RWS No. 14: The Little Old Engine

I'm up for another Railway Series review. The 2nd to star our favourite little Narrow Gauge engines.

(Special thanks to Thomas the Tank Engine Wikia for the images)

14. The Little Old Engine.
Written by: Rev. W. Awdry.
Illustrated by: John Theodore Kenney.
Published: 1959.

Here, we're introduced to our maintenance diesel ad our Rock n' Rolling engine. How does it stack up?

Foreword:
Dear Friends,
You remember in Four Little Engines that Sir Handel Brown, The Owner, sent Skarloey away to be mended. These stories tell what happened when "The Little Old Engine" came home.

Skarloey is not real. You can only see him in these books. But there is a real engine just like Skarloey. He is very, very old, and has been mended. His name is Talyllyn, and he lives at Towyn in Wales.

You would all enjoy going to see him at work.

The Author

86. Trucks!/Rusty Helps Peter Sam.
Adapted by: Britt Allcroft and David Mitton.
Aired: UK: 25 October 1995. AUS: 1 May 1996. US: 14 October 1996.

Peter Sam and Sir Handel are given buffers and a new diesel named Rusty arrives, but Sir Handel continues to act in his same old way. Gordon sees Sir Handel shunting and advises him to get out of work by pretending to be sick. Sir Handel does so next morning, and Peter Sam and Rusty take his trucks for him. Peter Sam later goes to the slate mines to collect more trucks. Some mistake him for Sir Handel, and decide to play a trick on him. They snap their chain and run into him. Peter Sam is rescued by Rusty and goes to the shed. Sir Handel apologises and the Thin Controller tells him to do Peter Sam's work as well as his own. Sir Handel is then left wanting to give Gordon a piece of his mind!

The adaptation is not without its faults. First off, Rusty was new to the railway and didn't need to make a proper appearance until Sir Handel started to feign illness. Maybe cut it out and we would've gotten more info about the incline. Second of all, how can the trucks not see Peter Sam properly? I mean in the books I can understand because all the steam engines on the Skarloey Railway are red, but in the adaptation, Sir Handel is blue and Peter Sam is green. Unless sunlight was reflecting off Peter Sam's boiler, making it impossible for the trucks to see the colour at all. Just some tweaks that could've work, but the accident was ace. 

RWS rating: 9.5/10.

TV rating: 8.5/10.

87. Home at Last.

Adapted by: Britt Allcroft and David Mitton.
Aired: UK: 26 October 1995. AUS: 2 May 1996. US: 21 October 1996.

Peter Sam, still recovering, is delighted when Skarloey returns. They talk about the going-ons of the railway while Skarloey was away, including new coaches, and new engines such as Rusty and a bad-tempered steam engine named Duncan with strong languages and rough manners. They are interrupted when Skarloey's crew arrive to tell him that Duncan has gotten stuck in the tunnel. Skarloey takes some workmen to pull Duncan out and takes his train home. The Thin Controller rebukes Duncan, who behaves for the rest of the evening.

Too bad we never got Ada, Jane, Mabel, Gertrude or Millicent in the TV series, but what can you do? The way Duncan got stuck in the tunnel was very well done. And I like how Peter Sam explained about what Duncan was like really put me on this adaptation. 

RWS/TV rating: 9.5/10.

88. Rock n' Roll.
Adapted by: Britt Allcroft and David Mitton.
Aired: UK: 27 October 1995. AUS: 3 May 1996. US: 21 October 1996. 

Skarloey meets Rusty and compliments him on his work on the line. Rusty confides that the line before Cros-ny-Cuirn is dangerous and he is afraid Duncan will derail. Duncan overhears and insults Rusty. The next day, Rusty, who is still cross at Duncan, leaves him to get his own coaches. Duncan is late, and James tells him about the time he "supposedly" made Diesel leave single-handedly. Duncan is impressed, and is so focused on sending Rusty packing that he comes off at the dangerous line. When Rusty hears, he grudgingly assists and after Duncan apologises for being rude, the two become friends.

This is without a doubt the best adaptation of the book. Funny how coincidentally, a diesel named Diesel was introduced in the previous book and James mentioned him in this book while Duncan was complaining about Rusty. Also, the accident Duncan had in this was spot on. And it was nice that both Duncan and Rusty made up in the end. 

RWS/TV rating: 10/10. 

Little Old Twins.

Some men are coming to look at the line, and Peter Sam and Sir Handel remember that people did that on their old line and that it was later sold. The engines are miserable, until Peter Sam's driver tells them the men are producers from the BBC who will be filming the engines for a television documentary . Everyone is happy again, except Sir Handel, who tries to weasel out by playing sick again; the Thin Controller simply asks his crew to take him apart to show the producers how an engine works. Peter Sam is given the honour of pulling the television equipment, and, after a circuit around the line, stops to film Skarloey making a speech. To everyone's surprise, Skarloey reveals that he has a twin, Talyllyn, and that he met him while being repaired.

Now this is a story that was worthy of an adaptation. Makes me wonder what would've happened if Thomas was produced by the BBC? Dunno why Sir Handel would play sick again after the trouble he unintentionally caused Peter Sam. Another nice way to bring a real engine to the series, especially one whom Skarloey is based on. 

My rating: 9.5/10.

Stray observations:

Little Old Twins has the most words of any Railway Series story, with 790 in total and is tied with A Close Shave for having the most illustrations. 

Look at the pic I chose for the review on Trucks!, Peter Sam's face is slanted. And people complain about Thomas' face being slanted in Journey Beyond Sodor. 

Final Thoughts:

This book is overall a nice read. It was a nice way to bring Rusty and Duncan to the series, and interesting to have a real engine, in this case Talyllyn, Skarloey's brother. Duncan's comeuppance was well written and Peter Sam's accident was surprising. 

My rating: 9.6/10.

RWS scorecard:

6. Henry the Green Engine:

8. Gordon the Big Engine: 9.2/10.

10. 4 Little Engines: 9.5/10.

11. Percy the Small Engine: 9.7/10.

12. The 8 Famous Engines: 9.5/10.

13. Duck and the Diesel Engine: 9.2/10.

14. The Little Old Engine: 9.6/10.

16. Branch Line Engines: 9.6/10.

18. Stepney the Bluebell Engine: 9/10.

21. Main Line Engines: 9.3/10.

22. Small Railway Engines: 9.8/10.

23. Enterprising Engines: 9.9/10.

24. Oliver the Western Engine: 9.3/10.

25. Duke the Lost Engine: 9.8/10.

26. Tramway Engines: 9.8/10.

27. Really Useful Engines: 9.2/10.

30. More About Thomas the Tank Engine: 8.8/10.

40. New Little Engine: 5.7/10.

RWS rating so far: 9.4/10.

Season 4 scorecard:

1. Granpuff: 8/10.

2. Sleeping Beauty: 6/10.

3. Bulldog: 8.5/10.

4. You Can't Win: 9/10.

5. 4 Little Engines: 9/10.

6. A Bad Day for Sir Handel: 8/10.

7. Peter Sam and the Refreshment Lady: 10/10.

8. Trucks!: 8.5/10.

9. Home at Last: 9.5/10.

10. Rock n' Roll: 10/10.

15. Rusty to the Rescue: 5/10.

16. Thomas and Stepney: 5.5/10.

17. Bowled Out: 9.5/10.

18. Train Stops Play: 9/10.

20. Toad Stands By: 8.5/10.

21. Bulls Eyes: 8.5/10.

22. Thomas and the Special Letter: 10/10.

23. Paint Pots and Queens: 9/10.

24. Fish: 10/10.

26. Mind That Bike: 5/10.

Season 4 rating so far: 8.7/10.