Christmas is by far my favorite holiday. And while the whimisical holiday spirit has waned a bit for me in recent years since my younger brother grew too old to believe in Santa Claus, there's still much about the season to enjoy. I may not be able to live vicariously through a younger scamp any longer, but I can sure as heck still enjoy the holiday through good ol' Christmas specials on television.
There's nothing like the holiday favorites that you grew up with—the stuff that you'll never get too old to want to watch. Admittedly, some of the holiday fare became childish as I grew older, but most others have proven timeless. It really is tough to narrow down the list of my favorite specials, but since we are talking animated ones only, it makes it that much easier. Otherwise, you can bet your ass A Christmas Story would be at the top of my list and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation would find itself somewhere in the middle. Oh, and I needn't forget the original Home Alone, which is still one of my favorite movies to watch.
A few years ago, you were hard-pressed to find much of anything on television as far as old holiday favorites were concerned. The major networks all but wiped out most of them, with only the most famous surviving. But with new cable channels like Toon Disney and Cartoon Network making their presence known across America, there are now more holiday specials on television than you can ever hope to watch.
Here's my list, and you better believe I checked it twice.
RUNNERS UP - Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, Rudolph & Frosty's Christmas in July, Doug: Christmas Story and Frosty the Snowman
There's no question that Rudolph and Santa Claus are among my favorites of all time. But I don't consider stop-motion puppetry to be animation. Perhaps my list will now be flawed for this, but I'm sticking to my guns. The same thing goes for Christmas in July, which I don't remember much about since they don't seem to really sell it at stores. Amazon.com has it, though, and the Disney Channel did show it on TV last year.
There has always been something about Doug that I loved. I still remember the first time I watched the special. It's the episode where Porkchop is falsely accused of biting Bebe and he gets sent up to the doggy slammer.
I loved Frosty as a kid and I know a new crop of children currently love it. But now that I'm older, a little magic has been lost for me. It's still a classic and I still watch it every Christmas.
FIVE - A Charlie Brown Christmas
Blasphemy! That's what you're thinking, right? Why the heck is Charlie Brown only No. 5? Well, the simple answer is because I like other specials better than it. It's no knock on Charlie to rank No. 5 among a vast sea of classics.
I?love Charlie Brown despite the bad audio and grainy picture—what can I expect, it's old! This movie is a great piece of Americana, my friends. Because every time you walk into a store and see a pathetic little tree sitting by itself, what is your first thought? "Hey a Charlie Brown Tree!" Yep.
You also have to appreciate that Charlie Brown is one of the only popular Christmas specials that actually incorporates a little religion in the mix. Remember Linus' longwinded speech about Christmas becoming too commercial (well, that's what I love about it anyway) and what the true meaning is?
FOUR - A Flinstones Christmas
I was always under the impression that the movie The Santa Claus, starring Tim Allen, was a ripoff of this Flintstones tale. When Santa's clumsy butt falls off of Fred's house and is too injured to make the Christmas rounds, Fred and Barney have to fill in. Sounds kinda' familiar doesn't it? I know Tim Allen actually becomes Santa Claus in his movie, but don't bore me with the logistics.
The Flintstones are the masters of Christmas specials. They have two features and at least a couple of regular Christmas-themed episodes, all of which are enjoyable.
THREE - A Flintstones Christmas Carol
That's right, the Flintstones have two slots in my top five. Did you think I was lying when I said they were the masters of Christmas specials? Well, I wasn't.
This Christmas movie centers on Fred, who's Scrooge in A Christmas Carol play. While we get to see the play acted out, we're also simultaneously watching the behind-the-scenes stuff. Ultimately, Fred learned a lesson through playing the Scrooge character.
There was a big period when I hadn't seen this Flintstones special in years. Even though I live in Chicago, a huge city, my area just wasn't getting The Cartoon Network. TBS used to show the Flintstones all the time, but now it's largely on the Cartoon Network. I've had the channel for the past two years, though, so as they say in the 'hood, "it's all good."
TWO - How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Come on, you knew the Grinch was going to be on here, especially as the list began to wind down. How can you not love this one? I was never a big fan of Dr. Seuss' art stylings—what with the weird-ass Who's and all—but this holiday special is great despite that. It all came together for a memorable special. The animation is superb as well. Remember when the Grinch smiled and all the little wrinkles began to form on his face? Or when he was sneaking around the house in a gravity-defying horizontal tiptoe? What about the entire scene when the Grinch is going up the mountain with all the presents and the poor little dog is made to pull the sleigh?
The Grinch is completely over the top, and like A Charlie Brown Christmas, it features a spiffy little song that makes it all the more memorable. It's one of those that my kids and I will be enjoying 20 years from now.
ONE - Mickey's Christmas Carol
Not only was Charlie just No. 5, not only were the Flintstones on the list twice, but now two Christmas Carol-themed specials are on here, too? What kind of list is this, anyway? A badass one, that's what kind.
I've always loved Mickey's Christmas Carol. And I mean everything about it. Who better to play Scrooge than Scrooge McDuck? The special kept with the central theme of the original tale, but incorporated Disney's characters to play the part. Even Goofy, as one of the three ghosts, was still clumsy. It's those subtle things that make it wonderfully Disney, but also keep with classic story.
The animation in this cartoon is extremely clean. It's really a throwback to the old style—not the new Johnny Bravo crap that spits in the face of everything cartoons should be (the animation, not the characters and story).
Well, that's my list. It's probably not unlike most people's. I bet at least three of the aforementioned five would rank high with everyone. There are also the long forgotten specials that simply no longer get airplay. Remember 'Twas the Night Before Christmas about the mice who live in the clock tower? That's about all I remember about it, but I know it was a fun little story.
I also have to give credit to Rugrats, which is the only franchise I can think of that has holiday specials dedicated to not one, not two, but three different holidays (Christmas, Hanukah and Kwanzaa). Hey, Nickelodeon, I expect Ramadan to be respresented next year.
And finally, I wish coal in the stockings of the people behind the live-action Grinch movie and Frosty Returns.
First, The Grinch. Why must Hollywood bastardize everything in this world? I know, I know, it's all about the money. But enough is enough. What's next? A live-action Charlie Brown Christmas? Crap, I may have just given away a sweet money-maker.
And Frosty Returns. I would have been all for this sequel if it was done right. But the further away from the original that we got and the more it became a Christmas classic, the less anyone should have tampered with it. Look what happened to Star Wars. Yeah, the new movies make money, but no hardcore Star Wars fan (I am not one, mind you ... or a fan at all) will say the new movies match up to the old trilogy at all.
As a kid, the original Frosty led me to believe a part 2 was on the way. Remember when Frosty dropped the girl off on her roof and told her not to worry because he'd be back? Well, the bastard lied. While he did eventually return, it was to some other town and he didn't even sound or look the same. What a waste.
Let's face it, I'm a mark for Christmas-themed television. I'll watch almost anything if it's Christmas-related. I even thought the Family Matters episode with Urkel wishing (and getting) to spend time with the Winslows was awesome. I'd watch it, too, but I have no idea when it will air—you know some cable channel somewhere will show this episode.
