsensical behavior of 'Up, Up and Away', then you pretty much have this episode in a nutshell.
But if there's one thing that I don't understand apart from how a locomotive is able to be carried away by a hot air balloon, it's the fact that Beresford - a character who lived by a canal on the Mainland in the original series, need I remind you - is now living on Sodor to the point where you have to question what Sir Topham Hatt saw in Beresford when he met him back in Season 24's 'Thomas and the Royal Engine'. I know these two series don't share a canon, but the possibilities for returning characters in this reboot feels like a complete gamble since you never know who's gonna appear!
Final Rating: 2.5/5
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