WARNING: This post may contain major spoilers for Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure.
*Blows off dust* Well, it's been a while, hasn't it? I haven't really used this blog for the past few years, however after seeing SLOTLT in cinemas I decided to make a review of the film. So, shall we begin?
Firstly, let's start with the story. It is excellently constructed and everything is tied up at the end of the film. There are many subplots, the main one being Marion thinking that the Arlesdale engines are magical and they turned Oliver (the engine) into Oliver (the excavator). I especially like how the Arlesdale engines have quite a major role in the story. Initially, I thought they would just be added for the fan-service, however they do appear to play quite a major role in the story. The build-up of the story to each event is something else I enjoyed. For example, the cracks in the ground near the start of the movie before Thomas falls down into the cavern or Thomas getting cockier and cockier before the big accident at Knapford. As well as this, SLOTLT features two musical numbers: 'Never Overlook a Little Engine' and 'We Make a Team Together'. To say the least, 'Never Overlook a Little Engine' is quite a different song (you'll know what I mean when you see it!) and, yes, it does feature Rex, Mike and Bert. 'We Make a Team Together' is quite catchy and I like the tune to it. Also, is it just me or do I hear a bit of the 'Really Useful Engine' instrumental in 'Never Overlook a Little Engine'?
Now onto the returnees. First up, Donald and Douglas. Their models appear to be quite underscaled - an issue also seen in Oliver (the engine). Their models are also extremely detailed and Arc have made them look a lot more like their prototype (the Caledonian Railway 812). Joe Mills' voice acting for them is excellent and their new whistles are quite nice too. I don't really mind their new whistles as they sound realistic, however I personally prefer their old whistles. They are also introduced with bagpipes playing in the background, which is a nice touch. Next up, Daisy. Daisy is very well modelled and it is nice to see her after so many years, however I believe that she is slightly overscale (similar to Duck and James). Another complaint I would make is that she only appears briefly at the end of the movie and only has one line of dialogue, so it is hard to comment on her voice. Alfie, Oliver, Max and Monty's models (I'm grouping all the Pack members into one) are well rendered by Arc too and are highly detailed as well as being reminiscent of how they originally looked in season 6 and the Jack and the Pack spinoff. My only complaint is with Max and Monty as they do not have any speaking roles.
Next, we progress onto the new characters for the TVS. Rex, Mike and Bert are the first ones I will be covering. They are well rendered and their size is represented very well. Some people have an issue with their wheels being the same colour as their bodies however I am not bothered by it as it is not too big of a change (no pun intended!). Ryan is the next new character. Although I didn't initially like his purple coat with GNR lettering as the Great Northern Railway originally used green, I have grown to love it as it stands out among the many green engines we've seen recently (Samson, Porter, Gator, etc.). His personality in the film is quite different to that advertised; whereas he is described in merchandise as being overconfident and dismissive, in the film he is quite friendly and helpful. Finally, Sailor John and Skiff. The portrayal of Skiff and his character development is quite nice to watch; he starts out as being obedient of Sailor John until he befriends Thomas, at which point he realises what John is doing is wrong and, eventaully, takes action against him. Sailor John is also quite a good villain, and is the first human villain in the series (I don't count P. T. Boomer as he was only in the director's cut of TATMR). After all he puts Skiff through, it is nice to see him get his commupance in the end.
There are three main new sets in the feature film: Arlesburgh Harbour, Arlesburgh Junction and the Construction Site. Out of all of these, my favourite has to be the Harbour. A lot of detail has been put into the Harbour and it is extremely expansive, hence why I shall be using it as Knapford Harbour in my series. Arlesburgh Junction is quite nice too, although I do think it could use a station building as there doesn't seem to be one at the moment. The Construction Site works quite nicely at the start of the film, however I do think it is a bit disappointing at the end that the only thing resembling a station is the little halt-like podium which the Fat Controller stands upon; maybe they could add a proper station instead? I also notice that Arc seem to be expanding sets a lot, which is exampled by the windmill at the start of the film. The prologue shows us that - after the windmill - the railway passes under a road bridge, which curves downwards to run parallel to the railway. After this there is a passing loop and then a road junction. They also seemed to do this with Bluff's Cove and the Fishing Village in Toad and the Whale.
In conclusion, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure is an amazing film and I hope you all get it once it is released on DVD, I know I will!
Final Rating: 9.5/10
