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Journey Beyond Sodor

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This article is about the special. You may be looking for the Sticker Activity Book, the storybook or the Golden Book.

“Think positively, Lexi! Ask yourself what can you do!"
"You mean, anything?"
"Uh, no, we can't do anything."
"But we can try!”
―Thomas, Lexi, Theo and Merlin

Journey Beyond Sodor is a 2017 Thomas & Friends film.

Plot

Determined to prove his importance on The Island Sodor, Thomas takes James' trucks and sets off on a big adventure to the Mainland. On the way he makes friends with the cheerful and helpful "Experimental Engines," but after a wrong turn, he finds himself lost in the steelworks. There, Thomas encounters two mysterious engines who instantly make him feel welcome, but who are not what they first seem.

After Thomas fails to return, James sets off to the Mainland, but runs into trouble himself and so it is up to Thomas and the Experimental Engines to save the day.

Characters

Characters Introduced

Locations

Cast

UK, AUS, NZ, MYS and ZA

US and CAN

Songs

Bonus Features

UK/US/AUS

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

Trivia

  • The film's production began in April 2016 and ended in February 2017.
  • This is the second musical special, with the first being The Great Race.
  • This special takes place between the twenty-first series and Big World! Big Adventures! However, there are some hints with production crew, voice actors and changes that this was produced before series 21 in 2016, these being:
  • An image of Thomas from this special is re-used on the spine of the DVD release of the next special, Big World! Big Adventures!
  • The special was shown in select cinemas:
    • In the US at Edaville Railroad on 19th August 2017.
    • In Australia, Hoyts and Event Cinemas previewed the special 1-3 times everyday between 31st August - 6th September 2017 and on 9th, 10th and 12th September 2017.
  • The special aired on TV:
    • On PBS Kids on 17th November 2017 in the US. After the film ended on television, the song Race with You, Learn with Thomas segment, Not Showing Off, Engine Roll Call song and the twentieth series episode, Mucking About were included at the end to fill the timeslot.
    • On Milkshake! in the UK on New Years Day 2018. It was later also repeated on Milkshake! on Easter Sunday 2018.
    • On ABC Kids in Australia on New Year's Eve 2017 and again on Christmas Day 2018.
    • On Cartoonito UK on Saturday 8th September 2018.
    • On Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. in the US split into three half hour blocks on 2nd July - 4th July 2018. Since the special was an hour and twelve minutes, some scenes and the Engine Roll Call had to be removed to fit the time slot. Treehouse TV in Canada also aired the three-part version of the movie on 14th November - 16th November 2018.
  • References to the first series episode, Down the Mine, the second series episode, Thomas Comes to Breakfast and The Adventure Begins are made.
  • There are a few references to the 1939 film, The Wizard of Oz. This is the second Thomas production to reference it, the first being Stepney Gets Lost.
  • In the UK dub, one of James' screams is reused from the twenty-first series episode, The Fastest Red Engine on Sodor.
  • This special marks the first of a few things:
    • The first special animated by Jam Filled Toronto, albeit partially. The first half of the film was animated by Arc Productions before their bankruptcy.
    • The first special produced by Mattel Creations.
    • The first time Hugh Bonneville is part of the voice cast, as well as the first special to have Lucy Montgomery and Nicola Stapleton as part of the voice cast.
    • The first special where James is voiced by Rob Rackstraw in the UK, which he first did in Tit for Tat.
    • The first appearance of the salt vans in CGI and their first appearance since the twelfth series episode, Best Friends.
    • The first special in which oil tankers have faces.
    • The first special in which the Troublesome Trucks all have their own unique voices, as opposed to all being voiced by one person.
    • The first appearance of Vicarstown Goods Yard in the Television Series.
    • The first special since Calling All Engines! not to include the French narration on the US DVD.
    • The first of only two specials in which Rosie has a speaking role, is voiced by Nicola Stapleton in the UK and US, respectively, and appears in her red livery.
    • The first special in which vehicular characters are able to "bounce," in that they perform non-static body movements when they speak or look in different directions, which while debuting in the preceding CGI series, was made more prominent as of this special, as well as the new comedic devices.
  • This special also marks the last of a few things:
    • The final production of Thomas & Friends before the Big World! Big Adventures! rebrand.
    • The final special in which Mark Moraghan narrates.
    • The last special to be produced and released before the series it takes place after.
    • Hugo, Rheneas, and Toad's final appearances, as well as Jem Cole's final speaking role.
    • Hiro's last appearance until the twenty-fourth series episode, Kenji on the Rails Again.
    • Spencer's last physical appearance, not counting his fantasy appearance in the twenty-second series episode, An Engine of Many Colours.
    • Rusty, Rex, Bert and Mike's last appearances until the twenty-fourth series episode, The Great Little Railway Show.
    • The final appearance of the Coastal Cliffs.
    • Mark Moraghan's last time as narrator for both the UK and US dubs.
    • Jon Kabira's last time as narrator for the Japanese dub.
    • The last special to air on PBS Kids in the US, as Nick Jr. takes over afterwards.
    • The last special to air on Family Jr. in Canada, as Treehouse TV took over afterwards.
    • The last special released on DVD in South Korea.
    • The last special narrated by Park Sang-u in South Korea.
    • The last special translated by Lee Hwa-yong in South Korea.
    • The last special that released 5.1 surround audio on DVD in South Korea.
    • The last special that the word "Mainland" is not translated in Korean.
    • The last special not dubbed in Hebrew.
  • This special also marks the only occurrences of a few things:
    • The only special to be directly followed chronologically by the next special.
    • The only special after The Adventure Begins to get released in the US first before the UK.
    • The only special to be seventy-three minutes long, over ten minutes longer than the usual length.
    • The only movie not to have Tim Whitnall and Joe Mills since they joined the voice cast in Tale of the Brave and the eighteenth series, respectively.
    • The only time Darren Boyd, Jim Howick and Sophie Colquhoun are part of the voice cast.
    • The only special to have Hugh Bonneville and Colin McFarlane as part of the voice cast.
    • Harvey's only appearance in a special after The Great Discovery.
    • Whiff's only appearance in a special after and since Blue Mountain Mystery.
    • Jem Cole's only speaking role since the fifth series episode, Lady Hatt's Birthday Party.
    • Trevor's only speaking role in a special.
    • The only time the Mainland diesels have spoken, as two of them speak in this special.
    • The only appearances of Merlin, Hugo, the Slip Coaches, Bradford and Beresford in a special.
    • The only time Hugo and Bradford appear without speaking or being referred to by name.
    • Theo, Lexi, Hurricane and Frankie's sole appearances.
    • The only special where Donald, Douglas, Flying Scotsman, Belle, Stephen, Caitlin, Timothy, Glynn, Ryan, Den, Dart, Sidney, Paxton, Hugo, Flynn, Marion, Skiff, Luke, Millie, Bert, Rex, Mike, Judy, Jerome and Bradford, appear, but do not speak since their returns and introductions in the second series, the third series, Day of the Diesels, Blue Mountain Mystery, King of the Railway, Tale of the Brave, The Adventure Begins, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure and the twentieth series.
    • The only special where the official Korean transcript file was showed on the internet in South Korea.
  • The events of this special are mentioned by James in Big World! Big Adventures! during the song, Where in the World is Thomas?
  • According to a showreel by Chris Renshaw, when Thomas meets Lexi and Theo for the first time, the musical score would continue to play for much longer than in the final cut of the film. This was omitted for unknown reasons.
  • During a few scenes after Thomas runs into Beresford and also during the "Who's Thomas" song, Thomas can be seen turning his face sideways to look up at him. This is the only time an engine is seen doing this.
  • In the scene where Thomas goes through the Mainland Junction, Toby and Belle can be seen representing engines from the Mainland, along with Hiro and Flying Scotsman, albeit slightly obscured so as to appear to be unrecognizable.
  • When the official Korean transcript was released on the internet, this special's initial Korean title was "메인랜드 모험기" (meinlaendeu moheomgi).
  • In the South Korean dub and subtitles of this special, the "What's the big idea?" sentence is not translated in Korean.
  • There was an event of this special by JEI TV in South Korea.
  • There was a preview show this special on theaters on 4th December 2018 in South Korea.
  • This special was only shown for one week on South Korean theaters.

Goofs

  • In the shot showing the town of Arlesburgh, the ocean is floating above the beach.
  • In the first shot of Knapford Station, Gordon and Philip do not have any facial features.
  • David Bedella is not credited in both dubs for voicing Victor.
  • Gavin Ebedes is not credited for being supervising editor on DVD and theatrical end credits. However, he is credited on the PBS Kids end credits.
  • The visuals and audio of the UK/Australian release are out of sync.
  • James' American accent is heard when Frankie and Hurricane chase him into the steelworks in the UK dub.
  • In the closeup shot of Hiro's wheels, his eccentric rods is disconnected from his connecting rods.
  • In the first shot of James passing Thomas with the band, his mouth is not animated to show him humming. Also, in the US dub, James hums with his British accent instead of his American accent.
  • As Connor passes Henry, he has Caitlin's whistle sound.
  • The trucks that Hiro is pulling at the beginning change between the crash scene and the recovery scene.
  • In the opening shot of Emily pulling a goods train, her tender chassis and body do not line up.
  • When Thomas and James enter Knapford, James has Thomas' whistle sound .
  • In the scenes of James in the goods yard, the letters on Vicarstown are missing.
  • When Frankie laughs and says "Well isn't he a clever little tank engine," her wheels are clipping through the rails.
  • At Bridlington Goods Yard, when the troublesome trucks are being pushed, their buffers do not touch each other.
  • The points, such as the ones inside the steelworks, do not have rails.
  • In the scenes of Tidmouth Sheds, the bushes behind the sheds are clipping through the brick wall.
  • In the distance shot of Vicarstown, the station is missing its letters.
  • Throughout most of the special, with the exception of a few scenes, James' tender chassis is positioned further back than usual, making it clip through his tender bufferbeam.
  • In the first shot of the Mainland Junction, Hiro's brakevan appears to be nearly in the middle of his goods train instead of the back.
  • The coaches that the engine resembling Toby pulls at the Mainland Junction do not have a brake coach at the back.
  • When Merlin says "I can do something!" the audio is out of sync.
  • In the close-up of Lexi when she explains how they are fully stocked in coal and water, Thomas is not present.
  • During We Can't Do Anything, Thomas' driver's hand clips through his cab door.
  • When Theo runs into the pole and it falls over, it is made of wood, but when it hits the barrels, it is made of metal.
  • When Thomas travels along the canal, he passes the area where Beresford usually is, but Beresford is absent. In the next scene, Thomas has been moved back, as Beresford is back in his original position, with Thomas passing the same building twice.
  • Some of the trucks swap voices throughout the special.
  • A few times in the US dub, a character says "cars" but their mouths move to say "trucks."
  • During The Most Important Thing is Being Friends, Beresford can be heard singing before he visually does.
  • The front cover of the DVD shows Frankie puffing steam, despite the fact that she is a diesel engine.
  • Most of the tracks outside near the slag pit are floating.
  • During I Want to Go Home. Rusty can be seen in front of Porter, but he is narrow gauge, and the tracks are not dual gauged. Also, the load on Thomas' flatbeds changes when he is inside the Steelworks.
  • After Hurricane shunts the trucks to block James' way, his mouth stops moving when he says "ya" at the end of his sentence.
  • In the Korean dub and subtitles of this special, the North Western Railway translated as "북서 철도" (bugseo cheoldo), however, 북서부 철도 (bugseobu cheoldo) is the correct translation for the North Western Railway.
  • In the Korean dub and subtitles of this special, there is one scene where "Frankie" was mistakenly called "Frank" by Thomas.
  • When Henry is pulling the goods train at the start of the movie, he is pulling thirteen trucks. Yet when Henry crashes into Hiro right before he goes off the bridge, he only has eight.
  • Theo's funnel changes size between shots a few times.
  • When the narrator says "So with coal in his coal bunker and his water tank full, Thomas set off once more in search of the goods yard", the truck that says "Are we there yet?" seems to have turned around. It is facing the right way when it starts talking directly after.

In Other Languages

Language Title
Brazilian Portuguese Viagem ao Desconhecido
Chinese Mandarin 湯馬仕大電影之衝出索多島
Czech Cesta z ostrova Sodor
Dutch Een Avontuur Buiten Sodor
French Aventure Sur le Continent
German Auf großer Reise
Greek Πέρα από τα Σύνορα του Σόντορ
Hungarian Túl Sodoron
Italian Viaggio Oltre i Confini Di Sodor
Japanese とびだせ! 友情の大冒険
Korean 우정의 대모험
Latin American Spanish El Viaje Más Allá de Sodor
Polish Podróż poza Wyspę Sodor
Romanian Călătorie Dincolo de Sodor
Russian Покидая Содор
Serbian Putovanje van Sodora
Slovenian Potovanje Onkraj Sodorja
Turkish Sodor’un Ötesine Yolculuk
Vietnamese HÀNH TRÌNH VƯỢT NGOÀI SODOR

Merchandise

Books

Plarail

  • Ringing Thomas in Tekoro (Limited Edition)
  • Ringing Theo in Tekoro
  • Ringing Lexi in Tekoro
  • Hurricane and Frankie
  • Thomas and Merlin Set

TrackMaster

  • Lexi The Experimental Engine
  • Merlin the Invisible
  • Steelworks Thomas
  • Steelworks Hurricane
  • Scrapyard Escape Set

Wood

  • Merlin the Invisible
  • Steelworks Frankie (cancelled)

Adventures

  • Steelworks Hurricane
  • Steelworks Frankie
  • Merlin the Invisible
  • Theo the Experimental Engine
  • Lexi The Experimental Engine

Minis

  • Steelworks Stunt Set

Motorized Railway

  • Merlin the Invisible
  • Steelworks Escape Set

Capsule Plarail

  • Lexi
  • Theo
  • Merlin
  • Hurricane
  • Frankie
  • Ladle Truck
  • Beresford
  • Steelworks Shed

Trailers

External links

Categories
Languages
Deutsch Español עברית Magyar 日本語 Polski Português do Brasil Русский
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