Want to choose what video comes to my channel next? Then head over to my Patreon where pledging today will give you the chance to vote in a poll for my next video topic. www.patreon.com/posts/vote-for-my-next-87957372?Link& DISCLAIMER: Only votes on the Patreon poll will count. Voting through Comments and DMs will not be counted.
You know, I kind of discussed how to potentially improve Mighty Mac as a character, by essentially having one end be kind of dumb and coming up with bad ideas, yet still enthusiastic about showing how useful he is, and the other be more quiet and mature, but kind of overly controlling and contempt in belief of how much of a hopeless case his other half is, leading to him constantly shooting down the other's ideas and essentially forcing them to just trail behind, which I figured could make for a more interesting dynamic and means of both conflict and co-operation. I mean, hell, I imagined how that could lead to them damaging themselves on the first day, and after being mended, are forced by the thin controller to be part of a double (or triple, even) headed train, with one of the established engines in lead, only for a bad bit of track to put them out of commission, leading to the dumber half to come up with an idea that the lead engine actually finds to not be such a bad idea, leading to the two ends to go a more trickier path, as they pretty much push the lead engine and pull the train at the same time. I figured that would've made for an improvement on the character and events, as the one in their debut episode made them kind of both annoying and idiotic to a number of viewers.
9:09 One of the ONLY things I didn't like about it is Gordon being a big asshole towards Thomas (I mean they both formed an alliance; "United we stand, together we fall, you help me, and I help you". DOES THAT RING A BELL?!), Henry needing "special coal" (even though Thomas specifically referred it as SODOR COAL! NOT WELSH COAL! PAY ATTENTION!), Sodor not being a real place (I mean come on! I know it's not real! But you're all just overacting! Heck, even some of the real-life engines in Awdry's books don't have faces but nobody cares!), Animals communicating with humans (I mean what is this, a Disney movie?), phone calls made with flowers (I mean what was that about?), Mr. Conductor having the most screentime than any of the characters because of Alec Baldwin's stupid improve (Yeah, I said it! This movie's real problem was Alec Baldwin hogging most of the spotlight! I hate him especially after the RUST incident, but Unlucky Tug still enjoyed his acting in this movie! OMG!), and worst of all; Boomer being cut out because of the stupid test audiences not liking him! And that's another thing, I actually like the original plot of Magic Railroad. It makes much more sense with the original villain P.T. Boomer. He's the one who really made Lady crash, NOT Diesel 10! I also like Lily's original characterization as a kid who didn't want to have a baby brother, I kind of relate to her on that one because when my little brother was a baby, he and I didn't get along so well; but overtime we get along so well! And I love the one deleted scene with Lily and Mr. Conductor by the fire talking about the meaning of family, that was touching. I appreciate Britt's original idea for this movie, but it all went down the drain because of the stupid test audiences and those dumb executives forcing Britt to change everything in her passion project! Just like Boomer, the test audiences had no compassion or imagination for Britt's creation and the executives and Mattel are only interested of making money than making sense! I care so much for this movie because it introduced me to Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends for the first time when I was a baby! I would've been a Thomas fan if it weren't for this movie! WITHOUT THOMAS AND THE MAGIC RAILROAD, I AM NOTHING!!!
wow Someone doesn't like Toby Feels Left Out and given the fact that Trevor Davis did a mini review on the Season 9 Episode, well he enjoyed the episode.
I feel they would’ve turned him into someone like Edward where his only personality trait would be being old and weak, and/or having him act like a bossy, arrogant child.
@@deadchannel733not only that but given the crews of the narriw gauge engines stopped appearing after season 7, Duke has no one to knock sense into him if its not Percival and the other engines
Hot take: this is the best HiT era season. New characters that didn't feel gimmicky (it is a CRIME how underutilized Neville was), somewhat in-character writing for anyone not named Skarloey or Rheneas (although they haven't been written well since Season 5 and won't be until Blue Mountain Mystery), and somewhat good writing for the most part.
Listen use this headcanon skarloey and rheans being very young in there stories but hit went to the future so they could market the other narrow gauge engines
Yep. And tbh even the overuse of The ones written well makes those characters not interesting. The reducing the cast to 8 core characters biggest mistake of the show
Season 9 was always my favourite looking season of the HiT Era. Shen Valley, Peel Godred, the yard from Thomas' New Trucks, Neville's Bridge, a lot of nice sets. Had it been recorded in 1080p like S11, it wouldve looked fantastic.
@@RhysIndividual S11 is just peak model series to me lol, the setwork isn't perfect but defintley better than s12 or even 10, I love the shunting hard for example compared to how it looked in previous seasons, plus the 1080p camera really helps too
@@MonikaTrains the shunting Yards IS Not a good Example I would say the Hit ear Versions Of the shunting Yard are my least Favorits If age Had oneit wouldnt but age IS 💩 i would say season 11 has one of My Favorit If Not my Favorit Version of the Docks With all the WareHouses and the hoper and evreything honastly
Season 9 was a nostalgia trip for me, that goes for the HiT era overall. I remember always tuning in on Nick Jr. when they announce a new season of Thomas. It has it's good moments, but some rather disappointing ones as well. Also, it amazes me how the magazine stories from the 2000s give the HiT era characters some spotlight as opposed to Seasons 9 to 11 since they tend to focus more on the Steam Team themselves.
Season 9 is probably as nostalgic for me as season 8. I had all the episodes on DVD when I was little and I remember reading some of these stories in the 2007 annual. But even back then I hated some of the episodes, especially Skarloey and Rheneas's respective episodes.
Seeing Thomas’s Milkshake Muddle always brings me some nostalgia, that episode weirdly stands out to me. Neville’s episode was also a good one imo. Always enjoy these episodes, looking forward to finishing this video!
Although I'm not a big fan how most narrow gauge engines were written in this era. I have to say though that the sets were definitely great. Definitely better than the S5-7 sets.
Easily my favorite set of this season is the Neville’s Bridge set. I promise you I will replicate that set in my own series. This season is a mixed bag for me. Skarloey The Brave is a trash episode, Toby Feels Left Out is laughable, but it kinda is a fun midlife crisis story.
Season 9 has a lot of weak episodes and bad moments, but it also had a few episodes that were actually really good and some of the characters were portrayed in their original personalities even if they were just moments! I think the best and the worst of the early Hit Era is all in Season 9. It’s not the worst, it’s not the best, but for everything it does wrong it got a decent amount of things right! Really enjoyed the video! (The April Fools one is still perfect though!)
The nitrogen era did this weird thing where whenever any character who is the main of an episode is Thomas when he is the main character in hit era episodes, and then when they aren’t in the main spotlight, they are the voices of reason.
I honestly really like it when characters who haven’t had there debut episode appear before in previous episodes. It kind of shows that they’ve been on island. It’s nice they don’t just show up and BAM crazy stuff happens
Season 9 is a favourite of mine by a long shot! Pros • The Narrow Gauge Engines make a return • The Songs are pretty good and catchy • Plenty more focus on the Steam Team • Some of the crashes are really entertaining • The new characters are really cool and underrated My only gripe with this season as well as the Hit Era would have to be the brighter models, sure they're good. But I think they should have continued using the glossy models from Season 5. But I think this is a really enjoyable season nonetheless, I give it an 8/10. Also I know this will be unrelated, but I think you should review Seasons 22-24 as well in this series.
I grew up with Hit Thomas when those days it is being aired on PBS Kids. I never commented this on your Season 8 Review, but I honestly find the Engines Roll Call in Hit Thomas pretty catchy when I was a little kid. I know it was annoying to you, but it was catchy to me. But I remember I watched "Duncan And The Old Mine" back then and I really find that Episode really good. And I also liked the learning segments too since the Hit Era was going on when I was a baby since I was born in 2006 and I am 16
11:27 Thomas and the Magic Railroad in a nutshell as well since that movie has shown to me and many other people to be a raciest movie since all the good characters on the island of sodor are steam engines and the bad guy characters are all diesel characters also the steam engines have canadian accents and the diesel engines have a new jersey accent so yeah Thomas and the Magic Railroad is also raciest
Neville would’ve been a perfect character with a perfect episode. He’s a Southern Q1, they were ridiculed for their design. Being called Ugly Ducklings because of their odd looks. But looks could always be deceiving, as the Q1’s were actually quite the powerful engine. In fact, they have a Power Rating of 5F, the same as the LMS Black Five. Imagine: An episode about Henry making fun of Neville because of his looks, but when he gets into an accident while pulling a heavy train, Neville comes in and saves the day. And Henry is astonished how such a funny looking engine could be just as strong as him. BAM, I fixed Neville.
The reasons I love season 9 is mainly because of the new characters and the skarloey railway engines so I appreciate Thomas and friends for a good season.
46:09 , if you want to talk about the inconsistencies of that song, claiming “Thomas knows what must be done” it uses Neville’s crash on the bridge later on in the song, while that crash was blatantly Thomas’ fault, it still claims “Thomas Knows What Must Be Done,” like wtf. That being said, I still like Brave, it’s one of my favorites from the hit era, along with Togetherness. Sorry for leaving three comments now.
I believe he’s still on hiatus, but I think he might appreciate some of the praise Luke gives to some of the episodes, but not so much with Thomas and the New Engine and Thomas Tries his Best.
I feel like Proteus is a character who really needed more attention, because I love the idea surrounding him. Proteus is essentially a folk hero for engines to talk about, down to the stories about his magic lamp. He doesn't need to be real, and all you have to do is have the narrow gauge engines tell stories surrounding him and his exploits, sort of like the stories Salty likes to tell.
I don't think you truly comprehend the deep commentaries on alzheimer's disease that are the cinematic masterpieces "Rheneas and the Dinosaur" and "Skarloey the Brave"
I have some fond memories with this season. I discovered the footage back when I got a Jack & The Pack DVD in 2006 during the music video, I was surprised to see Skarloey, Rheneas, Rusty, and Duncan in the HiT era frame rate, which felt so surreal back then. (I could only go up to 8 seasons and CAE) I actually watched season 9 for the first time with Thomas’ Milkshake Muddle in 2007 with the first episode I watched was Thomas’ New Trucks. I even took it on a trip to Oregon one time! I was unaware about characters that appeared in the season, such as Molly with her Take Along model in 2006, thinking it was a merch-only character along with Mike, Culdee (because I didn’t read much of the railway series back then), until finding out that trailer after HiT Autoplay.
I loved Duncan and the Old Mine when I was a kid Duncan is my favourite Narrow Gauge Engine, I felt bad for him when he got yelled at for screwing up so I loved the fact there was an episode where finds a ton of of coal, helps out and gets some praise (even though he does get told "be more careful next time")
MOHAMMED GEEDI: In my personal opinion - I love watching the US dub of Season 9 along with listening to Michael Brandon's calming narration as he tells the stories. (But he should not use annoying alliteration and repetitive rhyming, because the narration will be completely ruined)
MOHAMMED GEEDI: Also in my opinion - Seasons 8 to 24 should also hire brand new writers like Joel McCrary, Wendie Malick, Martin Sherman, Rodger Bumpass & Jennifer Gould.
MOHAMMED GEEDI: My final conclusion? the HiT, Nitrogen and BWBA trilogies should have realism, clever writing, common sense, originality, different plotlines, original stories, well-executed messages, memorable morals, good narration, great voice acting, brilliant modelwork, beautiful animation, and so on.
I actually like “Thomas Tries His Best” for the simple reason that it’s one of the very few times in this era where an engine actually thinks about the consequences of their actions. But, I do respect your opinion.
I like how the ground explodes whenever the engine gently touch it upon derailing. Like, is the Island of Sodor supposed to be covered in landmines? Also it really feels to me like Emily didn't really become a decent character until the CGI era, despite how long she had been around.
Don’t get me wrong, I grew up with the HiT Era. In fact, it was my introduction to Thomas. Though now that I’m older, I’m disappointed with it. It has so much wasted potential. Characters like Neville, Molly and Dennis had wasted potential for great stories.
Out of the new characters, I like Mighty Mac and Dennis the most for their unique designs and persona traits. Neville I find mid, but has potential that fans take full advantage of. Molly I am sadly not a fan of her being not only as a more depressed character, but her class were also express engines and her being reduced as pulling trucks is just - no! Much prefer Rebecca TBH. In terms of episodes, my favorite earns to Respect for Gordon because of its moral, the characters and an awesome crash. Fun fact, Keeping Up with James is disliked by Hilary Fortnam b/c of not only claiming of her father being distressed if he saw it, but b/c of the term 'Winter Holidays' being used. You know, I've actually watched a WatchMojo Top 10 video of any inconsistent characters that made fans rage quit and Edward just so happens to be at Number 8 and Skarloey & Rheneas being put in the honorable mentions category.
Nah, Rebecca sucks. She should never exist. Her character was terribly designed and too babyish. I don’t like BWBA. Mattel should kept the Claud Hamilton. Rebecca’s personality in BWBA should have been given to Molly the Yellow Engine.
New territory as I have no memories of Series 9+. Eh, it was okay. I’d see it as Series 8, but slightly better. While most of the characters had some questionable changes, there were some gems throughout the episodes. The production in terms of the aesthetics are definitely worth watching. Better than 8 just by a slight margin, but still not completely there yet. Big lows, but a surprising amount of highs.
Anxiety doesn’t spare the old and the wise, so Edward fearing scrap is completely reasonable, if someone tried to rewrite this episode with this fact in mind, while still trying to stick to the core characteristics, it would’ve turned out perfectly in my opinion. The concept for this episode is a really good one, and he does work in here as a lead character. It just needs some vastly improved writing in order to make the story work.
Is it just me, or does Thomas & The Rainbow feel like an episode that was a way to promote Pride Month because of the colors? Or it was just HiT’s attempt to babify Thomas even more by adding anything babyish like rainbows, unicorns or any happy sappy stuff associated for little kids that felt like they belong in Barney.
@@ToastTheThe And an excuse of trying to make Thomas into a Barney wannabe show (a.k.a. A Stereotypically Senseless Baby Show) by adding something pertaining to baby shows like rainbows, unicorns, butterflies or fluffy wuffy happy sappy stuff
One thing I’ll give Thomas tries his best if I’m being honest is at least Thomas thought at one point before abandoning his work one of the only times he does it from seasons 9-16 it is a boring episode but that is definitely a positive for me.
Season 8 may have been the beginning of the three strikes and you’re out formula (which originated in the Fireman Sam Season 5 Episode “Neighborhood Watchout”) but but look out! Season 9 is where it REALLY ramped up. Also what do you think of Norfolk Southern retiring their ex-Conrail D8-40CWs and if Sir Topham Hatt was real would be buy one of them for Sodor’s Heritage Railway?
Another thing you forgot to mention about 'Henry and the Flagpole' is that the original flagpole wasn't tied down to it's flatbed or put in a crate which would've stopped it from being knocked off of the truck and onto the rails where it gets run over. Despite my suggestions, I don't know how flagpoles are actually delivered. But I know they're usually delivered more safely than the episode depicts near the start.
I assume that the flagpole had just been unloaded and not tied down yet. I feel like there were some workers that would come and tie it down and didn’t know when Henry was coming.
Both Season 8 and 9 are kinda similar for me. The key difference is Season 8 is simple, laidback and boring, whereas Season 9 is creative and fun but baffling. 28:12 Luke, I respectfully disagree with you on this. The Magic Lamp is my favorite episode of the Hit Entertainment Era because I think the three strikes formula helps to elevate the story and build up Peter Sam’s motives. I have made an analysis video on The Magic Lamp ages ago, but don’t take my thoughts as fact.
Is it me or did anyone had a crush on Molly? Cause she was fine for the most part (my kid self was stupid so dont ask ehy and how that would be something)💀💀💀💀
Okay, now that we’ve already been bamboozled by that April Fools video that you made last year on Season 9. Right now we’re getting into the real analytic review video of Season 9. I’m looking forward to see more videos talking about the HiT era.
That April Fools video was 5 months ago lol Saying that though I finishing University throughout the first half of this year so it felt like a full year anyway haha
I mean no disrespect, Luke, but as much I'm optimistic about this tomorrow, I hope there won't be any funny business like that April Fool's video as I've been desperate for this. Also, I mean no offense about this.
It frustrates that for all that tv specific work that went into that cable intro, Thomas's crew practically never appeared onscreen for hit era Thomas unless a plot demands it.
I don't know why but I really like the scenes in 13:53 and 41:41 where Thomas climbs up Gordon's Hill, maybe it is just how he does it with *confidence,* especially with how he is tilted in these shots.
MOHAMMED GEEDI: In my personal opinion - Gordon, Edward, Henry, Emily, Toby, James, Percy, and various old and new characters should have more lead roles in new episodes instead of Thomas so the show won't be stale, lazy, repetitive and boring.
This is a really good review. I may be in the tiny minority when I say this, but I hoenstly really enjoy Season 9. I understand the problems with this season, but the new characters are interesting, there are great gems in here probably more than S8 imo. Also, it's just a warm, and feel good season(I might be one of the few people that says this LOL). Well done with this review Luke!.
Wow. I didn’t expect the Season 9 review to pop up so quickly. Your content is always high quality so I’m always looking forward to your next video. As a kid I remember liking a load of the new characters. I had that spinning track master of Mighty Mac which I liked and two versions of Molly (who I’ve gained a new fondness for having learnt her basis was a Claud Hamilton). My brother also really liked Neville and his debut episode (he says he also likes it a lot more since I’ve recently told him that the bridge accident had a real life basis). I remember he also liked Dennis.
Fun fact: We Germans have a different Name for mighty mac: B I G M A C But this Name was introduced like in Season 11. You wanna know what he was called at Debut? MAC NIC IM NOT JOKING
Yeah…. Series 9…. Crap 💩 Thomas’ story is always firsted. And they let the other characters’ stories like always last. Literally always! Was it worth? No! The only good episode to me is Bold & Brave, Respect For Gordon, And Thomas’ MilkShake Muddle! The Toy Shop, Percy’s Painting, The Birthday Picnic, Emily being a Queen bitch has some good. But Sadly the whole series is more bullshit! Usual, you have full permission ahead to crap all over Series 9! But doesn’t forget Neville, & The Dinosaur Episode because they are brainwashed nightmares! Anything has gone wrong! Series 9: Crap but not too disappointed…
Yeah this season is very mid. There's like 3 solid episodes and quite a few I don't like at all. What I found to be a huge issue this season though was some episodes had everything there to be good but, something was missing which let it down such as visuals, execution, padding etc. The only new character I really care for is Molly tbh. Not to mention how they butchered characters like most the SKR engines. When this season was good though it knocked things out of the park!
Now I rank it Bottom 5 in Memory 5. Rheneas & the Dinosaur 4. Thomas & the Golden Eagle 3. Thomas & the Rainbow 2. Saving Edward 1. Skarloey the Brave Top 5 in Memory 5. Thomas & the Statue 4. Percy & the Oil Painting 3. Duncan & the Old Mine 2. Thomas' Day Off 1. Respect for Gordon
An interesting thing about Neville and Dennis is that they are both Bulleid designs. Neville is a 'Q1' class steam locomotive, while Dennis (and, by extension, Norman) is based on the one-off diesel shunter No. 11001, although this diesel wasn't built until after the formation of British Railways in 1948. As for the Season 9 episodes themselves, I do have fond memories of watching Duncan and the Old Mine as well as Molly, Mighty/Mac, Neville and Dennis in their respective debut episodes, but the season overall is very forgettable. As for Molly's basis, she is a Great Eastern Railway 'D56' or 'Claud Hamilton' class 4-4-0. I once included Dennis in my first attempt at a Thomas story (filmed in Trainz 2019), but I wrote him as a grumpy but hard-working shunter instead of a lazy sod.
Mr Percival is definitely one of those pricks who wears brightly coloured cycling clothes and spends every other weekend going on 10-15 mile biking trips lol
At least this season gave us Respect for Gordon, Percy and the oil painting, one of Toby’s best scenes in Emily knows best, and of course Mighty Mac! However I do wish they used Molly, Neville, and Dennis as characters that would be used more or are characters like the ones in the classic series. Since I love Neville and Dennis engine basis and they seem to fit into the railway series with their unique designs and backstory!
Glad the review series return. This was my favourite hit series that introduce new characters which are my favourite hit characters and I compared it to season 8 and I feel that both are the same as I did remember almost all of the stories in two seasons as I did have dvds on them years ago. At least they are ok then the the upcoming series.
As someone who watched a LOT of season 9 on dvd as a child, I’m very nostalgic for it.(and still nostalgic for it to this day) There are some really great top view and low view camera shots of the characters, and some (not all in my opinion ) set designs are honestly pretty cool! I can agree that there were a lot of unnecessary Thomas focused episodes, but there some that work… sort of… We can all agree Emily is still a prick in this season though.
As out of character as it is for the narrow gauge engines do be so stupid and reckless, it is completely in character for Duncan to egg them on and it’s the unexpected silver lining for the messy writing.
I glad to see another amazing review. Ya I can't help but agree with you on season 9 overall. Back in 2020 I binged every episode day in day out and as soon as I finished this season I went to sleep.
Want to choose what video comes to my channel next?
Then head over to my Patreon where pledging today will give you the chance to vote in a poll for my next video topic.
www.patreon.com/posts/vote-for-my-next-87957372?Link&
DISCLAIMER: Only votes on the Patreon poll will count. Voting through Comments and DMs will not be counted.
You know, I kind of discussed how to potentially improve Mighty Mac as a character, by essentially having one end be kind of dumb and coming up with bad ideas, yet still enthusiastic about showing how useful he is, and the other be more quiet and mature, but kind of overly controlling and contempt in belief of how much of a hopeless case his other half is, leading to him constantly shooting down the other's ideas and essentially forcing them to just trail behind, which I figured could make for a more interesting dynamic and means of both conflict and co-operation.
I mean, hell, I imagined how that could lead to them damaging themselves on the first day, and after being mended, are forced by the thin controller to be part of a double (or triple, even) headed train, with one of the established engines in lead, only for a bad bit of track to put them out of commission, leading to the dumber half to come up with an idea that the lead engine actually finds to not be such a bad idea, leading to the two ends to go a more trickier path, as they pretty much push the lead engine and pull the train at the same time.
I figured that would've made for an improvement on the character and events, as the one in their debut episode made them kind of both annoying and idiotic to a number of viewers.
9:09 One of the ONLY things I didn't like about it is Gordon being a big asshole towards Thomas (I mean they both formed an alliance; "United we stand, together we fall, you help me, and I help you". DOES THAT RING A BELL?!), Henry needing "special coal" (even though Thomas specifically referred it as SODOR COAL! NOT WELSH COAL! PAY ATTENTION!), Sodor not being a real place (I mean come on! I know it's not real! But you're all just overacting! Heck, even some of the real-life engines in Awdry's books don't have faces but nobody cares!), Animals communicating with humans (I mean what is this, a Disney movie?), phone calls made with flowers (I mean what was that about?), Mr. Conductor having the most screentime than any of the characters because of Alec Baldwin's stupid improve (Yeah, I said it! This movie's real problem was Alec Baldwin hogging most of the spotlight! I hate him especially after the RUST incident, but Unlucky Tug still enjoyed his acting in this movie! OMG!), and worst of all; Boomer being cut out because of the stupid test audiences not liking him! And that's another thing, I actually like the original plot of Magic Railroad. It makes much more sense with the original villain P.T. Boomer. He's the one who really made Lady crash, NOT Diesel 10! I also like Lily's original characterization as a kid who didn't want to have a baby brother, I kind of relate to her on that one because when my little brother was a baby, he and I didn't get along so well; but overtime we get along so well! And I love the one deleted scene with Lily and Mr. Conductor by the fire talking about the meaning of family, that was touching. I appreciate Britt's original idea for this movie, but it all went down the drain because of the stupid test audiences and those dumb executives forcing Britt to change everything in her passion project! Just like Boomer, the test audiences had no compassion or imagination for Britt's creation and the executives and Mattel are only interested of making money than making sense! I care so much for this movie because it introduced me to Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends for the first time when I was a baby! I would've been a Thomas fan if it weren't for this movie! WITHOUT THOMAS AND THE MAGIC RAILROAD, I AM NOTHING!!!
wow Someone doesn't like Toby Feels Left Out and given the fact that Trevor Davis did a mini review on the Season 9 Episode, well he enjoyed the episode.
Since the narrow gauge engines (except Duncan) were horribly portrayed in this era, it is honestly a relief that Duke didn’t appear in this era.
I feel they would’ve turned him into someone like Edward where his only personality trait would be being old and weak, and/or having him act like a bossy, arrogant child.
@@fluffyrock2345and that would never suit his grace.
@@deadchannel733not only that but given the crews of the narriw gauge engines stopped appearing after season 7, Duke has no one to knock sense into him if its not Percival and the other engines
Sir Handel didn’t return until the next series
@@JosephRailwayStudios2000I didn’t say anything about him being here. And yes, I know he returned from the shadow realm in Season 10.
Hot take: this is the best HiT era season. New characters that didn't feel gimmicky (it is a CRIME how underutilized Neville was), somewhat in-character writing for anyone not named Skarloey or Rheneas (although they haven't been written well since Season 5 and won't be until Blue Mountain Mystery), and somewhat good writing for the most part.
My favorite HIT era seasons are 8 and 11 but 9 is third place for me
Listen use this headcanon skarloey and rheans being very young in there stories but hit went to the future so they could market the other narrow gauge engines
@@Daansstuff-altIt's third place for me too after Seasons 8 and 10
I liked the series 8 show.
Couldn't agree more.
The HiT era may not always have the most in depth stories, but visually, it’s the best out of the model era by far. it just looks so polished
like imo if we had the HiT visuals with stories on the level of a classic episode we’d be golden
what about the great discovery?@@XleeHS
that movie goes hard asf
im sorry idk if it goes hard means its good or bad@@XleeHS
good bruh 😳
I think it is save to say that the "New series" did Edward and most of the narrow gauge engines dirty.
At least, they were very consistent with James and Gordon.
@goulianodervelociraptorder734 As well as Toby Emily Percy going in the season 10 and especially Thomas in terms of character assassination
Yep. And tbh even the overuse of The ones written well makes those characters not interesting. The reducing the cast to 8 core characters biggest mistake of the show
@@Michaelm25And Henry somewhat
@@Michaelm25improved Emily actually
Season 9 was always my favourite looking season of the HiT Era. Shen Valley, Peel Godred, the yard from Thomas' New Trucks, Neville's Bridge, a lot of nice sets. Had it been recorded in 1080p like S11, it wouldve looked fantastic.
S11 peak visuals
How do feel about the series 12 like that?
@@EmmettDoyleDDR435 S12 has the nicest lighting, not dark but not yellow like S11. Same can't be said about the set design
@@RhysIndividual S11 is just peak model series to me lol, the setwork isn't perfect but defintley better than s12 or even 10, I love the shunting hard for example compared to how it looked in previous seasons, plus the 1080p camera really helps too
@@MonikaTrains the shunting Yards IS Not a good Example
I would say the Hit ear Versions Of the shunting Yard are my least Favorits If age Had oneit wouldnt but age IS 💩 i would say season 11 has one of My Favorit If Not my Favorit Version of the Docks
With all the WareHouses and the hoper and evreything honastly
12:10 Perfectly describes The Angry Birds Movie 2, at least Series 9 didn’t have any terrible villain “redemption” arcs
Season 9 was a nostalgia trip for me, that goes for the HiT era overall. I remember always tuning in on Nick Jr. when they announce a new season of Thomas. It has it's good moments, but some rather disappointing ones as well.
Also, it amazes me how the magazine stories from the 2000s give the HiT era characters some spotlight as opposed to Seasons 9 to 11 since they tend to focus more on the Steam Team themselves.
Season 9 is probably as nostalgic for me as season 8. I had all the episodes on DVD when I was little and I remember reading some of these stories in the 2007 annual. But even back then I hated some of the episodes, especially Skarloey and Rheneas's respective episodes.
Seeing Thomas’s Milkshake Muddle always brings me some nostalgia, that episode weirdly stands out to me. Neville’s episode was also a good one imo. Always enjoy these episodes, looking forward to finishing this video!
I do like how Luke chooses a mid picture of Thomas to fit with his opinions on this season. That's a nice detail.
I say that the hit era intro of thomas getting steaned up for the day needs more love in fan recreations
Luke in a spiderman costume with a TATMR DVD taped to his face might have scarred my brain
7:52
person: what's this music that's playing here?
me: the music that's will be played in my funeral, it sounds nice.
also wut da faq?? xd 9:09
They thought rusty was a sentinel steam engine
Although I'm not a big fan how most narrow gauge engines were written in this era. I have to say though that the sets were definitely great. Definitely better than the S5-7 sets.
Season 5 handled the Narrow Gauge engines wonderfully.
@@rmgilyard The characters were great in S5. But the sets for the narrow gauge engines are kinda bland to me.
@@giulianodervelociraptorder734 That’s what made them so cool, because the series made them edgier and darker.
Easily my favorite set of this season is the Neville’s Bridge set. I promise you I will replicate that set in my own series. This season is a mixed bag for me. Skarloey The Brave is a trash episode, Toby Feels Left Out is laughable, but it kinda is a fun midlife crisis story.
And also Bachmann decided to make Toby’s museum coach and even included a composite code that was not in the original episode
I have school tomorrow so I’m definitely going to watch this when I get home
Season 9 has a lot of weak episodes and bad moments, but it also had a few episodes that were actually really good and some of the characters were portrayed in their original personalities even if they were just moments! I think the best and the worst of the early Hit Era is all in Season 9. It’s not the worst, it’s not the best, but for everything it does wrong it got a decent amount of things right! Really enjoyed the video! (The April Fools one is still perfect though!)
Agreed I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a soft spot for season 9
The nitrogen era did this weird thing where whenever any character who is the main of an episode is Thomas when he is the main character in hit era episodes, and then when they aren’t in the main spotlight, they are the voices of reason.
Finally time to review season 9. I’m currently working on a defence video for season 6, but it isn’t as easy as I was hoping.
I honestly really like it when characters who haven’t had there debut episode appear before in previous episodes. It kind of shows that they’ve been on island. It’s nice they don’t just show up and BAM crazy stuff happens
Season 9 is a favourite of mine by a long shot!
Pros
• The Narrow Gauge Engines make a return
• The Songs are pretty good and catchy
• Plenty more focus on the Steam Team
• Some of the crashes are really entertaining
• The new characters are really cool and underrated
My only gripe with this season as well as the Hit Era would have to be the brighter models, sure they're good. But I think they should have continued using the glossy models from Season 5. But I think this is a really enjoyable season nonetheless, I give it an 8/10.
Also I know this will be unrelated, but I think you should review Seasons 22-24 as well in this series.
"You wouldn't make a good flagpole!" made me laugh.
Same 😂
I grew up with Hit Thomas when those days it is being aired on PBS Kids. I never commented this on your Season 8 Review, but I honestly find the Engines Roll Call in Hit Thomas pretty catchy when I was a little kid. I know it was annoying to you, but it was catchy to me. But I remember I watched "Duncan And The Old Mine" back then and I really find that Episode really good. And I also liked the learning segments too since the Hit Era was going on when I was a baby since I was born in 2006 and I am 16
11:27 Miller Era Thomas in a nutshell
11:27 Thomas and the Magic Railroad in a nutshell as well since that movie has shown to me and many other people to be a raciest movie since all the good characters on the island of sodor are steam engines and the bad guy characters are all diesel characters also the steam engines have canadian accents and the diesel engines have a new jersey accent so yeah Thomas and the Magic Railroad is also raciest
Neville would’ve been a perfect character with a perfect episode.
He’s a Southern Q1, they were ridiculed for their design. Being called Ugly Ducklings because of their odd looks.
But looks could always be deceiving, as the Q1’s were actually quite the powerful engine. In fact, they have a Power Rating of 5F, the same as the LMS Black Five.
Imagine:
An episode about Henry making fun of Neville because of his looks, but when he gets into an accident while pulling a heavy train, Neville comes in and saves the day. And Henry is astonished how such a funny looking engine could be just as strong as him.
BAM, I fixed Neville.
To be fair about “Thomas and the New Engine”, Arry and Bert did try to kill Stepney
The reasons I love season 9 is mainly because of the new characters and the skarloey railway engines so I appreciate Thomas and friends for a good season.
46:09 , if you want to talk about the inconsistencies of that song, claiming “Thomas knows what must be done” it uses Neville’s crash on the bridge later on in the song, while that crash was blatantly Thomas’ fault, it still claims “Thomas Knows What Must Be Done,” like wtf. That being said, I still like Brave, it’s one of my favorites from the hit era, along with Togetherness. Sorry for leaving three comments now.
Man they need to edit their music videos better.
You said it. I wonder if any kids back then noticed this back in the day
Who remembers the April Fool's prank video? Like this comment if you did.
Looking forward to this Luke, and although it probably won’t happen, I would love to see ‘The Thomas Cynic’ at the premiere.
Yeah it probably won’t happen, but if it did, she probably won’t enjoy it very much, no offense
I believe he’s still on hiatus, but I think he might appreciate some of the praise Luke gives to some of the episodes, but not so much with Thomas and the New Engine and Thomas Tries his Best.
@@joshuaW5621the thomas cynic is not on hiatus he started a new Minecraft channel and abandoned this one
@@hamzsportsgaming676 what’s his new channel called?
@@joshuaW5621Megnermalon
My favourite is Flour Power😍
I love thomas’ face too when he hears what Dennis tells him the truth he really looks like he’s about to just leave him there
Zooming in on Dennis's face as he admits his laziness to Thomas is one of my favourite shots of the season.
32:17-32:39 This is why Thomas' New Trucks is one of my favourite stories from Season 9.
It’s honestly a solid episode
19:48
I'd rewrite this episode to have Emily in Thomas's place with Gordon being the one who laughs at her
I feel like Proteus is a character who really needed more attention, because I love the idea surrounding him. Proteus is essentially a folk hero for engines to talk about, down to the stories about his magic lamp.
He doesn't need to be real, and all you have to do is have the narrow gauge engines tell stories surrounding him and his exploits, sort of like the stories Salty likes to tell.
I don't think you truly comprehend the deep commentaries on alzheimer's disease that are the cinematic masterpieces "Rheneas and the Dinosaur" and "Skarloey the Brave"
I have some fond memories with this season. I discovered the footage back when I got a Jack & The Pack DVD in 2006 during the music video, I was surprised to see Skarloey, Rheneas, Rusty, and Duncan in the HiT era frame rate, which felt so surreal back then. (I could only go up to 8 seasons and CAE)
I actually watched season 9 for the first time with Thomas’ Milkshake Muddle in 2007 with the first episode I watched was Thomas’ New Trucks. I even took it on a trip to Oregon one time!
I was unaware about characters that appeared in the season, such as Molly with her Take Along model in 2006, thinking it was a merch-only character along with Mike, Culdee (because I didn’t read much of the railway series back then), until finding out that trailer after HiT Autoplay.
I loved Duncan and the Old Mine when I was a kid
Duncan is my favourite Narrow Gauge Engine, I felt bad for him when he got yelled at for screwing up so I loved the fact there was an episode where finds a ton of of coal, helps out and gets some praise (even though he does get told "be more careful next time")
Duncan is my favourite narrow gauge engine too
@@fanofeverything30465Mine too! 😊
I am soo excited to hear your thoughts on this mediocre season. Personally I can't really make my mind up with this season.
MOHAMMED GEEDI:
In my personal opinion -
I love watching the US dub of Season 9 along with listening to Michael Brandon's calming narration as he tells the stories.
(But he should not use annoying alliteration and repetitive rhyming, because the narration will be completely ruined)
MOHAMMED GEEDI:
Also in my opinion -
Seasons 8 to 24 should also hire brand new writers like Joel McCrary,
Wendie Malick, Martin Sherman, Rodger Bumpass & Jennifer Gould.
MOHAMMED GEEDI: My final conclusion?
the HiT, Nitrogen and BWBA trilogies should have realism, clever writing, common sense, originality, different plotlines, original stories,
well-executed messages, memorable morals, good narration, great voice acting, brilliant modelwork, beautiful animation, and so on.
I actually like “Thomas Tries His Best” for the simple reason that it’s one of the very few times in this era where an engine actually thinks about the consequences of their actions. But, I do respect your opinion.
Yeah that's actually a very good point there
Never thought of it like that
@@usualblokelukeDid you know in a deleted scene, Thomas actually asked Emily to deliver the chickens
@@ThomasmemoryscentralCan it be accessed anywhere?
Plus the funfair theme is a bop!
I like how the ground explodes whenever the engine gently touch it upon derailing. Like, is the Island of Sodor supposed to be covered in landmines?
Also it really feels to me like Emily didn't really become a decent character until the CGI era, despite how long she had been around.
Emily being bossy is decent, way better than her just being a clone of Edward in season 7
Overusing slow motion tends to bug me too in their crashes or derailments
I do love that the hit era brought back sir handel in season 10
He returned from the shadow realm.
24:48 This is genuinely my favorite edit
Don’t get me wrong, I grew up with the HiT Era. In fact, it was my introduction to Thomas. Though now that I’m older, I’m disappointed with it. It has so much wasted potential. Characters like Neville, Molly and Dennis had wasted potential for great stories.
Out of the new characters, I like Mighty Mac and Dennis the most for their unique designs and persona traits. Neville I find mid, but has potential that fans take full advantage of. Molly I am sadly not a fan of her being not only as a more depressed character, but her class were also express engines and her being reduced as pulling trucks is just - no! Much prefer Rebecca TBH.
In terms of episodes, my favorite earns to Respect for Gordon because of its moral, the characters and an awesome crash. Fun fact, Keeping Up with James is disliked by Hilary Fortnam b/c of not only claiming of her father being distressed if he saw it, but b/c of the term 'Winter Holidays' being used.
You know, I've actually watched a WatchMojo Top 10 video of any inconsistent characters that made fans rage quit and Edward just so happens to be at Number 8 and Skarloey & Rheneas being put in the honorable mentions category.
Nah, Rebecca sucks. She should never exist. Her character was terribly designed and too babyish. I don’t like BWBA. Mattel should kept the Claud Hamilton. Rebecca’s personality in BWBA should have been given to Molly the Yellow Engine.
46;51 Can you move it along I’m all out of Thomas cards. XD
Oh boy! Here we go! Another of his worst season reviews, is it? I love the hit era by the way! 😤
New territory as I have no memories of Series 9+.
Eh, it was okay.
I’d see it as Series 8, but slightly better.
While most of the characters had some questionable changes, there were some gems throughout the episodes.
The production in terms of the aesthetics are definitely worth watching.
Better than 8 just by a slight margin, but still not completely there yet.
Big lows, but a surprising amount of highs.
9:15, Absolutely GOT EM^^
Me to now we never have to talk about Thomas and the Magic Railroad ever again or should I say Thomas and the Tragic Failroad
Anxiety doesn’t spare the old and the wise, so Edward fearing scrap is completely reasonable, if someone tried to rewrite this episode with this fact in mind, while still trying to stick to the core characteristics, it would’ve turned out perfectly in my opinion. The concept for this episode is a really good one, and he does work in here as a lead character. It just needs some vastly improved writing in order to make the story work.
I LOVE Thomas anf the Statue. I love how ironic it is
9:10 - I never liked Magic Railroad so that’s pretty funny
Yeah I know that movie sucks ass and it's abysmal
Why do I REALLY wanna see "A Few Good Mengines" now?
I don't remember all the episodes of series 9, but it sure had its ups and downs. And personally, I like Molly and Mighty Mac, a lot.
Is it just me, or does Thomas & The Rainbow feel like an episode that was a way to promote Pride Month because of the colors?
Or it was just HiT’s attempt to babify Thomas even more by adding anything babyish like rainbows, unicorns or any happy sappy stuff associated for little kids that felt like they belong in Barney.
Eh it doesn't really feel like the episode's related to pride month, just a generic bad episode with thomas acting like a lil kid
@@ToastTheThe And an excuse of trying to make Thomas into a Barney wannabe show (a.k.a. A Stereotypically Senseless Baby Show) by adding something pertaining to baby shows like rainbows, unicorns, butterflies or fluffy wuffy happy sappy stuff
OOH good one!
One thing I’ll give Thomas tries his best if I’m being honest is at least Thomas thought at one point before abandoning his work one of the only times he does it from seasons 9-16 it is a boring episode but that is definitely a positive for me.
Can I just say that I love your passive-aggressive nature throughout this video? Just glorious!
Season 8 may have been the beginning of the three strikes and you’re out formula (which originated in the Fireman Sam Season 5 Episode “Neighborhood Watchout”) but but look out! Season 9 is where it REALLY ramped up.
Also what do you think of Norfolk Southern retiring their ex-Conrail D8-40CWs and if Sir Topham Hatt was real would be buy one of them for Sodor’s Heritage Railway?
Another thing you forgot to mention about 'Henry and the Flagpole' is that the original flagpole wasn't tied down to it's flatbed or put in a crate which would've stopped it from being knocked off of the truck and onto the rails where it gets run over.
Despite my suggestions, I don't know how flagpoles are actually delivered. But I know they're usually delivered more safely than the episode depicts near the start.
I assume that the flagpole had just been unloaded and not tied down yet. I feel like there were some workers that would come and tie it down and didn’t know when Henry was coming.
For real this time, can’t wait to see it
legendary thumbnail 💀
Respect for Gordon, is like a combination of Gordon takes charge and squeak, rattle, and roll in season 9.
mighty mac deserved so much more attention from this series!
Both Season 8 and 9 are kinda similar for me. The key difference is Season 8 is simple, laidback and boring, whereas Season 9 is creative and fun but baffling.
28:12 Luke, I respectfully disagree with you on this. The Magic Lamp is my favorite episode of the Hit Entertainment Era because I think the three strikes formula helps to elevate the story and build up Peter Sam’s motives. I have made an analysis video on The Magic Lamp ages ago, but don’t take my thoughts as fact.
Season 9 is probably the best HIT season. It still isn’t good, it’s lacking big time. But it’s highs are more frequent and are much higher.
Is it me or did anyone had a crush on Molly? Cause she was fine for the most part (my kid self was stupid so dont ask ehy and how that would be something)💀💀💀💀
Okay, now that we’ve already been bamboozled by that April Fools video that you made last year on Season 9. Right now we’re getting into the real analytic review video of Season 9. I’m looking forward to see more videos talking about the HiT era.
That April Fools video was 5 months ago lol
Saying that though I finishing University throughout the first half of this year so it felt like a full year anyway haha
@@usualblokeluke My memory must’ve been fuzzy 😂 Every year feels like it was long but it was just a couple months ago.
@@thecaledoniansleeper2648
Honestly same 😂
Series 9 was in a improvement over series 8 there are some bad episodes but the goods make it a bit high for me s9 is okay
I mean no disrespect, Luke, but as much I'm optimistic about this tomorrow, I hope there won't be any funny business like that April Fool's video as I've been desperate for this. Also, I mean no offense about this.
Of course, I get what you mean and it's all good
No April Fools shenanigans this time
That last one was just a fun joke
ngl, for that opening sequence of the crew starting Thomas up, they did some pretty good model work
It frustrates that for all that tv specific work that went into that cable intro, Thomas's crew practically never appeared onscreen for hit era Thomas unless a plot demands it.
i mean, bruh
I don't know why but I really like the scenes in 13:53 and 41:41 where Thomas climbs up Gordon's Hill, maybe it is just how he does it with *confidence,* especially with how he is tilted in these shots.
MOHAMMED GEEDI:
In my personal opinion -
Gordon, Edward, Henry, Emily, Toby, James, Percy, and various old and new characters should have more lead roles in new episodes instead of Thomas so the show won't be stale, lazy, repetitive and boring.
This is a really good review. I may be in the tiny minority when I say this, but I hoenstly really enjoy Season 9. I understand the problems with this season, but the new characters are interesting, there are great gems in here probably more than S8 imo. Also, it's just a warm, and feel good season(I might be one of the few people that says this LOL).
Well done with this review Luke!.
Wow. I didn’t expect the Season 9 review to pop up so quickly. Your content is always high quality so I’m always looking forward to your next video.
As a kid I remember liking a load of the new characters. I had that spinning track master of Mighty Mac which I liked and two versions of Molly (who I’ve gained a new fondness for having learnt her basis was a Claud Hamilton). My brother also really liked Neville and his debut episode (he says he also likes it a lot more since I’ve recently told him that the bridge accident had a real life basis). I remember he also liked Dennis.
Finally its not april fools
Fun fact: We Germans have a different Name for mighty mac: B I G M A C
But this Name was introduced like in Season 11. You wanna know what he was called at Debut?
MAC NIC
IM NOT JOKING
What’s funny is that dinosaurs aren’t transported like how it is in the episode. Also stegosaurus itself was never found in where the show takes place
They have to put it on an open flatbed so that it is blatant to the babies what they’re carrying.
Yeah…. Series 9…. Crap 💩
Thomas’ story is always firsted. And they let the other characters’ stories like always last. Literally always!
Was it worth? No! The only good episode to me is Bold & Brave, Respect For Gordon, And Thomas’ MilkShake Muddle! The Toy Shop, Percy’s Painting, The Birthday Picnic, Emily being a Queen bitch has some good. But Sadly the whole series is more bullshit! Usual, you have full permission ahead to crap all over Series 9! But doesn’t forget Neville, & The Dinosaur Episode because they are brainwashed nightmares! Anything has gone wrong! Series 9: Crap but not too disappointed…
Yeah this season is very mid. There's like 3 solid episodes and quite a few I don't like at all. What I found to be a huge issue this season though was some episodes had everything there to be good but, something was missing which let it down such as visuals, execution, padding etc. The only new character I really care for is Molly tbh. Not to mention how they butchered characters like most the SKR engines. When this season was good though it knocked things out of the park!
This is honestly still my favorite Hit season
mine is season 12 and 8
Nice job mate!
Now I rank it
Bottom 5 in Memory
5. Rheneas & the Dinosaur
4. Thomas & the Golden Eagle
3. Thomas & the Rainbow
2. Saving Edward
1. Skarloey the Brave
Top 5 in Memory
5. Thomas & the Statue
4. Percy & the Oil Painting
3. Duncan & the Old Mine
2. Thomas' Day Off
1. Respect for Gordon
Respect for Gordon is the perfect episode for this season. One of my favorites.
An interesting thing about Neville and Dennis is that they are both Bulleid designs. Neville is a 'Q1' class steam locomotive, while Dennis (and, by extension, Norman) is based on the one-off diesel shunter No. 11001, although this diesel wasn't built until after the formation of British Railways in 1948.
As for the Season 9 episodes themselves, I do have fond memories of watching Duncan and the Old Mine as well as Molly, Mighty/Mac, Neville and Dennis in their respective debut episodes, but the season overall is very forgettable. As for Molly's basis, she is a Great Eastern Railway 'D56' or 'Claud Hamilton' class 4-4-0.
I once included Dennis in my first attempt at a Thomas story (filmed in Trainz 2019), but I wrote him as a grumpy but hard-working shunter instead of a lazy sod.
I love how the titel is just "mid"😂🤣😂🤣
next season is 10 and @thomasfan261 hates season 10 will he be special gestt?
9:10 Hehe haha hehe haha, did someone say magi-
Mr Percival is definitely one of those pricks who wears brightly coloured cycling clothes and spends every other weekend going on 10-15 mile biking trips lol
Just a everyday man on his bike on a Sunday.
At least this season gave us Respect for Gordon, Percy and the oil painting, one of Toby’s best scenes in Emily knows best, and of course Mighty Mac!
However I do wish they used Molly, Neville, and Dennis as characters that would be used more or are characters like the ones in the classic series. Since I love Neville and Dennis engine basis and they seem to fit into the railway series with their unique designs and backstory!
I just noticed that the text on the Thomas & Friends logo in the background of the video is off-centre
The first season to be written by Sharron Miller.....................the next 9 years are gonna be hell.
Only 7 actually.
@@joshuaW5621 Huh?
@@supermariof0521 2005 + 9 years implies 2014, which is really 2 years ahead of reality.
@@joshuaW5621 Oh right.
Skarloey and Rheneas got alzheimer's lol
S9 is 18 years old
Don’t tell me that…
Why
Omg can't wait
Glad the review series return. This was my favourite hit series that introduce new characters which are my favourite hit characters and I compared it to season 8 and I feel that both are the same as I did remember almost all of the stories in two seasons as I did have dvds on them years ago.
At least they are ok then the the upcoming series.
As someone who watched a LOT of season 9 on dvd as a child, I’m very nostalgic for it.(and still nostalgic for it to this day)
There are some really great top view and low view camera shots of the characters, and some (not all in my opinion ) set designs are honestly pretty cool!
I can agree that there were a lot of unnecessary Thomas focused episodes, but there some that work… sort of…
We can all agree Emily is still a prick in this season though.
I'm surprised Respect For Gordon isn't #1.
It's certainly in the great episodes tier from Series 9 and HiT model series in general, I just wouldn't say it's my favourite
As out of character as it is for the narrow gauge engines do be so stupid and reckless, it is completely in character for Duncan to egg them on and it’s the unexpected silver lining for the messy writing.
I glad to see another amazing review. Ya I can't help but agree with you on season 9 overall. Back in 2020 I binged every episode day in day out and as soon as I finished this season I went to sleep.
6:48 I tried so hard to not laugh here
Dennis: **exists**
Carson: *helo*