Misty Island Rescue

"Cranky! Salty! Look! That must be Misty Island!"

- Percy

Misty Island Rescue is a feature-length Thomas and Friends special released as a DVD/Blu-ray combo pack in the US on September 7th, 2010 and on DVD in the UK on October 11th, 2010.

Plot
A new Search and Rescue Centre is being built on the Island of Sodor as a base of operations for Harold, Rocky, and a new lifeboat named Captain. Special super strong, deep red Jobi wood, from Hiro's homeland, is being used to make the Centre. All the engines are very excited and all want to help deliver the Jobi wood to the Rescue Centre. Frustrated at being teased by Thomas for not being a steam engine, Diesel tries to prove his superiority over the steam engines by taking the Jobi wood to the Rescue Centre himself and races down the tracks. Thomas sees that Diesel is going too fast and chases after him. The chase results in an exciting rescue as Thomas saves Diesel from falling over the edge of the unfinished bridge but the Jobi wood crashes into the sea below - now there is no wood to build the Rescue Centre.

As a reward for his daring rescue Thomas is given the job of collecting new wood from the mainland. He is then told there is no room on the steam boat, but Thomas asks to be carried on a raft behind the boat. Thomas waves goodbye to his friends at Brendam Docks and heads across the sea to the mainland. That night the raft carrying Thomas becomes separated from its tugboat and Thomas ends up alone and stranded on the mysterious Misty Island - a wild and wonderful island with a multitude of secret hide outs, rickety tracks, and bridges. Thomas discovers that the island has its own railway and meets the three engines, known as the "Logging Locos", who run it - Ferdinand, and two small twin engines named Bash and Dash, who were sent to the island after causing trouble on the mainland. Thomas also finds that Misty Island has plentiful supplies of the rare Jobi wood. With the help of his new friends, Thomas attempts to find his way back to Sodor and uncovers more of Misty Island's mysteries - including a tunnel that connects the two islands. Meanwhile, out at sea, Harold and Captain carry out a search party to look for Thomas.

Thomas decides to go through the tunnel back to Sodor, but he and the Logging Locos get trapped after the tunnel falls in. Thomas then tries the smoke signals Salty told him about. After being spotted by Percy, the Fat Controller, James, Edward, and Gordon sail to Misty Island in hopes of finding Thomas while Percy and Whiff go through the tunnel. They eventually come to the blockade, break through to Thomas, and they all puff back to Sodor. Thomas sails back to Misty Island again to find the Fat Controller and the engines.

After the Logging Locos are given the Sodor treatment at the Steamworks, they help to build the Rescue Centre. They finish it in time and it is soon opened.

As the engines are laughing with their new friends at the Search and Rescue Centre, Diesel 10 rolls up on the mountain ledge, sniggers, and glares down at the engines remarking that they will laugh on the other side on their boilers soon.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Toby
 * Emily
 * Whiff
 * Hiro
 * Victor
 * Bash and Dash
 * Ferdinand
 * Diesel
 * Diesel 10
 * Salty
 * Rocky
 * Harold
 * Kevin
 * Captain
 * Cranky
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * The Docks Manager
 * Spencer (does not speak)
 * The Duke and Duchess of Boxford (do not speak)
 * Rosie (cameo)
 * Stanley (cameo)
 * Mavis (cameo)
 * Bertie (cameo)
 * Butch (cameo)
 * Lady Hatt (cameo)
 * Mr. Percival (cameo)
 * Farmer McColl (cameo)
 * Farmer Trotter (cameo)
 * Sodor Brass Band (cameo)
 * The Bird Watcher (cameo)
 * The Teacher (cameo)

Locations

 * Island of Sodor
 * Misty Island
 * Shake Shake Bridge
 * The Search and Rescue Centre
 * Sodor Steamworks
 * Brendam Docks
 * Whiff's Waste Dump
 * Echo Valley
 * Misty Island Tunnel
 * Tidmouth Sheds
 * The Logging Pond
 * The Logging Station
 * The Zip-Line Bridge
 * Misty Island Seashore
 * The Washdown

UK and AUS

 * Michael Angelis as the narrator
 * Ben Small as Thomas, Toby, and Ferdinand
 * Keith Wickham as Percy, James, Gordon, Henry, Edward, Dash, The Fat Controller, Harold, Captain, Salty, and Whiff
 * Teresa Gallagher as Emily
 * Matt Wilkinson as Rocky, Victor, Bash, Cranky, Diesel 10, Kevin, and the Dock Manager
 * Kerry Shale as Diesel
 * Togo Igawa as Hiro

USA

 * Michael Brandon as the narrator and Diesel
 * Martin Sherman as Thomas and Percy
 * Kerry Shale as The Fat Controller, Henry, Gordon, James, Harold, Bash, and Kevin
 * William Hope as Edward, Toby, Whiff, Dash, and the Dock Manager
 * Glenn Wrage as Ferdinand, Rocky, and Cranky
 * Jules de Jongh as Emily
 * Keith Wickham as Captain and Salty
 * Togo Igawa as Hiro
 * David Bedella as Victor
 * Matt Wilkinson as Diesel 10

Rupert Degas was the original voice of Diesel 10 in both the UK and US versions, but was replaced by Matt Wilkinson for the final cut.

UK

 * Misty Island Rescue sing-along song
 * Down at the Station: Water
 * "The Search for Thomas" game
 * The Fat Controller song (only after completing the Search for Thomas game)

US

 * "The Search for Thomas" game
 * Misty Island Rescue Karaoke music video
 * Sir Topham Hatt Karaoke music video

Trivia

 * This special marked Diesel 10, Salty, Whiff, Stanley, and Butch's first appearances in CGI.
 * This special was shown in select US, UK, and Australian theaters. It was also shown on many PBS stations a few weeks before its release in the US and later aired in the UK on Channel Five's Milkshake on Christmas Eve 2010 then again on Easter Sunday 2011, with Diesel 10's scene omitted. It also aired on PBS Sprout on August 20th, 2011, in the UK on Nick Jr on October 28th, 2012, and in Norway on TV 2 December 29th, 2013 and January 3rd, 2014.
 * This was the first special to be released on Blu-ray for the US and Australia. It was also intended to be released on Blu-ray in the UK in April 2011, but HiT cancelled the plans at the last minute.
 * This release is available on iTunes.
 * This marks the only time in the US that the DVD disc doesn't feature Thomas.
 * The picture of Harold on the front cover is taken from James Works It Out.
 * Stock footage from Steamy Sodor and Henry's Good Deeds is used.
 * Ferdinand says "That's right!" seventeen times during the special.
 * Diesel has a different horn sound.
 * This was Sharon Miller's first special as voice director. This was also her only special as creative producer.
 * This was Jo Jordan's only special as creative producer.
 * In the Fat Controller's trailer, while he is on the phone, his calender has a promo picture of Thomas. And, apparently, the events of this special take place in April 1960; five years after The Great Discovery.
 * When Thomas first arrives on Misty Island, Dash is the engine that plays "rattling wheels" with him.
 * Diesel 10 was originally voiced by Rupert Degas.
 * Diesel 10's appearance foreshadows Day of the Diesels.
 * This special takes place between the thirteenth and fourteenth seasons.
 * This is the first special to have a post-credits scene.

Goofs

 * Jules de Jongh is mentioned in the UK credits despite not having a role.
 * On the cover, Harold is smaller compared to Captain.
 * It's said that this is the first time Thomas left Sodor. He has, however, left at least three times before (including Railway Series appearances).
 * As the events of this special take place in 1960, Salty's appearance is impossible as his basis was not built for another two years. It would also be impossible for Emily to appear, because she arrived in 1967 or later, as Oliver, whose life she saved on her first day, arrived in 1967.
 * Early in the special, Harold is flying above Percy on his way to the Search and Rescue Center. When Harold lands, however, Percy is nowhere to be seen.
 * While flying to the Search and Rescue Centre, Harold is shown from behind. Contrary to other appearances, his elevators have a pronounced anhedral deflection of about 20 degrees.
 * After saying that the logs are lost, Thomas says he feels badly, whereas he should have said that he feels bad.
 * When the other engines whistle goodbye to Thomas, Salty shuts his eyes like the rest of the engines as if he's honking his horn; but no horn is heard.
 * When Hiro leaves the docks, Diesel arrives just moments later on the same track.
 * Sir Topham Hatt would have needed Thomas at work on the Island rather than send him on a trip, whether Jobi wood was found or not.
 * Why was the ship towing a wooden raft?
 * Why would Thomas and Spencer need to take a ferry to the mainland? The Vicarstown Bridge crosses over to the Mainland.
 * The way Thomas is transported off of Sodor is very dangerous; Thomas should not have been in steam, and his driver and fireman should not have stayed in his cab.
 * In real life, neither the Shake Shake Bridge nor the zip line would be able to hold an engine's weight.
 * The way Thomas transfers from his raft to Misty Island is unrealistic. There should be buffers at the end of the line. Also, what are the chances that the raft would drift towards a dock, let alone the rails on the raft lining up perfectly with the rails on the dock?
 * It seems illogical that none of the engines on Sodor knew about the Logging Locos, as Misty Island seems to only be a few miles away.
 * Diesel wouldn't have been able to outrun Thomas, as Class 08 shunters have a max speed of 15 or 20 mph.
 * Diesel would never have been able to keep his balance on the edge of the bridge. His spinning wheels would have caused the rails to bend, making him fall.
 * There should have been a barrier or at least signage warning engines about the bridge.
 * When Diesel leaves the docks, he wasn't coupled to the flatbeds. However, when the flatbeds are hanging over the edge of the bridge, they're coupled up to him.
 * Why would a railway line be built through a hollow tree?
 * There seems to be no people living or working on Misty Island, yet there's a logging camp, machines, a railway, and locomotives.
 * The logs hitting Thomas would have caused a lot more damage than shown.
 * When Hee-Haw starts, it just splutters and shakes. There isn't a crew controlling it and its pistons don't even move.
 * It's unsafe for steam engines to travel underground over long distances. The smoke and steam would make the air toxic and suffocate the engine's crew.
 * The length of the Misty Island Tunnel seems to be shorter than the distance between the two islands.
 * The logging engines run out of oil, but they still have plenty of logs in their bunkers. Why didn't they burn that instead? And if they're oil-burning locomotives, why do they bother carrying logs at all?
 * When Whiff and Percy first go into the tunnel, they are facing Thomas with Whiff in front, and Percy behind. But as they're leaving, Whiff and Percy are facing the exit, with Percy between Thomas and Whiff.
 * Wouldn't hitting the blockade have caused damage to Thomas and Whiff?
 * How come two engines can easily break the blockade away when four engines couldn't?
 * What was the point of bringing Gordon, James, and Edward to Misty Island?
 * When the Fat Controller peers into the Misty Island tunnel, Whiff has no lamp. In the next shot, he does.
 * Thomas and Sir Topham Hatt don't know anything about the Misty Island Tunnel, but they've been on Sodor longer than Whiff.
 * When the engines whistle at Tidmouth Sheds, Emily has Rosie's whistle sound.
 * During the night scene, the steam-boat's mast lights are backwards: the green light is for starboard (right) and the red light is for port (left).
 * When Thomas and the logging locos puff towards the tunnel, Thomas is pushing a flatbed of Jobi logs, but when they arrive at the tunnel's entrance, he's pulling it.
 * What are the chances of the fog around Misty Island lifting at the same time Thomas sends his smoke signal?
 * The Jobi wood sank after falling in the water. In real life, the logs would have floated.
 * Brakevans should have been added to Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Toby, Emily, Hiro, Rosie, and Diesel's trains.
 * In the UK narration, it is said that Thomas had to be coupled up to some freight cars of bricks. Freight cars is an American term.
 * Approximately thirty-six piles of Jobi logs were on the steamboat, however only three are unloaded onto Diesel's train.
 * Why could Thomas not go on the front deck of the ship whilst Spencer is inside, when that same ship was able to take Gordon, James, and Edward at the same time?
 * Judging the distance from where Thomas caught up with Diesel near the cliff and where Diesel loses the Jobi wood on the edge of the bridge, it is very strange that it took Thomas so long to come to Diesel's rescue.
 * Ol' Wheezy would not be able to pick up Thomas with his hook.
 * It would be dangerous for Emily to pull and shunt trucks on the main line.
 * Why would the signal turn red, if the signalman could see that Thomas was trying to stop Diesel from doing something bad to the logs?
 * Charlie appeared in the trailer for MIR, but he wasn't featured in the movie itself.

Merchandise

 * Wooden Railway: Thomas at Sea, Dash, Bash, Ferdinand, Captain, Captain's shed, Sodor Search and Rescue Center, On Misty Island Set
 * TrackMaster: Shake Shake Bridge Set, Zip Zoom Logging Adventure Set, and Percy & Captain's Sea Rescue
 * Take-n-Play: Bash, Dash, Ferdinand, Captain, Harold and the Search Cars, Rescue from Misty Island