ThomasNATION Classic Reviews - James to the Rescue
April 11, 2026
That's because this season is so terrible that it fascinated me me for years. Every episode, with the exception of maybe Surprise Surprise, is so abysmal that some could even call Season 15 the worst Thomas season ever. Even more so than the BWBA seasons. I certainly could. But we all know about the biggest offenders like Up, Up and Away, Fiery Flynn or Wonky Whistle...don't expect a review for that one for a while, I'm not ready. But I digress. What about James to the Rescue? This is an episode I don't see many people talk about, but is that for good reason? Let's begin.
James is assigned the Rescue Engine of the Day alongside Toby, and their teamwork skills are put to the test when they have to save Gordon.
So, question. Have you ever seen a Miller era episode? Yes? Then you've seen James to the Rescue. Three strikes formula? Yep. A story that could be avoided with one move? Bingo. Horrible rhyming dialogue? Put it in there! James being racist towards another engine...wait, what? Yeah, there's one line where James says Toby can't be a rescue engine because he isn't a steam engine, which was really awkward. As a result, James becomes pretty hard to root for. I will admit, however, that the crash near the end was pretty well animated.
Okay, this episode is pretty rough. Does it have anything in its favor? Well...kinda. If there is one compliment I can give the episode, it's how it handles Toby. This is the one time in the season where Toby feels like Toby. Aside from being a wimp or weirdly dismissive like he was in Toby and Bash, he's instead more helpful and optimistic, even if throughout the episode he's treated more like an afterthought until the last couple minutes. It's not the best portrayal of Toby, but hey, at least he's in character.
Overall, James to the Rescue is a mess. It has all the staples of a bad Miller era episode - horrible writing and characters. Maybe its portrayal of Toby is okay, but that isn't enough to hold this one up. I can't really think of anyone to recommend this to - James fans won't like it since he's highly unlikable, Toby fans won't like it because of how he's treated, and fans of the CGI era won't like it because...well, it's Season 15. As a result, this gets a 1.5/5. James has been done better in this era, but he sure as heck hasn't been done any worse.
Final Rating: 1.5/5
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