31 Days of Christmas

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

DAY 17:



DAY 18:



Yet another set of classics. I really adore the stop motion style of animation, and kind of miss it since it's a near dead art form in this day and age. Admittedly that helps these specials stand out more, but even putting that aside, they are well put-together and meaningful Christmas stories.

[Avaitor]

I was going to say that the only style of stop-motion that's near extinction is the Rankin-Bass holidaytime kind, thanks to Laika and all (but really, we're in need of more stop-motion that breaks the mold beyond using RB or Henry Selick's style, especially since Aardman has all but abandoned the form), but I did hear about a new Elf special which is inspired by these classics.

Granted, they had to replace Will Ferrell with Jim Parsons (ugh), but I know Mark Hamill's there too, which is never a bad move.

[Daikun]

I enjoy the Rankin-Bass specials. Despite their shoddy, jerky animation, they still have a lot of heartfelt moments.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I missed out on commenting on a lot of good stuff, but if I can be brief:

Gremlins - Need to watch.

Muppet Christmas Carol - One of my favorite versions of A Christmas Carol and favorite Muppet films/specials as well.

Goof Troop Christmas - The only part I think is "cheesy" is the ending, which is just kind of quick and silly. The rest is great stuff that holds up quite well and is still a lot of fun to watch.

The Weekenders: "The Worst Holiday Ever" - I've always though the way it balances four different holidays in one special is commendable. Even as a kid, none of the characters' holidays seemed really all that bad to be, except for Tino's, but the jokes were strong so that doesn't matter much. The best part is easily Lor's grandmothers' holiday story. That was hilarious.

The Nightmare Before Christmas - A great Halloween AND Christmas film with great songs and an unforgettable and iconic aesthetic, plus one of the best Disney animated movie protagonists ever in Jack Skellington. Still one of my all-time favorite animated movies.

A Charlie Brown Christmas - One of the most poignant and heartwarming Christmas specials (imo). A still very relevant commentary on the over-commercialization of Christmas and a reflection of what really matters most. The ending is simply iconic. Fun Fact: did you know that the aluminum christmas trees shown in the special actually existed back then? And after this special aired, within like two years no one sold them anymore? I think that's a pretty good testament to how powerful the messages of this special are, and why it still endures and reruns on television yearly to this day.

Dexter's Laboratory: "Dexter vs. Santa Claws" - Not necessarily one of the best Dexter eps, but it is one I remember pretty vividly to this day, and overall fun stuff.

Johnny Bravo: "Twas the Night" - I like the half-hour special more, but this is still a nice ep. I like how it's in rhyme and there's some good jokes here "You promised me no more cavorting!"

I Am Weasel: "Happy Baboon Holidays" - Not really a fan of this one. Weasel doesn't really get much to do and I can't sympathize with Baboon in it either.

Sheep in the Big City: "Home for the Baa-lidays" - This really is more of a Thanksgiving episode, but there is some stuff here that can apply to Christmas as well. In any case, it's Sheep, so it's great stuff that still gets a kick out of me to this day. This show really is too underrated, imo.

A Christmas Story - Classic. Might have been over-exposed for a few years, but it's a very entertaining and funny film that can be strikingly true-to-life and works on many levels no matter how old you are.

Robot Chicken Christmas Special (2005) - Oh man, Robot Chicken has had so many Christmas Specials over the years that they are all kind of a blur to me, but they've usually been pretty solid stuff. I believe that this one was comprised of Christmas-related sketches gathered from previous episodes, and I can remember quite a few of those ones. "Who Killed Santa Claus," "Kill Bunny," and "A Dragon Ball Z Christmas" in particular are awesome and some of my all-time favorite Robot Chicken
sketches.

South Park: "Mr. Hankey's Christmas Classics" - Probably my favorite South Park christmas episode, mainly because I love musical episodes of shows and the songs in this episode are all really unique and memorable. My favorites are Satan's and Garrison's songs, and the second to last one with Santa and Jesus is pretty great too.

Black Christmas - Haven't seen.

It's A Wonderful Life - Classic.

Christmas Carol - Alastair Sim is best Scrooge.

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - Classic.

Santa Claus is Comin' to Town - I don't think I've ever seen this, or if I have, it must have been when I was a wee tot and I can't remember now. I'll have to give it a look sometime.

Oh, and E-K, can we replace my Cartoon Network nomination entry with the Urusei Yatsura episode "The House of Mendou-Summer X-Mas"? I forgot about it before but it's a great ep, and we don't really need three CN nights anyway, so I'd like to substitute it. Also, I'd like to have the day it's put up be the day before the Maison Ikkoku entry, just because it would be nice to have these two on back to back days.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

DAY 19:

Warner Bros:


Pinky & the Brain- A Pinky & the Brain Christmas


Justice League- Comfort and Joy

DAY 20:

Nickelodeon:


Hey Arnold!- Arnold's Christmas


Invader Zim- The Most Horrible X-Mas Ever

Four classic holiday specials.

PATB is always hilarious, and this adds a bit if a heartwarming touch to the formula.

That Justice League episode is really different from any other in the series, but perfectly manages to capture the spirit of Christmas and show us how it even applies to the world's greatest superheroes.

That Arnold special is arguably one of the greatest episodes of the show, period. It tackles some pretty heavy and mature subject material, and really manages to stand out as being not just another kid's show holiday special.

I haven't seen the one for Invader Zim in such a long time and barely remember it, but I'm sure that it's great.

[LumRanmaYasha]

So no to my substitution request? Aight.

Anyways, another set of great eps today!

That episode of P&tB is as hilarious as always up till the end, which is one of the most genuinely emotional, heartwarming moments in the entire show.

That JL episode is a good breather episode before the three-part "Starcrossed" finale and it's nice seeing how each of the team celebrates Christmas, my favorites being GL and Hawgirl's and the Flash's.

"Arnold's Christmas" is easily one of the best episodes of the show, and one of the most memorably emotional. It really made a huge impression on me as a kid.

I also don't remember that Zim episode all that well. I'm sure it was messed up as heck, though.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

So no to my substitution request? Aight.

Sorry, I forgot to respond to that. I'll substitute it, sure.

[Daikun]

I've only seen the P&tB and ZIM specials.

P&tB has one of the most touching endings to a Christmas special I've seen. The ZIM special is total fun and wackiness. I love them both.

[Avaitor]

I almost considered the Doug, Rocko, or SpongeBob Christmas specials instead, but I knew that Arnold was one of the sweetest, and Zim among the most demented episodes the show had done, so they were perfect fits. And I actually got to see the P&TB episode again recently, and it's as great as ever.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, but I went with my Dexter's Lab choice for one clear reason- that perfect ending line.

[LumRanmaYasha]

Yeah, the punchline to that Dexter episode is great. Especially since it's something you wouldn't expect considering the messages of 90% of kids show holiday specials. I always got a kick out of that as a kid.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

DAY 21:



Confession time, people....I actually haven't seen this short before!

I'm quite literally going to remedy that right now....

[Daikun]

Confession time, people....I actually haven't seen this short before!

I'm quite literally going to remedy that right now....

Hoo boy, are you in for a treat...

[talonmalon333]

By far my favorite telling of the Frosty the Snowman story.

[LumRanmaYasha]

A wonderful and charming short with a unique style and beautiful animation. The ending is a little melancholy, but otherwise the whole thing is a treat start to finish. Like Talon, this too is my favorite variation on the Frosty tale.

[talonmalon333]

Doug Walker doesn't like the Rankin/Bass Christmas specials, if I remember correctly. I think he said many people are kind of "trained" to like them from a young age, or something along those lines. And I never understood that. They are just warm, well meaning and nice specials with charming stop motion effects, particularly the two I nominated for this thread.

Especially Santa Claus is Comin' to Town. That's one of my favorite Christmas specials, alongside The Snowman and a few others. All of the songs in it are eternally etched into my mind.