There’s just something about Christmas specials. No other special holiday programming does as good a job at making you feel happy and warm. No holiday season is complete without our favorite Christmas movies and TV episodes that stations would inevitably line up at the start of December. But among hundreds of programs that saturate the Christmas airwaves, there are several forgotten jewels that don’t get nearly enough praise. If you’ve already rewatched How The Grinch Stole Christmas and A Charlie Brown Christmas, check out the specials you might have forgotten over the years!
1. Olive the Other Reindeer
While sort of unorthodox in the context of run-of-the-mill Christmas specials, this movie’s quirky art style, lovable characters and unique plot make it one of the best Cartoon Network holiday specials. Based on a pun on the song “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” Olive’s journey to save Christmas is not one to be missed.
2. Spongebob Squarepants: “Christmas Who?”
You may have forgotten the episode name, but you surely haven’t forgotten the episode’s featured song, “The Very First Christmas.” Watching Bikini Bottom’s citizens discover the joys of Christmas is fun and hilarious, especially since Squidward becomes an automatic humbug.
3. The Polar Express
Though Polar Express got a lot of attention when it first premiered, through the years it slowly slid out of the public’s collective conscious. Its groundbreaking use of new performance capture technology was significant and added new life to the CGI characters. No matter your age, this movie manages to make you feel like a little kid waiting for Santa and the sound of those bells.
4. The Powerpuff Girls: “Twas the Fight Before Christmas”
The special offered a different spin on the usual warm fuzzy feelings Christmas specials go for for and had the girls defeating the Powerpuff Girl wannabe, Princess, before she could ruin Christmas for all the children of Earth.
5. Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas
This special is the oldest on the list, but the values and messages it portrayed are timeless. Starring everyone from Mickey Mouse to Scrooge McDuck, this Disney special consisted of three shorts that emphasized the importance of generosity, love and family and how Christmas can bring out the very best of humanity.