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Calling All Engines!

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This article is about 'the film'. You may be looking for 'the book, the colouring book, the other colouring book, the Leapster game, or the segments'.
“Steamies and diesels need to work together!”
― Thomas

Calling All Engines! is a feature-length Thomas & Friends special. It was distributed by HiT Entertainment in 2005. It was re-released by Lionsgate in 2009. It was later re-released again by Universal in 2014.

Plot

Summer is coming since the engines are looking forward to taking holidaymakers around Sodor. One day, the Fat Controller announces that an airport is to be built on Sodor, which will bring more holidaymakers than ever. Thomas and Percy go to the site of the new airport, only to discover that 'Arry and Bert are on the same job.

That afternoon, Thomas goes to the timber yard and finds 'Arry and Bert there. As they boast that their job is very important, Thomas doesn't think so and biffs their flatbeds just before the crane drops the timber. Whilst Thomas and Percy are shunting trucks, Diesel confronts Thomas about the trouble he had caused for 'Arry and Bert and boasts that he too has an important job.

After shunting trucks of bananas for Diesel as a prank, Thomas and Percy go to the Smelters to collect some steel girders. Upon arrival, they see that Diesel 10 has returned and are so scared that they run away. On their way home, Thomas and Percy are surprised to see the Sodor Suspension Bridge is not painted and the new airport is only half-built. Worse still, Tidmouth Sheds have been demolished to make way for the new sheds, but since Thomas gave Diesel bananas the renovation is running late. The engines are forced to sleep elsewhere, with James sleeping at the Coaling Plant, Edward sleeping at the Quarry with Diesel, Henry and Percy sleeping at the Smelter Yards, Gordon sleeping under a tent and Thomas sleeping at Knapford Sheds with Emily. That night, a fierce storm sweeps across Sodor and causes havoc. The next morning, the Fat Controller tells the engines that the storm damage must be cleared up before the work on the new sheds and the airport can continue.

The next morning, Thomas is sent to collect some iron beams for the suspension bridge from Brendam. Upon arrival at the suspension bridge, Thomas feels tired and declares that the beams need to be placed. When Diesel wants to do it, the foreman decides to let Thomas do it. Thomas manages to lower the beams into place, much to Diesel's fury.

When Thomas goes to collect paint for the bridge, Diesel biffs Thomas's flatbed so hard that paint splashes all over Thomas, who is so angry that when sees Arry, he biffs him into a pile of gravel. In retaliation, Arry biffs James under the coal hopper. The matter escalates until all the engines are fighting. By the end of the day, everyone is dirty and no work has been done.

The Fat Controller is angry at the delays and tells the engines that no holiday makers will come to Sodor. This leaves the engines deeply worried over their recent actions. As a result, several of them dream what might happen to them if no holidaymakers come to Sodor and the engines are no longer useful. James has a dream that he turns into a carnival game, Gordon turns into a playground, Edward turns into a scarecrow and Percy turns into a Roller Coaster. As for Thomas, he has a dream on how to make things better. In his dream, he sees Lady and Rusty working together. As Lady tells Thomas about teamwork, Thomas goes off to find Mavis as soon as he wakes up.

Thomas finds Mavis at the wash-down and tells her about his plan: the Diesels and steam engines must work together to save the new airport and their home. Mavis explains that they must talk to each other first, so Thomas suggests to have a meeting at the coaling plant the next day. When Thomas and Mavis tell the engines about the meeting, Thomas decides to tell Diesel 10, but gets cold wheels and backs down. The next day, Thomas races to the coaling plant and gets there, just to see 'Arry and Bert almost calling the meeting off as the engines start to argue about who is to blame for starting the trouble. Thomas explains that they must work together and at last the engines put their differences aside. When Harold brings the Fat Controller, Thomas explains that the steam engines and Diesels have finally agreed to work together.

Very soon, the new airport is complete and the first aeroplane is sent to Sodor, but when Thomas' trucks come off the rails, they hit the water tower, which collapses to the ground and cracks the runway. The workmen quickly fix the runway, but find that they need George to finish the job and with Harvey on the other side of Sodor there is no chance of the aeroplane landing. Thomas quickly has an idea and rushes off to find Diesel 10. Thomas asks Diesel 10 to help them and tells him that he will be the most useful engine of the day. Diesel 10 is hesitant at first, but eventually agrees and follows Thomas to the airport. Mavis, Percy, 'Arry and Bert are surprised to see Thomas and Diesel 10 working together. Seeing Diesel 10 working alongside a steam engine convinces 'Arry and Bert to finally respect the steam engines themselves. With the aid of the other engines, they clear up the mess and Thomas collects George to fix the runway.

With the runway smooth again, the aeroplane lands at last. The engines have learnt that teamwork runs a railway, not opposition about their differences. That evening, the engines are happy to see Tidmouth Sheds rebuilt, especially Emily when she finds that she is staying at Tidmouth Sheds from now on.

Characters

Characters Introduced

Locations

Bonus Features

UK/AUS

US

(2005 Release Only)

  • Calling All Engines! game
  • Diesel 10 Means Trouble - Read along
  • Character Gallery
  • Deleted Scenes
  • Music Video - Busy, Trying, Together and Dream Song
  • Web Fun
  • HiT Extras:
    • Toddworld: Sophie's Sinking Feeling (Taken from a Toddworld DVD called Come Over to My House as a Bonus Story)
    • Fireman Sam: Paper Plane Down (only on Lionsgate 2009 release).

Trivia

  • This special marked the first of several things:
    • The first full-length, one hour special released directly to DVD and VHS (and the second full-length special overall, after Thomas and the Magic Railroad).
    • The first special narrated by Jon Kabira in Japan as well as a brand new voice cast.
    • This is the first special filmed interlaced on Digibeta technology.
    • The first appearances of Edward, Bill, Ben, Emily, Harvey, Diesel, Mavis, 'Arry, Bert, Salty, Rusty, George, Sir Topham Hatt, Stephen Hatt, Bridget Hatt, Farmer McColl, Jem Cole, the Sodor Brass Band and the Refreshment Lady in a special.
    • The first special to adapt the standard storytelling style of narration seen in the TV series, as Thomas and the Magic Railroad was primarily dialogue and script acting.
    • Daisy's first appearance since the fourth season episode Bulls Eyes, Derek's since his debut in the fifth season and Lady and Diesel 10's first appearances since Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
    • The first special to feature a narrow gauge engine (Rusty).
    • The first DVD/VHS to be released by 2Entertain though a VCI version of the VHS exists.
    • The first special not to feature Knapford station, although it did make a stock footage appearance at the beginning.
    • The first special to feature Sir Topham Hatt's catchphrase, "confusion and delay".
  • This special also marked a few one-time things:
    • The only special written by Paul Larson.
    • To date, the only special not to introduce any new characters.
    • The only special that features stock footage from Learning Segments incorporated into the narrative and the storyline.
    • The only special until The Adventure Begins to celebrate the franchise's anniversary.
    • The only special until The Great Race in which the narrator does not read the title and Toby appears but does not speak.
    • The only appearances of Caroline, Derek, the Coaling Plant Manager and Jeremiah Jobling in a special.
    • Daisy's only appearance in the New Series.
  • This special marked the last of a few things:
  • Stock footage from Fish, Thomas and the Circus, Emily's Adventure, Percy's New Whistle, Thomas and the Firework Display, James Gets a New Coat, Edward the Great, Emily's New Route & some Learning Segments such as Being Blue, How Does Emily Get to the Station?, Toby is Surprised to see... & How Does Thomas Get to the Timber Yards? as well as alternate footage from Percy's Scary Tale is used.
  • Almost four years after the release, the songs were re-released with extended versions with lyrics on the Songs from Sodor UK DVD.
  • This special aired on Channel Five's Milkshake in the UK in 2008 and then again on Christmas Eve 2009.
  • This special was made to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the franchise.
  • Starting from this special onwards, the diesels have all abandoned their desire to scrap all the steam engines and instead wish to prove themselves superior to steam engines.
  • This is the second time an engine has been pushed onto the coal tipper. The first time was in Middle Engine.
  • A blackboard in the airport manager's office shows flights from Athens, Madrid, Brussels, Paris, Istanbul, Milan, Canterbury, Bristol and London.
  • Toad's scrap model from Escape is seen when Henry and Percy are at the Smelter's Yard.
  • This special takes place between the eighth and ninth seasons.
  • Several props including one of the paint cans were sold to The Coffey Man Preservation from The Prop Store.
  • Mavis receives a new horn sound starting with this special.
  • Rusty's small scale model is used when he is working in the hills with Lady.
  • This special was shown for one week only in Cinemax cinemas in Germany in September 2006.
  • In the Greek version, James' English name is used once by accident.
  • An edited image from Toby's Windmill is on the back cover of the UK DVD, with Toby's face changed from sad to happy.
  • The cover of this special made a background appearance in one of the CBS's television show episodes of The Big Bang Theory during its second series.
  • In the close-up of Percy sleeping, his sleeping face was edited to make him look like he is frowning.
  • During Percy's nightmare, he is wearing goggles.
  • When re-released in 2014, the bonus features were removed for unknown reasons.
  • When the special was shown on Nick Jr, the learning segments and songs were removed.
  • The Original US DVD Back Cover says the film is 150 minutes. This was later fixed on the Lionsgate and Universal releases.
  • In the Calling All Engines game, Diesel 10's animated picture was illustrated by Richard Courtney, the same man who illustrated the book Diesel 10 Means Trouble.
  • Thomas and the Magic Railroad was never shown in Norway and Poland, so the Norwegian and Polish audiences would not know who Lady and Diesel 10 are.

Goofs

  • At the beginning when Emily passes the Windmill, the middle wheel of the rear coach has been pushed out of it's housing.
  • The narrator says Thomas and Diesel 10 puffed as fast as they could, but Diesel 10 is a diesel and therefore does not puff.
  • In the third interactive segment, Annie is facing backwards.
  • When Diesel says "You gave me bananas!", his eyes are wonky.
  • Wires are visible through Daisy's windows.
  • In the scene of Rusty and Lady, Rusty's eyes are wonky.
  • When the diesel engines honk their horns at the end of the film, Salty's sixth season horn sound is heard, but he is not present at the airport.
  • When Thomas pushes Arry into the pile of gravel, his face gets covered in dust. But in the next scene when Arry pushes James under the coal hopper, the dust disappears. It reappears later when he pushes Henry under the broken pipe.
  • During Diesel 10's second scene, his pupils become smaller.
  • When Lady chuffs up to Thomas in his dream, her siderods do not move.
  • Due to stock footage being used, when the narrator says "Soon all the engines on the island knew about the meeting", a fish can be seen on Thomas' boiler.
  • Due to stock footage being used, Edward's whistle is bent when he is on his way to the Coaling Plant.
  • Due to faces being reused from Thomas and the Magic Railroad and having new faces in the special, the size of Diesel 10's face changes throughout the special.
  • When Diesel was preparing to biff the paint cans, his eyes popped out, but for a few seconds.
  • When Thomas and Percy pass each other at Brendam Docks, the truck in front of Thomas wobbles.
  • The trailer for this special claims that this is "Thomas' first full-length special", but Thomas and the Magic Railroad, released in 2000, was actually the first special of Thomas & Friends.

Songs

Merchandise

View content

Books

Video Games

Take Along

  • Sodor Airport Set
  • Calling All Engines! Gift Pack
  • Thomas and the Paint Car

Motor Road and Rail

  • Thomas and the Airport set
  • Suspension Bridge
  • Ringing Paint Thomas in Tekoro

TrackMaster

  • Thomas Makes a Mess

Wooden Railway

  • Storm on Sodor Set
  • Sodor Suspension Bridge
  • Paint-splattered Thomas
  • Calling All Engines pack

Capsule Plarail

  • Paint-covered Thomas
  • Roller-coaster Percy
  • Sodor Airport
  • Suspension Bridge

Tomica

  • Paint-splattered Thomas

Push 'n' Go

  • Paint splattered Thomas

Limited Edition Collection

  • Paint splattered Thomas

DVD Boxsets

UK

AUS

US

HUN

ROM

日本語 Polski
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