Heartwarming / Thomas & Friends

"...and I think he knows that sometimes, the best travels are those we can only dream about."

There are moments in Thomas & Friends that can warm your heart.

---

The Railway Series

• The dedication at the start of book 42, Thomas and his Friends:
  In memory of the Rev. W. Awdry (1911 - 1997), without whom none of Thomas' adventures would have been told.
  • Prince Charles unveiling the bust of Wilbert Awdry at Tidmouth.
  Prince Charles: My parents read stories about your Railway to me as a child. There will never be anything like it anywhere.
• The whole series in general, which was a way for Awdry to entertain young Christopher when he was ill with the measles.

General

• While Toby and Edward's Not So Above It All moments tend to earn the ire of many fans, they can be Heartwarming in Hindsight when you consider that most of the time it is Thomas and Percy, the two younger engines they previously mentored, that usually end up helping them out, and usually with the same level of patience and sympathy as they gave them, at least giving them an opportunity to return their kind treatment from before. This is especially evident in episodes the older engines are embarrassed about admitting their weaknesses to the younger idolizing ones (eg. Edward And The Mail, Toby And The Whistling Woods).
  • Under a similar light, Winston's relationship with the Fat Controller. While Sir Topham is portrayed as being thoroughly wise, patient and competent in his treatment of the engines, Winston is left putting up with one of his few vices; his poor driving. Winston's personality however is that of a loyal, patient butler to his driver, only cracking once in Wayward Winston, where he quite willingly accepts his aesop about showing mutual patience as someone attempts to learn. Given how much Sir Topham has had to tolerate in 17 seasons and going, it seems fair someone is willing to show him the same amount of patience and compassion.
  Winston: Early days, sir. Early days.
• Just anytime The Fat Controller praises his engines for their hard work or acts of bravery, especially if it's to make up for their previous mishaps or error that would displease him. This shows that no matter how he loses patience with the engines whenever they mess up or are out of line, he does care for all of them, and the engines are happy to be called "Really Useful Engines".
• Any time an engine performs an act of heroism, even if in a dire situation.
• The vehicular residents of Sodor are shown to be very welcoming to those who they see as a potentially good friend, and the vast majority of any first-time character interactions always ends with new friendships. Although a number of visitors were rejected by the Sodor vehicles due to vile behavior, the Sudrians are always willing to be patient with those who are willing to improve, usually paying off despite a number of roadblocks. This patience extends to the most troublesome of residents such as James, Gordon and Diesel, to name a few, and what's most notable is that despite the general Fantastic Racism between certain vehicles (steam vs. diesel and rail vs. road as the prime suspects), troublemakers on each side of the conflict only make up a minority of their respective groups, with the rest being respectful, civil, and relatively casual.

Episodes

Season 1

The Sad Story of Henry / Come Out, Henry!

• While Henry is stuck in the tunnel for weeks for his arrogant actions, unlike the other engines like Gordon who said Henry deserved to be stuck in there, Edward would always whistle and cheerfully say "Hello!" to him as he passed by, trying to cheer up the miserable green engine.

Edward, Gordon, and Henry / Henry to the Rescue

• There's the moment where Henry is let out of the tunnel after The Fat Controller asks him to pull the heavy express.
• In the ending, Edward and Henry take Gordon back to the sheds, thus cementing the three's friendship.

Thomas And The Trucks / Trouble For Thomas

• Thomas' first meeting with the Fat Controller in the ending. After his mishap with some mischievous trucks, the Fat Controller bluntly asks what he's doing in the yard, and why he was travelling so fast. Thomas sorrowfully explains that he brought Edward's trucks, but was pushed against his will. Instead of punishing Thomas, The Fat Controller decides that his engine needs more experience, and puts him to work with trucks for the next few weeks, assuring him that this will make him "a really useful engine".

Thomas and the Breakdown Train / Thomas Saves the Day

• Following up from the previous episode, The Fat Controller is cheerfully encouraging Thomas, who is now much more confident and competent in handling trucks (which would come in handy later on).
• Then, after Thomas helps James, the Fat Controller commends Thomas for his work and rewards him with two coaches Annie and Clarabel and his own branch line, making Thomas as happy as he can be. He is regularly visited there by Edward and Henry. Even Gordon, who usually doesn't think too highly of anyone other than himself, whistles in greeting to Thomas as he passes by the station, with Thomas whistling in return.

Troublesome Trucks / Foolish Freight Cars

• There's James sincerely apologizing to the Fat Controller for causing trouble with the coaches, prompting the Fat Controller to forgive him and let him out of the sheds to pull some trucks. It gets better still at the end of the episode, where the Fat Controller reveals himself after James finishes the arduous job. James is worried that he'll be in trouble again after the trucks breaking away on the hill. But the Fat Controller is smiling, and commends James for dealing with the trucks and allows him to keep his red paint. It seems that James is now very much on good terms with him.

James and the Express / A Proud Day for James

• After Gordon suffers a mishap, James is left to pull the Express in his place. Rather than the usual formula with the pompous engine being humiliated and upset, Gordon is revealed to be impressed with James' work and encourages him to keep up the good work. The narration explains that James pulls the Express to give Gordon a rest every once in a while, and that Gordon no longer teases James for the bootlace incident, and the two thus cement their Vitriolic Best Buds relationship.

Percy Runs Away

• In the beginning, despite the Fat Controller scolding Gordon, Henry, and James for their behavior in "Trouble in the Shed", he allows them out of the sheds under the condition that they change their behavior. The big engines smile and agree to do so.
• Gordon comes to Percy's rescue and praises Percy for preventing a nasty accident, and Percy in turn congratulates Gordon for stopping so quickly. Considering that Percy had been cheeky to Gordon earlier and that Gordon was previously in disgrace following the strike, the incident resulted in both engines redeeming themselves and ending up on good terms. The US narration even confirms at the end that "the two engines are now good friends."

The Flying Kipper

• Henry returns from Crewe and is greeted with a warm welcome back from the people at the station and is cheered for his new shape.
• Henry pulling the Flying Kipper itself is massively heartwarming on its own, after the Fat Controller promised to let him pull the Express as a reward if he did the job well, despite his near-fatal accident. In the ending scene of the episode, after being given his new shape, he does indeed get to pull the Express after all.

Whistles and Sneezes

• After Henry is miserable after Gordon complaining about him, Percy sympathizes with him and tells him that he is happy to see him back and enjoys hearing his whistling.
  • While Gordon is still being a jerk, he does at least acknowledge that he too is glad Henry is with them again.

Down The Mine

• Thomas and Gordon "forming an alliance" after Gordon helped Thomas from the mine accident. This is quite intriguing considering that the two had quarreled in the first episode.
  • This is brought back up in Season 4's "Paint Pots and Queens" (which takes place directly after "Down the Mine" chronologically) in which the two vouch for each other to the Fat Controller (Gordon asks if Thomas can run his branch line again, Thomas is cut off, but in the books he requests Gordon can pull coaches again).

Season 2

"A few days later when he came home, there was a really rousing welcome for Duck the Great Western Engine."

Thomas, Percy, and the Coal / Double Trouble

• The ending where Thomas and Percy make up for their falling out for their eventful coal incidents, which proves that the two will continue to be friends through the good and the bad.
  Percy: I didn't cause your accident on purpose, Thomas. You do know that, don't you?
  Thomas: Of course, and I'm sorry I was cheeky. Your green paint look splendid again, too. In future, we'll be more careful of coal.
  • What makes this more heartwarming is that this episode ended on a positive note unlike the original adaptation from the book More About Thomas The Tank Engine where Percy vows to pay back Thomas for laughing at him and their fall out extended until the 4th story "Drip Tank".

Old Iron

• In the ending, after Edward saves James from being a runaway engine, James apologises for his anger at him for being late and thanks him for saving him. Edward, despite playfully teasing him about it, makes clear not to worry over it.
  Edward: So the "Old Iron" caught you after all.
  James: I'm sorry. Thank you for saving me. You were splendid, Edward.
  Edward: That's alright.

The Runaway

• It's a minor one, but in most early episodes, whenever something bad happens to one of the engines, the others tend to be shown with dissonant smiles or are even stated to be laughing at them. At the start of this episode however, Duck and Edward are shown giving clearly worried, sympathetic looks to an ill Thomas.

A Close Shave / A Close Shave for Duck

• At the start of the episode, Duck tells Edward about Diesel telling lies about him turning the other engines against him. Edward, being the kind engine, assures Duck he's not a horrid engine and The Fat Controller knows it too.
• After Duck stopped the freight cars from hurting passengers by crashing into a barber shop, the barber scolds Duck and lathers the engine's face in revenge without knowing the scenario. When the Fat Controller explains what happened, the barber is immediately sympathetic and quickly washes Duck's face.
  Barber: I'm sorry. I didn't know you were being a brave engine.
  Duck: That's alright, sir. I didn't know that either.
• Along with Duck being told by The Fat Controller that he can come home, he rolls into the shed, greeted by whistles of all the other engines.

The Deputation

• The ending definitely qualifies. The Fat Controller has been contemplating whether to send Donald or Douglas home.

  Fat Controller: Donald, Douglas, I heard your work in the snow was good. You shall have a new coat of paint.
  Donald: Thank ye, sir!
  Fat Controller: But your names will be painted on you, so there will be no more mistakes.
  Douglas: Does this mean that the both of us...?
  Fat Controller: It means -
  Narrator: But the rest of his speech was drowned by a delighted chorus of cheers and whistles. The twins were here to stay.

  • Before that, there's also the engines sticking up for Donald and Douglas after hearing that the Fat Controller was planning on sending both of them away.

Percy's Predicament

• A short but memorable moment at the end was when Thomas returned from being mended. Annie and Clarabel are overjoyed to see him again.

Edward's Exploit

• Edward, who's often mocked for being the oldest engine, uses everything in him to pull a train after a serious breakdown. He shows up late at the station, but the passengers are so proud of him that they give him a round of applause.

Season 3

Gordon and the Famous Visitor

• The narration states that despite being a celebrity, City of Truro was actually willing to invest emotionally in each of the engines, endearing them to him and showing Gordon's own shallowness.
  • Even in passing, he took time to whistle to Edward while just passing through.
    Duck: He's the finest engine I've ever seen.

Henry's Forest

• The ending doubles as a Tear Jerker.
• The episode itself is also viewed as one of the most relatable storylines in the series, with Henry becoming massively depressed after the forest gets destroyed in a storm. Thomas and Toby both feel very sorry for Henry, knowing how special the forest was to him. Toby later gets to take trucks with new trees to the forest, along with Trevor and Terence helping rebuild the forest, making Henry happy again. Many fans feel that many people who have dealt with loss of something special to them can easily identify with what Henry went through.

Trust Thomas

• The episode sets Thomas up for a Break the Cutie moment. After starting the day exceptionally cheerful, he gets grumbled at by Bertie due to his broken road, is tricked by James into taking his trucks, which then push him into a river. However following the crash, he discovers the missing tar wagon for the road. James is genuinely remorseful for getting Thomas in trouble, while a joyous Bertie takes back everything he said before, with Thomas' optimism paying off.

All at Sea

• The ending narration:
  Narrator: Duck still wonders about the lands beyond the horizon, but he enjoys being with friends most of all, and I think he knows that sometimes, the best travels are those we can only dream about.
  • All of this accompanied by heartwarming music and arguably the most beautiful shot of the series with the engines looking out of the sunset (as seen on the image above).

Escape

• It doesn't outright say it in Escape, but dialogue implies that Douglas had been smuggled to Sodor thanks to Donald. Now he's planning to do the same with Oliver, and though motivated by Edward's story about Trevor as well, it could also double with him following in the footsteps of his twin bro. That has to count for something.

Oliver Owns Up

• Contrary to the original ending of the story in The Railway Series where Oliver was severely scolded by The Fat Controller, Donald, and Douglas for the turntable incident, in here, the Fat Controller is forgiving to him and tells him he has a lot to learn about the Troublesome Trucks, then assures him he doesn't look like a load of scrap iron. Also, the engines then are sympathetic to Oliver and wishes him to return to Little Western soon. Then in the ending, Oliver returns from the works a happier and wiser engine.

Percy, James, and the Fruitful Day

• Thomas' speech to the engines in the end of the episode:
  Thomas: You know, there's more than one way to get jammed. We all learned that today.
  * There's still silence in the sheds*
  Thomas: What's more, we also learned that sometimes when engines help each other out of a jam, things can still go wrong.
  Random engine: So?
  Thomas: So that means we've learned a lot today, and therefore...
  Other engines: We're really useful engines after all!

Season 4

Sleeping Beauty

• Duke reuniting with Sir Handel/Falcon and Peter Sam/Stuart, especially because their relationship hasn't changed at all.
  Duke: You woke me up. In my young days, engines were...
  Sir Handel: Seen and not heard, Granpuff. We know.
  Peter Sam: We'll all be back to work tomorrow. We're glad you've come back.
  Sir Handel/Peter Sam: We can keep you in order now.
  Duke: *playing along* Keep me in order? Be off with you!
  (The tank engines leave)
  Duke: (To self in a playful manner, sleepy) Impudence scallywags.
  Narrator: But his old eyes twinkled and for the first time in years, he smiled as he dozed in the sun.

Four Little Engines

• Skarloey, who was long overdue for repairs at that point, pulled a passenger train for Sir Handel after he fails. But that's not all, one of his springs give way and he struggles on to the station, and makes it. He earns a respectful silence from James, and we get this nice exchange at the end of the episode.
  Skarloey: Old engines can't pull trains like the young ones can...
  Skarloey's driver: They can if they're mended, Old Faithful. And that's what's going to happen to you. You deserve it.

Gallant Old Engine

• Rheneas coming home at the end of the episode.

Season 5

Double Teething Troubles

• Bill and Ben making up with Boco and telling him and Duck that Derek was friendly. Duck also mentions friends say goodnight to each other, despite this the four chat about Derek the whole night.

Something in the Air

• Thomas taking Henry to be cleaned after the latter's Humiliation Conga and the two making up after Henry's rude behavior earlier in the episode.

Sir Topham Hatt's Holiday

• Thomas assuring Annie and Clarabel that they will always be his coaches and really useful after Lady Hatt belittles them for their worn down appearances (of which Thomas' driver suggests they be refurbished).

Make Someone Happy

• Pretty much the entire episode, special mention goes to The Fat Controller for cheering Mrs. Kyndley up and James for learning the values of putting others before one's self.

  James: You were quite right, Thomas. Making someone happy does cheer you up.

Season 6

Harvey To The Rescue

• Thomas and the Fat Controller cheer up a dejected Harvey after he hears about his bad first impressions from the other engines. He later proves his worth and gets a much different reception:

  Harvey: The other engines don't like me. I'm too different.
  Fat Controller: Different is what makes you special.

Twin Trouble

• After getting into an argument with Douglas, Donald has an accident. Compared to most instances where a bickering engine has to be goaded into resentfully helping the other, Duck barely has time to complete the sentence "Donald's in trouble" before Douglas frantically pulls off to help him.

Gordon Takes A Tumble

• Gordon returns to the docks, ashamed and expecting the worst from the other engines after his accident. However Thomas and James are sympathetic and also inform him Salty apologized for teasing him. Cheered up, Gordon also apologizes for being pompous, leading all the engines to whistle happily.

Season 7

Emily's New Coaches

• After Emily proves herself by saving Oliver from being crashed into by Thomas, she gets the happy ending she deserved after all she went through — the Fat Controller rewards her with two coaches of her own, and she and Thomas make up for their earlier misunderstanding. Considering that all the other engines, especially Thomas, have been shunning and ignoring her all because she took Annie and Clarabel without Thomas's permission, it's hard not to feel happy for her when she finally earns their respect. And the way she and Thomas reconcile is quite sweet, too:

  Emily: I'm sorry I took Annie and Clarabel.
  Thomas: And I'm sorry I was so cross.
  Emily: Friends?
  Thomas: Friends.
  

What's the Matter With Henry?

• Emily saving a broken-down and very ill Henry, after the latter was left behind by Thomas and Percy being ignorant when it came to his leaky pipes.
• The sheer fact that, in spite of how much Aesop Amnesia is pretty rampant with these engines, them learning to take Henry's health issues seriously has stuck from this point on. Thomas, who shown Henry No Sympathy in this episode and many before, is sincerely sorry when he realises Henry was genuinely ill, and in episodes such as "It's Good To Be Gordon" and "Henry's Happy Coal" he voices his concern the moment he notices something is wrong with him.

Gordon and Spencer

• While this episode establishes Spencer and his rivalry with Gordon from the get-go, when Spencer finally runs out of water after ignoring Gordon's advice, the latter has no qualms helping him, and while he delights in teasing him a little, he lets Spencer go along with his flimsy excuse for breaking down.

Season 8

Squeak, Rattle and Roll

• Gordon's gears start making unpleasant noises whenever he runs at full speed. Convinced it is a sign he is breaking down, he believes the Fat Controller will send him to the scrapyard the moment he finds out. However, he is later given the job of taking some children to the docks in time for their boat journey home. Rather than risk leaving them stranded by going slow and quiet, he decides to make his last journey one to remember and rushes them over in time. The Fat Controller afterwards commends Gordon and tells him to go over...to the Works and get his gears tuned up.
  Gordon: Does this mean you're not going to scrap me, Sir?
  The Fat Controller: Scrap Gordon? The fastest engine on Sodor? Who would pull the Express?

Thomas, Emily, and the Snowplough

• Despite adopting a bossy attitude towards Thomas earlier on, Emily felt sorry for Thomas after he was scolded by the Fat Controller for not listening to his orders of putting his snowplough. This led her to take the blame by telling the Fat Controller that she neglected to tell Thomas that it was him who ordered her to tell him about the snowplough. After this, Thomas thanks Emily for owning up and promises to listen to her in the near future.

Edward the Great

• While racing Spencer, Edward starts to get tired and considers stopping at a station. However, some workers, who had caught word of the race, start to cheer Edward on, giving Edward the strength to continue. Just goes to show you what a little encouragement can do.
  • As does Gordon, despite his disgust at Edward being elected to race beforehand, taking pity on Edward while passing by and complimenting him.

Season 9

Thomas and the Statue

• The moment where the statue is revealed to feature all of the 8 engines (Thomas, Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Percy, Toby, and Emily) and The Fat Controller.

Season 10

It's Good to be Gordon

• Gordon deciding to give up on his speed record attempt by going back to help Henry, who was ill due to Gordon accidentally taking his special coal. Gordon and Henry swap each others' tenders in order to fix the problem, and puff to Knapford station together, showing that despite them occasionally bickering, Gordon truly does care about Henry.
  • Also the initial reason Gordon finds out is because Thomas realises Henry is sick and voices concern, showing his Character Development from "What's the Matter With Henry" has stuck.

Season 11

Thomas In Trouble

• Thomas recklessly tries to take his train of choir boys to a concert despite not being fully repaired. Despite becoming increasingly ill, he refuses to stop. Each engine he passes shows increasing concern for Thomas' health, even if he spurns this. Eventually Thomas breaks down, leading James, despite some teasing, to take his train and Henry to take him back for repairs.

Season 12

Season 13

Season 14

Season 15

Edward The Hero

• The episode makes up for previous Character Derailment concerning Edward, and spotlights him delaying his time as Rescue Engine to help others while passing by (cheering up Charlie, retrieving Dowager Hatt's luggage and gently returning a lost Katie to Farmer Mc Coll).

Season 16

Thomas and the Sounds of Sodor

• While it's not winning awards for railway realism, it's cute how every engine (even Gordon and James) instantly agree to help Thomas.

Happy Birthday Sir

• The ending in which Thomas and Winston find and restore Sir Topham Hatt's old riding carriage from his younger days. His reaction is nearly overwhelmed.

Season 17

Kevin's Cranky Friend

• Cranky standing up to the Fat Controller and praising Kevin. Kevin's reaction completes it.

Scruff's Makeover

• A minor one, but it's Gordon of all engines that snaps Scruff back to his senses and return to the waste dump. He may be grumpy, bossy and boastful, but he does look out for his fellow engines and helps them get back on track.

The Missing Christmas Decorations

• Percy goes out of his way to make sure Sidney gets a set of new wheels, after he's been left alone at the Dieselworks for two years. The other engines are shocked Percy would give a diesel a gift, especially after the diesels stole and ruined their sheds' Christmas decorations, but Percy firmly believes Christmas is a time for being kind to others.
  • Prior to that, Diesel 10 was firmly convinced the Fat Controller didn't care about his diesels and so gets Paxton to steal Tidmouth Shed's decorations. Eventually Paxton feels guilty and draws the line, instead setting about the order the Fat Controller gave him earlier. As the steamies confront Diesel 10 over his theft, Paxton enters with his special; trucks of Christmas decorations the Fat Controller ordered for the Dieselworks.

Season 18

Disappearing Diesels

• Diesel decides to prank Paxton by having the other diesels at the Dieselworks hide from him. Paxton however, believes that they have all disappeared and goes out looking for them. The other diesels think that they've gone too far seeing this, but Diesel says that it was just a joke. Later, when Diesel's ruse is discovered, Paxton chases after him, confused as to what's going on. After a while of this, Diesel runs out of fuel, and despite everything that he put Paxton through, Paxton cheerfully helps Diesel to get refuelled without a second thought. After this, Diesel is confused as to why Paxton helped him, and at the end of the episode, manages "a friendly smile" in thanks.

Signals Crossed

• Thomas and Henrietta's encouragement for Toby.

Duck In The Water

• James confessing to his mistake and accepting his punishment. Though the Fat Controller disapproves his behavior, he commends him for taking responsibility for it, while Duck and Oliver give silent but clearly sympathetic exchanges, aware this was a lot for someone like James.

Toad's Adventure

• Similarly Toad bailing out James after he almost has to go through this again. Later on they have a friendly exchange, with James helping Toad get in his own story through chatty Oliver.

Duck and the Slip Coaches

• Duck reuniting with his old coaches near the end of the episode.
  • A fairly minor one, but the Fat Controller stops to ask the coaches if they're alright with going with Duck instead of James. It's evident that he cares about every member of his railway - not just his engines, but coaches too.

Missing Gator

• In the end, Percy tells Salty that even if thinking about Gator makes him sad, it also makes him happy. Salty assures that Gator may come back to Sodor, and Percy hopes he's right.
  • The troublesome trucks of all things gets themselves a CMOH. They became delighted that Percy came to rescue them from the mine. Just seeing them smile when they were coupled to Percy was surprisingly pleasant to see.

Long Lost Friend

• Gator finally reuniting with Percy, and confirming he's back to stay.

Duncan the Humbug

• The episode features Duncan struggling to remain happy so he can get a new coat of paint, but when Luke struggles on an icy hill, he finally loses his temper and shouts. When he realizes what he's done, he immediately regrets it and helps Luke up the hill. This doesn't go unnoticed, and Duncan gets his new coat of paint anyway.

The Perfect Gift

• Percy tries to find a gift for Reg, but can find nothing special that Reg would like. When he brings his usual load of scrap, though, Reg is delighted, and he takes some of the scrap to create a makeshift Christmas tree, before giving Percy a homemade Christmas star made out of a fan blade.

Season 19

The Truth about Toby

• Though they might seem rather daft, it's nice how all the engines were worried about the rumor of Toby being scrapped. Even engines like Gordon and James, who sparsely have a nice thing to say about Toby.

Wild Water Rescue

• Diesel tricks Percy into going down a different route, which causes Percy to end up in the water and puts out his firebox. Usually Diesel would just hurl more insults, but in this case he moves in to pull Percy out...which promptly gets his generator damaged. However, even after he admits he pulled a trick, Percy comes to thank Diesel the next day for trying to save him.

Philip to the Rescue

• This gem particularly:
  Thomas: That little box cab can be very cheeky sometimes!
  Edward: Yes, reminds me of a little tank engine who wanted to see the world!
  (Thomas blushes)
  • In addition, a small riff of "Really Useful Engine" plays in return.

Snow Place Like Home

• Victor goes out into the snow to look for Kevin, even though he really hates the snow. And despite how many mistakes the crane has made onscreen, Victor tells Kevin that he considers him to be his best friend.

The Beast of Sodor

• Henry tries to protect Spencer from the "Abominable Snowman" they encounter. Even when Spencer constantly belittles everyone around him, Henry still moves to protect him when his valve bursts. It turns out the "Abominable Snowman" was actually Sir Topham Hatt, but it was still a very nice gesture.

Den and Dart

• The episode features the aforementioned pair working apart for what seems to be the first time. Having to take Mavis' place at the Ffarquhar Quarry, Den struggles with the trucks and clearly feels out of his element. At this point, Toby and Henrietta decide to give him some advice, and soon Den is shunting the trucks with ease, even protecting Toby from a truck that rolled loose. By the end of the episode, Den has sorted out the entire quarry, and as he rolls back to the Dieselworks, Mavis and Toby are very proud of him.
  • When Den returns to the Dieselworks that night, he and Dart are glad to see each other again.

Salty All at Sea

• At first, Salty repeatedly runs away because he's afraid of going on a ship for the first time. Thomas convinces him that he's just letting his imagination run away with him, and Salty works up enough courage to ride the ship the next day. In fact, he doesn't find the voyage to be as bad as he feared.

Helping Hiro

• Hiro calling Thomas a "Master of the Railway", just like him.
• Thomas goes out trying to find parts for Hiro when he causes the Master of the Railway to derail.

Best Engine Ever

• When Emily feels depressed, the other engines are clearly concerned and try to cheer her up. They don't succeed, but it's nice to see they care. Even James.

Goodbye Fat Controller

• The episode pretty much epitomizes how loyal all the engines are to Sir Topham Hatt.

Season 20

Engine of the Future

• Hugo gets shunned by the other engines, convinced he is another revolutionary engine trying to take over the railway. Percy however feels sorry for Hugo, offering his space in the shed and later convincing the others he is a friend. Cue to welcome party.

Love Me Tender

• As a sort of reverse of what happened in season 6, when Thomas points out that Donald's got Douglas' tender as well as his own, Donald immediately starts looking the entire railway for Douglas in the snow, after a feud no less. Douglas' quote near the end sums it up.

  Douglas: Just knowin' that my brother came back for me, has already started warming me up.

All In Vain

• After a panic over his appearance leads to a mishap, James, in a display of humility, lets Edward take the Mayor to Callan Castle instead.
• The next day the Fat Controller reveals the outing went well, but still wants James to explain his silly behaviour. A humiliated James emerges from the shed covered with greenery, leading the other engines to laugh at him, except Edward who feels sorry for him, knowing he tried to make things right.

Henry In The Dark

• A subtle one, but when Gordon and James tease Henry, the other engines can be seen giving disapproving looks.

Season 21

Springtime for Diesel

• Diesel and Daisy becoming friends at the end of the episode.

A Most Singular Engine

• Daisy and Harvey's friendship. Even though they're both different engines, with very different personalities, they still manage to get along in spite of silly rumors spread by Diesel.
• Harvey helping Diesel without a second thought, even though the latter had spread gossip about him.

Hasty Hannah

• Toby and Henrietta's totally platonic reunion.
  Toby: Henrietta!
  Henrietta: Toby!
  Toby: Henrietta!
  Henrietta: Toby!
  Toby: Henrietta!

New Crane on the Dock

• After Cranky and Carly learn to communicate, they easily become better co-workers, as well as friends. Salty put it best:
  Salty: Two cranes, working together in perfect harmony!
• The "hook-five" between Cranky, Carly, and Big Mickey at the end of the episode, after Salty compares them to the Three Musketeers.

Season 22

Forever and Ever

• The mere fact that Gordon cares so much about Edward and Henry, after the latter two's departure from the group at Tidmouth Sheds to take up residency at Wellsworth and Vicarstown respectively, cementing the end of the "Three Railway Engines" with the trio's permanent separation. In spite of his not always appreciative treatment of them in the past, he genuinely can't stand the idea of spending the rest of his life without them.
• After Gordon has a temper tantrum, he and Nia have an honest conversation.
  Nia: I know change can be hard, Gordon. Almost everything in my life has changed. I'm in a new country on a new railway trying to make new friends. And all my old friends are much farther away than Henry and Edward are going to be. And you know something else?
  Gordon: What?
  Nia: My old friends are still my friends.
• Gordon and Nia bonding at the end of the episode.
  Gordon: Thank you, Nia. I'm sorry about being rude to you yesterday, and that you don't get to see your old friends anymore.
  Nia: Thank you, Gordon. I'm happy to be friends, if you are.
  Gordon: So am I.

Confusion Without Delay

• Gordon's friendship with new Tidmouth Sheds resident Rebecca that is developed at the end of the episode, after initially hating her for taking Henry's place. Rebecca helped stick up for Gordon when Flying Scotsman bullied him, with Rebecca saying that Gordon looks more like a "big brother" than Scotsman.

What Rebecca Does

• Rebecca feeling worried that she is inferior due to not having a special gimmick like Harvey, Belle or Marion. She does later realise that she has a special gimmick of her own, and that is seeing the positive side in everyone.

Rosie Is Red

• Thomas apologizing to Rosie for avoiding her because Diesel, Bill, and Ben tease him for being Rosie's "special friend", and also admitting he likes her as a friend, which Rosie agrees.

Season 23

Wish You Were Here

• Thomas sending Percy a postcard all the way from China at the end of the episode. Percy is delighted to receive it, and admits that he misses Thomas as well.

Mines of Mystery

• After Thomas says he has had enough Italy because all he does is ask too many questions and gets lost in mines and they now have the Sodor Construction team, Gina stops him by saying she loves working with him because he is her friend.

Season 24

Emily to the Rescue

• Gordon's immediate reaction to seeing James, Percy and Rebecca derailed on the level crossing is to ask if they're alright. He sounds genuinely concerned as well; he may get annoyed by the other engines' antics, but he still cares about them.

Sonny's Second Chance

• After Diesel reveals to Percy that he tricked Sonny into being his friend to get him to do the jobs he doesn't like for him, Sonny runs away in disbelief. When Diesel chases after him, he runs over a set of points just as they change, causing him to derail and hang precariously over a trench. When Sonny hears Diesel's cry for help, he wastes no time in getting Diesel back on the rails.
  Diesel: Sonny? Y-y-you came back!
  Sonny: Of course.
  Diesel: Oh, thank you! I... (stammers) I didn't deserve that.
  Sonny: Nope, probably not. Consider it a second chance.
• Just afterwards, Sir Topham Hatt arrives at the scene of the accident and demands to know why Diesel's fish trucks have derailed. When Sonny tells him that the accident was his fault, Sir Topham Hatt is about to send him away in disgrace, but Diesel sticks up for Sonny, saying that the accident with the fish trucks was his fault, not Sonny's, and that Sonny saved him from falling into the trench. Upon hearing this, Sir Topham Hatt tells Sonny that looking after a friend is even more important than being really useful, and since he has proven he is reliable and trustworthy, he can stay on Sodor after all.
• At the end of the episode, Percy tells Sonny that Salty told him that he rescued James from the watermelons. Upon hearing this, James admits to Sonny that he was wrong about him.
  James: (nervously) Yeah, I'm sure Sonny doesn't want us embarrassing him, but, uh... sorry I said you were nothing but trouble.
  Sonny: Don't worry, James. We all make mistakes, don't we? Maybe you just need a second chance!

Feature-Length Specials

• Thomas and the Magic Railroad
• The Great Discovery
• Hero of the Rails
• Misty Island Rescue
• Day Of The Diesels
• Tale of the Brave
• The Adventure Begins
• Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure
• The Great Race
• Big World! Big Adventures!

Other

• The song "That's What Friends are For", one of the most emotional pieces of music made for the series.
• Mr. Perkins segments on the DVD releases of new episodes, mainly in that they feature the titular character reading a slightly abridged version of the Railway Series Stories, even featuring most of the original illustrations as well as a few new ones, showing that the show is starting to acknowledge its roots for the first time since Series 2.
• For the 70th anniversary of the Railway Series, Mattel is releasing a limited edition Wooden Railway model of Thomas, modeled after the very first Thomas toy: a wooden train Rev. W. Awdry made for his son Christopher.
• The opening to "Tit for Tat" becomes Heart Warming In Hindsight once you learn the Thin Clergyman is The Reverend W. Awdry's Author Avatar. Thomas gets to speak to the man who created him.
• The song "Donald's Duck" is an absolutely adorable ditty about the bond between Donald and Dilly, especially whenever the line "Now everyone calls her Donald's Duck, but she's my Quackeroo" comes up.

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