Review written by Christian Garcia
On the 3rd Day of Christmas, ole Cee Gee gave to me: the Nickelodeon Christmas Specials!!
Background & Thoughts:
Growing up in the 90s and early 2000’s, I loved Nickelodeon. I loved a lot of the classic shows, but my 3 favorites were SpongeBob, Fairly OddParents and Rugrats. Part of why these 3 became my favorites was their Christmas specials and I thought I would share them with you today!!
Fairly OddParents: Christmas EveryDay!
Like in Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas, the Fairly OddParents also tackle the idea of what life would be like if it were Christmas every day. But while the Donald Duck telling was more whimsical, the Fairly OddParents tell it in a more comedic way.
The opening number “I Wish Every Day Could Be Christmas” is one of my favorite songs from the Fairly OddParents and one of my favorite holiday songs in general. The magical montage of Timmy Turner swimming around his toy ocean is one of the first things that comes to my mind when I think of Christmas.
Like the classic story, at first having every day be Christmas is great but as time goes on it begins to negatively affect not only Timmy Turner but the rest of the world. I like how the whole world is aware that it is Christmas every day whereas in the Donald Duck version only Huey, Dewey, and Louie know. This causes other holiday icons like the Easter Bunny and Cupid to do something about it and take their anger out on Santa which leads to a funny and action-packed climax. I believe this is one of the only times I’ve ever seen Santa interact with other holiday icons let alone battle them and I love this special even more because of that.
In the end, Timmy learns the same lesson of how Christmas should be cherished for only being one day a year and is able to set everything right. I was already a big Fairly OddParents fan when this special came out, but this episode solidified itself as a Christmas classic that I make sure to tune into every year.
SpongeBob Christmas Special (aka Christmas Who?)
SpongeBob has always been one of my favorite shows and it’s a show that I have watched so much that I can quote it verbatim. This holiday episode always holds a special place in my heart because it takes me back to that time as a child where you just got off school for the holiday break and are ready to kick back, relax and ring in the holidays. The opening act with Patchy the Pirate still always cracks me up with his funny banter with Potty the Parrot (especially when he yanks Potty so hard that the puppeteer comes crashing down).
The special itself is a great time getting watch SpongeBob and the rest of Bikini Bottom experience Christmas for the very first time. The song “Very First Christmas” is another favorite song of mine and one that I always play to signify that the holiday season has arrived. When Santa fails to arrive in Bikini Bottom, SpongeBob and the rest of the inhabitants are crushed while Squidward’s rubs it in their faces. But we then get a very touching moment where SpongeBob gives Squidward a custom-made gift that really shows how a thoughtful act of kindness can make even the biggest grouch smile. Squidward then goes to great lengths to cheer SpongeBob up and the episode ends on a very happy note seeing Squidward bringing joy to SpongeBob and all of Bikini Bottom.
Rugrats: The Santa Experience
Before SpongeBob came along, Rugrats was the undisputed hit show of Nick. The show has a handful of holiday specials under its belt including a Hanukkah special, Passover special, and even a Kwanza special. Truthfully, I learned a lot more about those holidays because of the Rugrats specials. And of course, there was their Christmas episode known as the Santa Experience.
It combines the classic story of the naughty child trying to be good with the Gift of the Magi and a catch Santa plot for a fun and memorable Christmas special. Angelica gets herself in hot water after playing a trick on Phil and Lil and tries her best to atone for her actions to avoid getting coal for Christmas. Meanwhile, Tommy and Chuckie plot to catch Santa Claus so Tommy can prove to Chuckie that Santa isn’t scary.
The story is a cute little adventure that includes families all getting together to celebrate Christmas and the babies getting into their own Christmas hijinks. Angelica’s journey to try and make it on Santa’s Nice list is a story that has been done before but is done well and is appropriate for the naughtiest child in the Rugrats gang. Seeing Angelica share a moment of kindness with Phil and Lil is very heartwarming. The episode is topped off with a surprise appearance from ole Saint Nick and his moment with each of the Rugrats is cute, especially with Chuckie.
This episode is more grounded than most Rugrats episodes as the kids don’t have a crazy imaginative experience. I appreciate that it’s just the kids being wrapped up in the holiday festivities. It’s a special that I always take time to tune into. I had a fun experience watching it with my girlfriend and seeing her remember the episode from her childhood. Moments like that are what make me love holiday specials so much.
Conclusion:
If you grew up in the 90s and especially with Nickelodeon, these Christmas specials are timeless classics that hold up incredibly well. I go out of my way to watch them every year and I know when I have children of my own one day that I will show them these specials. If you want a bit of 90s nostalgia along with some Christmas joy, these specials are for you!
Also given that there are so many classic Nick shows with their own Holiday Specials, I would like to acknowledge some honorable mentions:
Rugrats Chanukah
A Rugrats Kwanzaa
Holly Jolly Jimmy - Jimmy Neutron
Fright Before Christmas - Danny Phantom
A Robot For All Seasons – My Life As a Teenage Robot
Doug’s Christmas Story - Doug
An Even Steven Holiday Special – As Told By Ginger
A Very Merry CatDog Christmas – CatDog
Now I know what you may be thinking..
No, I did not forget. There is a very special Nickelodeon Holiday special that I believe is the best of them all and I will dive more into it in my next review…. Stay tuned!!!!
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