- “Mole hills! Hundreds of them! It looks like a giant currant bun, only green!”
- ― Buster
Thomas and the Moles, originally titled Buster 1, Moles 0, is the thirteenth episode of Jack and the Sodor Construction Company. It was released on the DVD Thomas' Trusty Friends.
Plot
A storm has blown over Sodor and has caused a significant amount of damage. While most of Miss Jenny's machines are clearing debris, Sir Topham Hatt has sent Thomas to take the rest of her machines to the football grounds. Buster is excited to help out, but Miss Jenny tells him that he is not needed which makes Buster pretty sad.
At the football grounds, the machines are working hard clearing the mess in the car park. Thomas is concerned about Buster, who is still in the yard still feeling miserable. The work is soon done, but then Miss Jenny steps on to the field and she realises that she needs Buster after all; the field is covered in mole hills. Thomas rushes back to the yards to pick up Buster, who is very excited.
As soon as Buster is unloaded, he can't believe how many mole hills were on the football grounds. He sets to work at once flattening the hills, all the while the moles watch him and are impressed. At last the field is flat again and everyone congratulates Buster on a job well done as the football game can go on tomorrow. But Miss Jenny tells him that he has been really useful, which makes him very flattered. And Thomas can tell Buster is very happy, because it's a grand thing to be really useful.
Characters
- Thomas
- Jack
- Isobella
- Buster
- Jenny Packard
- Dryaw FC Coach
- Nelson (does not speak)
- Oliver the Excavator (does not speak)
- Max (does not speak)
- Kelly (does not speak)
- Ned (does not speak)
- Alfie (not named, does not speak)
- Percy (cameo)
- Monty (cameo)
- Flying Scotsman (poster cameo)
- Toby (stock footage cameo)
- Henry (mentioned)
- Sir Topham Hatt (mentioned)
Locations
Trivia
- This episode's number was revealed by a document confirming that all 13 completed episodes of Jack and the Sodor Construction Company had been filmed by 27 January 2003.[1]
- A working title or the original title for this episode was Buster 1, Moles 0, although that title is listed on Virgin TV Anytime's website.
- The first two shots of the episode reuse stock footage from Toby's Windmill.
- The opening shot uses an alternative take from said episode, as Toby's eye movement is different and he hits the fallen fence.
- When Buster is flattening the mole hills, some of the same scenes are used twice. However, some are mirrored.
- One of the miniature moles (production made) was sold to the Coffey Man Preservation from the Prop Gallery.
- The miniature model of the football coach is owned by Twitter user IsaacM6991.
- This is the first appearance of Percy's gauge 3.5 model, that was made during the fifth series, but was never used in said series until this episode. Like with Thomas gauge 3.5 model, Percy's model has some noticeable differences in its appearance compared to prior episodes.
- This marks the last episode to use stock footage from episodes of the main show, as well as ones directed by David Mitton, and produced by Gullane Entertainment.
- This was the only Jack and the Sodor Construction Company episode of several things:
- The only episode written by Jan Needle.
- The only episode in where Henry is referred to by name.
- The only episode where Toby appears, using stock footage.
- The only episode where Percy appears, but does not speak.
- The only instance of real life anthropomorphic animals in the show's history. The moles also bear a slight resemblance to Molecom the Mole from Roary the Racing Car, a British HiT Entertainment television series.
- When Buster is left behind at the yard, a poster for the LNER depicting Flying Scotsman is visible.
Goofs
- In the shots with Kelly, Monty and Buster, Buster's eyes are wonky.
- When Buster watches Kelly, Monty and Miss Jenny leave the yard, he appears to have a piece of tape on his front.
- When Thomas is outside the football ground, there is one piece of track making it look like he is on the grass.
In Other Languages
| Language | Title |
|---|---|
| Dutch | Thomas en de Mollen |
| German | Thomas und die Maulwürfe |
Home Media Releases
UK/US/AUS/NL/GER
UK DVD Boxsets
US DVD Boxsets
- Totally Thomas Volume 9
- Thomas' Trusty Friends and On Site with Thomas Double Feature
- Ultimate Thomas Collection
AUS DVD Boxsets
References
| #02 Alfie Has Kittens | #21 Percy Helps Out | n/a Bossy Byron |
| #03 Jack Owns Up | #22 A Happy Day for Percy | n/a The Importance of Being Patrick |
| #06 On Site with Thomas | #23 Thomas' Trusty Friends | n/a Pop Goes the Diesel |
| #07 A Visit from Thomas | #24 A Tale for Thomas | n/a Jack and the Quack |
| #10 Mud Glorious Mud | n/a No Dozer is an Island | n/a Alfie Has a Secret |
| #13 Thomas and the Moles | n/a All Work, No Play | n/a Isobella Gets Steamed |
| #14 The Tortoise and the Hare | n/a Safety First | n/a The Grass is Greener |
| #15 Percy's Scary Tale | n/a Treasure Hunt | n/a Kelly's Heroes |
| #20 Kelly's Windy Day | n/a Jack's Snow Rescue | |