Despite BoCo not appearing since season 5, I am all for the idea of him appearing in the Bachmann line.  Especially since every diesel engine that is currently in the range, and soon to be at that, are all smaller diesel engines.  BoCo gives good variety as he is a large diesel engine and would be a huge seller since there is no model of BoCo available anywhere.  Plus he would go along nicely with the Bill and Ben models, and even the Duck model for that matter! 

Him and/or Oliver would make a nice lineup for new engines in the HO line next year!

http://video.cltv.com/iHobby-Expo-takes-over-Schaumburg-25228111

This is the best I have found so far, and there isn't even a good look at what's on display as far as new products go.  I know that Bachmann mentioned on their facebook page in a comment that the Large Scale Toby will be on display... I haven't heard any news of what new additions will make it on display from the HO line.  I certainly hope photos and a video will be provided soon!

Here are my thoughts on the episode:
This was a really fun episode!  Bill and Ben make just about any episode good, even when they appear in it briefly.  This episode is no exception.  Their trick on Connor made me feel like I was watching a classic episode, and even their tricks on Victor and Kevin were pretty funny too.  It was just one trick after another, and them going straight back to their old ways despite being punished just made the episode all the more enjoyable.  As BoCo said "You two never stop, do you..".  This episode really does prove that quote.  
Connor's role in this episode was really quite well too.  He didn't start off as a bully, a jerk, or even in the slightest bit vain.  He just acted like a simple everyday character.  Which is why this episode worked unbelievably well.  It makes the victim of the episode just all the more interesting.  Especially when he nearly crashes into Henry.  
And of course the punishment...being painted blue (Wow seanrail, you were close on this one!) was a fun to see too.  The way how Ben even manipulated Kevin to be repainted was a very clever move on the writer's part. 
This is another perfect episode, highly recommended for old and new Thomas fans alike.  10/10

Quote from: seanrail on October 03, 2013, 03:14:42 PM
Chaz, I thought of another punishment for James in the Phantom Express, from James and the coaches, that James will have his red coat taken off of him and have him painted blue.

Same as the tar tanks one you used earlier.  It'd be interesting to see how they would pull that one off though if they did.

Now then...
Percy's Lucky Day
This episode was easily better than what I witnessed yesterday.  It was interesting how Percy and Stephen are starting to build a good friendship together, two episodes in a row of supporting one another in some way.  I actually like that since it gives Stephen a bit more of a variety to connect with as opposed to a new character always associating with Thomas.  Hopefully we can see more of that later.  I also liked the little details they added at the beginning of the episode.  Anyone notice the pumpkin that fell off Bill and Ben's train right as they pass Percy after the bag explodes?  It's little things like this that make me like the effort that's being put into the animation this season.  Even the envelopes flying around was a fun bit too. 
I think the best thing about this episode, inevitably, had to be Bill and Ben.  There's no hiding this one, these two (like Duck), really have their original personalities down and they have them down pretty well.  More of a reason to look forward to tomorrow's episode based on the preview!  Their arguments with each other was pretty funny as well as Sir Topham Hatt watching them getting irritated is done quite well.  
"I'm not heavy!"
"Yes, you are! You weigh tonnes!"
This right here is probably one of my favorite quote(s) from this season, hands down.
Two things did have me confused while watching this episode.  The first was why did Sir Topham Hatt have a package just for the Duchess?  Not the Duke and Duchess, but just the Duchess herself?  Seemed a little strange to me.    Another is how were percy's wheels still sticky at the castle after being washed earlier?  I guess to be fair on that one, the writers were trying to find a way to have Percy lose his good luck charm but I personally felt there would have been a better alternative. 
And no, I'm not gonna gonna complain about Bill and Ben having red wheels just because it really doesn't make that much of a difference to me.  I do prefer the black wheels and I don't understand why they did the change.  But then again Duck's footplate is black and that didn't really bug me all that much and the same could be said for the twin's wheels.
Otherwise, once again, another fun episode.  Worth the watch! 9/10

You are right on that, I completely blanked that out, thanks for pointing that out! 

Also, personally a tar tanker punishment sounds like a far more suitable punishment for James, it almost sounds like something Andrew Brenner would have done too.  I definitely would have rated the episode higher if they gave James a more suitable punishment, but probably not all that much higher.

Also another thing, apparently we are getting 26 episodes! 

Here is no more mr. nice engine:
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/programs/thomas-and-friends/#episode/ZX9601A009S00

Now for my thoughts on today's episode, the Phantom Express.  
Honestly at best, I thought this episode was okay.  It was better than the likes of Luke's New Friend and Steamie Stafford but I didn't quite find myself enjoying this episode as much as the likes of Scruff's Makeover or The Lost Puff.  There really wasn't anything I found particularly memorable about this episode at all, the only real positive note I can think of is that this is the first episode since season 11 to have an episode take place all at night.  No daytime or sunset scenes, just all at night.  That's pretty rare for Thomas episodes nowadays, or even the classic series for that matter.  The storyline felt a lot like Jack Frost, except a little boring, minus the crash scenes.  The crash scenes were interesting but I felt having both Percy and Stephen crash was a little overboard.  Another thing I didn't understand was Sir Topham Hatt's punishment for James... to take Percy's mail for a week?  While I like that the writers are taking the initiative to give the engines punishment for doing something bad, the punishment given to James just didn't quite work for this episode.  If anything it sounds more like a punishment for Percy since he likes taking the mail.  Aside from that though, the storyline in general was okay, the cast of characters was okay and of course the moral tying into the episode was... okay.  The episode was good for what it was, but it did feel like another one of the weaker episodes this season.  
5/10

The Thomas Way was incredible, and honestly much better than I anticipated it to be.  I originally thought this was going to be a typical Thomas learning a lesson about teamwork type of episode that they usually pull off every season.  It turns out that this episode did this in it's own unique way.  They had Duck in his original personality, and they had it spot on!  It was great seeing Callan Castle in full CGI, the reaction from Gordon at Knapford was humourous, and of course the model era Duck being in that picture completely blew my mind.  And Duck being turned around by Rocky was an interesting move on the writer's part, I actually really liked that.

If there was one thing that I thought was odd about the episode, it's that I thought it was a little odd that Duck didn't see the danger of taking Harold to Knapford station or the tunnel until the last second.  Duck was right in front of both places respectively and it was kinda odd seeing as how he didn't see how Harold wouldn't fit through both areas respectively.  

And of course a good sign for me was...

Quote from: Sparks on October 01, 2013, 09:51:10 AM
It also seems Misty Island Tunnel is completely walled up!

I am totally okay with this!  

This episode without a doubt reaches my top 5 without a question.  I know some fans find Duck to be "overrated" but even if they still have this approach with Duck as a character I can't see why they wouldn't like this episode.  It's definetely an episode that will stand out compared to most this season, which is really saying something!
9.5/10

And thanks thomasj219! Same to you!

Well the Lost Puff came and went, here are my thoughts on the start of the second half of the season:
The humor in this episode was pretty decent, I didn't fall in love with it but I didn't hate it either.  The episode seemed focused more on silliness rather than anything else (seriously, count how many times the word silly or silliness or other alternatives to that word was used in that episode).  The ironic thing was the episode that was intended to be humorous really wasn't the funniest episode of the season.  I think that goes to Calm Down Caitlin, so in a sense you can say I felt a little underwhelmed by this episode.  
This doesn't make it a bad episode by any means, it was a pretty enjoyable episodes and it definitely had it's moments like Toby finally getting to speak this season, Paxton getting his own episode, and of course that duck deserves a category of it's own.  Plus it was great seeing Stephen again, and the look of utter confusion he had in the episode was pretty funny.  Aside from that though, I feel there really isn't as much to offer about this episode aside from what was said earlier.  Again it's not that I didn't like this episode, it's just compared to most episodes this season, it really didn't stand out to me like how other episodes this season did.
6/10

Quote from: BRGroat on September 25, 2013, 08:18:54 PM
Question- I could be going to the NRM in a couple years and am considering buying City of Truro there but I'm curious;
1. Is the model still available?
2. How much does it cost?

The model is no longer available as of now, it was an exclusive for only one year being sold exclusively at NRM.  Your best bet at this point is to find the model on eBay.  As far as prices go, nowadays you would be lucky if you find the model under 200 dollars.  I just looked the model up and the cheapest you can find him is 152 dollars plus shipping. 

As far as accuracy goes, that will surely hit the nail with hammer with the old van from A Close Shave.  Nice job, Sparks.

I feel like another thread regarding future products is really overdoing it.  We have a wishlist thread, a predictions thread, and even threads dedicated to specific additions like Oliver, Stepney, Narrow gauge, etc.  Using one of the threads mentioned earlier, particularly the wishlist thread, wouldn't be a bad idea.

Excellent!  Looking forward to hearing updates on most of these products.  Hopefully we will see Troublesome Truck #4 on display at the show.

As soon as I read the title, I suddenly got my hopes up thinking some late announcement popped up!

Honestly, I agree with thomasj219. I feel like it's one thing to talk about the potential a locomotive has for being made, but talking about thoughts and pictures as if he is actually is announced is a whole different deal.  That and I feel like Bachmann probably gets enough demands for Oliver as it is, so at this point I think they got the message.  Personally, I think it's only a matter of when he will be announced, as opposed to if, but only time will tell at this point. 


Regardless, he's the most popular demand by a landslide, and I think a lot of members on this forum would love him to join the range.  I know I would!

Been a while since someone posted on this thread, and I've thought recently about what large scale could do next year, so I'm just gonna show my predictions for what I could see happening next year.  Even though I don't own large scale, it's fun to speculate, which is why we're all here.

Engines (One, not both):
Edward - I can't name a single person who wouldn't want to see Edward appear in the large scale line.  One of the main engines from the steam team, Simple design as far tender engines go, and popular with older and newer fans alike.
Mavis - To be honest, I can see Mavis as a better possibility than Edward.  Not only would she go along nicely with Toby, but she would also be a lot more of an easier design for Bachmann to put together.  She is also a pretty iconic character to the series, despite her current appearances being rather brief.  

Rolling stock (two of the following):
Henrietta - Based on how long it took for us to get Henrietta in HO after we got Toby, I feel like Bachmann might take a lot of time before announcing Henrietta in the range.  Especially since I imagine tooling for her would be expensive.  Despite this, I feel that it would be almost ideal, if not inevitable to join the range as far as future rolling stock goes.  
Mail car - This is probably the largest piece of rolling stock I could see coming into the range for the time being.  It's used regularly throughout the show and has remained iconic to the show for years.  
Red open wagon and Cream tanker - Let's be honest, these two are a given based on the rolling stock that we got this year.  An easy repaint is something that Bachmann has almost never dodged in both HO and large scale lines.  

That's a pretty nice photoshop!  Admittedly, I'd be happier if we got something outside of a tanker or a wagon there are plenty of those in the range right now as it is!  Of course if the face is done right, then there isn't much reason to complain since that's what everyone liked about TT #3.

It's pretty clear that Troublesome Truck #4 has the most hype as far as HO additions are concerned, but I think that has more to do with the speculation of what it's design choice is going to be.  Either way, the results will be interesting.