“If you believe in this spirit thing, the miracle will happen, and then you’ll want it to happen again tomorrow… It can happen every day, you’ve just got to want that feeling.”
– Bill Murray in SCROOGED
That’s right – it’s time to feel the moment and that holiday spirit thing. It’s time for Spoiler Free Review’s 12 days of Christmas 2022 edition! We will be posting our favorite holiday experiences with 12 reviews and illustrations of movies, TV, and music. So sit back, enjoy some spiked eggnog, and enjoy to SFR’s 12-days of Christmas 2022! 🎅
There are heartwarming but ordinary Christmas episodes of sitcom television, and then there’s ABED’S UNCONTROLLABLE CHRISTMAS, which is anything but your typical episode of COMMUNITY.
COMMUNITY was always one of the finest sitcoms of the past two decades because it was never afraid to experiment with format, genre, or meta-self-awareness. And ABED’S UNCONTROLLABLE CHRISTMAS gave us a full episode-length stop-motion animated gift in the tradition of Rankin/Bass’s RUDOLPH and YEAR WITHOUT A SANTA CLAUS. It’s an absolute classic not only for the series but also as a stand-alone Christmas special. And that’s because it’s funny and heartwarming as well.
In the special, Abed begins seeing the entire world of Greendale Community College as a stop-motion film. The Greendale Study Group and Professor Ian Duncan are concerned, particularly when Abed’s fantasies threaten his admission status to the school, so they try to stage an intervention to help him. What follows, however, ends up being a journey through the Gum-Drop Mountains, The Cave of Frozen Memories, and an unforgettable Christmas adventure where everyone learns to appreciate the meaning of Christmas.
Schmaltzy as that all sounds, the episode is clever as hell – but also incredibly somber, as the reason for the stop-motion format is revealed. For 6 straight seasons, we fell in love with the Greendale characters, and ABED’S UNCONTROLLABLE CHRISTMAS was an absolutely festive reminder as to why they became instant favorites. Cool. Cool, cool, cool. #AndAMovie.
It’s available on Netflix.
