RWS #39: Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines

The Railway Series 50th anniversary book is finally being reviewed today, featuring Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines!

THE OPINIONS, THOUGHTS AND MUSINGS IN THIS BLOG POST ARE SOLELY THOSE OF ZACK WANZER, NOT THE THOMAS FANDOM IN GENERAL

(special thanks to the Thomas the Tank Engine Wikia for the images)

The Railway Series Book #39

Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines

Written by Christopher Awdry

Illustrated by Clive Spong

Published August 1, 1995

Originally, Christopher Awdry had intended to publish a book he was already happy with called Barry the Rescue Engine, which was created back in the 1980s, but the book was instead shunted aside for a special book based on the Railway Series' fiftieth anniversary originally titled The Fat Controller's Engines. However, Egmont wanted the book to be marketable by adding Thomas' name to the title, but more on this later. Was it worth it?

Dear Friends,
I went to see the Fat Controller the other day. I told him that in 1995 it would be fifty years since the first stories about his Railway were published.

"Good gracious me!" he said. "We must do something to celebrate that."

And he set to work. Not everything went quite right. For instance, Thomas... but I won't spoil the stories - happy reading.
The Author

Birdstrike

The Fat Controller announces that the Golden Jubilee of the Railway Series will be celebrated, and has borrowed Pip and Emma to pull the special train. Gordon is disappointed, but near Henry's tunnel, he gets a nasty fright when crows fly too close to him when he startles them with his whistle and the brakes come on. It turns out that a bird knocked the seal off Gordon's front brakepipe, and afterwards, the others tease Gordon about his mishap.

The incident feels a lot like James and the Bootlaces, only this time, Gordon hadn't done anything wrong beforehand. Considering James had had a similar incident, couldn't he have defended Gordon? Again, this story shows some unoriginality on Christopher's part.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Edward and the Cabbages

One day, Edward is in a rush to make up for lost time when James runs late. However, the blue engine feels that his front feels wobbly, and when he passes a cabbage patch, one of his leading wheels breaks off and disappears. It turns out it landed in a cabbage patch, discovered by a surprised farmer.

Here we go; now there's some originality. What makes this story better than Wonky Whistle was that it was a normal day in the life of Edward and a mishap occurs to him whilst pulling a train, and his crew stopped him in case a worse accident might have taken place. I'd be surprised too if an engine's wheel ended up in my field (I don't have a field, but you know what I mean). Plus, the joke the Fat Controller makes at the end is pretty amusing - there are safer ways to cutting cabbages!

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Rabbits

At the stretch before Dryaw, rabbits have been burrowing underneath, so the Fat Controller imposes a 10 mph speed limit for the time being. Before the decision can be put into effect, Thomas suffers from a derailment due to a tilted rail. Percy takes Annie and Clarabel home and pulls Thomas back to Knapford after the blue tank engine is rerailed with the help of jacks.

This is how you do stories involving animals; with proper research. Rabbits burrowing under railway tracks can actually happen, and that results in speed limits being imposed. It's frustrating, yes, but we all have to put up with it until the problem is fully dealt with. I wonder how they dealt with the rabbits afterward? It best not involve hunting or Fluttershy would be upset...!

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

Golden Jubilee

Owing to Thomas and Edward's recent accidents, Henry believes the Golden Jubilee will end in disaster. However, on the big day, Thomas' branchline and Edward's wheels have been repaired and the blue tender engine clears the line for Pip and Emma. Unfortunately, Edward and the Ffarquhar engines are halted at Knapford due to a short-circuit in the signalbox by a spider's cobweb. They are flagged through, and the ceremony is a big success, with the guest of honor, Prince Charles of Wales, declaring the NWR engines a credit to the Fat Controller.

The brief intro with the spider finding a warm corner underneath the signalbox might seem pointless, but it's actually a good set up to what happened later on in the story. Also, the last two illustrations ill-fit the story's context; Gordon, James and Henry were at the station first, but how did Thomas and Mavis get in front of them? Even more puzzling is that Edward should have been at the station, but he isn't! It's a nice finale, but the last two illustrations not matching the text really put me off...

Rating: 9 out of 10

Stray Observation

Remember what I said about putting Thomas' name in the title? He's one of the Fat Controller's engines, but to call the book Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines leaves behind an implication that he isn't an NWR engine. The book itself was intended to be a marketing tool, but the irony is that while Christopher's books were out of print, this was the hardest to obtain. And people thought Hit Entertainment introducing new characters was a marketing tool...

Overall

So, was it really worth replacing Barry the Rescue Engine? Frankly, no. Just because Thomas was a big name on television, that doesn't necessarily mean you should scrap a book the author was happy with and replace it with something else. I dunno about you, but it seems like after Duke the Lost Engine, five-year anniversaries for Thomas were pretty much flubs. While Thomas and the Magic Railroad wasn't the worst special, it was very average at most; although I find Calling All Engines to be good, I partially agree that it was cliched, and Misty Island Rescue was just a mess. The Adventure Begins was very much... Well, I'll get to that next week.

As for Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines? Despite the good intentions to celebrate 50 years of the books, I wouldn't have minded if Barry the Rescue Engine was published instead. Why have a book celebrating a book series' anniversary when you can publish a book featuring a new character instead?

Overall Book Rating: 8.5 out of 10

The Railway Series Scorecard

1. The Three Railway Engines: 8.4

2. Thomas the Tank Engine: 9
3. James the Red Engine: 7.5
4. Tank Engine Thomas Again: 9.5
5. Troublesome Engines: 8.1
6. Henry the Green Engine: 8.4
7. Toby the Tram Engine: 9
8. Gordon the Big Engine: 8.6
9. Edward the Blue Engine: 9.3
10. Four Little Engines: 8.8
11. Percy the Small Engine: 8.9
12. The Eight Famous Engines: 8.8
13. Duck and the Diesel Engine: 8.5
14. The Little Old Engine: 8.9
15. The Twin Engines: 9.1
16. Branch Line Engines: 9.3
17. Gallant Old Engine: 9.3
18. Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine: 8.5

19. Mountain Engines: 8.9
20. Very Old Engines: 9.1
21. Main Line Engines: 9
22. Small Railway Engines: 9.3
23. Enterprising Engines: 9.5
24. Oliver the Western Engine: 8.9
25. Duke the Lost Engine: 9.4
26. Tramway Engines: 9.1
27. Really Useful Engines: 8.3
28. James and the Diesel Engines: 7.5
29. Great Little Engines: 9
30. More About Thomas the Tank Engine: 8.5
31. Gordon the High-Speed Engine: 9.3
32. Toby, Trucks and Trouble: 9.1
33. Thomas and the Twins: 9.3
34. Jock the New Engine: 7.9
35. Thomas and the Great Railway Show: 8.5
36. Thomas Comes Home: 8.6
37. Henry and the Express: 9.4
38. Wilbert the Forest Engine: 7.6
39. Thomas and the Fat Controller's Engines: 8.5