Tale of the Brave

"Being brave isn't the same as not feeling scared. Being brave is about what you do, even when you do feel scared."

- Gator

Tale of the Brave is a special released on September 16th, 2014 in the US on DVD and Blu-ray and September 1st in the UK.

Plot
A bridge on Thomas' Branch Line is closed, so Thomas has to go and work at the Clay Pits. When he first arrives, he can see no one, but after catching sight of one of the twins, he chases it to where he needs to work. However, Bill and Ben are feeling mischievous and play a trick on Thomas and Timothy, the oil burning engine. Timothy then warns Thomas to be careful as a storm closes in and the rain makes the clay cliffs unstable. As he's going along, a flash of lightning reveals to Thomas what looks like giant footprints on the slope above, but a landslide has begun and Thomas cannot stay to investigate. Bill and Ben push Thomas to safety just in time.

The next morning, Sir Topham Hatt gathered his engines at the shunting yard for a very important meeting. They pray tribute to Bill and Ben who rescued Thomas from the landslide at the clay pits but while he's saying his speech, Gordon and James think they could be braver than them. Sir Topham Hatt later tells Thomas to go to the docks but he was worried. He later went to the clay pits to find out what made the foots and met a steam shovel named Marion and tells him about digging.

Unable to go back and confirm what he saw, Thomas tells Percy about it, but Percy quickly becomes convinced that there is a monster on the island. He even becomes frightened of taking the mail train at night.

When an unusual engine with sloping boilers first appears, Percy thinks he must be the monster. James teases Percy and tries to scare him even more, but the new engine, who is called Gator, proves to be a good friend and ally, who helps Percy out when he thinks all his other friends aren't there for him any more. James is later scared by Gator, and is teased because of this. He is so determined to show off his bravery, he goes back to where the landslide occurred at the clay pits, only for another one to happen thanks to James. Percy quickly jumps in to help, and pushes James to safety. After the landslide is over, Marion reveals that the footprints were made by a dinosaur many years ago. James then apologises to Percy for being so mean to him.

Sadly for Percy, Gator has to leave Sodor, but he realises that you have to be brave when you have to say goodbye.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Bill and Ben
 * Emily
 * Porter
 * Gator
 * Timothy
 * Salty
 * Marion
 * Annie and Clarabel
 * Troublesome Trucks
 * Cranky
 * Kevin
 * Reg
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * Sir Robert Norramby
 * The Dock Manager
 * Some Workmen
 * A Shunter
 * Wellsworth Station Speaker
 * Duck (does not speak)
 * Oliver (cameo)
 * Rosie (cameo)
 * Stanley (cameo)
 * Stafford (cameo)
 * Rocky (cameo)
 * The Teacher (cameo)
 * The Bird Watcher (cameo)
 * Dowager Hatt's Friends (cameo)
 * Toby (music video cameo)
 * Hiro (music video cameo)
 * Scruff (music video cameo)
 * Caitlin (music video cameo)
 * Connor (music video cameo)
 * Henrietta (music video cameo)
 * Toad (music video cameo)
 * Slip Coaches (music video cameo)

A Knapford station worker, possibly the stationmaster, also speaks.

Locations

 * Shunting Yards
 * Sodor China Clay Company
 * Tidmouth Sheds
 * Brendam Docks
 * Crocks Scrap Yard
 * The Castle Tunnel
 * Knapford
 * Sodor Steamworks
 * Fenland Fields
 * The Fenland Track
 * Wellsworth
 * Town Hall
 * The Little Western (mentioned)
 * Animal Park (mentioned)
 * Great Waterton (mentioned)
 * Vicarstown (mentioned)

UK/AUS

 * Mark Moraghan as the narrator
 * Ben Small as Thomas and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Keith Wickham as Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Percy, Salty and the Fat Controller
 * Matt Wilkinson as Kevin and Cranky
 * Teresa Gallagher as Emily, Annie, and Clarabel
 * Steven Kynman as Porter and the Dock Manager
 * Mike Grady as Sir Robert Norramby
 * Jonathan Broadbent as Bill and Ben
 * Clive Mantle as Gator
 * Tim Whitnall as Timothy and Reg
 * Olivia Colman as Marion

US

 * Mark Moraghan as the narrator
 * Martin Sherman as Thomas and Percy
 * Kerry Shale as Henry, Gordon, James, Kevin, and Sir Topham Hatt
 * Glenn Wrage as Cranky
 * Jules de Jongh as Emily
 * David Menkin as Porter
 * Ben Small as the Troublesome Trucks
 * Mike Grady as Sir Robert Norramby
 * Clive Mantle as Gator
 * Tim Whitnall as Timothy and Reg
 * Olivia Colman as Marion
 * Jonathan Broadbent as Bill and Ben
 * Keith Wickham as Salty
 * Teresa Gallagher as Annie and Clarabel
 * William Hope as Edward and the Dock Manager

UK

 * Let's Be Brave sing-along
 * Monsters Everywhere sing-along
 * Guess Who! puzzles
 * Mr Perkins' Postcard: The Steamworks
 * Mr Perkins' Storytime: Thomas and the Breakdown Train

US

 * Let's Be Brave sing-along
 * Monsters Everywhere sing-along
 * Guess Who! puzzles

Trivia

 * This special was initially called "Monster of Sodor".
 * This special marks Oliver's first appearance since the twelfth season and his first appearance in full CGI.
 * This special marks the first appearance of the Sodor China Clay Company since the fifth season, and of the Tidmouth Tunnel since the ninth.
 * It was shown in Hoyts theatres in Australia and New Zealand during July 2014, and in Vue cinemas in late August 2014.
 * This special will be shown on PBS in the US on November 3rd.
 * This is the first special where the credits show who voiced each character.
 * Clive Mantle and Olivia Colman join the voice cast. Tim Whitnall also officially joins the voice cast.
 * This is the first special in which Toby does not appear in any way (excluding his appearance in a music video).
 * References to Thomas in Trouble, Up, Up and Away!, and Percy Takes the Plunge are made. The beginning of the special is also similar to the Railway Series book, Thomas and the Twins.
 * The Troublesome Trucks have British voices in the UK version whereas they had American voices in King of the Railway.
 * The US release is slowed down to 24 frames a second and adds an extra two minutes to the special's length. However, unlike the previous two special releases, pitch adjustment has been added, meaning that the audio is not distorted.
 * The eighteenth season episode, Toad's Bright Idea, takes place during the events of this special.
 * Reused voice clips from The Afternoon Tea Express are used, as Stephen's voice can be heard saying "Careful!" at one point.
 * In the Dutch version of the film, the "The End" text at the end is white instead of yellow.
 * Like King of the Railway, the first trailer had some different footage from the final film, such as:
 * In the movie, it is foggy when Gator is first introduced, however in the trailer, no fog effects are used. Likewise, the scene where Percy mistakes Gator for a monster has reduced fog effects.
 * In the movie, it is storming when Thomas finds the footprints at the Clay Pits, but in the trailer, it is nighttime and no rain effects are used.
 * When Timothy is first introduced in the movie, the sky is dark and cloudy, but in the trailer, it is sunny and little to no clouds are seen. Also in the first trailer, there are no trees on the cliff behind Timothy.
 * In the movie, Thomas has his lamp on when the second landslide at the Clay Pits happens, but in the trailer, his lamp is off.
 * Alternative angles are used for when Marion and Reg are shown in the trailers, and for one of the scenes where Cranky swings his hook out to the ship.
 * In the first trailer, Marion lacks her protective corners, which were later added in the final movie. Because of this, her lamp was slightly moved.
 * In the first trailer, Gator has thin, white lining on his front end and has coloured rivets on his first funnel, but in the final movie, the lining becomes gold and thicker and the rivets are painted black.

Goofs

 * Gator uses the US term "cars" at one point in the UK version.
 * Edward is not shown in the UK end credits with the characters voiced by Keith Wickham. Likewise, Gordon is not shown in the US credits with the characters voiced by Kerry Shale.
 * During the opening scene, the bridge that James crosses over is actually a road bridge.
 * James has trouble reversing over a pile of rocks behind him, yet Percy is somehow able to cross over the same pile of rocks without derailing.
 * When James falls into the lake, Gator turns around.
 * In the second trailer, Timothy's scene is mirrored.
 * When Thomas puffs away from Marion his cars are green, But in the next shot, They're green.

Wooden Railway

 * Gator
 * Timothy
 * Marion
 * Scrap Monster
 * Thomas' Fossil Run
 * James' Roaring Delivery
 * Oliver's Fossil Freight
 * Reg and Percy at the Scrapyard

TrackMaster

 * Gator
 * Timothy
 * Scared James
 * Treacherous Traps Set
 * Avalanche Escape Set

Take-n-Play

 * Timothy
 * Gator
 * Marion
 * Scrap Heap Monster
 * Gator and the Mysterious Cargo
 * Percy and the Break Open Boulder
 * Scrapyard Cleanup Team
 * Ben's Cement Mix-up

Books

 * Tale of the Brave
 * The Monster of Sodor
 * The Fearsome Footprints/Thomas the Brave
 * Thomas and the Monster
 * Brave Little Engines
 * Tale of the Brave: The Movie Storybook
 * Tale of the Brave: Sticker Activity Book

Gallery

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