As December begins, so does Christmas. And with it comes merriment, goodwill to all men, and
Mistletoe And Wine being played so often that you want to garrotte Cliff Richard with Christmas tree lights. But one of the biggest Christmas staples is the sitcom Christmas special. And to celebrate the start of the festive season, weve compiled the twenty five best ones. But before we begin, two things: 1. This list is subjective. As much of a socially stunted sitcom addict as I am, there are sitcoms that I either havent seen or just dont care for. And 2.To be eligible or a place on this list, two criteria must be met. It has to be a sitcom. Panel shows, sketch shows, and comedy dramas arent eligible. The plot has to involve Christmas. Being broadcast at Christmas isnt enough to get it on this list. So, with that in mind, let's dive in...
25. The Simpsons Grift Of The Magi (FOX, 1999)
A corporation takes over Springfield elementary school and uses the children to come up with ideas for a new toy named Funzo. Originally, this slot was filled by the series very first episode
Simpsons Roasting On An Open Fire but on a rewatch, I found to be a bit shaky (which is understandable since its the first episode) and just not as funny as I remembered. So delving into the episodes of
The Simpsons I knew from before I stopped watching it (Around Series 17), I rediscovered
Grift Of The Magi. Although, its a Christmas episode, it sidesteps the traditional sitcom Christmas jokes, focussing more on satirising the commercial side of it. As a nineteen year old resident of the UK, the Gary Coleman cameo really doesnt do anything for me and it takes a while for the plot to get going but, as mentioned, theres some good satire in there and a nicely executed parody of various well known Christmas stories at the end.
Best Moment: Homer, Bart, and Lisa stealing all the Funzos after discovering that they are programmed to destroy other toys.