Customer Reviews

Thomas & Friends: Creaky Cranky

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the latest Thomas & Friends DVD to hit the shelves. Naturally, we had to add it to the kid's ever-growing list of Thomas DVDs.

It's another in CGI format. Perhaps it's just me, but I'm a bit nostalgic for the old voiced-over models. Something has been lost in the switchover to computerized graphics -- an innocence, perhaps?

Mr Perkins makes another appearance as the live-action host. I give him 2-thumbs up for his performance. He seems to be much more energetic and excited to be there -- unlike some of his earlier performances. In "Creaky Cranky", he is preparing the Engine Driver's Locker Room for Mr Arkwright's birthday party. (Sadly, Mr Arkwright doesn't make an appearance.) Mr Perkins teaches us a new game -- Pin the Funnel on Percy -- and paints a big birthday card with James on it. And, of course, there is the requisite phone call from Sir Topham Hatt.

The title episode "Creaky Cranky" pits Thomas in a contest of strength with Cranky the Crane. I like Cranky's voice! It has a "New York Docks" inflection and "Teamster" attitude. Unfortunately, my 2.5-year old son got scared by Cranky in CGI, and watched the rest of the DVD from a safe place behind the kitchen door frame. Spooky, I guess!

In "Tickled Pink", James lives every boy's nightmare -- having to wear pink clothes! It has a happy ending though (James gets the girls. I won't spoil it for you.). "Steamy Sodor" puts Thomas in charge of the Sodor Steamworks for a day -- with the predictable outcome. The look on Victor's face is priceless! And, finally, in "Early Bird", Thomas gets to deliver the mail -- not so quietly, in fact.

There is one complaint I have with the new DVDs -- "Creaky Cranky" not excluded. It's the constant apologizing. Thomas says he's "Sorry" at least 50 times in this DVD. I hate to be political -- anti-politically correct, actually -- but are we teaching our kids to become apologists? They don't need to say "Sorry!" all of the time! Just my view.

On the whole, it's an average Thomas DVD. It may buy you a few moments of quiet.

Maybe it's just me, but this new series just seems really generic compared to the original Thomas the Tank Engine shows. Every episode is basically "Engine gets special job. Engine botches job three times. Authority figure recaps each mistake. Engine fixes mistakes with time to spare." And whoever's the focus of the story seems to abandon all common sense at the outset. It's not even like the old ones where a character's specific flaw might be their downfall.

There's some new engines and machines too, but they don't seem to add much. The animation's not bad (actually one of the best parts), but it doesn't have all the industrial activity and background detail you might have seen in the show 20 years ago. Instead of pulling coal, lumber, or boxcars, the engines seem to pull car loads of ice cream, merry-go-rounds, and cakes.

I'd recommend a disc of the older episodes instead. There's more visible craftsmanship, more originality, and the characters really grow on you.

Creaky Cranky is another collection of episodes that you've probably already seen on PBS.

We're introduced by Mr Perkins the driver again, who is now setting up a birthday party for a fellow driver.

The episodes included are:

Season 13, Episode 1: Creaky Cranky

Season 13, Episode 3: Tickled Pink

Season 13, Episode 14: Steamy Sodor

Season 13, Episode 6: The Early Bird

A Special feature is a "Sound Song" sing-a-long video.

It's really about time that HIT releases the new full seasons already. But then again, we know it's all about merchandising and marketing. An actual movie is due soon, ( a Misty Island trailer follows after the credits) and of course, more books and toys are sure to follow.. (Misty Island Rescue introduces 3 new friends.. which you know will be made into toys).

So there you have it, 4 episodes packed into a DVD with Mr Perkins (who I actually enjoy). It might be worthwhile to include an unaired episode or two.. that would make it a lot better.

Both kids really seem to like this Thomas movie, though they usually like all of the Thomas movies anyway. Another great moral building movie that's jam packed with lots of lessons on how to behave properly, and how to treat others as well.

My grandson is going to be 2 next week and he is such a fan of Thomas and Friends and especially Cranky. I'm probably going to have to buy an extra copy as this is repeated at least 3 times a day at our house.

In our house we love all the Thomas shows, CGI and old-fashioned. I actually prefer the CGI myself. What I don't like is the live-action sequences in between episodes. They bore me and my son. It feels like space filler. We just want to see the trains!

This is a nice DVD as it has a few torie in it and my 4 year o;d loves them all.

My 2-year boy loves Thomas! He literally has every 'new' Thomas DVD. When I say 'new' I mean the new CGI Thomas DVDs. Anyways, you really cannot beat the prices on Amazon. Plus it shipped quick to my house. Now my boy has another DVD to watch in the car on the way to school/daycare or the mall. I'm definitely going to buy the new Misty Island DVD through Amazon pre-sale.

This is an adorable DVD that features my son's favorite - Cranky! This DVD is in the new CGI animation so it is colorful and bright like a regular animated cartoon, rather than how the older Thomas DVDs are - my son prefers it animated. The DVD is fun and full of traintastic adventures where the trains (Thomas especially) learn to work together and listen to others. With four episodes on this, my sons couldn't get enough of it and wanted to watch it over and over! The narrator (Driver Perkins) has a friendly voice and made the episodes flow smoothly!