This is the very first episode of all in the series.
Blaze saved his friends as for each order:
Stripes
Darington
Zeg
Starla
Due to some sort of unknown error, this episode accidentally premiered one hour early on Nickelodeon. At the time it was shown, PAW Patrol was supposed to be on the air. The show was then premiered again immediately after the first airing finished. No explanation has been given for this, so far.
To date, this is the only episode where It's Blaze is heard lyrically in the last scene and instrumentally in the credits.
This is the only Season 1 episode with Blaze's name in the title.
This is also the only Season 1 episode where the final scene does not end up with Crusher, as well as the only Season 1 episode that does not end with an iris out.
This episode marks the most times out of all Blazing Speed is used, at a total of six.
The episode's STEM concept was only used once, when helping Darington. The rest of the episode focused on multiple concepts, something not used as much as each episode focuses on one specific concept.
As Blaze helps the Monster Machines, he comes across various STEM concepts which will appear later on in the series; trajectory when helping Stripes (Cake-tastrophe!), force when stopping the mud balls and as weight when helping Darington (The Driving Force), acceleration when helping Zeg (Stuntmania!), a pulley that Starla uses to get out of the hole (Knighty Knights), and finally magnets when stopping Crusher's robot knights (The Mystery Bandit).
The places where Blaze went to save the Monster Machines may be based off of their personalities:
Stripes is stuck in some vines; he has the abilities of the tiger and lives in a jungle.
Darington is being chased by grizzlies; he likes to do stunts and tricks.
Zeg is rolling out of control in a snowball; he likes going fast and smashing things.
Starla is stuck in a hole in a cave near a mine shaft; she has a southern background.
The game Race to the Rescue! is based on this episode.
Multiple books are also based on this episode as well.
This is the only season premiere where Starla is present until Big Rig to the Rescue!, six years later.
When aired in some countries outside the US (i.e. Canada), the episode is split into two separate parts, with Bump giving a narration at the end of the first before the credits, and at the beginning of the second after the theme song.
The events of the episode were contradicted in Blaze's First Race when all the main characters met as children, when in this episode, Blaze met them as adults.
Allusions[]
The title shares its name with a famous single by the band Bon Jovi. It was also inspired by the 2007 film Blades of Glory.
The Trouble Bubbles used by Crusher to get rid of the Monster Machines were also seen in Team Umizoomi, where the Troublemakers use such to cause trouble.
During the shots of the Monster Dome's track, there is a beat played in the background which has a similar note to the stomping and clapping rhythm for Queen's We Will Rock You.
The Monster Machine World Championship is a spoof of Monster Jam, a live motorsport event tour operated by Feld Entertainment also about monster truck races.
Goofs[]
When Blaze uses Blazing Speed for the first time, in one scene his flame sticker isn't glowing, but it just only lights up until moments later.
After Darington says, "Come on, everybody! This way!", AJ disappears. He reappears in the next shot.
During the final song, when the Monster Machines take a bend after the three loop-de-loops, AJ is missing.
The Monster Machines appear to be frozen before they get trapped in the bubbles.
The curved wood would not have been able to hold the weight of Blaze, Stripes and Darington since they were heavy altogether; if the wood wasn't thick enough, it would've sunk to the bottom.
If you look closely where the Monster Machines drive before they see the robot knights, the magnet is missing from Blaze's trunk, but when from behind, the magnet reappears.
Monster trucks' frames are made of fiberglass, which is not magnetic; therefore the magnet shouldn't have stuck to Blaze and Starla in the first place.
Though there might be a proof that they are only magnetic in the series' universe.
Zeg was able to break his bubble from the inside, but in Raceday Rescue AJ and Gabby couldn't.
This is due to the fact that Zeg is a Monster Machine so it's easier for him.
Since the river was already flowing when the Monster Machines toss their ideas in, the wood would've started floating down the river right when they hit the water.
Grizzlies actually could swim; therefore they should've swam after Blaze, Stripes and Darington when they started floating away.
Blaze says they can float across the river, but when they escape the grizzlies, they float down the river, not across it.
The pulley buckets should've slightly moved when the items were tossed in instead of staying still.
Also, instead of using the pulley, Blaze and the gang should've used their tow hooks to lift Starla out, like how Blaze saved Zeg from flying off the cliff.
The digital release becomes noticeably choppy in some scenes.
During the race when Zeg and Darington are knocked out and Blaze appears behind them, Blaze's windshield is superimposed over the leftmost post.
When viewed through the jumbotron one time, Blaze somehow predicts the "future" Season 2 face change.
Irony: Gabby knows Crusher and Pickle, but after Blaze first encounters Crusher when he sees him send the other Monster Machines away, they don't actually speak to each other until before the race begins, and Blaze doesn't even interact with Pickle at all until the future episode Epic Sail.