Ahh, Christmas. Who doesn’t like this magical and surprise-filled time of the year? Toys, Christmas trees, and the first two Die Hard movies (yes, those are Christmas movies!) Yet, sometimes those can become…a little stale. To the rescue come some of the best Christmas episodes and Christmas specials. Television is often the rescue net for Christmas Eves that get a little boring. With a simple push of a few buttons on the remote, you get the chance to see the best Christmas TV episodes from your most loved shows. But, with so many Christmas shows and episodes to choose from — which shows have the greatest Christmas episodes?
While what makes up a good Christmas episode is up for debate, we’d normally expect it to have a little romance, a sense of nostalgia, a festive soundtrack, and lots of laughs. The perfect combination of these elements can be found in the good ol’ situation comedies. Shows like Friends and Seinfeld feature some of the best sitcom Christmas episodes to enjoy with the family. Indulging in those will undoubtedly create some laughs around the table as we put ourselves in the characters’ shoes and the comical situations they get into. With no harm coming to us, we can laugh and enjoy the moment for what it is — a Festivus celebration (Seinfeld fans will get this)!
With the festive season just around the corner, now is the perfect time to create a list of Christmas episodes you might want to revisit. Here at Bored Panda, we have gathered some of the best Christmas specials, gathered from both your favorite TV shows and animated series. If an episode reminded you of the good old times, upvote it. If you remember an episode from the show that you watch every Christmas, comment it down below and share your thoughts!
#1 Doctor Who, "A Christmas Carol"
There have been many small-screen adaptations of the famous novella, but none more unique than Doctor Who's – which was somehow very obviously Dickensian but also uniquely, unmistakably, completely Doctor Who.
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19points
#2 A Charlie Brown Christmas (Christmas Special)
This is the most traditional of them all. In this television special, the Peanuts group searches for meaning over the holiday season. Lucy decides to make Charlie Brown the play's director in an effort to restore his smile because he is having a bad day. This helps everyone understand the genuine meaning of the holiday and always makes people feel good while they're watching.
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18points
#3 M*A*S*H, "Death Takes A Holiday" (Season 9, Episode 5)
In this heartbreaking M*A*S*H episode, the group plays music for orphans in their tent while desperately attempting to save a wounded soldier on Christmas.
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18points
#4 Mr. Bean, "Merry Christmas Mr. Bean" (Episode 7)
The hilarious tinkering with the model Nativity scene, the absurd attempts to command the brass band, and the dreadfully awful present choice are just a few examples (in a sequence featuring an on-again off-again girlfriend). And the turkey, of course. On Bean's head. Is there anything left to say?
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18points
#5 Pinky And The Brain, "A Pinky And The Brain Christmas" (Season 1, Episode 8)
Pinky and The Brain's take on Christmas will amuse both kids and adults, with grownups giggling at pop culture references and criticism of the holiday's commercialization, while youngsters merely laugh whenever Brain does something ridiculous.
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15points
#6 Bob's Burgers, "Christmas In The Car" (Season 4, Episode 8)
Yes, the Belchers' last-minute Christmas activities are as bizarre and amusing as you'd anticipate.
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14points
#7 The Simpsons, "Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire" (Season 1, Episode 1)
The Simpsons' first episode to air perfectly captures the essence of America's favorite family: Marge spends the entire family Christmas budget on the removal of Bart Simpson's tattoo when he gets one. Homer works as a mall Santa to make ends meet and provide for his kids during the holiday season after learning that he won’t receive any Christmas bonus from his boss Mr. Burns. However, he ends up losing all of his money at a dog race. The Simpsons take in the last-place greyhound when his owner abandons him, renaming him Santa's Little Helper. We do indeed cry.
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13points
#8 Futurama, "Xmas Story" (Season 2, Episode 4)
This episode is a great early example of Futurama playing for drama as well as comedy. Fry misses the traditions of home and childhood; whether we've moved ten miles down the road or a thousand years into the future, that's a sentiment we can all experience. The combination between nostalgia and nutso humor makes this a holiday standout. The pogoing lobster, voice-activated ski slope, and the comically aggressive St. Nick are 30th-century icing on a classic cake.
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12points
#9 Ted Lasso, "Carol Of The Bells" (Season 2, Episode 4)
Although Ted Lasso dared to release its season 2 Christmas episode in the middle of the summer, the controversial episode is filled with enough heartfelt seasonal cheer to make anyone believe it is winter time.
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11points
#10 How I Met Your Mother, "How Lily Stole Christmas" (Season 2, Episode 11)
The story about the time that storyteller Ted (Josh Radnor) called (Alyson Hannigan's) Lily a "grinch" during Christmas Time is the second most sanitized version of his earlier years, right after "eating a sandwich."
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11points
#11 Black Mirror, "White Christmas"
Christmas in Black Mirror! And it's exactly how it sounds!
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11points
#12 Community, "Abed's Uncontrollable Christmas" (Season 2, Episode 11)
We all grew up watching stop-motion versions of Christmas tales on television, so it only makes sense that Community's season 2 holiday episode would take inspiration from Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town (1970).
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11points
#13 Eureka, "Do You See What I See" (Season 4, Episode 21)
The holiday episode "Do You See What I See" features a wave of vibrant energy that descends upon Eureka, transforming every person into a hyper-colorful cartoon figure.
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11points
#14 Father Ted, "A Christmassy Ted" (Christmas Special)
The Priest Chatback line, Ted's acceptance speech for the Golden Cleric award, and Mrs. Doyle's shock at receiving a tea maker as a present. The character comedy and farce are marked with a hint of the surreal, as in all the best Father Ted episodes. Mrs. Doyle's increasingly complicated windowsill falls never fail to amuse, and the gang of priests' desperate, epic attempts to flee "Ireland's biggest lingerie section" are sublimely ridiculous.
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11points
#15 The Office, "Office Party" (Season 2, Episode 10)
Dunder Mifflin from The Office has its fair share of memorable Christmases, but nothing beats the Secret Santa gone wrong episode from season 2 thanks to an inappropriate iPod gift and some classic Jim-Pam love tension.
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10points
#16 Lost, "The Constant" (Season 4, Episode 5)
Lost's ageless time-traveling masterpiece isn't just one of the best Christmas episodes; it's one of the best TV episodes ever.
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10points
#17 Friends, "The One With The Holiday Armadillo" (Season 7, Episode 10)
Thanksgiving is not the only celebration that can be enjoyed with friends! You're tougher than we are if you can sit through the Holiday Armadillo's (David Schwimmer's Ross) Hanukkah lesson all the way to Joey's encounter with Superman (Matt LeBlanc's Joey) without once collapsing into a burst of holiday laughter.
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9points
#18 Mad Men, "Christmas Waltz" (Season 5, Episode 10)
It was entertaining when Roger (John Slattery) wore a Santa outfit, but Mad Men's best holiday episode has to be this gloomy season 5 episode. Nobody wears heartbreak nearly as elegantly as Don (Jon Hamm) and Joan (Christina Hendricks) do in a bar or during Christmas in a Jaguar.
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9points
#19 Seinfeld, "The Strike" (Season 9, Episode 10)
We apologize for calling "The Strike" the Christmas episode of Seinfeld. Happy Festivus to everybody!
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9points
#20 Downtown Abbey, "Christmas At Downtown Abbey"
The second season of Downton Abbey came to a beautiful end with a Christmas special that, in turn, featured a flawlessly romantic marriage proposal in the snow.
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9points