# Your Favourite And/Or Most Hated Christmas Episode Of A TV Show? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 21, 2009, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024 "2009-12-21T02:38:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/21 "2009-12-21T19:01:39Z")
I do enjoy how in _Bones_ the Christmas episode is usually about Grisly Dead Santa. Kind of a palate cleanser. The _Futurama_ Santa episode was great, too. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/22 "2009-12-21T19:02:01Z")
Least favorite for me was the Simpsons one where a corporation turned the school into market research to create “Funzo”, and they had Gary Coleman as the security guard for the company’s headquarters. The Coleman appearance was terrible stunt-casting, I felt uncomfortable every time they put him on screen. Though it did have Homer recounting, “Okay, that makes five Christmases I’ve saved, verses four I’ve ruined…two were kind of a wash…” ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/23 "2009-12-21T19:07:45Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > My favorite would probably have to be the Seinfeld episode where Kramer got a job as a department store Santa and was then fired for spreading Communist propaganda. > My least favorites would probably be the South Park Mr. Hanky episodes. I normally love South Park and have a pretty strong stomach for bathroom humor, but a talking turd is just too much. > I do make an exception though for the episode where Santa gets shot down over Iraq and taken prisoner. I love the part where you see him point a gun at one of his torturers, aims to the side, fires, and then says, “I couldn’t do it.” A split second later they show the guy with a bullet-wound in his head and Santa says “I couldn’t let him live. He shocked Santa’s balls.” You see, I have about the opposite reaction- I love the Mr. Hanky eps, but the “killing Jesus again” part of the Santa in Iraq ep just about crossed my line (doesn’t mean I didn’t laugh, but I felt bad doing it). But the greatest SP C’mas ep- Woodland Critters! _Hail Satan!_ ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/24 "2009-12-21T19:08:47Z")
Ooh, forgot about South Park Critter Christmas! And Futurama. And I agree with the Gary Coleman Simpsons one. That one was a bit creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/25 "2009-12-21T20:33:42Z")
I liked the “How the Finch Stole Christmas” episode of _Just Shoot Me_. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/26 "2009-12-21T21:07:49Z")
Not a Christmas episode per se, but the finale of \*Monk, \*when he finally opens the gift that Trudy had left under the tree. ---
**Author:** ![Scissorjack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c67d28/32.png) [@Scissorjack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scissorjack)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/27 "2009-12-21T21:34:31Z")
Doctor Who, “The Next Doctor”: because Christmas isn’t complete without a 500 foot steam-mecha Cyberman laying waste to Victorian London. And “The Runaway Bride”, for both the best Tardis scene ever and the line “This time - it’s Personnel!” And “The Christmas Invasion” for alien robot mercenary Santas with machinegun trombones and flamethrower tubas. Actually, all the Doctor Who Christmas specials except the stupid one with Kylie Minogue. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/28 "2009-12-21T21:44:20Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > But the greatest SP C’mas ep- Woodland Critters! _Hail Satan!_ Agreed. I remember my jaw just about falling off my face the first time I saw that episode, and then I think my husband and I nearly laughed ourselves into passing out due to lack of oxygen. Every now and then I’ll chirpily quote the Critters’ lines when I see something cutesy on TV that looks close enough to jog my memory of the show. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/29 "2009-12-21T21:44:26Z")
The West Wing’s episode “In Excelsis Deo”. Bartlet: Toby, If we start pulling strings like this don’t you think every homeless veteran will come out of the woodwork? Toby: I can only hope so, sir. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/30 "2009-12-21T21:57:20Z")
> [@joebuck20](#): > > My least favorites would probably be the South Park Mr. Hanky episodes. I normally love South Park and have a pretty strong stomach for bathroom humor, but a talking turd is just too much. I stopped watching SP for years after the first Mr. Hanky episode. Beyond the “talking turd” thing, it just wasn’t remotely funny. More like painfully unfunny in a “We’re trying too hard” way. Plus it took up valuable time from the actually amusing B Plot with Kyle being upset about being Jewish at Christmas. Eventually I just said “Huh” and turned it off and didn’t bother coming back. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2009, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/31 "2009-12-21T23:25:22Z")
> [@salinqmind](#): > > “It’s a Bundyful Christmas” is a true classic. I have to dig through my old VHS tapes and see if I can find it… [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/RaxS2RAvnnQ/hqdefault.jpg "It's a Bundyful Christmas. Part 1") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaxS2RAvnnQ) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/32 "2009-12-22T03:35:27Z")
For a serious look, the best by far is “So-Called Angel” from _My So-Called Life_. It will bring tears of joy to your eyes. [Here is it at Hulu](http://www.hulu.com/watch/88004/my-so-called-life-so-called-angels#x-0,vepisode,1,0). ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/33 "2009-12-22T03:39:58Z")
> [@Kyla](#): > > The best Christmas episode ever, as far as I’m concerned, is _Supernatural_’s “A Very Supernatural Christmas.” We get evil Santas kidnapping people, a drunken creepy Santa, a really abominable performance of “Silent Night”, a torture scene, stabbing the villains with Christmas tree branches, and finally, in the touching scene at the end, the heartwarming gift? Porn. Oh, this is by far my favorite. I love that Supernatural would have a Christmas season. I like South Parks woodland one as well. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![RikWriter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/49beb7/32.png) [@RikWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RikWriter)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/34 "2009-12-22T03:41:04Z")
Second the South Park Santa in Baghdad episode; that was one of the funniest things I have ever seen on television and it was funny on so many different levels. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/35 "2009-12-22T03:52:56Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > The West Wing’s episode “In Excelsis Deo”. > > Bartlet: Toby, If we start pulling strings like this don’t you think every homeless veteran will come out of the woodwork? > Toby: I can only hope so, sir. This. The hubby and I both love West Wing (especially the earlier seasons when Sorkin was still writing. But for both of us, this is one of our favorites, ever. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/36 "2009-12-22T03:53:40Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > For a serious look, the best by far is “So-Called Angel” from _My So-Called Life_. It will bring tears of joy to your eyes. [Here is it at Hulu](http://www.hulu.com/watch/88004/my-so-called-life-so-called-angels#x-0,vepisode,1,0). I always found that one a bit too schmaltzy. The two eps of So Called Life I didn’t like were the supernatural/ghosty/angel-y ones–that one, and the Halloween one with the ghost of the guy who is meant to be like Jordan Catalano. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/37 "2009-12-22T04:25:49Z")
_Big Bang Theory_. Napkin DNA. 'Nuff said. ---
**Author:** ![Trick\_Rider](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Trick\_Rider](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trick_Rider)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/38 "2009-12-22T05:48:25Z")
I really enjoyed the _Corner Gas_ Christmas special, “Merry Gasmas”. Great story, good jokes. Everything I expect out of an episode of _Corner Gas_. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/39 "2009-12-22T12:22:57Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > _Big Bang Theory_. Napkin DNA. 'Nuff said. Yes, I thought of that one last night. That was a fun episode. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2009, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024/40 "2009-12-22T13:35:25Z")
Favorite is “The Office” from S1 or 2 when they do an office gift exchange and everyone ends up getting offended. Michael brings in a $250 (and we know this because he keeps telling everyone) iPod for Ryan, despite the $20 limit, then gets openly disgusted when he opens his gift, which is handmade by Phyllis. “I spend $250 on an iPod and what do I get? An oven mitt.” So he turns it into a Chinese gift exchange which results in Dwight getting Jim’s tea pot (with a personal message inside) intended for Pam, which Dwight refuses to give up. Most hated are the shows that come up with some contrived reason why a bunch of co-workers end up spending Christmas or Thanksgiving together sans their families. It’s such an unrealistic premise that it takes me right out of the story. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favourite-and-or-most-hated-christmas-episode-of-a-tv-show/522024.md?page=3)