Thomas and the Runaway Pumpkins (Thomas & Friends: Little Golden Books)

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Thomas & Friends, formerly known as Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, is a British TV series first broadcast in 1984 and concluding in 2021. It began life as The Railway Series, a series of picture books about a group of talking steam engines living on the otherwise relatively-realistic Island of Sodor and the adventures they have under the guardianship of the railway supervisor Fat Controller (Sir Topham Hatt). The books were originally written by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry, an English clergyman and railway enthusiast, from the 1940s to the early 1970s; his son Christopher later took on the job from the 1980s until his retirement in 2011. There is also a widely-available series of books based on TV episodes.

In the special Misty Island Rescue, Thomas and the three Logging Locos get trapped in an underwater tunnel (Bash, Dash and Ferdinand running out of fuel) with nobody knowing where they are. Episode Title Card: Each episode has these. Starting from Season 9 the narrator says the episode's name. The twelfth season incorporated CGI elements while still using models. Season 13 onward switches to entirelly CGI.Duke himself was abandoned in his shed, which was covered over by nature and buried for many years, until he was unearthed in "Sleeping Beauty". Slightly mollified by the narration implying he was asleep the whole time.

The Hedonist: New engine Charlie has shades of being this, described as 'the most fun engine' and seeking fun and games from the other engines in the form of racing, jokes, and shirking their responsibilities. Famous locomotives City of Truro and Flying Scotsman in "Gordon and the Famous Visitor" and "Tender Engines" respectively. Getting the Baby to Sleep: In the episode, "Thomas the Babysitter", Thomas has to deal with a baby on his train, who cries every time the train comes to a stop, but calms down and goes to sleep every time the train moves. This initially gives Thomas the idea not to stop at all, but Annie and Clarabel are horrified at this, reminding him that he has to stop at every signal and crossing gate so all of his passengers will be safe. Towards the end of the episode, Thomas talks to Sir Topham Hatt about a request to miss his break to make a journey without stopping, which Sir Topham Hatt finds a wonderful idea. This journey gives both the baby and his mother some much-needed sleep. At the end of the episode, Albert, one of the workmen, congratulates Thomas on looking after his wife and son for him, and decides to name his son "Thomas" in honor of that day.

For example, in real life, cylinders for big tender engines are attached to the engine's main frame. But in the animated series, the cylinders appear to be completely independent from the rest of the body. All There in the Manual: The books The Island of Sodor: Its People, History and Railways, Sodor: Reading Between the Lines and The Thomas the Tank Engine Man explain between them pretty much everything about the early series. In The Adventure Begins which is a retelling of Thomas's early days on Sodor, he is a bluish-green colour when he first arrives on Sodor, his tanks are lettered "LBSC" (for the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway) with the number 70 on his bunker. The 70 is a reference to 2015 being the 70th anniversary for The Railway Series, while the LB&SCR E2 class were actually numbered from 100–109. The real life LBSC no. 70 is an A1 class.

Thomas' half of "You Can Only Be You" in The Great Race as he pesters just being him and is unsure, while Ashima reassures him. Breakout Character: Thomas of course, who was only as prominent as most other recurring engines in the books. In fact, he didn't appear until the second book, appropriately titled Thomas the Tank Engine. Disneyfication: Some episodes based of The Railway Series books in the earlier seasons were less darker and harsher.Just in Time: From season 8 onward, this happens all the time. Happens quite frequently to Paxton. The poor guy. Elsbridge Station has never been seen since Season 4, and Great Waterton hasn't been seen since Season 12. Downer Ending: Some episodes from the earlier seasons end with this such as "The Sad Story Of Henry", "Off The Rails", "Dirty Work", and "Thomas Comes To Breakfast". However, such episodes are part of arcs, and will then be resolved and given a happy ending in their continuation. Massive Multiplayer Crossover: Thomas and his friends have been on 3 compilations that include almost no excerpts in them. First is Thomas and Gordon in NSPCC Children's TV Favourites Volume 2 in 1993, then Thomas' Train in Calling all Toddlers in 1999, and then again in its sequel in 2001. He also appeared alongside many other characters, such as Bob the Builder, Postman Pat, Fireman Sam, Pingu and Paddington Bear, in Peter Kay's Animated All Star Band for Children in Need in 2009. Ringo Starr even reprised his role as Thomas!