Top 10 Christmas Specials

*a fireplace is shown, with ‘Snowy Fields’ from Kirby’s Epic Yarn playing in the background, with Pikatwig sitting and relaxing*

Nothing like a hot chocolate around this time of year… *notices the cameras* Oh? Well hello there, Merry Christmas. *puts hot chocolate down* It’s my personal favorite time of the year, the togetherness, the friends, the family… but my favorite part is how the world takes a small break and we all can come together for this wondrous time.

*camera slightly shifted to a garbage can with various newspapers about recent events, but is quickly centered back around Pikatwig*

No no no. None of that junk, it’s Christmas. Let’s turn on our TVs and enjoy what Christmas has for us… that’s what today’s countdown is for, I’m going to list off my top ten favorite Christmas specials, the TV specials that make me look forward for the holiday season and warm my heart and help me enjoy the most wonderful time of the year.

But before we begin, let’s give some honorable mentions to holiday specials I enjoy, but they didn’t make it for one reason or another.

Honorable Mention #1: Ed, Edd n Eddy Jingle Jingle Jangle

I enjoy this one and would recommend it for a fan of this classic of Cartoon Network, it’s an enjoyable little outing for an enjoyable little show, but the reason it’s not on the list proper is because… well, it is a little bit mean spirited to the characters we’re supposed to be rooting for.

Honorable Mention #2: Blue’s Clues Christmas Special

A classic from my childhood is this show… man… I need to go back and watch it again sometime… anyway, the reason it’s not on the list is kinda obvious, I really can’t remember it all that well. The fact I didn’t give a name should be a good indicator of me not being able to remember it, I vaguely remember them making a quilt and mentioning other holidays around this time, like kwanzaa and hanukah, but I really can’t remember it.

Honorable Mention #3: Elmo Saves Christmas

Yet again, another classic, though this show was more a part of my older brother’s childhood than it was mine. I still remember this holiday special… sort of. Much like the previous honorable mention, I can’t remember much about it.

All I can remember is a lyric from a song in the special, and even then it’s only because my dad occasionally sings it for no reason at all… but… it’s a none issue.

Honorable Mention #4 and #5: Santa Buddies and Santa Paws

I’m mentioning them together because they’re technically both a part of the ‘Air Bud’ series of movies. Santa Buddies came first and was actually the movie I liked and part of a box set that got me into the Buddy movies, so Santa Buddies holds a special spot in my heart.

Santa Buddies is the tale of the buddies meeting the son of Santa Paws, Puppy Paws. There are hyjinx to follow as they need to help him get back home and sub in for the reindeer, who are to weak to fly without Christmas magic.  Santa Paws on the other hand, details how Santa became friends with Paws and some mess they end up getting in when Santa ends up with amnesia and Paws gets separated, the two of them in New York.

Regardless, you may be wondering why it is these aren’t on the list proper? As good as these movies are… there are just some things slightly better than these are.

Honorable Mention #6: Merry Christmas, Drake & Josh

A holiday special of another classic show, but something I only really got into after it ended. This special was actually made at suggestion of the actors playing the two lead character, and thus, this Christmas special came to be.

I’ll freely admit, it’s good… but not the best Christmas special on the planet… I feel like the characters getting arrested was forced to add drama, and while the pacing was good, it did feel a bit slow in some areas and to quick in other areas. Otherwise… it’s a good holiday special, and if this list was longer… it may be in the top 12…

Honorable Mention #7: Billy & Mandy Save Christmas

A classic holiday special for me and my older brother that was a joy to watch. We enjoy some of the jokes in the start, and my brother can perfectly imitate this line.

Grim: How come everytime I take you kids to the mall it BURNS to the ground?!

*Laughs a little bit* That’s still really funny. It’s just a funny special and an enjoyable thing to watch every year.

Now we move into the actual top ten.

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To begin this list, we’re looking at some holiday specials from some… lost classics I feel. Number 10 is actually a tie. ‘Hey, Hey, It’s Knishmas’ from Chowder and ‘Low Tidings Day’ from The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack.

#10: Hey, Hey, It’s Knishmas/Low Tidings Day

Both shows are really good classics in my mind that… really need to get more Boomerang re-runs. I think both specials aired around similar times… reason they share a slot is because of their similar airtimes. I remember watching Low Tidings Day for the first time while we were moving down south to where I live now.

Both are very good and I would recommend them for somebody looking for Christmas specials that do something different, but familiar.

Next, we’re going to a rather big classic that dates back to… uh… *check notes* 1999. Huh… that’s neat.

#9: Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas

A trio of tales about great morals for the holiday, being how it can only last a day, how to share what you have, and the joy of giving, rather than receiving. Forgive a laconic summary of it, but I haven’t seen it for a while, so some of my memories about it are a tiny bit blurred.

If I had to pick a favorite of the three, it would honestly be the last of the three. Just something about what happened in the end was just so… je ne sais quoi (I don’t know what), was so sweet. And that mixing of various Christmas carols… really great sounding.

And before anybody asks, yes, I have seen the sequel but it’s not as good as the first.

Next up, we need to travel to Japan. ...the Japanese have a VERY strange relationship with Christmas. My Japanese sensei claims they don’t, yet the Super Sentai seasons, the Kamen Rider seasons, and some other shows, all have Christmas specials. KKD even said he met somebody from Japan and he states Christmas is celebrated. ...Japan’s relationship with this holiday is strange.

Regardless, Pokemon produced a few Christmas specials, though I really would only dub two of the four in the “Pikachu’s Winter Vacations” VHS/DVD thing as Christmas specials. ...wait… it was originally a VHS… that explains a lot. Anyhow… I think you know where this is going.

#8 Stantler’s Little Helpers

Not entirely sure why it is that I like this one the most… just maybe… there’s something about the sense of urgency about what Pikachu and the others are doing. Santa’s Stantler is ill and in need of some berries to heal it so he can make his run… think it may come in handy it he had more than a single Pokemon to help with these things. ...maybe he has a Sawsbuck now?

Moving along, the only reason the Pokemon even get involved is because of a certain jealous grass type… *points to a picture of Chikorita* ...yea

Let’s go back stateside for our next entry. Has anybody heard of the Nutcracker Tale? *hands raise from off camera* Sure you have. ...would you believe it if I told you I never heard about it until a certain holiday special? *cameraman face palmed*

#7 Tom & Jerry: A Nutcracker Tale

Tom & Jerry is a favorite show of mine and a Christmas special was a really great thing for my young mind when this came out initially. I really love the story it weaved together the different worlds… though I still don’t get how those other worlds came to exist when the magic of Christmas brought the kingdom to life.

Alongside Jerry and his nephew Tuffy, are two new characters, a decoration named ‘Paulie’ who wants to be a real toy and a horse toy named ‘Nelly’. *hears whispers from off camera* ...this was released in 2007, so Nelly can’t be inspired by Fluttershy. ...okay, MAYBE Posey, but I don’t know.

Regardless… this is one enjoyable special and has an ending that is so touching that I will not spoil. You have to see it for yourselves.

Next up are without a doubt, two holiday classics from my childhood. Two of my favorite shows from my younger years, SpongeBob Squarepants and Fairly Odd Parents. Needless to say… both shows have gone down the toilet in recent years… but these two are classics to me.

#6 Christmas Who/Christmas Everyday

Christmas Who details the very first time Christmas was celebrated in Bikini Bottom. It started out pretty well, leading to a song I still love and listen to around this time of year to this day, and then it sort of went downhill, only for Squidward of all characters to help save the day, showing the true spirit of Christmas.

Christmas Everyday meanwhile… is more about how it would be a bad idea for the holiday to be celebrated all the time. Sure, it’s a great holiday, but celebrating it everyday… people are gonna get tired of it. By the end, a new rule was added to Da Rules about never making a wish to make it Christmas everyday ever again, but there’s one thing that sticks out in my mind about it. Timmy’s motivations for doing this. Sure he likes presents, what kid wouldn’t love free toys, but that’s not why he made the wish. Here’s a line he said after being told he would get coal for the rest of his life.

*clip*

Timmy: I don’t care if I ever get another decent present again!

*end clip*

His motivation was really to spend more time with his mom and dad… which he hardly gets to have.

Both of these, to me, are classics and you need to see them at least once in your life if you’re a fan of either of these shows. And before anybody asks, no, I haven’t seen the newer episodes… both shows really went downhill after a while…

Let’s continue… with a true holiday classic that recently celebrated it’s 50th anniversary. ...yea, very obvious.

#5 A Charlie Brown Christmas

What’s there to be said that hasn’t been said already? It’s memorable, it’s adorable, the plot is great, and while there are small issues, they can be very easily overlooked. My parents introduced this to me when I was really little and they affectionately called me ‘Linus’... why… eh… I can’t say.

Moving back on over to Japan, and to a Super Sentai season. One of my personal favorites… let’s hear their theme.

*few lyrics from ‘Morphin’! Movin’! Bustership’ begin.*

WRONG! ...the first one…

*the instrumentals of ‘Busters, Ready Go!’ begin to play*

That’s better!

Tokumei Sentai Go-Busters holds the… unfortunate honor of being the second Super Sentai series to be skipped over since Gosei Sentai Dairanger for a Power Rangers season. I read why that is is because of the low toy sales Go-Buster had… lame. Moving past that… Christmas is a very important thing for the core three members of the team.

During the Christmas of 1999, a virus had attacked a tower where a team known as the Transport Center was working. They ended up needing to do something to keep it from escaping, so they teleported the tower into a placed called ‘Hyper Space’. Before they did, however, they teleported the future Go-Busters out. This did grant them some special powers… but it came at a heavy cost. Except for Hiromu’s older sister, the three lost all of their family members. Naturally… a lot of us Go-Buster fans… were wondering what would occur in the Christmas episodes given how hard a time this must be for the core three.

Then… we got there.

#4 Go-Buster Christmas episodes (Mission 43: Christmas Determination and Mission 44: Christmas Eve - Time to Finish Our Mission)

During this, Enter and Escape revive the very virus who killed everybody they ever loved and while the Go-Busters are hesitant, they gather their resolve and let Messiah have it and make sure he can’t do it to anybody else ever again. Back-up even arrives in their movie mecha, FS-O0, Ene-tan, but even she can only do so much. By impaling MegaZord Zeta (the body Messiah was using at the time) with an anti-virus, they destroy him once and for all.

Butt-kicking Christmas, great action and some much needed closure on the past for Hiromu, Ryuji and Yoko.

Our next entry is much more down to earth, er… would that be the correct term since the planet isn’t exactly Earth… anyhow… eh, forget how to say it. Friendship is Magic has thus far had two Christmas specials, one more recent that showed us more of the holiday, and then the first one which showed us the holiday… which one do I go with? ...first one.

#3 Hearth’s Warming Eve

I honestly don’t know why it is I like this one better… I was originally going to give this a tie to both episodes… but I gave it to the one from Season 2, since something about it was just more enjoyable and charming…

I just find this play kind of cute and the characters in the past resembled the Mane 6 very easily… though I should note that in the Journal of the Two Sisters, the pony that Dash portrayed is a boy… typecasting.

Anyhow… I do love the characters and I do like the song near the end, it was kinda cute.

Speaking of a show Lauren Faust worked on, we’re going back to the show that she did before Friendship is Magic.

#2 Twas the Fight Before Christmas

Easily one of the fondest holiday specials I saw that wasn’t on Nickelodeon when I was really young. My brother got me into Powerpuff Girls and he showed me this once… I look forward to this special every year, especially for that part where the lights on the tree flicker. That is easily one of the best scenes in the entire special.

Something very interesting I noticed in rewatching is the night sky, given how there’s a lot of black utilized for outlines, various parts of the characters’ attire being black and then Buttercup’s hair being black, they made the night sky a dark gray color. There are a few times where they slip up, but it’s not often.

And now… we lead to my all time favorite Christmas special, which I look forward to watching every year… I own on DVD and I can say many lines of… and that is...

#1 Olive, the Other Reindeer

This is, simply put, the best Christmas special I have ever seen. The animation is simply beautiful, mixing together what looks like still shots from a book with 3D backgrounds, the voice acting is amazing and the songs are so catchy I wish there was a soundtrack alongside the DVD.

Olive is such an amazing character, happy, calm and keeps her eyes on the prize, supporting Santa and helping replace an injured Blitzen for Santa’s run that night. I look forward to watching it every year as mentioned earlier… and Cartoon Network seriously gave this special the shaft, it wasn’t on this year… or last year for that matter… and it wasn’t even on Boomerang for some dumb reason.

Regardless, I HIGHLY reccomend this special to anybody who wants a good Christmas special and enjoys something cute.

Well… that’s it. Have a Merry Christmas my dear viewers.