HiT Entertainment actually wanted Thomas to be a big success, and while the effort wasn't in the writing, it was definitely elsewhere. Thomas was brought back to PBS in fall of 2004, as he was previously on that network from 1989 to 1997 as part of the Shining Time Station spin-off. While bringing Thomas back to PBS came at the cost of retooling the show to have more educational content, Thomas was once again a long-running staple of that network, running from 2004 to 2017. Also, high-quality merchandise lines like Wooden Railway, Take-Along, and Trackmaster were everywhere at the rime, and children and collectors couldn't get enough of them despite that fact. Thomas' merchandise sales were the reason why in 2009, when the show made the transition from scale train models to CGi, HiT made the wise decision to shelve Barney the Dinosaur (which is only made to appeal to little children and has no substance for older viewers) to focus more on their really useful engine. Also, DVD releases were everywhere at the time, and some of them came with one or two Wooden Railway models. When Mattel acquired the Thomas license, at first, they did a good job with it, giving us the same high-quality merchandise as HiT and improving the writing of the CGi series so that it felt more like something from the classic series. Unfortunately, as time went on, the quality of the merchandise decreased. Late 2017 in particular was when Mattel started making decisions that hurt Thomas more than helped; they pulled Thomas' TV show from PBS, replaced the long-running and beloved Thomas Wooden Railway line with the inferior Thomas Wood line, pulled Edward and Henry, two key characters from the Steam Team in favor of newcomers Nia and Rebecca, and made DVD releases more scarce. In 2021, they made the All Engines Go! spin-off, which is much faster-paced and cartoony, something that the Rev. W. Awdry himself would never have approved of, and something that Britt Allcroft has officially denounced. Mattel also seems more determined to send Thomas to the scrapyard than ever because despite having brought Thomas Wooden Railway back in a redesigned form the following year, they don't put any effort into making new models other than the Day Out With Thomas models in the following years, they block uploads of classic Thomas and Shining Time Station episodes from RU-vid, deliberately disrespecting Britt Allcroft's wishes of keeping the classic series alive for future generations, and are bringing Barney the Dinosaur back from extinction in a CGi reboot. I cut ties with Mattel last year and I'm glad I did because they continue to horribly mistreat Thomas. Those ties will remain cut until they either stop mistreating Thomas or give the license to another company that will make his franchise great again. I personally am hoping for Orbrium, one of Thomas Wooden Railways competitors that I jumped ship to following the decline of Thomas Wooden Railway under Mattel's thumb, since they make their products specifically with Thomas Wooden Railway in mind. I have two petitions to help get Thomas back on the right track, one to get Orbrium to acquire the Thomas license, and the other to get Mattel to stop blocking uploads of classic Thomas and Shining Time Station episodes from RU-vid. Links to them are in the description for my Wooden Railway Discussion of Orbrium's Track Maintenance Crew.
the show was mid back then but The TOYS AND MERCH WAS AMAZING like hit had amazing toys like flipface and the rc stuff from Hit and other things too unlike mattel who made the toys worse and worse
@@asafjuarez1 after the 2 part episode the royal engine in thomas that came out in may 2020, thomas and friend's series got rebooted in 2021 and between 2020 and 2021 the series died
@@edwardtheblueengine222 I liked thomas as a baby, toddler, big kid, but then in 2020 when covid started it started to get a bit boring and then they rebooted it
“Kid aren’t going to want toys of trains when the show itself goes to extreme lengths to say trains are lame, and have them do anything other than what trains would do” - The Unlucky Tug
I think it’s safe to say that Thomas now just rots kids brains but back in 1984 when they first made the tv series it was so much better with the real life models from then until 2009 when those cheapskates at HIT entertainment wanted to switch to CGI it all just went downhill
honestly, if Thomas (in it's prime) was to be revived, the best way to do it, is adapting every single un-adapted rws story (in a similar way to the classic series) and once finished, just reboot the show in a similar style to the railway series. or abandon it.
i didn't even realized that the entire video is literally a copy of ThomasFan261's video on if the franchise is dead. Its literally word for word but with changes.
Can we just respect AEG. Yes ik season 1 was terrible but the seasons have been getting better like the third season and yet none of us gave it a chance when the trailer came out But I don’t see the franchise dead. The main reason i see this is because the TTTE community can keep it alive with tons of videos about it like Unlucky tug, Thomas theorist, Enterprising engines etc
AEG is not Thomas. Engines aren’t suppose to jump off tracks, use their wheels as legs and twist their bodies. It goes against everything Wilbert Awdry created. It’s a Thomas rip off that doesn’t deserve respect.
AEG is okay, but it really should've just been its own show, not a Thomas reboot. Also, there's the Marc Forester movie that's in development, too. So yeah, this franchise ain't THAT dead!
I think the only reason why Big World Big Adventures even got a US DVD release was probably because of me. Let me explain. I wrote a letter to Mattel telling them to make more Thomas DVDs when I was younger. This was when BWBA was airing. But I most likely doubt that was the case.
And it’s not the first time Mattel has done something stupid with a franchise. They couldn’t handle 2004 He-Man properly as well, they were gonna do a 4 season but cancel it before they finished it.
Not to mention the shows AFTER that: the Dreamworks She-Ra was the most decent of them but still highly controversial and barely marketed, there was that generic CGI version, and worst of all Revelations.
I loathe Mattel and HiT Entertainment for killing this beloved series. I also hate how Britt Allcroft is responsible for setting the ball in motion for everything leading to that point with Thomas and The Magic Railroad. Thanks a lot Britt.
@@supersonicstyleatsonicspeed NO!, IT WASNT! HIT CONTENT WAS GOOD! It’s was nostalgic for me it’s like the only time where Thomas actually made me feel good. I’m not going to stop defending HIT. HIT is what I grew up with and I’m not changing my mind! And if you don’t like it then that’s fine.
My story as a thomas fan: I got my introduction in thomas i 2010 and got myself into trains and I was 2 years old and my brother introduced it (he was 4 years old back then), I loved the franchise so much that I collected wooden railway toys and in 2015 asked my mother to take me to baltimore for day out of thomas and since I got my i troduction into trains I would ask my mommy to take me railfanning every single time, I even watched the trainz videos on youtube. 2017 was the beingging of the end. I lost my thomas interest, I lost interest simply because I kept closing my eyes in toys r us because they kept on derailing, in later years I forgot BWBA exisited and railfanning was halted and then 2018 was the time I didnt do any trains, I was into mario (childhood thing) but a main thing in 2018 and into airplanes and I realized that 2018 wasnt the same for me. I returned to railfanning in 2019 due to my youtube channel and this time without the thomas stuff due to realizing its for Babies, during 8th grade I searched up day out for thomas on my school computer just to revisit my childhood, only for them to mock at me saying its for babies too, I returned to thomas on November 14th 2022, I rewatched all the classic series stuff and retrospective stuff, only to find out that hit era and nitrogen era sucked! I have a soft spot for that era because I'm nostalgic for it. Then came BWBA, oh boy many people in the fandom said it sucked too and realized the show was cancelled. So thats it
Personally, I do think Thomas is dead as the reboot is nothing like the show many of us loved and I for one have my doubts we'll get something good for the 80th anniversary next year. 6:24 Also, this might just be my opinion, but I would've liked Journey Beyond Sodor to have been how the franchise had ended, mainly so season 21 wouldn't have aired to begin with. Although I would've altered the plot to where Thomas does something and doesn't want to stay on Sodor that of course had James involved, remove the bouncing, change the "want to go home" song where he regrets leaving and perhaps change the final song too. Other than that, if Thomas does or doesn't get good again, it'll depend on my mood as currently, I don't have much faith for the future, outside of toys made by Bachmann, fan events, and fan content. These days, I prefer real trains over Thomas and they make me happy whenever I see or have the chance to ride behind one as its something that'll always bring a smile to my face, just like Thomas did for me for much of my life.
As a guy who grew up with Thomas, I do find it a real shame as Thomas really was a big success touring my childhood, with all the people behind it, the narrations like Ringo and Michael and the model style.
@Sqweezr10-27 I personally am hoping for Orbrium, one of the leading wooden train systems I jumped ship to following the decline of Thomas Wooden Railway under Mattel's thumb, because they make their products specifically with Thomas Wooden Railway in mind. Among the things they've released are a set of express coaches for Gordon to pull (since the official TWR ones are discontinued, rare, and expensive) and several sets of unpainted engines and rolling stock for the fans to customize as they please. Not to mention, like Mattel, Hasbro has been blocking uploads of its intellectual properties from RU-vid, even if they're something that qualifies as fair use, like a review of a My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic episode (it's a critique of the episode, not a substitute for the episode itself). A link to a petition I started to get Orbrium to acquire the Thomas license is in my Wooden Railway Discussion of Orbrium's Track Maintenance Crew.
Thomas and Friends is just a freaking kids show meant for children! If kids enjoy the show for what it is and as long as it continues to teach morals that’s all that really matters.
True, but what's wrong with putting a bit of heart and soul into said kids show? Granted, not every show needs to be perfect, not even one targeted at youngsters, but if you're gonna talk down to them, mishandle the morals, write formulaic episodes, annoy the parents watching with them, force in politics and bring in new stuff just for the sake of "Buy our new merchandise!", well...i'm sorry, but that's not a good or even great show for kids. Or anyone for that matter. I mean, what's more likely to stick with you? A show that respects our intelligence or a show that fails to do that? I think you know which one it would be.
Ok, dude don’t be sad that Thomas is over, just be happy that it’s still here. FYI the show wouldn’t be better if it ended on tgd or tatmr, it just wouldn’t. Especially tatmr because that movie is not canon to the franchise. The cgi series wasn’t perfect, I’ll admit that but there are some good stuff in it. Not all of the cgi series was bad. Plus, people hated it because it wasn’t really based to the show, and even after the movie things were still normal in season 6.
I think PAW Patrol will overtake/surpass Thomas & Friends in terms of episodes... PAW Patrol and Thomas & Friends have similarities (Sodor; Adventure Bay), (Thomas; Chase), (Numbers on trains; numbers on vehicles), (Sir Toppham Hatt, Ryder), etc. Keith Chapman the creator of PAW Patrol, also created Bob the Builder which Mattel also ruined.
Okay okay, guys, hear me out. Here’s how I, and I think a lot of others might think of the death of Thomas the tank engine. There are 2 different types of dead franchises. One of them is where the show is laid to Rest In Peace, and its legacy is left alone. It is no longer continued, there are no more shows or movies or anything made from it (not sure if merch counts, but it definitely doesn’t say much) it’s just gone. And the other is where it is in an undead state. It is still being continued, but what comes from it is absolutely garbage. The latter state is the state Thomas is in. Yes, it’s still going, but because All engines go is absolute crap, the official soul of Thomas is dead, and the show only exists because Mattel just wants to marketing stuff. So yeah, Thomas the tank engine is pretty much dead and unless things turn around somehow, the blue tank engine that once dominated kid’s television is now nothing more than giant pile of rotting scrap.
What should really happen is Universal Pictures should split from Mattel the film and television assets to form a new company consisting of the Barbie,Hot Wheels,Thomas and Friends,Masters of the universe,Polly Pocket and Monster High intellectual Properties amen.
All engines go is not that bad. It is a hell of a lot better than Big World Big Adventures. And while it's not perfect. It has been getting better. I used to f****** despise all engines go. But then I watched and my opinion completely changed. It's still nowhere near as good as the original series. But I think it's decent. And I would give it a solid 7.5/10 it could be better but it's a lot better than Big World Big Adventures. Which I give a 0.5/10
@trainguy3277 let me explain so basically boulder from skarloeys railway and it roll the whole until it crashes into Sodor research (big plot twist for shed 17)
2:48 I know train guy They made the reboot all engines trash For no good reason’s and for stupid reasons 5:30 yes I am indulge bluey nowadays 5:54 well it isn’t nothing is going to get better Mattel doesn’t give a crap About the original source materials And they’re going to pay for this 6:40 yeah it’s because they Drop the idea for the director cut and PT Boomer in it From the year 2000 Because they think that might scared the children And after I watch Trevor Davis’s videos about Thomas and the magic Railroad and I’m really hope They will try again to put the director cut and PT boomer in It and finally finished the film and release it on The 25th anniversary DVD 📀 Since after they tried during the COVID-19 pandemic In 2020 And Trevor and I don’t think PT Boomer was all that scary He’s just funny and kinda silly 7:25 and so as George Garza production & Trevor he’s a huge fan of Thomas and friends And this franchises it’s his and my childhoods 7:41 Well you know what not yet I’m sure Thomas will be no longer to be belong to Mattel Are belongs to Hasbro After they sell the rights to them And Trevor said Hasbro will buy Mattel off someday Because Hasbro did a much better job of their own properties Then Mattel was hoped to do So would you like to check out my 40th anniversary Tribute posters of Thomas and friends from my community
