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List Price: $9.98 | | Label: Starz / Anchor Bay
Salesrank: 33612
Released: March 5, 2002 |
| Our Price: $1.78 |
| Used Price: $1.55 |
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MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
The tot-like tank engines are back on the tracks for another round of useful lessons cleverly disguised as adventures, narrated by Alec Baldwin. The half dozen five-minute stories that make up this episode include such conclusions as the fact that teasing can backfire ("A Big Surprise for Percy"), listening to rumors can lead to wrong impressions ("Thomas and the Rumors"), and it's hard to live up to one's bragging ("James and the Trouble with Trees"). In the title story, a complaining James gets the chance to help Mrs. Kindly (voiced in a comically strained falsetto by Baldwin) when her sister can't come to visit. Mrs. Kindly (and Baldwin's falsetto) returns in "Happy Ever After" for her daughter's wedding, as the engines provide a train-themed package of something old, new, borrowed and blue--yes, the last would be Thomas in streamers. The 34-minute video wraps up with the kid-sung "It's Great to Be an Engine," which asks the musical question, "What if you could be a train?" (Ages 2 and older) --Kimberly Heinrichs
Thomas the Tank Engine And Friends - Make Someone Happy Reviews:
great, funny,and not sexist 
2006-07-23 - This was great another tape with my favorite narrator Alec Baldwin. It was cool and funny and loved it. Thomas isnt sexist and think how people complaing about it being sexist is a load of BS. And its Mrs. Kyndley not Mrs Kimbal. Its fine the way it is and girl carrigaes being pulled around by male engines is not even remotely sexist. And if you people have a problem with it dont let your kids watch the show. Dont ruin it for the older thomas fans like my nephew because he has fun with it and your kid will grow out of it probaly and if not then he`ll be old enough to know these things. So dont tell HIT to change and put in females and screw up thomas just dont watch it. I mean your kids whole life cant be sugar coated all the time. There are plenty of female chrachters and Rev W Awdry made them kind enough you guys just cant take a little humor.
One of the worst 
2004-11-12 - This definitely isn't one of the best Thomas tapes. "Baa" and "Happy Ever After" are alright, purely because the music in them is really good, but the other episodes are some of the worst in the series, particularly "Thomas and the Rumours." Alec Baldwin's narration is at an all-time low here; his James voice is bad in most episodes, but on this tape it's so awful you might want to cover your ears whenever James starts talking! So, with a combination of weak storylines and terrible narration, this shouldn't be on your must-have list of Thomas items.
PS. I'm getting really annoyed with all this reviews saying that there are no female characters in the series except Mrs Kyndley, and that Mrs Kyndley always has to be rescued. She's had three episodes devoted to her; in her first episode, she did have to be rescued, but she saved Thomas first; in her second episode, she needed the engines' help to make a good luck package, and that hardly counts as being rescued, does it? In her third episode, the Fat Controller and the engines tried to cheer her up, and that doesn't count as being rescued either! The "no female characters except Mrs Kyndley" comment is absolutely garbage. I can count at least eleven other characters in the series who are female. So will you please stop trying to complain that the series is sexist? It's people like you who are ruining the world for the rest of us, chaining yourself to gates and demanding that words like "manhole" are changed to "personhole!" The only thing that's even remotely sexist about this tape is Alec Baldwin giving Mrs Kyndley a falsetto, and that's not bad enough to get worked up about, is it?
This Thomas video makes me happy!(10 out of 10)
2004-10-06 - Personally, this is one of my favorite Thomas videos. It is better than all the other Thomas videos that came out around that time like Cranky Bugs; Races, rescues, and runaways; and Spills & Chills. Some overprotective parents have said that there is to much nasty words exchanged from the engines. So what. It's not even close to being "nasty" and besides, kids will here stuff like that someday. Most of these stories focus on Percy but they are still very good anyway. My favorite is Thomas and the Rumours. Here are the stories:
Make Someone Happy A:
Thomas is tired of James bragging about how good he is and saying that he's to important to pull messy coal cars. He tells James that if he makes someone else happy for a change, he'll make himself happier too, but James refuses to believe him. Meanwhile, Mrs. Kindly is looking forward to her sister coming up to visit her but finds out that she can't come, so she is sad now. Will James cheer her up, or will he just keep trying to feel important?
A Big Surprise for Percy B:
Pushing and pulling cars back and forth all day, that's what Percy has to do every day and he is very board; he longs for a surprising thing to happen. Well he gets it soon enough when the cars break free from his train and start running away.
Happy Ever After A:
Mrs. Kindly daughter is getting married and Percy is on a mission to find the good luck package which must contain: something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue. But just where does he find those things Percy is wondering. With some help along the way, Percy will soon find the good luck package.
Thomas & the Rumours A:
When the children tell Thomas that their playground has been closed down, Thomas tries to help them. Then, when Sir Topham Hatt has Harold take a visitor around the island instead of the engines, the big engines get mad because they think that Harold is taking over their work. Now Thomas has two problems to solve, but maybe they are connected somehow.
James & the Trouble with Trees A:
When Sir Topham Hatt sends James to help Thomas and Percy clear the line of fallen trees, they warn James how dangerous trees can be and James doen't listen to them. But who will come an help him when he encounters a giant tree?
Baa! A:
Percy is sent to Maithwate station with some flowers for the "Best Dressed Station" award and runs into a hungry ram. Luckly, his driver is able to lure the ram away with some food.
Then later, the station gets trashed and everyone thinks it can only be one thing, the ram. But come to find out, the ram isn't the culprit, he is just making sure the real suspects do no more damage.
Again, great Thomas video. Even the music video, "It's Great to be an Engine," is good. I'd recommend that you buy this Thomas video to add to your collection today. If you don't, you're missing out.
Not the Best, Not the Worst 
2004-06-25 - Make Someone Happy is a decent video with a few decent episodes. Alec Baldwin narrates, and his narration has pros and cons. The pros are the narration itself, is rather good and Baldwin does give characters creative character voices but the cons are that some episodes aren't that exciting and Baldwin does make James sound like a sterotypical gay man. But those Chinese Dragon and eye rolling complaints or full of crap. The Chinese dragon never said anything and all the engines roll their eyes to make up for the fact that their mouthes don't move! Also, not to sound rude but those complaints about the lack of a strong female character are just annoying. Mrs. Kindly needs help in about 2 episodes in the entire show, and in her first appearance she saves Thomas and is rewarded with a Christmas party. A female steam engine wouldn't be needed, because Mavis is a strong female character and an engine. Though it seems like HIT listened because Emily was introduced a few seasons later. Happy Ever After, James and the Trouble with Trees, and A Suprise For Percy are the best episodes on this Thomas & Friends release.
Not the Best, Not the Worst
2004-06-25 - Make Someone Happy is a decent video with a few decent episodes. Alec Baldwin narrates, and his narration has pros and cons. The pros are the narration itself, is rather good and Baldwin does give characters creative character voices but the cons are that some episodes aren't that exciting and Baldwin does make James sound like a sterotypical gay man. But those Chinese Dragon and eye rolling complaints or full of crap. The Chinese dragon never said anything and all the engines roll their eyes to make up for the fact that their mouthes don't move! Happy Ever After, James and the Trouble with Trees, and A Suprise For Percy are the best episodes on this Thomas & Friends release.
