Season 17 - Kevin's Cranky Friend

Pros:

-Story Doesn't Revolve Around The Engines
-Classic Personalities
-The Line 'Sent Away In Disgrace'
Cons:
-Three Strikes Plot Line
-Thomas Being Shoe-Horned In

So, First Episode Of A New Season. How Did It Go? For Once, I Actually Quite Liked This Episode. Although The Dreaded 'Three Strikes' Being Used As The Plot Line Is Still There, This Story Is Enjoyable For Three Reasons:

Firstly, The Story Doesn't Revolve Around The Engines. This Is The First In A Few Years. Sure, There Are Engine Characters In It, But The Main Plot Revolves Around Cranky And Kevin. Speaking Of Engine Characters, I Felt That Thomas' Role Later On In The Episode Was A Bit Unnecessary. I Think That His Role Could Have Easily Been Taken By The Brendam Bay Twins, Bill & Ben.

Secondly, The Characters Seem To Have Their Classic Personalities Back. Cranky Is Back To Being Cranky. And Even Henry Seems More Like He Was In The Classic Series. Kevin, However, Has Changed. I Like His New Personality, Though. Instead Of Being Clumsy And Just Generally Playing Around, He Is Now Young And Eager To Work. The Animation On Him I Think Quite Reflected His New Personality.

And Thirdly, The Dialogue. The Lines Now Sound A Lot More Natural, Instead Of Just Having Rhyming And Alliteration Crammed Into Every Single Line. Also, The Line 'Sent Away In Disgrace' Sticks Out To Me. It Sounds Like Something Right From The Classic Series.

4/5