Relationships

**Relationships** is the sixteenth episode of the fourth season of the Stories of Sodor and the sixty-sixth episode overall.

Relationships/Transcript

## Plot

During the Skarloey Railway's expansion, the railway had a contract with the Ministry of Defence to build a base at the northern end of the valley, opposite of the slate quarry which was called Camp Culdee. The camp was a training facility and storage site, with an underground bunker. It still exists today, although at the mercy of numerous conspiracies. The Ministry of Defence had decided to downgrade their operations on Sodor, which meant that Fort Sudrian was to be decommissioned. Throughout the next several months, the equipment and personnel were transferred off of the island. James and Rosie were very distraught at the thought of being separated.

However, Sir Topham Hatt had made a deal with Rosie just before the Fort closed: After finding a loophole in her service contract, he offered her to work on the Brendam Branch, and she had accepted. She and James are talking about this when Peckett makes a mistake while shunting. Rosie comforts him by pointing out he didn't hit a signal box, which have all been removed on the standard gauge railways. They then talk about how dodgy the new signal system is and about BR's new chairman before Rosie leaves for Wellsworth. James then says he has a train to take to Tidmouth, and hopes he won't see Thomas in a foul temper, as he had been taking coal trains to and from Marston Heights. At the coal mine, Thomas and Kate bicker and after an insult about being named after her builder's dog, Kate declares their time together is over, much to Thomas' joy.

At Tidmouth, Thomas tells Terence and Oliver about his words with Kate. Terence tells him it was his fault, but Thomas admits he and Kate were going to break up. After it came to light that Emily and Henry were married, he and Kate were always arguing whenever they talked. Thomas decides he and Kate need to move on and Oliver offers to take up Thomas' coal runs. Thomas then notices Maggie, who had arrived that morning as a work coach for the project and will be put into regular service once the line is complete. Suddenly, Whiff derails on the same set of points he had on the day before, much to his annoyance.

At Wellsworth, Henry is waiting for a malfunctioning signal, which a workman promises to fix up in a jiffy, which Rosie mentions to Henry it is a trillionth of a second. Rosie had learnt that from James and talks about how smart he is, and Henry remarks how it's like Emily too. Rosie talks about her new life on the Brendam Branch, just as the workman has finished fixing the signal. Henry sets off, but at Maron, he is forced to wait for another malfunctioning signal. Reginald is there as well, waiting for a rail tour to pass by. Soon, they hear the whistle of the approaching engine, which Reginald recognises. The engine approaches the station and stops upon noticing Reginald and Henry learns that the engine is Reginald's brother, Randolph. He had volunteered to run the train to see Reginald, but Reginald coldly orders his brother to leave. Henry is aghast at Reginald's harsh words, and he tells him that he and Randolph used to work on the outskirts of London back in the day. Out of jealousy of his brother's popularity, Randolph started a rumour that devastated Reginald's career, so much so that he was transferred to Sodor, which was that he preferred the presence of males over females. This was rather controversial at the time, but isn't as much so now. Reginald decides to avoid his brother as much as possible until the rail excursion leaves the following day.

Meanwhile, Edward is leaving Wellsworth with a goods train bound for Brendam. However, Randolph's signal doesn't tell him to stop and as Edward began to cross over onto the Brendam Branch, the two engines notice each other. They throw on their brakes but are unable to stop in time and collide head-on at the road crossing. The impact from the collision causes Edward's boiler to burst and he blacks out. Mickey soon arrives and notices cracks in his brother's boiler.

That night, Mickey relays what happened with Edward to Henry, Gordon, James, Geoffrey, and Samantha. His boiler had been damaged beyond repair and will need a new one, but there aren't any ready units left. Worse still, BR's losses have tripled in the past four years and they may not have the money. In the interest of public safety, Mickey tells them that the Fire and Rescue Service will conduct an emergency review of all sets of points and signals on Sodor and any defects will be fixed. Mickey tells the engines to continue working and report any problems immedaitely before he heads off. Randolph is still depressed, not from the accident, but with Reginald. He decided to sleep in the yard instead, and Samantha had known about the hostility between the two. Randolph reveals that Reginald was the only one of his class who didn't have a girlfriend. He claims he said so because he was so busy that he didn't have time for girls. He couldn't clarify what he meant because the day he made the comment, he left London and returned after more than a week when the rumour was at its high and it was too late for him to clarify. He also admits he was jealous of Reginald's status and felt guilty about what happened. Before Reginald left, Randolph tried to own up to him and he told his brother he would throw a party when he dies. Randolph wanted to use his arrival as a chance to make amends, but with Reginald still furious with him, he decides to leave tomorrow.

The next morning, Samantha talks with Reginald about what his brother said the night before. Reginald is skeptical about his brother's guilt, but admits he and his brother argued every time Reginald was given an important assignment and he mock Randolph about it from time to time. Just then, the yardmaster informs Reginald that he will have to take the excursion back because Randolph had derailed. Reginald frustratingly goes over to pick up the train and Randolph apologises to him in-between his groans of pain before losing consciousness.

Randolph is taken to the works and Mickey informs Reginald that his brother has come down with a serious case of metal fatigue which had gone unnoticed for years and spread through his body. Reginald immediately decides to help his brother and accepts responsibility for his affairs. Mickey can make Randolph's repairs an emergency procedure so BR will have to release funds, but Edward's repairs have to be postponed. Randolph's condition is worse than Edward's and his repairs can wait, but there will be complications if he is kept under the influence of green water for an extended period of time. After thinking long and hard, Reginald chooses to have his brother get the overhaul. The men worked their hardest throughout the days and weeks, but despite working their hardest, they couldn't bring him back.

That night, Reginald eats his own words, now knowing the emotions his brother felt and feels overwhelmed with guilt for putting Edward at risk, which Gordon dismisses. He also tells his former rival that a brand new boiler had been found for Edward and it will arrive tomorrow, which will put Edward back in service within the next fortnight. Reginald still feels remorse for not forgiving his brother, and Samantha reminds him about what he was thinking about what Randolph was trying to do. Henry advises Reginald that the best thing to do now is to try and move on, which Reginald agrees with. He then admits that the rumour was a silver lining, as if he hadn't been sent to Sodor, he might never would have met any of his present friends.

The day after Randolph's passing, a small memorial was held for him and the dead engine was taken to the scrapyard to be disposed of. Reginald was still plagued by his guilt, but worked through the guilt thanks to his friends, especially Samantha. She and Reginald held a wedding with a good luck passage that had something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue, who was Edward himself, having recovered and with no grievances towards Reginald. Edward had experienced hallucinations (including seeing the ghost of Mr. Star) after regaining consciousness due to being under the influence of green water for too long. He was discharged the next day, returning to work with his brand new boiler and being overjoyed with how Rosie paid out Bill and Ben for tricking her. Rosie was quick to settle into her new home, and she and James revealed that they were friends rather than a couple. The Fire and Rescue Service had completed their assessment regarding the signals, solving all the issues and making the system work as intended and the engines soon became adjusted to the new technology.  Come 1963, even more changes were to come, as well as the chairman of the Railway Board, Doctor Richard Beeching.

## Characters

* Thomas
* Henry
* Gordon
* James
* Oliver
* Reginald
* Geoffrey
* Mickey
* Whiff
* Kate
* Rosie
* Samantha
* Peckett
* Randolph *(death)*
* Maggie
* Terence
* Edward *(narration only; does not speak)*
* Emily *(does not speak)*
* Bill and Ben *(do not speak)*
* The Fat Controller *(does not speak)*
* Richard Beeching *(indirectly referred; does not speak)*
* Toby *(cameo)*
* Donald and Douglas *(cameos)*
* Eric *(cameo)*
* Neil *(cameo)*
* Diesel *(cameo)*
* Arthur *(cameo)*
* Benson *(cameo)*
* Skarloey *(cameo)*
* Rusty *(cameo)*
* Falcon *(cameo)*
* Stuart *(cameo)*
* Trevor *(cameo)*
* Mr. Star *(hallucination; cameo)*
* The Banana Splits *(hallucination; cameo)*
* Duck *(mentioned)*

## Trivia

* This is the first and only appearance of Randolph.
* One of Edward's hallucinations is the Banana Splits in engine form.
* Randolph is the sixth engine to die in the series.
* As of this episode, Reginald and Sam are now married, Thomas and Kate have broken up, and James and Rosie have affirmed that they are Platonic Life Partners.
	+ Thomas and Kate's break-up (and the circumstances surrounding it) were first hinted at in the Sodor Shorts "Pets" and "Triggers".
* The good luck package at Reginald and Samantha's wedding is based on the events from Happy Ever After, albeit with Edward as the "Something Blue" instead of Thomas (everything else in the package, these being the new buffers, the flatbed carrying the buffers, and Maggie) lined up with the episode.
* The events of this episode take place in the latter half of 1962.

## Goofs

* In the first scene at Vicarstown, there are no rails on the turntable.
* Edward hallucinating the Banana Splits as engines is anachronistic, as this episode takes place in 1962, while *The Banana Splits Adventure Hour* did not premiere until 1968.
* Randolph's wheels spin faster than he is moving.