It’s Christmas time. Again. Ugh, it feels like this happens almost every year. But at least we get to saddle up on the couch and enjoy some of our favorite Christmas episodes on Television. Like that time Al Bundy was visited by the Angel Sam Kinison on “Marred… with Children,” or that episode of “Doctor Who” where Michael Gambon was some kind of flying shark Scrooge.
And oh hey, remember the first-ever episode of “The Simpsons” where Homer didn’t get his Christmas bonus? And remember that one “Twilight Zone” where the homeless man became Santa Claus? Or that awesome stop-motion episode of “Community?”
Related: 15 Awesome, Odd & Incredibly Bizarre Christmas Episodes
Of course you do. Because everyone remembers them. They’re the classics, the episodes people watch every single year to feel a sense of nostalgia (really, really recent nostalgia in some cases) for happy times gone by. But the best part of Christmas isn’t just the traditions, it’s getting to make new ones. And we here at CraveOnline thought the time had come to upgrade your Christmas episode repertoire.
So here are our picks for 12 Underrated Christmas Episodes, which warmed our hearts, tickled our funny bones or just plain kicked ass, but which never quite made it into the pop culture history books. Some are from shows that didn’t get enough love in the first place. Others were overshadowed by more popular Christmas episodes from the exact same series. But all of them… just need a little love.
12 Underrated Christmas Episodes:
What are YOUR favorite underrated Christmas episodes? Let us know so we can put them on our list next year!
William Bibbiani is the editor of CraveOnline’s Film Channel and the host of The B-Movies Podcast and The Blue Movies Podcast. Follow him on Twitter at @WilliamBibbiani.
12 Underrated Christmas Episodes
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The X-Files
Episode 6.06 - "How the Ghosts Stole Christmas"
One of surprisingly few Christmas episodes of the long-running TV series "The X-Files" starred Ed Asner and Lily Tomlin as ghosts who try to get Mulder and Scully to murder each other. How Christmas-y is that? Kind of Christmas-y, at least for "The X-Files." The haunted house schtick is pleasingly old-fashioned and the heartwarming near-death finale leads to a very sweet, totally earned final scene where our two agents exchange presents, even though they promised they wouldn't.
Highlight: The ghost shenanigans can't hold a candle to the "aw, shucks" last moments of the episode.
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The Tick
Episode 2.10 - "The Tick Loves Santa!"
The cartoon superhero series "The Tick" was years ahead of its time, toying with superhero clichés long before the genre finally gained a foothold in the mainstream. One of the most memorable episodes was this almost-wholesome installment, in which the goody two-shoes title hero is helpless to stop a supervillain dressed like Santa Claus, because dang it, no hero could possibly punch Santa.
Highlight: The Tick finally has the evil Santa in his grasp, but the most he can bring himself to do is give the bad guy a noogie.
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Supernatural
Episode 3.08 - "A Very Supernatural Christmas"
The long-running action-fantasy series "Supernatural" poked gentle fun at the pagan history of the Christmas holiday in this amusing episode, where demon hunters Hank & Dean investigate a string of murders that might have been perpetrated by an evil Santa. The truth is a little less ridiculous than that (but only a little), and the flashbacks to Hank & Dean's early Christmases on the road with their father lead to a properly manly yuletide finale of gifting each other gas station presents and watching football.
Highlight: Young Hank tries to convince Dean their father didn't forget Christmas by stealing gifts from a nearby house, but the ruse falls apart when the gifts include a Barbie doll.
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The Simpsons
Episode 11. 17 - "Marge Be Not Proud"
It's time to go Christmas shopping, but Marge doesn't know that Bart's been banned from the store because he was caught shoplifting. Marge doesn't punish him, she just gives up on believing there's anything good about her son. It's darker than usual, but that just makes Bart's redemption all the more satisfying in an episode we prefer to the classic original Christmas special.
Highlight: Bart's Christmas present, which is kind of exactly what he wanted but also the exact opposite. Who hasn't been there?
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Newsradio
Episode 2.10 - "Xmas Story"
One of the funniest sitcoms of the 1990s produced one of the funniest Christmas episodes ever. The cast buys Jimmy James a fancy gift, only to receive crappy hats in return. When Jimmy realizes his mistake, he buys everyone except Matthew a sports car. Meanwhile, Bill is receiving death threats from a Salvation Army Santa, and no one believes him. Unexpected twists and perfect "Newsradio" timing make this one an under-appreciated classic.
Highlight: Matthew, who completely fails to notice that he's been screwed out of a car.
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Married... with Children
Episode 2.13 - "You Better Watch Out"
The "Married... With Children" episode where Sam Kinison guest stars as an angel usually overshadows this classic Christmas installment, in which a sky-diving Santa falls to his death on The Bundy's roof. Al is forced to play Santa to the kids in the neighborhood in a spiteful way only "Married... With Children" could get away with. This episode was so dark it starts with a warning that children shouldn't watch it. We did anyway.
Highlight: More of a running gag, the total apathy to which the Bundy family reacts to the death of Santa is an absolutely hilarious contrast to the very concept of Christmas.
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Justice League: Unlimited
Episode 49 - "Comfort and Joy"
The Justice League has Christmas off, and embark on separate adventures that warm the heart and tickle the funny bone. The Flash agrees to find a sold out Christmas toy for a bunch of orphans and runs afoul of the Ultra-Humanite, Hawkgirl and Green Lantern get in an epic snowball fight and bar brawl, and Superman takes Martian Manhunter home for an old-fashioned Kent family Christmas.
The Highlight: Superman, under the tree, stymied by Christmas presents wrapped in lead foil. It's probably the naughtiest thing he ever tried to do.
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Invader Zim
Episode 29: "The Most Horrible X-Mas Ever"
It's Christmas on Earth, and the would-be invader Zim doesn't know the meaning of X-Mas. So he sucks it out of the brain of a street Santa Claus and uses the information to build a nanobot Santa suit and conquer the planet. Meanwhile, Dib uses his father's anti-Santa arsenal to save the day, which ironically ruins Christmas for everybody. This episode is a perennial for "Invader Zim" fans, but it deserves to be mentioned in the same hushed whispers usually reserved for "Charlie Brown."
Highlight: Mini-Moose, a brand new character whom everyone treats like he's always been part of the show. "Yup! Been with me the whole time..."
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House M.D.
Episode 5.11 - "Joy to the World"
A teenaged girl collapses from mysterious liver failure at a Christmas pageant, and grumpy M.D. Gregory House bets his best friend he can't get one of his patients to give him a Christmas present. "Joy to the World" is basically just another great episode of "House," but with an unexpected subplot involving a medical miracle for Christmas, twisted all up into a cynical ball.
Highlight: That medical miracle? Oh, you just wait for it...
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Doctor Who
Episode 225: "The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe"
Of all the "Doctor Who" Christmas specials (which pop up nearly annually, so they're really more like regular episodes), we find that "The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe" is among the least appreciated. Especially compared to "A Christmas Carol" and "Voyage of the Damned." But it's just lovely. The 11th Doctor plays Mary Poppins to a family in World War II and brings them to a planet of Christmas trees that's unfortunately been scheduled for demolition. The heroine is someone to look up to, everyone loves giant robots, and Matt Smith plays the whole thing like he just jumped out of a fairy tale.
Highlight: The Doctor has tricked out the kids' room with so many toys he didn't have room for bed. That's okay. Cue the retractable hammocks!
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Community
Episode 3.10 - "Regional Holiday Music"
Everyone loves the stop-motion animated holiday episode from Season 2, but "Regional Holiday Music" is a classic too. The cast of "Community" is suckered into a cult-like Glee Club and filled with suspicious Christmas cheer, but is something darker going on? And will they make it to Regionals? What the heck are Regionals, anyway?
Highlight: We want to say it's Troy and Abed's hilarious number, "Baby Boomer Christmas," but come on... it's Alison Brie in a sexy Santa outfit singing "Teach Me How to Understand Christmas." No, she didn't hit a point of diminishing return on the sexiness.
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Batman: The Brave and the Bold
Episode 1.04 - "Invasion of the Secret Santas!"
The 1960s-inspired Batman series "The Brave and the Bold" was either a wonderful retro throwback or a cloying no-no setback for the Dark Knight's TV resume, depending on who you talk to. But we loved it. In this episode, Batman and The Red Tornado - a robot who (naturally) doesn't know the meaning of Christmas - team up to stop the villain Fun Haus from wrecking the holiday with his army of evil toys.
Highlight: As family-friendly as "The Brave and the Bold" was, this was the episode where they showed the death of Bruce Wayne's parents, an emotional wallop that's made all the worse by happening on Christmas, when Bruce was mad at his father for not getting the present he wanted. Sheesh. No wonder he's so screwed up.
