Journey Beyond Sodor

"Ask yourself, what can you do?" "You mean, anything?" "No, no, we can't do anything." "But we can try!"

- Thomas, Lexi, Theo and Merlin

Journey Beyond Sodor is the 2017 Thomas &amp; Friends special.

Plot
The Island of Sodor is home to many engines of several shapes and sizes, with lots of branch lines, running all across the island, and the main line running from Knapford to Vicarstown, and continuing across the Vicarstown Bridge. Henry is pulling a goods train to the mainland, but because of a faulty signal, he runs right into the back of Hiro's train and derails, dangling dangerously over the edge of the viaduct.

Meanwhile, on his branch line, Thomas is feeling bright and sunny, whistling hello to everyone he meets. As he pulls into Knapford Station, he is complementing how wonderful the day is, and feels like singing. But he is interrupted by James, who is boastfully singing about how he believes he is the best engine on Sodor. As James pulls up to the platform, Thomas rolls up, telling him that he isn't the favourite engine, and that he was going to sing a song. So, James calls out to everyone at the station that Thomas is going to sing, and everyone listens. Hesitant at first, Thomas is just about to sing, but James interrupts him and starts singing again about how he's the favourite engine.

Thomas meets up with James at the Shunting Yards and tells him again that he's not Sir Topham Hatt's favourite engine, but James boasts how he always gets the best jobs, and that his next one is to transport musicians, while Thomas collects pigs from Farmer Trotter's farm. Thomas doesn't believe James until later at the farm, when he sees him pulling carriages filled with musicians. Hearing James singing boastfully makes Thomas even more upset.

That evening, Edward brings Judy and Jerome to help lift Henry back to safety, and Harvey arrives to handle the derailed trucks. At his office, Sir Topham Hatt is talking on his telephone and using a map and wooden trains to monitor the situation. As Thomas overhears Sir Topham Hatt makes plans for James to take the freight cars to the Mainland. Thomas thinks that James will be upset thinking he won't be the favorite by pulling the freight cars but James was one step ahead of Thomas. James is happy that he was going to the mainland and Thomas is cross. Later that night Thomas is upset that James thinks he's the most important and it's unfair that he has to stay on Sodor, but and idea flew into his funnel. The next morning James is ready to collect the goods train and asks Rosie where it is. She says that Thomas had picked them up early and this makes James surprised.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Toby
 * Emily
 * Rosie
 * Philip
 * Ulli
 * A Bridlington Diesel
 * Annie and Clarabel
 * Kevin
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * Judy and Jerome (do not speak)
 * Farmer Trotter (does not speak)
 * Hiro (not named; does not speak)
 * Duck (cameo)
 * Donald and Douglas (cameo)
 * Oliver (cameo)
 * Bill and Ben (cameo)
 * Flying Scotsman (cameo)
 * Harvey (cameo)
 * Spencer (cameo)
 * Whiff (cameo)
 * Stanley (cameo)
 * Charlie (cameo)
 * Scruff (cameo)
 * Belle (cameo)
 * Porter (cameo)
 * Stephen (cameo)
 * Connor (cameo)
 * Caitlin (cameo)
 * Timothy (cameo)
 * Samson (cameo)
 * Ryan (cameo)
 * Glynn (cameo)
 * Diesel (cameo)
 * Daisy (cameo)
 * Mavis (cameo)
 * 'Arry and Bert (cameo)
 * Salty (cameo)
 * Den (cameo)
 * Dart (cameo)
 * Norman (cameo)
 * Paxton (cameo)
 * Sidney (cameo)
 * Hugo (cameo)
 * Flynn (cameo)
 * Marion (cameo)
 * Skiff (cameo)
 * Stafford (cameo)
 * Rheneas (cameo)
 * Peter Sam (cameo)
 * Victor (cameo)
 * Luke (cameo)
 * Millie (cameo)
 * Rusty (cameo)
 * Bert (cameo)
 * Rex (cameo)
 * Mike (cameo)
 * Henrietta (cameo)
 * Slip Coaches (cameo)
 * Toad (cameo)
 * Rocky (cameo)
 * Bradford (cameo)
 * Trevor (cameo)
 * Cranky (cameo)
 * Jem Cole (cameo)
 * Farmer McColl (cameo)
 * Sir Robert Norramby (cameo)
 * The Thin Clergyman (cameo)
 * Sodor Brass Band (cameo)
 * Ferdinand (portrait cameo)

Characters Introduced

 * Lexi
 * Theo
 * Hurricane
 * Merlin
 * Frankie
 * Beresford

Locations

 * Arlesburgh
 * Arlesburgh Harbour
 * Bluff's Cove
 * Brendam Docks
 * Blue Mountain Quarry
 * The Fenland Track
 * Anopha Quarry
 * Ulfstead Castle
 * Harwick Branch Line
 * The Little Western
 * Thomas' Branch Line
 * McColl Farm
 * Farmer Trotter's Pig Farm
 * Maithwaite
 * Knapford
 * Knapford Yards
 * Knapford Station Yard
 * Tidmouth Sheds
 * Sodor Steamworks
 * Vicarstown
 * Vicarstown Goods Yard
 * Vicarstown Bridge
 * The Mainland
 * The Steelworks
 * Bridlington Goods Yard

UK, AUS & NZ

 * Mark Moraghan as the Narrator
 * John Hasler as Thomas
 * Keith Wickham as Edward, Henry, Gordon and Sir Topham Hatt
 * Rob Rackstraw as James, Toby and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Nigel Pilkington as Percy
 * Teresa Gallagher as Emily, Annie and Clarabel
 * Nicola Stapleton as Rosie
 * Rasmus Hardiker as Philip
 * Matt Wilkinson as Kevin
 * Steven Kynman as a Workman
 * Jim Howick as Hurricane
 * Hugh Bonneville as Merlin
 * Darren Boyd as Theo
 * Lucy Montgomery as Lexi and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Sophie Colquhoun as Frankie
 * Colin McFarlane as Beresford
 * Christopher Ragland as the Troublesome Trucks
 * Kerry Shale as the Troublesome Trucks

US and CAN

 * Mark Moraghan as the Narrator
 * Joseph May as Thomas
 * William Hope as Edward and Toby
 * Kerry Shale as Henry, Gordon, Kevin and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Rob Rackstraw as James and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Christopher Ragland as Percy and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Jules de Jongh as Emily
 * Nicola Stapleton as Rosie
 * Rasmus Hardiker as Philip
 * John Schwab as Ulli and the other Mainland Diesel
 * Teresa Gallagher as Annie and Clarabel
 * Keith Wickham as Sir Topham Hatt
 * Steven Kynman as a Workman
 * Jim Howick as Hurricane
 * Hugh Bonneville as Merlin
 * Darren Boyd as Theo
 * Lucy Montgomery as Lexi and the Troublesome Trucks
 * Sophie Colquhoun as Frankie
 * Colin McFarlane as Beresford

Songs

 * Somebody Has to Be the Favourite
 * Who's Thomas?
 * The Hottest Place in Town
 * I Want to Go Home
 * We Can't Do Anything
 * The Most Important Thing is Being Friends

UK/US/AUS

 * Music Videos: Who's Thomas?, The Hottest Place in Town, We Can't Do Anything, The Most Important Thing is Being Friends
 * Landmarks of Sodor: Travelling to the Mainland
 * Top 5 Funniest Moments!

Trivia

 * This special takes place between twenty-first season and the The Great Race.
 * Hugh Bonneville, Colin McFarlane, Darren Boyd, Jim Howick, Sophie Colquhoun, Lucy Montgomery, and Nicola Stapleton join the voice cast.
 * At seven voice actors, this special currently holds the greatest number of actors to join the voice cast at once.
 * This is the first special to be animated by Jam Filled Toronto.
 * This is the first special distributed by Mattel Creations.
 * This is the longest special to date, and the first special to be longer than 63 minutes, as it has a running time of 70 minutes.
 * This special holds the record for the most cameo appearances in a Thomas & Friends production, with more than 50 cameos.
 * References to the first season episode, Down the Mine, the second season episode, Thomas Comes to Breakfast and The Adventure Begins were made.
 * This special marks the first of a few things:
 * The first special where James is voiced by Rob Rackstraw in the UK, and the first time he is working on Thomas's branch line.
 * The first appearance of the salt vans in full CGI.
 * The first time that tankers have had faces since the fourth season.
 * This is the first time British Railways Diesels have spoken since their debut, however, only two of them spoke in this special.
 * In addition, one of them is named Ulli.
 * From this special-onwards, the characters now have exaggerated movement.
 * This is the first time an engine's basis is said in the TV series.
 * The first time an engine cries since Blue Mountain Mystery, and the first time the engine verbally sobs.
 * This special marks the first of several things for Rosie:
 * The first time she is voiced by Nicola Stapleton in the UK and US, taking over from Teresa Gallagher and Jules de Jongh, respectively.
 * Her first appearance in her new livery.
 * Her first speaking role since the sixteenth season episode, Sodor Surprise Day, and her first speaking role in a special.
 * There are two references to the"The Wizard of Oz".
 * As Thomas enters the Steelworks, a Truck mutters the line "Thomas, I don't think we're in Sodor anymore", Whereas in The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy said "Toto, I ve got a feeling we re not in Kansas anymore".
 * Hurricane said the line "I'm melting, I'm melting". He is refrencing the seen with the Witch saying said line in said movie.
 * This is the second musical movie with the other being The Great Race.

Goofs

 * When Henry passes Connor in the beginning, he is near a grassy area, right after that, when the camera changes, both engines are at Vicarstown.
 * Connor has Caitlin's whistle at the beginning.
 * The trucks that Hiro is pulling at the beginning change between the crash scene and the recovery scene.
 * Rusty appears on standard gauge track during I Want to Go Home.
 * Throughout most of the special, James's rear tender axle box is clipping through his rear bufferbeam.
 * The Troublesome Trucks' voices continually change.
 * Despite being moved to work on the Harwick Branch Line, Judy and Jerome are seen back in their old Knapford siding.
 * Also, despite being assigned to the western side of the island, they are seen helping Henry after his accident at Vicarstown, on the east.
 * During The Hottest Place in Town, Hurricane's valve gear can be seen floating when he's dancing, Merlin suffers the same issue.
 * When James goes to Bridlington, the van that usually said, "Are we there yet?", has a face at either end.
 * When Beresford picks Thomas up so he could hide from Hurricane and Frankie, Beresford appears higher and further away from his rails.
 * When the magnet picks up Thomas, his crew can be seen jumping out of him. But when he landed on the pipe, Thomas move his wheels by himself.

Merchandise
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Books

 * Journey Beyond Sodor (Golden Book)
 * Friends to the Rescue!/Thomas at the Steelworks
 * Journey Beyond Sodor: The Movie Storybook
 * Journey Beyond Sodor: Sticker Activity Book

TrackMaster

 * Lexi
 * Merlin the Invisible
 * Steelworks Thomas
 * Steelworks Hurricane
 * Cable Bridge Set

Adventures
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 * Hurricane
 * Frankie
 * Merlin
 * Theo