Thomas gets lost at sea and discovers a mysterious island, where he befriends three engines called the Logging Locos and tries to get back home.
Misty Island Rescue contains examples of:
- All There in the Stinger: It ends with Diesel 10 vowing the engines will be laughing on the other side of their boilers soon. Cue Day of the Diesels...
- And I Must Scream: Thomas and the Logging Locos get trapped inside the tunnel back to Sodor, nobody knowing where they are until Thomas uses his smoke as an SOS.
- Bottle Episode: The majority of the movie is set around the titular island and Brendam Docks, with occasional appearances by Tidmouth Sheds and the Steamworks.
- Character Catchphrase: Ferdinand's "That's right!".
- Chekhov's Gun: Thomas was taught about the smoke signals by Salty. While they're stranded in the tunnel connecting Sodor to Misty Island, Thomas and the Logging Locos use them to form an SOS signal from a hole above to alert the other engines of their plight and location.
- Cliffhanger: The Stinger with Diesel 10 promising ruin and destruction for all with an Evil Laugh, without any narration.
- Companion Cube: Ol' Wheezy and Hee-Haw are machines with names but no faces, but they are treated as if they are sentient.
- Creative Closing Credits: Similar to the previous special, the end credits flash over a montage of scenes from the movie as the titular song is sung.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: For Thomas, he's finally found by his friends after getting stranded on Misty Island for days on end. Even his friends finally receive closure from their search for him by finding him.
- "Everybody Laughs" Ending: But then subverted by The Stinger as mentioned later.
- Everyone Has Standards: Despite his contempt towards Diesel throughout the start of the special and fighting over the train of jobi wood, Thomas is terrified when Diesel nearly plummets over a cliff and wastes no time saving him.
- Fantastic Racism: In one scene, Thomas expresses this towards Diesel. Diesel thinks he's really useful to take the logs, but Thomas says, "No, Diesel! I'm sure Sir Topham Hatt means a really useful steamie. You'll never be that!".
- Foreshadowing: The events of Salty's story match what happens to Thomas throughout the movie.
- Freeze-Frame Bonus: A calender is seen behind Sir Topham Hatt as he gets the call that Thomas is missing. If you look closely, it has a layout for 2011 and 1960, the latter of these giving a clue to when the series timeline is set.
- Leave Me Alone!: Thomas refuses the Logging Locos' help at first.
- Lost Aesop: This is supposedly about making decisions, but this message is inverted and subverted so many times it's impossible to tell whether the writers support or condemn the idea of Thomas making decisions for others. The nearest to some direct conclusion is the observation that "No one can make good decisions all the time."
- Mood Whiplash:
- Diesel losing the jobi wood causes the movie to become more emotional from there.
- Then, Thomas gets lost at sea.
- After the movie's cheery end credits, we get a shocking extra scene where Diesel 10 spies on the engines, promising trouble, which ends on a cliffhanger. Thankfully, this scene is not included in any book adaptions.
- No Antagonist: There is no villain in the movie, though Diesel causes most of the conflict. Come the stinger, however...
- Ominous Fog: Whenever the mist comes down. Most notable when Thomas first comes to the island and when Edward, James and Gordon come to find him but get lost.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: After Sir Topham Hatt finds Thomas, who was lost on Misty Island, he is so overjoyed to have found him, he tosses his Top Hat into the air, not caring the least when it disappears into the mist.Sir Topham Hatt: I can always find another hat, but I can never find another Thomas.
- Punny Name: Lampshaded by the Logging Locos when they find Sir Topham Hatt's name funny.
- Save the Villain: Thomas saves Diesel from falling off a bridge, only to lose the jobi wood in the process.
- Sequel Hook: The Stinger foreshadows Day of the Diesels.
- Shout-Out: The intro music has a strong Pirates of the Caribbean style to it.
- The Stinger: Right after the credits end, we see Diesel 10 watching the grand opening from the bridge the chase from earlier took place, telling them they'll be "laughing on the other side of their boilers soon", foreshadowing the events of Day of the Diesels.
- Reassigned to Antarctica: The Logging Locos were sent to live on Misty Island because of the trouble they caused on the mainland.
- Rhymes on a Dime: About a third of the movie.
- The Opening Narration.
- When crossing the Shake Shake Bridge: "Shake! Shake! Make me quake! Make me quake until I shake!"
- Wham Episode: The Sodor Search and Rescue Center is constructed, and the tunnel to Misty Island is restored so engines can go there any time.
- You Didn't Ask: Thomas when he realizes there was a tunnel back to Sodor the whole time.
