Best Christmas sitcom episodes on Netflix and Stan
Nothing beats a Christmas episode of your favourite TV shows. To get you in the festive mood, we’ve rounded up some of the best to stream right now.
It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas – and what better way to feel the festive vibe than watching the yuletide episodes of your favourite TV show?
Traditionally, many sitcoms offer up a classic holiday episode (and some shows, like Friends, would go all out for Halloween, Thanksgiving and sometimes New Year’s Eve, too).
While Seinfeld would often feature Christmas on the show (“You want a Christmas card? Here’s your Christmas card!”), that show’s true, iconic holiday legacy will always be Festivus.
And in case you think your family is a little dysfunctional, look no further than the Gilmore Girls to make you feel better about yourself.
For a modern retelling of the story of Christmas, Big Mouth has a modern version featuring Baby Cheesus (he’s made of cheese, obviously).
So trim your tree, turn on the fairy lights, and tune in to some of the funniest holiday shows to stream.
Community Season 3, Episode 10: “Regional Holiday Music” (Netflix)
No show dissected cultural norms like Community. When this show was operating at peak efficiency, it created masterworks of sitcom storytelling every single week – and Season 3’s “Regional Holiday Music” is a perfect example of that.
This episode skewers the Glee craze by cramming an entire holiday musical into a half-hour episode (with a dash of Invasion of the Body Snatchers because Community’s gotta Community). But Community never critiqued a genre without genuine insight, and this episode deals with our very real desire to ignore the bad stuff in our heads by covering it up with tinsel.
In the end, the only way we can get through the holidays – and life – is by helping each other out. Also all of the songs are killer Christmas classics.
Seinfeld Season 9, Episode 10: “The Strike” (Netflix)
That pole you see in Frank Costanza’s hand? That there is a Festivus pole.
In 1997, during Seinfeld’s ninth and final season, we received the greatest holiday gift of all in the form of “The Strike,” the episode that brought us the elder Costanza’s made up holiday, Festivus, held on December 23.
On Festivus, we feast on a meal together, decorate our homes with an unadorned aluminium pole, air our grievances against anyone who has disappointed us, and join in the feats of strength.
No one, especially not Frank Costanza, would have ever dreamt that in 2021 there would be dozens of websites and retailers dedicated solely to the celebration of Festivus and its wares.
The Office Season 2, Episode 3: “Christmas Party” (Stan)
No show captures the awkwardness of modern life quite like The Office. Even 15 years later, all the emotions in “Christmas Party” – Phyllis’ pain, Stanley’s boredom, Jim’s panic, Angela’s rage – still feels fresh. It’s also remarkable that no other workplace sitcom (other than the UK Office) has come close to capturing what it’s like being forced to have after-hours holiday fun at work.
But besides all the cringe humour caused by Michael turning Secret Santa into Dirty Santa/White Elephant/Yankee Swap, there are packets of joy for you to open every year. (Hint: they’re in the teapot.)
Fraiser Season 3, Episode 9: “Frasier Grinch” (Stan)
Christmas can be tough for everyone, and Frasier – a sitcom about a divorced man living with his blue collar dad – spoke to how the holiday is difficult for fathers and sons. After all, gift giving can shine a spotlight on just how little a dad knows about his kid and vice versa.
In addition to being quick-witted affair (“The Cranes of Maine have got your Living Brain!”), this episode unpacks how hard it can be for parents to find common ground with their children. It’s especially hard when a son wants a stupid hunk of plastic called Outlaw Laser Robo Geek and you don’t find out until Christmas Eve.
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Season 2, Episode 3: “Christmas Show” (Stan)
The cast doubles in size with the arrival of Aunt Viv’s sisters, including a fantastically feisty Jenifer Lewis. There’s a literal closeness to this episode, since the cabin they rented is half the size they expected. But there’s a familiar familial closeness between all of these characters, especially as they deal with the fallout of a burglar stealing their Christmas. This episode is what Christmas in a big family feels like.
Gilmore Girls Season 1, Episode 10: “Forgiveness and Stuff” (Netflix)
As Stars Hollow gears up for Christmas as only Stars Hollow can (quirky pageant in which baby Jesus is missing an arm), the women of the Gilmore family are all at odds. Rory (Alexis Bledel) and Lorelei (Lauren Graham) aren’t getting along, while Lorelei angered her mother Emily (Kelly Bishop) and was uninvited from Emily’s big Christmas party.
While Rory attends the party solo, Lorelei spends the night listening to The Waitresses’ “Christmas Wrapping” (classic Amy Sherman-Palladino music supervision) and hanging with Luke (Scott Patterson), until they’re forced to race to the hospital after Richard Gilmore (Edward Hermann) has a heart attack.
Kelly Bishop’s performance is a master class in cold, angry WASPiness and it’s the epitome of classic Gilmore Girls.
30 Rock Season 2, Episode 9: “Ludachristmas” (Stan)
Liz Lemon (Tina Fey) seems to come from a perfect family. Her mum and dad (Anita Gillette and Buck Henry) adore her, and they dote on her brother Mitch (Andy Richter) whose memory is trapped in a 1985 time loop as a result of a skiing accident.
Meanwhile, Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) is thrilled that his mother Colleen (Elaine Stritch, one of 30 Rock’s great recurring guest stars) can’t make it to New York for the holidays. When she arrives unexpectedly, she sabotages the Lemons’ holiday meal, culminating in Liz revealing to Mitch that he’s not actually trapped in 1985 and Liz learns she’s been a huge disappointment to her parents. Jack and Colleen toast to their much less dysfunctional relationship.
Big Mouth Season 5, Episode 8: “A Very Big Mouth Christmas” (Netflix)
A Very Big Mouth Christmas is a very special episode of Big Mouth hosted by live puppet versions of hormone monsters Connie (Maya Rudolph) and Maury (Nick Kroll), featuring the cast of the show learning about classic holiday stories with that X-rated Big Mouth sensibility we know and love.
In one story, Jessi learns the injustice of the Virgin Mary getting impregnated without the pleasure of having had sex first.
And for a Hanukkah tale, Andrew laments being the only Jewish kid in a world full of Christians until he magically converts and enjoys all the good (and evil) that Christianity has to offer.
New Girl Season 4, Episode 11: “LAXmas” (Netflix)
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Jess (Zooey Deschanel) and the whole gang are going their separate ways for Christmas and they rideshare to LAX together. When they arrive at the airport, it’s utter chaos thanks to a bunch of cancelled and delayed flights and everyone tries their best to reschedule.
Jess starts to spiral when she learns that her new boyfriend that she’s going to visit basically lives in a castle in England, and Schmidt (Max Greenfield) and Cece (Hannah Simone) live it up in the VIP lounge. You know that when Billy Eichner shows up as an angry airline reservationist, the energy is going to get real, you know, Billy Eichner.
This article originally appeared on Decider and was reproduced with permission
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