Off the Rails

Off the Rails, retitled Gordon Takes a Dip in North American releases, is the twenty-fourth episode of the first series. It is based on the story of the same name from the Railway Series book Gordon the Big Engine.

Plot
One morning, Gordon is resting in a siding while noting to himself that being an important engine can sometimes be very tiring, when Henry suddenly pulls up, rudely waking Gordon with his whistle and calling him names. Gordon is very cross, believing that an engine like him who has never had an accident should be respected. Then Percy comes and asks Gordon if jammed whistles and burst safety valves count as accidents. Gordon replies that those are simple malfunctions that could happen to any engine, unlike Henry who came off the rails.

It is Henry's day to take the Express and as he prepares to leave, Gordon warns him not to keep on the rails, much to his annoyance. After Henry leaves, Gordon tries to go back to sleep, but his driver tells him that he is to pull a special train. Gordon is outraged when he learns it is trucks, as he would rather take coaches.

Gordon's fire is unable to burn right away, so Edward pushes him to the turntable to be turned around. Gordon complains the whole way and Edward rebukes him. The movement prompted Gordon's fire to burn nicely and make steam. As the turntable rotates, Gordon is so cross that he is willing to do anything to get out of taking the special, regardless of the consequences. When the table is halfway round, he moves forward in an attempt to jam it again, but he cannot stop and slides down some old unused rails into a marshy ditch. Gordon is horrified and shouts for someone to get him out, but his crew sternly refuse, telling him that he is stuck.



The Fat Controller receives a phone call from Gordon's crew, who tell him all that has happened. Seeing Gordon from his office window, he orders to have Edward take the special train instead and leave Gordon where he is for now. Meanwhile, some little boys come by, see Gordon's predicament and tease him with a rhyme, leaving him humiliated.

Gordon stays in the ditch until late at night when a rescue team comes. After extensive work getting his tender out of the way and preparing a road of sleepers to keep his wheels out of the mud, cables are hooked up to his back end and he is pulled to safety by James and Henry. Afterwards, a filthy and disgraced Gordon crawls back into the shed, much sadder and wiser for his experience.

Characters

 * Edward
 * Henry
 * Gordon
 * Percy
 * Sir Topham Hatt
 * The Little Boys
 * James
 * Green Express Coaches
 * Troublesome Trucks
 * Märklin Engine
 * Stephen Hatt
 * Thomas

Locations

 * Tidmouth Sheds
 * Knapford
 * Knapford Sheds
 * Sir Topham Hatt's Office

Trivia

 * During the scene where the Fat Controller is talking on the phone, the phone chatter heard on the other end is actually sped-up dialogue from Thomas in Trouble.
 * According to the boys' song, the events of this episode take place on a Monday.
 * A scrap model of Thomas can be seen beside the ditch.
 * When Gordon is shown being lifted from the ditch, an engine's lights can be seen passing to the left; this is the unspecified Märklin engine.
 * In George Carlin's dub, the boys' song "Silly Old Gordon Fell in the Ditch" has the same tune as the Mother Goose rhyme, Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush. The song is sung in the same way in The Railway Stories audio version of the original book, which was narrated by Johnny Morris. In both of Ringo Starr's dubs, however, the song uses a different tune. In Bruce Alexander's narration, it is sung to the tune of "Mary Had a Little Lamb".
 * In the United States, this episode aired before Whistles and Sneezes, so American viewers would not understand the "jammed whistles" line until George Carlin narrated the aforementioned episode in 1991.
 * In its original 1985 UK broadcast, this episode was paired up with Down the Mine. However, original UK VHS releases had it paired up with the previous episode, as do Norwegian and Swedish original broadcasts.
 * This episode was never released on home video in South Korea.
 * This episode marks the last appearance of three things:
 * Knapford Sheds' last appearance until the seventh series episode, Something Fishy, not counting the stock footage appearance in the fourth series.
 * Knapford Sheds' last appearance in its original roundhouse design.
 * The last appearance of Gordon's original sleeping face.

Goofs

 * In the opening scene, Gordon's front bogie wheels are misaligned, his buffers are crooked, and a thread is visible beneath on the tracks.
 * Throughout the episode Gordon has several problems with his eyes:
 * They are very wonky.
 * They jolt several times when he talks to his driver about the special train.
 * His right eye (viewers' left) slightly pops out of his face before he starts moving on the turntable.
 * His left eye (viewers' right) has a little divot.
 * In the close-up of Percy, his coupling chain is up, but in the next shot it is suddenly dangling downwards.
 * When Henry pulls up to Gordon with his goods train, Gordon's right trailing wheel is derailed.
 * Henry's top feed is in the wrong place.
 * When Percy puffed up next to Gordon, the former's face was rather misaligned and the latter's tender derailed.
 * When Henry is getting ready to take the express, Gordon's driver has blu-tak on his feet.
 * Despite being stated that Gordon was out of steam, he somehow changes position from his siding to the Knapford goods platform before Henry leaves with the express.
 * When Henry leaves with the express, there is a random piece of track that leads to nowhere.
 * When Gordon says "Trucks? Puh!", a piece of hair is visible by his right eye.
 * When Edward is pushing Gordon to the turntable, there is steam coming out of his funnel, even though it is said that his fire was slow to start.
 * In the close-up of Gordon on the turntable, a large gap is visible through his left eye.
 * When Gordon falls into the ditch, wires connecting his tender to his cab are visible.
 * Despite the narrator stating that James and Henry rescued Gordon, Henry is missing from the rescue scene.
 * In the long shots of James during Gordon's rescue, he has the rescue cable that Gordon uses in Percy Runs Away and Down the Mine attached to his middle lamp iron, but in a close-up, he has a chain attached to his front coupling hook instead.
 * When Gordon is being pulled out of the ditch, his buffer beam hits a wooden post.
 * In George Carlin's narration, Carlin, when narrating Percy's line, says "Burnt" instead of "Burst".

Merchandise

 * Buzz Books - Gordon Off the Rails
 * Ladybird Books - Edward, Gordon and Henry and Gordon Off the Rails
 * Magazines - Gordon Off the Rails (magazine story)

Home Media Releases
{{Scroll box|

UK

 * Further Adventures of Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends
 * Coal and other stories
 * Thomas the Tank Engine
 * Playtime
 * The Complete Series 1
 * Truck Loads of Fun
 * Thomas in Trouble

VHS/DVD Packs

 * Classic Collection
 * Troublesome Trucks, Coal and other stories
 * Bumper Party Collection! and Truck Loads of Fun Double Pack

US

 * Better Late Than Never and Other Stories
 * Thomas Comes to Breakfast and Other Thomas Adventures
 * Thomas' Useful Stories
 * Best of Gordon
 * The Early Years
 * Thomas & Friends Classic Volume 1

CAN

 * Better Late Than Never and Other Stories
 * Thomas Comes to Breakfast and Other Thomas Adventures
 * Best of Gordon
 * The Early Years

VHS/DVD Packs

 * Totally Thomas Volume 9
 * Thomas' Useful Stories
 * Adventure On the Tracks
 * Best Tales on the Tracks
 * Ultimate Thomas Collection
 * Best of Collection

AUS

 * Coal and other stories
 * Playtime
 * Truck Loads of Fun
 * The Complete Series 1
 * My First Thomas with Henry and Gordon

DVD Boxsets

 * 60th Anniversary - Limited Edition Boxset
 * Trainloads of Thomas Fun
 * Complete Series 1-10
 * Classic Collection
 * Series One and Series Two Double Pack

NZ

 * Coal and other stories
 * Bumper Video Collection Volume 2
 * Percy Runs Away and Other Stories
 * Thomas Train Set Compilation Video Volume 2

FRA

 * The Talkative Trains
 * The Magic of Sodor

IND

 * Thomas and Bertie Adventures

Latin America

 * The Visit of Thomas

DVD Boxsets

 * The Adventures of Thomas

MYS

 * Toby and the Stout Gentleman and Other Thomas Adventures
 * Tenders and Turntables and Other Adventures

NL

 * A Nasty Case
 * The Greatest Stories: The Adventures of Thomas, Percy and Gordon

UKR

 * A Train Thomas and Friends

GER

 * Thomas and His Friends Vol. 3
 * Toby and the Elegant Men and 4 Other Adventures

JPN

 * Thomas the Tank Engine Volume 6
 * The Complete Works of Thomas the Tank Engine 1 Vol.2
 * Gordon and Henry the Large Engines
 * Startled in Spite of Oneself
 * Best of Gordon
 * The Complete DVD Box 1

PHL

 * The Flying Kipper

SVN

 * Bertie's Race

NOR

 * Favourites From Thomas and Friends
 * Thomas the Tank Engine 3

BRA

 * The Earliest Adventures of Thomas

FIN/ISL

 * Thomas the Tank Engine 3

ITA

 * The Grumpy Locomotive

ROM

 * Thomas and Percy

DVD Packs

 * Triple Pack 1

SER

 * Thomas the Tank Engine 2

HRV

 * Thomas in Trouble

WAL

 * Letting Off Steam and 8 Other Stories

CHN

 * Thomas and Friends Season 1-4

HK

 * Thomas and Friends Volume 3
 * Thomas and Friends Volume 12

THA

 * Thomas and Friends - Volume 4

DNK
}}
 * Thomas in Trouble and Other Stories

Entgleist El Plan de Gordon מחוץ למסילה La locomotiva brontolona ゴードンみぞにはまる Wykolejenie Крушение поезда