The Lion of Sodor

"This is the finest statue I've ever seen!" "And the cleanest!"

- The Mayor and the Fat Controller

The Lion of Sodor is the second episode of the thirteenth season.

Plot
Thomas is given the job of transporting a crate containing a very special statue called The Lion of Sodor. However, he thinks his cargo is a real lion, so he decides to take extra care of it. En route to Knapford, Thomas decides to make sure the lion is well fed and comfortable, so he collects syrup from Henry, fish from Edward, and straw from Toby, which are all put inside the crate. When Thomas arrives at Knapford station, the crate is opened up and everyone is shocked to see the Lion of Sodor in a terrible mess. Thomas feels very silly and owns up to what he thought of his cargo. The Fat Controller and Henry explain that the Lion of Sodor was a special statue which got broken. Thomas' cargo was the new statue of the Lion. Feeling silly, Thomas agrees to get the statue clean. Taking advice from Henry and Edward, he gets it cleaned at the wash-down and then polished at the Sodor Steamworks. Once the Lion of Sodor looks very clean, Thomas takes Toby's advice to a short-cut via the windmill to get back to Knapford station, where the Mayor of Sodor is very pleased to see the new statue.

Characters

 * Thomas
 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * James
 * Percy
 * Toby
 * Cranky
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * The Mayor of Sodor
 * Emily (cameo)
 * The Ginger-haired Boy (cameo)
 * Victor (mentioned)

Locations

 * The Viaduct
 * Brendam Docks
 * Knapford
 * Maron
 * Sodor Steamworks
 * The Windmill
 * Maithwaite
 * The Washdown
 * Kirk Ronan Junction

Trivia

 * This episode marked the first of a few things:
 * The Mayor of Sodor's first speaking role.
 * The first appearance of the Viaduct since the seventh season and its first appearance in CGI.
 * The first time where the Sodor Steamworks appears, but without Victor or Kevin.
 * This episode was shown in select US theatres in October 2010.

Goofs

 * When Thomas arrives at the docks, the flatbed is missing its axles. Also, when he first arrives, it is lighter in colour.
 * Toby said he only has straw in his trucks, but as he had flatbeds, he should have said on his trucks.
 * The narrator said Thomas' engineer (driver) put the syrup in the lion's crate, but it's really his fireman (identified by his moustache).

Merchandise

 * Take-n-Play
 * Magazine Stories - A Lion on Sodor
 * Books - The Lion of Sodor (China only)

Home Media Releases
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UK

 * The Complete Thirteenth Series
 * The Lion of Sodor
 * Milkshake! Gold

DVD Packs

 * 10 DVD Boxset
 * Sodor's Heroes!

US

 * The Lion of Sodor

DVD Packs

 * Steam Team Collection

AUS/Arabia/Rest of Europe

 * The Lion of Sodor

JPN

 * Sodor Maintenance Shop is Busy

THA

 * Creaky Cranky

CHN

 * Slippy Sodor (Chinese DVD)

GER

 * The Lion of Sodor (German DVD)

DVD Boxsets
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 * With 15 Great Stories